It is time for the Hodgepodge

 

Hello Friends, the photo above was taken in 2016.

 Let us all say "Hi, George, Tom, Teddy and Abe."

And now for the Hodgepodge.

Joyce asks the questions.

We answer the question.

Click here to join the fun! 

 1. Many of our earliest presidents created words or expressions widely used today. Teddy Roosevelt is credited with mollycoddle, pack rat, frazzle, and loose cannon...which of those words/phrases currently relates to your life in some way? 

I will choose mollycoddle. My boys are traveling this week. I cannot help but get that mollycoddle feeling.. praying for them to have a safe trip and a great adventure.

 

2. Have you visited many (or any) of the US Presidents homes, monuments, libraries or related sites? If so what's been your favorite? Are there any you particularly want to see? Here's a link to presidential sites listed by state which is kind of fun to read-Presidential Places by State. And since several bloggers who participate in the HP each week live outside the US, here's a link to Presidential Places Outside the US. Have you seen any of those? 

 

We visited Mount Rushmore in 2016. It was a great family trip. 

My husband and I do plan to visit several of the sites in Illinois in 2025. 

I have not visited a Presidential Library, it is something I hope to do.

My uncle and aunt do not live far from College Station, Texas. During our next visit to Texas to visit my uncle and aunt we could plan to go to the George Bush Library.

 3. February 20th is National Cherry Pie Day...will you celebrate? Given your choice of cherry pie, cherry cobbler, cheesecake with a cherry topping, or black forest cake which would you choose? 

No I will not. I am not really a big fan of cherry. If I did pick something out it would be a cherry turnover.

 4. Last time you worked a puzzle of some kind? Something that had you puzzled recently? 

My husband and I are currently working on a puzzle.

Oh many times technology has me puzzled. I will say "why is this doing this now, I have not changed anything or pressed anything and here it decides to go bonkers." 

 

5. Of the early blooming flowers (January-early March depending on your zone) which one's your favorite? 

snowdrops, lenten roses, pansies, violets, snapdragons, reticulated iris, crocus, winter jasmine

Do you have any of these in your own yard/garden? 

From the list we have snowdrops, violets and crocus in our garden.

My favorite spring flower is the daffodil. 

 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

 

Next week we order our chicks. I cannot wait, it is always so much fun to go to our farm store and pick them up. "Peep, peep, peep." they say on the ride home.

 

 

 

On The Road Friday ~ Badlands ~ South Dakota ~ The Pinnacles

We are on the road today. 

Back in September 2016, our family hiked in Badlands National Park.

I am going to share the light changes in the canyons and pinnacles.

As the sun moves the painted canyons change in the colors.

You may see reds, yellows and deeper colors as the sun moves.

 

 Midday light can be harsh and unflattering.

A photographers dream is just after a rainstorm. The colors become extra saturated.

 Badlands National Park

I will let you scroll the rest of the photos.

Look for the colors, the blue of the sky, the patterns in the canyons.

Safety Tip 

The Badlands can be a dangerous place to explore, particularly for the photographers who have their eyes glued on their veiwfinders! The rock crumbles easily and is very slippery when wet. Make sure that before you move your feet, you move your eyes as well - away from the camera.

 Frank Lloyd Wright wrote in a letter to a South Dakota newspaper editor Robert Lusk:

Let the sculptors come to the Bad Lands. Let painters come Let the truest of artists come .... He who could interpret this vast gift of nature in terms of human habitation so that Americans on their own continent might glimpse a new and higher civilization certainly, and touch it, and feel as if they lived in it and deserved to call it their own

 ♥

Thank you for joining me today!

Have a blessed weekend.

 

 

On The Road Friday ~ Badlands, South Dakota ~ Badlands Wildlife

We are on the road today. Today, I am taking you back to the Badlands to see all the wildlife that we saw on our trip in September.

 Magic Hour

In my next post about the Badlands I will be sharing more of the landscape, light changes and the magic hour, sunrise and sunset.

Off to find the wildlife of the Badlands.

 Bighorn Sheep

This was an awesome sight. Our first time seeing a Bighorn Sheep in the wild.

 Prairie Dog Cuteness

I know many people are not fans of prairie dogs, I am a fan. We loved watching them. They are so funny. They seem to go and visit each others hole / home.

American Bison

Our son Atticus could not wait to see a Bison. As our trip thru the Badlands was nearing the end, he was getting nervous we would not see a Bison.

As we turned a corner on Sage Creek Rim Road, look what was grazing on the side of the road.

We sat and watch this huge, amazing animal graze. 

Atticus was officially Happy! He got to see his Bison.

Thank you for joining me today.

Have a great weekend!

 ♥

Carla

 

On the Road Friday ~ Badlands ~ South Dakota

We are on the road today, we are off to South Dakota.

In September 2016 our family explored Badlands National Park.

 Deep canyons, towering spires, and flat topped tables can all be found among the Badlands buttes.

 The emptiness of the plains, the beauty of the Pinnacles and the mystery of the land.

I fell in love with the Badlands. For someone who loves growing flowers, you would wonder why? My husband was so surprised at how much I fell in love with the Badlands. 

I think it was the strangeness about it. I had never experienced such land.

