A Garden Full Of Hodgepodge

Welcome to this week's edition of the Wednesday Hodgepodge! As I mentioned yesterday, I'm traveling next week so no Hodgepodge on April 12th. The Hodgepodge will return the following week, April 19th. Thanks for understanding!

1. April is Lawn and Garden Month. On a scale of 1-10 what's the current state of your lawn and/or garden. (10=a showpiece, 1=send in the professionals). Tell us about any lawn or garden plans you have for this month.

That depends on who you ask around here. Hubs wants the whole grand plan completed pronto, with every pine needle in it's proper place, and until that happens he will not rate us a 10. I am comfortable with landscaping as a work in progress, because we intend to stay put for a while and I like to live in a place before I go all in with plantings. I'll give us a 6. We still need color, more flowering shrubs, some trees near the property line where our neighbor will build and probably more pine straw. Definitely more pine straw. Always more pine straw. 

My plan is to get started on the patio pots after Easter. Hubs will be minding the home fires while I'm away so it's also possible I'll come home to a freshly mulched back yard-ha! 

2. "Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there."~Thomas Fuller  What does this quote mean to you?

Someone shared this quote with me when I lived in England, and it's one of my favorites. We had an amazing garden in our UK house, thanks to the owner and his very green thumb. 

We spent a lot of time in that garden as a family, and I spent a lot of time out there on my own too. 

Do you know the old hymn called In the Garden? Well this was mine. 

I dreamed a lot of dreams here, set goals here, made plans, prayed, evaluated decisions made and opportunities that came our way here, and in the process I learned so much about myself and about God's plan for my life. 

Yes the flowers grew...fish and trees and teenage girls too. 

But most of all, I grew. 

And I think that's the meaning at the heart of this quote, and why I love it so. 

3. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think about God?

Oh how He loves you and me. 

Holy. 
Everlasting. 
My Rock, my Redeemer, my Refuge.

4. If we were chatting in person, how would I know if you were nervous?

I would very likely talk incessantly. 

5. Do you like the color yellow? Would I find any in your home or wardrobe? Daffodils, tulips, roses, sunflowers, day lily, black eyed susan...which yellow bloom on this list is your favorite?

I love the color yellow, but more in nature than in my house. I don't have any big swaths of yellow in my home, and I dont' think I wear a whole lot of yellow either. But give me sunshine in a bright blue cloudless sky, a field of daffodils, a bouquet of yellow roses, a glass of freshly squeezed lemonade, and I'm a happy camper. 

Tough call on which yellow bloom is my favorite, but of the flowers listed I'm going with the daffodil. Nothing says spring like a field full of daffs! 

6. Flip flops or bare feet?

I love bare feet, but try to make myself wear flip flops in the yard. Copperheads and all that jazz...

7. Tell us about any Easter plans, celebrations, or traditions you'll carry out this month.

I'm taking a fun little spring break trip next week with my teacher daughter2 and we don't get back to South Carolina until late Saturday night. I still give my girls (and son-in-law) baskets, but right now I'm struggling with how jet lag will impact my need to have that traditional Easter meal at home? Still working on a plan, and hubs says lets have dinner out, but I'm not ready to say yes just yet. If I can swing it, I'd prefer to eat here. 

Regardless, we'll attend church, sing all my favorite songs declaring He's Alive! and will feel grateful for the gift of the cross. 

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

I absolutely love this song by Natalie Grant, perfect to share here as we head into Easter week...

"Look what mercy's overcome, death has lost and love has won..."

Happy Easter! 

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Hodgepodge Questions-Volume 303

Hi Hodgepodgers! I've got a fun little spring break trip planned with my teacher Daughter2 next week, so no Hodgepodge on April 12th. We're here this week of course, and then will be back the week after Easter, April 19th. Thanks for understanding!

Here goes today...answer on your own blog, then hop back here tomorrow (Wednesday) to share answers with the whole wide world. See you there!

1. April is Lawn and Garden Month. On a scale of 1-10 what's the current state of your lawn and/or garden. (10=a showpiece, 1=send in the professionals). Tell us about any lawn or garden plans you have for this month.

2. "Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there."~Thomas Fuller  What does this quote mean to you?

