West Pointe Mill on the Eno River...

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This meme been making the rounds

and I thought I would have fun too.

This is what I would be today...

Join in!

If I were a month, I'd be June…
If I were a day, I’d be Saturday...
If I were a time of day, I’d be 8 p.m...
If I were a font, I’d be Freestyle Script…

If I were a sea animal, I’d be a clown fish...
If I were a direction, I’d be South...
If I were a piece of furniture, I'd be a piano...
If I were a liquid, I'd be sweet tea...

If I were a gemstone, I'd be a sapphire...
If I were a tree, I'd be a Yoshino cherry tree…
If I were a tool, I'd be a trowel...
If I were a flower, I'd be a pink Calla lily…

If I were an element of weather, I'd be a light Spring rainshower...
If I were a musical instrument, I'd be a bell…
If I were a color, I'd be Purple…
If I were an emotion, I'd be in love…

If I were a fruit, I'd be a sweet, but tart blackberry…
If I were a sound, I'd be the lapping of waves on the shore…
If I were an element, I'd be silver…
If I were a car, I'd be a Subaru Forester...

If I were a food, I'd be a flaky, fried flounder…
If I were a place, I'd be a waterfall…
If I were a material, I'd keep you warm...
If I were a taste, I'd be sweet…

If I were a scent, I'd be Cinnamon...
If I were a body part, I'd be the small of a back…
If I were a song, I'd be The Climb …
If I were a bird, I'd be a Bluebird…

If I were a gift, I'd be everything you ever wanted!
If I were a city, I'd be Naples…
If I were a door, I'd be propped open…
If I were a pair of shoes, I'd be a pair of hiking boots…

If I were a poem, I'd be A Little Glimpse of Heaven…

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Playing in the Waterfall

My blog friend Dagmar, from Holland, asked me to play along and have some fun so here I go. Okay you guys, wanna join the fun? Here's what to do:

1. Open your first photo folder
2. Scroll to your 10th photo

3. Then post that exact photo with it's story

4. After you've done that tag 5 people to play along.

Here the story to go along with the photo:

On one of the last days of our summer vacation in Cashiers, NC or "Paradise", we loaded up the children and all went to spend an hour or two wading in the pool at the bottom of Silver Run Falls. It got it's name from the silvery or platinum sand that covers this whole area. It must be mica or some mineral that has been chipped away by the falls. There is a ledge right under the waterfall where you can stand and let the ice cold water tumble right over you. It is very cold water, even in the summer time.

The pool is rather large and has a walking path all the way around to the other side of the falls. If you climb over opposite the falls, you can see another fall above this one upstream.

It is a wonderful way to enjoy the best of North Carolina!

Here are my 5 tagees:

http://possumkitty.blogspot.com/
http://nenslens.blogspot.com/
http://ols1-ols1.blogspot.com/
http://jeanneklaver.blogspot.com/
http://danceofapaintedlady.blogspot.com/

Thanks so much for tagging me Dagmar!! This was fun!!

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Kreativ Blogger Award

I feel so honored to receive this award from Jeanne. This is my first ever award for either of my blogs. My first blog, yadkinvalleyhome is what I consider my "real photoblog". This one was sort of an afterthought where I can send out a little bit more about my personality.

Thank you Jeanne so much. Please visit Jeanne's blog at http://jeanneklaver.blogspot.com/ to see more about her life in Pennsylvania and her travels.

The instructions for me to are as follows:

1. Thank the person giving the award.
2. Copy the award to this blog.
3. Place a link to their blog.
4. Name 7 things people don't know about you
5. Nominate 7 bloggers who you admire (WHAT? ONLY 7???
6. Place a link to these bloggers
7. Leave a comment on their blog notifying them of the award.

Seven things people don't know about me:

1. I'm also a painter; photography was sort-of just a hobby until 2009. Now I'm learning watercolor painting.

2. All my photos (even on yadkinvalleyhome) so far have been taken from a simple, point and click camera - an older Sony Cybershot. And I don't have Photoshop either. I wanted my photos to be something anyone could do, even without expensive equipment.

3. My lifelong dream is to live in the mountains.

4. Geneaology has been a 10 year + hobby of mine. I have huge charts of both sides of our families and cabinets full of info, probably enough for a book.

5. Before the children came along, I owned a retail pet store.

6. After eating out and having a great meal, I like to come home and recreate the recipe.

7. My son and I enjoy raising finches together.


This last part was the hardest, seven bloggers who I admire:

1. Dagmar - http://barefootfromheaven.blogspot.com/ She shows her deep character to go along with her wonderful photos.
2. Mark - http://appalachiantreks.blogspot.com/ I love Mark's photos of the Appalachian Mountains.
3.Lee - http://fromthesehills.wordpress.com/ Lee has wonderful quotes of wisdom to go along with beautiful photos of flowers.
4. Jessica - http://jessicayusdi.blogspot.com/ Jessica shows us many gorgeous photos of her travels and her beautiful son.
5. Stephen - http://nikonsniper.blogspot.com/ Stephen is a new blog for me to follow. I like the crispness of his photos and the variety of everything he posts.
6. Sandy - http://4pointsphotography.blogspot.com/ Sandy shows us her wonderful outdoor world in a unique way.
7. Beverly - http://beverlygilbert.blogspot.com/ Beverly is so talented with color and her beadwork. Her creations are amazing!!

