Livin Like We're On Vacation

A little thing I like to say about my husband and I and the way we live is "We live like we are on vacation" so there's really no point in going anywhere.  We have our farm, the woods, our garden, our pets, our jobs, not to mention... each other.  This past weekend, we made ourselves a "get away" spot in the woods.  A little hide away where we can go to chill or camp or cook... all outside.  A little woodsy nook just for us.  Complete with bugs and all!

 

We gathered big rocks from piles that have been in the woods for... ever.  They were cleared from the fields and stacked by people farming the land here years ago.  I was leery of finding a snake so I wore my gloves.... it made sense then.  Plus I bite my nails so I like to keep unidentified dirt out from under them. 

 

We found out spot and cleared away the leaves.  I actually found my first Morel Mushroom while doing this.  Kicked the head right off of it!  Then I cooked it and we ate it with the quail for supper. 

 

We stacked the rocks in a circle to make our fire pit.  Then we went to a spot where we had a tree fall and got three loads of wood and made our wood wall.  It turned out the wood was too wet and rotten to burn very good that evening.  But the maiden voyage was had.

 

Shaun put out his fire pit cooking gear from his rendezvous days.  All cast iron pretty cool stuff.  Then we put our lawn chairs out and sat and drank us a cold one. 
Life is good here at the hide out!  We plan to vacation here a lot this summer! 
 

Sorry.. I cannot disclose the actual spot of the hide out on our farm...
it wouldn't be a hide out then, now would it?!

 

We plan to have different chairs and maybe wood benches.  As Shaun said "we can't do it all in one day.. that'll take the fun out."

Local Spotlight: Historic Corner House

I have wanted to spotlight the Historic Corner House for a little bit now but haven't gotten up to Crossplains in a while.  I adore the decor.  From antiques to hand made barn wood furniture that the owner's husband makes, to locally made soaps, cards, food and gifts, the Corner House has got it all.  I bought a fantastic bottle of moonshine hot sauce (non-alcoholic... bummer), a bunko gift and some old flash cards with big words on them to sit around.  Their prices are very reasonable and the layout and display of the shop is divine not to mention the super friendly service. 

 

Visit them in person here

 

7810 Highway 25 East

Crossplains, TN

 

and online HERE

 

 

 

Laurie's Nature Walk Essentials

Being the nature lovin' gal that I am, you know I love a good walk in the woods.  But on these walks I am not always alone.  There are some essentials that go along with me on my walk.  If  I am going for a short walk some of these things aren't totally necessary.  If I plan to be in the woods more than thirty minutes the rest are generally in tow.  Here is a guide to show what I usually take with me on a nature walk.

 

 

 

1. My Trek Pole.  My Mother gave me a walking stick like this for my birthday and I have used the fire out of it!  It is adjustable height, has a wrist strap, is spring loaded, and extremely necessary.   I don't care how good you can walk on your own a good crutch is a must when walking through slick creeks, up hills or down hills for that matter.  They are also good for knocking down spider webs in your path.  If you don't have one of these I recommend a good stick broken to the length you need, I have many of these too.
2. Lil' Scissors.  IF you are going out to take trimmings of any kind these are needed.  They fold up so no one gets cut accidentally.  They are handy to have if you are looking for cut flowers or fiddle heads or maybe if you need to threaten a snake.
3. Writing Gear.  Wonderful tools in case you see something that needs detail written down because your short-term memory fails you... like mine.  If you see a bird that you would like to identify later.. write down some specifics.  Or keep the journal to track where you've been on what days and what was blooming for instance.  Or a paper trail in case you get lost... "follow paper and you will find me."
4. Bug Wipes.  Even if it's not the right weather... so you think... no one wants a tick.  Or mosquito bite.  And if you forget to spray down before you leave you have a handy bug wipe with you for yourself or maybe a friend who forgot to spray.
5. Water Boots.  I don't wear mine during the hot summer but all other times I have them on.  I don't worry so much where I step when I off-trail walk or walk through the creek.  Cuteness is not necessary.
6. Hydration.  Duh.
7. Camera with Shoulder Strap.  Most always with me.  I get mad when I forget it unless I don't take it on purpose which happens sometimes then I regret it later.  It doesn't matter what kind of camera you take just make sure you have an easy way to tag it along.
8. Messenger Bag.  I have an old camo bag from Old Navy that I bought at a yard sale that I use.  It has a flap to hold in my finds and a nice area inside to hold my phone, bug wipes, water... you know... the essentials.  Must be light weight and comfortable.  I like it to lay across my torso and rest on my hip or behind.  That is most comfortable to me.  You could choose a backpack but for a normal nature walk it can be too cumbersome to get on and off your back just to put an acorn top in it.

So there... there are the things that I recommend taking along on a nature walk.  Think about what your walk is about when you gather your things.  If you are going bird watching, make sure you have light weight binoculars.  If you don't know where you are... a map.  I also have a couple of zip sandwich bags in case I run across some seeds I would like or a small skull or just whatever.  I am always dragging something in.  Now get out there and have some fun!

 

Links to the loot. The ones that aren't commonly found at Wal-Mart.  1   2     4    5    7    8

 

Old Tray Redo

Afternoon crafting... there's no better way to clear your mind.  Maybe there is... but this is fun too.

 

I bought this old tray at an estate sale in it's yuck oxidized green state.  I cleaned it up somewhat.  The grime didn't really want to go anywhere.  So I decided to throw some chalk paint on it and give it a different look and use.  Still usable as a tray but painting it opened up more uses!  This took about twenty minutes total.  Chalk paint dries pretty fast.