Jack Frost Loves it Here!

 Jack Frost has most definitely been nipping at our noses and today is no exception with frost covering our yard and especially noticeable on the big cleared lot next door.

Of note this week, aside from the weather, has been all the excitement of the Christmas season in a small town. After months and months, our town's improvements are finally almost all in place. The tree was placed early last week and it now sits on grass, unlike the mostly dirt in this area for a good long while.

Aren't the pavers a huge upgrade? Don't be fooled by that blue sky because along with the frost there was plenty of rain this past week. No snow yet, but maybe next week before we take off for Florida? 

When you cook Thanksgiving dinner for two, leftovers are inevitable and what a treat to use them in new dishes, like the soup I made,

which was perfect in the chilly weather. As well, I dumped the leftover cranberry relish in with muffin ingredients and we learned that I should do that more often. Yummy!

For many folks sending Christmas cards is a thing of the past, but for me, it would not be Christmas without something to remind folks that they are special to us. There is a new paper shop in town and when I saw this address book there,

I knew it was finally time to update my twenty-plus year old book. I'm not getting rid of it because it does remind me of loved ones who have passed, but with so many names and addresses crossed out, it was time. Transferring names into the new one was one thing I did on the messy days. Saturday morning I wondered if the post office was open and sure enough it was and I walked right up to the clerk for my stamps, something that would probably not be possible in Orlando. Sure, lots of conveniences are not readily available, but it's just so peaceful here, we have cheerfully learned to live without most of them. 

Bruce is playing pickleball right now without me because I am taking a little break in the cold weather. Generally I don't mind the cold, but when I get hit in the hand on a cold day, I very much mind that. Because, despite playing for five years now, I am still one of the worst players, which while I wish it were not so, it is really to be expected. Nearly every person has some sort of athletic background; while they were pursuing sports, I was pursuing books. 😀

Speaking of our pickleball group, Friday was the day for Toys for Tots donations and our group did good.

Normally there are lots more folks, but it was a wet morning and only those brave enough to play on damp courts were there. More folks did come to the chili lunch at Buck Bald Brewery, about two blocks from our home. 

I joined them after helping ladies from our church purchase items for the middle school children's wish list. While I was doing that, Bruce was at the Big Brothers Christmas party held at the casino bowling alley. The kids bowled several games, as well as had an hour in the arcade, followed by a pizza lunch. 

That night, and luckily it was not raining, the first Friday art walk was held downtown. It was mighty cold so we spent more time indoors. This is Appalachian culture in action. 

My goodness, I almost skipped over some important events, including Thursday's Soul Table.

Note the colorful knitted hat made by Dotti, one of 75 she and another women made!! She is a wonder that's for sure. We had a big crowd who enjoyed a hearty soup, biscuits, and salad. 

I helped Bruce in the kitchen for a bit as he was finishing up the dishwashing which was around 2pm. Because a wintery storm was predicted for Friday night, the day of the scheduled tree lighting, the town made the decision to move it to Thursday at sunset. Sounds like a plan, except we were meant to attend Grayson's school Christmas concert at the nearby Baptist church. First things first...

Laura is introducing the little church choir to lead in the singing. Laura made the decision to retire from her town position, but I am hoping she will pass on my name as a ready volunteer.

After a few songs, the lights came on,

and we scurried to our car to drive the half mile to the church where a surprise awaited us. Cars and lots of them!! We learned when we went into the church that the concert included both the high school and middle school, so lots of families in the audience. So many so that your favorite blogger and her husband were fortunate to find standing room along the side.

It was our first experience seeing a singing Christmas tree.

The woman in the red sweater was the choral director and she was wonderful to watch as she had so much enthusiasm and clearly loved the kids. 

You have becme accustomed to Grayson playing soccer and now he is playing an instrument. 

As is his custom, Bruce does a beautiful job while wrapping gifts, the first two under the tree are for Grayson.

Although not to worry any of our children reading this, your dad is doing the same for you! It was a joy to put up the Christmas tree and just like our Vancouver tree, we keep it lit a LOT to ward off the gray weather. Last year Matt and Tom bought ornaments from one of the downtown shops and putting them on the tree made me happy. (Hint, hint, the ornament is one of my favorite subjects)

Good grief, there is still more to come!! Let's face it, most folks are ultra busy at this time of year, aren't they? 

