It's the little things in life.....

I'm participating in "Have a Fantastic Friday" linky party!!! You should visit Jeremiah 29-11 and join in the fun! It is the easiest Linky I've ever participated in.

I'm linking up to share some of my "Little Things" in life that build memories.

Be sure to sign up as a follower on my blog. I always follow back.

Being a country girl, I was raised to find joy in the simpliest pleasures. A walk up a country road, skipping rocks across the lake, a day hiking through the woods. We never had much money so we lived a very simple, basic life. I still find joy in the small things. Because of the way we were raised, I know that how to take something simple and turn it into a memory. Over the years, I've had some special moments that were woven from such simple things. I've compiled a list of some things to you can do to build those special memories. I thought I would share them with you.

1. Bake a cake and lick the icing beaters. My mom used to always let us lick the beaters and the bowl when she made a cake. We were always lined up and ready...especially for her chocolate icing.

2.  Make cookies. Nothing says home like the smell of cookies baking in the oven. Not a baker, simply buy the ones you pull apart and place on the cookies sheet. Baking tip: If you will use parchment paper your cookies will be chewier instead of getting too crisp.

3. Make a big bowl of popcorn and grab a Hershey bar and put on a movie. When my grandchildren stay all night, we have a popcorn party at bed time. We fold out the queen size sleeper sofa and they pile in with tons of pillow. I put on a movie and we have popcorn and split a Hershey bar (I break it into the little squares so we don't have too much chocolate at bedtime.) Of course, this gets modified at times. One of them prefers mini-Reese cups, one like Cool Ranch Doritoes instead of popcorn, but you get the drift). No matter what movies we have, it seems like I always ending up watching Madagascar or Cars for Popcorn night.

4. Play a board game. With so many people owning WII's and DS's or computer games, the simple fun of a board game or card game has gone by the wayside. I recently played Ants in the Pants with the grandkids. It was a hoot. And Scrabble Slam was hilarious when I played it with my family. Every time my Mom comes to spend the week, we play Scrabble or Yahtzee almost every night. It's a relaxing fun way to make memories.

5. French fries. (There is a lot of food in my "little things" list. Never write your blog when you are hungry.) One night when my kids were still at home, they were both gone for the evening and me and hubby had a rare night alone. We made a HUGE platter of french fries and placed a small bowl of catsup in the middle of the plate. We snuggled int he living room on the couch with our plate of fries between us and put on 101 Dalmations movie (not the cartoon one). It was one of the most romantic evenings.

Those are just a few of the things I do that mean the most to me. They make for wonderful memories and they don't cost a fortune. It's the simple things in life that mean the most.

How high's the water Mama?

I'm not sure about you, but I'm a little over rainy weather. If we are getting this much rain now, what will it be like when April Showers head our way. I've been keeping a close eye on our river these last couple of days. We live about one mile down river from Douglas Dam. We have always loved living on the River. About 22 years ago, we lived along the Little Pigeon River and did experience the water coming out of the banks. It stopped short of reaching the yard, but we moved everything up to a higher level, just in case it flooded. That was scary and I was a little leary to live on the river again. But with the Dam just a mile up river and controlling the water flow, we moved on the French Broad River about 12 years ago. Over the years, it has been fascinating to watch the water as they release it from the dam and when they let it build back up. Sometimes, when they stop letting the water out, it gives the appearance of flowing backwards. And when it rains then gets hot, it has a mist that appears as if rising out of the water.

The water is starting to rise because they are letting it out at the dam to keep the lake water at the necessary level to prevent flooding downstream. I told my daughter one day that I was so glad to live close to the dam so I could enjoy living on the water and not worry about flooding. I was fine with that thought until she came back with "Now all you have to worry about is the dam bursting." Thank you dear child of mine.

Just thought I would share some photos from the last couple of days rains and how it has affected the river. Have a great day.