Hello Everyone.......welcome to my world.......

I was so thrilled when Cara asked me to be featured on Blog-Trotting. My blog is http://www.ousiaforpresident.blogspot.com/ . I'm kind of nervous. You see, so far, we have been to cities that are huge, massively huge, compared to where I am from. Those places had lots of interesting shops and restaurants and stadiums and museums, my home, not so much.

You see I live in a small, extremely rural area in Florida called Fort White. It is about halfway between the cities of Gainesville and Lake City.

A quiet, peaceful little town. Almost a village really. The 200o census records a population of 531. It has at least doubled since then. A massive growth spurt. But it is a great place to live. I have two favorite times of the year. In the spring, millions of black eyed susans and multicolor flocks line the road sides. I kid you not, it looks like a golden blanket has been laid down on the sides of the roads. And my 2nd favorite is from the 1st of December till the last of January. That is season that our new baby calves are born here on the farm. What a season of discovery that is.

A little background: We moved here two years ago when my husband's father passed away. They run a cattle and hay farm and his mother needed the help. Viola!!!

We have one stop light, two family style restaurants, one Subway store and three convenience stores. All within three blocks of each other. There is a post office and two beauty salons. Cause if there is one thing women from this far in the country are gonna have is their hair and nails did.

On Sunday mornings, you can usually find us here:

First Baptist Church of High Springs. This isn't our actual sanctuary, but it looks a whole lot like this.

One thing that we have an abundance of here is nature. We are surrounded on all sides by beautiful places to hike and ride and canoe and fish and hunt.

A few examples are:

Oleno State Park - www.floridastateparks.org/oleno/

and Kamp Kulaqua. It has several swimming areas including a pool and a water park for the kiddies

We also have River Rise State Park.

Perhaps what Fort White is most famous for however is the beautiful Ichetucknee River. During the summer thousands of people flock to it every day. They rent tubes and spend anywhere from 1 1/2 hours to 3 hours leisurely floating down this very cold river. Actually the water temperature remains at a steady 72 degrees year round. It is a fabulous way to spend the day with your friends and family. Below, you will find a few pictures of the swimming, tubing and scuba diving that take place there. It is also a state park. The local middle and high school students are very much involved in the environmental studies of this ever changing ecosystem.

The head springs.

Scuba divers at one of the smaller springs

About 6 miles away is the larger town of High Springs. This little town is quite pedestrian friendly. There are arts and crafts stores and antique shopping. And every Thursday afternoon, rain or shine, there is a farmer's market held right at the main intersection in town. Farmers from all around bring in their fresh produce and wares. It really is quite fun. One Friday night a month is High Springs Fun Night. It is so family oriented. They even have horse drawn carriage rides through the city.

I hope you have enjoyed your visit to my small town and the surrounding areas. If you ever get the chance, you really should float on down the Ichetucknee. You'll be hard pressed to find any place more beautiful.

Thanks for visiting my home town. Y'all come back now, you hear.

My Life is SO Exciting.....

Psych. Hah, hah. Remember that old trick we used to pull in high school? Ask someone something and then when they fell for it say "Psych". No? Oh well, that was something I did in high school anyway. AND, yes, I'm admitting it, I still do it to my kids on occasion. (Can you say "hello, my name is _____ and I'm 13). Gotta have fun somehow.

Speaking of fun, let me tell you what I have been up to. Yesterday. (ooh, aren't you excitedly holding your breath?) Yesterday, I got to go visit an ....are you ready.....an oral surgeon. YES!!!! I knew you would be excited for me. I have an impacted wisdom tooth. That's right folks, winner, winner, chicken dinner. I get to have it surgically removed. Aren't you jealous? My favorite part of the visit was getting the panoramic x-ray of my teeth. You know the one where they have you put your teeth on a prop and then raise it just high enough off the ground to make you stand on tiptoe for the entire five minute process. Yeah, it was kickin'.

And today. Today, I have to tell you, I'm not sure when I have been more excited to share that I am ........ defrosting my stand alone freezer. I know, I know. I'm not sure how I got to be so lucky as to have this much fun, but I'm so grateful for it.

For the record, I am not defrosting it as any kind of a planned cleaning of my house. No, I just simply was having a hard time getting the food in and out of it because of the ice caked up inside. Yeah, I know, don't be hatin', I'm just lucky like that.

I hope all you wonderful people have a blessed week. And don't forget, your life could be as exciting as mine. Have fun and don't forget to smile, it increases your face value.

Friday Drops of Randomness

Can you believe that not only is it the new year, but that we are already 22 days into it?

