On the Road Again

I want to thank you all for your suggestions on our plans to visit Ontario. Very helpful! We have actually been to Niagara several times, and have visited the Canadian side briefly, but I would like to see the falls again, and check out those gardens on the Canadian side. 

We just got home this evening as it got dark, after a weekend with our oldest son and his family on the other side of West Virginia. The drive used to take 5 hours, but due to some new road construction we can now do it in an hour less. 

It was a great time. Our daughter-in-law's family was there so it was quite a gathering! It was nice to see here mother and sisters again, as it's been quite a while since that has happened. So lots of good food, laughter, conversation,  then gifts!

One big Christmas tree!

Laden tables and counters, as these women are great cooks. There were about 30 people there, from 8 months to 84 years old.

Granddaughter Grace clowning it up with her Christmas tree hat.

Friendly deer this morning, investigating the scraps George put out for them. 

My son got a breadmaker for Christmas and has already made some delicious bread.

We looked through a box full of old German steins collected by my ex-husband's father. George thought i could sell them in my booths, but his son and daughter kept 5 of them and I am pretty sure other family members will want the rest. This one was my favorite. It's actually a deep, dusty blue in color.

We hated saying goodbye. Daughter-in-law Sandy was sick this morning, unfortunately,  so we did not get to see her again before leaving. Apparently she caught the norovirus that's going around in their area.  She was fine yesterday, but the virus struck hard during the night. Fingers crossed that we didn't bring it home with us.

The fog was fascinating up in those mountains!

(Along Route 48, there are many windmills.)

Looking down into the valley below Thomas, WV.

In the small town of Parsons, look at that fog hanging low against the hill.

On the way home I saw a post on Facebook Marketplace for a free stake-sided Radio Flyer wagon. Amazing! Really free? Yes, it was. The only problem was that it was an hour north of home, which meant adding 2 hours to our trip. But Larry was game,  so we took the twisty Route 14 through beautiful Wirt County, WV, to pick up the wagon. I made sure to take some barn photos for Tom!

Of course there were also other old buildings that caught my eye. I was shooting through the van windows, so please pardon the odd streaks and dots and such.

I think this is the old Beulah church below. That's the new one above.

An abandoned general store outside of Palestine,  WV.

This place made me happy! I have been fascinated by it for years, and one day stopped to ask about its history. What you see in the first photo is the building as it looks now. 

This is how it looked for many years.

It was fast falling into disrepair. I learned tgat once there had been quite a mansion across the road, and the owner of that home built this building as a dance hall for his many daughters, who all lived to dance! But it stood empty for many years. The mansion was torn down, but the stone gate posts were still there last time I checked. While this building lost a lot of its original character when it was restored, at least it is now occupied and loved again.

Another abandoned structure in Palestine, WV. This looks like it was a motel or rooming house. Back in its heyday Palestine was a busy oil and gas drilling location, but today I don't think there is even one business there.

We picked up the wagon from two of the nicest people, and I found out that the wife was a potter! So I had a quick look through some of her stock and bought a coffee cup for Larry,  and a WV ornament for our tree. 

And finally, home, just as the sun was setting. 

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Nice weekend

60°f, or 15.5°C this morning! 

Crazy December weather! This morning was cloudy after showers in the night. Then this:

What beauty! It was soon followed by rain and showers all day, but still ridiculously warm. Then around 5pm the wind began to howl, and is still blowing hard. Which makes me a little nervous after that tree fell a few weeks ago...but so far  so good. An outage was planned for tomorrow, but there are so many places without power this evening I am pretty sure the outage will be canceled. There will be a lot of repairs needed tomorrow. Right now our lights are still on, but that could easily change.

Oldest son and his wife and daughter made the 4 hour drive across the state to visit this weekend. They arrived in time for lunch Saturday, so I opened a couple jars of the tomato soup I canned last summer, and pulled out the leftover cheese ball, cranberry spread, crackers, fruit and so on from Christmas.  It made quite a feast. Then we ladies went to shop an after-Christmas sale at one of the malls where I have a booth. 

We all found something, of course. Sandy bought a truck! Well, not a real truck, but a pretty good-sized one that even has solar headlights, which she wants to put on her front porch. She can change the decor year-round, and at 40% off it really was a good deal.

We got home in time to pick up the guys and go out to dinner. It was a lovely evening with good food and conversation. Granddaughter Grace is 26, and so interesting to talk with. I do enjoy our grown-up grandkids, one of the perks of having children young-- you get to be around as they reach adulthood.

This morning I made breakfast with help from Sandy and Grace, and then we just sat around drinking tea and coffee and chatting. I sure hated to see them leave, but they had to go to a wake for a former minister's wife, so back on the road they went for the return trip.

