Goats....On The Roof?!?!?!

Well, we're back from the mountains.....

Aren't they beautiful?

We had an action packed week.  The kids loved climbing rocks, standing under waterfalls, ice skating and more!  But, on the last day we decided to take our time getting home and fall in to what some lovingly call, "Tourist Traps".  Our first stop (and my favorite) Goats on The Roof.  

Yes, people.  It is exactly what it sounds like - goats. on the roof.

This place is the quirkiest little inexpensive way to occupy the kiddos for a few hours.  The kids can't actually get up on the roof with the goats, but for 50 cents, they can use all sorts of gadgets to feed them.


There's cyclying the food up....

Moving a can on a pulley system and trying to hit a bar at the other end, knocking the food down to the goats....

And cranking the food up....which made for a favorite moment.....

My son, the Goat Whisperer...who knew??

The kids fed baby goats, did a little gem mining, and we even picked up some fresh lunch, ice cream and soda!


It was such a fun stop!  If you're in the areas of Tiger or Helen, GA - I definitely recommend this place!!  Visit their website for more information - Goats on The Roof

In fact, I think I've found this year's Christmas card! 

What do you think?

Trippin' on a Road Trip!

I know, I know, we just got back from the beach!  Well, apparently I'm a glutten for punishment, because on Sunday we're headed to the mountains for a week.  So, between the laundry and packing and meal and activity planning.....I thought I'd share with you some of the preparations we've been making.  The whole family chipped in! 

Yes, they could play games on their gadgets, and watch movies the whole way; but that's 8 hours of being engulfed in those things and I just can't take it.  Besides, they'll get bored with those anyway, and probably go cross eyed in the process.

So, here's what I got from The Dating Diva....

A License Plate List for the kids to check off. I've no doubt this will turn in to a competition between the two of them. All I have to say is, "They'd better not make me pull this car over!"

Checkpoint cards.  This really got the kids excited because we sat together and mapped out our route, then listed towns along the way to look for.  They can check off each town as we pass it, and maybe I'll avoid the ever agonizing, "Are we there yet?" along the way.  The Dating Diva hung hers across the car with clothespins, but I opted to puch holes and put them on a ring.  Let's face it.  Traveling with 2 kids, your luggage, a cooler, pillows, blankets, toys - these things hung on a clothespin across the car and I'd probably strangle someone with the line.  Not to mention I foresee the clothespins turning in to weapons of the pinching variety.

I also downloaded this Battleship Game from Mom's Minivan....

And here's a game Em created.  Car Bingo. No, you can't win diagonally.  Yes, it only takes 3 space to win horizontally, but 7 to win vertically.  I pointed that out.  She doesn't care.  She's almost 13.  Moving on.

And, my husband's creation - the Snack Box.  Look, don't judge. There's no priority for cuteness in my husband's world.  It's all about practicality. Hey, Cavemen are people too! 

We take this thing everywhere.  It stays packed in the bottom of our pantry, and any time we go on the boat, or on any drive/activity that will last more than a few hours; the Snack Box goes with us. It is a must have in the car, in hotels, everywhere.  We love this thing!  He even has a ziploc bag with napkins and wet wipes stowed away in it.  Yep! He's a keeper.

We're packed and ready to go!  See you on the flip side!

 

Weekends on the Water

Well, unfortunately we had a mandatory evacuation to heed this week due to Tropical Storm Debby.  Usually us coastal natives laugh in the face of a tropical storm.  It's really just a lot of rain and a little bit of wind.  We wanted to stay, but when the Fire and Police Departments come knocking on your door and tell you there's a mandatory evacuation underway; (and when your children whom you are trying to teach to always follow the rules are standing right there) you leave.

