" Headed for the Highlands"

Today I'm as antsy as a caged Monkey looking at a banana tree! Come daylight tomorrow, I'm headed to The Highlands of North Carolina!


I'll be spending 10 days in Foscoe ( which is between Boone and Banner Elk) seeing the sites with my friend NC mountain author Peggy Poe Stern!

We are going to Blowing Rock................
Plan to visit all the shops!
We are going to Valle Crucis to the Mast General Store.............
and to see St. Johns Church...........
Can't wait to get to the Blue Ridge Mountains!!!!
Before I go, I want you to see my latest blooms...... Yellow Angel Trumpets
Pink Angel Trumpets
Tropicana Rose............
Holly Hocks..........
Holly Hocks......
Glory Bower.......
I'll be back September 2nd with LOTS of pictures............XOXOXO

" The Day of Small Things " by Vicki Lane

As a follower of Author Vicki Lane's blog Vicki Lane Mysteries, I have watched and waited for the birth of this book, due to be released on September 28, 2010. Even though I have the book pre ordered on Amazon I was thrilled to get a chance to read a galley of this book beforehand!


What a thrill is was too! Miss Birdie the protagonist in this book, was a much loved character I was introduced to in Vicki's wonderful Elizabeth Goodweather mystery series however this book is a stand alone novel and can be read without having read the mystery series.


It begins with the birth of a tiny girl in 1922, deep in the mountains of Marshall County, NC.



" It'll always be the least un, fer there won't be no more. Recon that'll do fer a name - call it Least"



The story of Least is a mesmerizing one. Her father and brother having just been killed in a logging accident leaving a grieving widow/mother, she being the ninth child born to a woman already bitter from the birth and loss of children, Least doesn't stand a chance of having a normal life. Her mother Fronie views her as a worry and a hindrance and labels the child as simple minded thus keeping her hid from people as was the custom in that era.



However Least is far from simple minded, in fact she is a gifted child, a descendant of Cherokee Indians who is endowed with the "power" of Cherokee Magic. At nine years old Least is blessed when her maternal grandmother comes to live with her and Fronie. Granny Beck has the
"power " too and teaches Least how to use her gifts. As we watch Least grow from a neglected, unloved child into womanhood and become Miss Birdie, we are taken on a historical journey of the mountains of Appalachia, on a spiritual journey of the differences in the beliefs of the mountain Holiness people and the Native Americans. This is a poetic tale of the strength of the spirit to survive and the battle between good and evil from two entirely different cultures..............


I could not lay it down ! It is story you will not want to miss told by a brilliant story teller....................


If you haven't yet read Vicki's Elizabeth Goodweather series you are missing a real treat!
You will fall in love with Elizabeth !

To learn all about Vicki and her great books go to this site

Have A great weekend and read a good book!!

" Taking It Easy In The Big Easy"

Some of you might recall that we received a gift certificate @ Christmas for a stay in this New Orleans Bed & Breakfast..............

Friday was Eric's 65 th B'Day so we went down to New Orleans on Thursday to celebrate........


Located on Pyrtania Street in the Historic Garden District the mansion was built in 1858

We enjoyed our morning coffee on the lovely front porch.......

This is the entry hall.............

The Dining Room.............

The Front Parlor..............which would have been the Ladies Parlor...........

The Chandeliers and Crown Molding are simply gorgeous..............

This entry hall is probably 50 feet long.............

This is the front end of the ladies parlor............

The furniture in this mansion is just exquisite.............notice the Lion Heads on the chair arms

I was amazed by the crown molding throughout this place.............

This column molding divides the front and middle parlors.............

Ladies Parlor Chandelier...............

I would love to have this piece at the foot of my bed...............

We had booked this room which is called The Moulin Rouge Suite and is on the 2nd floor...

However.........after seeing the staircase to the second floor which I kid you not looked like it went strait up 30 feet, we opted for a 1st floor room.......

We had already decided these front steps were more than enough climbing for us..........

We DO NOT do stairs as well as we once did.........HA!

So we stayed in the 1st floor Napoleon Room.............

I love this armoire.......... Now this B&B is reported to be haunted, I'm not sure just what has been seen or heard, but Eric thinks he heard a ghost! He says that in the wee hours of Friday morning he was awakened by heavy footsteps walking back and forth overhead. He said a few minutes later the footsteps came down the entry hall by our room heading for the front door.

They did not go out the door nor return back down the hall past our room to the stairs at the back of the hall. I slept through it! :)

On Thursday evening we had some of the best food we've ever eaten @ this very famous eatery on S. Carrollton in Uptown...........

They are well known for their amazing Po Boys..........

This a Shrimp and Fried Green Tomato Po Boy.....

Eric had a 12 inch Po Boy( half shrimp/half oyster) and I had the dinner special which was grilled Mahi Mahi on a bed of real mashed potatoes, topped with a creole crab sauce and a bouquet of grilled Asparagus.......

It was "oh my God" wonderful!

You can't visit New Orleans without a stop @ the Cafe DuMonde in the French Quarter....

This is a fantastic street entertainer............

Coffee and beignets for breakfast...........

Our daughter-in-law met us there and gave Eric an autographed copy of New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees new book "Coming Back Stronger". He has nearly finished it and says it is awesome!!

We then shopped at the French Market and took a stroll thru the French Quarter.........

This a typical French Quarter Residence............

These Morning Glory's were gorgeous on this fence..............

Another eye catching French Quarter house............

We had the famous Central Grocery Muffalattas for lunch..............

I bought 2 quarts of their Olive Salad so I can make them @ home...........

We had a wonderful time but it was Hot & Humid so we'll wait till it cools before going back for more of that great food @ Ye Ole College Inn! :)

Now, let me congratulate my son-in-law Randy Hogin for winning the popular vote and being elected to County Commissioner 12th District of Dickson County Tennessee on Thursday!
Good job Commissioner Hogin !!

Here @ home on the farm, my hard work keeps paying off too! This is my Glory Bower which has it's first bloom....

It will have to be moved in the fall though as it grows huge and will need more room!

And..........my Hollyhocks are looking prettier everyday.............

The one about to bloom on the right looks like it will be red..........

HAVE A GREAT WEEK EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!

NOW Click HERE and visit my Book House Blog to find out about some great reads I've read recently !!!!!!!!!