This little princess went to town

This is a story about a little 3 year old that went to town with her Grandpa and Grandma, who both had eye doctor appointments. 

It turned into a 2 hour office visit. With both of us having our eyes dilated and checked, it took awhile. Did I mention how good this little girl was. She never asked,  "are we done yet?" or "can we go now?" She not only entertained us, but others in the office too. 

So after the appointment we told her we would treat her to brunch at Mel's. It's a local diner and the food is always good. 

Nothing doing, but she wanted to sit with her Grandpa!

Her mind was made up before we arrived. She knew she wanted bacon, eggs, a Minnie Mouse pancake, and MILK. After all, this wasn't her first trip to Mel's. She cleaned her plate and drank two glasses of milk. 

My lunch was delicious, BBQ pork sandwich with sweet potato fries. I also had a side order of baked turnips. The waitress gave me the recipe when I ordered them. She said you boil the turnips, drain them, add 2 kinds of cheese, and diced fried bacon. Bake and serve. Oh they were delicious!

Just another fun day with the little princess.

Life is good.

More auction goodies

Crawling out of bed at 7:30 for an auction didn't seem like a good thing this morning. But after we arrived there shortly before 8:30, I knew it might be worth our time. 

It's always a social thing, time to see old friends. Of course people watching can be fun too, good most of the time. 

Today I found this 8 gallon Buckeye crock. The Buckeye pottery company was in business in Ohio from 1882 until 1938.  What a steal for $37.50!  It will hold plenty of turnip kraut next time. By the way, we canned 23 pints yesterday. 

Currently E-Bay lists these Buckeye crocks; a 6 gallon for $99, an 8 gallon for $499 (slightly different from ours) and a 10 gallon for $242.  I'm pretty proud of mine!

I also grabbed this 1953 Landwehr Dairy calendar. I have several things from this local dairy. My mother worked there in the late 50's. It's a shame this wasn't a year older, then it would have been the same age as me!

This vintage aluminum dish pan with handles was only one dollar. It will be great to take to the garden to put vegetables in. 

I did give up on a Singer Featherweight machine after $225, of course another $10 and the other bidder bought it. 

Another great day in the country.

Life is good!

A day of giving thanks

We missed these 2 and 8/9's guys not being with us today. We did a little face-timing with them, and a few phone calls. They both had the traditional thanksgiving food at their TV stations. It would have been nice if we all could have been together.

Our first chore of the day was to get some blackberry jelly made. I also made 48 pecan and pumpkin pies for dessert.

I once again used my Beistle vintage honeycomb decorations. 

Someone sure enjoyed the pumpkin pies. Grandpa helped her out with a little extra whipped cream!

Hope you all had a blessed day.

The end of deer camp . . .with success!

The end of deer camp is always bittersweet. It's good family time, good food, and always nice when the guys score on the hunt. 

Friday night in camp, Alex got cozy in Grandpa's cot for just a little while. 

Brady and his great aunt Larraine compare iPhone/iPod notes. 

This is the stove that keeps the cabin toasty warm, some times too warm!

Friday night the chief cook Pat, made chicken and dumplings.

Lizzie wanted to be the chief bottle washer!

Saturday night we were all tired. One little boy was sick. It was a fine meal of BBQ pork steaks, turnip greens, french fries and a short game of cards. The guys all went home to sleep. 

Sunday came . . . the day crawled by . . . not much activity, until about 4:15

Alex, the eight year old, scored his first deer! That face tells it all. 

Success, it's a good thing!

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It's deer season

I know I've been a little slack in posting. You see I've been at deer camp every evening. The women go for the "food".

Hanging out inside our cozy little cabin with a fire going, has me slacking in the picture taking department. But I can tell you Friday night's menu was Ham and beans, fried potatoes with onions, and cornbread.  Saturday, Dan the man, did his killer BBQ ribs.  Along with them we had coleslaw, Lutz's fried potato chips (made fresh locally), and strawberry cheesecake. 

