Monthly Archives: January 2014

Snowdays can be Fun Days Too!

Posted on January 28, 2014 by jolynnpowers

Afghan Fort with Christopher and the bunnies in the house

Do you remember the joy of “Snow Days” as a child. Some how I had forgotten how much fun my mother made those days. We were all home together and the house was a total mess. We eat hot soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. We build furniture cushion forts and had all the pets inside the house. When it warmed up to at least 20 degrees we all headed outside to play in the fresh Boulder, Colorado snow. Shoveling feet of snow off our drive way and helping the neighbors pull cars from the snow banks of snow. Then heading back inside for hot coco and cookies. Taking our snow-covered clothes off and tossing then over the heating registers to dry.

Christopher painting his snow bunny

The boys in our neighbor hood always were starting snow ball fights that lasted hours and the girls were always trying to get them to stop long enough to go sledding at the local park. We built snow men and my friends dad built a snow woman one year that had all of us laughing. Even my mother thought she was funny…that was rare. Then if we were lucky it was a cartoon afternoon. In warm sweat shirts and fuzzy socks with long naps on the couch.

Have times really changed that much? The addition of the computer and X-box has given us more time to play games and surf the internet. But that little voice of my sons still asks when can we go out side, can I have hot coco when we come back inside and if we are having bean soup for lunch? hummm sounds like my own questions coming back to me from a new generation.

I am learning to accept the mess on the floor and colored markers and paper on the table as a sign that all is fine on this snowy day. We make valentines for the family and the glitter is everywhere, the floor, the table, our hands and even my hair. The next mess in the long line of ones that I will clean up at the end of our day fourth snow day.

Christopher with Home made valentines

Finally at the end of this day of snow, soup and glitter we start a warm bath and add lots of toys. Bubbles float and fly around the bathroom. I ask Christopher “How was your day, did you have fun?”The reply is a warm happy smiling “YEA!” I smile and acknowledge that I am feeling tired. That this snow day was fun for me too. I spent time with my favorite little person doing the things that he loves most of all. I honored my mother and my childhood friends with time in the snow playing and getting pink cheeks and drinking coco from mugs.

Tonight I will again clean up the messes left from the play dough, bird seed from the feeders we filled, the plates and cups from another round of soup and sandwiches and the snow ice cream we eat in front of the T.V. but in the end it is worth the messes. It is worth the glitter every where to think that someday he will look back on these cold snowy days and smile and think of the fun we had together.

snow ice cream in bowl

Snow ice cream

1. 4 cups fresh clean snow… no yellow snow!

2. 3/4 cup milk

3. 1/2 cup sugar

4. 1 Tablespoon vanilla

put snow in large bowl add milk, sugar and vanilla. mix until smooth.. taste and add more of sugar or vanilla to taste.

Categories: About me, child care, Christopher, Colorado, family fun, Personal art work, snow, Snow day | Tags: Boulder Colorado, family fun, Glitter, Memories, snow day, Snow day fun, snow ice cream, Snowmen, Valentines | 3 Comments

Just a funny story…. And God Created West Virginia

Posted on January 26, 2014 by jolynnpowers

My brother sent this to me years ago and the author is unknown, but the feeling is still the same. I Love the idea that God made all things with foresight and the West Virginia was part of his plan.

New River Gorge Bridge with fall folage 2000 by jolynn powers

And God Created West Virginia

God was missing for six days. Eventually, Michael, the Archangel, found him, resting on the seventh day.

He inquired, “Where have you been Lord?”

God smiled deeply and proudly pointed downwards through the clouds, “look Michael. Look what I’ve made.”

Archangel Michael looked puzzled and said, “What is it?”

“It’s a planet,” replied God, “I’ve put life on it… I’m going to call it Earth and it’s going to be a place to test Balance.”

“Balance?” inquired Michael, ” I’m still confused”

God explained, pointing to different parts of the Earth. “For example northern Europe will be a place of great opportunity and wealth, while southern Europe will struggle. Over here I have place a continent of white people, and over there is a continent of dark people.Balance in all things.

