Mistletoe, Maples and Ginkgo Trees

While in Williamsburg and Jamestown, I snapped pictures of herb gardens and several trees.

The herb and vegetable gardens were similar to mine at home with rosemary, sage, and salad greens being the main crops at this time of year.

In Jamestown, we saw three trees that were barren except for the balls of mistletoe in the treetops that you can see this time of year. Mistletoe is a parasite, but I still love it and always look for somebody who can shoot a sprig or two out of a tree at Christmas.

In Williamsburg, there were beautiful red maples and a blazing yellow tree that looked familiar but we couldn't positively identify. Matt picked up a leaf from the ground and when we were back at the car, he pulled out a leaf book to try and figure it out. It was definitely a leaf from the Ginkgo tree which is originally from China. I remembered these trees being planted years ago at First Baptist Church in Shelby, but removed because at times they can have a terrible odor.

But Ginkgos have a really interesting history because they are ancient trees with a strong tie to spirituality. I could remember that but not much more and I knew I wanted to look up more information when I had time.

Ironically, this morning the Charlotte Observer had a good article by Dannye Romine Powell about Ginkgo trees.

Among other things she explained that they make the memory enhancing herb ginkgo biloba from the Ginkgo leaves. There is a ginkgo plantation in Sumter, SC that is known as the medicine tree farm.

Maybe I should have just eaten a leaf and I might have remembered that.

Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown and Basketball

Friday Morning after Thanksgiving, William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia hosted a 3 day basketball tournament which included Gardner-Webb, Mercer and Western Carolina. We were fortunate that Wofford had a bye for the FCS football playoffs so we headed north to Williamsburg for basketball and sightseeing. History is one of my passions and especially the history of the American Experiment. I had always wanted to visit the area and Thanksgiving was a great time to be there. The first thing we did upon arrival at the beautiful, wide James River in Virginia was to drive our car onto a ferry named Pocahontas. Pocahontas took us to Jamestown, Virginia, where in 1607 John Smith and others arrived after 6 months on 3 ships from England. Pocahontas wasn't a ship back then, but a 10 year old Powhatan Indian girl who helped the settlers stay alive by bringing them food and protecting them in other ways.

When we checked into our hotel, I saw a newspaper ad recommending an outdoor exhibit that was going on in Jamestown called "Foods and Feasts of Colonial Virginia". Yep, this was a very good place for us to visit at Thanksgiving. Basketball, cooking and history.

The basketball games were fun each day and GWU played some great games over the weekend. They lost one game by one point in the last few seconds and won the other 2 games. The defense and the intensity of this team makes for some really exciting basketball. It was good to see the guys play three games over three days and it gave us an opportunity to meet some of their families who had come in from North Carolina, Oklahoma and Texas.

Over the three days there was plenty of time for sightseeing and there was plenty to see. Matt and Heather came in from Richmond to show us around Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg and the William and Mary campus.

Matt said our tour would be a little like time travel because we started out visitng the campus of William and Mary. Walking through buildings and grounds where Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers studied was inspiring and truly awesome. Then we moved back in time to 1607 and the Jamestown settlement where we saw replicas of the 3 ships and an outdoor cooking demonstration. These ships were pretty darn small and it is mind boggling when you trace the six months route they took from England and realize they really weren't sure where they were going or what they would find when they got there. There is a wonderful indoor museum in Jamestown with realistic displays and artifacts that cover not only the Jamestown settlers, but the European, Indian and African cultures of the 1600s. And good descriptions of how they converged together in Colonial Virginia.

The cultures were each described in terms of dress, housing, food, economics and there was mention in all of them in terms of family structure. At one display regarding the Virginia Indians, a colonial writer was quoted as saying "They love their children." Well don't we all.

The food and cooking demonstrations were amazing and familiar and David enjoyed talking with a settler about slow smoking meat. The basics really haven't changed in that regard and neither had the basics in vegetable and herb gardens, sausage making or bread making. Throughout the tour, I was sending pictures to facebook of these exhibits when my friend Mary from Florida commented "you sure do have a lot in common with these folks". Well do tell.

Leaving Jamestown, we did realize how isolated it must have felt and how difficult it would have been to have survived the hard work and the dangers of the 17th Century settlement.

Matt drove us on the scenic parkway back to Colonial Williamsburg where we had lunch at the Blue Talon. Ironically, David and I had stopped there the day before because we liked the atmosphere and had a really good bowl of French Onion soup. So eating there for the second time, David had a great hamburger while Heather and I chose the Blackened Fish Reuben that was amazing. Matt had pot roast in a cast iron pan that looked a lot like Mama's Pot Roast (recipe on April 26, 2010 blogpost).

