Lightbulb!

I was reading the Other People's Chicken blog and a post she wrote about gardenias hit me like a ton of bricks. (I also must credit the lovely picture above to Miss Chicken.) Here's a part of the post:

I know it might seem strange, me having a crush on a flowering shrub, but I'm in love, and I don't care who knows it. The captivating fragrance, the waxy white flowers that look like they were fashioned out of fondant, the way it always knows just what to say when I've had a hard day. I'm driving the children crazy with gardenia arrangements in every room, not to mention my theatrical proclamations each time we leave the house. BEAUTIFUL! I yell as we pass the shrub each morning on our way out the door, sometimes forcing them to stop and inhale. I feel so lucky, and yet-it's only for a while. We're not always going to live here, that's for darn sure. In this house, this city....on earth. And I don't want to miss a thing, not anymore, so I'm going to savor it all. Right down to the gardenias.  


That's how I've been feeling!! I finally have an answer to my unspoken question! I've been smelling (more like hyperventilating) this oh-so-amazing, wonderful, intoxicating scent for some time now and although I didn't know what it was as it wafted through our open windows, I knew I never wanted it to go away. Ever. The scent alone was making me weepy to leave Knoxville because I just know they weren't going to have air that smells like this in brown, windy Wyoming. And now it's been confirmed. Gardenias don't grow there. They're a southern flower. But at least I'm not alone in my magnolia-induced drunkeness. And that makes me feel a little better. Now I'm just hoping I can find a magnolia-scented candle that smells just like it does outside. Yeah right. (But for those of you who may actually know of such a thing, because I'm still going to hold to the hope that somewhere out there there IS a company that has developed a magic formula to emanate the real smells of nature and not just a poor perfumy replica, and you're familiar with this heavenly magnolia smell, seriously, PLEASE please please buy several of whatever it is and I will pay you back. With interest!! I am willing to pay big bucks to take this smell with me.)

Becoming one with nature - Part 2

After the previous weekend was such a disappointment from being stormed out, we decided to postpone our packing for one more weekend and try camping again. And this time, it was great for all 24 hours. Instead of just the 4 we enjoyed the weekend before.

We loaded up the car once again and this time remembered to buy our firewood before we got to the campground. Good looking firewood, huh?


We successfully set up our cozy tent again. Well, DJ did and I took pictures.


And then it was time to reeeelax. And take more pictures.




Oh, see that fire? I should mention that DJ started that fire with no matches. He's an old pro now ya know. What can I say? Just poof! Let there be fire!

Ok, some old coals that were left smoking in the pit may have helped a little but still...impressive, eh?


Maia did some exploring. I think she has the easiest job of any of us of becoming one with nature. She fits right in.








More chillaxin'...




And then it was time for a little hike to the lake that we never even got to see on our last trip to the campground.



Goooorgeous!!!

It was as beautiful as we'd been told. There was a great little path that went all the way around the lake but that was about 3.5 miles so we just went a little ways. We found a huge spillway that had a cement bridge going across it and made that our turnaround point. It was a beautiful walk through the woods and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. Juuuuust right.









After the hike, it was time for some very important matters to be taken care of. And that would be...

...roasted marshmallows. Myfirst couple of attempts resulted in burnt marshmallows.

But I got better as the night wore on. By the end of the night, not only were the coals perfect, but they aided in roasting perfectly brown marshmallows. DJ, on the other hand, burns his marshmallows, on purpose. I've never heard of such a crazy notion.

The rest of the night was perfectly uneventful. It got very cold at night but our tent was oh so cozy. I was also hoping and praying that, for once, I wouldn't have to get up in the middle of the night, as is the usual these days, to make a trek to the bathroom but, no such luck. I got to enjoy the campground during even the wee hours of the night.

It was a beautiful campround, a wonderful experience and one that we hope to repeat again once we get to Wyoming!

Becoming one with nature

DJ and I decided to get a camping trip in before we left the beautiful Smoky mountains. Our first attempt was going splendidly -- we found the perfect site with only one visible neighbor, we got the tent set up for the first time with no problems (or arguments),

we got a great campfire going also with no arguments (we tend to argue a lot when we don't know what we're doing, or rather when one or the other person thinks they know what they are doing and doesn't think the other person does),

we made some mac & cheese with DJ's new Jet Boil, improvising where necessary when we realized we forgot certain things,

and we cooked some hot dogs after I whittled a stick with some scissors that we could (sort of) lodge the hot dog on long enough to get some heat on it.

It was all so great and sure, we knew there was a little rain in the forecast but heck, we had one weekend to make use of our new camping supplies in the great Tennessee wilderness and I was not about to let a little rain spoil our plans.

AND THEN....

The weather decided it didn't care what kind of stubborn will I was planning to exude in order to become one with nature, and it let loose its fury anyway. Or rather, the campground host notified us, and the rest of the campground, that all heck was going to break loose any minute in the form of 75 mph winds and a tornado watch and that we should definitely consider leaving.

LEAVING?!?! Wha...

But, but...we just set everything up, my perfectly padded bed was waiting for me to sleep on it, marshmallows were calling my name from the trunk of the car, we hadn't even seen the beautiful gorgeous lake that we had heard so much about.