God continued pointing to different countries. “This one will be extremely hot. While this one will be very cold and covered in ice.”

The Archangel, impressed by God’s work,then pointed to a land area and said,”What is that one?”

” That is West Virginia, the most glorious place on earth. There beautiful mountains, rivers and streams,lakes and forests. the people from West Virginia will be handsome, modest, humorous and they are going to travel the world. They will be extremely sociable, hardworking, high achieving, and carriers of peace and producers of good things.”

Michael gasped in wonder and admiration, but then asked, “but what about balance God?” You said there would be balance…”

God smiled, “Right next to West Virginia is Washington ,D.C. Wait till you see what idiots I put there.”

Hope that we can all laugh at what happens in Washington. All of us here In West By God Virginia Do!

Categories: Appalachina Mountains, funny stories, Travel, West Virginia | Tags: Archangel Michael, funny story, God, jokes, West Virginia, West Virginia jokes | 6 Comments

Five Jim Beam Alternatives for the Patriotic Bourbon Drinker

Posted on January 20, 2014 by jolynnpowers

what a sad thought that two american family run institutions are sold to the highest bidder

Categories: Maker's Mark, Travel | Tags: bourbon, Kentucky, Maker's Mark | Leave a comment

Bourbon Balls made with Markers Mark bourbon a Kentucky wonder

Posted on January 20, 2014 by jolynnpowers

I had hoped to post this over the holidays but things just got to busy and some how I just did find time to get this rewritten and ready for all of you.

Photo of the bourbon Balls sold through the Makers Mark website

While visiting the Makers Mark distillery we were all given one of the best candies that I have ever eaten. They looked like this and we each where give one at the end of our tour. I longed to send these to some of my friends as gifts and maybe keep some for myself but I just could not afford to. As wonderful as these are I thought with a little effort and time I could find a recipe that was close to the fantastic candy we had on our trips to Kentucky and make them at a price that I could afford to send them to friends and family all across the country and introduce more people to the world of cooking with bourbon.

I found a recipe at the following website www.herkentucky.com and started with it and tweaked it a little to make the recipe even easier to make.

The day before you want to make the balls you should soak one cup of chopped pecans in 1/2 cup bourbon over night covered in the refrigerator. This is what you will need to make about 40 walnut sized candies.

1/2 cup of good quality bourbon, I like Makers Mark
1 cups chopped pecans
1 cup whole pecans
1 pounds of powered sugar
1 stick of real cream butter, softened
1 bag 16 oz. of dark chocolate chips …. I used Hershey’s Special Dark
1 half bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips.

walnut size bourbon balls before covering

Place 1 cup chopped pecans into food processor and chop fine.
Place fine chopped nuts into a bowl with 1/2 cup bourbon and let soak over night.
Cream butter in large bowl, adding bourbon soaked pecans. Combine pecan, butter mixture with powdered sugar to form a stiff batter.You may need to add up to 1/2 cup water to thin mixture. Stiff enough to form a nice ball. Refrigerate to let stiffen the mixture about 2 hours or the freezer for 30 minutes.
Roll dough into walnut size balls.
Place on wax paper on cookie sheet and place in freezer for about 30 minutes.
While balls are chilling place about 1/2 bag of dark chips and 1/4 bag semi sweet chips into a microwave safe bowl. The smaller the bowl the easier it is to dip the and coat the balls. Heat chocolate for about 2 minutes stirring at about 1 minutes to insure that the chocolate melts evenly.
Using two teaspoons drop one ball at a time into chocolate and cover, use other spoon help let the extra chocolate drip back into the bowl. place on clean wax paper to cool. Add more chocolate as needed and warm when the chocolate gets to thick to smoothly cover balls.
covering the bourbon balls with the chocolate coating
Top with half of a pecan and let cool. We chose to use dark chocolate because the ones you get at the distillery are a pure dark chocolate but not a bitter chocolate.
cooling bourbon balls with pecan topping

We let the candy cool over night before eating and by then the chocolate had hardened and the flavors had time to meld together. They were excellent and we got about 40 balls from this recipe at about 8 dollars for everything but the bourbon. This was a savings of about 10 dollars a dozen. So I was able to share them with lots of family and friends. Enjoy!

