FALL GIVEAWAY! COMMENT TO WIN!!

There's so many bloggers that offer items to be given away during certain times of the year...so I've decided to jump on the mule wagon!!  As my blog sometimes mention, we have a good size garden every year, here at AWESOME ASS ACRES.  We freeze, can, sell, give away vegetables, throughout the growing season and enjoy the process of it all.  Our favorite canned item is, by far, my red sweet pickles.  I've been using this recipe for about 20 years and it's ALWAYS a favorite of anyone that likes sweet pickles.  They're sooooo good with any kind of meat dish and are a pretty addition to any meal!  Crispy, sweet, would remind you of candied apples at the fair!

I will be giving away a pint jar full of these delicious, sweet, crispy pickles + the hard to find recipe! 

The drawing will be held on Thursday, October 29, 2009 at 8PM, using a random number generator.  I will contact the winner by email.

Directions to participate:
Each time you leave a comment on this particular post = 1 entry
Each time you leave a comment on any post on my blog AND mention pickles = 1 entry
Each time you mention my blog in your blog = 2 entries
If you pass this info on and that person gives you as a reference = 2 entries
If you leave a comment and you're a current follower OR if you become a follower = 2 entries

I'd love to get as many folks involved as possible, so tell your friends, email your contacts, spread the word any way you'd like!!!  BELIEVE ME -- these pickles are worth your entry, so have fun and GOOD LUCK!!

*Due to shipping, this drawing will only apply to continental US residents.

CATCHING UP!

Wonderful rain here in East Tennessee!  After the last 2 years of drought conditions, we've finally had plenty of rain this year...it's been great for our garden, flowers, hay production and of course, look what else it leaves behind!!

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

I've been wanting to post some pics, (not been able to catch any of that white fawn, but still trying) so, I've "captured" Jerry, our little male kitten from several posts back. 

He was soooo small then, but he's really turning into a BIG cat!!  He hasn't made his appointment for the "male procedure", but that's next! 

Well, time's counting down for our big trip!  We're sooo excited!  We'll be camping every night and we LOVE to camp, so that's going to be fun, in itself!  We're both wide eyed and adventurous, so to go, see and do things, we've never done is going to be a memorable time...not to mention, we're down home, stay home, deep South Johnny Rebs and we don't know what to expect past the Kentucky line!!  I'm just hoping that folks can understand what we say and visa-versa! 

We had our farrier out yesterday and I've got to brag on our little yearling filly mule, ChaCha!  This was her second trimming and she was perfect both times!!  Jeremy, (farrier) couldn't believe her manners.  She's laid back and gentle and very smart.  Of course, her mom, Minnie (Haflinger) is the same way.  Nothing bothers her and she's there to please you!  When we return from our trip, my round pen's going to be in use...I hope to have ChaCha ground driving by spring!   I can't help but think about her 1/2 brother (Tango) that we lost last year (3 days old) due to a vet's misdiagnosis...he matched her EXACTLY and would've been just as sweet, I'm sure. 

Thanks for stopping by and be sure to leave a word or two, to let me know you were here!! 

NEW USER NAME ON EBAY!!

Well, Ebay's "user name police" have caught up with me and insisted that I find a user name that doesn't fit in the profanity category! I was notified this weekend, given 24 hours to comply, so I hastily changed from "AWESOME ASS ART" to "ANDERSONS AWESOME ART". It's really kinda comical to me, considering the listings that I've ran across on Ebay...everything from bumper stickers to specialized adult "toys"!! There's so many artists on Ebay and the competition is fierce...I'm thinking that someone may have reported my user name, after all, I've used it for over a year! I guess they're not considering the reason behind the name!! Whatever the case may be, I'm still painting and still being inspired here at AWESOME ASS ACRES!!
Our garden's producing beans, tomatoes, squash, radishes and corn! We've put up hay this week...400+ square bales and 50+ round bales...we hope to get another cutting in the fall!
We're planning a trip up the east coast to celebrate our 25th anniversary last year (just a year late)...hopefully, we're leaving the last part of August and staying 6 weeks! This will be the longest we've ever been gone from the farm and the only trip we'll be taking for a long while. If anyone has any suggestions or tips, please leave a comment or drop me a note!! I hope everyone had a great 4th of July! Take care...stop in again!

CAPTAIN & TENILLE...A BABY FAWN, TOO!

Well, my sweet friend Elaine, (from Georgia) came for a visit this week. She brought me a beautiful peahen, named Tenille...(no pics, yet)!! She's now part of a trio...Captain,(formerly known as Big Bird) Tenille & Clarice! They act as if they've known each other all their life!! Both hens are laying, so maybe there'll be some babies at some point. Elaine, Bonnie (best friend since high school) and I made a trip to Michael's and found some great craft supplies on sale...brushes, wooden boxes...It's always a treat to hang out with crafting buddies!! Elaine's always said that she never knows what's going to happen when she's with me,...well...yesterday morning, our youngest son, Jordan, brought in a week old fawn (mom had been hit by a car)! We started him on lamb replacement formula, (he caught on to bottle feeding right away) and kept him until today. We contacted a re-hab facility in Knoxville and delivered him safe and sound!! I'm sooo proud that my boys are tender hearted when it comes to animals...although, you never know what they might bring home! We've bottle fed and raised baby 'possums, raccoons, rabbits, birds, and the usual kittens and puppies, now, we can add a deer to the list!

Our garden's really goin' to town!! The corn's tasselin' and we're already having fried squash on a regular basis! My lilies out front are beautiful this year! When we lived in Georgia, I had some gorgeous double day lilies...finally found some here...they are in full bloom now!