We walked through the Colonial part of Williamsburg past stockades and horses and churches and homes from the 18th Century and eventually stopped at a Colonial Tavern before walking back to get ready for the late afternoon ballgame.

GWU won the game and Jay had enough time to go with us to dinner. He wanted a hamburger and we knew where to get a good one. I am sure there are plenty of wonderful places to eat out in Williamsburg, but we knew where we were going. We laughed when we realized that for the third time in 24 hours we were heading back to the Blue Talon. The hostess, waiter and others recognized us and waved as we came in and for someone who had never been to Williamsburg, it felt a lot like home.

It really is and always has been about food, family, and friends.

November 27, 1922

Daddy's Birthday

On November 27, 1922 the doctor in Lattimore picked up newborn John Jackson Hunt and said, "Hmmm Weighs about 13 pounds." Many years later, one of Daddy's favorite stories to tell in speeches was of being in Uptown Shelby in front of AV Wray and 6 Sons. There was a scale there that you could put in a coin to weigh yourself and also get your fortune. The jist of the story he tells is that Mama and Daddy were walking down the street and Daddy decided to put in a coin and step on the scale. A slip of paper came out and Daddy said to Mama, "It says I weigh 175 lbs." Mama raised her eyebrows. Daddy turned it over and read the fortune which said something like "You will be scholarly and dapper". Mama looked at Daddy and said, "Well. It didn't get your weight right either."

Trying to express how Daddy weighs in on my life is not easy to get right either.

For a man who loves to talk about genetics, most obvious is that if Daddy hadn't been born I wouldn't have either. And as much as I love, admire and respect him for his many wonderful qualities, it would have been nice to recieve Mama's genes for legs.

If Daddy hadn't been born, there would not have been a marriage that I could observe with awe. There would not have been five Hunt girls to be a part of. There would not have been a dental office in Cliffside with patients who still remember how he pulled their teeth for a dollar. There would not have been a Round Up Store. There would not be a beautiful farm in Lattimore to love and gather in. There would not have been a Raleigh experience and it's impact on many people for 22 years and more. There would not be so much humor and laughter in our lives. There would not be a YMCA named after Mama. There would not be gatherings of many types in many places. There would not be someone to teach me all that Daddy has and continues to teach.

So it's always been very appropriate to me that Daddy's birthday is at Thanksgiving. Because I am so thankful that he was born. Happy Birthday Daddy. I love you.

Thanksgiving 2010 - Mama's Cranberry Salad and Fresh Cranberry Relish

Thanksgiving break began on Tuesday at our house. Since Wofford had a bye in the playoffs, David came home for a long break from school and football. Jay had a break from school, but basketball is in full swing with a 3-day Thanksgiving weekend tournament. Homecooking was on the boys minds so Tuesday night just the four of us enjoyed shrimp marinara with salad, fruit and brownies. Wednesday night the GWU basketball team came over for a homecooked meal. David's roommate Mike also arrived for dinner so we had 16 hungry boys at the table. After mowing through 8 pounds of hamburger, a 22 pound ham, mac n cheese, mashed potatoes, homegrown corn, green beans, salad and fresh fruit they finished off two runs of chocolate brownies. Genuine smiles and grateful hugs were all the thanks we needed as they left to go back to campus.

Later some of the boys high school friends began to drop in and it seemed like old times in the kitchen as they laughed and caught up with each other.

Thanksgiving Day we woke up early to get the turkey ready for the oven. Cooking the turkey has been on my to-do list for our Cabin Thanksgivings in Lattimore ever since my friend, Marie, told me to use the Reyolds Oven Turkey sized cooking bag. I tried it years ago and those folks at Reynolds know what they are doing. The turkey is browned and juicy and the bag keeps everything from getting messy. Especially when you are traveling the 10 miles to Lattimore with a hot cooked turkey in the car.

So for Thanksgiving at the Cabin this year, we expected a smaller crowd of about 40 guests. Even thought this is a smallish crowd for us it still called for a big turkey - exactly 21.8 pounds - which I found early enough to get on sale. There are five main things to being in charge of the turkey. 1) Stay tuned to the sales to get the size you need at a good price. I prefer to get frozen turkey because you can count on it tasting fresh. 2) Remember to take it out of the freezor about a week ahead of time to thaw completely. 3) Get it in the oven in plenty of time to cook and then make the drive to Lattimore. The oven bag will keep it hot and juicy. 4) Learn to use an electric knife to make carving easy. 5) Follow the oven bag instructions exactly like they say. You won't be disappointed.