Maker Mark distillery sign with kids

Categories: candy, Chocolate, Kentucky, Maker's Mark | Tags: bourbon, bourbon balls, bourbon candy, candy, distillery tours, Kentucky, Maker's Mark | 3 Comments

The Problem for West Virginians with contaminated water and being Prepaire

Posted on January 13, 2014 by jolynnpowers

Since the terrible chemical spill into the Elk River in West Virginia on Thursday I have watched 300,000.00 of my states citizens suffer unheard of problems from just the simple lack of clean water. The chemical that my southern friends are exposed to are toxic enough to not only made the water undrinkable for humans or animals it made the water unsuitable for even washing your clothes, bathing, or using it for any thing. This man-made disaster could have had to potential to have killed thousand of plants, animals and humans. Yet the biggest problem the my family and many others have been discussing is that people are not even close to being prepared to care for their families if this was to happen to their town. FEMA suggest that every person should have at least 3 gallons of water per person for at least a total of three days. This would mean that my family of three should have stored about 9 gallons of water per person stored for an an emergence like this. How many of us have that amount of fresh usable water on hand?

I would not call my family a prepping family.. .. just a county family that knows what being self-reliant is about. We know what it like to not see a snow plow for days on end and some times never. We know what it is like to go with out electric for weeks in the cold winter and in the heat of summer. We know that every time the electric goes out you have no running water; no electric means no pump, that means no water. So from just our everyday lives we think ahead and store what we can so that we can live comfortably for about a week with out electric, water or even leaving our drive way.

Tip # 1 one of the least expensive ways to store water in large qualities is a simple rain barrel. I have had them for years and at every home that we have lived in. I think I spent about 17 dollars on the barrel and maybe 10 dollars on Quick dry cement for the level pad it sits on. Then the rest is free.

end of summer rain barrel and container garden

Their you go at least 50 gallons of water for almost no money. Our barrel has a spout kit on the other side so that I can use the barrel for watering my flowers and vegetables. The tap did add about 6 dollars and a little time to install to my barrel. We do not try to cover our barrel so we can use a bucket to carry the water into the house or out to bird bath it also allows for the water to expand in the winter when it freezes. But think this water could keep my family safely washing dishes, taking baths, flushing the toilet and giving my pet safe water to drink for days. In a real pinch we could even sanitize this water for drinking. There are hundreds of rain barrel ideas all over the internet and huge storage systems that people build that enclose the water and run through filtering systems that can make rain water drinking safe if you want to go that far. We just want to know that we can flush the toilet and wash our bodies when the time comes.

Tip # 2 Tom and I also store water in our kitchen and basement in these 4 gallon bottles of water, the one below is the one that I always keep in the kitchen in case we need water for cooking and I am to lazy to go to the basement to get it. We found these at local Kroger store with a refilling machine outside on the side walk.The cost per bottle may vary and may have gone up since I bought these but I think they were 6$ each with a refund of .99 cents every time you recycle the bottles for a refilled… I have never refilled the 4 that I have so the prices maybe different. So that is 12 gallons of cooking and drinking water in large bottles, used mostly for dishes and making tea.

4 gallons of water in a storage safe bottle

Tip # 3 Everyone should try to store at least one case of bottled drinking water per person in their house hold.We keep at least 3 in our basement at all times, in the summer there is always some in the truck for Tom, in the fridge and in the kitchen… usually two more cases in the summer. For our family 3 to 4 bottles of water for drinking a day plus some for teeth brushing and hand washing is about all we really need so a case could last at least two days with three cases we have about a weeks worth for every person who lives in my home.