Of course, our meals lately, have included the "recommended" three "messes" of poke salad (or salit, according to my sweet mother-in-law) this spring...you know it "clarifies the blood" according to the "ol' folks"!! I know it sure was good, with some streak o'lean, corn bread, Vadalia onion and sweet tea!! We always have an abundance of the plants growing on our fence rows.

I've got to mention our flock of guineas and their latest farm patrol efforts...this morning, as I was feeding the baby deer his 6AM feeding, our guineas were making a constant racket out next to the barn. I put my boots on, walked down to the fence row and there in the tall grass was the biggest logger head snapping turtle I'd ever had the pleasure of meeting!! He looked like he would've barely fit in a bushel basket! After fussing for over 20 minutes, the guineas walked away as I walked up. I guess it was, "OK, we've alerted you, now you do what you want with the big guy!" I let him go about his merry way...I think he was headed to the creek! Hope all's well with everyone! Be sure to come back by AWESOME ASS ACRES and set a spell!!

RAMPS, LAMBS & GARDEN TIME!!

Our little mountain "full-time getaway"!

Well, it's that time of year!! The annual Ramp Tramp in Reliance, Tn was held on Sat., 4/25/09. We've gone for the past 3 years and enjoyed the bluegrass bands, the crafts and of course, the meal...eggs and ramps, streak 'o lean, white beans, corn bread, sweet tea and pie! Grilled hot dogs with ramps served on top were also available. For those unfamiliar with ramps, they are a wonderful plant that grows wild in the mountains...a combination of onion and garlic! So flavorful with most any helpin' of country eatin'!! Jordan, our youngest son, has joined a long-lived tradition with several older mule riding friends from the area...they make a trek up into the mountains in Tellico, TN, spend several nights and dig ramps during the mornings and evenings. Of course, riding the mules is part of the fun, but he loves hearing the history, finding the best patches of ramps and being part of the group!

MeMe & Ray-- 3 weeks old
Ray and MeMe, our 2 newest lambs, are growing like little pigs! They are still on the bottle, 3-4 times a day and now, during the day, we're putting them in the pasture with Blossom, our pygmy nanny and the older lamb, Doe. Larry's busy with the garden, finishing up with adding fertilizer and mulch. Our fertilizer, of course, is naturally generated from our mules, horses and chickens, here at AWESOME ASS ACRES and due to the recent high winds, the mulch piles have been generously "donated" and delivered by several tree crews here in the area. We use it for soooo many things here. We put it around flowers, trees, in the garden, even in our barn hall. I have so many flowering plants that are getting ready to show their colors. One of my favorites is my "red hot poker lily". I'd never heard of these, 'till moving here and they're really spectacular...I'll post pictures when they turn flaming red!

My wisteria in the front yard

I have my wisteria out front, with an antique metal bed frame as the trellis...I'm hoping it blooms this year! We still absolutely love living here...there's so much to do, see and enjoy!

Sunrise at AWESOME ASS ACRES

This farm is an abundance of sights, sounds, smells...that inspire us every day! God surely shows his handiwork here in the mountains! It's perfect for my painting, with so much to take in!!

Jett, one of our rescues from the Humane Society...(picked her up a couple of years ago on Thurs.-was to meet the Grim Reaper on Monday!)

Painting the guineas, horses, mules, raccoons...they're all ideas that come from AWESOME ASS ACRES! It's also fun meeting the good folks that collect my work through Ebay!! Take care and come back soon!!

A LOOK AROUND AAA

The weather is beautiful here at AWESOME ASS ACRES! I can barely stand to stay inside and paint...Larry's prepping the garden spot and everything's bursting in buds, blooms or foliage! The lambs are doing so well...growing and now eating 3-4 times a day! This year we finally got to hang martin gourds...always wanted to, but we'd always wait too long, didn't have the time, the gourds, wondered about location...but, this year, THANKS to a wonderful, sweet friend, Elaine, we hung 12 and already have residents!! She had several that she was planning to use, but her property was too "woodsy", so she gave them to us!! Larry used a small cable and devised the perfect way to raise and lower them for cleaning and upkeep. They hang between the house and barn and the martins seem very happy here at AWESOME ASS ACRES!! Between them and our thriving guinea flock, we should be rid of alot of pesky insects during the hot weather coming up! We're planning on 2 garden spots for corn, squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, okra, eggplant, watermelon, cantalope, beets and peas. Larry's keeping close watch on the Almanac to make sure he plants when the signs are right! We're both from families that really believe in going by the signs when doing anything on the farm...from digging the well, planting the garden, weaning livestock, to castrating livestock. Past generations have taught us and now, we're passing it on to our kids.

HAPPY 3RD DAY OF THE NEW YEAR!!

Well, if you're like me, you're trying to catch up on some rest after the hectic holidays...we've celebrated with family and friends, but now, we're back to the everyday stuff! BIG NEWS for 2009 here at AWESOME ASS ACRES...we've finished my added on studio and extra bedroom!!! YEAAAAA!!! My sweet brother-in-law drove up from GA on New Year's Day and stayed until today. He, along with my husband and 2 of our boys, finished ALL of the construction, electrical, heating/air...We're putting down our flooring and we're THROUGH!! When I get my never ending inventory of painting supplies + computer and all components moved in and situated, I'll post pictures...hopefully, that'll be within the next couple weeks. I plan to start teaching some classes in the spring, so I've got to get going with it all!! I've been painting some things during the holidays...a few pendants and a wall sconce that's cute for the cat lover. I've posted some pictures and will be listing them on Ebay tonight.

It won't be long 'till we're packing up again for Mule Day in Columbia, TN and I hope to get some mule things painted for that...I always sell a bunch during the week there! Keep checking back with me for the never ending saga of farm life here...animal drama, fence building, garden planting, mule riding and oh yeah, some painting here and there!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

**PS... Don't forget to leave a comment, idea or suggestion...I'd love to hear from you!