A Very Tree-Riffic Tuesday!

This is what was going on at Quiltville Inn yesterday!

More Asplundh tree removal.  By the time they are done, there won’t be any more shade trees left at all!

I know it’s important.  We don’t want trees taking down power lines in storms.  We don’t want trees falling onto the porch and damaging the house.  But I love the trees!

There was a time in my life where I lived where there were very FEW trees….open fields and farms for miles, but trees were few and far between.  I love being in wooded areas surrounded by trees in every direction.  So let’s hope that they leave us SOME to shade the side yard at the retreat.  They mentioned the chestnut trees on the other side of the garage/shop may also need to be topped.  Sigh.

And then there is THIS tree action:

Trucks pulling trailers of Christmas Trees -

Tis the season!

Those are tree farms straight ahead of the truck -

The trees are planted in rows in sections – stadium seating style on these hills!  I love seeing them, and things are in full swing here with the harvesting that starts around Halloween – you know this weekend is the BIG BIG weekend for all of the “cut your own” tree type places.  We’ll be seeing not only trailers loaded like this, but passenger cars and vehicles with trees tied to their roofs as well.

I love living in an area with abundant Christmas tree farms and seeing how they are cared for and harvested. I love thinking of all of the homes that will house these trees over the next holiday season across the country! There is nothing like a fresh tree! If you find yourself behind a lumbering fully loaded tree trailer, slow down and say hello to your inner 10 year old and all of the excitement the holidays bring.

Also in line with our “tree” theme of the day:

In case you think there is nothing quilty going on here -

This is the runner I made from the worn out quilt – the blue binding does finish it off nicely.  Here it’s been washed, and I’m blocking it to dry on top of the back hallway rugs.  Love those 1930s trees!

Lunch in Boone!

I’ve been told for years that this was THE PLACE to get a meal.  It’s served family style.  Which means, there is no ordering.  You sit down, they start bringing plates and bowls of food.

Dad and I laughed and laughed – there was no way to EAT LIGHT here – it was soup, hamburger steak with gravy over mashed potatoes, fried chicken, corn, green beans, cole slaw, biscuits, more gravy, baked apples, ham biscuits, and don’t forget dessert!

I would consider this an “only need to go once in a lifetime” place -

Our appetites were just not that great for this amount of food, and by the time we added beverages it was a $50.00 meal between us.  But for the experience, and the fun we had while laughing at the WAY TOO MUCH food (that wasn’t really great, I mean how great can heated up canned green beans be?) it was worth it.

Little bit of back story.

This place gets PACKED during the summer months – and for those who really CAN make a dent in the “all you can eat” department, it would be worth it – but really, it was far too much of not that great for us.

Hiking off our carb overload!

Linville Falls is probably the most photographed waterfall in North Carolina. And there are several hikes you can do to get to one of many vantage points – but we went the most direct.  Parking lot to falls..4/10 of a mile down.  (And yes, back UP on our way out!)

These two falls plunge into a pool that is a bit impressive -

And then from the pool the water goes down another fall:

And down and around into the most amazing natural chute:

Click to Play:

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A post shared by Bonnie K Hunter (@quiltville_bonnie) on Nov 27, 2019 at 4:19am PST

Of course the most fun is watching dad set up his camera – and I enjoyed having him help me with settings for mine:

There are tricks to getting water photos to turn out just right!

I wish you could hear the roar of the water. 

It was magnificent being there just the two of us.

Thanks for the lessons, dad!

Starting our climb back up -

I LOVE the perspective of this fence and the steps…

More photography tips from dad!

We sang to Neil Diamond in the car all the way home.  Traffic getting back through Boone was horrendous – another reaffirmation on WHY I live in the middle of nowhere where I do.  NO ONE should want to subject themselves to that kind of traffic!

We were pooped out by the time we settled in to our evening at the cabin.  Some hand quilting for me, and we tucked in to watch more of The Crown.  SO SO SO GOOD!

And that brings us to today.  2 more sleeps and counting until we kick of FROLIC on Friday morning!  Are you ready?

Remember – all  parts will be linked under the Frolic Mystery tab at the top of the blog, and will remain there until February 1st.

Today’s plan.  I have MUCH computer work to do, but will do it from the cabin where I can be close to Dad.  He plans on reading and relaxing. We’ve had a busy couple of days.

The Hubster should be up at some point today – he arrived in Greensboro last night, back from our friend’s memorial service in Oregon.  I have a list as long as my arm for things that need to happen at Quiltville Inn before our retreaters arrive at 10am on Friday morning.  WE ARE DOING THIS!

Today is also for pie baking – are you starting your Thanksgiving food prep a bit early too?  What kind of things are a MUST HAVE for your Thanksgiving feast?  Let me know in the comments below!

Quiltville Quote of the Day -

So much is on my mind, the things that have transpired over the past year that ai am so grateful for. Even the tough times.

We learn how strong we really are by working our way through them.

Family and friends are at the top of my list!