Tip #4 There are other item that is handy to have around to keep water safe and clean. The most important and least expensive is a simple bottle of bleach. As we all know from being kids at swimming pools chlorine bleach kills lost of nasty bugs in water. If I had to depend on my rain water for cooking, or washing dishes where the water temps were to low to sterilise the water 1/8 of a teaspoon of bleach will kill enough microbes to safely use the water for washing dishes, bathing, and cooking at high temps. It is even recommended by the CDC for use in drinking water if you are unsure of the water coming out of your tap.

http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/pdf/emergency/09_202278-B_Make_Water_Safe_Flyer_508.pdf

I try to always have a small bottle around for other uses as well. Never know when you are going to need to sanitize an area and this works great in a spray bottle or in a water wash.

Tip #5 Just in case you just cant get enough water to say take a bath or wash you hands. Lysol wipes, Wet Ones, Clorox wipes or any anti bacterial wipes are a God send. We use them for just about any kind of clean up you can think of… no water to wash up you hands … use a wipe… no water to clean a minor cut…use a wipe… need to clean a surface to cook on… use a wipe. They are easy to store, nice and moist, stay wet for years in their own container, cheap and portable. I recommend that every one have several containers stored away for a situation like this. We store around 4 large containers of these in the even that we need to wash up with no water.

Tip #6 Never ever toss out those extra paper plates or plastic cups after picnicking season is over. It is a wonderful feeling not to have to boil water and use what little drinking water you have to wash the dishes. So when those store brand foam plates go on sale in the summer by extra… and keep them hidden away somewhere. They can save your family a lot of water when the time comes.

I hope this will help remind some one of how much we need to store water in case of an emergence. Water is one of the few things that we all MUST HAVE! There is no way to get around it and so many of us never think about not being able to use the water from our taps in any way. That is what my state is facing as you read this. How prepared are you and should you think a head just a little farther. It could keep you from standing in long lines waiting for the National Guard to get you the water you need to just make that cup of coffee in the morning.

Sharing this post with my friends at A rural journal and Nancy.

http://aruraljournal.blogspot.com/p/random-5-friday.html

Categories: Elk River, health, Safty, water, West Virginia | Tags: bottled water, CDC water recommendations, Charleston West Virginia, Chemical spill, drinking water, how to sanitize water, Prepping, Rain barrels, Water Contamination, water issues, water safety, Water storage, West Virginia | 8 Comments

The advice I gave my Daughter in law about winter driving that applies to so much more

Posted on January 6, 2014 by jolynnpowers

Photo of Boulder Colorado thanks to Alex Smits Photography.com

Growing up at the foot hills of the Rocky Mountains in Boulder Colorado where is seems that winter lasts 6 months of the year, we all got lots of practice driving in snow and slush. I admit, I was a very timid and stressful winter driver in my youth, but I did learn something after a few winters under my belt. The most important and what I shared with my daughter in law this last week was learning to NOT be a white knuckle driver. I am not sure if this a common expression or is just what my mother called it. The white knuckle driver is one who holds the steering wheel so tight that the knuckles on the back of you hands turn white from the grip that you have on the wheel. Where you are so afraid of what is happening on the road that the tension is visible all over your body. Most young drivers experience this while learning to drive and it passes only to return when winter weather reappears. So when I am feeling stressed behind the wheel in the winter, I still to this day, I take a deep breath and play this song in my head to remind myself what to do.

38 Special… “Hold On Loosely”

If you choose not to see the video I still want to share with you the chorus with you so that you understand what is that I am trying to get at. ” Just hold on loosely, but don’t let go, if you cling to tightly to her, you’re gonna lose control”. This is a simple way for me to force myself to slow down, take a deep breath and stop white knuckling my way through life.

snow-covered road by Jeff Cook.

38 Special wrote and preformed the song with a love affair in mind, but I like to take the idea and expand it to life in general. How often have we all smothered our loved ones, our children or choked off other opportunities in our lives because we were to afraid to just let life happen. We are terrified that we would not be able to handle the results of a life lived in the present. We do not believe in ourselves enough to handle what life was giving us. I was guilty of this much of my youth.

