The most glorious time of the year! Christmas!

Christmas morning and we're counting our blessings. There was a horrendous ice storm in our area ... Avery, Watauga & Ashe counties all got slammed. But our little corner was not bothered in the least. We were so lucky. We had power, no trees snapping and crashing down, warm, cozy and blessed. We said a prayer for everyone who was not warm and cozy. Many of the folks around here and lots of folks in Boone are still without power. The kids at Crossnore are also still without power. Please send good thoughts! It's been an interesting Christmas, in many ways. This is Dunvegan Peak with rime ice all over it. GORGEOUS to look at. COLD to stand on!

Well, we had to wake these guys up on Christmas morning! They must've been up with Santa all night, they acted tuckered out! But soon enough they were up chasing ribbon and eating everything they thought was theirs! (and then some!)

This is our Christmas card table. The SANTA was made by the children in one of the cottages at Crossnore. It is so very precious. I'll post another time with close ups of the messages. They are all sweet and heart warming.

The table during the "lull". I kept it kind of neutral until Christmas evening, then we did it up right! It was quite festive, if I say so myself! Glitter and everything!

We opened presents around 10:30 or so ... after being lazy and sleeping in! THAT might have been the BEST Christmas present of all :-). I didn't even get out of my jammies on Boxing Day! What a TREAT! The grandsons are due up tonight ... guess my resting period is O.V.E.R.!!!!

Then Beth stopped by on her way to her client's house for a cup of coffee. Then Beth came back because she couldn't get there! That is when we realized it was a war zone in many places on the mountain. My goodness! Beth, the ever amazing care taker, literally carried a 5 gallon can of gas up a mountain, over downed trees and ice to get to her client that needed to keep the generator going for heat and etc. This is one dedicated woman. Our Beth is a good egg! And a pioneer woman, to be sure! She was supposed to join us for dinner, but handing out all that magic wore her right out! We missed her being there, but could feel her happy spirit with us.

The tree, of course! (duh!)

King Paul, after the Christmas crackers were opened and the crowns were exposed! Dinner was in courses, long and luxurious. We had such great fun with it. First, the antipasto Mark & Janine made. It was absolutely scrumptious! Then the fresh green salad, organic baby lettuces with grated carrots & red pepper sliced drizzled with balsamic vinegar and fine olive oil. (There were supposed to be toasted almonds as well, but someone forgot them). No worries!!! Main course was a roasted hen, truffle/garlic mashed potatoes (thanks Mark!), roasted root veggies (yummmmmmmmmmm), gorgeous rosemary garlic bread ... along with a FABULOUS couple of bottles of wine! OMG, delicious!!! Dessert was a tray filled with magic cookie bars, blond brownies, double chocolate brownies, iced cranberry orange pumpkin bread and hot English tea that was just exquisite. (no trifle, no pie, no custard --- and we survived it anyway!) We ate like royalty ... of course, we had crowns on!!!! We were royalty.

AND the best part .... GREAT friends to share it all with!

And it was, of course, a bit blurry by the night's end!

But we got all the dishes washed and nothing was broken at the end of the night!

S U C C E S S !!!!!

What a beautifully blessed Merry Christmas!

Hoping it was the same for all,

Paul & Cheri

Christmas!

Merry Christmas to ALL!!!!!!

As you can see, Mother Nature blessed us with a couple of feet of snow. It is, simply put, absolutely beautiful and so peaceful and mesmerizing. Albeit pretty chilly and interesting to maneuver in!

Paul & I went to Charlotte, NC to see the Nutcracker. First time we've seen a live show in ages. It was spectacular. It was also not as good as School of Performing Arts' rendition of the Nutcracker directed by Russell Sultzbach, but it was still a good show. (and we can't help it if we're Nutcracker snobs!) We were supposed to take some Crossnore folks, but they weren't allowed to leave the campus due to the weather, so we went alone. It was a simply wonderful little getaway for us. Who knew!?!?!? Turns out Charlotte is a pretty nifty city!