Sunday as the cold set in it was homemade potato soup and my iron skillet pineapple upside cake. Monday, since it was a day off for me, I did the cooking at home and hauled it all down there. It was Pork tacos, slow cooked all day in the crock pot. Along with those I made pinto beans and spanish rice. Monday night we were served turnip kraut cooked with polish sausage and potatoes. 

Now you see why us women go for the "food"!

 Some days are tiring at deer camp. 

 Here he's wide awake and staying out of the strong winds to hunt from inside the barn.

Just a few years ago there were no phones or I Pods at deer camp. This night there were seven iPhone/ipods clicking away.  I was even able to connect to the internet with my new iPod using a "hot spot".

After playing on the iphone, someone gave Lizzie an iPad.  With big eyes, she said "that's a big one". Away she played.

 There is some quality  time too.

 Of course there have been some deer harvested. Here Pat shows off his big one, an eight pointer. 

Only to be out done by big brother, here the blacksmith shows off his 10 pointer. 

Hopefully soon the son and 2 grand sons will have some to show off too. Good luck guys!

My new old Trip Around the World Quilt

I have been waiting for a sunny day to photograph my quilt.  Today it was about half way there and I couldn't wait any longer to show you my new old quilt. Remember  I told you about it here.

The top is vintage feed sack fabric. It is hand quilted, repeat hand quilted. To think I only paid $45 for this gem!

Thanks to Nancy for bidding on it for me, and delivering it to me last weekend. 

Imagine my surprise when I brought it home and found this label on it! You know me.  I immediately went to Google and typed in the quilters name. I found that she had passed away in  spring of 2010. I also found this on her obitituary: "Anyone who ever ate at her table will remember her hot rolls, noodles, hominy, and pies. She was a master of the needle and the crochet hook. Many have keepsakes of her doilies, afghans, and quilts." 

My kind of lady. Not only did she like to quilt, but she liked hominy, noodles, and pies, as I do too!

I am so please to be able to add this quilt to my stash. 

P.S. I received this picture from my friend Mara. It was at her auction that I bought this quilt. Dorothy the cow is the model.

Election Day

Today we voted. 

It was then bread making time. We even enjoyed a warm piece with butter. Yes Paula Dean, real butter!

While we are enjoying our fire . . . 

 . . . I am quilting.

Life is good. 

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The last days of our vacation in Eureka Springs

On the second night in Eureka Springs we bought tickets from our camp host to see the Pine Mountain Theater. It was a nice show.  A little too electrified for us. However when the hammer dulcimer came out I was pleased. It is one of my most favorite instruments. 

Their "current day Village People" rendition of Y.M.C.A. turned into A.A.R.P.  It was too funny!

The third night we went to see the "other music show" in town. It was a big disappointment. It was way too loud, no banjo, no hammer dulcimer, no free popcorn, and way too much slap stick comedy in goofy costumes. 

On Wednesday,we drove to Blue Springs Heritage Center. Due to the extreme drought this summer, water levels were down. Admission price was reduced due to the on going construction there.  

The flowers were at the end of their season, but there were still various colors showing. 

Notice all the Boston ferns?

This is believed to be the oldest inhabited area in Arkansas and sets above the springs.

This is Beaver Lake where the levels were also extremely low. One gate opened as we were viewing. However it stayed open just a very few minutes. 

This is White river below the dam.

We celebrated the blacksmith's first Social Security check at Local Flavor Restaurant.  

I had the avocado, cheddar, and caramelized onion sandwich on honey wheat bread. It was delicious!!!

Speaking of food, sorry SIL Rusty  (he hates food pics). We stopped at Lambert's Cafe on our way home. Fried okra was served on paper towels while we waited for our lunch. 

I ordered fried chicken livers. I know some of you are grossed out now! 

Lambert's are known for their thrown hot dinner rolls. They are served with honey or sorghum!  So good!

We passed this sweet lady heading out of Springfield, Missouri. She gave us thumbs up when she passed us! Her license plate was Nonny 7. It always makes my day when we see another Casita going down the road.

It was a great trip with beautiful weather and a nice way to get some R & R.