Pease also view all the blogs on the right-hand of my page.

It inspires me everyday to read about their travels or hear about their day. They all add so much to my life.

Thanks for visiting!!

When I started this blog a couple of months ago, I wanted to start at the center of who I was and work out. Sometimes that has been how things have flowed, and other times, it has not worked out that way. Such is life. The good and the bad have knocked me off course a couple of times.

I have yet to feature my youngest son or my husband. They are the ones who are constantly around me, but I still haven’t found the right inspiration to truly share them with my ever-expanding world.

My youngest son is shy, but there is so much to him, even if he doesn’t show it to everyone. He is an artist and an author, a hunter and an aspiring chef. I’m getting inspired already. My husband on the other hand, is so many things I just don’t know where to begin. You’ll see them soon.

Other things close to my heart are writing, traveling, hiking/kayaking - anything outdoors really, and photography, of course. We’ve spent much of the past two summers traveling to waterfalls, mountain ranges and lakes. What an enchanting life we really live.

Recently, we spent a whole week in a cabin on Lake Glenville with my husband’s family.

There was tubing, kayaking, hiking, gem mining, fishing, and best of all – waterfall viewing. This area of NC has literally hundreds of waterfalls, three of them on the Lake we stayed on.

My youngest son and I hiked almost every weekend last summer. All the photos we took inspired my original photoblog. Click here to take a peak at all our adventures.

Real Pen Pals

Shelagh recently set up a pen pal project for us bloggers if we wanted to participate. She joined us up with someone who had similar interests.

My pen pal, Cathy, sent her package all the way from Oregan to North Carolina. I think it is neat that we are from opposite sides of the United States.

She really surprised me with a photography book of Oregan, a set of notecards she made with her own photos (love those!!!), a long letter, and a card with flower seeds embedded in the outer wrapper. You soak the blue wrapper in water, then tear it up and plant it in a pot or in your garden. I can't wait to see what types of flowers will grow.

Thank You, Cathy!!!

And, Thank You Shelagh!!! What a great idea you had!!

100 Things I Love

His eyes from across the room,
Sweet Buddy who meets me at the door

like it has been a week since I’ve been gone,

Christmas Trees all trimmed up for the big day,

Sailboats tied to the dock,
Beagle Puppies, Fried Flounder,
Sweet Tea on a hot day,
Moma’s Thanksgiving Turkey Dinner,

Watching for nightfall on the back porch,
Waterfalls, Hiking,
The Blue Ridge Mountains,
Watching the light of the sunset filter through the trees,
Listening to your voice as the story of your life slowly unfolds,

Hearing the waves lap along the shore while

lying in a hammock at the lake,
Sweet, Long Kisses, Surprise hugs from behind,
Watching a baby sleep,
The moon reflecting off the ocean all the way to the shoreline,
Writing my thoughts out,

Art Museums, Good Friends,
Hearing Bossman say - “You did a Great Job!”
Holding your baby for the first time,
The color Red, The Coastline of Italy,
Candle-lit dinners, Kayaking,

Fly-Fishing, Motorcycle Rides,

Sharing popcorn while we watch the same old movies

over and over again, Champagne,
Seeing my son perform a concert in “Rock Star” mode,
Hearing my husband sing me a love song,
Goldfinches, Woodpeckers,
Birdbaths, Lilies,

A Chaise Lounge, Looking at Stars,
Mountain Streams, River Rocks,
Roses, Weddings, Snowcreme,
The feeling of being “In Love”,
The Sound of baby birds,

The sky before sunrise,
Searching for the ISS,
Nature Trails, Holding Hands,

Baby horses, Pecan Pie,
Any movie with Meg Ryan,

A Silver Maple Tree in the Fall,
The Wrens in the Blue Bird box,
A Sleeping Porch, A new dress,
Windchimes, Pin Oak Trees,
My son’s artwork,

A friend’s voice - just when you need it,
Long talks on the phone,
Real handwriting from a pen pal,
Wrapping paper and ribbons,
Clean, fresh sheets,

Your husband rocking your baby to sleep,
New art supplies, Wild blackberries,
Tulips blooming in the Spring,
The family gathering for the Holidays,
New Year’s Eve parties,

Fireworks over a lake, you get to see them twice,
Hay on the rolling hills near home,

A roaring fire in an open fireplace,
Christmas Morning, Sleeping In,
Taking a child to the Zoo or Aquarium,

Valentine’s Day, Rainbows,
Blue Eyes, Hot Air Balloons,
Baby deer that still have their spots,
Listening to a really hard rain shower,
The smell after the rain,

A man who loves me unconditionally,
A week’s vacation in a mountain cabin on a private lake,
Someone who really listens,
Roasting marshmallows over a flame,

Wooden boats,

A great love story,
Little girl’s Easter dresses,
Time to let my thoughts wonder,
The smell of the ocean,
Freckles across a child’s nose,
A field full of black cows,

When my son plays the Blues on his guitar,
Sea shells and looking for sharks teeth

A horseback ride along the river,

A sweet hug after a long time apart

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Now, if anyone took the time to read through all of those, you know me a little bit better.

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Today Sandy is celebrating her 100th post and wanted us all to join in the fun.

Kamana is also celebrating her 100th post.

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It suprised me how long it took to come up

with 100 things I love,

but I wanted them to be from the heart.

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