One afternoon I walked into town, mostly to admire the window displays. Our merchants are vying for glory for their decorating prowess.  Proving that photographs are not always what they seem to be, our church is actually behind me unlike the reflection shows it in the shop window! 

Marketplace Antiques windows are always great and especially so at Christmas time.

Following Grayson's concert we saw this fun window at the book store, Narrative,  located near our restaurant destination, Perrones. 

Before we get into the Saturday night Christmas parade, two things of interest. Because we were helping with the parade I did not participate in the Memories with Santa event at the church where not only are there photos with Santa, there are games and gift bags. Marji made all of the fabric bags you see; thirty in all. Count me impressed.

This photo has nothing to do with Christmas, but I thought you might enjoy seeing what a loofah looks like when it dries out.

This post shows it green. I was wondering how long it took to go from green to ready to be peeled. The outer skin is quite brittle and the loofah is absolutely cram packed with seeds. 

I learned from Linda yesterday that the parade used to be held in the daytime which truth be told is probably not a bad idea because parts of the route are not well lit and the folks on the floats are throwing candy into the crowd with kids scrambling to pick it up off the road.  I dodged plenty!

I thought the train was super cute as were many of the floats. I was so happy seeing the creativity and joy. 

A snow globe! Our realtor Donna is beside the tree. 

We never got a good look at Grayson on the soccer teams float, but I'm sure it was so fun for them cel;ebrating their championship. Speaking of that, Murphy High School is in the state 2A high school championship game this upcoming Saturday. How about that? 

 The local girl scout troop had a winning float.

More snow and candy galore on the street.

Fortunately it was not nearly as cold as last year! After we put our last group into the parade, we walked alongside it and folks were waving at us as if we were in it! For the record, we waved back.

Walking past our street and into town, following the float with the high school band on it, they were doing a great job. Overall the parade was darn impressive.

Whew!! Lots to write about and there is more, but I will save it for my next post because, Lord knows, you probably are tired of reading, basically the same thing as last year. Am I right about that?  I do have one new thing and that is that we went for dinner at Mark and Mary Beth's new home in Hayesville with the Libers. This was our first time seeing it and am I ever thrilled it was on a cold winter's night because with so many bare trees, the view was out of this world. They went from being riverside to being atop a mountain.

Of course it took a narrow winding road to get there, but our friend David was up for the task! More to come next time.

I have just looked at the ten day forecast and the prediction is for five sunny days in a row which I will believe when I see it. The days are not too bad, but holy cow, one night will allegedly be 18 degrees! We are most definitely in for a temperature shock when we return to Orlando!

As always, I remain your friend,

Gail

Here it Comes!!

With the first day of October arriving tomorrow, the town is beginning to look a lot like Autumn. I think the local merchants, which, btw, is all of them, decorate for the seasons, but possibly none so much as for Autumn? Floridians flock to the mountains at this time of year and dare I say buy property once they see the magnificence of the miracle of changing leaves? 

Can you tell that I can't wait? 

Speaking of Floridians, Michelle messaged this morning that she and David are coming to Murphy in a few weeks for the first time since we moved here!! To say that we are thrilled is an understatement. Furthermore, our friends Keith and Patty are coming as well so it looks as if the Pecks are going to be a busy duo! 

Oh wait, we already are!

I mentioned the loofah from Sara June; maybe there are some amongst you who want to know what it looks like before it drys out over the winter? Of course you do!

We shall see how it changes as time progresses.

Rain happened a few days last week which left wet courts which left the Pecks doing projects around the house.

One of the backyard trees, what it is I'm not really sure, but a good deal of the leaves have already fallen.  One good thing about that tree is it only drops leaves.

Unlike the chestnut tree that gifts us with hundreds of what I am calling "spike balls" because they are covered with super sharp spikes. As you recall I am using a bucket and long tongs to rid the yard of their menacing presence. To date I would guesstimate we have picked up at least ten buckets full. I don't think I've shown you the black walnuts on the tree so now is a good time to do so. Nix that idea because I can't readily find the photograph, however when I was looking for it, I came across this adorable photo of Jonathan and Alissa while they were at Coney Island during their New York City visit to see Oasis. 