3. What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think about God?

4. If we were chatting in person, how would I know if you were nervous?

5. Do you like the color yellow? Would I find any in your home or wardrobe? Daffodils, tulips, roses, sunflowers, day lily, black eyed susan...which yellow bloom on this list is your favorite?

6. Flip flops or bare feet?

7. Tell us about any Easter plans, celebrations, or traditions you'll carry out this month.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Rainy Days and Mondays

We're in for some bad weather today if the forecasters know what they're talking about. FYI-forecasters don't always know what they're talking about, but in case this is one of those times they're correct we've secured deck furniture and moved potential flying objects from in front of the glass doors.

Now the weekend was a different story. We had absolutely gorgeous weather and spent a lot of time out of doors. Our boat is back in the water as of last Tuesday, and we're so excited to be out on the open seas once more.

Technically it's a lake, but still...we're pretty happy. 

On Saturday hubs and I drove over the mountain and across the state line to a charming little town called Cashiers. We had to stop along the way and take in the spectacular view because it's the law. 

That's Lake Jocassee which is not our lake, but is our 'next door neighbor'. 

Cashiers is a sweet little mountain town filled with boutiques, antiques, and restaurant-iques. The season doesn't officially begin here until May 1 at which time it will fill with tourists. Still there were already quite a few shops open so plenty of places to browse and buy. The locals all recommended we have lunch at Cornucopia and the food was yummy. Slow as Christmas, but delicious. They've just re-opened and maybe don't have their kitchen timing fine tuned just yet. ahem. 

I had my nose pressed against the glass at one of the antique shops in town, and the owner said even though they weren't open we could come in. So many lovely things! Hubs and I will definitely be going back there! We've been looking for Adirondack chairs to put around our fire pit, and we chatted with a gentleman in another shop who makes them to order. He said he'd deliver to the lake so we chose our color and will have them fireside in a couple of weeks. 

Hubs and I came home and watched basketball, and I say it every year...March Madness is some of the most exciting sporting competition out there. The games are so close and it's really fun to watch, even if your team doesn't win. I mean that would be more fun, but still these games are nail biters! 

Sunday was another gorgeous day, and after church some friends dropped by on their way back home to Atlanta after a weekend wedding in NC. It was perfect deck sitting temperatures and after they left hubs and I took the boat for a spin. 

Speaking of Atlanta-ugh. Daughter2 and I booked our flights out of there for next week because it was going to be easy and less expensive than connecting from here, except now it's not going to be quite so easy. In case you missed it a massive fire broke out under an overpass on the Interstate collapsing the overpass and destroying the highway going north and south. As if Atlanta traffic wasn't bad enough! 

So that's about it on this rainy Monday morning. A good day to blog, pay bills, and stick close to home. How was your weekend! 

Beauty and the Hodgepodge Beast

Welcome to this week's edition of the Wednesday Hodgepodge, the last one in the month of March if you can believe that! Thanks for playing along today...if you've answered the questions add your link at the end of my post, then leave a comment for the blogger before you. Here we go-

1. 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder'  What's something you've seen recently that you thought was beautiful?

The view here never gets old. Monday evening hubs and I sat on the dock after dinner and it was so quiet and still. The lake was like glass and I thought the cloud reflection was really beautiful. I'm obsessed with a pretty sky. 

2. Our culture and beauty...your thoughts?

I think our culture has a distorted view of what real beauty is. Think about when you feel most beautiful. Do you have to be completely put together or can you feel beautiful hiking in a ball cap? 

As much as I love dressing up and especially someone else fixing my hair! I think its also possible to feel beautiful while looking less than perfect. In my mind, beauty is more about how we feel on the inside than how we look on the outside, although that's not neccessarily what society tells us. We have to fight (mostly with ourselves) against the message promoted in advertising, television, Instagram!, etc. that only perfection=beauty. 

I will say it helps a lot to have a spouse who thinks you're beautiful, even when your hair won't cooperate or you're a blubbering mess over something ridiculous. 

3. Age before beauty, beauty queen, beauty mark, beauty sleep...which beauty-ful phrase resonates with you today? Why?

Remember being 20-something and having the ability to stay up all hours of the night and still look fresh as a daisy the next morning? Yeah. Your 50's not so much, which is why I'm going with beauty sleep. 

4. I read here a list of the top ten
beasts that scare us the most-

alligators, coyotes, black bears, birds (but pigeons in particular), sharks, bats, bed bugs, rats, rattlesnakes, and the black widow spider. 

