At the River

When the July temperatures started breaking records, we headed for the river to cool off.  The Wolf River is one of Parker's favorite places, so he wanted to share it with his little cousins! We had a great day!  There was. . .

 

Wading

And more wading

There was crawdad hunting. . . 

which is mostly a boy sport!

With the expertise of their great grandpa the hunt was successful!

There was fishing with nets! And Granny Lerion actually caught one.

Brooks retrieved it from the net and gave it a little hug! You can see it hanging from his hand.

We found butterflies. . .

and rocks.

Some of us sat in the river,

 

Some watched from the bank!

 We had a picnic lunch with sandwiches from the nearby General Store.

Brynn tried rocks for dessert, but her dad didn't think that was a good idea!

 We played with toys,

and made leaf boats to sail down the river.

It was a great way to keep cool and a fun adventure for all!

We took this adventure on July 2, 2012 at the York Grist Mill in Pall Mall, TN

Twelve on the Twelfth of July

It's time again for twelve on the twelfth!  It was a much welcomed rainy day on the Ponderosa.  We also went on an adventure with our retired teacher friends.  We all meet together at least once a month for a fun day and to catch up with each other.

We left the Ponderosa early this morning and headed north on our way to Liberty, KY.

We must cross Wolf River Dam on our way.  It has been under construction for years to stop the leaking. I like to drive fast across the dam in case it decides to break while we cross!  I guess I think we could outrun it!

No trip to Liberty would be complete without a stop in Russell Springs at our favorite place to find bargains, The Mighty Dollar, where everything is a dollar.  Not even the rain could keep us from hunting for treasures.

This was my favorite Mighty Dollar find today!  We needed some new drinking glasses and the cute factor on these is very high so I bought four!  They were Libbey brand and meet my standard for good drinking glasses because they are heavy and you can put your entire hand in and reach the bottom when they need to be hand washed.

Then it was on to the Bread of Life Cafe where today there was chicken and dumplings, ham, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, fresh corn, rolls, peach cobbler and oreo cake.  There is an unbelievable salad bar and soup and ice cream and rolls and biscuits and more!  You get all this and more for $8.99 and the drink of your choice is included.  You will always leave here stuffed.

 A Mennonite family had a produce stand set up in the parking lot.  My friends all made a purchase!

We also visited this store in the Mennonite Community where I found some great produce.

I found peaches and blueberrries and something brand new to me, white sweet potatoes.

When you shop in the Mennonite Community you see all types of transportation.

Back at home we just watched it rain on the flowers and

and the garden,

While these four critters played in the front yard.  The little ones were running and jumping and frolicking for joy in the rain!

And this frequent visitor to the back yard enjoyed eating some wild cherries as it does every afternoon!

The Ponderosa Garden

The Ponderosa Garden is keeping us well fed. We have our own Farmer's Market right outside the back door. See illustrations below.

Twelve on the Twelfth

It was a hard job trying to post just twelve photos today, because it was an adventurous, fun filled day in Nashville, TN.

We spent June 12th downtown beginning with lunch at the Farmer's Market, followed by a stroll through Bicentennial Mall and then next on to  Cumberland Park on the river! Here are some of the highlights:

 Brynn had a minor meltdown at the spot that marks the McNairy Spring. It gave her a little scare, but Aunt T comforted her and she recovered in a few seconds.  Bless its little heart!

 The stage was empty so Parker performed a concert for us!  He received a hearty round of applause from the audience and from a stranger who was passing by.

 The community where we live is featured on the giant map of Tennesse in the Bicentennial Mall.  I guess that makes it a special place.

 Oh Tennessee!

 They are all standing on the marker for Franklin County, Jay's old stomping ground.

 All the grandkids!

 The Couttas with the capitol in the background.

 I snapped this on our way across town.  When I was a little girl my dad would take my brother and me to the top of the L&C Tower to the observation deck.  At the time it was the tallest building in Nashville.  My mom was probably shopping in Harvey's or Cain Sloan while we did this.

The water fountains at Cumberland Park--the stinkbugs new favorite place.

 And Parker's new favorite place.

A view of the city from Cumberland Park.

It was a very terrific  day.