A Pretty Scarecrow......

This pretty scarecrow is in someone's garden on the same road where I live. I thought it was someone in the garden, but it is a mannequin. I stopped and asked if I could make a picture and no one was home, so I made a picture. Isn't that a neat idea? Look at the close up below.

Scarecrow.....Close Up.....

My Strawberry Bowl.....and a recipe

Lisa brought me this bowl from Savannah, Georgia last year. It is a colinder, so the berries will drain. This is one of my favorite bowls. Read on and you will find a recipe for Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake.

Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake:

2 cups cake flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

2/3 cup cocoa

1/2 cup Crisco shorthning

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 whole eggs or 3 egg whites

1 quart fresh strawberries, rinsed and sliced

1 cup whipped cream or Cool Whip

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients in order listed, except strawberries and whipping cream. Beat with mixer on low speed, scraping bowl constantly, for 3 minutes. Pour into greased and floured 13 x 9-inch pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool cake completely. Cut into squares. Place 2 or 3 squares in dessert cups and layer with small amount of strawberries and whipped cream. Garnish with strawberries. A Heavenly Treat!

My Yard This Morning.....

Look how my cucumber have started climbing up the tepee!! We got some much needed rain here yesterday evening and last night. PTL! Everything looks revived now!!! The sun is out and my clothes are drying on the line......a good day to be alive!

MY TEPEE......

This tepee is made from Bamboo that we grew in our back yard. I made it this morning for my cucumbers to climb on. My yard is so dry and dead looking. The cucumbers are just starting to vine. Hopefully with a lot of watering I will have enough to make a jar of pickles.

Tepee....Close Up....

Prairie Star Afghan...in Blues and Purple.....

I just finished my second Prairie Star. I gave it to my MIL in the nursing home. She loved it and cried when I gave it to her. Can you see the beige pieces? If I had it to do over, I would make them light blue. There isn't enough contrast between the white and the beige. But guess what....I'm not going to frog it!!!! (Rip it....Rip it....Rip it) LOL

AFTER THE STORM......

We had a hard storm last evening.... After the storm was over, it looked real strange outside. It seemed everything had an orange glow. The sunset was all over the sky. I had never seen anything like it before....we had a good rain and everything looks refreshed this morning....PTL!!!!

Barn Of Many Treasures......

We found a barn this week on one of our adventures. It is covered almost completely with baskets, gourds, and all kind of things. Someone had a good idea on how to display their collectables. It is located between Shady Valley, TN and Damacus, VA

Ryan and Lucas at Backbone Rock.....

This is another place we went this week while Ryan and Lucas were here. The ridge was named Backbone Rock because of its appearance.....The area around Backbone rock was developed by the Tennessee Wildlife Agency. It's a lovely place for hiking and camping. The tempature is always 10 degrees cooler there than down in the valley.

Our Week Together.......

I've had both of my grandsons with me all this week. We have had such a good time together. My daughter will be coming after them tomorrow and I have already started missing them. One day is was 88 degrees in our back yard, so we decided to ride up on top of the mountain. There is a spring at the very top and I had some shower gel in my car, so we washed our feet in the cool water. It was 66 degrees...we almost needed a jacket. The picture above was made at the spring.