Yesterday, we spent the day in the country at our friend Sandy’s ‘Farm’ in Rappahannock Co.  What a beautiful place, and in spite of the drizzly conditions, the kids had a BLAST!  Here is the pond located right next to the main house.  Cade is demonstrating to Maddie the proper technique for stick throwing.  There was a lot of sticks and rocks thrown into the pond...and maybe even a stuffed animal!  There is lots of wildlife on this 200 acre mountain parcel.  It has a lot of interesting areas and we tried to explore them all! 

We set off to explore the mountain armed...incase we saw any bear...ya, they have bear!  As we looked back over the house while climbing the mountain, we could see Skyline Drive, and the rock formation in the middle is something called “Devils Staircase.”

There are several old houses on the property.  The chimney is part of a really, really old house on the very top of the hill.  A more modern home with a marvelous view sits just below that.

The house above was still sturdy enough to go inside.  On the left is one big room, on the right is a staircase that leads to bedrooms upstairs.  I wondered if this wasn’t a place for the orchard workers to eat, while the cook got to actually live in the house.  I think it is odd it having two front doors.

On the backside of this chimney (above) was carved J.B. 4 22 35.  Is it 1735?  1835?  Or 1935?  The house is so old, the logs are all notched to fit together. 

These are the kids at the top of the mountain.  They say you can see all the way to Bull Run mountain from up here.  Given the view, I believe it!  The house, above you see the corner of in the picture has an amazing view of this valley.  It was a cloudy, drizzly day and still it was breathtaking.  I cannot imagine it in the spring with the bright green patchwork! 

On the way back down the mountain we stopped at the apple barn.  Years ago, this used to be an orchard.  This massive barn is where they would store the apples, and next to it (you can see Owen in the window) is the packing shed.  The orchard barn is    

H U G E !!!  And there is all kinds of apple crates there, evidence of a past life that there is very little recognition of now.   Today, you can scarcely find an apple tree on the huge mountain.   By the time we came down the mountain it was time to dry off and have some lunch.  Afterward, the fun began.  4 Wheelin’ is all my kids dreamed of doing since the day they met Sandy.  Today was the day!

Don’t even think about it.  There was no way in God’s green Earth I was letting Spencer drive the 4 wheeler.  Audrey either for that matter!  They rode shotgun!

Left:  This is the other old abandon house on the property.  It is in a state of complete disrepair, but...it had another kind of treasure in the front yard! 

Trash!  Yes, while it is true, under normal circumstances I am very environmentally conscious, this represents a generational way of life.  They didn’t have Waste Management big green trucks coming by every week to pick up the trash...so they dumped it in their own personal trash pit.  And it was a treasure trove!  We spent a long time digging through several trash piles on the property.  Of all of us, Audrey was completely crazed over it.  She brought home some cute little medicine bottles and lots of other interesting bits and pieces she found.  We also found some bone parts on the property we are going to add to our Celtic garden...because we know those Celts liked to decorate with the heads of their enemies.  So, we are taking the next best thing.  The cool thing I found was a full buzzard head.  But, alas, I laid it down in the leaves, and could not find it again!  :(  Oh well!  

In spite of the rain, the temperature was pretty warm, and the kids and I had a really great day exploring this farm!  It was a something for everyone kind of day, and we made a FULL day of it, not even coming home until 9pm.  Just in time to settle in with American Idol!