Sunday, December 14, 2008
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Milestone for Freddie
We recently attended an event to celebrate a milestone birthday (50) for one of our favorite WDVX DJ's.........Freddie Smith. Greenbrier provided the entertainment. There was a "roast" and lots of bluegrass friends and family were present. Freddie's birthday is actually the 28th (I think) so here's another "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" going his way.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Bluegrass Church Services
Kodak United Methodist Church (where we attend) is offering a service using the talents of various bluegrass bands on the 3rd Sunday of each month at the 9am service. The sermom is the same as in the 11am service. The difference is that all of the music is provided by visiting bluegrass musicians. Dress is casual and everyone is welcome. We have had Paul Williams & the Victory Trio, Greenbrier with Jimbo Whaley, Shadow Ridge, and the group this morning included 2 of our own members.....Joe Soward and Roy Swann. The congregation really enjoys it and we would love to have you join us. KUMC is located near the intersection of Hwy. 66 and Hwy.139 just about 1 1/2-2 miles from I-40. For more information you can call the church at 865-933-5996.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Some Of Our Favorite Colors
Took a short drive this afternoon and couldn't resist taking a few photos of the beautiful leaves. Enjoy them!
World Wide Bluegrass
This is an interesting site for all you bluegrass lovers. It has lots of links to bluegrass sites. Take a listen to Tim Cahall's show on Tuesdays from 3-6pm.
M
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Lady In Red
These photos are compliments of Roy & Trenta Swann (Roy Swann Photography) who were witnesses to the surprise visit by the "Lady In Red". No one..........not even the band........knew this was coming. She came out of the audience, approached the band and then went onto the stage to "audition". I just happened to be in the right place at the right time to catch this. She was chomping gum, toting a "chicken purse" wearing a neon red wig, and also wearing red patent leather high heeled boots when she approached Russell Moore who was totally taken by surprise. Then she whipped out a "set list" for her supposed audition. I don't know at what exact moment they realized what was going on, but it was just too funny for words. You had to be there! I think the audience had a blast that night. There was a lot of impromptu entertainment from various bands. It was great. I hope you enjoy these photos. Thanks, Rhonda. M
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Campground's Open
Now would be a great time for you all to make a trip to Kodak while the leaves are changing. Our campground is open year round and we have been having a few folks come and visit with us. There are lots of things to do in Sevier County this time of year. And we also have the pavilion for picking and grinning! When the weather gets just right, we have been known to build a pretty good campfire so we can all roast marshmallows, etc. Why not make plans to come up and camp with us before the weather gets too cold? We'd like to see our festival buddies as well as new faces, too. It's not crowded like festival time here on the farm and we have several full hook-ups and pull-through sites for your convenience. Give us a call if you want to come or just drop by.........whatever! Some of our campers come for UT football weekends. This is a perfect place for pre-ballgame tailgating, etc. and it's only about a 25 min. drive to town from here. You can camp here and avoid the traffic coming out of Sevierville.
M
M
Update
We've had a lot going on and haven't had time to do much bluegrassing due to circumstances beyond our control. This was our first year to miss IBMA, too. The day after my last blog post found us at the hospital with my mother who has been in the hospital for nearly a month. She is now home where we can keep a close eye on her and she is doing therapy as she recovers. I'd like to thank those of you who offered prayers during this time. Needless to say, it has been quite a month and we are hoping to make some progress on getting the lineup together.
Meanwhile..........fall has come to East TN and the leaves are getting prettier with each new day. And the weather is crisp and cool.........just right!
By the way, if anyone has any photos of the visit by the Lady in Red, I'd like to see them. I was unable to take any as I was on stage and also hanging out just out of sight off stage. You can send them to dumplingrass@comcast.net. Thanks.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
2008 Season Wrapped Up
Well, we made it through! It was great. The weather was beautiful and the crowd was the biggest ever. Thanks so much for supporting Dumplin Valley and for being such a good attentive audience. The bands commented about the great crowd and how they appreciated the support they got from the audience. These musicians love what they do and the feedback they get from you is very important to them (and to us).
We are grateful for the fact that you all left the farm pretty much the way you found it. And we'd like to thank you for all the compliments on the clean facilities.
And let's not forget the army of volunteers! If it weren't for them, there would be no festival. There are a lot of behind the scene jobs that have to be done and our volunteers came through with flying colors.
Your experience here begins with the gate and those people worked tirelessly to get you processed as quickly as possible.
I know a lot of you thought Bobby was Joe and that Joe was Bobby. That's okay! They both zip around and get a lot done. Maybe we should get them a shirt with their name on it! ha
Thanks to everyone who helped us have a successful festival............volunteers, sponsors, vendors, and last but not least............all you festivarians!