So we arrived in Lattimore for Thanksgiving Lunch and the festivities had already begun with skeet shooting and riding on the train car. There is an old railroad track that runs by the cabin and several years ago the Southern railway planned to take up the track. Dad bought the track that went through his farm and also a little yellow car which was used by the railroad company to work on the rails. So several people can fit into the train car for a ride up and down the tracks and it is a hoot. I especially love it at night when there is a full moon. Jackson was in charge of the train car and the skeet shooting and everybody had a lot of fun outside while the crowd gathered. Hunt family, and families of family, plus a few college students were in attendance this year.

Libby, Mama, and I had spent Monday afternoon at the Cabin arranging tables and decor and making sure we had seating for everybody who might arrive. Daddy supervised and as usual insisted on using real flatware and blue plates so we had gathered these from various places. Real flatware and blue plates really are a nice touch and pretty too. So Mama and Daddy are both happy with that. We had tables for dessert, coffee, hot cranberry juice, and iced tea. There are two long harvest tables ready to recieve the main dishes as they arrive. These tables are complete with labels for what is to be placed where. The labels are key because we are fairly particular about the gravy being near the rice and dressing and because when that many people are bringing in dishes it lends some order to the chaos.

The Thanksgiving meal in Lattimore is a group effort and we organize early on by sending out an email with the plan for who brings which dish. We hardly need this plan anymore because for the most part we basically do the same things every year. It wouldn't be the same without turkey, ham, homegrown corn and beans, Ruby and Jack's sage dressing, rice and gravy, Libby's broccoli casserole, Penny's sweet potatoes (with and without marshmallows), Judy's oyster casserole, layered salad, spinach salad, biscuits, rolls, fresh cranberry relish and Mama's cranberry salad. For dessert we had chocolate cake, Sister's coconut cake and of course pumpkin pies.

After Jim said a Thanksgiving blessing, everyone moved through the line and sat down at one of the tables. Unlike the labels for where the dishes are located, we don't really care who sits where. The main thing is to enjoy the food and especially the company.

After the meal, Cindy usually leads the entertainment and this year Jackie requested a cake walk. Since we had eaten the cakes we had to improvise for the prizes. Jackson somehow played his ipod off of the ancient console record player and everyone gathered on the cabin stage to use the oriental rug squares as spots. The music started and those who wanted to began to walk around the rug. Mama participated and then she started doing her gazelle hop dance and that made everybody else want to show their dance moves. This went on a couple of times as they reversed the direction of the walk and when the music stopped Jackie announced the winners to laughter and applause. I am thankful that we're still making up our own fun in Lattimore!

Mama's Cranberry Salad

This is a dish I have only made once, because Mama always makes it. I did make it the year Mama and Daddy were in Loma Linda, California at Thanksgiving for proton radiation therapy. It is one of my favorite Thanksgiving tastes because it is crunchy, flavorful and not too sweet.

Grind together:

1 pound of raw cranberries, washed
1 or 2 whole oranges, peeled and quartered
Mama uses a big old timey sausage grinder for grinding. I bought one the year I made this dish, but I think you could use a food processor.

Add to ground mixture:

1 1/2 cups sugar (or a little less)

Fix jello:

2 3 ounce or 1 6 ounce cherry jello
1 1/2 cups boiling water

When jello is dissolved and cooled, mix everything together and add
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup celery

Spray 9 x 13 pyrex dish with pam and spread the mixture into the dish. Unlike sage dressing, Mama likes this one to be spread evenly. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Fresh Cranberry Relish

For those who don't like jello, Mama also makes a fresh cranberry relish.

1/2 orange, peeled and quartered
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, washed
1 medium red delicious apple, peeled and quartered
1 8 ounce can of pineapple tidbits without juise.

Process orange in food processor fitted with knife blade until finely chopped. Add rest of ingredients and pulse 4 times. You don't want it too creamy. Chill covered until ready to serve. Makes about 12 servings. (6 carbs, 25 calories)

Senior Day - Tailgate Pasta Salad

Wofford vs Chattanooga was the last regular season game on the 2010 football schedule. This meant it was also Senior Day for all graduating players. On the last practice before the last regular season game, senior players walk the field at Gibbs Stadium. The seniors turn around to face their teammates and coaches and then form a line to shake hands with everyone. After spending four years almost year round for almost 30 hour work weeks of practice, training, film, strategy meetings and games, walking the field is very emotional.

