This afternoon Leo and I went for a Sunday afternoon ride with his brother Jim and his wife. In the South, that's a common thing to do after your Sunday lunch. We were riding down the road when we spotted this.
We had to do a quick turnaround so we could get an up-close look at this.
Isn't this just the most creative thing! The center is a round hay bale (in case some of you don't know.) But I had to get closer to see how they'd created the eyes.
They are just buckets that plants come in that have been cut and spray painted!
The legs were made from some sort of irrigation pipe. The display was at a nursery, so I guess they had access to plenty of these supplies. But someone there is very, very clever, in my opinion.
That's my sister-in-law Jean taking a picture on the other side of the spider. Then we noticed a sign that said they had a corn maze. So we drove down the road until we got to a pumpkin patch.
There's a pumpkin hiding behind the leaves!
And another one. Don't you just love this time of year? I decided that we must have our very own pumpkin patch next year.
We continued on our afternoon drive until we spotted this.
This is a cotton field. The cotton is ready for harvesting.
My grandparents were big cotton farmers. When I was a little girl, I picked cotton to earn some extra money to spend at the local fair. That was back in the day when cotton was still harvested by hand. Now they have machines that do all the work.
I just had to pick a boll of this cotton today. I marveled at its softness in my hand and thought about what nature gives us. I was also flooded with memories of my grandparents.
This was a pleasurable way to spend our afternoon. Do you go for Sunday rides?
Andrea
Cotton...now there's a plant I have never seen but sure would love to be able to touch one!
Jean Windham
Sure did enjoy the Halloween Art but loved the ride down memory lane. The cotton really reminded me of my grandfather. He was a big farmer and we helped him every summer to pick cotton. Thanks Jane
Terri
oh my goodness..... SWEET memories.... My parents used to take us on Sunday afternoon rides all over the place after Church and Lunch!!!! There is just something about cotton fields... peaceful and so beautiful to me!!!!! Terri
Ginger
Sooooo cute. Love it!! Thanks for letting us ride along. Hugs,
Nayana
wow..your sunday ride sure was beautiful....
Pat
Hi Jane!
That spider is so clever. We had a display locally last year-- around Christmas people are so creative with hay bales, aren't they?
I love the pictures of the cotton growing and ready to harvest. I miss seeing cotton growing around here. When I was a kid and even as recently as the last 20 years there used to be cotton growing near here and we would drive past it on the way to the lake. The cotton gins are all turned into other businesses (one is a restaurant) and the cotton fields are full of houses... it is sad.
I don't remember what part of the country you're in, but Honey and I used to take sunday drives ...back when the kids were little, and everyone took good naps on the way home! (we're in Texas)
...enjoyed the photos and the memories, Pat
Andrea @Oasis Accents
Thanks for sharing your pics! Being a northern girl I've never seen cotton. And what a creative spider, very cool. I followed you back =)
Becky Dodson
I have fond memories of Sunday drives--they used to always end with ice cream! Now they are replaced with Sunday walks, which are probably better for us anyway.
Gina
I love going on Sunday drives! The spider is very clever.
Thanks for sharing the cotton pictures. Being from NY, I've never seen a cotton field. I'm fascinated!
Michele Smith
Cute spider! I love pumpkin patches...I can't wait until we can have our own. There are several cotton fields around us, we stopped last year and picked some because I'd never seen or touched it. It was really neat, so soft!
Debi
Love your cottage. Yes, we in the south go for lots of rides. I'm pretty sure I will see a similar spider monster out here in the country very soon. There are so many hay fields and large rolls that someone always gets very creative. I read on one of your posts you liked the Vietri Italian pottery. They have an outlet close by and usually have a huge sale every year. The lines are long and the sales fantastic. I'm ready for fall too. Loved the pumpkin pictures. Debi
dawn
The spider is adorable and not scary like so many Halloween things. I have never seen cotton in real life. I love the photos. Makes me want to reach out and touch it.
Barbara F.
When I was a child my parents always went on a drive after Sunday dinner. I used to love it. We would stop at some pretty neat places, and of course, autumn was my favorite time to drive around. What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. I think that spider is so cute. Very ingenious idea. xo,
Richard Cottrell
i love the hay monster, maybe it makes all the crop circles that are such a mystery. I also love cotton in the fields, all that white. Thanks for letting me ride along. Richard from My Old Historic House,
Pat@Back Porch Musings
Neat Sunday drive, Jane. We do the same thing in Missouri. Just a short one today, but enjoyable.