Mom's birthday

Mom reading the birthday card we got her.

We went to Mom's house to celebrate her birthday with her. We found her baking some of her famous cookies that she makes every year. At this time of year she is a cookie making machine. Snow balls, fruit cake cookies, man oatmeal cookies (cause mostly men like them and women know she added to much baking powder), thumb print cookies, sugar cookies all kinds, all varieties and a new one almost every year.  I can't ever get the exact recipes for all her cookies but I did get the one for the snow balls. They are called pecan sandies when she makes them any other time of the year.

Snow balls being made.

While they were baking I slipped out back and picked some muscadine vine to make a wreath with. Mom's yard would be over taken with them if we didn't cut them back every now and then. You just wind them up and when they dry they are just like an expensive grape vine wreath you'd buy at the craft store.



Wreath I made.

Husband had some fun with the wreath. He said it's the closest he'll ever get to being an angel.

My angel.
 

Mom had planted a sweet potato vine that also grew like crazy. So we volunteered to dig them up for her. She had vines everywhere.


There were sweet potatoes all over.

We suddenly started seeing large bull ants while digging. So the dig for the potatoes ended and the search for their nest started. We found them inside of an old stump. We cracked it in half and sadly killed them all. They are known for eating houses. They can get into any kind of crease and have been found in peoples walls.


Dead bull ants at Mom's house.

Mom was fighting these guys for some time. I hope we found their true nest and they wont be giving her a problem any more.

Preferred ant killer of Gramme's everywhere.

She did end up with a nice little crop of potatoes but I know there were more down there with that giant vine she had.

Sweet potatoes

One last picture from Mom's... she is trying to propagate purple pepper plants. So far no luck on the peppers but she has a few plants growing with no flowers. And only the one with flowers and a couple of black purple peppers but they are small. Very pretty ornamental pepper.

Mom's unusual variety of purple pepper.