Road Trip

About ten days ago my husband, daughter and I loaded up the car and headed to Louisiana for my niece's wedding. We left our home at 5:00 AM, and hit the Interstate. After a couple of hours, my husband got drowsy so I took the driver's seat. I drove on up the Interstate, listening to the quiet hum of the tires as we rolled along. Not much traffic. The sun was up, but not shining brightly overhead yet.

I turned off of the Interstate onto a road (one I had not traveled before) on the advice of MapQuest. It was GA Hwy 96 and it promised to take us across the state of Georgia into Columbus before we headed south down through Montgomery and Mobile on Interstates 85 and 65, across I-10 and finally onto I-12 into Louisiana.

My husband and daughter were asleep. I found myself watching as the straight, gray, and incessantly boring interstate road gave way into the lush, green gracefully rolling landscape of green trees and quiet roadside land. Everywhere I looked I saw farms with fields rolling for miles of with the beautiful greenery of peas, beans, squash and tomatoes. I saw fields of towering corn stalks, tasseled at the top and promising a good crop. I saw wide expanses of rolling pastures with goats, cows, and horses munching quietly and peacefully on their breakfasts as we drove swiftly past. We passed peach tree orchards with short stubby trees heavy with fruits, and pecan groves with tall, stately trees stretching high and proud above the ground.

I began praying as I drove. I thanked God for this beauty, and repented for taking so much for granted. I prayed blessings and prosperity for the farmers that have struggled so in the past few years of drought and seemed to be having a bumper crop this year. I prayed for the merchants who had small stores along this route, that they would survive our country's current economic crisis and continue to supply their community with goods and services and that their sales would support their own family. I thanked God for His goodness and the beauty He created, and for allowing me to experience it on my quiet ride.

A little farther along I passed an open area on my right, with large silver electrical lines running alongside the highway. As I drove I saw a thin cloud of fog sweep across the valley under the power lines and it took my breath. Surrounded by all this beauty, I wondered if that thin foggy cloud was in any way similar in appearance to the Spirit of God that walked with Adam and Eve in the cool of the day in The Garden of Eden. It floated just above the ground, wispy and light, sheer and beautiful in the morning light.

I don't know what Adam and Eve saw and experienced in their time with God, but I am thankful that I had my own time with my Heavenly Father that morning, just cruising along Hwy 96. It was amazing.

Time for Tea in Charleston SC

Yesterday, my husband has some business matters that had to be handled in Charleston, so we spent a day in the beautiful city. We walked in the open air market for a little while, before we realized that it was really too cold for that kind of activity. :) We were going to get lunch and on the way I spotted a tea shop across the street and wanted to go in.

The name of the shop is The Spice and Tea Exchange and when we walked in we were met with the most delicious scents swirling together to create an intoxicating aroma. The walls are lines with clear glass jars that hold spices ranging from cinnamon sticks and bay leaves to exotic little numbers I had never even heard of! The owner Stacy was very friendly and she and her employee  (who's name I forgot to get!!!!) helped us by providing information about each spice, and explained that they compound the spices into their own rubs and seasoning blends right there in the store.

 

  

 

 In addition to spices and spice mixtures, they also have flavored sugars, flavored salts and loose leaf teas. We found sugar that was flavored with lime, lemon, blueberry, and many other flavors but decided that the lime sugar was the best. Once we got home we were devastated to realize that in our excitement we neglected to get any of the sugar! We played around with some salts, and decided to purchase some hickory flavored sea salt. I plan to use this when I cook Boston butt in my crockpot, hoping it will give a smoked flavor without actually smoking it.

Our last stop was the wall lined with teas. We sniffed and thought and enjoyed all of the offerings before deciding to purchase an ounce of three different teas.

Our first choice was the Lemon Twist tea, which is a blend of lemon verbena, hibiscus, and other delicious herbs. We also got some Green Tropical tea, which is flavored with pineapple and other tropical fruits. Lastly we chose the California Fields Tea, which is a blend of green and black tea, cactus flowers, sunflowers and other tasty bits.

I cannot wait to go back and try more of Stacey's delicious blends and creations. Visit Charleston and go into her shop or for some online Southern charm visit the website here and shop with her. I promise you will not be disappointed!

ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

While we were in Gulf Shores, my sister and I had the unusual opportunity to act like nuts  fools  idiots kids! Since we live 12 hours apart, it is unusual that we have much time together at all, especially time to goof off and act like complete crazy women! But something strange happens when two sisters meet up in Gulf Shores Alabama for a family vacation!

You won't believe what we did......

Yup. You got it. Not only did we ride this crazy wooden go cart track named Woody, but we rode it TWICE! The first time we rode was on Wednesday, and then we rode again when my brother in law got there on Saturday because it was so much fun.

Now please note that I am in the lead. I would like to say that I stayed in the lead, but actually, my sister's cart was faster than mine and she is probably about to pass me, about a lap ahead. She kept whizing by me at the speed of light it seemed.  (Yeah, that's it...her cart was faster. It has nothing to do with the fact that I am a big CHICKEN and kept slowing down before we came down the big spiral hill. Her cart was faster...that's my story and I'm stickin' to it!)

Beach Trip

Last week we spent a few days on the beach. The beach here has three sections, known as North Beach, The Strand, and Back River. Back River (where the river runs into the ocean) is great for jet skiing and kite boarding. The sand is soft and full of small shells. There is a very narrow sandy beach part, and since it faces south you can watch the sunset here. Not bad for an East Coast beach huh? The Strand is the most popular part of the beach, with all of the shops, restaurants and hotels. There is a long pier with a pavilion and it is where most people head when they go to our beach. The North end is quiet, it is where the lighthouse is and has great views of the forts. You can catch sunset pictures here as well. Dolphins are plentiful off this end and you can watch all the shrimp boats pass by as well as the big cargo ships heading up to the ports upriver. (Keeping my husband in business)This is my favorite part of the beach. Here are some pictures I took this week.