The rest of the day? I have done not one thing, except to throw in a load of wash. Tomorrow, I suppose we will work at our booths, since the van is all loaded up. So I don't feel at all bad about resting today.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Apple Butter Day

30°f, about -1°C this morning, mostly overcast all day but warming up to 61°f. A few very light sprinkles.

What a weekend! Lots of family, all kinds of busy, and all kinds of apple butter made.

We started Saturday getting everything ready. Son Derek, his daughter Ashley and son Jared came to help get everything set up, which basically meant getting the big copper and brass kettle and stand cleaned and ready, the firepit set up, more firewood cut, etc. Afterwards we were joined for dinner by our oldest son George and his son Clayton, along with Derek's daughter Hannah, her boyfriend Max and her son. When asked if I preferred to cook for everyone or go out, you can guess my answer! I knew I had plenty of cooking ahead Sunday, so off we went to the Yacht Club--no yacht there but they do have a boat with a skeleton crew.

We were quite a crew too. Those Saturday night ribs are not to be missed at the Yacht Club, and we sure did them justice.

Clockwise from lower left: George, Derek, Larry, Jared, me, Ashley, Clayton, Max, Hannah and Ryland.

I was up early Sunday to cook pancakes and bacon for whoever showed up. The guys got the fire going at 9:30am, and the kettle was on and cooking by 10.

Blogger put my photos out of the order I selected,  but what's new.  First is George stirring early in the day. We used some metal to make a "blow George", as Larry calls it, as the breeze was a little strong at first. This kept the fire contained and kept the heat in.

The day turned as nice as we could have asked. Granddaughter Beth, who arrived with son Aaron, his wife Jaime and his two other kids James and Aaron, is taking a turn with the stirrer here. The pot must be stirred constantly or it will scorch.

I was working hard too, can you tell? I actually spent most of the day in the kitchen, getting the jars ready with granddaughter Michaela and making a BIG pot of spaghetti, etc for dinner. But I slipped out from time to time.

This was later in the day, about 3:30 or so, as we began jarring up.

Jaime and Beth hard at it.

Clayton's job was to tighten the lids after the jars were filled. Derek is down in front, using a contraption he made to fill the jars. It does a great job, keeping the tops of the jars very clean.

Son Aaron kept up the stirring as the pot emptied, because even though we covered the fire it was still pretty hot and the pot could still scorch.

Derek taking a short break. He really is the boss of this whole operation.

Clayton takes a stir.

Clayton recently finished his 6yr tour with the Navy, and now works in data center security in Northern Virginia.

Afterwards the evening was perfect for firepit time, and later still inside by the fireplace time. Granddaughter Hannah and her two little ones, granddaughter Haley and her partner Desiree all arrived for dinner and firepit--and really, it wasn't planned that way to miss the work. Really! Actually Hannah had to pick up her daughter, and Haley was suffering with her very bad ankle, which will havebto have surgery in January. It's an old injury but is causing very real issues now.

From left, Desiree, Michaela, and Beth. Desiree is full-time National Guard, and Beth is on the Navy.

Michaela and her brother James. She is a senior in forensic biology at WVU, he is an apprentice electrician.

I guess I missed getting photos of some of our crew, as some came and others left throughout the weekend. They came from as far away as Annapolis, MD, Denver, Colorado, and Los Angeles for this annual event. What a joy to have so many of them here! 

We ended up with 64 pints of apple butter. Everyone got plenty to take home, and there is still quite a lot put up in the cellar.  Now everything is cleaned up and put away, until we do it all again next year.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Visitors

23 this morning, clear as a bell. Warmed up to 32 but that was it. Colder expected tonight.

It certainly feels like winter. Friday it flurried all day; yesterday was sunny but so cold, about 37 for our high. Today...brrrrr. 

But weather didn't stop friends and family from visiting. Friday evening my oldest son George arrived for the coming week's hunting season. He stays over at his friend's hunting camp, but he was here for dinner Friday and yesterday, and breakfast today.

Yesterday our good friends from Sistersville drove down to visit. It was so nice to see them, as it has been several years since we last got together. The pandemic kind of intervened. We met them and our oldest son at the place where I have my newest booth for lunch---this place has a small cafe and serves a limited menu of good food. It's another new favorite place for us to stop when we're out. 

So I have been doing some cooking, since my third son also came over Saturday night for dinner. Friday night I was thankful to have some frozen ravioli and French bread, so I could simply heat some of my pasta sauce, bake the bread and cook the ravioli to add to the sauce, pull out a leftover salad and a pie from the freezer, and dinner was ready. I wasn't expecting my son so early, as he usually comes on the Saturday before season but he decided to come sooner. I was working at my booths in Ravenswood, and had to finish up so I didn't get home until almost 5. It worked out perfectly though.

