Citrine Geode Closeup

Rock and Gemstone Hunting

After my first foray into Rock Hounding activities, I would have to say it will be more involved than I first expected. I thought I was going into it with little expectation only to see how much I had unconsciously built up around the experience. While it is interesting that we found quite a few small crystals lying around from previous dig spoil piles that were washed by the rain, the larger ones remained elusive while we tried to dig to find more. If we had been searching for a specific gemstone, it would have only increased the difficulty.

As it was searching for signs from quartz and mica veins was challenging since the soil around the areas that we were digging in had a very high clay content, making it harder to spot some of those markers. One thing that was poor planning on my part was not accounting for the heat and the hard labor of digging. If we had been searching for a specific gemstone, it would have only increased the difficulty.

Sluiceway At Emerald Hollow Mine

We did come back with some good finds and my daughter especially got a kick out of sluicing the dirt off of the stones. Some of the different rocks will be pictured below.

Gemstones from our trip

The Emerald Hollow Mine is definitely somewhere I would recommend for people to visit, with a wide variety of knowledgeable staff, frequent visitors, and a variety of creating your own adventure opportunities. How would anyone not get a kick out of digging around in the dirt for some precious gemstones and minerals?

Check out more of our Adventures!

Looking Glass Falls, NC

Life and All of its surprises

It has been some time since I have posted a new article or added to our social media activity, and with good reason, trying to keep up with all of this while at the same time also getting ready for the birth of our second child was a little too much and something had to give. Now, that life is settling back down and some of the craziness of the changes to routines and schedules is returning to normal, it is time to resume normal operations again.

Even though the activity online has been minimal, that does not mean that I have been idle, some of which I will detail later in this post. Look forward to getting back in the swing of generating more content that you all will enjoy.

ReMarkable Fun

Prior to all of the joy that came with the birth of our second daughter, I purchased a ReMarkable tablet. Just the fact that it is wholly focused on taking and storing written input, makes it an incredibly useful tool to have. I don’t have a need to carry around lots of notebooks and other physical media to keep track of my notes and thoughts and the option to do so is more of a novelty now.

Being a tech and gadget geek of sorts I did find that I wanted to get into the guts of the machine and see if there were any customizations that I could leverage to make it more conducive to my needs. This actually was surprisingly easy to accomplish, using some guides that I located online, links are shared below, I was able to do some very quick and simple template and aesthetics adjustments.

The trick that I discovered was that the changes needed to also be automated so that after an update to the device, any changes that I want to ensure are retained can be reapplied to the device.

After about a year of using the ReMarkable 2, I am very satisfied with it and am looking for more fun ways to keep integrating it into my personal productivity routines.

Crafting Art

Keeping our older daughter entertained while having to give so much attention to our newborn calls for creative output in almost all aspects, from creating and crafting meals, to activities that we can have her do on her own while we are otherwise occupied.

Rock Painting was an easy one to introduce, the harder challenge will be in managing the volume that she wants to produce.

@shr_cx via Twenty20
@dos_aves via Twenty20

Returning to the new normal…

Much has changed and with the titanic shifts that a second child brings to the family dynamic, we are adjusting in positive directions. We have already worked on getting out more and doing new things with the girls so that they can experience it all and help them to develop their own passions and interests.

Outdoor Activities have been a big part of the shift and trying to get back into hiking and other outdoor sports will be a large focus over the next few years. This was one of the first locations that we were able to visit, first impressions being so important, especially for kids. This was a great one in my opinion.

Looking Glass Falls, NC
Looking Glass Falls, Summer 2022, NC

Continuing the journey as we are adapting to all of the new changes is something that I am very interested in being in the moment for, and creating as many memories as we are able to.

Vintage Christmas Decorations

Advent Creative Challenge

Starting December 1st through the 24th, I am taking a personal challenge to do creative projects that align to the aspects of the Advent season, finding ways to express creativity and kindness during this Christmas season. I will be posting the progress and details via our instagram and twitter accounts and will publish any aspects that are part of this project here as well.

What are you doing this holiday season that benefits others? Toy drives, food donations, charitable contributions? How would you structure your own advent challenge during this unique time and situation?