Lots of Grass

This is what happens when you let your lawn grow out for a really long time.  You get these beautiful patches of tall gorgeous grass.  Bert mowed the lawn today and I told him to just leave at least one patch of this grass because it is so pretty.  If it weren't for copperheads I do believe I'd leave my lawn tall all the time.

Dragonfly

Ancestors of the Hunger Games

As promised here is the interview of the creators of Coal Camp Kids...

Now Let' take a closer look at the dolls :)

Look at the detail of the items these dolls are holding!

A fun way to remember Kentucky History!

Order yours today with credit, pay pal, check or money order.  Cash if you live close :)

For details contact helengoins@zitomedia.net

The Awakened One

   I am a firm believer that you get the best photographs of plants and flowers when they give you permission.  You never thought it possible that flowers have their shy moments as well as their outgoing moments?  I believe they do!
   I call this one The Awakened One because I happened upon this beauty opening herself up early this morning :)

Pillow Talk

   Can someone please explain why out of all the places there is to lay that my sweet little feline friend just has to plop her fat little butt down on my pillow?
   I decided that today would be a great day to dedicate a post to my most loyal friend for the past 13 years.  I love her like crazy even though she truly is one crazy cat!  However, her loyalty is something that still makes me so glad to have her in my life.  There is no question as to whose cat she is and who she loves the most.  No matter who is around she always makes it clear that I am who she has chosen to be her best friend.  You can give her treat after treat if you want and feed her until she bursts but she will never let you believe for one second that you have replaced me.
   She is getting older now and I can tell it in the way she moves and acts.  She is still quite active though to be 15 years old!  She was already over a year 1/2 old when I got her out of the animal shelter and she has been with me for over 13 years.
  Here she is plopping her stinky, little kitty butt right on my pillow.  Thanks, I guess there is one more load of laundry to do today you little brat!

Life in a Kentucky Coal Camp

Upon interviewing Helen about her dolls I at some point realized that I didn't have any background or understanding as to what exactly a coal camp was.  I was curious to find out so I jotted down a few questions for her...

What is a coal camp?

Helen: A coal camp is a coal mining community that houses only mining families.  The camp I grew up in had families from all over the world as well as from here in KY.  Our houses were all owned by the coal company and were very similar in style and build.  We used coal for heat.  We didn't have running water we had a well.  There was no indoor bathrooms, we used an outhouse.
Our school was on the property as well as 3 churches.  We had what was called a commissary there which is basically a grocery store.  We ordered things from the commissary with scripts.

What is a script?

Helen:  A script was a token that was worth a certain amount of money.  We would pay with the scripts and the script office would draw out money from my dad's paycheck.  Whatever was left after we shopped was paid to my dad in cash.
We also had a doctor there in the community that was no charge to us as I recall.  I believe the coal company paid him a salary and we were given free medical.

What was life like there was it hard?

Helen: We didn't have a lot of money but my mom was very thrifty.  She made our clothes and the younger ones got hand me downs from the older children.  Every year before school started we would get a new pair of shoes.  My dad hunted ginseng and yellow root in order to pay for our shoes. 
   We had to have gardens.  At 6 or 7 us kids started to learn how to work in the garden.  We started off learning how to pull weeds and dropping potatoes.  As we grew older we got more responsibility.  We fished and hunted and ate animals like rabbit and squirrel.  We dried the garden foods and also canned them for the winter.
   We made our own fun.  We didn't have many toys.  We fished, swung on grapevines and used cardboard boxes to slide down sage fields.  That's all we knew so there was nothing wrong with it!

Did you ever leave the community to go places?

Helen:  No, my parents didn't even own a car and we had everything we needed right there in the community.  I had been outside of the community one time before high school.   I left home at 16 to get a job.  We were a close knit community.

What do you mean by close knit community?

Helen:   Everyone knew everybody and we all knew what was going on with each other.  Everybody tried to help each other out when we could.  The people who ran the camps were nice and they did a lot for us.

Thank You Helen
Be sure to check back with us later this week to view my video interview of Helen, Glenna and Peggy discussing the Coal camp Kids!

Here is a picture I found on another blog here on blog spot of an old mining camp in Kentucky.  I am including a link to this blog as well so you can see all of the great pictures and useful info he has to offer.                                                    

http://melungeon-studies.blogspot.com/2008/12/i-owe-my-soul-to-company-store.html

Before There Were Hunger Games There Were Coal Camp Kids

   Today I was blessed to meet with 3 very talented ladies from right here in Kentucky.  They are the creators of some very unique collector's item dolls called the Coal Camp Kids.
   For all you Hunger Games fans out there you might be surprised to know that coal mining camps are real. Many of our elders here in KY such as these 3 sisters, Helen, Glenna and Peggy grew up in these mining camps.
   Several years ago Helen had an idea to make some dolls that represented the children from the mining camp they grew up in.  She told her sisters about her idea and they all worked together to start their own doll making company. It was then that the Coal Camp Kids were born.
   These sisters were very nice to show me around their workshop and talk to me about their dolls. Each doll is handmade and unique. I was honestly blown away at the detail and work that went into each one of them. Coal camp kids are definitely rich with Kentucky history.