Oh yes, they also went to the US Open! I just love it.  Can I call it adorable when they are in their mid 40's? Why yes I can and will. :)

While I continued working on my latest quilt,

Bruce began an ambitious project as is his wont. Unbeknownst to me, the pantry construction was a little too crude for his liking so while the kitchen was slated to be painted, why not the pantry too?

Trim where it was needed, both serious sanding and caulking, to the tune of four tubes worth.

And  now we wait for the special paint to cure before loading it back up. In the meantime there are about six large boxes in the dining room that I have been rummaging through to prepare meals.

The pictures do not do it justice but trust me, it looks so nice now, but what else would I have been expecting with Mr. Peck at work? The color is not wildly different than the previous one but I think Dixie approves.

Dixie for those new to the blog is my new favorite cowgirl who is looking on. This morning he met with Grayson but is now painting away. All of the rooms he has painted have had their challenges and the kitchen has been no exception. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say that Bruce is up for the challenge, as he always is. 

Mostly I holed up with my sewing machine while he worked on the floor below.

Still I found time to watch the hummingbirds who are still loading up on sugar for their long journey. While I thought I was done making nectar, I thought wrong. 

One day as I watched a bee was attracted as well and kept bugging the hummingbird, sort of like blue jays rams into owls to make their presence known. A little size difference I grant you that, but still the same concept. The hummingbird kept batting its' wings until the bee flew away. Then they shared.

While there I noticed I have a few strawberry flowers!

The tomatoes are small but mighty!

I used one in a tomato and grilled cheese sandwich yesterday and I was pretty darn excited. Now I am channeling that excitement onto the broccoli plants I put in the ground yesterday! I most certainly will keep you posted on their progress.

An early morning walk on the riverwalk revealed this spider.

It kind of gives me the creeps, how about you?

Just when you thought to yourself that we had stayed home all week long, here she goes detailing the goodness of friends. Seriously, we have been so lucky in that regard. D'Anna invited us along with Randy and David for dinner on Friday night. Of course we said yes, especially when they offered to drive. Don't ask me how I sat on the wrong side of Randy's MINI Clubman because I did, so I just took whatever photo I could of the glorious fields and mountains.

Along the way we began noticing how the color was just beginning to change as we rose in elevation. Once we got to their home, at 3,100 feet ,we saw even more.

As you are probably well aware of now, she loves her seasonal decorating! I am trying, really I am.

David made a yummy chili, followed by her surprise dessert.

Banana pudding under those Clubman cookies! D'Anna pulls out all the old-school southern desserts she learned from her mother in Atlanta and there is a reason they have stood the test of time.

Saturday evening we went to the Hearne's charming property in nearby Brasstown. If you have been following this blog for any length of time you are undoubtedly familiar with Julie and Harry, both potters from the folk school. Plus Harry is heavily involved with pickleball. So now that you have them in mind, let's visit. As soon as I stepped out of the car, the sight of all of the goldenrod in the late evening sun was so beautiful.

All these wildflowers have appeared since I last took a photo of a nursing doe and her fawn when this was a green meadow. 

The lights are all strung between the trees, and it was cool enough for a fire and who in the world does not love a fire?

The kitchen of two artists is not like mine!

Their home is filled with eclectic art and interesting touches everywhere. It's heaven for me to visit.

Look who is there for the second night in a row. Would that be David next to Bruce.? Why yes it is.

And what was the occasion you ask? Maybe the beginning of Autumn? They are so hospitable I think it was merely because they could.

The giant gift basket Bruce won included a gift card to a local restaurant called Rib Country so Sunday after church seemed like a good time to check it out.

Plenty of folks doing the same. All the yummy barbecue joint favorites to choose from. I was also somewhat smitten with the art work because, well, I can't really say why.

Perhaps it is because I am looking for some art for the kitchen? 

Well that is all the news from Murphy and the house on Campbell Street.  Dare I say there will be more to come? Lord willing and the creek don't rise .

your friend,

Gail