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Thursday, October 31, 2013

Signs, Signs & Happy Halloween

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This girl was on our porch recently. Spun her web right by the front door. I hated to knock her down after all that hard work so we just watched out for her. She left us alone and vice versa.

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Last week was Red Ribbon Week in Botetourt Schools. Red Ribbon Week is a campaign to keep kids off drugs. This sign was at Lord Botetourt High School.

Signs, Signs

Have a safe and fun Halloween!

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Rurality Wednesday - Baby's Cottage

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I'm pretty sure this is Baby's Cottage(The Virginia Cottage).

Dirty Dancing Weekend is coming up, November 15th! Sounds fun!

Rurality Blog Hop #38

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Cottage @ Mountain Lake Lodge

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One of the cabins @ Mountain Lake Lodge.

Don't feel like cooking Thanksgiving Dinner? Check out this menu! Thanksgiving @ Mountain Lake



Monday, October 28, 2013

Friday, October 25, 2013

Friday Fences & Randoms

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Taken @ Mountain Lake Lodge

Friday Fences

Random:

1) Wish people would stop dreaming about me and let me get a full nights sleep

2) The boys played playoff game number 2 on Wednesday. We lost so we are now eliminated. The boys played very well so I hated to see them lose this one. The refs were not good to us either. We were on Hidden Valley turf with Hidden Valley refs. Lots of penalties called on us. A lot of "imaginary" penalties. It's hard to win when you also have to play the guys in stripes. Our coaches were so upset over the horrible calls that they made a phone call to the athletic dept yesterday. I don't know the outcome.

3) Tonight we are going on a haunted trail walk @ Greenfield. Some of you may recall a few of my many postings about this place. It's one of my favorite places to walk. You can read about the hike HERE and click on Oct 25 on the schedule.

4) Yesterday I got a text from Ashlyn that her school was on lockdown. A potential bomb threat in her building. They wouldn't let the students leave because of possible weapons on campus. Her teacher started to freak out saying "I can't believe this is happening". Which in turn caused the students to become terrified. You can read about that HERE

5) Was hoping for a snow day today. There was a small chance for snow/rain overnight and Botetourt is a BIG county with lots of rural roads that become messed up from the slightest wintry mix. Woke up and it's dry out. Boo.

Have a great weekend!

Random 5 Friday

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Signs, Signs - Mary's Barn @ Mountain Lake Lodge

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Oh what fun, this Saturday there will be a Costume Ball at Mountain Lake Lodge held inside Mary's Barn! Event is free for the whole family!

Linking with Signs, Signs

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Rurality Wednesday - Link's Farm Covered Bridge

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Just down the road from Mountain Lake Lodge sits this covered bridge. Built in 1912 by Samuel Bradley to cross Sinking Creek. It was then called Bradley Bridge. It is on private proptery belonging to James Link Jr., Samuel Bradley's grandson. I love that it is still in the family! We were careful to observe the "Private Property No Trespassing" sign. Another car pulled in the same time as us. While the Mr. was setting up his camera gear to photograph the bridge, the little Mrs. hopped right over and walked along the creek smoking a cigarette. Some people!

You can see more photos of the bridge HERE

Rurality Blog Hop #37

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Mountain Lake Lodge - Year Round Fun

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big comfy chairs next to a roaring fire!

cozy sitting room with views!


Mountain Lake Lodge, in Giles County, of Dirty Dancing fame is now open year round. They used to close after Thanksgiving and didn't reopen till spring but not anymore, nope! Now they even have a Christmas Buffet and New Year's Bash! Check out all the fun events going on RIGHT HERE!



Monday, October 21, 2013

The McKenzies

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The McKenzies performed at the Appalachian Harvest Fest last week at Mountain Lake Lodge. They were great! You can find out all about them on their website HERE.

Friday, October 18, 2013

Friday Fences & Randoms

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Mountain Lake Lodge, Giles County

Friday Fences

Now some randomness:

1) Football game tonight. Our school is undefeated. Playing another undefeated team. They are projecting 12,000 people to come out. They are bringing in extra bleachers and shuttling people. This is BIG!

2) My little dudes have their first playoff game tomorrow. It's single elimination. We play a team we stomped before. Hope we win!

3) The Mountain Lake Lodge (photo above) has quite a rich history. You can read about it HERE!