It was great to see all of our "old festivarians" as well as all the newbies. And it was great having several of our family members attending this year - including my 96 year old Aunt.
We would like to especially thank Don Clark for the beautiful bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace up in the woods. Don, you will never know how much that meant to us.
The "Lady in Red" was a special addition to the show on Saturday night. And let's not forget the mosquito who started a chain of events that led to some hilarious unexpected shenanigans on stage! (you had to be there to understand!)
Yes, 2008 will go down as one of the most enjoyable shows ever. Thank You Thank You Thank You for coming. And if you weren't here..................we hope you'll come in 2009 to join us for some good wholesome entertainment.
We are grateful for the fact that you all left the farm pretty much the way you found it. And we'd like to thank you for all the compliments on the clean facilities.
And let's not forget the army of volunteers! If it weren't for them, there would be no festival. There are a lot of behind the scene jobs that have to be done and our volunteers came through with flying colors.
Your experience here begins with the gate and those people worked tirelessly to get you processed as quickly as possible.
I know a lot of you thought Bobby was Joe and that Joe was Bobby. That's okay! They both zip around and get a lot done. Maybe we should get them a shirt with their name on it! ha
Thanks to everyone who helped us have a successful festival............volunteers, sponsors, vendors, and last but not least............all you festivarians!
It was great to see all of our "old festivarians" as well as all the newbies. And it was great having several of our family members attending this year - including my 96 year old Aunt.
We would like to especially thank Don Clark for the beautiful bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace up in the woods. Don, you will never know how much that meant to us.
The "Lady in Red" was a special addition to the show on Saturday night. And let's not forget the mosquito who started a chain of events that led to some hilarious unexpected shenanigans on stage! (you had to be there to understand!)
Yes, 2008 will go down as one of the most enjoyable shows ever. Thank You Thank You Thank You for coming. And if you weren't here..................we hope you'll come in 2009 to join us for some good wholesome entertainment.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Great Day!
Thursday started off with a dose of beautiful weather, well-behaved school kids on a bluegrass field trip, a great crowd and wonderful music. If the rest of the weekend is anything like yesterday, I can't wait!
The shows yesterday were phenomenal. There were a lot of festivarians as well as folks coming to a bluegrass event for the first time. And the "first timers" who took the time to run me down were very happy with their decision to try us out this year.
The food is great, too. We have some great vendors. Last night I was lucky enough to be out late when one vendor came back to put some more briskets in to smoke........ooooooooooooooooooweeeeeeeeeeee.........does that ever smell good!!!!?!
And I've already had breakfast from one of them this morning. And, let's not forget the chocolate smoothies, fried green tomatoes, best kettle corn you ever had and home made pork rinds!!! I bet somebody's mouth is watering.
I didn't do much picture taking yesterday but Roy did so I will post those later. I did a little video but not sure how to upload it yet. We'll try to get some photos on here tonight.
Come on out and join us.
M
The shows yesterday were phenomenal. There were a lot of festivarians as well as folks coming to a bluegrass event for the first time. And the "first timers" who took the time to run me down were very happy with their decision to try us out this year.
The food is great, too. We have some great vendors. Last night I was lucky enough to be out late when one vendor came back to put some more briskets in to smoke........ooooooooooooooooooweeeeeeeeeeee.........does that ever smell good!!!!?!
And I've already had breakfast from one of them this morning. And, let's not forget the chocolate smoothies, fried green tomatoes, best kettle corn you ever had and home made pork rinds!!! I bet somebody's mouth is watering.
I didn't do much picture taking yesterday but Roy did so I will post those later. I did a little video but not sure how to upload it yet. We'll try to get some photos on here tonight.
Come on out and join us.
M
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Festival Time In Tennessee!
Well, it looks like we're ready for bluegrass!
We've got campers galore on the farm, had our potluck
supper tonight, been pickin' and grinnin' and even did
a little hair cuttin'. Yep, you can come to Dumplin
Valley and let your hair down OR you can come and
get your ears lowered..........your choice!
The weather is absolutely great. It actually feels
like Fall. We are anticipating a wonderful weekend
that began with a scrumptious meal tonight and will
continue in the morning with some guests from Northview
Middle School, Jones Cove Middle School and New Center
Middle School.
Excitement is in the air in Dumplin Valley! Come out and
see for yourself. If you live close by and have never
ventured out our way, now is the time to see for yourself
how great a bluegrass festival can be. With all the great
bands lined up and the beautiful weather, you are sure to
enjoy yourself. You might even make a few new friends....
this bluegrass crowd is full of friendly folks.