My mind started working. Maybe we can tough it out. I mean, really how strong are 75 mph winds anyway?? I'm sure our trusty little tent could handle it - it wasn't even fluttering with the breezes as it was. And then we were told that last time they had to take shelter in the bathrooms, there were only 50 mph winds and these were expected to be at least 20 mph faster. Ummm yeah....that's all we needed to hear. Let's get the heck out of here!! We probably set a record for how fast we got everything packed in, rolled up and thrown back into the car before leaving a puff a dust in our wake as we shot out of the campground, followed by many others who also decided to make the same kind of getaway.

We made it back Knoxville as the rain came down, mind you, no winds were playing a part in the part of the storm that we saw, but we decided it was better to be safe than sorry and the radio stations were saying that there was a huge storm coming. We were so disappointed. We had spent a total of 4 hours at the campground.

So we decided to try it again the next weekend... (to be continued)

A Non-Traditional Easter

Last weekend, we celebrated Easter a little differently than we normally have in the past. It was perfect though. Instead of spending it with family, which would have been impossible, we decided to take advantage of the summer-like weather that we've been having and head into the mountains. After we went to an early church service, we hurried home and got everything together. I had made deviled eggs and a fruit salad the day before to take along and we also had some ham sandwiches, pasta salad, chips and pretzels to add to the mix. So our meal still had an Easter vibe but just served a non-typical way.

We picked up Cody along the way and headed to the Smokies by way of Gatlinburg. It was in the mid-80s and we weren't the only ones that had the idea of a non-traditional Easter. There were hundreds of people at the picnic area that we found in the Smokies and hundreds more that were roaming the streets of Gatlinburg. But it didn't seem crowded at our picnic. The area was perfect sitting next to the river that passes through the national park and the water drowned out all the noise of the people. We ate some food, played some cards, took a walk, experimented with the new camera and got plenty of sun. It was a great way to spend a day that celebrates new life and our risen Savior.







The following pictures were all taken by DJ. He is loving the new camera and I am loving the fact that we may have found an activity that we can enjoy together!






Stinkerbutt, as we so lovingly call our dog, got to come too.




Of course I had to get some pictures of the magnolia tree. I've never seen such a tree! It's so gorgeous with its giant flower blooms. And the peach trees and dogwood trees (didn't get a picture of the dogwoods yet), are also in full bloom. I love this time of year!

Birds, flowers, buds, oh my!

In addition to taking every opportunity to bask in the sun since it decided to make its appearance these past few days, I also decided to capture some images of the evidence that spring has finally arrived here in the southeast! I'm as happy as a squirrel who just found his neighbor's stash of horded acorns! (How's that for a mental image??)







Can you spot the bird in this picture? Kinda hard to miss with its bright red-orange feathers!





The spring mission for Maia is to work off her "winter weight" as the vet so kindly put it.



This isn't exactly a sign of spring in these parts. The grass never turned brown this winter! But I do think it's looking even greener lately and it's actually growing which it did stop doing over the winter.

Thanksgiving Happenings

Yes, I know that we're 8 days from Christmas so I'm way past due talking about Thanksgiving but I gotta get it documented, ya know? But I AM going to do it all in one post and stick to the highlights so here we go!

As you know my parents and brother came down from SD to spend the week with us and we were going, going, going the minute I picked them up from the airport. One of the smaller, but no less important, highlights was waking up each morning and drinking coffee together as we caught up on everything and discussed what we would do for the day. (I was also reminded of the vast amount of coffee that my parents consume on a daily basis. We're talking, at least 3 pots were consumed every morning and Chace and I probably each had one cup each. MAYBE 1.5 cups each. So that leaves the rest of the 2.5 POTS for my mom and dad. I think I have a small inkling of where a lot of my mom's energy comes from...) Not only do I love just sitting around and having a good cup of coffee in the morning but it was great to share the time with my family and just...be.

Another highlight, which we will forever remember for a number of reasons, was going to the Kentucky/Vols football game. In Kentucky. I had told my mom that when they were here we would have to visit another state since we live so close to so many and we did! And this wasn't even a planned excursion initially but when I realized how close it actually was, I knew we had to do it because this would be the only opportunity for my parents to see a game. And I'm so glad we did! The Vols won in overtime and it was the last game of the season so that win clinched us a good bowl game.

Our quarterback Jonathan Crompton

It always cracks me up when the team does its pregame stretches.




Our coach Lane Kiffin - what always cracks me up about him is that it always looks like he's a little boy wearing daddy's clothes. His shirts are always HUGE!

And this would be the hubs.


I love telephoto lenses! It looks like I'm standing right next to him huh?




















It was a little smoky from the Kentucky team's introduction... I think they did that on purpose so we couldn't see our own team enter the stadium.

We ended the night by getting lost on the way back to our car. Not until we were deep in the 'hoods of Lexington did we decide to use the GPS on Chace's phone. Oh yeaaaaah... The GPeeeesssS....

Another highlight of the week was getting a tour of the Vols locker room. It is gorgeous!


Come on in!







It's a tradition to jump up and hit the Tennessee sign before leaving the locker room and running out onto the field.





And then we were able to walk out on the field.

Standing on the 50 yard line. Cool! Standing on the checkerboard end zone. Cool! Running on the field. Thankfully no one got my picture when I ran. Apparently I look like an ostrich on drugs or something, or so I'm told... So those were just a few of the bigger highlights but really the entire time they were here, I knew we were making so many great memories that we would cherish for a lifetime. I was so glad that they all were able to stay in our house and so glad that my mom and I were able to cook Thanksgiving dinner together which by the way, was a HUGE success. (Yaay!! *raising hands in victory*)