Which 'beast' on the list scares you the most? What is the likelihood of you having an actual encounter with that particular beast? Did a movie contribute to your fear of this creature? Have you ever had a real life encounter with any of the animals listed?

I'm going to say bats. I know they eat mosquitos and for that I'm grateful, but I hate the erratic swooping and dipping thing they do. There's something about bats that gives me the heebie jeebies. 

We have bear and coyote here, but they keep their distance. Black bears are amazing creatures and I had one or three lumber through my NJ yard on a regular basis. We have copperheads here, and pretty sure it's smart to have a healthy fear of copperheads. I haven't seen one, but they're here. Hoping I never encounter one up close and personal! 

I do swim in the ocean when I'm vacationing beach side, so I suppose a shark encounter isn't out of the question, but it's also highly unlikely.  

5. Where were you when you last heard a bell ring? Was it alarming or musical?

We have a grandfather clock that chimes on the hour, and no it's not alarming. 

6. What's your favorite carb? How's that for random?

Popcorn! 

7. Let's wrap up another month of Hodgepodging and life with an acrostic. Recap your month using the word MARCH.

Making memories
And
Relishing time with grown
Children at
Home

8.  Insert  your own random thought here. 

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned I was having two chairs reupholstered. They're back and I love the change! Here are some before and after shots for anyone who's interested in that sort of thing. 

Here's a before shot of my recliner.  The only photo I could find was covered in Christmas presents and a pile of throws, but I think you can see the plaid in shades of green, red, navy, and gold. The fabric wasn't awful, but the chair just never felt like it belonged until now. 

The guest room where the newly covered recliner now sits has navy bedding and a window treatment with some navy in the stripe. It looks like a brand new chair to me. 

The other chair we had recovered is what we lovingly refer to in our house as the dog's chair. Our pup claimed the most comfortable seat in the house from day one, and we gave up trying to coax her out of it. This chair was her happy place until the day we had to tell her goodbye. That's Daughter2's dog in a blanket on the rug, which is her happy place. 

I mentioned how the ottoman that went with this club chair disappeared during the move. It went on the truck in NJ but did not come off the truck in SC, and thankfully my upholstery guy here said he could make one. He did an excellent job and I absolutely LOVE this fabric, and the way the chair looks now. 

It's a slightly nubby fabric in a blue green shade called sea glass. There's a little bit of that same color in my rug and also in the window treatments in our master bedroom, although you can't tell from this photo.  It's nearly impossible to take a photo in this house that accurately portrays color, because of all the light and water and reflection, but still I try. 

Was reupholstering less expensive than buying new? Depends on many factors including your personal style (there are inexpensive chairs out there), and especially your fabric selection. This fabric was pricier than the navy, but it was so worth it. Even though you can't tell from my photo! 



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Wednesday Hodgepodge-Volume 302

The Wednesday Hodgepodge is rolling around again, and you'll find this week's questions below. Answer on your own blog then hop back here tomorrow to add your link to the party. See you there!

1. 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder'  What's something you've seen recently that you thought was beautiful?

2. Our culture and beauty...your thoughts?

3. Age before beauty, beauty queen, beauty mark, beauty sleep...which beauty-ful phrase resonates with you today? Why?

4. I read here a list of the top ten beasts animals that scare us the most-

alligators, coyotes, black bears, birds (but pigeons in particular), sharks, bats, bed bugs, rats, rattlesnakes, and the black widow spider. 

Which 'beast' on the list scares you the most? What is the liklihood of you having an actual encounter with that particular beast? Did a movie contribute to your fear of this creature? Have you ever had a real life encounter with any of the animals listed?

5. Where were you when you last heard a bell ring? Was it alarming or musical?

6. What's your favorite carb? How's that for random?

7. Let's wrap up another month of Hodgepodging and life with an acrostic. Recap your month using the word MARCH.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.

Tale As Old As Saturday

Let's begin this Monday morning with a little beauty. That's Beauty with a capital B. I saw the film on Saturday, and I have some thoughts. I don't think I'll spoil anything for those of you who haven't seen it, because how can you spoil a tale as old as time that everybody already knows? The film remains true to the original storyline, which in my book is always a good thing.