4) Had a dream last night that we were at my husband's childhood friend's wedding. I was going to take pictures but couldn't figure out how to hold the camera lol...

5) I have to take Christian to school early this morning. He wants me to take him by Bojangles so he can pick up some breakfast for his girlfriend. It's her birthday today. He's such a thoughtful boyfriend :)

Visit Nancy @ A Rural Journal for more randoms :)

Have a great weekend!

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Signs, Signs - Patrick Swayze

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The Patrick Swayze Memorial Stone @ Mountain Lake, Giles County.

(Dirty Dancing was filmed here)

Signs, Signs

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Rurality Wednesday - Ghost Ship

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Mountain Lake, Giles County

The fogginess and this pontoon boat on the water all alone gave this a ghostly effect for me!

Rurality Wednesday Blog Hop!

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Mountain Lake

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Mountain Lake, Giles Co.

A big thank you to Nancy @ A Rural Journal and Eco Natural Soap. Nancy hosted a give-a-way recently and my package just arrrived! Can't wait to use this yummy stuff! I got Island Lime Exotic Butter, Citrus Sunrise Bath Soap and Spearmint Lavender Bath Soap and Lemon Meringue Lip Balm! I'm going to use the Spearmint Lavender this morning. It all smells so delicious!



Monday, October 14, 2013

Painting @ Mountain Lake

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Yesterday we went to Mountain Lake Lodge for the first ever Appalachian Harvest Fest. We met this artist Kay Sutherland. We spoke with her for a bit about her work she had on display....then we went to see other vendors and listen to a band play....

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and lookie there, we're in her painting! She was painting the band we were listening to and painted us right into it! That's us in the left corner. I'm the one in pink, I had my pink hoodie on :)

How neat is that?!


Friday, October 11, 2013

Friday Fences & Randoms

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Fencing along train tracks downtown Roanoke

Friday Fences

Random time:

1) I wake up an hour before everyone in my household. I cherish my quiet coffee/computer time before the morning rush of getting everyone up and ready. It's been getting interrupted though by my husband who has been getting up to exercise. On go all the lights and now my quiet time is noisy. I really dislike that. Am I going to have to get up even an hour earlier now?

2) Tomorrow is our last football game. I dislike this too. Seems we just started the season. All that will be left are playoffs. Then a break and basketball season will start!

3) I have been waiting and waiting for The Conjuring to come out on dvd. I love a good scary movie and have heard that this one is just that!

4) I've been using vanilla almond milk in my coffee every morning. It's really good!

5) READ THIS for a super inspirational story.

Visit A Rural Journal for more randomness...

Have a great weekend!

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Signs, Signs - Dr. Pepper

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Another great little gem downtown Roanoke.

Found this interesting story about Dr. Pepper and the year 1957:
"According to the 1957 Gallup Poll, 53 percent of Americans considered themselves “very happy,” making ‘57 the happiest year ever for the U.S. And folks in the Roanoke Valley had two good reasons to be happy: They were celebrating the city’s 75th birthday, and they were drinking Dr Pepper – lots of Dr Pepper. So much that Roanoke Valley was crowned the “Dr Pepper Capital of the World.”

One Year in Roanoke: 1957
The efforts of entrepreneur John W. “Bill” Davis, certainly contributed. He left the oil business in Texas in 1936, moved his family to Roanoke and opened a Dr Pepper bottling plant, determined to change Roanokers’ preference for colas. He used radio, TV, personal contacts and about 5,000 different promotions.

One successful campaign had Davis’ salesmen telling six people a day the story of Dr Pepper’s origins in southwest Virginia and give them each a bottle. Those origins reached back to Charles Alderton, who created a new soft drink while working at a Waco, Texas drugstore owned by Christiansburg native Wade Morrison. Legend has it that Morrison named the new drink after Dr. Charles T. Pepper of Rural Retreat – the father of a girl who broke Morrison’s heart. It didn’t help him win the girl, but the story’s romance appealed to Roanokers.

Roanoke native Irving Sharp was second only to Davis as the area’s best-known Dr Pepper salesman. Sharp filled the WDBJ radio airwaves with plugs. He called listeners while Dr Pepper employees simultaneously went to their homes to see how many bottles of Dr Pepper were in their refrigerators. Participants were given a silver dollar for every cold bottle.

