Willy Nilly Friday 5 No. 26 - Century Park Square

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Downtown Roanoke

I've shown you what this place looks like during the summer HERE ...quite a difference ey?

Randoms:

1) Phew, the holidays are done and put away. I've shopped, I've cleaned, I've cooked...for 2 weeks straight...I'm done! But do you get a little depressed when it is all over? I do. I don't know why. Not anything major, just a little sad that it's over.

2) New Years Eve was low-key. It was the first time we weren't all together. Christian wanted to go to a party to spend NYE with his girlfriend and not us...can you believe that?! Normally we do tons of appetizers/finger foods and just graze all night. This year Nick picked up some steaks and grilled and Ash and her boyfriend Chris came over. We ate and watched New Years Rockin Eve and Nick was asleep before midnight for the first time that I can remember.

3) We've had some pretty weather here and there. Since we didn't get snow I was happy we had some warm sunny days.

4) For Christmas I got myself THIS new work-out. I semi started Monday but knew I wouldn't be able to work-out on New Year's Day so I officially will start my 90 days on Monday. Phew, the leg workout did some damage. I did that work-out on Tuesday and had trouble getting up and down the stairs for a couple of days, my legs were soooo sore...but in a good way!

5) The boys have a basketball scrimmage on Saturday...we've had nothing for 2 weeks, back in the game! Looking forward to that!

Now it's your turn...post 5 randoms, link up and visit other blogs that participated! Have fun and have a great weekend!

Willy Nilly Friday 5 No. 17 - A Hampton Sunset

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Walking along one of our favorite trails to one of our favorite little beaches in Hampton.

Willy Nilly Time:

1) My first 2 will be links that Ashlyn sent me: 46 Questions Every Twentysomething Still Asks Their Moms ohhhh some of these had me really lol'ing because she's really asked

2) And then this one: 17 Things That Happen When You Miss Your Dog While You're At College ...she really misses Ozzy :(

3) If you went to school in the 70's or before, you might remember some of THESE old films.

4) Do you watch American Horror Story? I love it. This season is Freak Show. Here's Sarah Paulson as conjoined twins Bette and Dot, singing Fiona Apple's "Criminal"


Freak Show is set in the 50's but the music is more modern, originally recorded by "people who identified themselves as freaks." I think that's pretty cool and it works well with the show!

5) In the market for a new house? How about a haunted one! 8 Real-Life Haunted Houses For Sale

That's mine for the week. Now it's your turn! Post 5 randoms, link back and visit other Willy-Nilly players! Have fun and have a great weekend :)

Willy Nilly Friday 5 No. 15 - Waiting In Line At The Milk Parlor

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123 all eyes on me!

These little ladies were patiently waiting in line

This is the milk parlor at Homestead Creamery. Big excitement going on here! They were giving tours but we had a good view from right here, and besides, the line was super long...you know the hubs and lines, he doesn't wait around long for anything...remember the donut line? Yeah, told ya so!

Look how much these girls love me, they can't take their eyes off me! They like having their pictures taken, I could tell :)

Homestead Creamery is located @ 7254 Booker T Washington Hwy . Wirtz . VA
Check out their website HERE

Now for some Willy-Nilly's:

1) Have you heard about the school in Nebraska that has been told to start addressing their students as "Purple Penguins" instead of "Boys" and "Girls" to be "gender sensitive"...It's official, the US has gone wackado...read about it HERE

2) Tried a new crock pot recipe yesterday. It was so good. I was surprised really because it didn't require a lot of seasonings but it really packed some flavor! If you would like to try it out, here ya go! Pork Chops & Gravy

3) Homecoming is this weekend. Christian is taking his girlfriend Alyssa. In case you've forgotten what they look like, you can see them heading to the Prom a few months back RIGHT HERE

4) Jimmy Fallon had Carol Burnett on his show the other night. I loved her show when I was a kid. She looks amazing and still just as funny! Here's a skit she did with Fallon



5) And last but not least, I leave you with some major cuteness...pandas on a slide:



Well that's mine for this Friday, now I want to see yours! Post 5 randoms, link back to me and add your link, visit others! Have a great weekend :)