photo by Jon Jirka on Ray's Weather site - looking at Roan Mtn

It's Christmas eve and I am sitting in the kitchen by the wood stove fire. I can walk to the living room or the den (or even the bedroom) and sit by the gas log fire. I can gorge myself on copious amounts of food and drink, many of them delicious homemade things that have been given to us by sweet friends in the spirit of Christmas. I can drink clean, clear, cool non contaminated water. I can pick up my cell phone and call anyone I feel like calling. I can turn on lights, media sources, all sorts of electric gadgets. I can take a hot shower or bath. I can stay inside the house out of the ferocious cutting wind that is howling outside. I am healthy. I can remember the most incredible precious memories of Christmas eves past that are remarkably loving, caring, kind and exciting, gobs of them filled with sweet people who are no longer here on earth with us. I can think of dozens of people for whom I'm so very grateful to have in my life .... either now, or in the past. Lately, memories have been flooding my head. They are ALL wonderful memories. My point is, I am SO lucky and blessed. Paul and I both have been in loving homes our whole lives. We've been safe and clean and well taken care of. WE ARE SO LUCKY. And we know it. But it always buckles my knees when I REALLY think of how incredibly blessed our lives have been. And it always brings me to my knees when I hear of those who are far less fortunate, who cannot stay warm, sheltered, bathed, filled with food and drink (including clean water), who are sick, who have never known love or Christmas gifts, or good memories. And for all of those people, I pray they will be showered in blessings. Christmas is magic to me. Magic things happen during this time of year. I so hope the people who are in need get exactly what they need. And that is my Christmas wish. And in the words of Tiny Tim, "God Bless us, every one".

photo by Randy Hargett, Ray's weather site ... Snake Mtn at Elk Knob State Park

Merry Christmas to all.

In Love and Friendship,

Paul & Cheri

***S N O W ***

Snuck this one in ... finally have the tree up and decorated!

Paul now wears camo ... and etc.

The UPS man meets you (us) in the parking lot at Ingles to give you the packages when the weather is like this. (small town ... icy roads) So, this is Chris (on the left) with his good buddy Paul (on the right)

this was the beginning of the storm --- about noon yesterday (Fri Dec 18)

this morning about 9

how much on the steps ...

the gorgeous snowfall ... so beautiful, tranquil, peaceful, lovely, perfect.

trees covered in beautiful white snow

this poor guy is definitely covered in snow!

This is the first of the four predicted storms. Stay tuned!

If we ever dig these guys out .... we might leave the house again ... but I doubt we'll even try today. It's too cozy inside by the fire. Have a great weekend!
Paul & Cheri

Trying to catch up ...

Beth and Paul at Beth's birthday celebration ... which was very brief and heartfelt. Paul is sporting one of his "boggins". You can't see it in this photo, but it has a bell on the back and you can hear him coming and going ... and shaking his head (!) so funny! Beth is absolutely shining and happy, albeit exhausted from her job as a health care nurse providing love and safety for her clients. You HAVE to know Beth to know how entertaining she actually is. I'm sure her clients are the luckiest people in the world to have her assist them through their challenges and often their eventual passing. Beth was sent to earth to be a care taker. She is EXCELLENT at her "calling". She is also a treasured, precious friend. Thanks for showing up, Beth! xoxox She called tonight to tell me to cook stuff because the foot of snow we've already have is wet and heavy on the electric lines. We might lose power. Who would've thought of that! Holy cow! It's wonderful to have a friend ~ and sweet to have one who shares such information!!!!

When we took out our Nutcracker collection, we realized we had a BUNCH of them! Just thought they were noteworthy. :-) Presenting our boat load of Nutcrackers! We were supposed to go to Charlotte tonight with a couple of the kids from Crossnore to see the Nutcracker by a real ballet company ... but the weather changed all that. We'll try again ... we were really looking forward to getting some Christmas spirit. This year seems pretty odd. No real plans, no pitter patter of little feet, no planned chaos. A little out of the ordinary. As mum says, just going to be a quiet Christmas.


Beckye (Beckye's Curl Up and Dye) makes our wreaths for us. She does such a wonderful job. I know I could decorate it with pine cones and berries, and such things, but I just love them plain. The look gorgeous, they smell fabulous, and they make me smile. Thanks, Beckye!