I am all about people having pets,except.....those who train them to be vicious. My neighbor has four of the most awful dogs I have ever seen. They are fenced, but they are always ripping and snorting and growling and barking when we drive past them on the road. This past week, several mornings have found these dogs out chasing our cows and horses. This morning, one tried to bite my tire as I took my daughter to school. They are dangerous to children. I wish the owner was an approachable person, but he's not. Won't even wave when you pass on the road. I had to call animal control. I hate that.

You guys should check out this new blog
www.blog-trotting.com I can hardly wait to start "meeting" bloggers from all corners of the bloggy world.

Another blog to make sure you visit is www.cravingsavings.blogspot.com This lady knows how to save some serious buckage.

Thanks for listening and have a great weekend.

Monday Morning Eye Candy.....with a twist.......

I love reading everyone's posts about eye candy. The young men are invariably handsome and their abs are to die for......

I am doing a little twist today on my eye candy, because I have a thing for older men. (Incredibly ironic since my DH is four years younger than me)...I can't help myself, it's a sickness really..... so without further ado, check out this more "mature" eye candies.

Mark Harmon

Tom Skerritt

Sam Elliott

Bruce Greenwood

Sam Shepard

These are not all of the "older" hotties out there, only a few. And I'm looking forward to exploring them all. Now, who are your favorite "older" hotties? Love to share.......

It's a Different Kind of GiveAway......

Ladies, I know that we all have Haiti on our minds today. Please visit The Pioneer Woman today and enter her "Different Kind of Giveaway". I promise, once you read what she is doing, you won't be sorry.

Please pray for those that are sick and injured; for those who have lost loved ones; and for those who are now homeless. Pray for the aid workers who are going there to assist these people. Pray for the military personnel who have been deployed. Just pray.

www.thepioneerwoman.com/blog/2010/01/a_different_kind_of_giveaway.html

Thanks, ladies.

I'm gonna be in a swap. I just love these things. Go on over to www.myirishrosecreations.blogspot.com/2010/01/valentine-swap.html



Hope to see you there.

Happy Tuesday everyone. I have been a bit under the weather with the sorest throat I have ever had. Thank goodness, that is calming down some. And no fever today, so I'm really doing well.

In my last post I was telling you all about how my baby had turned 8 years old. Yeah, I know, time is flying by.

However, that is no longer true. My newest baby is 5 days old. He's a handsome lad, with a face only a mother could love. Quite a bit different from how my other babies acted. He is just so adorable. I have to tell you though, that feeding him may break the bank. He eats just three times a day. Morning, noon, and late evening. There is no burping and no colic. No dirty diapers either (just better be sure where you are stepping).

Five days ago, in some of the coldest weather we have ever experienced here, a mother cow died birthing my new baby. And although my DH tells me not to get too attached, his name is "Bud". He loves me. He hears me coming with his bottle and he calls me. I lurve baby cows.

Hello, my beautiful, precious little girl. I can hardly believe that today, you are eight years old.
Did you know that you were such a surprise? When mom and dad least expected it, God delivered to us such a blessing. YOU!

Over the years, we have watched you grow and learn and become so smart and kind and beautiful. You have the most engaging giggle. When I hear it, it makes me giggle too.

Who knew that you would so completely take over all of our lives. You have become a lovely little girl who has a great compassion for others.

You love Jesus and you know that He loves you,too. Keep on singing and loving Him. He will keep you.

We love you precious girl! Now and always! Happy Birthday!!!!!

The kiddies are all off to school after Christmas break........my husband is off working on the farm......and when he gets home, he is gonna think that someone else has moved into my body.

Seriously, I am not a neat freak. But, neither do I vacuum or sweep each and every day. And with the RA, I tend not to be able to do a lot of heavy work anymore.

Well, I don't know what happened to me this morning, but I moved the furniture around in the living room, have been working on laundry like a mad woman, changed the sheets on our bed, and cleaned our bathroom. And all this before lunch!!!!!

Last night, I had him and my kids move my linen storage shelves out of the kids' bathroom and into my spare bedroom. And move all the bins of decorations for various holidays into the space in the kids' bathroom (behind a curtain) out of the spare bedroom. It looks fantastic. Now maybe my parents will feel like staying over night instead of like they are sleeping in a storage container.

It is unusually cold here, perhaps the old Spring cleaning thing kicked in a little early? Don't know, but I'm gonna take advantage of the energy while I have it.

Hope everyone has a blessed week.

This new year is off to a whiz bang, break neck speed. Almost three days into this new decade and I'm already yelling at my kids and arguing with the man. So much for any ideas I might have had of peace on earth. LOL. Just kidding, I know there will be no peace in this house for a long time. I have an about to turn eight drama queen and one bona fide teenager and a preteen, puberty bound 12 year old. Good to know some things never change.
Happy New Year to all!