Looking for a New Place to Eat???

We came across this delightful shot on the way to Twin Falls just above Pickens, SC. Just across the road is a rustic little bar called Bob's Place. I wasn't brave enough to grab a shot since there were a lot of motorcycle guys about. The falls are beautiful and an easy, quick hike to get to. Click the link above for more info.

More Work on the House

Another before view of the house. Half-naked cherubs (click on the shot to see it large) in the kitchen of all things. I apologize if you have these in your house. Just not my cup of tea. 5 days til the wedding. Here are some other before shots.














Bad Wall paper and tons of it. The kitchen--cabinets are now white and
there will be new applicances.

Wedding Day Coming Soon

We are down to the "Really hectic" stage of the wedding planning. Only 7 days until the big day. Today was the bridesmaids luncheon. Here are 7 of the eight bridesmaids with their gifts from the bride. Also Aunt Anna who is directing the wedding and the beautiful bride in blue. We had the luncheon at 1826 on the Green in Pendleton. It is the former Farmer's Hall restaurant and is in the historic Farmer's Hall building. The weather was lovely and we enjoyed a delicious luncheon outside. It was a delightful day. More pics below.

Budding Beauty

This is from a tree in my neighbor's yard taken in the early spring. I have always called it tulip tree--it is one of the first things to bloom each spring. But I believe it may be in the magnolia family. I was very pleased with this shot and tried my hand at a little different tone in the post processing.

All Sizes

This farm is owned by the McCown family and is on our drive to the dam when we go to walk. I have often looked and these silos and thought they would make a great shot but have never taken the time to stop--so I finally did. In the late spring the fields are full of canola. They bloom a beautiful yellow. In the late summer they grow sunflowers and have fields and fields. I am sorry to say I do not have shots of either--but I have my plans for this year.

Sun Rays

Another photo I took looking out over Hartwell from the Hartwell Dam. I will be going back to some of my older shots for the next few days as my camera is having issues and had to be sent off for repairs. I hate it!! Hopefully it will be back in a week or so.

Storms can be scary...and leave a mess behind

Some of the destruction left by the storm last Friday, April 10 (my birthday). Our neighbor across the street had 2 trees across the road. We had lots of limbs and the back cover of my husband's truck blew off--into the air about 15 feet or so--took about 3 limbs out of our maple tree--hit is shop and knocked a hole in the wall--and landed about 30 yards away. The clean-up was back breaking. Here are some of the shots in our yard
Lots of limbs








Ronnie's truck cover








The dent in his shop.

Bursting with Bloom

The azaleas in my yard are bursting with blooms. I love this time of year when everything is new and green and colorful.

Lake View

My husband and I love the lake. One of our favorite spots is the walking track along the Hartwell Dam. We try to get over there on Saturday or Sunday afternoons to take Sadie, our springer spaniel. I often take my camera hoping for a glorious sunset. Usually, if I forget my camera there is one. On this day the sun was sending rays streaming through the clouds and the water seemed to have a blue color even though most of the time the water looks green. We are so happy to see the lake level rising again. Lake Hartwell is a beautiful lake to spend a summer afternoon just quietly floating and enjoying some sun.

Park your buggy here.

WOW--this week has really gotten away from me. I have been working on the new house and yesterday we had terrible storm with limbs all over the yard. (Pictures to come) So basically I haven't had much computer time. I went back through my oldies looking for a shot to post and remembered this one from our trip through the Amish country. This is the parking lot at a Wal-Mart in Pennsylvania. If you have never been through the this part of Pennsylvania, I recommend a road trip. We saw the most beautiful countryside there.

Demolition Started

My youngest daughter and her fiance have bought their first home. It was a foreclosure and needs a lot of work, but they are very excited about doing it together. So our days are consumed now with tearing down wallpaper, scraping ceiling, and doing demolition. They will be married in less than 4 weeks and I don't think we will get it all done. (They do have temporary shelter until the work is done.) Here Meredith has taken the ugly window air conditioning unit out. She has been wanting to do that for weeks as they waited for the closing. See below for a before picture.

Keep checking back for updates on the house--we will be documenting the work in pictures.

Falls Park, Greenville, SC

On Sunday my husband and I went to our early service at church and then headed over to Falls Park in downtown Greenville. I am ashamed to say I live 30 miles away and have never been. I will return. The park is beautiful. The city of Greenville is to be commended for such a beautiful green place in downtown. Flowers were blooming everywhere. The grass was so beautiful and green. And the architecture of the bridges and building adds to the beauty. But most peaceful of all is the river. I love the sight and sound of rushing water. We found a quiet bench and just sat and enjoyed the scenery and watched people. It was a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Reminiscing

Today I spent the day scraping ceilings at my daughters new house. She is the one getting married in four weeks. Tonight I am reminiscing about our days following her all over South Carolina and the southeast when she played fast pitch softball. This shot is from about 2004. We spent every week-end in the summer traveling with 12 other families to softball tournaments. We spent our days roasting on those hot and humid southern summer days to watch our girls smash balls. Meredith was a very good center fielder who rarely missed a ball and hit double digit home runs. Merdith played 3 summers for the Carolina Lightning coached by Tom Hewitt who is now the girls' softball coach at Anderson University and Mike and Matt Thrasher, owners of Skins' Hotdogs. It was a wonderful experience and we made life time friends.

More of Downtown

I know the owner of The Kitchen Emporium in downtown Anderson, but I am ashamed to say I have not been in the store in a long while. But as I was on my photo walk recently I noticed the wonderful colors on the store's entrance. I especially love the tiles. It made a nice photo.

My Hometown

I took my friend Angie's advice and finally took a photo walk downtown. I live in Anderson, South Carolina. Like many other cities and towns, we are trying to rejuvenate our downtown area. This is a statue that stands in front of the courthouse on the downtown square. This is William Whitner. He was an engineer who produced a way for electricity to be conducted through wires to the many textile mills in the area. Anderson was the first city in the United States to have a continuous supply of electric power and the first in the world to create a cotton gin operated by electricity. Thus we are called "The Electric City". That is a pretty amazing legacy for a small town.

A girl can never have to many....

I love shoes. I think most women do. There is just something special about slipping your foot into a new pair. Thy just make you feel pretty. Of course I don't wear these style anymore. Just can't take the discomfort. But my daughters love stilettos. I took this shot in the window of the boutique my daughter manages in downtown Anderson. Blake & Brady Boutique. Stop by when you are in town.