Good Mornin' Monday

Good Monday morning to all of you. After last weeks 80 degree weather the 40 degree's this morning will get ya moving a little quicker or maybe wish you could curl in the covers just a little longer. Word from on the mountain is that they had alittle light dust of snow and also some spits of ice. Ooh ..glad I'm here at the foot of the mountain.

The weekend came and went in a hurry around here. Jack played his last flag football game of the season, Alisha had a band competition and Tori starred in the One Act Plays. I had intention of getting up to Mabry Mill and getting some pics of the beautiful foliage but it's just been to hectic around here. By looking at the trees right here I don't think there's many leaves left. Once the leaves had started turning they we're already fallen.

 Halloween this Wednesday and then on to Thanksgiving. I've been reminded by a fellow blogger that Christmas is only a very few weeks away. Very few...like..eight. For all you well planned folks out there I do commend you but it ain't me. Some of that is because I won't put up any decorations or movement towards Christmas until after Thanksgiving. We must be thankful first! After working in big box retail for almost twelve years and it's made me  a little cynical over the commercialized chaos that usually surrounds Christmas.

For me I look forward to the family gatherings, homemade wreaths, smells of cinnamon and pine and the Christmas pageants. Maybe we'll have a little snow this winter season.

                         With all that being said, here are a few pics from the weekend.
                                                         Thanks for stopping by

Jack painting his pumpkin at the Fall Festival

Tori as Arlecchino

in

The False Turk

My football player

The best football to watch

the Band doin' alittle practice before loading the bus

as always

BE BLESSED

                                                                

Wonderfully Directed

Isn't God's direction wonderful?

Isn't it wonderful to be directed by the one who holds the map?

I get the funnies looks from some of my family and friend when I mention that I have a blog of my own. To be honest most the time I have to explain what a blog even is. Oh yeah, that's how it is around. Up until about a year ago I was the person being dragged in the modern world, specifically technology. Also by nature I'm somewhat of a shy person, as least when it came to sharing my true feelings and thoughts. I had out grown be so shy that I could hardly speak but I really wasn't willing to share myself; unless you were very close to me.

What happened with me was that I was really quite lonely....

I was lonely but at the same time, almost consumed by my children, my job, my husband and so on and 

so on...

and...

Everything was suffering.

I had been raised in church and I still believed in Jesus but I was sorta' like a boat that had drifted away from the riverbank. I remember driving to work on New Years Eve (2011) when I passed a sign at a church that read, "I resolve to know God better" and I said to myself, "me too." I remember repeating that resolution to a friend at work and saying that was the only resolution worth making. 

Well to be quite honest, God was listening.

I made my resolution to read my Bible daily and I did. This was not something new to me but one of those things I let get pushed around in my life until it was completely pushed away. 

by and by..

My family had developed some crazy situations; my job had turn phsyco and I thought I was losing my mind.

then I kept have  this verse coming at me in many, many direction.

Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God......

So I began to pray about this scripture and pray that I was doing what God wanted me to do and not just what I wanted to do. With all that being said I quit my job last October. This was a hard for me because I have always worked. Most importantly I have always needed to work; has required it to make ends meet. I was convinced that I must at least temporarily  devote myself back to my home.

Once I Put away my fear and put on FAITH my life started falling back into place.

Oh, has God blessed me!!

Through a very funny little winding path I have been lead to the community of bloggers. What I have learned is that I'm not at all alone; I'm not even alone in my belief . I'm so refreshed when I meet some new person that shares belief in God also.

Where is God leading me next? 

I don't know.

I do know He knows the direction and He holds the map.

I'm not sure what has pressed me so hard to share all this with you today. It's sorta like a 

Wednesday witness. 

I hope you've gotten something out of all this rambling I've done here.

Thanks for stopping by Southern Direction.

Be blessed!

p.s. Fear is the opposite of Faith.

Apple Dumpling Festival

Here you go!

Stuart, Virginia's Annual

Apple Dumpling Festival

Great turn out!

Lots of Artisans!

Yum..

Yum, yum

Local grown apple

                                               The guest of honor..Apple Dumplings

How 'bout Homemade ice cream atop those dumplings?

Music at the amphitheatre

C.C. Coates Band

Am I in the warm sun in the middle of the day?

Or..

Some dimly lit corner?

Great Blues Band!

What a way to enjoy an autumn day? This is just one of a few festivals that Stuart puts on but it definitely is a favorite. Nothing screams the turning leaves and the brisk air like the Apple Dumpling Festival. As you can see folks turned out from all over. Definitely a stopping point for many traveler. This little town is at the foot of the Blue Ridge Parkway and makes a wonderful place to stop on your next leaf watching adventure. I thank you for letting me share my day with you and thank you for stopping by 

Southern Direction.

Be blessed.

Magnificent Monday!

My kids minus one

Rowdy, rowdy rowdy!!

Birthday Cake for Birthday Girl

How bad am I?? I think Monday has become my favorite day of the week. My work week doesn't begin until tonight and the rest of the family are in school or at work, leaving me the house to myself. I crank up the local AM station ( WHEO 1270) ; Monday is big band. I do some laundry and chores and get caught up on my blog.

I enjoyed a wonderfully packed weekend. Saturday was the Apple Dumpling Festival and Sunday we had family over for some birthday fun. 

I never been one for the big themed birthdays. I usually have my Mama and Daddy, brothers, sisters, nephews and nieces, and some close friends and the fun's on. I give the kids the chose of what cake they want for their birthday. Tori wanted the new favorite, pecan coconut cake. This has become the go to cake.

I've taken it as a bundt cake to family event, and school bake sales. Sometimes it's iced; sometimes it's glazed ; maybe no icing at all but everybody loves this cake. When the kids we're small I've asked them if they would prefer a cake from the bakery but they want mine. So that's what I go with. 

Birthdays are like holidays for me. They are extremely special but I don't prefer an over abundance of hoopla. It's about family, food and togetherness. If you're loosing your enjoyment for special occasions maybe it's just that you have too much hoopla.

Many blessing!

I'm lookin' for a wonderful week, I hope you are too.

Sunday at Tweetsie Railroad

All aboard!!

Tweetsie's Vintage Steam Engine #12

 

 

Hey! I'm so excited to share my weekend travels with you. Our adventure took us to beautiful Blowing Rock, North Carolina to spend the day at the Tweetsie Railroad Amusement Park. From our home in Stuart, Virginia, it was an easy getaway only taking about two hours in driving time. Tweetsie Railroad is located on Hwy 321 between Boone and Blowing Rock in the northwest corner of the state.

 

My adventures!

I barely got them to stop for a picture as we were goin' in.

 

Tweetsie is wonderful for young children and the young at heart. The park is like stepping into you own wild west movie. The train is the main attraction. Your ride will start at the depot and you'll be accompanied by the sheriff and his deputy. You never know when train robbers will try to jump the train or when and Indian raid may breakout.

 

Don't hide in the outhouse!

 After you've taken a trip on Tweetsie, you should take in a show or visit the County Fair.

 

See the dance hall girls do the can-can

Ride the chair lift to the top of the mountain. There's more to see.

There's even Deer Petting Park.

 

As you can see there's no limit to how much good family fun you can have. The park was not over crowded but had a good number of visitors. I only saw smiles everywhere I turned. The park employees all wore smiles and were most courteous.

But..don't get too rowdy or you may wind up in the Tweetsie Jail

or...

Lookin' for a quick horse.

or ...

Catchin' tha last train outa' town.

I've enjoyed sharing my trip to Tweetsie with you. Thanks for stopping by

Southern Direction. As always I wish you a blessed day.

 

Tweetsie Railroad