Carrie and Matthew Come to Visit

Saturday October 25 and Sunday October 26, 2014
Greenfield Mountain Farm

 

 

SATURDAY

Carrie can’t come to be with us for Thanksgiving.  She doesn’t have enough vacation days to do that and to spend the week at Christmas time that she has booked.  And of course the airfare over Thanksgiving to anywhere given the short window is ridiculous.   So she’s asked if we could just have Thanksgiving in October.  This is fine with us.  Actually Thanksgiving, I think, is supposed to be a harvest festival of thanksgiving for the bounty of food grown during the season now ending.  There is really not much still growing or being harvested, at least not here in late November.  So I actually like this idea. 

 

 

They arrive on Saturday morning.  It’s about a 3.5 hour drive for them from the outer edges of DC to the farm.  We spend the late morning and early afternoon getting the regular universal pig out on the table. 

It is, of course, way too much food but then that seems to have become the point in this country.  And besides the left overs are wonderful.  We have ham, mashed potatoes, oyster dressing, cranberry sauce, french green beans with almonds, brussel spouts, broccoli, candied pineapple sweet potatoes and gravy. 

It’s all served on one of my Aunt Carrie’s hand embroidered linen table clothes.  They are priceless heirlooms.  The next picture is actually a better one and unfortunately the dishes cover the detailed embroidery on most of the cloth. 

Carrie says Matthew needs a haircut.  I agree.  I also like him better with a clean shave.  He is a very handsome man if you can see his face without all the hair.

 

And as is his habit, David has more servings than anyone.  So when I’ve finished, I take another family picture.  Here he is the only one with food on his plate.  Don’t you just love it!  As you can see, we do not “dress” for dinner.

 

 

After that of course we need to go our for a walk to try to jostle some of that food around.  We head out to the barn and then down by one of Carrie’s childhood play spots, picnic rock, which you can’t even see anymore for the leaves and the tree that has fallen over it.

 

 

We walk along the stream then down and beyond the pond.  The view up to the house is lovely.

 

The woods is mature and open with most of the leaves fallen on this late October day.  There has been no timber harvesting in this woods for nearly 40 years other than what we have taken for firewood.

 

 

There is a really wonderful ground cedar covering throughout this part of the woods.  It’s being mostly hidden by the leaves but will show up on top of them in the spring.

 

 

 

Like mother like daughter, Carrie likes pictures of the treetops.

 

 

 

We make our way to the oldest tree on the property a maple too tall to get a picture of which takes 3 of us to get our arms around it.   This tree has gotten many many hugs over the years.

 

 

We come up in the just mowed field where I take some pictures of the western facing side of the house.  The bay window is the living room and the second story porch overlook the sunset over the blue ridge is the master bedroom.   I look down and see this most interesting mushroom.  Anyone have an idea what it is?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well we’ve walked off some of the dinner so it’s time for pie.  But first Matthew decides he wants a cold beer.  I guess he put it in the ice box while we were gone and here’s what he got.  Looks like a beer float doesn’t it?  I can’t imagine beer with pie but what do I know?

 

 

This is the first year we haven’t had pumpkin pie and whipped cream for “thanksgiving”.  Matthew voted for apple from the granny smith in the barnyard but he was outvoted three to one in favor of home grown cherry.

In every picture but this one someone was either chewing, had their mouth full or looked half asleep.  This was Carrie’s reaction to my continuing to take pictures of the pie being eaten.

 

 

 

We finish the night playing games including Scattergories.  I don’t remember who won but I do know Matthew thought some of Carrie’s answers were a bit flakey and shouldn’t count.  He thought I was being too easy on her.  But I don’t play to win, I just play to play and even if she is in her 30’s, she’s still my baby so what the heck.  She can have the points!

 

 

SUNDAY

 

It’s another beautiful day and we again spend it eating and hiking. Carrie and Matthew have to go home today. I’m sorry their visit has been so short.

Carrie always wants a big “farm” breakfast when she comes home so that’s the first order. Everyone gets in the act although everyone can’t get in the kitchen end at the same time.

Carrie does the biscuits. She’s in training. Does she make any at home for herself and Matthew? I don’t think so. Just a little ribbing sweetheart.

 

 

 

 

Matthew is in charge of the bacon and takes over for me on the potatoes when David is making the omelets and there are too many cooks at the stove.

 

 

Another meal to walk off. LOL

 

 

 

This time we walk down to our lower field which requires we go to the very end of the farm lane. I think that’s about a mile away to the bottom.

 

 

 

 

We walk down to the end of the field and into the woods.  This field is very secluded.  We once had a fire pit and a labyrinth here.   An organization I founded called The Blue Ridge Earth Alliance held retreats at the farm for several years.

 

 

 

 

Such a beautiful day in the woods.

 

 

Good grief look at the size of these three poison ivy vines, growing up this poor tree especially this elephant trunk in the front.   Glad Al Lueck isn’t anywhere around.  They say he can get it by looking at it.

 

 

Eventually we cut over to the farm lane and head back. As we approach the farm house I take some pictures from this angle of the front of the house and its porch which has the swing.

 

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The porch is a lovely place to sit and just be. There is a beautiful view out the side to the west and the the dogwoods lining the lane have turned red

 

 

 

 

 

Too soon it is time for them to pack up and leave.They have to get back and ready for work tomorrow.  It’s a long drive back and the Northern Virginia traffic at any hour is problematic.

It’s been wonderful having them and all too short.  We won’t see Matthew again until the wedding in May although Carrie is coming for a week at Christmas time. Sure wish they could come more often and stay longer. But they are in the busy lives part of life and we understand.