In this post we have returned back to our home in the Virginia Blue Ridge Mountains from our fall trip to Europe. We have so many things planned in the next three weeks including a family get together at Christmas. This will be our first Christmas at our home in eight years. Since before I retired and we sold the prior house, bought an RV, and took to the road. Let’s see what we accomplished in three weeks!
Back Home Again
Some of the activities when we returned home on Dec 10, were to clean the house, get out the Christmas decorations, make some homebrew beer to be ready in the spring, a meeting with some co-workers, get back to bowling, prepare a huge Christmas meal, and celebrate our 52nd wedding anniversary.
The photos below are of the beer making process and two loaves of artisan bread baked in cast iron dutch ovens.
For our wedding anniversary, I selected a local rooftop hotel restaurant right here in Radford. Nice fine dining! For the night we were there a local bluegrass jam session was also scheduled. Maybe 20 people playing. It was great! All to serenade us for the anniversary!
Back to our home with all the kids for Christmas.
This year, I prepared two turkeys. One in the usual electric roaster and the other in my pellet smoker but prepped in a secret brine curing process for a week. Oh my. Not even close on the vote tally after the humongous meal. The brine and smoker wins by a landslide! That one is a keeper! Thanks Tommy!
Once the above are completed we have three days to load up the 5th wheel trailer before we head south to our winter destination in New Port Richey Florida. This year we have three stops on the way down. And this is the latest in the year that we have waited to go. Boy, did we get lucky with the weather. After Christmas it can be very cold and ice or snow, but this year it was 60 and sunny. Hard to leave weather like that, but it would drastically change as soon as we left the state!
On the way to Florida, we enjoy a stop in Savannah, Ga.
Finally, to Florida for the next three months. I’m still quite behind on publishing these blogs and have many new adventures, so keep watching for the latest updates!
Meanwhile, here is the morning coffee group braving the cool weather this January.
Take care and God Bless!
