It was an absolutely glorious weekend in North Carolina, the color was almost peak & we so enjoyed all the beautiful fall leaves & scenery up in that area. My parents have a house in NC, about 2 hours from where they live in GA. They love to spend time up there & they have a huge garden that they still tend to year after year. It’s a country house on the side of a mountain, with a stream running through the frontyard. I’ll tell you about it later. This little shop is in the little area of Murphy, NC called Brasstown, which is where my parent’s house is. There are some cute antique stores all lined up. I’ve been in there before, but didn’t have time this trip to browse. The weather could not have been more perfect for a Fall getaway. Me & Peter really enjoyed ourselves, eating & looking at the pretty mountains. We took off on Saturday and spent about 6 hours making a tour of the mountains & just enjoying the scenery. Wow, was it pretty!
Here is my parent’s house. They built this house 20 years ago after our family spent many years in NC, vacationing & sightseeing. We have such fond memories of NC & really had a lot of fun family time there during the years that my sister & I were growing up. This house is fun to visit. My mom cooks SO good, a typical country cook & we have eaten many a meal in this house. In the summer, the vegetables are plentiful & we eat & eat, until we can’t eat anymore. This weekend was no exception. 
I took so many pics this weekend that I had to put most of them in a collage, so that you wouldn’t be here all day looking at the pretty pics. I tried to capture as best I could all the gorgeous Fall leaf color that we experienced. The sky was extra blue & the leaves were extra colorful. God is the best painter there is, don’t you agree?
This is a fern outside my parents house.
And this is a pretty kitty that I made friends with. She lives next door & comes over to eat the scraps that my mom throws out in the woods. She never would let me pet her, but she did eat out of my hand finally & actually sat there for awhile with me. I think if I had a couple more days, she would be sitting in my lap.
My family’s love for NC started many years ago, back in the mid-60’s when my mom’s extended family all bought lots on a mountainside in Franklin, NC & they all built cabins up there. My mom is from Florida, as is my dad. Our family settled in the Atlanta area back in 1963, when I was 6 years old & my dad became the Pastor of a church in Marietta, where he stayed for 27 years. Anyway, my mom’s dad & all of his brothers & sisters decided to build cabins up in NC, to get away from the heat of Florida (I think there were 7 in all). They all took to the mountains immediately & loved it up there. We went for a nice long drive on Saturday & decided to stop in the old homeplace & take a peek at the cabins. Most of the cabins are still owned by family members, but we don’t have any immediate family that still goes there, although some of the 2nd & 3rd cousins still do. I have many fond memories of going up to this mountain, with all the cabins being full of relatives. All of us cousins would roam around on the mountain, hiking, swinging on the big swing that was tied to the top of a big oak tree (until one day we all broke it!). Oh, what great memories there were. The mountain was abuzz with all the activity of each family in those cabins & we loved every minute of it. This went on for at least 20 years, with my family going up many weeks in the summer months & spending time up there. We would find out through the grapevine who was coming up when & make sure we hit it when lots of our kinfolk from FL would be up there. We would picnic, go & look at waterfalls, slide down the Sliding Rock….oh, the adventures we had. It was great! And just spending time together around a campfire, roasting weinies were some of the best times of all. Lots of stories told. The above collage is of several of the cabins. It was so much fun to go back & reminesce about those wonderful times. My granddaddy died in 1985, so it’s been a long time since we were at his place. Now a distant cousin owns the house. But, it sure was fun to go back & see it all. You can tell that it was a wonderful place to be just by looking at the pictures.
Oh, the food we ate this weekend. My mom is a fabulous Southern cook. If I ate like this all the time, I would be in bad shape. This is meatloaf, potatoes, carrots, fried eggplant, field peas, creamed corn, sweet potatoes & fresh tomatoes. All of this but the carrots came from their garden. You can understand why I love it up there.
For breakfast on Sat., mom made homemade biscuits & gravy. This is what is called sawmill gravy (for you Yankee girls who know nothing about this stuff!), made from bacon or sausage grease, milk & flour. Boy, is it good! A side of eggs & bacon & it’s heaven.
Here’s mama & daddy in front of my granddaddy’s old cabin in Franklin.
I wanted you to see how pretty everything was, so here are some leaf shots. Wasn’t that sky beautiful?
The mountain streams up there are just wonderful. And cold!
More color.
Mountains & color.
This is a little church that my parents attended for several years. The congregation has since moved down the road & built another larger church. I went with them to this church many times over the years & always thought it was so charming.
This is my parent’s house. I just wanted to show you all around. They have several acres up there & the flat area you see is my dad’s garden. He grows all sorts of vegetables & has blueberry bushes too that are just loaded every year. This year the frost got them though. See that pretty creek in the frontyard. And the porch is such a nice place to take a nap. I have so many fond memories here in this house too. My dad built that bridge that you see in the middle & did a lot of the work on the house himself. That lounge chair is a great place for a nap! My parents were remembering back when they decided they wanted to build a house up in NC. They had passed through this valley many times going back & forth from GA to NC to my granddaddy’s place in Franklin & decided to stop & talk to a realtor 20 years ago & the rest is history. I think the Lord was looking out for them, as they got the land at a really good price, cause they couldn’t have afforded it otherwise.
And these are all Fall pics I wanted to share with you all. Enjoy the color!
Some of these pics are from the Nantahala River. I’ve rafted down this river at least a 1/2 dozen times, as well as the Ocoee River (only once!). Boy, is that fun to do! There’s hardly a prettier place anywhere than North Carolina. I’m sure many of you will agree who have visited this fine state or those of you who are fortunate enough to live there. Mountains, streams….they have it all. We sure enjoyed our weekend there this year! Hope you are all getting some Fall color too.