Down, but not out, I promised my Father In Law's famous gumbo recipe.  So, even though we came home, we brought the crabs with us ......

and decided to throw a good old fashioned Hurricane Party (from a safe location, of course)

Here's what you'll need for the Gumbo:

1 dozen hard shelled crabs (or just a pound of crab meat will work)
1 lb of okra (frozen, canned and drained or fresh will do)
1 large onion, minced
1 stalk of celery, minced
1 bell pepper, minced
2 fresh tomatoes or 1/2 can of diced tomatoes (14oz)
1 heaping Tbsp of shortening
1 1/2 heaping Tbsp of flour
1 lb Andouille Sausage
Cajun seasoning to taste (we love Old Bay)

Make a roux with shortening and flour, stir until dark brown.  Add onions, bell pepper, and celery.  Saute' until vegetables are soft or show wilt.  Add okra and tomatoes, saute' a few more minutes.  Then, gradually add 2 quarts of boiling water.

At this point, if you have fresh crabs, scald them, remove shells and clean them.  Then, add them to the gumbo mixture.  If you have crab meat from the store, pick through it and remove any hard pieces and add to the gumbo mixture.

Add your sausage, and boil all together slowly for one hour, seasoning occasionally with cajun seasoning to taste.  Serve over rice.

I love to serve it up with a fresh loaf of french bread that I've buttered up, spread with a roasted garlic clove and toasted to perfection.

What a great meal on a windy, rainy, gloomy day!

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Weekends on the Water

The sun is setting on our beach vacation.

Only one more week of shore time fun.   Next week I'll be posting my father in law's famous gumbo recipe that we've enjoyed at the end of every beach vacation for the past six years.  I'm not sure that I'm ready to go back.  Do you think I could just take one of these boats?

And we could just sail away?

Weekends On the Water (The Rainy Edition)

Have you ever heard the phrase "A rainy day at the beach is better than a sunny day anywhere else"?  I totally believe it.  Although the sand and surf tempt from the view of my back porch; I don't mind being forced to sip coffee and listen to the rain pour down on the roof. 

This weekend was one of those.  We were able to get out and enjoy the outdoors in small spurts, but for the most part we just sat on the back porch and enjoyed each other's company. Em finally learned how to braid her own hair, and  the kids invented a new language where they take ordinary words and put a beachy spin on them.  Some of their clever sayings were, "We're making fishtory" and "No trout about it." 

Two sweet boys taking an afternoon stroll between the thunderstorms....

The kids wading in the water during a brief break in the rain. (Notice the side braid)....

What do you like to do when the weather has you couped up?

Weekends On the Water

  School officially ended yesterday and within hours we were loaded up and headed for the coast!  We'll be here a lot for the month of June just chillin' and enjoying the outdoors.  No TV and limited internet access make for some great family time!

Since we arrived around dinner time; we unloaded, ate a quick bite and went for an evening ride along the beach on the golf cart. 

There's something about the sunsets when you're at the beach.  They're just more beautiful than any other place on earth.  We couldn't resist stopping for awhile to wade in the water and skip stones until the sun was gone. 

Once we returned, we took the kids for a night mission to set crab traps at the dock.  The kids love setting crab traps.  It's like Christmas every morning when they wake up and run down to the dock to see what has wandered in overnight.

 We even made a new friend.   

This handsome fellow showed up for some free dinner while we were cleaning our catch of the day.

I love little weekend trips where you get to experience life outside of  the everyday.  Unfortunately, life's commitments require us back in town for at least 3 days each week this summer.

We had so much fun that we were barely home long enough to unpack before we were all packing to leave again!! I can't wait to see what fun we have in this next "Weekend on the Water"

 

 

Oooh, I have been a bad blogger lately!  Things have been crazy at the store...watch for Christmas goodies coming soon!  But I did have time to fit in a fun weekend in Athens/Atlanta with my friend Lindsay!

We had a great time in Athens...cupcakes at Gigi's, dinner at DePalma's, a little thrifting and of course, a couple of trips to Trader Joes (had to go back for more Two Buch Chuck Shiraz!).  Then on Sunday we popped over to Stone Mountain and hit the Country Living Fair!  

Can you say heaven....absolute nirvana for our creative souls!

 

Given enough disposable income and a really big truck I could have cleaned the place out, or at least brought home a Happy Chair!  

But I didn't.  What I did bring home was a few little goodies and a giant bag of inspiration for after the Holiday rush!  So much fun!  I recommend going if there is a CLF near you!

♥ Liz