The Symons Farm

  

As a teenager I always thought Lava Hot Springs was a fun place to swim or soak in the hot pools, but until I married Del and visited the Symons family farm and the surrounding countryside, I didn't realize just how beautiful it was.

In July we had a Symons family reunion, and it was so fun that it is destined to become a yearly event! We played games, had water fights, did a little target shooting, and visited with relatives. Del's cousin Amanda planted rows of peas so the kids could pick all they wanted and eat them during the reunion.  Emma was great and picked bowl after bowl for us, while the adults ate bowl after bowl!  I'm amazed that some of us (Del!) didn't get sick, but they were delicious. There's nothing better than fresh peas!  

The kids had fun with the horses and we were very impressed with the fancy chicken coop Del's cousins recently built. It's like a 5 star chicken hotel!

While we were in Lava I decided that we should have family pictures taken at the farm this year, so we took a few pictures to show Becky what she could work with.

 Del's grandmother, Margaret Symons, loved hollyhocks and pansies and always had them planted on the side of her house.  They still come up every year and remind everyone of her.  

  This tiny log house is the original homestead where Del's grandfather, George Symons, was born.  It's amazing how small it was and how little our ancestors used to need!  Now we live in houses at least five times larger and still feel we need more space to store our junk!

Mug shots

   When Becky came to Lava with us the following week to take our family pictures, we wanted to take a picture in front of the sign for Symons Road but had to wait for a train to pass, so I got this fun shot while we waited. The real family pictures will probably debut in early December, just in time for Christmas cards!

My kids think it's pretty cool to have a street named after them!

Antiques Roadshow!

My family has loved Antiques Roadshow for as long as it has been on the air.  We love to guess the values before they state them and we're usually pretty close. My mom has arranged many estate sales (in which she often buys almost as much as she sells), and she has a good eye for antiques. 

 

When it was announced that there would be a show in Boise, we all entered the drawing for tickets and waited to hear that we had been chosen.  Weeks later my mom's name was picked!  She had two tickets to attend the event, but now the problem was who she would take.  Dad didn't want to go because of the crowds, and all 5 daughters were dying to have the other ticket!  Finally, they put our names in a hat and drew......my name!  Hurray for me!

The day of the event was pretty exciting!  It was fun watching everyone haul their junk through the parking lot with hopeful faces. 

Of course, my mother immediately made friends with the people in line with us!  That's just who she is, and it has always made my life more interesting.  The woman was from Canada and had brought a jade (?) statue.  We found out later that it wasn't really jade, but it was pretty.

As a consolation prize for Karen, who really wanted to go, I took her painting, which ended up being worth about $200.  It was awkward and a little heavy, and I sure wished I had brought my art deco ring instead! Our stuff wasn't worth much, but it was interesting.  Mom brought some linen bedsheets from the mid-1800s.  She had been told they were hand-loomed in Denmark from plants grown by the family who made them.  The expert verified that they were definitely hand-loomed and the rest of the story could very well be true, too.  They were worth $75-$100 each.

My only wish in going to Antiques Roadshow was to be able to see the Keno twins, and I did!  One of them walked past me on the way to the bathroom and bumped my shoulder!  I was so excited!  I have touched a Keno brother!  Not sure which one, though.

I entered to win a Subaru Forester, but they haven't called me, yet, so I'm guessing I didn't win.  Oh, well.  Going to Antiques Roadshow was a fabulous experience, and I can't wait to see it air on TV, even if I don't have a priceless antique that I found in my attic!