I’m so happy y’all enjoyed seeing the junk store too while I was gone. Wasn’t that fun? I really will have to go back & dig through there sometime.
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Those are absolutely beautiful pictures, Rhoda! Thanks so much for sharing them! I’ve always had a bit of trouble with wanderlust, but since I started blogging, it’s getting so much worse because there are so many people posting wonderful pictures of vacations all over the planet! And best of all, you know who to contact for recommendations for the best places to eat, sleep, visit, etc.!!!!
Hi Rhoda – probably not a prettier time for all of your photos! Looks like a fabulous time.
WOW! It’s just beautiful there. I’ve been there once and stayed in a hotel close to fort bragg just before my son left for afghanistan. It was so pretty there. I loved it. That food looks mighty yummy too. :o)
Hey, Rhoda! I usually just read your blog and look forward to the next entry, but have never left a comment. I couldn’t do that today! Thanks for the trip down Memory Lane. I, too, have so many fond memories of Granddaddy’s mountain and have told my girls so many stories about it. We actually visited there with Uncle Jerry and Aunt Wilda a few years ago. The girls enjoyed the red clay and mountain climbing, but not Deep Creek! Your Mom and Dad look great. Dad is celebrating his 64th birthday this weekend. I can hardly believe it! Love, Kendra
You got some great shots of NC, Rhoda. I love that state. I have some deep roots there. My great many times grandfather fought at the battle of Cowpens during the Revolutionary War!
Your meals look like meals at our house…gravy, biscuits, meatloaf and all! Yum! Real comfort food.
I’m celebrating my 100th post. Come on over to the back porch. I have a small giveaway going.
Pat
Haaay! I’m over here! Hope you’ll stop and visit too!
Looks like you had such a good time visiting!! OMG..I have to go home to GA. in November. I can’t wait!
Oh, this is for you ‘Junk Store’ post…All the junk here in the WI goes to AL! LOL! I just might have to turn my trip into a mini business trip for the store! LOl!
Rhoda,
So glad you had such a lovely time.
The pictures are wonderful. I love that little church.
Thanks so much for sharing your trip with us.
I have missed you these last few days, but I’m back now with a new computer. My old one is no longer with us.
Rosemary
What beautiful pictures. The colors remind me of the fall in WV when we lived there 6 1/2 years ago. Your parents home looks lovely and how nice is it to have such fond memories.
Rhoda I adore your posts when you’ve visited your parents in NC, the photos, the food, just everything. I can taste and smell it all. Would love a bowl of those crowder peas, thank you. Carolyn (Mountain Meadows) went with hubby and me to NC last Monday and we hit the fall peak on the Blue Ridge Pkwy. We both have photos on our blog. It was breathtaking and we didn’t want to leave. xoxo
Rhoda, girl, these pictures are making me drool – over the gorgeous scenery, AND the yummy food! Your Mommy HAS to be the best cook EVER from these pictures… I so loved seeing your parents’ home and the little church.. just the whole tour! A true feast for the eyes and the soul! Thank you!
xo,
Kim
What a delight to hear from you again tonight. Glad Betty Jo sent you my way. Thanks for your faithful and super comments for the past two months! How awesome to be sharing recent visits to the glorious NC mountains. I love your post! Sure brought back memories from my years of living very near there. Beautiful, beautiful country! Am so glad you had such a great week-end to spend with your folks, and captured such beautiful pictures. You and your hubby sure picked a winning time to come. Thanks for sharing such great photos. I can hear those streams now. 🙂
Big, and long overdue hugs!!
What beautiful photos. I love NC. Was born there actually. I so enjoy going to the Biltmore and if you ever have the opportunity (or maybe you have) stay at the Fremont Inn. GORGEOUS!
Have a great day.
Blessings,
Sandy 🙂
Looks like I’m the last cuz to leave a comment. Like you, Rhoda, I could write for hours about Grandaddy’s cabin and all the summer fun we had.
The funny part about breaking the swing was that all the cousins were fighting over whose turn it was to swing, and Dennis won. He swung out over that hollow and the rope snapped. I was never so glad to have lost an argument in my life. It’s a good thing we weren’t hoboing or it could have been disastrous. We used to pile as many cousins as would fit on that old swing.
I remember the distinct smell of Grandaddy’s cabin, all the garden fresh fruits and vegetables, tomato sandwiches, playing Yahtzee and Spoons at the dining table, getting stung on the hand by a poisonous caterpillar, the Grandaddy longlegs crawling everywhere, the rustic handrail that led down the mountain path to Aunt Myra & Uncle Buell’s cabin, and so much more . . . .
By the way, there were five Blount siblings: Clarence, Eva, Myra, Lovic, and Lenora. Three of them married Porters. That’s why our families were so eternally intertwined. I have a picture of the five hanging on the wall in my Blairsville cabin as a tribute of sorts. Grandaddy’s love of the mountains was planted in me all those years ago, and that love has never left the heart of this Florida flatlander, and God finally gave me a mountain home of my own.
The harelipped man chasing April with a knife down the mountain was a new one for me. She can always dredge up some long-forgotten memory. I think she should have told about breaking the windshields on the junky cars that adorned the mountain and the ensuing ruckus!
Thanks again, Rhoda, for the beautiful memories . . . .
Cousin Howie
Breathtaking Ro! Loved the visit with you to your family memories and parent’s place. Blessings, Shay