Willy Nilly Friday 5 Number 14 - Drunk Driver Simulator

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The police had this drunk driving simulator set up to show you what it's like to drink/drive while under the influence and how you really can't do it safely. Both of my older 2 have tried the simulator while in Driver's Ed. The police come out and set up a course at the school. This one was set up in Blacksburg at the Steppin' Out Fest...See what Virginia Tech is doing to instill positive partying HERE

Now time for some Willy-Nilly's:

1) This morning while looking for a cookbook I ran across my first cookbook. It was this:

The one I have is not the same one I had as a child but one I purchased off Ebay a few years back when I was feeling nostalgic. Our neighbor, Jane, gave it to me as a Christmas or Birthday gift. It has super simple recipes like pb&j, grilled cheese & scrambled eggs inside just to name a few.

2) So then, after thinking about the cookbook and our old neighbors, Jane and Weldon, I got to thinking about their son, Kenny, or Kenny boy as he was called. Kenny was older, I think about 20 and I was just really young, elementary school. Kenny was special and lived at The Home Of Guiding Hands during the week and would come home on the weekends. On those days I would go over and visit and play endless games of Concentration with him because he loved that game, and I remember he would beat me, a lot! Do you remember that game?

3) It also made me remember the very first time my mom let me stay home alone. My friend Patty was over and my mom had to go to the store or something. We begged her to let us stay home and she said we could. I was maybe in like 3rd or 4th grade...it couldn't have been much past that because we moved from the neighborhood when I was in 5th grade. Anyways, it was the middle of the day and we were so happy to get to stay home alone...Patty lived a house down and I remember her calling her mom to see if it was ok if she stayed too. Well, not too long after my mom left, the phone rang. It sounded like a guy and he said "Is your mom there?" I said "No"...he said "Is your dad there?" I said "No" then he said "Is your brother there?" I said "No" then he said "I'm coming over and I'm bringing a gun!" lol....I was terrified! I told Patty that he must know where I live because he knows I have a brother so we ran next door to Jane and Weldon's house and she said we could stay there. Well I looked out the window and noticed I left the front door open and I could see my little Poodle Mimi just standing there at the screen looking at me. I was fearing for her life then and bravely ran over and got her and brought her back to the neighbors with me. I can't remember when we found out that the "guy" who called was my other friend Lisa, Patty's sister. She knew of course that we were home alone because of when Patty called to ask if she could stay. I then got a lesson about phone safety and to NEVER EVER tell anyone I was home alone!

4) In the same neighborhood, a couple of houses up from me, was another good friend Noi (sounds like NEW-IE)...her mom was Vietnamese and her dad was in Vietnam during the war. I don't think Noi ever knew her mom but had a few pictures of her. I can't remember what had happened to her. She lived with a "Foster Mom" Grace though because her dad travelled so much for work. But Grace was really just like her real mom. Anyways, Noi and I loved anything scary and I remember we would have "Seances" in her closet. She would tell us to say things like "if anyone is there, pinch me" or "pull my hair" and guess what, I'd get pinched...turned out to be Noi all along lol...I was the youngest on the street and so I was "ordered" around a little bit by the older kids!

5) A couple of fun things going on this weekend: Homestead Creamery Farm Days and Alleghany Highlands Heritage Festival ...haven't decided which one to go to!

That's my 5 for the week and now it's your turn. Post 5 randoms, link back and visit other Willy-Nilly participants! Have fun and have a great weekend!

SkyWatch Friday & Willy Nilly Friday 5 Number 13

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The boys had a football game on Monday in Salem at Spartan Field. It was a terrible game. We lost 35-0. If you live local you will already know why we lost, "it was Salem". Well at least we were blessed by THIS sky at the end of the game! Linking with SkyWatch Friday

I was reading some useless facts and thought they were pretty interesting so I'm gonna make them my Willy-Nilly post:

1) Johnny Appleseed planted apples so that people could use apple cider to make alcohol. (and here all this time I just thought he was a do-gooder, turns out he was just a lush!)

2) The most powerful earthquake to strike the United States occurred in 1811 in New Madrid, Missouri. The quake shook more than one million square miles, and was felt as far as 1,000 miles away. (I actually learned about this when we lived in Missouri. Pretty wild!)

3) The Bible, the world’s best-selling book, is also the world’s most shoplifted book. (well that's ironic)

4) What is called a “French kiss” in the English speaking world is known as an “English kiss” in France. (ok Frenchies, is this true?!)

