Needing a New Camera

Hey gals, I am lost without my digital camera!!! On the last day of my trip to the mountains my camera just died!!! I was so upset, because I take my camera with me EVERYWHERE!!! I went to get a picture of my sister and me as we were leaving and the camera was totally dead. I tried new batteries and that did not work.

We came home that Saturday and went right to a wedding. I hate that I did not have my camera for the wedding. On Sunday I was busy getting ready to leave for a girl's getaway trip to Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia and did not have a chance to get another camera. I really would not have wanted to make such a rushed decision anyway. So, needless to say, I went to the lake without a camera. I was sick about that.

The gal's cabin that we stay in there is so awesome and the scenery so beautiful, that I wanted to take pictures to share with you all. That was not the case, since I don't have a camera now. Some of the other ladies had their cameras, so maybe I can get some of their pictures.

We had the best time riding the jet ski. It held 4 people!! We also went canoeing on the lake and the most fun was just lounging in the float-type chairs in the water. We played games at night out on the deck overlooking the water, we ate lots of good food, laughed until it hurt, TALKED,TALKED & TALKED and just had a wonderful time being together as girlfriends.


I have been with this group of ladies for a long time and we have shared lots of joy and sorrow with each other. There are 6 of us. We have been wonderful prayer warriors for each other!!! It was a great time away and we hated to come home last night. Now it is back to reality!! Laundry, housework, etc.


I am going to be looking around now for a simple, but good, digital camera. I am not real technologically minded, so I have to have something that is not too difficult to use. My daughter has a little Canon camera that she loves.

Do any of you have suggestions for a camera that you have purchased that you especially love or one that you have gotten that you don't like? I would be interested to hear some suggestions.

My other camera I had was an HP, but the screen was too small. I will be glad to have a camera with a much larger screen that will be easier to see. My old camera used batteries and I am thinking that I might like a camera that has a charging station (or whatever you call it) instead of using batteries. Any suggestions there too?


In the meantime I am without a camera. I will look forward to hearing from you all. I don't want to spend a fortune for a camera. I just want to have a good basic camera to use for my picture taking and blogging. Thanks and have a great day ladies!

My Daughter's Giveaway!!!

I almost forgot to let you all know that my sweet daughter is having a giveaway and is giving away a beautiful set of picture frames from CSN. Check it out. They have some great products. My daughter (Sweet, Sassy and Always Classy) is linked on my sidebar.

Good Luck!!!

Girls Getaway at the Lake!!!

I am leaving this morning for a getaway trip to Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia!!! I am going with my Bible study gals that I meet with on Monday mornings during the school year. Including me, there are 6 of us. We have been together for almost 5 years and have weathered lots of life's storms together. We are a praying group and have really prayed for each other over the years and have seen many prayers answered in some amazing ways. God is so good!!

When we meet during the school year, we do a book study. We have read and discussed some amazing books. I can't wait to see what we will decide to study this fall. We have not been together since we got together in June to celebrate one of the ladies' birthday, so there will be lots to talk about. We email each other, but there is nothing better than talking to each other in person. I'm sure it will be hard to get a word in edgewise. LOL!

One of the ladies in our group has a beautiful cabin at the lake right on the water, so we will enjoy the beautiful scenery. Last year when we went, we spent most of our time floating on the water and just being lazy. We may decide to hit the jet skiis this time if we are adventurous. There is a ski boat, but we probably won't ski.

We all share in taking food, so there is lots of great food to eat. I made homemade caramel corn to take to munch on and I also baked a chocolate cake. In case you haven't noticed, I LOVE sweets. Got to have my sweet fix while I am away! I am also going to make a zucchini quiche.

I treasure my time away with my girlfriends and it will be nice to get renewed and refreshed. On a sad note, my camera has decided not to work, and I did not have time to see what the problem was before leaving, so I will be minus a camera. I take my camera with me all the time, so I will be lost without it. Oh well, I guess I will survive. I will have to check out the problem when I return and I may be shopping for a new camera.

My daughter and I returned late Saturday afternoon from the mountains and got dressed and headed right to a wedding. Sunday was spent going to church, spending time with the family at the pool, going out for Mexican food last night, doing laundry, unpacking and re-packing and cooking for the trip. Are there ever enough hours in the day?

Since I don't have a laptop, I won't be on the computer until I return late Wednesday evening. Have a wonderful week and I will catch up with everyone Wednesday night!

Love & blessings from NC!
Melinda

Enjoying Our Week in the Mountains!!!!

My daughter and I have spent this week in the Blue Ridge mountains of North Carolina with my sister and her husband. We have had the most relaxing week!! We have had no itinerary and have just done what we wanted to. Staying up late, sleeping late, eating lots of WONDERFUL food, sitting on the front porch (at night with a jacket), reading our books, looking at magazines, knitting, telling stories and laughing together, going shopping, etc. Just good old family time together!!!!


My sister's house has a tin roof and this morning I woke up early to the sound of rain pounding down on the roof. I rolled over and went back to sleep. Oh, the beauty of a vacation and getting up when you want to. The weather this week has been absolutely beautiful with highs just in the 70's. I know you Texas folks hate to hear that! At night we have to get a jacket or we get too chilly sitting out on the porch.


Fresh vegetables are in and we have been having the best dinners. Fresh corn, beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, new potatoes, squash, zucchini, cornbread, biscuits, etc.!!! One day we went to a local restaurant that has home-style cooking complete with country ham and fried chicken. And fresh cobblers for dessert. YUM!!!


Yesterday we went to a huge antique store and I found some beautiful milk glass sherbet bowls to add to my collection. We had fun reminiscing about old things that we saw that our grandmothers used to have or that even we had in the past. Isn't it fun traveling back down memory lane?

