posted by Jonathan on 06/20/08
Today is June 20th and it is West Virginia’s 145th birthday. We are thankful that we are free mountaineers. West Virginia is in the heart of the Appalachian Highlands. It is a very beautiful place to live and is nick named the Mountain State. West Virginia entered the union on June 20, 1863 as the 35th state. The state capital of West Virginia is Charleston which is the largest city 
in the state. West Virginia ranks 41st in size with a total area of 24,231 sq mi. including 145 sq mi of inland water. The mountain state is 1,500 ft above sea level which makes it the highest state east of the Mississippi River. West Virginia has warm humid summers and cold humid winters and is a great place for sledding 
79 percent of West Virginia has hardwood forest with commercial species of oak, yellow poplar, maple, birch, beech, black walnut, hickory, and gum. But it also has 
softwoods including pines and hemlock firs. There are also flower trees such as wild crab apple, dogwood, hawthorn, and redbud. Among the many flowering bushes and plants are the rhododendron, which is the state flower, the laurel, blueberry, hepatica, wild geranium, and black-eyed Susan. There are deer, 
black bear, bears, cougars, beaver, otter, marten, raccoon, mink, skunks, opossums, squirrels, rabbit, bobcats, foxes, and ground hogs. And there was buffalo and elk in West Virginia at one time. Maybe that’s where the name of our hill, Buffalo Calf, came from. Birds and fish are also numerous.
We are very proud of all our inventions. One of the most widely used is the toothbrush. We know it was invented in West Virginia because if it had been invented anywhere else it would have been called a teethbrush
We also have lots of dragon milk in West Virginia. You see, because of the hills, the cows have two legs that are shorter than the other two. That’s how we get draggin’ milk 
West Virginia state symbols.
State Animal-Black Bear
State Bird- Cardinal 
State Butterfly-Monarch butterfly
State Colors-Old gold and blue
State Fish-Brook Trout
State Flower-Big Laurel 
(Rhododendron)
State Fruit-Apple
State Gem-Chalcedony
State Insect-Honeybee
State Reptile-
Timber rattlesnake
State Soil-Monongahela Silt Loam.
State song-”West Virginia Hills”
State Tree-Sugar Maple 
Our state motto is : Montani sempre libere – Mountaineers are always free. Just as our forefather’s dreamed and fought for political freedom, so there is a need in our day for spiritual and moral freedom from the bondage of sin.
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Sept 7: Grandma Brannon’s 80th Birthday: What a cause for a celebration! Saturday
afternoon the Staddon home was bustling with many diligent workers in preparation for the party. We were grateful for everyone who came to help decorate and prepare food. 
celebrate this momentous occasion. After opening gifts and cards she read 80 slips of paper on which were written notes of appreciation for things such as: a) The cheerful way she puts others first, b) 
Optimism towards life, and her delicious cheese cake. We all enjoyed the tasty dinner, snacks, cake and ice cream, and especially the time together before going our separate ways. 
I really like mushrooms so one day I decided to grow them. First we decided where to buy them. We bought them from 