5) In Baltimore USA it is illegal to wash or scrub a sink regardless of how dirty it is. (and now I don't think I will be eating out in Baltimore! ewww)

Ok, now it's your turn! Post 5 random things about ANYTHING and come back here and link up. Visit other Willy-Nilly'ers and have fun!



Have a wonderful weekend :)

Willy Nilly Friday 5 Number 5 - Naptime @ Elmwood Park

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Caught this guy napping @ Elmwood Park in Roanoke. I think he's probably happy it's Friday!

Now for some Friday 5's:

1) Rented Heaven Is For Real from the Redbox this week. Oh my gosh, what a great movie. But let me tell you this, my eyes hurt afterwards from all the crying I did! Oh and that little boy that played Colton Burpo is so dang cute! I mean serious cute! If you read the book I can't tell you how true to the book it is because although I have the book, I never finished it. I started it once but put it down for some reason and never got back to it. I will. Oneday.

2) I love Miranda Lambert and now I love her even more:



3) Had this beautiful creature stop by my yard for some lunch on Wednesday:

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4) I was visiting a blog yesterday and a post they had reminded me of camping as a kid. My whole family were big rv'ers. Every summer, my grandparents, some of our family friends, my mom and dad (when he wasn't over seas otherwise it would just be me and my mom), my uncle and cousins...whoever wanted to tag along. We'd all load up our rv's and hit the road. A favorite place was in Utah along Beaver Creek if I remember correctly. It was really just a spot you'd pull right off the road and camp along the river. We'd set our rv's up in a square type formation and pull the awnings out so we had a little compound kind of thing. My cousins and I would fish with our grandpa and my uncle, we learned to clean the fish, even gut them. That was our job. We played in the river. There were these huge boulders near our camp site that my cousins and I would climb up and take a rock and make an indentation, like how the Native Americans ground corn and had that little bowl shape in the rock from grounding so much corn? Yeah, that was our goal. We were going to make those little corn bowls and trick historians into thinking that the Native Americans lived right there at one time, grounding corn! Ha, we'd work on that every summer. There was also this little log cabin that was deserted right across the river. We'd walk over and play around and in it. I remember one walk with my uncle leading the way down the river. There was kind of like a dam made of branches and stuff and a poor little calf had gotten caught in it and and died...so sad. There were cattle that would just come right through our camp! We'd always try to pet them but they wouldn't let us that close. I remember I was sent back to camp to get some stuff to eat to bring back to my grandpa and uncle who were fishing. I got almost to camp and there were cows all over. I was afraid having never really being near them that close so I ran back to my grandpa and uncle and told them I couldn't get to camp because of the cows. They thought I was such a chicken and made fun of me for years after! Ha, such great childhood memories made right there at that creek every summer!

5) I have to take Christian for senior pictures today. I cannot believe he is a senior this year. When we moved here he was only in 6th grade.

Ok, now your turn! Blog 5 randoms and come back and link up and visit other bloggers! Have fun and have a great weekend!! Thanks for playing!


(I'm trying a new linky so I hope this works!)

Random 5 Friday & Trees of Williamsburg

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I showed you this last tree on last Friday. Another view of how the tree grew right into the fence.

Randoms:

1) I know, last week I was saying I was going to start a link up for randoms. I didn't get around to trying out a linky so shooting for next week! For you linky users, which is easiest to use?

2) Made THIS last night. I used boneless/skinless chicken breast though. It was deeeeelish! Especially the tomato/olive salad! Yum, yum, yum!

3) I don't like when people say "nom, nom, nom" ....for some reason it bothers me.

4) Baseball is over. Now I have to get the boys their physicals for school football. Can't believe my little guys are old enough to play middle school football now. Conditioning starts next week.

5) Been watching Parenthood on Netflix. Love this show. I want to be a Braverman.

Have a super duper weekend :)

Random 5 Friday - Bierer's Deli

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Bierer's Deli, Buchanan

I like those windows that run across the top above the awnings.

Random 5:

1) We moved here to Botetourt County in 2008. Just like all our previous moves, schools were always our first concern when researching an area. We loved Botetourt for their school ratings and the fact that it was a little rural, not too far out, but not in the city of Roanoke. We still absolutely love it here. I found this video clip featuring Botetourt so you can see why we love where we live! Let me know if you recognize anything in the video!