See you soon!
M
We've got campers galore on the farm, had our potluck
supper tonight, been pickin' and grinnin' and even did
a little hair cuttin'. Yep, you can come to Dumplin
Valley and let your hair down OR you can come and
get your ears lowered..........your choice!
The weather is absolutely great. It actually feels
like Fall. We are anticipating a wonderful weekend
that began with a scrumptious meal tonight and will
continue in the morning with some guests from Northview
Middle School, Jones Cove Middle School and New Center
Middle School.
Excitement is in the air in Dumplin Valley! Come out and
see for yourself. If you live close by and have never
ventured out our way, now is the time to see for yourself
how great a bluegrass festival can be. With all the great
bands lined up and the beautiful weather, you are sure to
enjoy yourself. You might even make a few new friends....
this bluegrass crowd is full of friendly folks.
See you soon!
M
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Countdown to Dumplin
As you can see, Joe is working hard to get the festival started. It was really hot with extra high humidity yesterday while he was working. So he used the resources on hand to make working conditions a bit more bearable.
Several festivarians are already on site. That usually means a lot of visiting, maybe a little card-playing, some jamming, lots of laughter, groups going out to eat and probably some homemade ice cream tonight.
Joe's favorite is my Butterfinger ice cream and since tomorrow is his birthday (kids, are you reading this.....don't forget Dad's b'day! ha) I guess I'll make a batch of it.
The weather forecast looks great for this week with temps cooling off some. Come on out and join us for some great music.
M
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Camping
We still have primitive/dry camping available for next week. If you are interested in camping, please give us a call ASAP.
Got some much needed rain last night.....just enough to make the grass green up a little.
By the way, how do you like the look of our new dumplinvalleybluegrass.com website?
Got some much needed rain last night.....just enough to make the grass green up a little.
By the way, how do you like the look of our new dumplinvalleybluegrass.com website?
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Update
Hello to all the festivarians planning to attend the 9th Annual Dumplin Valley Bluegrass Festival. Although it is 2 weeks until "kickoff", we already have the company of a few of our campers. So, it looks like there's going to be some picking and jamming going on as well as a whole lot of preparation for a great show. Joe and I always enjoy visiting with the early birds who come to stay with us prior to the event. During the festival we don't have the time to visit the way we'd like to.
Don't forget about the Wednesday night potluck on the 17th. I know some of you are already planning what you will bring. That is always a fun night.
Here is a "post-festival" note............Paul Williams and the Victory Trio will be performing all the music for the service on Sunday morning, 9/21, at Kodak United Methodist Church (5 min. from here). That is our church and we want to invite everyone to attend that day for the 9am service. We have "bluegrass church" on the 3rd Sunday each month at the 9am service. Dress is casual so you don't have to worry about dressing up. And keep in mind that there is no set check-out time that day so you will have plenty of time to attend the service and then come back and pack up.
Also, the vendor who served breakfast in June will be back and will be there again on Sunday morning so you won't have to cook while you get your rv's ready to roll.
We are looking forward to this year's show and seeing all of our old friends as well as meeting new ones. See you soon!
M
Don't forget about the Wednesday night potluck on the 17th. I know some of you are already planning what you will bring. That is always a fun night.
Here is a "post-festival" note............Paul Williams and the Victory Trio will be performing all the music for the service on Sunday morning, 9/21, at Kodak United Methodist Church (5 min. from here). That is our church and we want to invite everyone to attend that day for the 9am service. We have "bluegrass church" on the 3rd Sunday each month at the 9am service. Dress is casual so you don't have to worry about dressing up. And keep in mind that there is no set check-out time that day so you will have plenty of time to attend the service and then come back and pack up.
Also, the vendor who served breakfast in June will be back and will be there again on Sunday morning so you won't have to cook while you get your rv's ready to roll.
We are looking forward to this year's show and seeing all of our old friends as well as meeting new ones. See you soon!
M
Monday, August 18, 2008
Vendors
If anyone has a suggestion for vendors (not food.........we've taken care of that already), please let us know or have the vendor contact us. We have a couple of spots left for vendors with non-music related items............maybe you know someone who makes soy candles, jewelry, etc. They can contact us at 865-397-7942.
Waiting List
We now have a waiting list for campsites. So............those of you who have not paid the balance of your camping and or purchased your weekend passes, need to do so ASAP, please.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Summertime..................
Although it's been a busy summer here, we've found a little time for some fun.
Here are a few photos of a few things we've been up to.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Deadline Reminder
Hello to all you bluegrass festivarians! The deadline for advance ticket sales and the balance of your camping is coming up on August 15.
