Family Adventure
Our family adventure to West Virginia all started with a conversation between our son Daniel (Danny) and his dad. Soon plans were made to spend a few days in West Virginia. Tickets were purchased and plans were made for those who were within driving distance to be there.
I got to West Virginia first. I dropped off our dearest family friend, D to visit her brother in the hospital. He wasn’t doing very well and she would have 3 final days with him. This was heartbreaking.
80% Chance of Rain
At one point we tethered the two boats together and had our lunch, a mixture sort of potluck style. Aunt Von was the best prepared and brought a full meal. And a huge bowl of watermelon. With an 80% chance of rain, most of us thought we would get rained out. We brought healthy snacks and a lot of Diet Coke! We all shared, no one went hungry.
After several hours on the lake, the clouds got darker and the rain started as we headed back to the marina. Huddled under the small canopy we were a little warmer from body heat. We were all drenched when we finally reached the Marina though a bit wet, not too cold.
The rain settled to a drizzle by the time we disembarked. The team at the marina loved that we were all family and having a great time together. They mentioned to me several times how wonderful it was to see a family like ours together. I thought so too! Just imagine if all of our kids and nephews had made it! God has truly blessed us with an amazing family. Is that bragging? I don’t think so! My heart is just so full sometimes it has to spill out.
Firecreek BBQ & Steak
We all headed back to the stone house to get dry clothes and take Josiah for his birthday dinner. On the way to the stone house, we stopped by this cool coffee shop, Appalachian Coffee, and got hot drinks! Emily said the coffee was so good she wanted two cups! I had a wonderful hot chai and it helped to warm me up. I am sure we made the shop smile, 15 new customers, all family.
Finally, making it to the house we quickly changed and got ready to go to dinner at Firecreek a BBQ and Steak place. The food was good and it was such a good evening together. It ended too soon. Part of the group had to leave for home after dinner. One more hug and picture before they left.
Early Bedtime
We went back to the stone house and had a fun time laughing and playing and watching some people learn to play Wingspan. John Mark had to work online and it seemed everyone wanted to keep him company. Lawrence and I were the first in bed that night. We are getting old. What can I say?
Porch Sitting
The next morning I was the first one up and most were still sleeping at 10. I cooked bacon and some eggs (most cooked their own eggs) and Lawrence made coffee. Lawrence and I sat on that wonderful porch where memories are made and read our Bibles and had morning “coffee”. It was a beautiful morning. Everyone ate in shifts and got ready for the day.
New River Gorge
We drove to the New River Gorge Bridge Visitors Center and hiked down to the overlook. It wasn’t very far down there but the return trip up the steps showed me how out of shape I had let myself get.
Next, we piled in the cars and drove down the old road beneath the bridge. We stopped at a couple of overlooks along the way and of course, the kids got too close to the edge for my comfort. We stopped for a bathroom break at the drop-off/pick-up site for white water. There were several groups enjoying the day.
Cathedral Cafe
Micah and Emily always find cool places. They found this place. On the way back from our family adventure to the New River Gorge, we stopped at the Cathedral Cafe for “coffee” and some amazing toffee brownies! It is inside this cool old church building with original stained glass windows and hardwood floors. I definitely love the building. Tiffany found some Lavender Blueberry Kombucha next door to take home. This made me want to search out my kombucha recipe and start making it again. This was an interesting little town.
Ghost Town – Thurmond, West Virginia – Population 6
Back to the stone house and fixing dinner of a taco bar and lots of ice cream and Diet Coke. We had a couple of hours before dark and Emily asked if we had ever heard of Thurmond, WV. Some had, some hadn’t. We discussed it for a few minutes and decided we would regret it if we didn’t go see the ghost town. After all, we had rave reviews from Emily’s brother, Ryan! He was right too! I am so glad we went. I love history after all!
After driving down curvy roads to the river we crossed a bridge and arrived at the Thurmond Depot! Someone has done a great job in restoring some of the buildings. Trains still run on these tracks and we actually saw a couple of trains come into Thurmond from different directions. We walked through town on a little gravel road that ran alongside the railroad tracks. Some of the buildings featured their history. In one building there was a large timeline mural of the history of Thurmond, West Virginia.
Return to Tennessee
We made a plan for the return to Tennessee. We were going in three different directions. Our car went to Charleston, WV, and dropped off Daniel at Mawmaw’s house for his flight the next day. We had to have Husson’s Pizza before we left though and hug Mawmaw one more time.
We got to have two of the “grands” (as I call my grandchildren) make the trip with us! A few miles down the road I remembered we had Daniel’s backpack. So I called him and we turned around and he met us to retrieve his bag. Of course, I got one more hug. Wish Jess could. have come!
It was a pleasant and surprisingly quiet trip to Kentucky where we stayed the night in Beaver Dam. We wanted to be near the Friendship Church of Christ in Fordsville, Kentucky where Lawrence would preach the next morning.
Our family adventure to West Virginia turned out to be a great experience which I hope will become an annual event!