You’ve probably heard plenty about the 7 natural wonders of the world, but my home state of Georgia has its own 7 natural wonders.  I was born and raised in the state of Georgia.  I raised my children in the state of Georgia and I look forward to watching my future grandchildren grow up in the state of Georgia.  I have loved living here.  It truly is a beautiful state and a great place to raise a family.  Georgia is filled with places to go, things to do, and beautiful things to see.  Here are Georgia's 7 natural wonders.

Georgia's 7 Natural Wonders

Stone Mountain:  Stone Mountain is probably the most popular of Georgia’s 7 natural wonders.  Stone Mountain is the largest most exposed mass of granite in the world.  About 4 million people visit the mountain every year.  Visitors to Stone Mountain park enjoy a variety of attractions including the confederate memorial carving, a summit skyride, a nightly laser show, campgrounds, golf, and so much more.  For a complete guide to Stone Mountain and to plan your trip, visit the Stone Mountain Park website here.

Warm Springs:  The town of Warm Springs, Georgia is home to Georgia’s natural warm springs.  The water flows down Pine Mountain from nearly 90 degree springs. President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited the springs to treat his paralysis due to Polio.  In fact, he had a home in Warm Springs called The Little White House.  For more information about Georgia’s Warm Springs, visit the Warm Springs website here.

Amicalola Falls:  Amicalola Falls is absolutely beautiful.  Visitors  enjoy a mountain top lodge, hiking trails including part of the Appalachian Trail, and they will visit the tallest cascading water fall in the southeast.  To learn more about Amicalola Falls, visit the Georgia State Parks website here.

Tallulah Gorge:  I recently hiked Tallulah Gorge.  It wasn’t easy but it was worth it.  The Tallulah Gorge canyon is 2 miles long and 1000 feet deep.  Visitors can hike trails, view overlooks, and more.  Visit the Georgia State Parks website here to learn more about Tallulah Gorge.

Radium Springs:  Radium Springs is Georgia’s largest natural spring located on the east side of the Flint River in Albany.  The spring pours out 70,000 gallons of fresh water per minute.  The spot was best known for swimming and fishing until the 20th century discovery that the springs contained traces of radium.  In addition to the springs glowing blue color, visitors also enjoy cottages, riding and walking trails, and golf courses.  To learn more about Radium Springs, visit the Radium Springs Gardens site here.

The Okefenokee Swamp:  The Okefenokee Swamp is one of the “largest natural, unspoiled freshwater and black water wilderness swamps in North America.” (Okefenokee.com)  It covers about 7oo square miles.  The word “Okefenokee” means “land of trembling Earth” in the Creek Indian language.  The swamp offers paddle and motor boat trails, cabins, camping, and guided tours.  To learn more about The Okefenokee Swamp, visit the Okefenokee Swamp website here.

Providence Canyon:  Providence Canyon is also known as Georgia’s “Little Grand Canyon.”  Poor farming practices in the 1800s resulted in massive gullies as deep as 150 feet.  Visitors enjoy beautiful views in unique natural colors, hiking trails, and cottages.  For more information about Providence Canyon, visit the Georgia State Parks website here.

Read about more great places to visit in the state of Georgia here.

Georgia's 7 Natural Wonders

I don't usually like pork chops, but after testing this recipe, I'll be making them a lot more. This  recipe for bacon ranch pork chops in gravy sauce turned out much better than I expected.  I wanted to make a lot so that I would have enough left over to put in the freezer for another day.  This time, I baked the pork chops in the oven but I think I'll adjust the recipe a little bit and try it in my slow cooker next.  I'll let you know how that turns out. 

Image Credit:  Abundant Family Living

Bacon Ranch Pork Chops in Gravy Sauce

 

These are the ingredients I used:

12 Thinly Sliced Boneless Pork Chops
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Bacon Bits (You can use about 8 strips of real bacon, but I didn't have any today.)
1 Beef Bouillon Cube
1 Cup Boiling Water
1 Tablespoon Onion Powder (You can chop up one real onion, but again, I didn't have one tonight.)
3 Tablespoons Garlic Powder (You can use 2 minced cloves of garlic if you wish.)
1 Tablespoon Thyme
2 Tablespoons Light Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Corn Starch
1/4 Cup Ranch Salad Dressing

Directions:

Spray a 9 X 13  baking dish with Pam Cooking Spray.  Then, set it aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, brown sugar, and salad dressing.  Blend together with a whisk or fork.

Boil one cup of water.  Dissolve the beef bouillon cube in the boiling water.  Now you have beef broth.  Allow the broth to cool.  Then, pour it in the mixture above.

Add the corn starch.  The gravy sauce will thicken up.

Add the pork chops and bacon bits into the mixture.  Mix it all up well.

Place the coated pork chops in the 9 X 13 baking dish.  Pour the excess gravy sauce mixture over the pork chops.

Bake at 350 degrees until the pork chops are cooked to your taste.  It doesn't take long to cook the thinly sliced boneless ones that I used.  I baked mine for about 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

You might also like this chicken enchilada recipe.

Chicken Enchiladas 

Need a dessert idea? Try this chocolate cobbler. It won't disappoint!

Chocolate Cobbler Recipe

Coffee Filter Flower Planter

 Coffee Filter Flower Planter Craft for Kids

Finally, it's March 1st!  We have spent months doing fall and winter crafts and activities.  Here in Georgia, we get to enjoy all four seasons.  Sometimes we get to experience all four seasons in one day!  I'm not particularly fond of winter, but I still enjoy the season due to celebrating Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and all the fun that goes along with those holidays.  Then, by the time March rolls around, I'm ready for Spring.  After a long winter nap, the world wakes up again.  Trees start budding and flowers start growing.  One of my favorite first signs of spring is seeing the yellow daffodils bloom.  Shortly after they bloom, the leaves start growing on the trees and the next thing I know, other flowers are blooming and the environment around me is colorful again.  This is a great time for kids to make a coffee filter flower planter craft. 

Coffee Filter Flower Planter

I love doing spring crafts and activities with my preschoolers.  This planter is made from paper plates, tissue paper, and paints or crayons. 

We started out with two paper plates.  You don't necessarily need the thicker, sturdier ones.  We used the cheapest ones I could find.

 I cut one paper plate in half.  Then my preschooler painted the front side of the whole plate.

When he was finished with the whole plate, he painted the back side of the half plate.

We used coffee filters for the flowers.  I asked my little guy to paint each coffee filter a different color.  We used water-color paints.  Water-color paints are great for this activity because the colors bleed easily through the filters. 

The plates and filters will need to dry.  Here are our finished plates and colorful springtime flowers.

After the coffee filter flowers have dried, grab the center with one hand and use your other hand to fold them up like the photo above.

You can opt to glue the flowers to the inside of the paper plate, but we decided to use tape.  The tape actually holds the flowers on better and there is no waiting for the glue to dry.  We taped the bottom of the flowers to the center area of the plate.

Then, we stapled the half plate onto the whole plate like the photo above to create the planter.

We added a yarn hook to the back.  Again, we just used tape.

We finished with a pretty springtime wall planter filled with pretty spring flowers!

This flower craft is good for any time during the spring or summer, but it is especially nice in May for a Mother's Day gift.