Mendota Gratitude

Our drive up through the mountains and the beautiful scenery and seeing the "strip" of rain in the distance....God's handiwork.

Huntin' Club lunch and how we met the Stone family and how she wanted to hug Caroline's neck.  

Meeting Jessie at the quick stop on the way into Mendota.  How gracious and kind he was and how he wanted to "escort" us a better way.

Pulling in to this sanctuary of delight and tranquility and plopping down with Eva immediately for conversation and laughter.

How Rebecca kept her new/old camera attached to her catching a picture at every turn... "This place is so beautiful!"

Driving into Mendota in the sunshine after a day full of rain.

Quilt Square barns.

Oth fishing with Andy and how they talked and talked of hunting and trapping and fishing and all the things they love.

Mary and the Dairy Farm and her country drawl and her darling spirit.

Driving from here to there with Eva... and how she knows EVERYBODY in every house on every corner, on every street.

Cobb Salad, "Place and Bake" cookies, and late night laughter with Seinfeld.

An unexpected girls trip to Tennessee Quilts and stopping for pictures all along the way.  

A breakfast stop at the Rally Mart for biscuits and how everyone already knows each other in this tiny little mountain town and wanted to know who we were too.

How all of us girls wanted to talk at once because there is so much to say when you have so much in common.

How Eva introduced me to everyone as her "cousin" even though I am just an "in-law-cousin-twice removed" by marriage.

Stopping for pictures at the Carter Fold and learning all the stories of the sites along the way.

This fabulous quilt store!

How Eva bought a stack of vintage prints and how we sat in the evening and cut them into squares for her first quilt.

Peachy Teas and Frenchy Fries at Pals.

The drive back through Bristol, by the speedway and hopping into "Short Sheets" only to discover the entire line of the storybook prints for 30% off the already marked down price!!!

How the owners just moved to Bristol from Greenville and have family in Anderson.  Our conversation about quilting.

All the sights and sounds of the mountainside; deer in the apple orchard, fawns frolicking about, skunks and groundhogs, honeybees and crickets...all the squawking birds.... it's delightful!

Mike and Eva and their gracious hospitality and delight to let us enjoy it all at their homestead for the weekend.

Making homemade salsa.

Watching the afternoon rain with a coke and conversation.

Grilling out with grassfed beef and home-grown Yukon gold potatoes.... and homemade peach pie.  Yum!

An afternoon golf cart drive.

The girls sharpening their driving skills....

...this one drives a car in less than a year!  (Yikes!)

All the swinging bridges.

How he waited for the rain to stop so he and Andy could fish.

Riding bikes down the dirt road.

Meeting Neth, Oth's adopted brother from Ethiopia.  His gentle spirit, love for service and obvious heart for the Lord.  His delight to be the first "kill" in the greatly anticipated evening skunk hunt!

Our little guest suite above the garage.  

How the girls suited up to feed the bees.... with excitement and a little fear.

How Eva coached them in and out.

Victory over fear!  (A memorable experience, for sure!)

 Visiting this tiny church on the side of a mountain.... full of history and people who were glad we were there.

 How it just so happened that Laura Cash (Johnny Cash's daughter-in-law) was in town for the weekend and shared some tunes for the service.  As the two time winner of the National Fiddle Contest, she can make that fiddle sing.  What an unexpected treat!

A Sunday afternoon visit with Aunt Barbara (Nana's oldest sister...so dear and sweet) and her boys.

How Jonathan opened his little Sandwich Shoppe just for us and prepared homemade sandwiches and scrumptious tomato soup.  How we sat around and talked for 2 hours(!) visiting and catching up. 

For a weekend filled with memories... that will surely last a lifetime.



Please visit Eva's blog, Rivercliff Cottage, for her words about our trip and pages full of Mendota memories!  She shares lots of "wonderful" here!