Country Cruisin'

I'd like to reminisce for a few minutes. Country cruisin', as folks from the country like to call it, is something me and my family use to do together all the time. When there was nothing to do we'd all pile in the car, fill up on gas (back when gas was still cheap), and travel way out into the rural areas of the tri-state area where we lived. We lived in an area where we were right on the border of two other states so anytime we wanted, it only took a few minutes to cross the state lines so we'd go country cruising all over the place. My dad would spend about 2-3 hours driving around and we'd all look at the pretty scenery.

Along the way you'd see several farmers that had little tents set up on the property next to the road or they'd have signs in their driveway that said "Pull on in, we've got fresh veggies!". So, we'd almost always stop and buy some local grown fruits and veggies. If we were out during the fall, we'd stop and buy some of that dried up corn in those pretty fall colors and my mom would take me to the craft store later that week and buy me some supplies so I could make us a fall door wreath or some kind of decoration out of the corn. We'd also stop and buy a bushel of hay, a few pumpkins, and some corn stalks to set up Halloween decorations for upcoming trick or treat.

Along the way, it doesn't matter what state we were in or what roads we headed out we'd always eventually come to a small town somewhere and almost every town had a little ice cream and burger shop usually called The Dairy Boy, The Dairy Delight, or something similar so, we'd stop and get us an ice cream. That was the part of our country cruise trips that we all looked forward to, the ice cream. My parents took me out on trips like that my whole life until I moved out on my own and even then, my dad would call me every so often and ask me if I wanted to come over and go out on a little trip with him, my mom, and my sister. I also have two brothers but, they're much older than me and my sister and they were just getting ready to graduate from high school by the time I was born (I'm the youngest) so, they didn't live with my parents while me and my sister were growing up.

Last night, me and hubby decided to take a little country cruise of our own. My husband and I have known each other since I was in 8th grade and he was in 9th so, you could say we kind of grew up together because spent our entire teen years together and then got married after high school. We are a rare couple because we've stayed together since high school and that doesn't happen much these days. Anyway, when we were teens we'd go cruising all the time. Me, my hubby, and a few of our friends would travel the back roads and sometimes it was just me and him so, this has kind of been a tradition for me since I was born, and since it has been a few years since me and hubby did this, we stopped at a convenience store and got us some snacks and drinks and went riding around. It's a good thing too because where we live now, we've only been here for about 3 years so we needed to familiarize ourselves with the back roads and short cuts around here.

The above photos are examples of what our local country scenery looked like. Did you and your family ever do something like this? If so, share your experiences in the comments section. I was raised as a country girl and lived in small rural towns my whole life up until a few years ago when I decided to do what I've been wanting to do all along, become a city girl. I did, and I love it here. As beautiful as the country was, I wouldn't ever live there again, at least not by choice. Although, when I was 4, 5, and 6 years old we did live in Florida in a city near Orlando while my dad was going to college to finish getting his degree but, I've lived in the country about 97% of my life.

Handmade Earrings: How to Choose the Right Pair

Looking for some beautiful hand crafted earrings at an affordable price? Well, handmade earrings are available almost everywhere and if you get online and do a search for "handmade earrings" you might find yourself overwhelmed at the amount of pairs that are available, the number of shops that are offering them (thousands upon thousands), and the different price ranges they are going for. If you are in a hurry you and you need to find a gift for your sister or the perfect pair of earrings to match your formal dress, you could always just do a quick search and pick the first pair that appeals to you and is in your price range but, how do you know which seller is the right one to choose from?

My handmade earrings are unique because I am not using the same designs and styles that everyone else seems to be using right now plus, my prices are reasonable. A pair of earrings from my store averages $8.45 to $12.45 each while many other crafters would be selling their earrings for $18.00 to $60.00 each! I do have a few expensive pairs available because I like to include a wide price range so that everyone can afford to buy at least one pair but, even for those I charge nowhere near $40 each. My earrings are affordable but I can assure you that I do not cut out quality to make that possible. I only use the best possible materials and name brand beads and crystals.

So, how am I able to offer you a lower price for my creations without skimping on quality? It's simple. When I purchase the supplies I use to make my earrings I only purchase in bulk lots or from bargain stores. This enables me to find the best quality name brand materials for the lowest price possible because yes, people do sell some really nice things for great prices at bargain and variety stores if you know where to look and, if I am saving money on supplies I am able to pass those savings onto you because since I didn't have to pay full price for my supplies, I don't have to charge you full prices on my jewelry to make a profit. So it's a win-win for both of us!

One more reason to choose www.themysteriousrose.ecrater.com for your handmade earrings, necklaces, bracelets, and rings is that I have 100% positive feedback in all of my stores and I offer friendly customer service and fast 2-3 day shipping.