I Found a House

Angie, my daughter in Tennessee and I are going to share a home. I went up there and looked at houses this weekend again and found one. We will close on it on the 12th of October.
It will be nice to have a place there in Mt.Juliet where I can spend time each year and get to know my daughter, grandchildren and great grandsons better. Angie has no room in her place now and it's so far out from everything. This home is closer to groceries and necessities.
I didn't even recognize Mt. Juliet. My aunt and nieces and nephews lived there and it was so far out it seemed. Now it's a bustling little city and a nice safe place to live we are told.
The house is really cute. Hardwood floors, granite counter tops and we will each have our own bedroom. Angie, Alyssa, my granddaughter, and me and Bill when we are in town. We will each decorate our own rooms the way we want but decorate the common areas together.
I have a friend, Victoria, whose daughter just moved in with her and her husband. There is a name for that co-housing but I've forgotten it. We will be doing that on a lesser level. Lesser level because Bill and I won't be there but maybe four times a year or so.
We are all very excited about this house and the possibilities it represents to us all. I will go back on the 12th to close and then Bill and I will go up north for Jeni and Tom's wedding party in Tom's home town) and when we get back, we will get what we need to set up housekeeping because Angie and Alyssa will have moved in while we are gone.
Life has so many twists and turns and our life continues on this journey.
Another exciting part about getting this house is that I will be able to visit family in Cookeville as I travel through now. So many possibilities.

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A Spiritual Journey - in part

I finally got back to church on Sunday. I have been faltering, wandering, wondering since Brian's death. Everything I knew to be true about God, about my life, turned out not to be so. It's been a long hard journey to get back to church, to find one I thought I could be in and understand; figure out who or what God is. I never doubted his existence but I couldn't figure out what kind of God would let my son die. The only prayer asking for things I prayed was "take care of my kids". Well, I did pray for Bill and after I got him, the only prayer was for our health and that God please watch over my kids. I still don't know who God is. Probably none of us do. But I want to know.
Fast forward through the years of doubt and anger and searching: I found a church in Maggie Valley that I felt comfortable in. Not completely but I felt it was a beginning.
Since I returned to Maggie (I'm only here half the year), one thing after another came up on Sunday (usually traveling) that kept me from going there and reconnecting.
I went Sunday and was filled with an energy, the energy of all those voices singing and all those heads bowed and all those people worshiping the same God I knew and loved so much. I felt more balance in my life than I have felt in so long. Because I have been away from church for so long, I think it might just be a fluke but I think not. I love feeling a part of this body all loving and seeking Him.
I'm so glad to get back. I still don't know any more answers than I did but I'm running on faith again and that feels comfortable and so very, very good to me.
Thank you Lord for leading me gently through that storm that doesn't seem to let up for very long. As long as I know you are there...I think I'll figure out the rest.

BBQ and Hotrods at Long's Chapel

To make up for my evening of being a looser at the Bingo table, I met Brenda, my sister in law and my brother, Al, and my nephew, Ben at Long's Chapel for a BBQ and Classic Cars. I always enjoy being with them and today was no acception. There weren't a whole lot of classic cars but what they had was really nice. The food was very good. The dessert was really cute. I think the next time I have a BBQ I'll make them. They had pink icing and half a marshmallow was the snout, two mini choc chips were the nostrils, and the eyes were caramel chips. Too cute.
The people who came to sit at our table asked us where we were from. Brenda told them she lived around Chapin. The elderly couple told us what a wonderful experience they had in Chapin. Their AC in their car went out and they stopped at a car repair off the interstate and the people were so nice, the couple told everyone about it for the last twelve years. The owners drove the couple to a hotel while they waited on a car part and then the owners wouldn't even charge them for their work. That car repair was my brother and sister in law's business there in Chapin. what a small world. The couple thanked my Al and Brenda for being so nice to them when they were in a tough spot. How nice it was to have that happen and the couple were so glad to be able to say thank you now for the help.

Friday Nite Baskets and Bingo

A church group had an event at the Haywood County Fairgrounds called Baskets and Bingo. They had great prizes like Vera Bradley bags and Longerberger baskets full of goodies. I had my heart set on winning. I sat down with four women I had not met before but by the end of the evening we exchanged names. We realized we had something vital in common...we were ALL loosers.LOL We agreed that we would come back next year though because eventually we had to win something. The women had a great sense of humor and it made our ego deflating evening hilarious. LOL I love these events that seem to abound here in Haywood and surrounding counties. I love that it's such an artsy place and that there are so many local writers that I am getting to know. I look forward to readings and events and also submitting my work to the many publishers around here. One of my poems has been accepted in "Echos Across the Blue Ridge" that will come out in the winter and I have that to look forward to. It's wonderful to see so many venues around here for our paintings and art work and crafts. I can stay as busy as I want. I love this place!
It has been so rainy the last week. The street going into Waynesville was flooded friday night and when I got back from BINGO the lights were all out in the house. They were out for about two hours. I have flashlights all over the place now because it happens a lot when it rains. The photo is a lousy one but the white car behind the post was stuck with water up past the bottom of the door.