I wanted all the details of everyone’s lives. I had to check in with my friends a million times a day. I worried that if I wasn’t part of what was happening then something terrible would happen. Well guess what, terrible things happen everyday, all across the world, in my town and yours, to people we love and those we do not know at all and it happens with or without us. The reality is that we really have very little control over the weather, our friends, family or at times our own health. So it is by choice that I have tried to stop letting worry control my happiness.

Instead of worrying about everything that happens in my life I have learned, as the song says,” To Hold On Loosely, But Not Let Go”. To allow for the bumps in the road and the twists and turns that we all experience without totally losing my way in the world. Age gives you insight to realize that there is really nothing that you can not over come in your life if you are willing to just Hold On, Not Give Up and Try Again.

So to my Daughter In Law I said “Try not to white knuckle all the fun out of life by trying to control the things that you can’t”. Don’t lose your balance and happiness because the fear of losing something or someone.We all lose it is part of life, but you can keep your sense of happiness if you just remember to ” Take a deep breath, go slow and hold on loosely but don’t let go”.

I am sure that our conversation about winter driving made sense to her it is easy to understand The other part about not doing the same for her family, friends and future may have made her think that I was just crazy, I just hope when the time comes in her life that she will think back on this song and find some solace there.

toms truck on a snowy road near old house

Categories: Colorado, family memories, music, rock music, snow, winter driving | Tags: 38 Special, advice, Boulder Colorado, Colorado, family, Hold on loosely, music, snow, white knuckle, winter driving, winter weather | 7 Comments

Photo review of 2013 with Mountain Mama

Posted on January 1, 2014 by jolynnpowers

I just can’t help the fact that I love where I live and the people around me. I take thousands of photos every year and some never make it to my blog and others are only uploaded on to Facebook and or sent to friends and family. So, I thought I would take a few hours and let you see what it is that make my world go around and share in some of the best and worst moments of my year. So hers goes… GOOD-BYE 2013 and hello to a fresh new year.

Birth place of General Stone Wall Jackson, Jackson’s’ Mill, West Virginia January 2013

I started taking photos for a photo challenge this past year and it was fun to really push myself for ideas and places to photograph.. I did pretty well until they put my foot in a soft cast where the cold and wet and lack of being stable on my feet made me drop the challenge. This was one of the first locations that Christopher and I traveled to and explored in the very cold 18 degree weather in Jan of 2013. Jackson’s Mill is a State Owned property where they hold 4-h camps, state conferences and have saved historic buildings like this one, home of General Stone Wall Jackson. This large property and air field are only about 2 miles from my home and include a grist mill that I hope to write about in the future.

Snow on the plow at General Stone Wall Jackson’s home place Jackson Mill, West Virginia

The for the month of February Christopher and I made a photo tour of one of our favorite places in Lewis County our historic Library.This is the location of our local book club that I help to start in the month of Feb. I love the old building and wish If I ever had the money to change the world this would be the place that I would put my money to work for my small community.

a 4 story mansion donated to the city of weston for use as a llibrary

a 4 story mansion donated to the city of Weston for use as a library

Christopher hamming it up with me when we found a not so used bathroom on the third floor.

Christopher sitting the bath tube of the Lewis Bennett Library of Weston West Virginia 2013

Spring was slowly creeping into the mountain state in March and we were so happy to start to see life again that I started looking outside for more ideas and this is what I found.

Tom Powers working with horses at Cross Creek Farm

One of the few days that was really beautiful in March with temps in the 40’s and warm enough to get started on the spring trimmings again. While Tom worked hard on getting these lovely animals ready to head back up the mountains Christopher and I wondered the country road near by to find things of interest.

Christopher walking along a country road in Lewis County West Viriginia

Christopher walking along a country road in Lewis County West Virginia

April is always a mixed bag of events at our house Tom and Cody have birthdays at the end of March and the first of April so it is always a time of celebration. We try to adventure some where to shake off the dust and dirt from the long winter spent inside and this year was no different. We headed to Kentucky and had a ball at Makers Mark Distillery, the Kentucky Horse Park and Historic Bardstown, Ky. I hope to return to Bardstown it is one of the most beautiful and friendly towns I have ever visited and this is the “off-season” the Derby would still be a month away and the city is really alive then.

