Spontaneous Weekend Visits

Can you believe it's July 1st? How in the world did June slip by so fast? 

That's ok...bring on the fall weather!!

This past weekend my mother-in-law and brother-in-law decided to come down for a spontaneous trip! We love having friends and family visit so we were super excited that they decided to come over!

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When we got official word they were on their way and after a trip to the grocery store, my husband and I went into a cleaning frenzy. He helped, though, really. Now I don't see this as a fault and I know my in-laws and friends won't think less of me if the house isn't spotless (who has time to keep a house 'spotless'?), but when people come over, it is a perfect excuse to clean the house in record time! Works like a charm. I'm a pretty organized and clean person, but the house always looks great seconds before guests arrive! 

They arrived late Friday evening and so we mostly talked and played games. I had to work Saturday morning so everyone else stayed up and hung out when I went to bed early like the old lady I am. Saturday afternoon we all went down to the Farmer's Market to sample and buy local, delicious goodies. We bought eggs and potatoes for a super late breakfast and even bought the most delicious goat cheese from Spring Mill Farm. Sun dried tomato goat cheese is my guilty pleasure...it is to die for!

After the Market and a delicious homemade breakfast (at 2pm?!) we relaxed for a bit but then decided we should go out and enjoy the day. The hot, hot day. We drove down to Peaks View Park and walked the trails and got some sun. It was really nice, but quite hot. We were ready for some AC after a few miles!

Even Kito got to come along! He had a blast!

Don't tell but we even stopped by DQ on the way back for smore's blizzards! 

Sunday we made poppyseed chicken (delicious...recipe post in the works!) and butter! Yes, we made our own butter! It's incredibly easy but I won't give it all away now. I'll try and have that in a post for you all this week! 

All in all in was a wonderful weekend. Can't wait to have them out again!

And to top it off, now that it's July...it's officially my birthday month! This is the first birthday in about 5 years now that the camp we always work isn't happening during my birthday! Not that we don't love working camp, but I'm so excited to actually get to celebrate my birthday this year! It's also my "quarter of a century" birthday as my husband likes to remind me, so we're thinking an awesome celebration is in order! I can hardly wait!

How was your weekend? Do anything fun or productive? What are some awesome birthday ideas? I'm up for cliche� or unique ideas! 

Till next time,

Catherine

Wally - The beagle with an amazing story (who needs a home!)

This is Wally's story.

"My name is Wal-Mart. Most people call me Wally. I was given this name because I lived outside of the Wal-Mart in Appomattox, Virginia for about 5 years. No one could catch me or touch me but many people loved me and would buy food just for me to enjoy. 

About 6 months ago, animal control officers amped up their efforts to catch me because it was realized that I had an embedded collar. My previous owner put it on me when I wasn't done growing. They managed to catch me and brought me back to the animal shelter. Soon after I was taken to a nearby veterinarian who removed the collar and stitched me back together again. I wasn't sure of anything but I was slowly learning to trust humans. 

While I recovered, I stayed in the pound. It wasn't my favorite place to be but I kept learning to trust people more and more. I stayed for about two months before landing a spot in a foster home, only to be returned because I didn't know how to walk on a leash and my first foster mom was unable to carry my 35lb frame around. 

Next I was brought back to the nice veterinarian man where they took away my manhood and tested me for diseases I could have picked up while living free. Unfortunately I had contracted heartworms and another tick-borne disease called ehrlichia. 

As if having my manhood taken away wasn't bad enough! Not to mention I hated having stitches in my tummy so I kept trying to pull them out. They stapled me, wrapped me up in bandages and put a humiliating cone around my neck! 

I stayed at the vet for many weeks while getting my first round of heartworm treatment, ehrlichia medication and recovering from being neutered. 

During those weeks I really learned to trust people and learned that they provide me with more than just food, but also love and affection! I also house trained myself. I couldn't understand why other dogs would treat their kennel run as a bathroom! Gross! 

I love being petted and rubbed. People are so nice to me! It took time for me to trust them but now I love them! After several weeks, another wonderful lady decided to foster me. She has a securely fenced yard where I love to run and breathe in the fresh air! 

One family brought me to their house for a few days to see how I would fit in. I made myself right at home with their beagle. You'd think we were long-lost cousins!

 I even like hanging around other dogs! Although, I don't really know how to play. Cuddling is more my thing.

I really liked the home and the other dogs, but, I enjoyed chasing their cat too much for their liking and they didn't have a yard for me to run in. I want a home where I can lounge inside at night but run around outside during the day. So now I'm back with my foster mom enjoying the "dog days of summer."

 This sure isn't the end of my story but I can hardly wait for the next chapter in my "furrever" home! Until then, I'll enjoy my time with my foster mom and her dogs but be dreaming of what's next."


If you know someone who may be interested (or are interested yourself) in adopting Wally, please contact Barbe with Friends of Campbell County Animal Control. He has come so far in his journey but needs a loving, forever home.