Angie

Bill and I went to see my daughter, Angie, and my granddaughters and great grandsons in Tennessee. We were only able to see Angie and two granddaughters this time.
We spent most of the time house hunting. My daughter lives so far away from town and we have decided to get a place closer to everything.
Our hope is to share a home with them so that when we go there we will have a place to stay, and most of all to get them near stores and doctors, etc. We have bid on two condos but our offers were not accepted. We have just bid on a house now and I hope we will get that. We have a realtor working with us there so we will eventually get something.
Our granddaughters are doing so well.
Brittanie, our oldest, drives an ambulance and hopes to be a paramedic. Her boyfriend’s name is Coty. Brittanie is 24 and has three sons, my three handsome great grandsons.
My second granddaughter, Valerie, is 22 and is a dental assistant. Her boyfriend’s name is Jon. I have forgotten to take my camera in both times when we have met Valerie so I have no photos of her.
Alyssa is 18, just graduated from high school and is still at home. She hopes to go to college in the spring session. In the meantime she works at a McDonalds for a few days. If she gets closer into town she can work where she can get more hours. Her boyfriend’s name is Ira.
I have four granddaughters and three great grandsons; I just can’t believe it. There are so many wonderful happenings in my life right now. I hope we can get a place there in Tennessee so we can spend more time with everyone.
Brittanie owns a home and Valerie will be closing on a house this month. I am so proud of them and they are all such a blessing in our life.
I already miss them.

Alvin's 58th Birthday

Alvin celebrated his 58th birthday on September 3 and we celebrated him that weekend.
Alvin, Brenda, Co, Snook, and Jerry and Judy came up to the mountain house and we had such a nice time.
One of the first things Jerry and Snook did was to go into the forests on our property and found a huge amount of ginsing. They are naturalists who really know the plant life around here.
We decorated the house for Al's birthdfay and had purchased old fashioned things like Play dough, animal crackers, Mickey Mouse bouncy balls, etc. We sure know how to give a party, don'tchathink? LOL
Co and Snook brought steaks for the birthday dinner and Bill and Co BBQ’d while we relaxed and had a drink and enjoyed the scenery and each other. For the sake of seating (limited in spots) we women ate in the house and the guys ate on the porch. Talk about old fashioned! LOL It gave us women time to catch up so that was all good.
We had a contest with the Play dough. Everyone was to make something from their can of dough and see what people came up with. We were so impressed I can’t tell you. The guys sat outside talking away while we were slaving at our craft. LOL BB finally went out and got them started by building Al (birthday guy) a “Bud Man” that was wonderful. She’s good at this dough stuff!! LOL Jerry made a red fox, Snook made a snake ready to strike, and Bill, my in-house artist made a black pretzel. I don’t know.
Then the men tried to figure out which object da art the women made. It was hilarious. They tried to figure it out so scientifically. LOL Finally, after giving them a hint way too easy, they figured it out.
Party time; Judy Cooper brought out a wonderful, beautiful, luscious coconut cake for dessert. After Al made his wish we dug in. Yum. It was spectacular! All three women here are excellent cooks so I love it when we get together!
Jerry holding Lexi.

We had such a wonderful weekend. We had planned to go to Waynesville Block Party on Friday night but we got to Smackers and eating and talking took precedence over the evening.
Happy Birthday to my baby brother, Alvin. Just a baby, only 58!!! LOL Talk about a baby, David, my brother in Tennessee is next and he’s only 57. Just babies; all of them. LOL

John C Campbell Folk School

Aug 30 – Sept 5, 2009

Bill and I enrolled for a week at the camp and we both enjoyed it. Bill took stained glass and did some amazing pieces but he said he wouldn’t make anything else. He liked taking the course though and he has always been interested in stained glass so he was glad he took it and now he will take it off his bucket list.
I too “Thinking Like da Vinci “class with Maureen Ryan Griffin as the instructor. She has a new writing book out called “Spinning Words into Gold “and I look forward to reading it.
The class was very interesting and had a different take on writing and I always enjoy different ways of looking at things. The instructor was very good and engaging. She held our attention and I could tell she loves her work.
The classmates were the icing on the cake. We all got along so well and I think we will keep in touch. We had people from Ohio, Georgia, NC, SC and Kentucky in the class.
The whole experience was like a camp for adults. Our accommodations were very nice though. We stayed at the Farm House which is new and has a bathroom in the room and was more like a hotel room. That was not the case the last time I stayed there. We would both go again.
From Morning Song at 7:45 until the last event at night, it was a good experience. We were surprised at how exhausted we were but we went from early morning until late at night. The food was country food style and pretty good. We both figured out what classes we would like to take next. Bill wants to take black smithing and I want to take about ten other classes. LOL