Magnificent Brunch

We spent much of the day eating! After a light breakfast, we drove to Asheville and went to the Grove Park Inn for Sunday brunch. Almost every breakfast food you could imagine was there, as well as lunch fare. Lise always starts with rare roast beef, and I get Eggs Benedict. This time I added Oysters Rockefeller after Shrimp and Grits. I knew about the oyster dish only from thumbing through cookbooks. It was heavenly. Magda discovered the crab bisque, which Lise and I shared later. Next time I’ll know to look at the soup first. Sander laughed at himself, saying he had planned to take a tiny bite of everything. He changed his mind after walking through the elaborate buffet. I think all of us skipped the salad bar. Charlotte commented on the bacon, which was thick and crisp.

Since Lise was born in the month of November, she qualified for a birthday gift. She was given some fancy coffee concoction, probably pumpkin spice, which she gave to Sander. She also received a glass mug to take home. It was etched with the National Gingerbread Contest name.

I wouldn’t have noticed Sander’s plate if Lise hadn’t comment on his having bacon on the cheesecake. Magda went for the cheesecake, too, it being a favorite. I had one or two non-chocolate things for dessert, but if I ever go again, I’ll restrict myself to dark brown things.

We went to two different floors to see the display of gingerbread creations which had been judged there at the inn. I tried to get a photo of our people looking at them, but only Magda’s face shows. Some of the entries looked like they had been made by children, but the winning one was elaborate. Lise had good photos of it, which I hope to get when she has time to share them.

We came back home as the sun was setting behind a nearby mountain. It wasn’t very late, but we didn’t have time to go on the Blue Ridge Parkway to see it set properly.

The Magic of Woodside

Going to Woodside is a most marvelous experience. Yes, there is magic there, but it’s so much more than that. It’s being welcomed by gracious hosts, surrounding you with unbounded love. We gathered there for the annual family Thanksgiving dinner.

I took a photo of the people at the table with me. Daughter Lise is there, along with friends from Denmark and niece Susan and Bill. Susan’s smile was sparkling, with conversation to match. Bill and Sander, both sports enthusiasts, enjoyed talking together. The rest of us also liked hearing various sports stories.

After dinner, Hunter sang and played the guitar for us. That is always a treat. Rick entertained us with all new magic tricks! Here Rick is starting a trick that involved Lise.

After that he took our guests on the standard tour of the house. I had taken videos of the singing and magic tricks, but I didn’t go on the house tour this time. Charlotte, Sander, and Magda said it was marvelous. I’m always pleased when Rick and Myra show the house that is so steeped in history.

Normal Activities

The major focus of the day was seeing herds of elk, but I don’t have any photos of that yet. One morning Sander went out to greet the horses, and they came over to him. They seemed to have a lovely conversation.

The day after Magda arrived, Joyce joined us for the morning walk. Lise has been working on a big project, so she stayed behind to continue. Surely this is the last of the groupings at the stop sign for this period!

I’ve had intrusive ads popping up on my phone for weeks. One day I kept count and found 19 interruptions during my 23-minute exercise routine. Sander offered to look at the phone, and he got rid of them!! He found that they were generated by an app, so he deleted it, along with the problem. He recommended I clean certain things, which I did. Oh! How wonderful it is to look at things peacefully again! Thank you so very much, Sander.

Walking, Shopping, and a Basketball Game

Neighbor Joyce and I were texting about the weather and waited an hour for the light rain to stop. Because we all waited, Joyce was able to meet Charlotte and Sander.

Lise took Sander and Charlotte to Mast General Store in Waynesville, one of our favorite places to show guests. The wooden floor creaks, just like an old general store

As a gift to me, Charlotte prepared our dinner. She was the one who began assembling a meat and veggies for rice paper wraps during COVID in Denmark. Oh, my! What a treat!! Sander demonstrated how to build a wrap by dipping it in water, spreading a peanut sauce on it, adding crispy chicken bites made from scratch, and adding veggies. Charlotte had prepared yellow pepper strips, mung beans, avocado slices, mango pieces, cabbage, and shredded carrots. It was all beautifully presented. Their plates were neat, and mine was messy, but we all enjoyed every bite.

After dinner, the three of them went to a college basketball game in a nearby town. Sander loves sports, and Lise and Charlotte went with him for the experience. Lise put a video on my Aura frame as she sat in the bleachers. Daughter Kate and I enjoyed that part of their fun immediately.

Charlotte and Sander

Lise’s good friends Charlotte and Sander arrived on time, having traveled from Copenhaven to Amsterdam, Atlanta, and Asheville. Thank heaven their flights were normal, without the high drama of Lise’s trip here a week ago! Their flights were not canceled, and their luggage was not lost. We celebrated with a meal at Culver’s.

First thing the next morning, we walked to the stop sign. Thanks to Lise, we have a selfie.

Lise drove us to Sunburst Falls, reminding us that the shower curtain in the main bathroom is an image of that falls. Sander went out on the rocks to get close to the roaring water.

We ladies stayed on the bridge to get a photo of them with the falls.

Charlotte and Sander went down the stairs to Looking Glass Falls after posing at the top with Lise.

They ended the day by shopping at my favorite supermarket, Ingles, while I stayed home to write.

