Cades Cove camping...

Since we live so close to Cades Cove, we camp there as often as we can get away from the farm.  It's almost addictive, with peaceful, beautiful scenery, a wonderful campground, abundant wildlife (turkey, deer, fox, black bears (with babies, if you're lucky) and of course, the relaxing drive through the cove.  This little settlement was the last area lived in by the original residents before the National Park Service bought the land.  Several of the original cabins, barns and churches still stand.  The cemeteries are full of old headstones, dating back several generations.  On this trip, we took our sweet 3 year old granddaughter (Alayna) for her very first camp outing...for more info: 
 http://www.cadescove.net/camping_cades_cove.html

There's hundreds of miles of hiking, biking and horseback trails too!  I've ridden my mule over several of them and the best word to describe the scenery....breathtaking!!  Creeks, valleys, wildlife, gorgeous flowers, ridges...you see it all!!

Alayna...morning after spending 1st night in tent!  Her first words that morning..."NeeCee, I love this tent & this cot's perfect for me!"  She stayed happy throughout the 4 days...

Uncle Jordan and Alayna, on the porch of the old Tipton place

The old Tipton fireplace was the perfect "frame" for this one!!

Poppa preparing his mouth-watering beef stew (campfire style)!

The old Tipton place

Whether you live nearby or across the country, this is a wonderful place to visit!!

WHERE to begin???

I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted, but...there's been gardening, camping, riding in the mountains, keeping the grandbaby, camping, riding in the mountains, keeping the grandbaby...oh, I think I've repeated myself, well...you know I have turned 54 since I last posted, and you can see by the sequence of events, what my priorities are!! :-) 

Is it hot where you are??  I know the last few days it's been in the high 90's here and we're in the mountains.  Humidity, heat, sweat (that, I hate) has kept us in the house for the most part.  We go out and do our chores early in the morning, but we're back in the house ASAP.  We went camping for a week at Cades Cove about 2 weeks ago and had to have cover at night...saw 11 bears - 3 momas with babies and a big male.  Met up with a mule buddy (Lynda Carr) and she brought her mules over from Sevierville and we rode the Cove trail one day.  Ten miles, 5 hours in the saddle with my stirrups too short...knees hurt that evening, but was fine the next day.  Went riding again with her this last Friday, took my saddle, rode 12 miles, 6 hours in the saddle and went up 5000' elevation...Rich Mountain trail out of Cades Cove...BEAUTIFUL overlooks and views of the Cove and Tuckaleechee Valley, cool but humid AND NOT sore a bit (guess this ol' gal's still got it!)!!  Wonderful memories with a great friend!  All's great here at AWESOME ASS ACRES...the hens are laying, the rooster's crowing, the peahen's settin' (YEA!!), the peacock's struttin', (in fact, I think he's in love with me...he fans his tail feathers every time I'm around), the mules are braying, horses neighing, the goat and sheep are bleatin' and we're all healthy!!  We're having fresh tomatoes, squash, beans, cucumbers from the garden, so we're eating good AND I forgot to mention that we have a new lamb.  He was born while we were camping, but he's healthy and cute as a button...black and white, just like Ray, our ram.  BTW, we're calling him FAA, to add to the others -- Doe, Ray, Mee! 

I've also been painting "in my spare time"...several ACEO's, a couple of guineas on old roofing slates, and I'm trying my hand at a "Paint Your Own Painted Pony".  I should have it finished and listed on Ebay by the end of the week. 

Last, but definitely not least, we've had Alayna (our 2 1/2 yr. old grandbaby) visit twice in the last month!  Her mom and dad (our son and his wife) are expecting another little one in December.  Mom's doing great now, but had a few days of needing a little extra rest, so.....we were the chosen ones to entertain that sweet little girl and entertain we did!!  Barbies, coloring books, story books, feeding chickens, gathering eggs, building blocks, painting, playing in the wading pool, cuddling in the rocking chair, taking naps, telling tales, a whole lot of laughing and of course, the BIG thing...riding in the golf cart around the farm, was our daily routine while she was here!  Too much fun AND soooo looking forward to her next visit!!  Take care, God bless and happy trails from AWESOME ASS ACRES!!  I'll be posting pictures soon!!

SPRING...Daffodils and MULE DAY!!!!!

I LOVE springtime!! There's nothing like looking out and seeing my daffodils bloomin'! Audrey, my sweet mother-in-law, calls them "Johnnyquils"...so, I always think of her when I see the first bloom! She turns 90 in August and has only recently slowed from doing her own yard work, quilting, going camping with us, and frying the BEST apple/peach pies, known of, in this hemisphere! Her mind's still as sharp as ever, with twinkling eyes and always something sweet to say! A very wonderful human being...none better!

We're also gearing up for our annual trip to Columbia, TN for Mule Day! We'll leave on Saturday, March 28 and return on Sunday, April 5. We'll head out with the wagon train on Sunday morning (March 29), travel through some of the prettiest back roads in the country for 4 days, then pull into the Maury County park on Wednesday to join the other thousands of mule enthusiasts...about 250,000 folks showed up last year!! We've made this trip for 15 years and it just seems to get better each time! Ridin', campin', campfire, great friends, long ears, and non-stop brayin'...what could be better?? Watch for pics when I return!!