Last night I got some venison from the freezer and 2 jars of vegetable soup, combined them all and added some spices and other things and made probably the best vegetable beef--well, venison--stew I have ever made. Thick and hearty, and served with bread and a salad it was a perfect meal for such a cold day.

This morning I was up early to make biscuits and gravy and fried eggs, an old country standard, for my son. I guess the last time I made this breakfast was last December when our granddaughter visited. Too full of carbs and calories for us old people, but a nice treat from time to time.

I'll be cooking dinner again tomorrow night, probably a pot of chili, and cornbread for the hunters. Hearty, spicy and warming. The weather should improve this week, so they won't be too miserable out there.

The last time the family all gathered for Thanksgiving, November 2018. It gets harder and harder to get everyone home at once as the grandkids grow up and scatter across the country. At this gathering, we had 27 people around the table.

I've been mentally planning Thanksgiving dinner too. I think I can prepare it almost entirely from the freezer, pantry and cellar, which is really nice. Venison roast with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, corn casserole,--I think my lettuce is still making it--Waldorf salad, cranberry sauce, maybe beets, green beans perhaps, and apple, cherry and pumpkin pies. I have frozen rolls to fix too, and will buy things to make crudites. And of course I have to make eggnog, a family favorite. I think we will have plenty.

How are your Thanksgiving plans coming? Do you cook, go out, or just not worry about it? This year there will be 8 of us for dinner, so no big crowd, but still fun.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.

Covid Journal, Day 283: Blessings of Family

23 and clear this morning. We had about 4" of snow for Christmas Day, with temperatures never reaching 20 degrees. Down to the teens that night, then yesterday, even colder. Now it's up to about 49 and the sun is shining, melting the snow and ice.

What a beautiful, blessed holiday we had here. After months of not seeing family, we were finally able to be together for a short time. It's been wonderful, as you can imagine.

We picked up our youngest son, Tommy, at the airport in Charleston just as the rain changed to snow. 

The drive home was very snowy, with icy roads as the temperatures had dropped precipituously. But all was well, and we came in to light the fire and talk and talk and talk.

In the morning, we were greeted by such beauty.

Christmas morning we had a leisurely breakfast, then our 3rd son, Derek, arrived, and soon after came his 2 daughters, son and his grandson. We had a grand time talking and exchanging gifts, and of course, eating. All the cooking and baking I'd done during the week came into good use. The grandkids insisted on eggnog so we made a big batch. The fire burned merrily, the lights twinkled, and it was as nice a Christmas as I can remember.

After multiple attempts, a group photo. 

This brought back memories--wet boots, gloves, coats, snow melting...so much like when all my boys were young and we had a snowy day.

A few sad remained, as the eggnog get ready to be consumed, with or without brandy, depending on age and inclination.

Then yesterday, Boxing Day, my oldest son, his wife and daughter came. They drove all the way across snowy, icy West Virginia to spend about 6 hours with us before heading back across the mountains. So we had three of our four sons with us yesterday, along with several of their children,and of course little Ryland, our great-grandson/Derek's grandson. Granddaughter Grace brought a beautiful basket with a pineapple, cookies and cake she'd made, lovely rolls, and summer sausage. More good eating commenced. I got our the ham, venison pot roast, chili, potato and corn salads, pies and other leftovers from the day before. I was so busy visiting, I forgot to take photos, but Hannah took a few.

Going to see the chickens with his Uncle Jared and Great-Uncle Tommy. The little man sure had a good time.

Jared and Tommy, from opposite ends of the country, are more like brothers than uncle and nephew. Tommy lives in Miami, Jared in LA.

The house was full of laughter and chatter, a welcome, welcome sound after so many months of just Larry and me rattling around in here. As for safety, I believe we were fine. Many had already had the virus, and the others were either quarantined or had been tested just prior to Christmas. There's always a chance of the bug slipping in of course, but I felt comfortable. And with the doors swinging open every few minutes, we were certainly well-ventilated.

One of the funniest moments of the day was when Tommy went to open the sliding glass door and it fell inward--fortunately our strong son caught it before it fell completely. Apparently ice had built up in the track, forcing the door off the track and it just fell. We got it working somewhat, and this morning, when it had warmed to 33 outside, we took the door off and Larry completed the repair, so all is well again. Tommy said, "Oh well, I've pulled my refrigerator door off...twice." Did I mention he's very strong?

Today we're quieter. Resting, doing a little cleaning, more talking with Tommy, some laundry and some ebay packing have been the excitement today. Tomorrow we take Tommy to the airport very early, so the rest of the day will be kind of a letdown, I suppose.

But boy, what a good time we've had.

Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.