This is what our building site looked like about 12 hours ago. Now it actually looks like a skating rink ... ice/snow. We have to get the slab poured and then we're ready to build! Y.E.S.!!!!! We're taking bids for the concrete slab work ... then we'll be on our last leg of this part. The building goes up and the business begins. GOD help us get to that point sooner than later!

Another view, of course!

Coasters I've been making for a commission. They actually turned out pretty cool and the client seemed to be very happy with them. Yeah - that's always good. I have other pictures of them, we put them in a wooden box ... turned out nice. I'll post those later.

I am currently watching "Enchanted" while Paul is upstairs playing x-box. Enchanted seems to be Disney meets Central Park. Paul seems to be winning his "shooting" game. I've managed wrapping presents, Christmas baking, cooking dinner and then some, and fixing up some Christmas decorations in case anyone pops in. Christian and Jenn were coming up this weekend, but their plans changed when Mother Nature sent her snow blessing. Maybe that's why I'm so very wrestless. The weather man says we are in the first of four storms ... snow should be knee deep by Sunday morning. Paul will be escorting me back and forth to the office. I am a W.H.I.M.P. :-) I am very lucky that Paul is not a whimp! He was called out tonight to do some "emergency" welding on an 18 wheeler. Came home all covered in snow. Paul is a good sport!

Hope you are all getting ready for the holiday with great enthusiasm, love of your family and friends, and gratitude for EVERYTHING you have.

Blessings to all,

Paul & Cheri

Road Trip --- Atlanta, Dec. 2009

Christian Hall, 6 years old and lookin' good!

Jennifer - with Christian as the photographer ;-)

Jon Adams in his kitchen (after all, he's a chef)

The magic mushroom at Mellow Mushroom (Christian's favorite place)

NOTHING like a Nana's hug & tickle

Jon & Melissa by their Christmas tree in their new house

Cade (l) and Austin (r) ... this year's school pictures from the refrigerator at Jon's!

Jon & Melissa Christmas tree in their new home!

Mother and daughter and Christian's photography skills once again!

We had a lovely trip. It was FUN to see everyone. It was wonderful to arrive back on the mountain and get back home. (as usual) And thanks to Beth, Janine and Mark for watching after our "boys" and taking such good care of them.

Jon & Melissa have a wonderful new home ~ and it was such fun to play Taboo and LAUGH with them. Thanks for the hospitality you two!

Jenn & Victor have a wonderful new home too! It is as different from Jon & Melissa's home as they are different from each other! It was a delightful tour and they look as snug as a bug. It is very interesting from a parent point of view to watch children change in to adults ... and grow up! It also makes one feel aged, really.

Debbie, my sister-in-law looks fabulous! I was so tickled to see her looking so alive again. Thanks for meeting up with us, Debbie!

We also got to have a wonderful visit with Shay and her adult children. Such a gift to see everyone shining and once again ready to get on with things.

The trip was uneventful road time wise. It gave us time to chat, make plans, giggle and share thoughts and feelings (don't you know that's just what Paul was hoping for!!! ) and we were very lucky with traffic flow and etc. Paul is a wonderful chauffeur and I'm so lucky that he was willing to drive down and back. Thanks, honey.

I even got to go to a R E A L mall and shop at Macy's. After just saying to my son that I loved to shop in Atlanta because no one would know me, a little voice from behind said, "Hi, Cheri!". It turned out to be a woman with her 3 children and a mom I recognized from zillions of hours in the lobby of a dance studio. I taught Alana ballet and tap along with Jennifer and a group of little princesses when she was 7 to 9 years old!!! We recognized each other from Facebook!!! What a small world we live in. It was GREAT to see Alana and her family ... and such timing! Facebook has a lot to answer for!! It is great fun to reunite with students 25 years after their dance lessons! It is also interesting to see the their children! Oye!

Atlanta moves fast and furiously! The people at the mall were all in a rush and not enjoying it at all. It was very magical to me! All the beautiful decorations and tons of merchandise to choose from! There was the aroma from Starbucks to seduce you and the little children's excitement to enjoy. But most of the people were missing it. So sad. I felt like the Elf on Elf (the movie). No one seemed to be "getting it". Holiday Spirit, you guys! Come on!