Anticipating the emotions and the larger crowd for this game, tailgating parents Susan and Bob organized a wonderful senior day tailgate for after the game. The weather was once again absolutely perfect and everyone brought a dish to share. But, Susan and Bob had arranged for the main course - ribs and chicken - to be cooked on sight during the game by friends from their home town so that all the parents could relax and enjoy the day. Enjoying was easy. Relaxing was not so easy.

Prior to the final regular season game, parents of seniors are asked to walk onto the field as each senior player is recognized. This is also very emotional. Actually, I was taken a little off guard because the emotions started hitting me as soon as we drove into Parking Lot E. I saw all the tents, tables and parents, families and friends beginning to congregate for the last game and was totally overcome. Thank heavens for sunglasses.

About an hour before the game, we went inside to watch the end of warmups and to watch the players go back into the fieldhouse. Parents of seniors filed down to the field to wait for the players to return. Honestly this kind of felt like walking the plank. When David's name was called, he ran onto the field and gave us both a big hug and a kiss. Then he started laughing because the black warpaint under his eyes had rubbed off his face and on to my nose. If it had been red, I would have looked exactly like Rudolph! Thank heavens for comic relief. David wiped off my nose, gave us another hug and ran back to be with his team.

We headed back to the stands to sit with Beth, John, Leah, Tucker, Ann and Turner who had come to watch to watch David's last game. It was almost halftime before I composed myself.

The game was a solid performance by seniors and underclassmen. After the big defeat at ASU, these guys were ready for Chattanooga. It was an important game again because ASU had one conference defeat and Wofford had one conference defeat. Winning this Chattanooga game would mean that ASU and Wofford would be co-champions of the SoCon. And that's exactly what happened. Wofford soundly defeated Chattanooga to earn the title and the rings. And to earn a place in the FCS playoffs.

So it was a beautiful Senior Day, a great last regular season game, and an amazing tailgate with players, families and friends. But it wasn't the last game. Wofford drew a bye for the first round so players were able to go home for Thanksgiving break. And then it's Jacksonville, Alabama and more Wofford Football.

Tailgate Pasta Salad

For tailgates, I like to make a pasta salad that doesn't include mayo. Like any pasta salad, you can put most anything in that you like and then add the dressing. I adapted this recipe from one that Cindy gave me that Terri gave her and who knows where it originated. You can adapt it too and then call it whatever you want.

12 oz pasta - for tailgates it is better to use something small like penne
1/2 bell pepper, chopped (red, green, yellow or a mixture)
Medium onion, chopped (sometimes I use scallions and include the green tops
2 oz jar diced pimiento with juice
1/2 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup sliced black olives, drained
1 jar capers with juice

Dressing:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
3 tsp seasoned salt

Mix all ingredients together and then toss with dressing.

Thanksgiving - Jack and Ruby Hunt's Sage Dressing and Turkey Gravy

Every Thanksgiving I pull out the Red Turkey Head, buy a fresh pineapple with the bushiest 'tail' I can find and then pin the head on the turkey. Our first turkey head came from the Southern Christmas show probably 20 years ago. They are simple to make and over the years, I have made several of them to give to teachers, family and friends. It's amazing how a pineapple can take on a whole new personality with a little red and yellow felt pinned on there.

Bringing out the Red Turkey head brings on Thanksgiving memories from much further back. Daddy used to go quail hunting every Thanksgiving Day and Mama would spend all day working on a big Thanksgiving supper. Every meal we had back in those days was home cooked and eaten around a set table. So one of my Thanksgiving memories from the early 60s is that Mama would let us have one of those new frozen TV Dinners for lunch while Daddy hunted and she cooked supper. Since frozen dinners were a fairly new thing and a total rarity at our house, I thought eating TV dinners was a real treat. And of course, you got to eat TV Dinners while watching TV instead of at the table. Which kept me out of Mama's way. I think Mama was a lot like Tom Sawyer.

Even though we only had three TV channels back then, it was enough because I could start the day with Cheerios and Captain Kangaroo. I liked the Captain and Bunny Rabbit and Mr. Green Jeans, but my favorite thing was waking up Grandfather Clock. OHHHH GRRRANNNDDFAATHERRR! After several tries yelling at the TV, Grandfather Clock would finally blink his eyes and wake up. The Captain was so grateful and I was so glad to have helped.