Easter and Kentucky Derby hats in a window store front in Bardstown, Ky

Historic John Rowan house. Old Kentucky State Park, Bardstown Kentucky

With spring in full force May is always focused on our gardens, yards, flowers and ramps. I did some blogging about the wild onions if you want to learn more about wild onions and how to use them. Our family loves to spend the day in the mountains with a picknick lunch and a bag full of ramps.

Spring ramp digging Christopher holding a the first ramp

I also start to see the wonderful spring flowers appear and could not help myself for taking a few photos of them.

white Peony at the Stoneley Farm

June 20th is our celebration of state hood here in the Mountain State. This year Tom and I spent the day working on customers horses.Were lucky enough that afternoon to find thousands and thousands of wild flowers in bloom along the long-deserted road between farms. My favorite is the wild roses that have a million tiny thorns and are in this hot pink color. The smell fills the air for miles and you just want to stop and enjoy the warm sun, the sweet smell and a long country road.

Terry Washborn's shed with wild roses and trumpet vines

Terry Washborn’s shed covered in wild roses and trumpet vines

July found us Camping near Canaan Valley in the mountains of West Virginia. We found a remote camp ground where the water of the Potomac was warm and clear and the weekend was lazy and we found time to act silly and share family time.

Tom and Christopher wearing the big bear hats just being silly at Smoke hole caverns

Country Roads take me home Hwy 55 Seneca Rocks, West Virginia

August found us looking for wild mushrooms and boy to we hit the jack pot all summer and fall. I was over whelmed with the variety color and size of the mushroom we and our friends found. What a great way to spend a hot humid afternoon. Head for the cool shaded woods and come home to a feast of wild West Virginia mushrooms.

wild chanterelle Mushrooms found in Harrison County, West Virginia

Wild mushroom, Hen of the Woods, found by the trunkful

September started a new stage to our lives as Christopher started school. We said good-bye to my little guy and said hello to a student. We also said good-by to Christopher’s Step Grand father and shared in losing someone from Alzheimer’s and the destruction that it has put my family through.

Christopher'd first day at school Sep 2013

Christopher’s first day at school Sep 2013

Honor guard the funeral of Minter Mowrey

Honor guard the funeral of Minter Mowery

The fall was creeping in and Oct is one of my favorite months if you can miss the rain that begins to fall. We found a beautiful weekend and took off to take photos in the northern part of the state and see an abandoned State Penitentiary in Moundsville. I found its structure breath-taking and it history ominous. It was one of the most interesting places I have had the opportunity to photograph in years.

veiw of Moundsville State Penitentuary, Moundsville, West Virginia

view of Moundsville State Penitentiary, Moundsville, West Virginia

Christopher and I on top of the Indian mound in Moundsville West Virginia

The next two months are a total blur. Hunting season begins and the holidays add to the already busy time so it seems I must have forgotten to take any beautiful photos. But my family had a successful fall with many happy evenings telling hunting stories and me and the kids processing the meat for the long cold winter. I also am happy to report that my little book club has reached its 9th month of continuous reading and we are still going strong.

Cody Powers with his 8 point buck

Janice, Sandy and Christopher at our Thanksgiving Book club meeting

Then as I was just getting ready to decorate for the Holidays I finally gave into the pain that I was experiencing in my foot and came to find out that I had broken a bone in the bottom of my left foot . This is what Santa gave to me about the 13 th of Dec.

My New air cast and 6 weeks off work

I am currently off work and feeling better. I hope to get things back to ” normal” what ever that is in a couple of weeks. This was also the best time for me to have this happen as work is slow and I could spend more time with my family over the holidays. I also learned to slow down and sit still a little better from this adventure and that was a lesson I found very hard at first but it is growing on me now. I plan more rest in the new year and learning about that not pushing my ageing body quite so hard.