• Wally is great with other dogs.
• He may be ok with certain cats.
• He is great with kids. 
• He is shy at first but warms up to both men and women with time.
• He is house-trained. 
• He needs a home where he can run in a securely fenced in yard. Nothing he can dig under or climb over. 
• On the same point, he loves to be cuddled on the couch, so being able to come indoors and cuddle is a must. 

If you haven't guessed, my husband and I are the ones who brought him into our home for a few days before realizing it wasn't the best fit. As much as we love him and wanted to have him, we were being selfish. He needs space to run and it also wasn't fair to our cat because he was always terrified. In all honesty, I think Wally chased the cat simply because the cat ran, I don't think it was a "prey drive" chase. He's the one who ripped the bottom of our cheap-o blinds that we had to fix. He just wanted to see outside the window!

Please share Wally's story so we can find his perfect home! I know it's out there. If we had land and a fenced yard, we would have kept him for sure. He's a super sweet, loving dog with an amazing story. He deserves the best home!

I'll update this page when he gets adopted.

Do you have a rescue pet? What's their story? Doesn't Wally have the sweetest face??

Till next time,
Catherine

Jane Marczewski Music!

Are you sick and tired of what people consider to be music these days? I am. There is so much of a fight for the attention of the media but there is very little true talent actually making it through. 

Well, folks...you're in for a real treat if you love GOOD music. 

THIS is good music. THIS is talent. THIS is passion. THIS is Jane Marczewski! 

The other night a good friend of mine invited my husband and I to a little concert in a downtown loft. The main act was one of her best friends, Jane Marczewski (pronounced sort of like "mar-cheski"). We had listened to her music online before and she is phenomenal so we wanted to come out and show some support. 

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Jane Marczewski is an amazing young woman with a passion for music and an unbeatable voice. She's from Zanesville, Ohio but it currently in Lynchburg, Virginia. Many musicians have come through Lynchburg but Jane sets a whole new standard of quality. 

If you don't believe me, go HERE and listen to some of her songs! I can vouch that she's as good on a recording as she is live. That's also rare. So many musicians are strictly studio and don't do well in concert but Jane is just as good if not better! You can also go HERE and download her FREE EP! Who doesn't love free music? Really good free music at that! If you're convinced and love her music, go and "LIKE" her Facebook page! 

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I'm not sure what you're waiting for if you haven't gone and listened yet! She's got my stamp of approval! 

Is there a local artist you love that you think the world deserves to hear? Let me know! 

Till next time,

Catherine

Snow Day-Wait, where'd it go?

All week here in good ol' Lynchburg, Virginia the weathermen have been forecasting snow for today. Some said we may not get anything at all, others said we may get up to 18"! That's quite a range. Needless to say, it's hard to know what to expect.

I rained all day Tuesday so I figured the snow wouldn't amount to anything. Until I went to take the dogs out to go to the bathroom. There was already 2 inches of snow on the ground! After that my husband and I got a little too comfortable thinking we'd get a cozy snow day together the next day! 

You should never get your hopes up!

That's ok...money is good too. 

So all night and day it snowed off and on but because of the rain yesterday it didn't amount to much. Luckily the snow didn't stick to the roads and it turned to wet mush on the ground. 

Then, out of nowhere it stopped, the sun came out, and almost all of the snow melted! 

Only in Virginia. 

Oh you live in a four-season state? That's nice...I live in a four-season-a-day state. It'll keep you on your toes! Haha. 

Where are you from? Did you get snow like a lot of the East coast? 

Till next time,

Catherine

Ivy Creek Park in Lynchburg, Virginia

I never get tired of that mountain view.

 My husband and I recently discovered a cute little local park called Ivy Creek Park. It was a beautiful day, high of 70 degrees in mid January! We knew we had to take advantage of it.

 

I pass the road to this park quite often so we decided to check it out. 

It's just a little park but it's not even 2 years old yet. 

There's a nice paved trail from the parking lot, past a playground, down to the lake. The lake is called Clemmons Lake and you can fish (catch and release), or rent a canoe and relax on the water. There's a nice dock as well. 

There's a half mile trail that circles the lake. 

How about that...Lynchburg's very own mini-swamp! Haha.

Nicely built bridge over the swampy area. 

Pretty even in the winter.

Check out this huge tree stump that a beaver took down! Amazing little critters.

You're so welcome :-)

Apparently we're slow to learn our new-ish surroundings. Little did I know that Lynchburg has a ton of parks! You can view a list of local Lynchburg parks here. I've decided that we will be visiting all of these parks in 2013. We love the outdoors so these will be fun little adventures for us! I can't wait till the weather gets better! It's been cold and raining for almost 4 days straight and now they're calling for ice and snow. Yuck. I'm even more grateful we took advantage of that warm day!

Do you live in the country or do you go visit local parks? Where are some of your favorite local parks? Do you prefer more amenities like playground and picnic tables or do you prefer just miles of beautiful trails? 

Till next time,
Catherine