Hickory, North Carolina

On Wednesday September 29th we found our way to Hickory, North Carolina on our Land That We Love Tour, to the home we rented for our family to stay in during the wedding festivities for our niece and her love. We had a short drive this day, only 50 miles. We stopped at a Wal-Mart to gas up at only $2.83 a gallon in Lenoir. We were able to check in early to our VRBO and got a load of wash started before we ventured out to do some grocery shopping for our stay here. We had lists from each of our kids for what to buy to stock the refrigerator with. We enjoyed lunch at a Mexican restaurant and then went back to our VRBO and waited for our kids to arrive from their drive after flying into Raleigh Durham Airport. Fun family days ahead for all of us.

It was wonderful when they pulled into the driveway later on this day and we were all together for 4 days.

The house we rented was on Lake Hickory.

On our way out of Boone, N. C. we stopped at Stick Boy Bakery and bought some bread and goodies to enjoy at our VRBO in Hickory N.C. This was a great bakery and if you are ever in Boone look it up.

We also stopped in at the mall in Boone and shopped at TJ Maxx where I found a different top for the wedding we would be attending. I packed something for cooler weather and the weather was nice and warm so I found something more appropriate.

This was the 9th day on the road for us with sunshine and blue skies again.

The Advent Season is upon us. Today I’m busy in the kitchen and this evening I’ll be helping with decorating our church for the Christmas season. We have a few of our own Christmas decorations up but not the whole enchilada!

Have you started decorating?

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence ~ Hymn

 

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

Rank on rank the host of Heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away.

At His feet the six wingèd seraph,
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia
Alleluia, Lord Most High!

Leftovers TDay 2021

Thank you to my sister Lana who sent me some more photos she took on Thanksgiving Day that I’m adding here as leftovers. She and Steve left our place for Idaho and enjoyed some better internet reception and sent me these.

Where’s the Turkey Platter?

Cornstarch or Flour?

“Can I sit with Baba?”

Thank you Lana for capturing these moments. Enjoy CDA Steve and Lana!

On Black Friday Lana and I shopped some small businesses in downtown Colville and supported them well.

Today I’m meeting up with our Colville crew in Chewelah for Small Business Saturday.

A Relaxed Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving we tried something new with the turkey leaving it in a 200 degree oven after a 350 degree start. This gave us the freedom to venture out on Thanksgiving before our dinner time of 5pmish. The Rotary trail still had a lot of snow on it.

We marveled at the tracks we knew were made by our DIL Jamie as she pushed our grands for a 5k Turkey run that morning in their Bob stroller.

This is Bob the stroller.

Our 2021 Thanksgiving Table setting. My sister Lana folded the napkins to resemble a turkey.

A very blurry selfie to document who was at our table this year. We missed our Coast kids and our DIL Laura’s skills at taking selfies and photos in general…sigh. You were missed, Josh, Laura, Andrew and Katie. Looking forward to seeing you in person at Christmas!

We trust you all had a good Thanksgiving day.

This morning I’ve already packed away all our Thanksgiving decor and we are pulling down the Christmas bins! A Thanksgiving elf was in the kitchen this morning (early) and emptied the dishwasher of our Thanksgiving plates, etc., and that elf washed the remaining greasy platters and roasting pan and put everything away. Woohoo!

Hope you all have a good Black Friday.

Happy Thanksgiving 2021

 

May God bless you with a peaceful gathering enjoying good food, friends and family! Count your blessings, name them one by one!!

Psalm 28:7 ~

The LORD is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.
My heart leaps for joy
and I will give thanks to him in song.

and in Russian…

Господь–крепость моя и щит мой; на Него уповало сердце мое, и Он помог мне, и возрадовалось сердце мое; и я прославлю Его песнью моею.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone…Gobble Gobble!

Homer Laughlin, The First Thanksgiving.

First Snow Fall 2021

On Friday morning November 19th we woke up to 6 inches of snow on the ground. Our first significant snowfall of the season.

Snow is such a delight to our little grands. We received these photos via text.

Any snow in your neck of the woods yet?

Today I’ll be shopping for the things we need for our Thanksgiving meal and other ‘company’ meals. I’ll be off the radar the next few days while our company is here. Hope all of you in the U.S. of A. have a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! 

Psalm 118:1

Miles Apart…

…but close in our hearts.

The month of November and part of October our families were split apart by work responsibilities and other circumstances. Auntie Lolo flew over to be with Jamie while their hubbies were in Arizona on separate assignments. Our grands love it when Auntie Lolo comes to help their mommy.

Everyone made the most of their circumstances.

It’s always better together.

We love it when Auntie Lolo comes to visit, too.

While our sons were in Arizona in different parts of the state they managed to drive the distance and get together for some much needed R & R together.

“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.”

Psalm 133

These two with their work responsibilities keeping us apart are with us in spirit. Here they are at a marathon Lord of the Rings viewing party playing the part with their hair and attire.