My girls and I were so excited when we heard Disney was doing a live action version of one of our favorite stories. This particular 'video' was watched again and again in our house back in the day, and I really wanted to see it with my daughters. Sadly it didn't come out in theatres until the day before Daughter1 had to fly back to WA, so not happening. Thankfully hubs feels all the feels too, about those long ago days of little girls in the house, so he said he'd take me and that's how we spent our Saturday afternoon.

Beauty and the Beast. I absolutely loved it. Everything about this movie...Emma Watson is perfection in the role of Belle...the music, the scenery, the casting, everything...if you loved the original you will love this version too. I do think children under the age of seven or so would probably enjoy the cartoon version more, since live action is always more sophisticated than a cartoon.

I know there was a whole lotta ruckus prior to the film's release, and here's my .02 on that-

Besides all the warm feelings and nostalgia this movie stirs up in me (and there were a lot! A lot-a lot!), I think the basic message of this film is a really good one.

Belle is friendly and kind. The townspeople find her a bit odd, but she has confidence in who she is and doesn't allow their feelings to define her.

Belle treats her father with honor and respect.

Belle lives in a small village, but is curious about the world around her. She reads books to discover what else is out there in the great wide somewhere.

Belle values inward beauty over outward good looks.

Belle is unselfish. She forgoes her own plans (hurrying home to her Father) to help someone who initially wasn't all that nice to her.

Aren't these the sorts of messages we want our daughters to hear??? 

Don't we all encounter a 'beast' from time to time? 

I know Disney isn't perfect, but honestly if I hadn't known about the fuss prior to seeing the film, it would have gone right over my head. It's only a thing if you want to make it a thing, but of course in America we like to make everything a thing.

The movie is so well done, and when the credits rolled I looked at hubs and said if they run it again right now I'll stay and watch. We didn't, but I could have.

If you have grown up girls who once upon a time loved to dress up and sing and act out the movies they watched, then this one will get you right in the heart. Bring a tissue.

Beauty and Adventure In The Great Wide Somewhere

It's a lazy gray Sunday afternoon so I thought I'd spend my time wisely and blog. I've already had a nap and watching the Florida-SC game was making me tense so here I am.

Hubs and I have been in the new house for about four months now, but we really haven't gotten to explore too much in the nearby area. Weekends have been filled with other 'stuff'...unpacking-travel-houseguests-holidays-illness...you get the idea. Also I've blabbed about it at least twenty times, maybe more.

There's an abundance of waterfalls in our little corner of the world, and I'm determined to see them all. A few are better enjoyed by boat, but we can get to those later. We chose something nearby on Saturday and off we went.

Issaqueena Falls.

There's a legend behind the name and it goes something like this-Issaqueena was a Creek Indian maiden, and way back when the Cherokee made an attempt to kidnap her. The Cherokee believed evil spirits lived in waterfalls, so she supposedly saved herself by hiding on the ledge just behind these falls.

Naturally hubs needed to venture across the slippery rock to stand behind the falls while I did my usual helpful thing and shouted, 'Don't fall!' He didn't.

It's a steep rocky scramble down to the bottom of the falls, and why do I always get behind a dad toting a baby on his back? Makes me sweat worse than the hike down.

We knew there was an old tunnel nearby that was worth checking out so we asked a couple of people if we could walk from the falls and they looked at us like we were crazy. We drove, but turns out it was less than half a mile and we could have easily walked. Maybe they noticed I was already sweating (that baby in the backpack y'all!) so they suggested we drive?

Stumphouse Tunnel is cool! It's not often you get to walk inside a mountain, and I was glad I had my jacket with me. The temperature drops quite a bit as you go further in.

It's  DARK!, which makes it just a little bit spooky. Also I was silently freaking out thinking bats might call this place home,  so I stuck close to hubs.

Stumphouse is an unfinished railroad tunnel started before the Civil War and intended to create a train line running from Anderson SC to Knoxville TN. They quit working on the tunnel in 1859 when the legislature refused to fund more construction.

Hmmm...everything old is new again-ha!

Fun fact-Clemson University acquired the tunnel in the early 1950's and cured blue cheese there. They still make blue cheese, but have recreated the tunnel environment in an on campus setting.

You know, if you don't hike you miss a lot of local history and natural beauty.

And if you don't pop back here tomorrow you'll miss my thoughts on another kind of beauty.
The kind named Belle. See you here!