Boone Hall Plantation

After going over all the plantations in the Charleston area, and there are many, we settled on the Boone Hall Plantation. It was a bit out of the way, but it also gave us a good reason to ride over the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge. I was iffy on paying so much to see any plantation. It seemed like a waste of money to pay $15 to walk around the outside of a house and another $10 to go inside. That's why I was so happy to find this one! The $20 admission covers so much. You get access to the grounds, avenue of oaks, a house tour, a coach tour of the agricultural side of plantation, and much more that can be found on their website.

The charm just riding up to house is amazing. The Avenue of Oaks is beautiful and just a breathtaking drive. Some of the trees that line the drive are around 300 years old. 

The house is the third to be built on the property. It was built in 1936 partially with recovered materials from the previous farm houses and with bricks made on site. It is a Georgian style home an the interior is decorated in the antebellum style (and air conditioned). The tour was very informative and enjoyable. 

The front walk to the house is lined on either side by beautiful gardens, the shaded areas of which are more than welcome on an extremely hot summer day. The flowers were absolutely gorgeous.

The row of slave quarters in the front of the home has a great self guided tour. Each cabin presents a different chapter in African-American history. It focuses on their daily lives, work, and struggles in a time period ranging from the beginning of slavery in the U.S. to the present day. 

The coach tour takes you back through the agricultural part of the plantation. It is a working plantation, which is very unique. They have been continually growing crops on the property for over 330 years! The coach tour is a must. Our guide was awesome and I learned so much. Plus, sitting on the coach for a bit, out of the sun, with a nice breeze, was great. 

We almost missed the Cotton Dock.  Our tour guide on the coach pointed it out. It has been rebuilt, but it has a great view of the tidal marsh.

We closed out our day here and it was a great way to end it, overlooking such a huge part of the Lowcountry.

Walter Jones Historical Park

Our plans for the day were cancelled, so we decided to check out a local park instead. I'm so glad we did. The Walter Jones Historic Park is a little bit of Southern charm situated on the St, John's River. The paths were nicely shaded and the park was very clean. 

My husband and I love to visit historic sites and I imagine we will visit this one often. There is a restored farmhouse, barn, outbuildings, and sawmill. Growing up in rural Alabama, I had a lot of this in my hometown and it was great to have something so reminiscent of home here in Jacksonville. 

There are beautiful trees filled with Spanish moss and a boardwalk that leads out to the river. There is considerable growth between the observation decks and the river, but it is enjoyable all the same. I could have spent a lot of time there, had there not been a storm rolling in. 

As for the history of the park:

"Major William Webb purchased 31.2 acres on the St. Johns River 

in Mandarin in 1873. He built a home, barn and 1,000-foot dock 

extending into the St. Johns River. Walter Jones, proprietor of the 

Mandarin Store and Post Office, moved his family to the homestead 

in the early 1900s and his family members occupied the property 

until 1992. The City of Jacksonville acquired 10 acres of Major 

Webb’s original homestead from the descendants of Walter Jones 

in 1994 for the purpose of creating the city’s first historical park."

 City of Jacksonville

I loved this park and I can't wait to visit again! 

Writing: Hot Summer Rain

     There has always been something about a summer rain that inspires me.

     The sun peeks out from behind dense clouds and hits the roof, steam rises up into the pine trees. Then there is the heat. It seems like a very different type of heat, a heat that can really permeate you. Thunder rumbles in the distance and, with the sun shining here, it seems very surreal. I watch the reflection from a puddle dance on the porch ceiling.

     The air is sticky and heavy. It smells like rain, like wet dirt. It is almost a stifling thing to sit in, but it is oddly enjoyable. I feel like most people would be miserable in this, but I could sit here for hours breathing it in. The earthy feeling of it gets into your core. If you will just take a moment to really take in the beauty of it, you can feel it.

     Try to take in all the little details around you: the drip drop of the water running off the roof, the dark line on the cement slowly receding, the leaves on the bushes sagging from their shower, the birds out looking for newly unearthed food, and the little drops of water clinging to the foliage.

   With my eyes focused on these little beads of water, a thought occurs to me. The rain drops on the grass and leaves, are being pulled in two directions, both vitally important. One being toward the ground to nourish, the other toward the sky to replenish. No matter which way it goes, whether it is pulled into the cool earth or dispersed into the summer swelter, it is destined for extraordinary things. It is an immense thought, that a tiny drop of water can be so powerful. If it can invoke such change, what can I do?

Big Talbot Island

It was a cloudy, lazy day and absolutely time to get out of the house. I had been talking to my husband about scoping out good picnic spots. I've become obsessed with the idea of picnicking. I mean totally obsessed. I'm sure that will take up its own post soon enough. 

I knew the weather wasn't picnic worthy, so we just set out to find a new place. New places shouldn't be hard to come by since we have only lived here for a year...but they are. I don't know if I'm just picky or if there are genuinely no places around here to go to. 

Big Talbot Island, a Florida State Park, my dream come true. This park is situated off of AIA. We pulled into the parking lot and immediately noticed the beautiful trees that cover the park. There is a path that you have to hike to get to the shoreline. The whole experience reads as much more exotic than just a normal trip to the beach. I love it!

 I would suggest going at low tide. In our inexperience, we arrive precisely and unknowingly at high tide. There was hardly any beach to speak of, but there is plenty of beautiful driftwood. I should probably call them drift trees. They are a protected feature of the park. I am told you can see more of them at low tide and I can't wait to go back and explore further. 

Admittedly, it is a bit of a hike to make with a baby, but she had a blast! I mean, how perfect is this? 

We had a beautiful little trip on am otherwise gloomy Monday. It is things like this that make me the happiest. Finding a gorgeous place in the middle of nowhere and spending time with my loves.

My Recipes

 I won't even begin to claim that I have original ideas when it comes to food. I am not chef or a foodie. I'm a housewife. I browse Pinterest (Follow me here!) for ideas just like everyone else.

I often find some recipe with an ingredient list a mile long and alter it to fit what I have on hand or what is cheapest. That is what I will be posting here. My versions of recipes I have collected all over the place. Whenever it is possible,  I will give credit where credit is due. 

It's hard to find time to cook. I have a baby that constantly wants her mama. Her mama is tired. She needs a shower more than a meal. It seems like fast food is a great option, right? We fell into that habit right after she was born and our waistlines have paid for it. I'm trying my best to get us back on track, to go to the farmer's market every Sunday to pick up the produce for the week, to avoid the inner isles at the grocery store, to just be healthier. 

We are in a transitional period. We still have boxes of processed foods that I'm trying to use up.  I don't want to be wasteful and throw them out. It's hard to do, very hard. I don't even know if we will succeed, but that won't stop me from trying! 

I hope you all enjoy my food. I know that I have had people asking for recipes for awhile and this seemed like the most efficient way to get them out there. 

-Gloria