Parents visit the Midwest Part I

Note: This post contains lots of pictures!  But I just couldn't narrow it down any further!

Mom and Dad came to experience the Midwest for the first time.  I must say they definitely did not experience the true heat-humidity combo that I wanted.  They needed to suffer as I had through heat indexes reaching 120 degrees!  they spent the middle part of their trip with me and the Miller Family.  David, his parents, one brother and sister in-law, and me and my parents spent four days in Tennessee in the Smokey Mountains.  Here is a morning view from our mountain-top cabin, be jealous!

 We went hiking one day on the Chimney Tops trail.  Its a 4-mile loop with a rock outcropping at the top that you have to scale to see the view.

 View from the top.

 The rock we had to scale.

 I love Dad's expression in this one :)

We took a steep, but paved, hike up to Clingman's Dome to get a good 360 degree view of the Smokeys.

And also took a drive through the 11-mile loop of Cade's Cove, stopping to see the old working Mill and some other old wooden buildings.

 Wildlife spotting.

 David is special.

On the last day we went tubing down the Little Pigeon River.  We had a blast maneuvering through the little rapids.  I think Dad won the award for most times stuck on a rock.  Mom won the award for best wipe out down a rapid, I only wish I had a picture of her limbs flailing out of the water.  And Brett won for most times falling out of his tube, though I think most were probably on purpose.  The rest of us were just too average to have any noteworthy mentions.

 We got a lot of funny looks as we drove up the river like this.

More to come on the visit....

Its Hot. Its Humid.

A lady in the church has a noteworthy quote for this week, "I know its hot out there.  But you can just deal with it.  If we didn't have Jesus it would be a lot hotter!"

So this week has been unbelievably hot.  Just go look at the weather for Brown County Indiana.  I mean we are talking heat indexes up to 120 degrees.  You walk outside and your hands instantly feel clamy from the wetness.  Or glasses and camera lenses fog up.  But we make do.  Either you stay inside in the AC, or you have a little fun outside anyways.

 You put small children on the roof to gather branches that fall on it.

 You cool off with any water source you can find. No matter what you are wearing.

 You eat lots of fresh fruit.

 You lay in the shade without moving so you sweat less. And you must use a sheet to keep the chiggers from eating you alive.

 You play in the rain.  Do not be deceived it is not cool out when it is overcast and raining.

When you only have sisters, you try on earrings even if you are a boy.

 You have tickle fights, which are especially fun since all the miller boys are extremely ticklish.

 You sweat a ton outside and then come inside to cool off.

You kiss your grandma.  Adorable.

The Sights

There is so much to see living in Indiana.  I am sure to the locals it is all just normal and not very exciting.  But I love driving the winding roads.  Especially when I come around a bend and this is what I see.

 And it continues to look like that as I keep driving.  And part of me thinks its kinda magical and another part of me is afraid a bear, a deer, or a madman with an axe are going to dart out in front of my car.  My California driving skills have not prepared me for what I would do in a case like that.  Though I am told by Cathy to always keep driving straight instead of veering off the road and possibly creating a more disastrous accident.  But I don't think she was referring to madmen with axes being in the road, just squirrels, raccoon, and deer.

It is also just as great to round a bend and drive alongside fields like this one.  Smelling fresh-cut hay is wonderful.  Brings me back to a certain trip to Oklahoma a few years back.

And the wildflowers make me happy too.  Ill have to take pictures of all the other sorts that grow along the roadsides.  They could make a pretty bouquet. 

But to a local, all of this is just normal to see.  I am sooo from Southern California suburbia.  But that gives me a unique perspective I suppose.  I appreciate all the greenery every time I step outside, or I look out my window view.

You don't get views like this in my neighborhood.  Trees that go on and on.  I can't see any nearby houses because they are too far away through the trees.  Plus this house is the last house on the road before a state forest begins.  There is no need for curtains since no one is out there, except maybe the madman with the axe.  But that irrational fear is slowly ebbing away.  Hey, my limited experiences with houses secluded in forests (or corn fields) has been with scary/thriller movies where someone crazy is lurking nearby.

I will take some more pictures of the local countryside.  My drive to work is quite picturesque.

The Garden

I know I am not in Southern California anymore when someone says the solution to a rabbit eating some plants is to stake out the area with a 22 and wait for the rabbit to return.

David's mom, Cathy, (and most other Hoosiers I have met) likes gardening; plus it feeds families and brings in extra income for some in these rural areas.  In fact along the rural roads there are multiple places where you can stop to buy fresh home-grown produce, kind of like a lemonade stand in the suburbs.  The interesting thing here is that these little vegetable stands are always unmanned.  There will be a table with vegetables on it, a sign with the price per pound listed, a scale, and a can to put your money in.  What is wrong with this picture?!  Or should I say, what is wrong with California that we cannot trust anyone enough to have anything like this.  I couldn't believe it the first time I saw such a table on the side of the road.  But apparently this is totally norma.  