Today I am meeting a friend for lunch in the beautiful town of Blowing Rock. It is a gorgeous resort town that is here in the mountains of NC. I have taken lots of pictures this week, so I will post some next week for all to enjoy.


Adelaide and I feel so rested and relaxed and hate to go back home on Saturday. We are excited though to be going home to attend a wedding on Saturday night. My associate from pre-school last year has a daughter who is getting married. We are going to the evening wedding and the reception is afterwards at the Country Club. I love weddings!

Have a great weekend everyone!!! Love & blessings from NC!

Rest and Relaxation in the Blue Ridge Mountains!!!

I am packing this morning to get ready to leave for a week in the Blue Ridge Mountains to visit my parents, my sister, brother-in-law, niece and other family and friends. My youngest daughter, Adelaide will be going too, but hubby will stay home and hold the fort down, as we say!
I am babysitting my Grand dog Chi-Chi, so she and our dog, Holly, will join us, as well. They love it up there. They get to visit their "cousin dogs", Allie, Sampson and Trixie.

It will be a fun-filled week of sitting on the front porch (at both my parent's house and my sister's house). Adelaide and I love to sit on the porch, especially on the porch swing, and read!!!
There will be lots of good food, as my Mom is a wonderful cook. We also have lots of favorite places that we love to eat out, as well.

I'm sure the week will find us shopping too. There are also options of hiking, kayaking, tubing in the river, riding along the Blue Ridge Parkway, etc. In other words, there is as much or as little to do as we want to. Whatever the mood strikes us! Sometimes when we go up, we are more energetic and we go and go and go. Other times, we just love to loaf and sit on the porch most of the time and relax.

That is the beauty of going up there; we know we will rest. At home I am always doing something... cooking, cleaning, etc., but up there we just take it easy and enjoy time spent with our family.

The house that my parents live in is the home that my Father grew up in as a child. It is a farmhouse with a beautiful front porch on it that overlooks a creek and a lovely mountain covered in Christmas trees. There are cows on the mountain behind the house. I have some wonderful memories of times spent in that house as a child visiting my Grandparents. When I was real young, the house did not have a bathroom and we had to use the outhouse. There was a woodstove in the kitchen and we took a bath in there in a metal tub. In later years, my Grandparents put in a bathroom, but I still remember "the good old days" without the bathroom. It sure makes us appreciate our modern conveniences, doesn't it? My Grandparents died many years ago.

My parents live in the same city that I do, but they spend their spring, summer and fall in this house in the mountains. We love going up to visit them. I can drive up there in a little less than 2 hours, so it is an easy trip for a weekend.

My sister lives in a house next to my parents, but there is a big field between the 2 houses. She and her husband had their house as a vacation get-a-way house many years ago, but after they retired, decided to live there permanently. They restored their farmhouse and gutted the inside. It is an awesome house!! It looks old on the outside, but the inside has been modernized and they added on to the house to make it larger to accommodate company and make it more spacious. My sister's house has a great front porch too.

My niece also lives up there and she has an adorable log cabin house that is just precious!! She loves to work in the yard and her yard is full of the most gorgeous perennials. It looks like a picture postcard!!! Her house has a great front porch, as well and a lovely screened in porch and deck on the back of the house.

I went to the Farmer's Market yesterday and loaded up on lots of fresh vegetables to take up with me to have to eat during the week. Where I live the fresh veggies are in, but up in the mountains the gardens are not in yet. We will love all the fresh vegetables. Mom has a big dinner planned for tonight. I can't wait. She is a great cook!!! My father loves soup for lunch, so I made 2 kinds of soup to take to share for the week. (Chicken corn chowder with sweet potato chunks and broccoli cheddar). I also made a double recipe of my famous Sandtart cookies that my whole family loves. Needless to say, we will eat well this week!!! What is a vacation without good food?

Although our summer weather has not been terribly hot this year, it will be really nice to get up to the mountains and enjoy the cool mountain breezes. The temperature up there is usually 10 to 20 degrees cooler than it is where I live. In fact, at night during the summer, we generally always need a light jacket or sweater. My parents home is not air conditioned, but with the windows open and the ceiling fans on, it can still get chilly at night.

My sister has a computer, so I will get on some while I am there and see how all of you are doing. I hope everyone has a wonderful week! Love & blessings to you all.

A Summer Gift From God!!!

During the summer when I am out of school, I love to walk in the mornings at a local park near my home. My girlfriend, Nancy and I walk together each morning. On Thursday morning, Nancy couldn't walk, so I made the rounds at the park by myself. The walking area at the park is a paved road that is cut through the woods and the scenery is so pretty. I love to walk and take in the beauty of the surroundings. When I walk with Nancy, we talk 90 miles an hour (imagine that!) and solve all the world's problems in the process.

On Thursday morning I was walking by myself, and it was quiet and peaceful in the park. I looked up ahead of me and a Mother deer was coming out of the woods right in front of me. She was just quietly walking across the road as if I wasn't even there. I couldn't believe that she was that close to me!

All of a sudden 2 babies came out of the woods behind her. They were so tiny and precious! They had white spots on their backs and it looked like they were not very old. A mother deer and her twins!!! What a sweet sight to see on my early morning walk. It was as if God was giving me a present on this gorgeous summer day and reminding me that He is the one who created this beautiful world that we live in.

Seeing that deer with her babies put a bright spot in my day! I was amazed that she was not afraid of me and brought her babies that close as I was walking by. I call this type of thing a "God Moment." Times when God speaks to us through simple, everyday events in our lives to get our attention and show His love for us.

Do you have "God Moments" in your life that bring joy to your day? If so, rejoice in them and share those moments with others!

Have a wonderful day!

Love & blessings, Melinda