fran littlestone's Page

I'm Fran, a happily marred 53 year old mother of 7; who enjoys the simple pleasures of living in the rural western North Carolina mountains... I feel quite blessed to have a bold spring, a crackling wood stove to huddle around when it's cold and a patch of good rich earth in which to sow and grow our garden. I don't know about your personal situation, but for us, That's Security!!! Though my family roots go way back here in western North Carolina, my mother chose for economic reasons to move to the East coast of Virginia during the 40s; where I was born and raised, and she and my dad lived out the rest of their lives. From my earliest childhood memories I always felt as though I was coming home when we would visit my mothers family in these old mountains. With the passing of so many years the extended family ties I once had to these mountains have thinned considerably... leaving only a scattering of second and third cousins I barely know. Even still, it was these mountains that called me home. Ten years ago in 99 my husband and I chose to move our family hear; not for economic opportunity, but for quality of life reasons. Honestly, though we have chosen to lead a simple life and it really doesn't take much for us to be happy; with the closing of the sawmill were my husband worked and so many other plant shut-downs, scale-downs and layoffs, it sure would be nice to have some economic opportunity and financial security...
How can we best preserve the wonderful rural and small town lifestyle we desire, and manage to survive in these trying economic times? I love to grow a garden! And in the early 80's I very much enjoyed managing several greenhouses at a ground covers nursery in Virginia... I would so love to start my own plant nursery... But what could I possibly grow that people wouldn't be able to get at Wal-Mart cheaper? Lets Brainstorm!

And hay, what a pleasant surprise it is to see our Murphy back up on the web! I had only just begun to visit the sight when I got the disappointing message from John saying that the sight was closing down... Way to go John, it's wonderful to see your back! Yours Truly, At Home In These Here Mountains, Fran