2) We went to watch our minor league Red Sox play last night. That's always a good time!

3) I worked on some genealogy yesterday and found out that a great grandfather of mine was a Hessian Soldier. His name was Jean Baptiste Schneider. More research to do!

4) Tonight starts the 3 day Civil War reenactment in Buchanan. Yep, we're going!

5) Another blogger, I can't remember who so I apologize if it was YOU and I am not giving you proper credit but anyways, mentioned this show on their blog and I've gotten a bit hooked! It is called The Returned. It is in French but has subtitles. It's on Netflix. Here's a trailer:



Have a great weekend! Be safe!

SkyWatch Friday and Random 5

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Blacksburg Rd, Fincastle. I snapped this yesterday morning. Had to pick up Ashlyn in Buchanan. We both have had car troubles this week. Not fun. Mine is all better now...hers has to go back to the dealership again today. She has my car, I have Nick's car and he's going to drive a car off his lot. Musical cars today!

Linking with SkyWatch Friday

1) I'm sad that Nancy stopped blogging even though she told us not to be sad ;) I wonder how many of us will continue with the Random 5's she started?

2) Today @ 1:30 I will be on spring break! Today @ 3:30 the boys will all be on spring break!

3) Nick was out of town for a few days. Got caught up on movies he won't watch. I found the movie Adore on Netflix. I really liked it. These 2 women have been BEST friends since they were kids. Then they both go and fall in love with each others teenage boys. Although that sounds taboo it was really interesting to see how their friendship never falters and the side effects of their relationships with the boys. Here's the trailer for you:


4) I also watched 12 Years A Slave and August: Osage County. I hadn't finished 12 Years when I rented it a couple of weeks ago but Sunday I watched both of these back to back. Talk about intense. I was wiped out after all that. I should have followed 12 Years with a comedy ;)

5) I made talapia foil packets last night for dinner. Slice some lemons. Place your talapia on top, add a couple of pats of butter, sprinkle with sea salt and pepper then wrap and stick in oven, 350 for about 20 minutes. So tasty and easy peasy!

Have a great weekend and happy Good Friday!

Random 5 Friday - Grandin Village

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A street view of Grandin Village, looking over towards the theatre. I know, I'm still showing you Grandin Village. It's such a cute little area and I love it. "Well if you love it so much, why don't you marry it?" Ha, did everyone else say that as kids? Anyway, obviously the little red/white/blue canopy is a barber shop and next to that, the maroon canopy is a little restaurant/bar called the Community Inn or as the locals call it CI, "not just because it's a lot shorter than Community Inn but it is also considerably easy to spell." lol...taken from their website. We popped in this place and had lunch. Braden and I had hamburgers, which were great. Dalton had chicken strips and I forget what Nick had. This was why we were too full for Pop's ice cream!

So now some randoms...so glad Nancy is back, yay!

1) Today will be 80 and sunshine. I ordered a bunch of plants for the garden from the FFA at school.

2) See what the Michael Vick dogs are doing now...wonderful! The Vicktory Dogs

3) Do you believe in fairies? Click Here to see some strange "fairy" pictures.

4) One more week of school then it's spring break!

5) And lastly, a great friend of mine was dealt a pretty crappy hand this week. Please keep her in your prayers. Thank you.

Now let's go visit Nancy for more randoms! Have a fantabulous weekend!

Random 5 Friday - The Grandin Theatre

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The Grandin Theatre. 1310 Grandin Road SW. Roanoke. 24015

This sublime theater originally opened in 1932 and ran continuously through November 11, 2001 according to Wikipedia. I tried to find historic information on the Grandin's own website but there was zippo. Not one teency bit of historical info, not even the date it opened. When a person sees a theater like this they are thinking "How old is this place?" am I right? Sheesh Grandin website runners, throw some historical info on your "About" page. (You know me and my need to know the history of the pictures I post!) Anyway, if you want basic info such as movie times or employment stuff, visit their website HERE... if you want to know anything historical you're going to have to Google it.