Did I ever mention our daughter knows and writes Elvish. It’s a skill that will take her far in life be fun to pull out at the right times in life like a Lord of the Rings party or at the grave of J.R.R. Tolkien in 2004…Katie would not let us leave Oxford till we found Tolkien’s grave. This was no small feat! Here we are at Wolvercote Cemetery in North Oxford at the graveside where he and his wife are buried. His son is buried here, also.  Katie left a note in Elvish, (yes, she learned to write and speak Tolkien’s Elvish).

EDITH MARY TOLKIEN
LUTHIEN
1889 – 1971
JOHN RONALD
REUEL TOLKIEN
BEREN
1892 – 1973

This Thanksgiving our Westside kids will stay on the westside. Our eastside kids will be at our house for Thanksgiving along with my sister and her hubby and Jamie’s mom, also known as Granny to our Grands. Nine at the table giving thanks for all that we have been given and all the love we share.

O Blessed Hour ~ Hymn

O Blessed Hour

O blessèd hour when first I knew
Jesus, my dear Savior,
When to the cross my soul He drew,
Jesus, my dear Savior;
’Twas there I found sweet peace and rest,
A trembling joy within my breast,
A precious Friend, a heav’nly Guest,
Jesus, my dear Savior.

He rolled the burden from my soul,
Jesus, my dear Savior,
He made my wounded spirit whole,
Jesus, my dear Savior;
He banished all my grief and pain,
He washed away my guilty stain;
He made my heart rejoice again,
Jesus, my dear Savior.

What can I do for this kind Friend,
Jesus, my dear Savior?
I’ll love Him, serve Him to the end,
Jesus, my dear Savior;
And when at last my work is o’er,
And I shall reach the heav’nly shore,
I’ll sing His praises evermore,
Jesus, my dear Savior.

Words: Charles T. Groenendyke, 1898.

A Three State Drive

On Tuesday September 28th our Land That We Love Tour was shorter in mileage but longer in time because of the smaller twisty roads we would travel. Interstate 75 south to East 25 through the Cumberland Gap on to Interstate 81 northeast towards Bristol connecting to highway 321 into Boone, North Carolina. We traveled approximately 259 miles on this day. Kentucky to Tennessee and across the border into North Carolina.

We stopped in Corbin, Kentucky to have breakfast at Cracker Barrel Store #8. Dear had Biscuits and gravy with a side egg and I had the Two egg biscuit breakfast with their famous hashbrowns. Total for breakfast before tip was $17.98.

After passing through the Cumberland Gap tunnel we came across Lincoln Memorial University. We chose not to go into the National Park because it was foggy and visibility would not be great.

On Highway 25 East/South we pulled into this overlook.

Unfortunately we really couldn’t see much at this overlook because the valley was covered by fog…sigh.

The sign above shows what we were supposed to see.

After the morning fog the sun broke through for another beautiful day for travel.

We kept seeing a lot of these strange looking vines/ivy and we were curious as to what it could be. We researched later and that will be for another post.

Are you ready?

We were entertained along the mountain roads with how many Baptist churches we drove by. We aren’t exaggerating to say that we saw one about every half mile!

We made it to our destination for the night in the College Town of Boone. Hotels were pricier here and we paid $161.00 for the night with a total of 181.53 with taxes. It was a nothing special Courtyard by Marriott.

King Street in Boone.

Appalachian State University enrolls over 20,000 students. Lots of young people walking around this town!

We ate Linner at Macado’s on W. King Street. Fish and Chips, Black Bean Quesadilla and two drinks for a total of $32.87 before tip. After we ate we did a little shopping along King St. We stopped into the Mast General Store but didn’t end up buying anything. We heard about a great bakery called Stick Boy Bakery that we planned on stopping at on our way out of town on Wednesday September 29th.

Back to the present. We had about 6 inches of snow overnight so it’s a white winter wonderland for now.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Historic Boone Tavern

When we were done at the Ark Encounter on Monday September 27th we filled up our tank with gas for just under $49.00. The receipt was torn so I’m not sure the price per gallon. This tank would last us until we got into North Carolina. We drove south in Kentucky for 80 miles on Interstate 75 to the college town of Berea.  We had a room booked at the Historic Boone Tavern. You can read about the Historic Boone Tavern located on the campus of Berea College in Berea, Kentucky. Our room charge was $119 and with taxes the total was $130.90.

It was nice to stray from national chain hotels to this beauty on our Land That We Love Tour.

We were able to check in earlier than we expected and went out to do a little shopping at an Artisan Village called Old Town Artist Village. The college campus was busy with students walking to and from classes. Berea is a college that does not charge tuition but the students given admission to the college agree to work 10 hours a week for the college in different positions around the campus.

This was a nice shop featuring woodcrafts called The Cabin of Old Town.

We had an early dinner reservation at the restaurant in the hotel.

I tried some deep fried deviled eggs that were delicious.

Dear tried the Shrimp and Grits. (When in the South…) Besides the deviled eggs I had a cup of soup, a salad, and we shared Steamed Mussels. We had a drink each. We shared Bread Pudding for dessert. Our bill came to $98.93 before tip.

Tuesday morning we would be checking out early and heading to Boone, North Carolina for our Tuesday night stay in the Appalachians. Are you catching the theme in this part of our country. In Kentucky we were on the edge of the Daniel Boone National Forest.