Davis’ innovative marketing, including hot Dr Pepper (served with a slice of lemon), drove Roanoke’s Dr Pepper consumption to record heights. From ‘57 to ‘59, and again in ‘61, valley residents were tops in the world."

Read more HERE

Signs, Signs

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Jefferson Pools - Hot Springs

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Over the summer Nick participated in a triathlon in Bath County. Afterwards, we went to the Jefferson Pools so he could soak for a while. I was going to as well but by the time we got there the "family soak" was over so then I would have had to go to the "Ladie's Pool House" and soak all alone while he soaked in the "Gentlemen's Pool" so instead I opted to wander around the property and take pictures while he soaked. Really pretty place.

And here's some history:
Legend has it that these magnificent, crystal-clear warm springs were discovered hundreds of years ago by Native Americans as they journeyed through the valley.

But even outside of the legend, archeologists have found evidence of at least 9,000 years of human use of these local waters.

Early colonial records show that brothers Thomas and Andrew Lewis surveyed this valley and its surroundings. Thomas and his son John obtained a 140- acre parcel of land that included the warm springs. It was the same Andrew Lewis who was an early partner of Thomas Bullett, who obtained a 300- acre parcel of land that included the hot springs. Bullett acquired the land from his partners, and became famous as the builder of the first Omni Homestead hotel in 1766, on the site of the present Omni Homestead Resort & Canyon Ranch SpaClub

The Jefferson Pools consist of two main buildings. In 1761, the octagonal Gentlemen’s Pool House was built for use by ladies and gentlemen alike, though at alternate times from early morning to late evenings. The circular, Ladies Pool House was constructed in 1836, at last giving ladies a pool of their own.

The large octagonal, white wooden building is the Gentlemen’s Pool House, which, along with the pool inside it, was built in 1761. It is the oldest spa structure in the United States. President Thomas Jefferson, who suffered from rheumatism, visited these very pools in August of 1818. The Omni Homestead Archives contain the original guest books documenting Jefferson’s 22- day visit, during which he found great relief in the warm mineral spring waters. The Gentlemen’s pool itself is similarly octagonal and about 120 feet in circumference. It holds about 43,000 gallons of constantly flowing spring water. During his visit, on August 13, 1818, Jefferson enjoyed breakfast at The Omni Homestead, soaked in the springs, and took his dinner. He recorded that the entire day’s activities cost him $2.12 and wrote to one of his daughters praising our springs as among the best in America. That is why the pool houses are named in his honor.

The United States Geological Survey determined that these springs have a remarkably uniform rate of temperature and flow and are unaffected by changes of the seasons – their waters are natural body temperature all year and flow at the astounding rate of 1,700,000 gallons per day. The mineral content of the waters is so high that you float easily and so crystal clear you can read a book through them.

More info HERE



Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Tuesday Muse - Olde Salem Days

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Last month at Olde Salem Days there was this cool old VW bus for everyone to sign. That's my boys leaving their John Hancocks.



Friday, October 4, 2013

Friday Fences @ Frontier Culture Museum & Randoms

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Yes, I'm back to showing a picture from the Frontier Culture Museum so sue me ;) We really haven't been anywhere exciting in a while. Need to change that!

Friday Fences

Random Time:

1) It's hard to be random first thing in the morning. Usually, when I'm more awake, I'm quite random. Not so much right now.

2) Tonight is the Homecoming game. We'll be there.

3) Have to go grocery shopping today. Working on my menu/shopping list. I put together a 2 week menu with "Breakfats/Lunch/Dinner". Why can't I ever think of anything to eat when I am making my menu. I hate menu planning.

4) The boys have a football game tomorrow afternoon. Weather has been great and will continue through the weekend, until Sunday evening when "Karen" arrives. Lots of rain.

5) Speaking of the weather, I saw THIS when I went to the National Weather site. Our government is a peachy bunch (that's sarcasm ;) )



Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

What Day Is It? What DAAAYYY Is It?

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This commercial cracks my husband and daughter up. I think it's funny, but they play it over and over.

Taking a little bloggie break today....Happy Hump Day!

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

October Theme Day - Detail

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Saturday's game: Botetourt Hurricanes (us, orange) vs Salem Spartans.

verb
Detail: to assign to a particular task

Saturday's game was not so good for us. When everyone pays close attention to DETAIL, you get better results!

(I totally forgot about theme day until just now!)

To see other interpretations for the theme, visit City Daily Photo!