This is a post I started back before Christmas but never had the time to finish. I'll share it now and you can all have fond memories of your near distant fall holidays.
Okay, so did I tell you that Virginia is my new favorite state? Besides the one I live in and the one I hail from? For Thanksgiving we drove to Massachusetts . Yes, you read that correctly. WE DROVE!! We went to visit Paw, my husband's grandfather and also my husband's uncle. Hubby, kiddo, and I packed up our car and on a Monday afternoon we left our home in central AL. We enjoyed a stop at Starbucks where I tried out the peppermint holiday drink. I don't drink coffee, so when I do try it out, it has to be fancified. I tried it again on the way home and I tried the carmel one as well on day 2 of our trip. We had a lovely trip until we hit Penn. and then later the New Jersey turnpike. These made hwy 280 look like child's play!! But we did see the night-time New York City skyline, something I have never seen before!!
We spent the night in Virginia. Where our near perfect room left us rested and well for our 2nd day of travels. I am easily amused by small things. The free cookie from the front counter and the rubber ducky left in our bathroom made my day (and kiddo's also). The scenery was wonderful. I kept saying, "these hills remind me of parts of Germany". Which explains why you find so many German influences in these parts. Mix in some Scottish highlander ancestry and I'm sure there are some fiery characters in the parts we passed through. I didn't sleep much, I was too busy being plastered to the window. It was a perfect beautiful sunny fall day!
In Massachusetts we stayed at a nursing home. No really, it was an assisted living home. We actually stayed in the room reserved for guests so it was much like a hotel but we had a good time making a joke out of the situation. We had a wonderful time. Paw of course, had to take us around and introduce us to the staff and residents. Hubby is his only grandson and kiddo is of course his only great grandchild. Not sure who had more fun, Paw or us. We arrived on a Tuesday and left on a Friday night. We ate well, enjoyed our wonderful Thanksgiving week, and our special time with Paw. Needless to say we were very thankful!!
We left in the snow flurries and drove all night and by Saturday, we were passing through Virginia again. Once again Virginia was our place of refuge and the Cracker Barrel did not disappoint. We were weary, and probably stinky, but our bellies were full and a nap through Knoxville came very easily for both kiddo and me.
We were almost home when we had a flat tire. We found ourselves in a church parking lot just off the interstate. We had to laugh a little. It was cold, but not snowing nor was it raining. We finally pulled in our driveway exactly 24hours from the time we left the nursing home in Mass. I went to bed that night thankful for a safe, full, and rich journey to the North. I couldn't help but think about, if only for a second, those wonderful buttermilk biscuits with bacon at the Cracker Barrel, in Virginia .......Sweet Virginia.
The pictures include "a walk with Paw", "a walk through the apple orchard", and "hotel fun". Those are situps we are doing with daddy, by the way, in case you couldn't tell.:)