After breakfast if the weather was good I'd go play outside in the woods or in a pile of leaves. You never know about Thanksgiving weather around here. It can be freezing cold or 75 degrees. One of the best fall games to play outside was combine. A combine is a piece of farm equipment used for harvesting and threshing hay and I'm not sure, but I think my cousin Dickie made this game up. We would get huge cardboard boxes from somewhere and pretend they were combines and we were the hay. We'd crawl inside the boxes and roll down the hills. We raced each other and tumbled around and around and usually fell out of the boxes laughing so hard we couldn't breathe. Like I've mentioned before, you kind of had to make your own fun in Lattimore.

After that excitement it was fun to go back inside to watch the Charlotte Thanksgiving Day parade on a black and white TV with an extra special frozen chicken pot pie. The Charlotte station - WBTV - aired the Thanksgiving Day Parade with local TV personalities that felt like family. There was Arthur Smith and Tommy Faile who did a music show and also a commercial for Bost Bread. Bost Bread was made in Shelby and when you were near the Bost Bread bakery on Marion Street, you could roll down your car windows and smell fresh bread cooking. In the Bost Bread commercial they were talking about learning in math class that Pi r Square. Tommy Faile acted like he was unable to grasp this concept and his famous line in the commercial was "No, No, No! Pie R Round, Bost Bread R Square!" That must have been a very effective commercial, because I remember it even though Bost Bread is not around anymore.

Ty Boyd and Betty Feezor were two other WBTV personalities who sometimes were the announcers for the Thanksgiving Day parade in Charlotte. Besides Mama and Nishie, Betty Feezor was my heroine in the kitchen back then. She was so calm and collected and organized as she demonstrated all kinds of home economics on TV. Ty Boyd had a great deep voice on TV and in person. Years later I met him when I attended a sales seminar that he led called Play the Hand You're Dealt. The jist of the seminar was that successful and happy people don't make excuses. Successful, happy people size up the situation, minimize the weaknesses and go with the strengths. It's not productive to waste time wishing and whining, just play the hand you're dealt. Kind of like counting your blessings. And being thankful for them.

There are many favorite dishes from Hunt Thanksgivings, but one of the very best is Sage Dressing for 60. It's not unusual for us to have 50-60 people on Thanksgiving Day at the Cabin in Lattimore. If you aren't having 60 people you can do the math. Hope you're better at math than Tommy Faile!

Jack and Ruby Hunt's Sage Dressing for 60

8 cups of day old cornbread (this needs to be real cornbread that is cooked and then dried out a day or so so it won't be stuck together. Daddy declares that if you don't know how to make cornbread you won't be able to make this dressing either.)
8 cups Pepperidge Farm Herbed Stuffing Mix (don't cheat and use 16 cups!)
4 cups uniformly chopped celery
4 cups uniformly chopped onion - "not sweet onions, but regular yellow ones"
12 eggs (beaten)
2 tsp baking powder - so the dressing "won't be sad"
About 3 cups chicken broth - better to cook a chicken to make your own broth and use Swanson if you need more
A little milk to make it the right consistency
5 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
3 Tbsp Rubbed Sage (Dad always wants more sage in there than Mama thinks is needed)
Heaping Tbsp ground sage (sage has a short shelf life, so buy a new box every year)

Daddy likes the ground sage better and Mama likes the rubbed sage. So they have agreed to put in some of both. Probably a clue as to how they have been happily married for so long.

Saute onion and celery in canola oil. Put dry ingredients together and mix well. Add celery and onions, then add wet ingredients. Butter pyrex dish and/or cookie sheet (it will take several). Spread dressing into dishes but don't pack too tightly and don't level it off. Daddy says you want to leave it rough with peaks and valleys "sorta like the south mountains". Bake 30-45 minutes at 400 degrees. The peaks will be browned and crispy and it should be crusty on the outside and moist on the inside.

The Hunt's Turkey Gravy

This requires a good deal of intuitiveness but here is the framework for gravy. This recipe is usually more than tripled for Thanksgiving.

1/4th cup butter
1/2 cups very finely chopped onion
Saute onion in butter just a little bit but not too browned

Add enough flour to make a roux - probably 3 Tbsp
Stir until the roux is "sorta dark but not too brown. Don't let it burn and get that bad flavor."
Add a little chicken broth and continue to stir with a wire whisk.
Add a couple more cups of chicken broth, salt and pepper stirring constantly

Yesterday I was talking with Daddy about blogging these recipes. He said, "We've been playing with sage dressing and gravy for over 50 years and we've got it down to where we like it. Gravy will run out if you're not careful. It's sorta the main thing."

