The World's Largest Treehouse

Yesterday my friend Megan and I made a trip to the world's largest treehouse in Crossville, Tennessee. I had visited the treehouse with Mr. Cheese last summer, but I could return to this remarkable place a hundred times and still find something new to see. 

The (awesome) grafitti collection continues to grow and grow. Names, quotes, and little drawings cover the interior walls of the treehouse, left by visitors from all over the country (I even saw a couple of passages in German). Those images will appear in a future post - it's a collection good enough to stand on it's own. A winter trip to the treehouse is definitely in order, as the trees mask the bulk of the structure.

Oh, and a word to the politicians out there: I could totally see one of you guys ripping off my flag/Jesus field image for a political ad. Don't.

A Little Break

I'm going to imagine that I'm living inside this vintage ad for a few days, would you like to join me on a fabulous virtual camping expedition?

via Flickriver

My crazy schedule this past 5 weeks has made me quite the bear to be around. See, it's even driving me to make bad puns....

via Treehugger

So I think I'll take a break from blogging for a few days to catch up on laundry & housework, seeing friends, and spending a little time with my bored and lonely pups. (Molly has been acting out lately to get attention). I will be back in a few days my lovelies!

Summer Fun - 70's Style

As I've mentioned before, my city is hilly and most yards do not have large flat grassy areas suitable for lawn games. But I have fond memories of childhood vacations to Maryland and Connecticut to visit my Aunts, Uncles, and cousins, where we spent our days on the beach...
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by the pool....
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running through the sprinklers...
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picnicking in the backyard...
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flying kites...
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playing croquet...
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badminton...
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tetherball...
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and Jarts (lawn darts)
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We are headed out of town again this weekend to visit my grandparents and spend some time with my sister's family at my Aunt & Uncle's house in North Carolina. I fully expect my 7 year old nephew to again beat us at croquet. He's a natural.
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It looks like some big life changes are ahead for Mr. Cheese and I starting next week. Perhaps it's fitting, since Sunday is our 1-year anniversary :) And no, I'm not pregnant. I promise details soon...

Disclaimer: DO NOT allow your three-year-old to play with lawn darts! Did parents have no sense in the 70's?

Laurie's Hungarian Tanya

I was delighted to meet Laurie a few months ago (through Etsy), who told mentioned her "small peasant kitchen" in the cottage her family was restoring in Hungary. She sent me a link to her website, which included several posts about the farm/homestead that her husband's family owns, and the adjacent land that Laurie and her husband Lali purchased last summer.
"One of our favorite places to be in Hungary is the Tanya in Szatymaz - near Szeged (the city where Lali's parents and sisters live). A Tanya is a small Hungarian farm/homestead, which Lali's family has always called this little weekend home in a tongue in cheek way. Many Hungarians have a small house with land in the country, in addition to an apartment they may rent in the town where they work. They can relax on the weekends and get away from it all, and grow veggies and fruit for the table. The Tanya is also close to the train and bus stop, so you don't even really need a car to get to/from the city. The beautiful plants are all a testament to the hard work Lali's parents! We gorged on red and black currants, raspberries, blackberries, peaches, nectarines, sour and sweet cherries, fresh tomatoes and peppers, broccoli, zucchini, carrots...I can go on - I love this place so much."
Laurie and her husband purchased the land adjacent to the family Tanya. Laurie writes "I think we can start a commune with all the small buildings!... The main house should be restored by... summer [2010], and will be our home base when in Hungary. The walls are mud brick with stucco over it and a tile roof which is conspicuously missing at present."

One of the old outbuildings on Laurie and Lali's property was turned into a Kemence house - an old style mud plaster wood burning oven that is also sometimes used to warm a house. Their Kemence was built by an elderly artisan, who had learned the trade from his father.
"The first room has the opening to the oven - you first let the wood burn down to coals, and then push them to the back and put your bread in. There is a heavy metal door that fits tightly over the smaller hole inside the oven to seal the heat while you're baking. There is a ledge that will be covered with wood all around the side of the oven, where one can sit and warm up on a cool day. This room also has a small table and chairs. The oven gives off a nice, warm, radiant heat."

A local kitty adopted Laurie's family while they were there last summer.
This sounds like a wonderful way to live - family, friends, history, and the beautiful bounty that mother nature has to offer, if only we are willing to nurture it a little.
For more pics and history of the Tanya, visit Laurie's blog Tulipan Farm ("tulipan is 'tulip' in Hungarian, a symbol of love, friendship, and Hungary itself"). I can't wait to see pictures of the finished home later this summer. Thanks so much to Laurie for letting me share the story of her special place!

Snow!

I realize that to many of you, snow is no big deal. My area hasn't seen a significant snowfall in over 15 years, so the 4-5 inches that fell in my yard last Friday was not only unexpected (the forecast was for sleet and freezing rain), but a really big happening. Mr. Cheese and I spent the late afternoon and evening playing with the dogs, walking the neighborhood, building a snowman, and grilling hot dogs on the charcoal grill. We were like little kids who just didn't want to go inside. The pups were even more excited than we were.







When I get ambitious, I'll upload the video I shot of my neighbor skiing down our street.

Weekend at the Cabin

Our backpacking trip was rained out again, but we were really craving some time in the woods. For us, "the cabin" is more a state of mind than a specific place. It can be any cabin in the woods, although most often, as it was this weekend, we stay at Cumberland Mountain. We have our routine when we visit the area, which usually includes a trip to the cheese shop, Vintage Inc., and the Stonehaus Winery. We go for a hike or two, visit the Homestead Museum, sometimes play Scrabble, and my husband always sleeps too late while I enjoy some quiet time on the screened porch, drinking my coffee and reading. This weekend also included a frenzied though unfruitful search for Polaroid film, visiting lots of thrift and antique shops, and fried pies from the Homestead Apple Festival.

Sunday was a glorious perfect-weather day. This is the dam at Byrd Lake (the largest masonry structure ever built by the CCC, who completed the park construction in 1940). You drive across the dam to enter the cabin and recreation areas of the park.
Back side of the dam, viewing a huge volume of water rushing into Byrd Creek due to the heavy rain we've had.
A crazy Fu Manchu looking caterpillar.
Raised terrace adjacent to the restaurant. The terrace dates to the 1930's, although the original lodge and restaurant that once stood here were torn down (due to a fire perhaps?) and a new restaurant was built in the 70's.
Red berries and huge & unusual fungi (also attributed to the immense volume of rain lately). The decaying structure is the old bath house. I'm not sure what the park's plans are for this building, but aside from the stonework, all else is surely lost to the years of neglect.
Striking wildflower bloom. Too lazy to search my Tennessee Wildflowers book for this right now.
Byrd Lake. There used to be a beach to the right, but in the 70's or 80's the park built a giant swimming pool, so now lake swimming isn't allowed. At least the pool is hidden away in a corner.
Upturned mushroom cap holding a pool of water.
Rounded wall of the terrace, blue skies on Sunday (after 3 inches of rain on Saturday), a "rustic" 1930's cabin, Canadian Geese.
Sunday morning I enjoyed a bagel topped off with unbelievably fresh and decadent cream cheese, and far too many cups of coffee. I'm certain it is just because this is the dinnerware at the state parks cabins I visit, but I have such an affection for this Buffalo China pattern.

This afternoon I will be posting a bunch of pictures of the cabins in the 1940's and 1950's. Prepare yourself for some mind-blowing mid-century interiors.