Nancy @ A Rural Journal is taking a spring break so we are on our own with our randoms this week....so here I go:

1) I am going to contact The Grandin and tell them they really should add a paragraph or two about this fine theater's history. Yes I am ;)

2) While Googling info on The Grandin, I found some accounts of the paranormal, which you can read HERE

3) Started watching 12 Years A Slave yesterday afternoon. I was only able to catch about the first half hour or so but I can tell it is going to be hard to watch.

4) We have been having super weather this week. Upper 70's, low 80's. Today we are near 80 again but have thunderstorms scheduled for the day. Then we fall back into upper 50's to mid 60's for the weekend and next week. That will seem like freezing after this week. But on the bright side, things are BLOOMING everywhere!

5) Have the garden ready to plant. Now the fun starts! Can't wait to get my herbs in!

Have a great weekend and stay out of trouble!

Random 5 Friday - The Jefferson Center

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Jefferson High School 1924-1974
Originally constructed in 1922, Jefferson High School served as Roanoke's largest high school for half a century. Read more about its history HERE

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Fast forward to the year 1989...The Jefferson Center Foundation is born. "Jefferson Center is celebrating the arts renaissance in Virginia’s Blue Ridge and we are proud to be doing it with your support in Shaftman Performance Hall, our community’s theater, which is playing an integral role as a home to great performances." Read more HERE

The Jefferson Center. 541 Luck Avenue. Roanoke, Virginia. 24016 www.jeffcenter.org

Now for some randoms:

1) A rainy weekend in store. Blah...please don't rain on Sunday...have outdoor plans.

2) Click Here for a story about a road trip to Roanoke. You might recognize some of the places from my blog ;)

3) Click Here to see pictures of abandoned places in Virginia. I've got some of my own to add to it.

4) Click Here to see an artist a day. I directed you to artist Michael Ward. He's from Costa Mesa, Ca...not far from my own hometown. I love his retro work!

5) Click Here to see this amazing series of photos called "Where Children Sleep".

Now Click Here to read more randoms @ Nancy's Rural Journal! And have a super-d-dooper weekend ok?!

Random 5 Friday - Mill Mountain Star

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The Mill Mountain Star was constructed in 1949 to kick off that year's Christmas shopping season. After construction of the star, Roanoke was nicknamed the "Star City of the South". Read more HERE

(click on photo to enlarge)That big building is the Norfolk Southern building.

Now for some randoms!

1) I won a pretty orange knitted hat from Buttons over at Buttons Thoughts. If you've never visited Buttons go on over and say hi. Also you can see pictures of her cute cows modeling the hats she makes. Here's a photo of my Ozzy modeling it for us:

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2) I loved THIS SLIDESHOW of a photographers amazing photos to help rescued dogs find homes.

3) Didja know you can make tons of stuff with old bedsprings? CLICK HERE....yeah, me neither.

4) I love OLD photos and I think it was Denise over at An English Girl Rambles that turned me on to THIS SITE

5) It's spring!! It will be sunny and 70 today and tomorrow...I will enjoy it! Some winter weather sneaks back in on Monday/Tuesday...whatevs...It's still spring!

Go check out more randoms at Nancy's Rural Journal and have a great weekend!

Random 5 Friday - Photobomb

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Kroger parking lot, Daleville.

Last weekend the boys and I were waiting in the car at Kroger while Nick ran in to the bank. The boys noticed these boys shoes and were saying that they liked them. Since I had my camera I zoomed in to get a better look when low and behold, PHOTOBOMB ;)

Now some randoms:

1) Have you seen the new Chevy commercial with the dog? You're going to need a tissue for sure:


2) Today is a snow day. We woke up with a very light dusting, but the roads are icy.

3) I made the most delicious bbq chicken sandwiches with cilantro slaw the other night. I boiled my chicken breasts, then chopped and shredded and mixed with Duke's BBQ sauce (my favorite bottled sauce) but the amazing part was the slaw from Pioneer Woman. You can get the recipe HERE

4) The boys played their last basketball game on Monday evening. We lost so our season is now over. We have our banquet on Monday at Cici's. Now we are ready to start baseball!

5) Daylight savings starts this Sunday. I love longer days! And the countdown to spring? 13 Days, 3 Hours, 11 Minutes, 33 Seconds, as I type!

Visit Nancy at a Rural Journal for more randoms!

Have a great weekend :)