Maybe the main thing is playing for over 50 years.

Butternut Squash Soup

With the fall weather this week I have been thinking about butternut squash. Which is interesting because I have never cooked butternut squash in my life. I have eaten some good butternut squash soup a time or two and when I found out my old high school friend and college roommate had a recipe for it I decided this was the year to try it myself. Susan is a great cook and I knew I could count on whatever recipe she used to be good.

I did make a few changes because 1) I wanted make it a little less healthy by using real butter and 2) I didn't have whole garlic, soy milk or vegetable broth. So I just used what I had. Susan's soup was great and fairly quick and easy to make.

Since I had never cut into a butternut squash in my life, I decided to go to YouTube to watch some people do it. Like most things, there are various ways, but I decided to use a vegetable peeler to peel the skin. Then I cut it in half lengthwise, took out the seeds and chopped the squash into uniform pieces. Peeling and chopping were the most challenging part, but it's pretty easy once you know how!

Butternut Squash looks alot like pumpkin inside but is much smaller and easier to work with. I thought it was more flavorful than pumpkin and more versatile and interesting.

I watched several videos on You Tube and found out there are a gazillion ways to make soup and other dishes with butternut squash. You can start with a basic soup and add spices ranging from thyme to sage to curry to chipotle.

After I had made Susan's soup, Mama called. She knew I had a hankering to learn to use butternut squash and she had found a Butternut Squash Soup recipe in Woman's Day magazine that added gala apples, apple juice and heavy cream. It's garnished with Gruyere cheese. Yum. Now that I know how easy it is, I'll try that one soon.


Susan Woodard's Butternut Squash Soup

2 tbsp Olive Olive (I used real butter and more of it!)
1 diced onion
4 cloves minced garlic (I used garlic powder)
4 carrots, sliced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 large (or 2 small) butternut squash, peeled and chopped
5 cups vegetable broth (I used 4 cups chicken broth and added a little water)
2 tbsp fresh sage (I had fresh in the garden and used about 5 leaves)
1/2 cup soy milk (I used 2% milk)
salt, pepper to taste (I used black pepper and white pepper)

In a large pot, sautee onion, garlic in butter about 3-5 mins. Add carrots, celery and cook another 3-5 mins. Add squash and stir just to coat. Then add broth and sage. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for at least 25 minutes or until the squash is soft.

Using a potato masher or fork, mash the squash until smooth, or puree in blender. I prefer some texture in soup so I didn't puree.

Stir in the milk and season with salt and pepper.

When you pour into soup bowls, you can garnish with crumbled cheese (gorgonzola or blue is good) and croutons.

Teams Teams and More Teams

Being a part of a team is a lot like being a part of a big family. Because with teams come teammates, coaches, referees, and fans. And the families of teammates, coaches, referees, and fans.

With teams there is the discipline and the grueling daily work on practice days. And then there is the hype and excitement on game day. One thing that always comes to my mind on game days is that players on both sides of the ball are more than just bodies with numbers on their backs. They are people with diverse personalities, diverse backgrounds, diverse strengths and weaknesses. But they all share a determination and a passion to play their sport. And that is the tie that binds.

It is such fun to watch a team develop and especially when you have the opportunity to get to know the individuals on the team. Over the years we have enjoyed a supporting role providing encouragement through orange slices, gatorades, cookies, rice krispy treats, sandwiches and more to teams of all types. When we look back, we think about the wins, the losses and the championships, but more than that we think about the people we have gotten to know that we may not have otherwise met. Lifetime bonds grow through the encouragement and the competition and the ups and downs of practices and games.

Now David has been a part of Wofford's football team for four years and Jay a part of Gardner-Webb's basketball team for just a few months. The calibre of young men on both of these teams shouldn't have amazed us. They are talented, dedicated, disciplined, intelligient and they are also a lot of fun to be around.

This past weekend we had one big football game and two pre-season basketball games. We started out the weekend at the GWU-UNC Charlotte basketball game and since it was the first game of the season I focused on putting names and faces together. GWU stunned UNC-C with an eight point win and it was a very good way to start off the season. I loved watching the interaction of the players and the intensity of the way they played.

Wofford and ASU played the big game at "The Rock". It was a gorgeous fall day in Boone and we had a variety of family and friends to see. Our friend Paul had told us to look for his group at the tailgate spot with the tallest flag and the loudest music. Well Boy Howdy! as Mama Crowder would say. Paul wasn't kidding and it was a good time dancing and socializing with a very spirited crowd. But it was our turn to be stunned by a tough loss. They just beat us pure and simple. Most everybody agreed that things couldn't have gone better for Appalachian or worse for Wofford. But we'll pull together and move on.

