Family Fun. Part Two

 What better way to start a post entitled family fun than this silly photograph?

Perhaps you are wondering what exactly to make of this and I am here to explain. This is a new feature since our last visit to Deerwoode, a spring-fed swimming hole that some of us very much enjoyed as it was crazy sunny, and HOT.  Finding these floats to use, and because both Matt and Jonathan have very fair skin, not often exposed to the sun, they fashioned some ingenious shade for their faces. Come to think of it, apparently the apple does not fall far from the tree as this is the sort of thing Bruce might think of!

The dock is in the foreground and eventually your favorite blogger jumped off of it into the cool mountain water below. It was really neat because you would come across very cold spots and then super warm from the summer sun.

Count me surprised to see a Sanderling.

Actually I have that wrong, it is a Solitary Sandpiper, somewhat puzzling as there was a pair of them! Anyway, not the kind of bird I would imagine being in the mountains.

Speaking of birds, can you find the one below? Like a Where's Waldo?

There are apple trees adjacent to the garden, as well as peach trees. (Jonathan and I were near the trees when he spotted the Monarch butterfly.

He was not with me when I saw this one though,

nor this one that I came across on my solo walk on the trails. Holy Cow, a butterfly entirely new to me.

According to the information HERE, that Matt provided after I was having no luck identifying the elusive butterfly, it is a wonder I saw the above at all.

While I was walking on this maintained trail,

I suspect by now, having read your fair share of North Carolina posts that you can guess what happened. 

Bingo!

Alissa likes taking photographs nearly as much as I do. so one evening we went out to see what we could see. A colorful sky at sunset,

while this one was a little earlier in the evening.

Honestly, that is one of the other things I most love, the ever-changing sky.  This was a view early one morning from the front porch rockers. Note the large parking area where Nancy and I practiced pickleball with Jonathan being a pitch hitter. Is that too goofy of a joke? Okay, to put it plainly, he hit a few balls as well, and was way better than his mom! (The building on the right is in progress as a large event space that will open in the next six months for weddings, markets, and concerts)

There is a large lake for boating with kayaks, canoes, and a pedal boat for the guests to use.

I think Matthew left America a little less confident of his Mom's skill set these days as I looked pretty silly getting in both the pedal boat, and getting on and off the kayak. Mostly though, my problem lies with not being able to put much weight on my left wrist, making things look very awkward indeed. The fact that on a subsequent day our tubing trip proved to be slightly challenging because of a few unforeseen circumstances involving Mrs. Camera Crazy did not ease his mind much. Rest assured son, I am slightly stronger and more competent than I look!

Cookout under the trees!!

Cards were played, a mushroom foraging game learned, and a jigsaw puzzle was put together by Tom and Alissa in record time. Those two!!

I'm not going to lie, the weather was warm, but it is August so what was I really expecting?

I took the above from the swimming hole one afternoon. The one below, wow, the fog was thick on our last morning.

Taking a walk with Jonathan and Alissa, one thing that was so interesting were the multitude of spider webs we saw in the damp morning light. How cool is this one? 

While one is good, more is even better. These are made by a Bowl and Doily spider according to this. (thanks Alissa)

Amazing, right? Dozens and dozens of the delicate webs were to be found in the meadows that are left in their natural state. I can't remember how many are left alone, but it is a significant number of the 175 acre property because it is a nature conservation reserve. 

The garden is even better now that Scott is maintaining it. Bill, the previous owner for 40 years was working the garden on our first visit, however, he has succumbed to dementia and is no longer living at home. :(

More garden goodness,

and one of the pollinators of said garden must be included.

Having seen all that the place has to offer, is it any wonder I wanted to share it with our children? 

Fortunately I was sharing this boat ride with Tom who did all of the steering while we pedaled together.

photo credit: Alissa!  That boat ride was much better with the top on!

As you can imagine, I took far more photographs than what you see, but if I shared all of my favorites we would be here for a good long while longer. How about I just paddle off until my next post when the clan will actually leave the property?

I do look a little goofy don't I? In my defense, I was wearing a dress in mixed company!

your friend,

Gail