Bits of Beauty in the Valley

There's something so special about driving in this gorgeous Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.  I never get tired of it and every hill you top has a new view of surprises.  Yes, town is 8 miles away but that means 8 miles worth of wonderful views, plus there are several different routes to get there. 

This graveyard is at the edge of our family's farm.  There are some graves there from the 1700's!

There was a church on this site (you can see the remaining steps) that was vacant since before my childhood.  It was dismantled and moved to another location, where I hope it is being used. 

Our neighbors always have this lovely flower garden in front of their healthy vegetable garden.  Horses are always graceful and pleasant to my eye.

Even the farmhouses are charming.

Our humble home.  We've stuck to the plan to have landscaping near the house and treat the rest of the 2 acres as a field.  We only mow a few times each summer instead of the weekly mowing that a lawn requires.  Of course, with the drought this summer, we wouldn't have had to mow that often.  I have been planting flowers on the bank by the road and have added flowers among the shrubs near the house.

What a feeling of "roots" to be able to see the home (among the trees and is now rented out) where I grew up (my father was born in that house, too) from our house.  I can also see the location of the house where my Granddaddy May and his father grew up.

I even find beauty in a hornets' nest in our field!  We have three and I was ready to get rid of them -- pronto!  Ed researched and found out they're good, especially at eating spiders so we're steering clear of that area for this year.

Seeing deer is always a thrill.  Last week, cousin Jim Bowman saw two large does grazing among a herd of cows.  Smart deer!

Seeing beauty in one's surroundings gives each day a special joy.  Hope you will recognize and enjoy the bits of beauty in your world today!