                                          Peggy, Helen and Glenna

   So be sure to check back later this week when I feature all of the Coal Camp Kids as well as an informative interview with all 3 sisters.

Watermelon Slurpies

I like to make sure there are several water sources scattered around the yard for my ducks because they get hot very easily.  Sure using regular bowls is great but they have so much more fun when I give them water in a fruit bowl. 
When they are finished with it then here comes the bees etc.  The bees really can't get enough of this and during the night a hungry little rabbit or deer might have a nibble or two.You can use any kind of melon.  Just make sure it has been cut in 1/2 to make a bowl shape.  Scoop out the fruit you want for yourself and sit the fruit bowl outside.  I like to sit it out when I know it is going to rain that way they get fresh rain water to drink.

             They slurped in this for a long time and then when they were done
                                                the bees took over.

Snack Time

                                             Is this what we think it is?

No thanks you guys go ahead I am watching my figure.

Yummy

A romantic snack for two

My ducks are enjoying their day today

Book Review-I Listened, Momma

    I just finished reading I Listened, Momma written by Darlene Franklin Campbell.
    Firstly, the book is written in a language that anyone who has grown up in Kentucky will feel at home with.  I smiled as I read words that I had not heard pronounced in such a way since some of my elders have passed on.  Also, for those that might not be acquainted with some of the slang words used the author weaves in the explanation craftily.
   I found myself rooting for Nochipa but what is so great is that I definitely found a little bit of myself in all of the characters.  I would go into detail about the ways I identified with each character but then I might give away parts of the story.
   I Listened, Momma is a book I would recommend to anyone.  The story is believable yet still works your imagination just enough to transport you into Nochipa's world.

Downstairs ceiling begins

Today we started on the ceiling.  I for some reason just did not want a traditional sheet rock ceiling.  I had an idea to just put up paneling for the ceiling and ask Bert if that were possible and if it would make any difference to the functionality.  For right now we really can't see how it will make much of a difference especially since we are not going to be hanging lights from this particular ceiling anyways.  So now I have a ceiling which has a bit of design to it.  The great thing about doing your own living space is you can make it to your liking and put your little personal touches on it.

                                                        Hammering away

Siren almost completely healed

Siren has healed wonderfully!  She is now waddling around with her siblings as if nothing happened.  I did keep them all caged for a good 3 days.  I told them when one of you gets hurt you all have to change your daily routine.  They certainly were not liking not being able to waddle around the yard and quacked at me constantly to let them out.  They are happy ducks again though.

It's Whereabout Wednesday!

 Whereabout Wednesday happens every other Wednesday.  It is a fun time where we post our travels around Kentucky and other neighboring states.  Every now and then we might go somewhere even further who knows that is what makes it Whereabout Wednesday lol.  Where will we be next?
 Our first travel blog is about Makers Mark Distillery in Loretto, KY.  Makers Mark just happens to be the only handmade straight bourbon whiskey in the entire US.  However, on the bottle they spell it as WHISKY without the E.  Bert points out that it might be that they are showcasing our states abbreviation KY.   It was an interesting tour. 

                       I copied this pic from the internet just to show you what Maker's Mark is (I do not own the copyright)...

  Off we go...
  We learned that Mr. Samuels purchased the distillery land especially because of the 15-16 acre limestone lake.  This lake water is used for every single bottle of Makers Mark.  Unfortunately we were not allowed to see the lake.  There was plenty more to see though.


                         First sight is an old firetruck and gas pump.

   See the old fireman's jackets, hats and extinguishers...

Old fire truck

The old office

 Bert pushing my cousin Philip through Whisky Creek Bridge

Whisky Creek

                                     The "first drive through liquor store"

Whisky Wagon

Maker's Mark Distillery

The mash barrels-they actually let you taste all of the differently aged mash

Whisky Wall

Hand dipping the bottles

 Maker's Mark Whisky ages in these white oak barrels to taste

 approximately 6 years

The Free Tasting begins

     Geez Philip how many glasses do you need ?  Lol, just kidding this pic is a bit

deceptive (wink).

Bert says, "Yes, quite smooth"

I didn't like the way I looked in my pic so this is all I'm showing.  Hey it's my blog I can do what I like :)

Sign up online to be an ambassador and they will put your name on a plaque and display it on one of the barrels.  It is free to sign up!  You get all kinds of free stuff.  Once your barrel ages to perfection you are welcome to purchase 2 bottles from your very own barrel!

We ended our tour with a quick lunch at the toll gate cafe.

             We really thought the bourbon barbecue sauce was absolutely delicious!   However, we weren't that impressed with the other food.  Sorry :(  In all fairness though we tend to be picky eaters because we are used to eating at home.  At home we cook with quality food and lots of spices and flavorings as well as fresh veggies.

  In closing, I always buy a bottle of Maker's Mark every winter.  I use it when needed to fight nasty colds and winter bugs.  We make a drink from the whisky that is called a hot toddy.  My family has used this toddy to fight nasty colds for as long as I can remember.  Maybe I will share how I make it sometime :)  Hope you enjoyed this post.

If You'd like more info about Maker's Mark Distillery here is their website link as well as a funny video from youtube...

http://www.makersmark.com/age-verification

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLiWVGc3VZk