Cathy has vegetable and fruit plants at her house, where I am staying, and a bigger garden at the oldest brother's (Chris) property.  So I got to help water it this week since Cathy is in Ireland.  They do not have a hose that reaches the garden, so we have to use the truck to fill up buckets with water and drive them over.  Seems like its more of a hassle than its worth, but again, I am not in comfortable California anymore.  And life here is different. 

Here I am with the kids getting ready to go water.

David was in charge of turning the hose on to fill all the buckets in the back of the truck, and apparently with attempting to strike a studly pose.  He is always so serious.  I just wish he would lighten up and have fun with the daily things in life. 

The men carting some of the water over.

Its a joint effort of everyone to get all the plants watered.  Though the kids may not have really pulled their weight.  There are beans, corn, watermelon, tomatoes, green beans, flowers, and pumpkins in this little 300 square-foot plot.

Carson kept picking tomatoes before they were ready.  He just loves anything that resembles a ball; or really anything he can throw at you.  He also thought it was funny to water my feet instead of the plants.

We also went fishing together.  I caught no fish, so here is a picture of one Ava caught.  Dad will be so disappointed that a 3 1/2 year-old out fished me.  But her Dad did everything but real it in, so I guess it does not look as bad for me.

The boys.  Both pretty good looking, if I may say so!

Ava falling asleep on me in the car on a Walmart run.

Lick Creek Bean Blossom

I know I am not in Southern California anymore when the cities have names like, "Bean Blossom" and streets have names like, "Lick Creek," "Bear Wallow," and "Possum Trot"

There is always something going on in the Miller family.  I guess when you have 5 sons, 3 daughter-in-laws, 3 grandkids, and a 120-person close-as-family church congregation meeting 15 steps from your front door, there is a lot going on.  

I think aside from breakfast, I have eaten very few meals inside.  Mostly we have "cook-outs" because no one "BBQs" in Indiana unless you are actually using BBQ sauce; and no even has "BBQs," but only "grills."  This is what the native Hoosiers explained to me while rolling their eyes at my west coast ignorance.

The grandkids were around the house for a couple days so I also had a few picnics with them in the front yard and out by a small lake behind the house. We have also done a bit of swimming in an above ground 3-foot pool over at the oldest Miller brothers house.  It may not be very deep or very big, but it is so refreshing in the heat of the day.  Plus it is great for making whirlpools and tossing the kids around.

Not the best of everyone, but you can see our little picnic spot sitting beside the lake. 

 This lake is up behind the Miller house where we had our picnic.

 The little guy pooped out after all our playing.  He pooped out literally, and figuratively of course.

Seriously, does it get much cuter than this???  Carson struttin his stuff in his speedo.

I have worked over a full week at my job now and am serving tables on my own.  It has been a bit hectic, but I know it will take a bit for me to get the hang of it.  Plus the restaurant is still working out their system in the kitchen so that they do not hold up the food too long.  It will be an alright job for the summer, but I do not think I would want to work there longer! Its rather stressful serving in a brand new restaurant!

I have had some more "firsts" this past week.  I rode a power mower, the kind you sit in that have a 0 degree turn radius.  I have not actually mowed yet, we just use it to drive back and forth to the house from the pool whenever anyone needs a bathroom run.  I got laughed at the first time I drove it, it was awkward to steer.  And anytime this, "California girl" does anything new the Miller brothers like to poke fun at me.

I saw what a tick looks like, so now I know what to look for.

I rode a donkey named Jill, and I could practically put my feet on the ground while I was sitting on it.  The couple who owns Jake and Jill pretty much treat them like dogs and take them for walks on leashes.  So that was also a first, seeing a family have donkeys for "children."  Oh, and Jill also tried to eat my shorts while I was petting her, it about knocked me over.

I also rode a horse around a bit.  I have ridden them a few times before, but only on trails where I was following the horse in front of me.  So this time I could ride it around the yard and learn how to steer a bit.  I also successfully swung into the saddle without using the stirrups, on my second try.  I am basically a redneck.

This next one looks like I may be falling, but I am in the middle of swinging into the saddle.  Quite attractive I know.....

I played corn hole, a staple at every summer cook out here in Indiana.  Its similar to washers.  You toss beanbags into angled pieces of plywood with a hole near the top.  Sounds kinda lame, but its pretty fun.  But I am quite terrible at it, something which time will fix I hope.