Thanksgiving 2025

Daughter Lise, friend Magda, and I celebrated Thanksgiving fairly quietly. Bursts of laughter were not quiet. They helped get the food on the table and cleared up after we ate. For the foodies, we had turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, mashed sweet potatoes, grape salad, lime Jello salad, and cranberry mince pie.

After dinner, the girls played a card game they often take on trips. Magda was having a streak of bad luck, so I suggested they deal the next round and switch hands before playing. Of course, there was only a 50/50 chance that it would help Magda. We all laughed when she won, playing the hand that should have been Lise’s.

Our outing for the day after Thanksgiving was going to Sunburst Falls. After Magda went close to the falls, we drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway until sunset. At an overlook, the girls got out to watch the sun go down. They were frozen when they returned to the car. I don’t know how cold it was then, but Magda and I had walked in the morning when it was 22 F (-5.55C).

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.

Daughter Kate Comes to Visit

The day after daughter Kate drove down from New Jersey, we walked to the stop sign with neighbor Brit and grandson David. I normally walk in the morning, but this was Sunday afternoon. It was dark by the time we got home.

Because David had an appointment, we went to the closest restaurant, only to find it had closed early that day. We drove a bit further to get dumplings at a favorite Chinese restaurant. He still had plenty of time to meet the person he was seeing.

The three of us love going on the Blue Ridge Parkway, so we did that early in the visit. On the way, we went to my favorite waterfall, Sunburst.

Later, driving on the parkway, we spotted any number of mountain ash trees with their red berries. I have never before seen so many of those trees with such vibrant fruit. As far as I know, the berries are not edible.

Back home, Logan saw us on the porch and came over to visit. He lured David out to pass a football, probably long enough to make David sore. Can you see the football in the air above them? That was a happy photographic accident.

Kate and Kacey stayed out of the way while watching the fellows.

Another day David went to the dentist for his checkup while Kate and I got my car inspected. I am not currently driving because of my eyesight, but we keep the car here as a spare for David or wheels for Lise when she visits. Later that day, David, Kate and Kacey burned the garden trash. The fire was hot enough to make the K’s move back so that only David was near the fire.

An Outing on the Parkway

After our small family reunion, we settled into a routine for daughter Kate’s visit. Each day began with a walk to the creek, with the obligatory photo on the first walk.

David took the week off to be with his mother and me. Some days were warm enough for us to eat lunch on the porch. The dog loved this, because she had entertainment watching birds while waiting for us to be attentive to her again.

All of us enjoyed stopping at Sunburst Falls, my favorite in this area. David took Kacey out on the rocks where she found a place to step in the water.

Here is a shot of the family on the bridge over the stream.

Going further up the mountain, we drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway. True to its name, the road is on the very top of these old rounded mountains. It was a chilly day, so we wore wraps while eating our picnic lunch. A very light shower threatened us, but we fought back and finished our meal peacefully. This was the most vacation-looking day of our week together.

Easy Falls

Our agenda for family visitors included two waterfalls and lunch at Square Root in Brevard. We began at Sunburst Falls, a favorite of grandson David and me. Barbara and Thom entered into the spirit of the thing by posing with the falls.

Barbara went out on the boulders with David, while Thom stayed on the road to take videos. He caught the flighty action of two Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterflies, natives of the region.

I took a shot of the pool below the falls. In this one, I can see the depth of the water that is missing from most of my photos of it. [Note to self: you are babbling. No one cares about this.]

When you look at the two desserts we shared, you’ll know why we try to keep moving. We had Key lime pie and a chocolate cake with a fanciful name that included Spoonful. It probably should have been called Calorie-laden.

Looking Glass Falls is always a stunner. As usual, I stayed at the top while others went down the switchback stairs to the base of the falls. The day was not hot, yet there were swimmers in that cold, cold water. Barbara and Thom put their fingers in to experience it. I think David would like to swim there on a hot day, but I don’t know if anyone else would want to.

Jukebox Junction

We pass the restaurant, Jukebox Junction, when we go to my favorite waterfall. Grandson David and I ate there recently when John was away, and he wanted his mother and brother to go. The walls were covered with pictures of stars, with shots of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe taking the most space. I took a photo of our fellows to include the dining area.

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John wielded the camera to show daughter Kate and me.

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Nathaniel examined the working jukebox and wanted John to see it.

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The jukebox works if you feed it quarters, and Nathaniel happened to have one quarter. He likes music from all ages and genres. While we were there, others played a few songs, mercifully not too loud.

For the foodies: The menu is not large. We had chicken nuggets, a chicken sandwich, and fried clam strips. The sides were tasty, too. The boys and Kate started off with milkshakes, taking quite a bit of time deciding which flavor of ice cream they wanted as the base. David’s was the most imaginative – mint chocolate chip and dark chocolate. Kate liked her blueberry cheesecake shake. On my recommendation, John skipped the shake and had dessert. We shared. I had chocolate cheese pie, and John chose peach cobbler. David had half of each. He is as skinny as a rail, so neither milkshake nor dessert would stick to his ribs.

We drove on to Sunburst Falls. David climbed onto the rocks and persuaded his mother to join him. I stayed on the bridge with my camera, as I always do.

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After I took the photo showing how small they looked, I zoomed in. David had just helped Kate climb over a rock to sit down.

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Sunlight was fading as we drove home, happy with our late lunch and time at the falls.

Nice Niece Weekend

The weekend was nice; the nieces were priceless. Julie is my brother’s daughter, and Patty is a niece by choice. They worked together running a group home years ago.

Our one excursion was going to my favorite waterfall. I have any number of photos of the falls from my vantage point looking up the mountain. This time I took one from the other side of the highway where I’m looking down. The highway is a twisty one that winds around the mountain. The bridge is two lanes wide, with just enough room for one row of tourists to breathe while looking at the cascade. From looking at some brochures, I found the name to be Sunburst Falls. If you Google Sunburst Falls NC, you can see much more dramatic photos than I could give you. Julie and Patty made appropriate noises of approval before we piled in the car and continued onto the Blue Ridge Parkway. We discovered that the leaves were past peak up there.

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Another day the weather did what the weathermen said it would do – rain, heavy at times, all day. We stayed inside and talked the livelong day. At one point we were laughing uncontrollably. I won’t share the story, because no one could tell it like Julie. The basics were certainly met. We had shelter, food, and hilarity.

Sunday was the celebration of Reformation Day. It was the 500^th anniversary of Luther’s nailing the 95 theses on the door of the church in Germany. Our church went all out with special music. During the service they presented Bach’s Cantata BWV 80 based on the hymn, A Mighty Fortress is Our God. The director of music also arranged that hymn for the hand bell choir. I was very impressed with all of it. Only members of the orchestra were paid. Soloists were regular members of the choir. John sang bass in the choir, and he was listed as Cantor John Mehrling because he did the service chants. Before the service, I made Julie, Patty, and John pose before two of the three banners in the sanctuary.

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We ate lunch not far from the church and dropped by the farmer’s market for Julie to scope out the place. She will be here with a group of her friends in a couple of weeks and was looking for things they might like to do. Julie and Patty headed East as John and I drove home in a snowstorm. I’ve seen snow falling on colored leaves only once or twice before in New York. It is an odd sight.

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