 We did a four mile hike. We started on the Castle Trail and then ventured on to the Medicine Root Trail. The terrain was very different from what we are use to in Wisconsin.

It was also very warm and dry.

 Look into the shadow and you will see the soil.

When it rains or gets just a little moisture, it turns to slick mud.

I wrote Badlands with my walking stick into the cracked soil.

Can you see it?

 As we hiked along, I found this little flower. 

A brave yellow flower, determined to bloom in this hard land.

Some Valentine kisses back in September!

Thank you for coming along with me. I will be sharing the wildlife we saw during our Badlands adventures and the sunset over the pinnacles in future On the Road Friday posts.

♥

Wishing you all a great weekend and new week ahead.

I will be taking the week off from The River.

 

 

On The Road Friday ~ Black Hills, South Dakota and The Winner Is ....

 Welcome to On The Road Friday

 In September our family took a road trip to South Dakota.

We love to hike. This was a hiking adventure. 

The Black Hills were a favorite for both my boys and my husband.

 I tried to capture the twinkle of the trail. This entire path was scattered with mica.

With the sun shining down on the trail, it looked like you were walking on gold.

 My son Atticus found this face in the ground while we hiked.

Can you see a rock man?

I found this note tied to a tree ... Show me the Way ... the note was stitched on a heavy material type paper. Any ideas?

Our son Sam  found a treasure chest full of gold painted rocks when he went up to explore a cave.

Sam opened the chest and the note attached to the chest said, " Go ahead take a few gold rocks, but do not take the chest."

The Winner of Sage Leary's new album, Already There, is ...

 Beth at PlantPostings

Congratulation Beth! 

 Happy Weekend my Friends

 ♥

 Carla

On The Road Friday ~ Black Hills, South Dakota

 We are on the road today.

I am taking you back to our trip to South Dakota in late September.

We did a lot of hiking on this trip. Hiking is one of our families favorite activities.

Grab your hiking stick, canteen and .... here we go.

We hiked in the Black Elk Wilderness which lies in the heart of the Black Hills.

Named for Black Elk, an Oglala Lakota holy man, the area is characterized by massive granite outcroppings, pungent pine, and scenic vistas across the hills.

 Looking up at the outcroppings. 

 The weather was perfect. The blue sky was so beautiful. It was such an amazing color of blue.

 The Aspen were just starting to turn color. We hiked into a beautiful valley of Aspen trees.

 This area is rich in history for gold.

We did not find any gold nuggets, but we did stumble on the following treasures.

Hidden waterfalls, the best treasures indeed!

Four hikers make it back out of the Black Hills. When we got home from our week long trip to South Dakota, I asked what was each ones favorite. Three out of four said "Hiking in the Black Hills" ... so when the South Dakota tourism advertisement states ...

Nearly everyone has a special place somewhere in the outdoors. Many have found it in the central Black Hills .... they are right!

Have a great weekend.

Thank you for joining me for a hike in the Black Hills, South Dakota.

"Keep close to Nature's heart, yourself; and break clear away once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean."

John Muir

   

On The Road Friday ~ Evening Ceremony at Mount Rushmore ~ South Dakota

Happy Friday

It is On The Road Friday and we are taking a trip to the evening ceremony at Mount Rushmore.

 All is dark on top of Mount Rushmore.

 The Big Dipper was just above the Presidents heads.

 At 8:00 pm the ceremony began. We enjoyed a patriotic movie about America. 

One of the park rangers gave us a quick history lesson about the importance of the four men carved into Mount Rushmore.

The lights come on! The faces of Mount Rushmore are a glow until 11:00pm.

It is beautiful.

After that the park ranger asks all military past and present to come forward to help take the American flag down for the evening.

Each and every military member states their name and branch.

It was so patriotic and I felt so happy for the military up on stage. I felt thankful as well for the sacrifice of their service.

It was a beautiful night.

 

Thank you for coming along with me for On The Road Friday!

 

On The Road Friday ~ Mount Rushmore, South Dakota

Last week we took an amazing road trip. It was an extra special week for this mom. As my boys grow up this family time is extra special to me.

I will be doing several On The Road Friday posts to highlight our #RoadTrip2016.

Here we go, let us head to South Dakota, U.S.A

 Mount Rushmore

A Shrine in the Black Hills

 

 Gutzon Borglum

The Master Sculptor

 Avenue of Flags

 The flags of the States of the United States.

Can you find your State flag?

 Each State is recognized and has the date it was admitted to the Union.

 Wisconsin

Oh my, that beautiful blue sky.

We were blessed with lovely weather for our road trip.

Blue sky and a high of 75 degrees.

 George Washington

Commander of the Revolutionary Army

First U.S. President

 Thomas Jefferson

Author of the Declaration of Independence

3rd President

Mastermind of the Louisiana Purchase

and  gardener too! That makes him one of my favorites!

 Theodore Roosevelt

The 26th President 

Promoted the construction of the Panama Canal

Ignited progressive causes like conservation and economic reform.

 Abraham Lincoln

16th President

His leadership restored the Union and ended slavery on U.S. soil.

Thank you for joining me for On The Road Friday!

Wishing you all a great weekend!