old building in shady dale

they other day i saw this old building.  i love all of the holes, patches, and layers.  it's a beauty!

sweet potato chili

i had chili on my mind all day yesterday.  we also have sweet potatoes coming out of our ears over here.  so i decided to make a sweet potato chili.  i love putting butternut squash in my chili so i thought sweet potatoes might be nice too.  they added a sweetness that i love in chili.  we also made some cornbread to go along with it... i'll just say, i am glad there is leftovers!

recipe follows

ingredients

medium onion

green pepper

2 cups peeled and cubed sweet potatoes

2 cloves garlic

1 big can of tomatoes

1 can kidney beans

1 can black beans

water

salt

1 Tbsp chili powder, or more to taste

directions

-saute the onion and  green pepper until slightly browned

-put all of the ingredients in crock pot, including the onions and peppers

-turn to high and cook for a couple of hours

rebekka seale

i have just come across this wonderful illustrator, rebekka seale.  i think her use of color is perfect and i just love the sweetness in her subject matter and painting style.  smitten.... i was peeking around her

website

and looking at her work and i stumbled across a house painting of

flannery o'connors house

in milledgeville, ga.  i needed to share!

winter bonfire at the brickhouse

every year, our friend lamar has a bonfire.  he burns all of the accumulated brush from the past year and invites friends and family over to enjoy it.  i love to see the house glow at night against the dark sky.  it was a fun evening!

newborn fertilizer co.

on a recent drive, this old fertilizer company caught my eye.   the exterior walls were stained from the red clay, patched with wood scraps, signage that was faded, and the rusted tin.  the interior was blank and the light peeked in through the many holes. picturesque....

irises are a coming!

i just walked through the botanical gardens the other day and saw that all of the irises were up and ready to show their faces!  i'm not sure what kind of spring we will have this year.

winter gardens

i have said this time and time again, we are so lucky to have an all year growing season.  it always makes me happy to see winter gardens.  the plants look tough and strong which helps then get through the cold nights.

yesterday we visited a lovely garden of a couple who moved a big farmhouse to their lot 19 years ago.  they have created this amazing space and eat from their garden all year long.  i left their country home....feeling inspired.

they also had a room of vines that was magical.

junk store blues

the other day my dad found an ad for an estate sale in comer, ga.  we headed there first thing in the morning.  people now put the label estate sale on everything.  this particular estates sale was a little junk store that was going out of business.  we found some good things like old bottles, tins and i scored a vintage stroller for my shop! there is always something to be found.

at the lake

i visited clark’s hill lake recently.  georgia has no natural lakes.  all we have is man made with a dam.  we’ve had a dry year,and all the lakes are down.  the mud bottoms revealed are cracked and growing grass.  there’s lots of pine trees all around and a storm blowing through, so there was plenty of lonely beauty to experience.