The bears are fattening up, and this chestnut tree is one of their favorite snacks. There are actually two, but this one produces a lot of nuts.
Trying to open these is like trying to mess with a porcupine. I'm sure it's easy for the bears with those big paws and pads.
I use my shoes to pry them open and have collected quite a few bowls full, some being shared with Baby and the bears.
I saw the cubs in the driveway and two hours later they were in the bamboo forest where I had the cam set up, but too high to get a good photo. Only two showed up, mom and the other were nowhere to be seen.
I adjusted the cam in hopes they would be back, but two days later, looks like Papa Bear came on his own to get what was left of the chestnuts and corn.
They're coming at all times of the day and night. Papa decided to take a nap, and when I came down to do more work at the farmhouse, I startled him and he took off.
Last weekend Bob and I heard a huge tree fall somewhere in the bamboo, but I think we will wait to check it out until the bears are hibernating before going down the bamboo trail. Don't need any face-to-face encounters!
Today was a great day! I don't say that often enough, but my chandelier was hung, and I LOVE it!!
With the light off, you can see the light amber on the base of the globes.
I was so proud finding this piece for $12, but as luck would have it, once I bought the globes for $125, had it rewired for $52 and then having to pay the electrician to come back at $170, it isn't the "find" it once was lol. I knew finding five matching antique globes would cost me, but wasn't planning on the rest.
The chandelier is the focal point of the kitchen!
I had a dimmer put in just so this could set the mood for dinners.
The hobnail globes sparkle in the sunlight, not as much in the evening with the lights on, but pretty just the same.
Some things are worth waiting for!
The electricians left, I went to the main house to get the globes and when I came back, there was a mom and three baby bears on the farmhouse driveway.
By time I got my camera, mom had bolted leaving babies behind, but they were quick to catch up. I was happy I even got these shots. I had gone to the gate to gaze at all the Rose of Sharon in bloom and there they were! What a great surprise!
Maybe they have been here all along, enticed by Baby's corn and apples that I've been throwing out. Today when clipping the wisteria vines back, the chestnut tree overhead was dropping chestnuts. I was collecting them in a pocket so threw those in with the apple and sweet potato skins from the dog food I was making today. A little feast behind the farmhouse, hopefully luring them back. The cam is up and ready!
After dinner we walk the dogs to the farmhouse and lo and behold, a moonflower in bloom! I thought for sure the rabbits had gotten every last one of them, but there it was, huge and all by itself! Like I said, today was a great day!
Why did I think I was finished with painting?!! The more I looked inside the cupboard, even though I liked the old worn paint, the more I thought it would look dirty to renters, so I began the cleaning and prepping to paint. This section housed a vintage ironing board, that I decided to just take to Sarah at the church thrift store.
The wood was really nice, it's in a case and in very good condition, but I just didn't want it. I'm getting better at letting old things go, just as I'm getting better at cutting back and eliminating plants in the yard, which is something I've really had to work at and why I've always lived in a jungle lol. Old doesn't always mean good.
Even has the original label!! Hope Sarah can get some $$ for it.
Next step was to get all the dishes out and scrub the shelves before painting. The kitchen was looking so tidy, now I have boxes of dishes everywhere.
A lot of my ebay/etsy items were stored in here, so now I can go through it all, keep what I would like to sell and send the rest to Sarah. I will set the cupboard up with what is needed for renters and the rest will go. The old blue paint was so dark, the white, as you can see on the right, really cleans it up nicely.
Top shelves painted, now working on the bottom and have scraped this old contact paper from the '60s? off. These shelves were never painted.
I hung a couple vintage linen hand towels in roses on the hooks, and it looks so pretty. I will put a broom and other tall things in this cabinet.
I've had this rattan fly swatter forever, and it fits just right between the two towels.
Bob put up my enamel towel bar on the side of the kitchen sink cabinet. I need some hooks to hang a pair of quilted pot holders next to the stove on the other side that were given to me decades ago from a friend who has since passed. Judy passed at a young age, and I've kept these in memory of her.
I love this vintage towel with all the cute campers on it. Sisters on the fly!!
Baby and her baby keep me company while I'm down there working. I lure them in with apples and cracked corn. One day I didn't have my camera to do a video, but five came and it was so awesome to sit and watch them.
Autumn bouquet, beauty berry, ironweed, obedient plant. My nephews will thank me one day as this place is part of their inheritance!!
Finally! After living here seven years we did the zipline.
The Gorge is one of the things I feature on our Airbnb page as local things to do, about a 15 minute drive, but not cheap at $130 a person. It does take half the day, it was from 12 noon to 4:00 pm.
The first platform where the adventure begins. There are 11 of these where you have to pull yourself up onto a metal bench. UGH. Also a swinging rope bridge you have to walk across a ravine no one told us about!
Bob's high school friend who now lives on the other side of NC came along with his wife. They have done many ziplines, even one over a waterfall in Hawaii.
Bob's helmets never fit on his big head lol. We were going to make a point of buying one for him personally when we were doing whitewater rafting, but didn't. He could have used it for this! Off he goes!!
Afterwards, dinner at the Iron Key.
A perfect ending, the Blue Hawaiian Mimosa. Blue Hawaiian Punch, Pineapple Juice and Prosecco. CHEERS!!
