Nolt Trip Part 4...Last One!


 On the last leg of our trip, we stopped in Spruce Pine, NC at a campground and stayed in the above cabin...with a very wooded scenery from the back porch (below).


 We bought a new card game to keep the kids entertained...and it worked!


 We explored the campground the first evening...


 Office...


 Swimming Pond and horse barn...


Gazebo... 


The next day we headed out to Grandfather Mountain.  At the top of the mountain is a swinging bridge that is a mile above sea level.  I was a LITTLE nervous about crossing this thing...but I made it!


This is the view from the bridge (above and below)...It was gorgeous!




 Brendan took the children to the very top two at a time...if you click on the picture below you should be able to see Brendan up at the top...




 The kids loved the adventure of being way up high, but as a mommy, I was a bit nervous when we were up on the top of the mountain with no guardrails.  I would have been fine if it were just Brendan and I, but with four little ones to watch, the "mommy" thing kicked in and I felt like I had to protect them and keep my eye on them every second!  Was rather stressful, but much better when we got down a little lower...=)


We did some hiking on the beautiful trails...the kids even ate blackberries along the way...



The park has a museum and some animal habitats...very neat...they even had a fudge and ice cream shop...




Under the rock...


 On top of the rock...


 In between the rock...



Next we went to see Linville Falls...We were already tired and didn't realize it would be another long hike.  It was beautiful though!









A beautiful and educational way to spend our family vacation...We loved every minute of it!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Laundry Soap Update

Image
    Back on October 29 I posted about the Laundry soap that I made from this recipe .  I originally started out with about 16 cups of Soap (the above container plus the below container.)   Today I still have the above container that I haven't touched, and this much(below) left of the original container!   When I added them together I have this much (below) left of my original batch that I made TWO MONTHS ago!   As you can see, I have been keeping track of the scoops I've used. (the black marks on the lid) Conclusion After 2 Months of Use: I have used a little over half of the soap and gotten 125 scoops out of it.   Which translates to 250 Tablespoons or 125 potential loads.  I say 125 "potential" because I sometimes used a scoop and a half for really dirty loads. How did it work: I have not really noticed any difference in the way it cleans.  It seems to work great!   What would I do differently next time: 1.I would cut up ...
Read more

The NEW Strawberry Jam

Image
For years now I have been searching for the perfect strawberry jam recipe.  I've tried cooked, uncooked, low-sugar, regular sugar, extra sure jell, you name it!  I never really like how it turns out.  Usually it's too runny.  Last time it was a complete disaster!  Well, this year I happened to stumble upon an recipe that was used by my friend Amber.  And the best part is, it uses INSTANT CLEAR JEL, so NO COOKING is involved!  Also it used 1/2 THE SUGAR so you can actually taste the strawberries!   So, today after we picked 75 quarts of strawberries in 1 hour, I decided to try this recipe.  So far, I LOVE it!  Here is the recipe: 2 1/2 c. sugar 5TBSP + 1 tsp Instant Clear Jel 5 c. crushed strawberries Mix the sugar and clear jel well. Add to the berries and mix well. Let set for 10 minutes.  Fill jars.  Freeze or refrigerate.
Read more

THINGS I LEARNED FROM MY MOTHER

My Mom has some quirky traits that she got from her Mom. Things that I used to make fun of her for. Guess what? I realized that I am a LOT like her! Quirks and all! She taught me: 1. To accept others, no matter what they look like or what their social status is. 2. To accept myself, just the way God made me.To embrace who I am and boldly celebrate ME! 3. To go for a goal whole-heartedly 4. To let my beliefs guide me, to be true to my convictions 5. To be creatively budget-concious (shopping the second-hand stores, making my own versions of things that I would spend too much on in the store, etc) This is where some of those quirks come in! 6. To be compassionate 7. To be a servant, even when I don't feel like it 8. To be a creative mother, coming up with ideas to do things differently 9. To love music and art. 10. To sing silly little songs about nothing .... And the list goes on....to be continued
Read more