After the game, David IV stayed with us in Blowing Rock and it was fun to have a great dinner out with family and friends. Logistically we couldn't make the GWU basketball game against Mary Washington, but we kept up through text messaging and GWU won that one to make their season 2-0.

On Sunday, we arrived home about lunchtime and Jay invited some teammates over for supper. It was good to get to see these boys off the court and, like the Wofford boys, these guys can really enjoy some home cooking. We fixed tenderloin, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, homegrown corn, green beans, black eyed peas, salad, fruit, rolls and cornbread. Sister made Toll House Chocolate Chip cookies.

It's so fun to cook for hungry boys. And so fun to be a part of a team.

Sports and Pictures and Home

For the first time this year I missed the Wofford Football game. Last weekend, the game was in Birmingham, Alabama with Samford University. David made the trip to Birmingham while I stayed home and listened to it through my laptop. Gotta love technology. David and other Wofford fans in Birmingham kept me up to date through text messaging and mms. Wofford fans in Pennsylvania watched the game with me through their streaming video online. It was almost like being there.

Wofford came away with a close win again and now we are heading in to this weekend's game with Appalachian State University in Boone. This will be a good game and a fun time. ASU and Boone have changed a lot since I was there in the early 70s but I am looking forward to seeing friends and family at the game. App and Wofford are ranked #3 and #4 in the FCS Brackets and Wofford is undefeated in the SoCon so this is a big big game.

This is also a big week for Jay. Gardner-Webb will be playing their first game at UNC-Charlotte on Friday and their first home game against Mary Washington on Saturday night. We head out for Charlotte to watch GWU and Jay, then on to Boone to watch David and Wofford. Logistics make it tough to get back in time for the Saturday night basketball game. When I mentioned this to Dad he grinned and suggested I call Mrs. Manning to see how she handles it. I bet she has text messaging.

Mainly this week I spent some time in Lattimore and that is always fun for me. The dogwoods on the road in front of Mama and Daddy's house have become very fallish. Dogwoods are great because in the spring they have the beautiful white blooms and in the fall they are a pretty deep red. This year the leaves on most of the trees haven't been as brilliant as last year. Beth and I noticed this on our drive down east. There hasn't been the right combination of rain and cold weather to get the best fall color, but the dogwoods look good and there have been some pretty maples.

Our tennis team had an end of the very challenging season Italian dinner at the Cabin on the farm in Lattimore. Cindy and Mary Beth had the Cabin all warm and cozy with red checked tables, lots of candles and a fire in the fireplace. Everybody brought a dish and of course Dad made his cream cheese and olive sandwiches. Our tennis team had a building season as they say but it was fun and we really did enjoy the season and the friendships.

I was back in Lattimore all day Wednesday because Mom and Dad are going through a lot of old pictures and wanted some help with sorting them out. They have had this project going on for a good while with tables and boxes set up in the living room. Mama was ready to put the chaos into order and to get her living room back in shape before the holidays. So everybody has been helping now and then with sorting and it usually turns into a lot of story telling and laughing while looking through the pictures. Which is why the project has gone on so long.

But this week we got down to business and so each of my sisters and I now have a box full of old and new photos of ourselves and our children through the years. And Mom and Dad have a fairly well organized set of boxes with labels describing pictures from the 20s, 30s, 40s, up to now. Pictures of our grandparents, our parents as children, pre-marriage, college life, weddings and anniversaries, army life, political life, holidays, reunions and many changing years and seasons.

Looking at old pictures can literally make your life flash before your eyes. There are so many stories for so many of the pictures that it would take a lifetime of blogging to get it all down. I see some photo scanning in my future.

All of the pictures are a reminder of the experiences we have had as individuals and as a family. Most of the experiences have been fun, some have been very tough. Both kinds of experiences remind me of how fortunate we really are to have a family that can enjoy the fun times and get through the tough times together.

Back at the cabin last week, I took a photo of a sign that hangs over the cabin fireplace. I made the sign for my parents one Christmas years ago. Mama loves the state bird - the cardinal. She loves anything red but red birds are all over her house and everywhere else that she decorates. So a long time ago my friend Liz helped me paint a cardinal and a dogwood branch on an old piece of wood with a phrase I had read that described what home felt like in Lattimore.

Home is Dad's kingdom, Mom's world ... and a child's paradise.

