birds wing

Photo by Rebecca Wood

I found this dead bird, a blue grossbeak, and marvelled at its’ beauty.

Dream House in Lexington

Photos and words by Rebecca Wood

this old place is on the side of the road in lexington, georgia. i’ve admired it for years, and finally got out to explore. dream on!

Mingus Mill

Photos and Story by Kristen Bach

Mingus Mill was built in 1886 by a millwright from Virginia, Sion Early, for just $600. The mill has since been restored in the 1930’s and 1960’s. The mill and all of its surroundings were so beautiful. I loved all of the raw wood against the green foliage of the Smokies. The wood-constructed millrace where the water is carried to the mill was covered in moss and was quite lovely, too. A fun little stop! Read more about Mingus Mill here.

Watermelon Agua Fresca

Photos and recipe by Kristen Bach

This is one of my favorite drinks of the summer.  We have been eating a lot of watermelon around our house so saving half to make a little pitcher of this refreshing cooler is easy.

ingredients

1 small sized watermelon or half of a big one 3 limes

1 bunch of fresh mint

directions

-cube and remove seeds from the watermelon

-juice the limes

-put the melon, lime juice, and mint leaves in a blender

-blend until smooth

-pour the juice through a colander lined with cheese cloth

-serve the juice over ice, garnished with some mint

-if you want to spike it, add some vodka and serve over ice

a luna moth

Photo by Rinne Allen

Found outside my window.

your dreamhouse

riding around floyd, virginia, recently, i saw lots of amazing old houses and barns. this one is perched on a mountain looking out past an old apple tree out over the green valley. i wouldn’t mind just living there as is, letting it all fall down gradually while i stayed mesmerized by the beauty.

bevs

Photos and words by Rebecca Wood

my friend bev lives up in floyd, virginia. she’s been working on this place for 30 years, growing a forest from scratch, repairing old barns, turning a hillside into a terraced garden, and all the while collecting interesting things. now it’s all come together into a wonderful retreat nestled in the green hills, full of life and beauty.

cardoon & borage

Photo and arrangement by Rinne Allen

rust

Photo by Kristen Bach

a rustic blueberry pie

Photos and Recipe by Kristen Bach

Just as strawberry season comes to an end….the blueberries start. We got some with our weekly farm delivery here, and I couldn’t resist making a quick dessert. We had a frozen pie crust in our freezer which made this one….extra simple.

Ingredients

1 pie crust (made from scratch or from the store)

2 cups fresh blueberries

1/3 cup honey or more to taste

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

a pinch of salt

1/2 cup flour

raw sugar for sprinkling

Directions

-Heat your oven to 425 degrees.

-Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

-Put the blueberries, honey, vanilla, and salt into a saucepan.

-Heat them on medium heat, stirring continuously until the berry juices start to come out.

-Add the 1/2 cup flour and heat and stir for a couple of minutes until the mixture starts to thicken.

-Set aside and let cool down while you are prepping your crust.

-Lightly coat a clean surface with flour.

-Roll pie crust dough into a circle.

-Transfer the crust to the cookie sheet.

-Pour the blueberry mixture in the center of the crust.

-Gently fold the edges over the blueberry mixture.

-Brush the edges with butter or a light coat of water and sprinkle some raw sugar or other coarse sugar.

-Cook in the oven until the edges of the crust are browned but not burned.

-Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

Pink Blooms

Photo by Kristen Bach

Photo by Kristen Bach

a drive through the smokies

Photos and words by Kristen Bach

While driving through the Smokies, my eyes were glued to the hills.

We had a hard time not stopping at every overpass and smelling the sweet air.