Drama at the Gate

Daughter Lise and grandson Nathaniel wanted Sarah to see elk in Cataloochee valley. Sarah was willing to drive her car there, since we needed a vehicle that could manage rough gravel roads. Lise took a photo from the car, as we went up and over a mountain into the next valley.

A locked gate kept us from going further down the road, though we were near the barn and house that were always open. Hurricane Helene damaged the road and the barn. When a park ranger stopped to open the gate, he told Lise that we were welcome to walk there, but we couldn’t take the car. Nate went back for something and easily stepped over the gate.

Lise and I walked to the stream that was gurgling merrily and watched sticks and leaves floating down. Sarah and Nathaniel walked on to see the damaged barn and go through the house.

The young people returned, having seen the buildings they wanted to see, although no elk were in sight. We didn’t know the exciting part was yet to come. Nate stepped over the gate, and I think Sarah stooped and went under it. My turn! I approached it with confidence, stooped down, and then I couldn’t move my feet further. I realized my knees were not going to bend past the 90-degree point. I tried until I fell over. They were aghast that I had fallen, although I was only inches from the ground.

“Take a photo!, I commanded. I wasn’t going to get up until the incident had been recorded. Lise complied, and we were all free to laugh.

Since I get on the floor every morning while exercising, I knew I could get up. Until I couldn’t. It wasn’t that easy! Loose gravel was there, not a soft carpet. I crawled a little to get near a concrete barrier and pulled up. I saw the relief on their faces when I was on my feet. I told Lise I needed to practice, and she said, “Right. I’ll bring some gravel and put it on your carpet!”

Sarah and Nate played Pooh Sticks a few times, then we all got a stick to throw off the bridge. Winner was the one whose stick went under the bridge first. For the record, Lise won. It was great to have light-hearted fun after the drama at the gate.

Lise’s Birthday Evening

Grandson Nathaniel and wife Sarah came to celebrate Lise’s birthday. The photo is too dark, but while Nate was baking Lise’s cake, we chatted with daughter Kate on the phone. Kate’s birthday was the day before, so it was a general celebration for the sisters.

For dinner, we had chicken and stuffing casserole and yellow squash, both favorites of Lise.

The girls posed with the chef to show that delicious cake. The cake was dark chocolate with dark chocolate chips, as intense as could be. The fluffy frosting was perfect for the cake. Needless to say, we thoroughly enjoyed eating it. Since three were not the singing members of the family, we did not sing Happy Birthday. No one missed it. However, we did have a wonderful time together. Nathaniel suggested we freeze the other layer and perhaps crumble it to put over ice cream.

Lise’s Birthday

Daughter Lise’s friends had a birthday party for her in Denmark, and this was the cake or giant cookie they had. She explained that something like this is always cut at the throat, and everyone screams as the knife slices through. She finds this amusing. The party with work friends was at a place for high tea. I can’t believe how many people celebrated her birthday, including all the greetings on Facebook today. She is certainly well-loved.

We walked to the stop sign a bit later than usual, because Lise had a lot of work to do. A big project is in progress, causing her to spend hours at the computer to keep up with her Danish counterparts. Although it was below freezing when we started walking, we warmed up enough that we sat on the porch while she finished her cigarette.

Lise talked often about cardamom muffins, so that is what she had for her birthday breakfast. I made enough for three mornings, and two sets are now in the freezer. Actually, I had muffins because I like crusty ones, but I made hers into loaves with minimum crust.

Snow!

Daughter Kate in New Jersey alerted her sister Lise that she should look out of the window. She had seen that we were having snow, light though it was. I had already noted that the wooden deck was covered with a thin layer of white. We went out to walk while there were still a few flakes floating about. I would have forgotten to take the obligatory photo at the stop sign, but Lise drew out her phone to do it.

We ate lunch at a Mexican restaurant where the tables were quite high. I told Lise I didn’t need utensils, because I could lean over slightly and eat like a dog. I didn’t. The food was so delicious that we used knives and forks properly, forgetting the height of the table.

Snow fell for several hours during the night, and we woke to a winter wonderland. A few hours later, everything had melted, except where shade kept the sun from reaching the snow.

Daughter Lise Arrives

Lise had a few travel problems before she landed in Atlanta, but I wasn’t a part of those. Her flight from Atlanta to Asheville was canceled. The first reservation she could get was for the following day, early in the morning. First, she had to get her bags. She has had lost luggage several times before, the worst being when she was in Asheville and her luggage in Amsterdam. This time her tracking tag told her the suitcases were around the corner, but the clerks insisted they were downstairs and hadn’t been sent up. She kept checking, until after four (4!!!) hours a supervisor sent someone around the corner to check. Yes, the bags were there, just as Lise had told them. Only then could she make plans to get to me. She could have spent the night in Atlanta, gotten up very early, and taken a flight that would have gotten her here at 9:20 in the morning. I began checking to see if anyone was available to take me to the airport. She had been traveling 24 hours by that time and just wanted to get to her bed in my house. She hired a driver, arriving here at 1:15 am. She would have been a bit earlier if there hadn’t been heavy fog in the mountains.

Lise unpacked the perishables (butter and cheeses) before we fell into bed. She slept for an hour, then couldn’t go back to sleep. She tried again while I went to church on line. We had bagels for breakfast, after which she went back to bed. This is the first chance I’ve had to tell you that I am going to be quite busy for a month while she is here – a month of activity and joy!