First Week of November - Party Mix

Halloween has come and gone and that means the Holiday Season is fast approaching. In between Halloween and the Holidays there was a very full first week of November.

In the garden, I counted 10 limes on the Persian lime tree and 4 lemons on the Meyer lemon tree. They don't like temperatures below 50 degrees so David brought them into the kitchen where they will stay until March or April. I am already thinking about Lemon Chess Pie and also about how Bistro in Raleigh makes that Lime Sorbet with Jalapenos.

Speaking of jalapenos there are still some coming along in the garden and also a few cherry tomatoes and a variety of herbs. These will need to be picked today because this weekend we have below freezing temperatures. It's snowing in the NC Mountains. Like they say around here "if you don't like the weather just hang around because it WILL change". And the changing seasons are one of my favorite things about NC.

The most disappointing thing about this year's garden is eggplant. I only planted one plant and it's had purple flowers, but none of them turned into an eggplant. I need to look eggplant up to see if it's like blueberry bushes. Blueberry bushes want to have other blueberry bushes around or they won't produce any fruit.

Most of us are a little like that too. We need other people around to flourish.

One of my favorite groups to flourish around is the Literario Book Club. Literario was founded in 1944 and founding members Celeste and Patsy are still active. We have several members who have been active for over 50 years. This is a diverse and interesting group of about 25 women that includes teachers, business legal and medical professionals, volunteers and moms. Recently they met at our house for dessert, coffee and conversation. One particular thing that I am looking forward to this year is that we are re-reading the southern classic "As I Lay Dying" by William Faulkner. There is a lot of humor in the truth and no doubt the book club discussion will be pretty lively.

The night Literario met at my house, I had just gotten home from a trip to Raleigh so I went to the yard to look for a centerpiece. Sasanquas and Knock-Out Roses were blooming and then I found the very first gardenia bloom I have ever had. I put it all together on the dining room table and it smelled so sweet. I didn't have time to make homemade dessert so I went to a new bakery in town for an assortment of pastries. Carol gave me permission to blog about it even though it wasn't homemade, because you just can't do everything. Jerry at the bakery made lemon squares, toffee cookies, raspberry thumbprint cookies, cannoli, and several chocolate goodies. I make a pretty good lemon square, but it is fine with me to depend on Jerry for variety because all of his pastries are so good.

I took an unplanned trip this week because Carol's sweet mother, Velma, passed away. Beth and I decided spur of the moment to make the trip down east to Belhaven, North Carolina. Carol spoke at her mother's funeral and focused on the humor and the happy, fun memories. It was a touching and very sweet service. I really felt like I knew Carol's mother after hearing Carol's stories and after watching a video of Velma, singing with her twin sister, Selma.

Then Carol encouraged Beth and me to drive through Bath, North Carolina to see the oldest church in the state. St. Thomas Episcopal church is a beautiful church where Carol's parents were married. Bath, NC is a small and quaint town with a wild history that includes Blackbeard the pirate. We enjoyed the trip through Bath and Raleigh on the way home. We all shared some tears and a lot of laughs and it was an unexpected but really sweet trip.

When I returned home, I learned that Jay was dealing with a health issue. We were grateful for the attention that smart and sweet doctors provided to help him get back on track.

Sweet people make life so wonderful.

Sweet Pennsylvania people sent a pretty fall flower arrangement to thank us for hosting them last week and then my sweet cousin Debbi, who is a DJ in Philadelphia, gave us all a shout out on the radio. That was a hoot.

Recently I saw a card that said When life gives you rain, God gives you rainbows. I count all of the sweet people in my life as rainbows.

So November begins the holiday season and we are looking forward to more opportunities to gather together. Which may be why Party Mix has been on my mind.

Chex Party Mix

I made Party Mix for the trip Down East and Beth, Judy, Jackie and I really enjoyed it. Everybody has their favorite parts and it's always good when you are sharing party mix with someone who doesn't like the same things you do.

I start with the basic Chex recipe and add cheerios and other things if I feel like it and I always add more of the seasoning than what's called for in the recipe.

1 stick butter
1 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
2 TBSP or more Worchestershire sauce
Dash garlic powder and onion powder
Microwave the butter and mix in the spices

Pour seasoned butter over:

2 cups each corn, wheat, rice chex, cheerios, pretzels and peanuts. Or just put in what you want to.

Bake for 1 hour at 250 degrees stirring every 15 minutes. You can do this in the microwave but it really is better slow-baked in the oven. I like to store party mix in mason jars for gifts. And because it travels well!