September will be upon us soon and with the crisp fall air comes the excitement of meeting here on the farm for some great music! Those of you who missed JuneFest will be surprised and hopefully pleased with the new pavilion. It got plenty of use for jams during the days leading up to the shows. I hear that many of you will be arriving several days prior to the shows. And you know what that means..........lots of jammin' and visitin' ! Don't forget about the potluck supper on Wednesday at 6pm. We will be furnishing the beans and cornbread as we did in June. Yum!! They were good. Jack's swamp cabbage was good, too. Actually, everything was good. I'm always amazed at the creative cooking you guys do in your campers! Joe is wondering why I don't cook like that at home...............
We are re-working our website and it should be up and running with the new layout in a couple of weeks thanks to my son-in-law. I want to thank my son, Wes, for all the hard work he has put into it, too. His business has become more demanding on his time and he has very little time to deal with Mom's bluegrass site. I couldn't have done it without him.......Thanks!
Check back soon for the new site.
M
September will be upon us soon and with the crisp fall air comes the excitement of meeting here on the farm for some great music! Those of you who missed JuneFest will be surprised and hopefully pleased with the new pavilion. It got plenty of use for jams during the days leading up to the shows. I hear that many of you will be arriving several days prior to the shows. And you know what that means..........lots of jammin' and visitin' ! Don't forget about the potluck supper on Wednesday at 6pm. We will be furnishing the beans and cornbread as we did in June. Yum!! They were good. Jack's swamp cabbage was good, too. Actually, everything was good. I'm always amazed at the creative cooking you guys do in your campers! Joe is wondering why I don't cook like that at home...............
We are re-working our website and it should be up and running with the new layout in a couple of weeks thanks to my son-in-law. I want to thank my son, Wes, for all the hard work he has put into it, too. His business has become more demanding on his time and he has very little time to deal with Mom's bluegrass site. I couldn't have done it without him.......Thanks!
Check back soon for the new site.
M
Monday, July 7, 2008
September Schedule
THURSDAY:
1pm John Reischman & The Jaybirds
2pm Barry Scott & Second Wind
3pm Bluegrass Brothers
4pm Dailey & Vincent
5-6 Supper Break
6pm Barry Scott & Second Wind
7pm John Reischman & The Jaybirds
8pm Bluegrass Brothers
9pm Dailey & Vincent
FRIDAY:
12pm Dan Paisley & Southern Grass
1pm Balsam Range
2pm Jimbo Whaley & Greenbrier
3pm Bradley Walker
4pm The Grascals
5-6 Supper Break
6pm Balsam Range
7pm Dan Paisley & Southern Grass
8pm Jimbo Whaley & Greenbrier
9pm Bradley Walker
10pm The Grascals
SATURDAY:
12pm Big Country Bluegrass
1pm Larry Stephenson Band
2pm James King Band
3pm IIIrd Tyme Out
4pm Rhonda Vincent & The Rage
5-6 Supper Break
6pm Big Country Bluegrass
7pm Larry Stephenson Band
8pm James King Band
9pm IIIrd Tyme Out
10pm Rhonda Vincent & The Rage
1pm John Reischman & The Jaybirds
2pm Barry Scott & Second Wind
3pm Bluegrass Brothers
4pm Dailey & Vincent
5-6 Supper Break
6pm Barry Scott & Second Wind
7pm John Reischman & The Jaybirds
8pm Bluegrass Brothers
9pm Dailey & Vincent
FRIDAY:
12pm Dan Paisley & Southern Grass
1pm Balsam Range
2pm Jimbo Whaley & Greenbrier
3pm Bradley Walker
4pm The Grascals
5-6 Supper Break
6pm Balsam Range
7pm Dan Paisley & Southern Grass
8pm Jimbo Whaley & Greenbrier
9pm Bradley Walker
10pm The Grascals
SATURDAY:
12pm Big Country Bluegrass
1pm Larry Stephenson Band
2pm James King Band
3pm IIIrd Tyme Out
4pm Rhonda Vincent & The Rage
5-6 Supper Break
6pm Big Country Bluegrass
7pm Larry Stephenson Band
8pm James King Band
9pm IIIrd Tyme Out
10pm Rhonda Vincent & The Rage
Monday, June 16, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Silo Pigeon Perch
People always ask what we do with the silos...............well, here it is. They are just big birdhouses. The pigeons like to perch atop them.
Pre-Festival Activities
The bluegrass festival is more than just music. As you can see there are lots of things going on this week. There are ballgames, bubblewrap dancing, jammin', lots of visiting and a whole lot of work. Come on and join us.
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