Anyway, it was a good trip, and now we're home trying to prepare for the Holiday and get caught up from tree season and life.

'Tis the season. Hope you are all wearing it well!

Cheers!

Paul & Cheri

An amazing site!

Wednesday afternoon this MOST beautiful, incredible double rainbow appeared in our sky. It was breath taking and very magical. It is also a tell tale sign of wild weather! After the HUGE RAIN quit and this appeared, the sky was lit up with a very odd orange tinted light. It was very "Wizard of Oz" and having lived in Atlanta for so many years, I was seriously expecting a tornado. But gladly, no tornado. However, the FOG was horrid after dark set in and the clouds settled. The kind of FOG that you cannot see the hood of your car in. Very scary driving during that time. I made it home. I kissed the ground when I got out of the car.

We are expecting snow, of course, beginning tomorrow and it is supposed to continue through until Saturday afternoon. 1-4 inches. Oh Boy!

Paul & I are leaving in the morning and going down to visit the kids in Atlanta. I thought we'd luck out and get into warmer, drier weather. They are predicting snow (flurries at least) in Atlanta too ... of course they are!

We'll wear coats there too ...

ROAD TRIP!

Paul has finally finished tree season. He is one tired run down puppy! I'm hoping getting away will be relaxing and restful for him.

Hopefully we'll have a wonderful update on Monday ....

over and out.

Happy December everyone!

P & C

Post Thanksgiving Post

Thanksgiving Day! Pretty impressive rime ice on Big Hump Mountain.

So, we woke up to these glorious snow clouds ... and they were ever present!

This is a bigger view of how impending those clouds look off of the porch on the side of the house. They caused a little bit of excitement on the Parkway with all the tourists, but at our house they were simply a source of entertainment whilst preparing for the Feast!

Here are Sabrina and I, cooking "our hearts content" with all sorts of delicious fun.

And before we knew it, the BIG FAT FLUFFY FLAKES begin to fall out of the sky ... at first very lazily, and then with a fervour! It was all very exciting ... for that 15 minutes or so.

But when you have a mission, onward ho! We had herbs combined with all the good smells of traditions past that absolutely made us giddy with nostalgia. It seemed very ancient, women concocting enticing aromas and pleasing all the different palettes. Very enchanting!

This guy was enduring the snow with complete dignity ... in the literal freezing cold ...

While we mighty chefs remained toasty warm and loyal to our tasks at hand.

and for another 45 minutes or so, it looked like it had really become winter in Elk Park!

This CHAOS was on the side of the kitchen you can't see in the previous photos! Half prepared dishes, bags of scrumptious goodies, and all sorts of adornments on the table ...

and then ..... viola'! The very same table after the food began coming together. The menu was such fun to decide with all of us "foodies" being involved. There was the obligatory turkey and dressing, maple syrup coated ham, sweet potato casserole, garlicky mashed potatoes, steamed juicy green beans with lemon butter herb coating, an incredible parsnip bread pudding (Sabrina), a beautiful asparagus puff pastry dish (Janine) roasted baby beet salad with fresh greens, bleu cheese, roasted nuts drizzled with balsamic vinegar (Sabrina), clover yeast rolls, cranberry sauce (both gelled and berries - along with some divine chutney), gravy, butter, etc., etc. Obviously this photo was prior to everything getting on to the table, but it's hard to be resident photographer and chef/hostess at the same time!!

This was the reception table ... where Sabrina greeted each friend with a perfect glass of rose champagne with pomegranate seeds floating in the bubbles (beautiful concept, Sabrina! Such an elegant and wonderful welcome!) Didn't quite make it to the table with the camera in the pre-consumption stage - you'll have to use your imagination! (again)

This (also a typically exquisite Sabrina thought) represented the hors de oeuvres for the evening ... such wonderful cheeses and crackers to accent the taste were every bit as deserving a picture, I just didn't get there ... multi tasking hell! The brie had some lovely cranberry chutney topping that was superb! It was great fun ... I just never tasted it until after dinner! (It was rather busy about arrival time).

And Paul, showing our Champagne drinking guests an old dance video (how embarrassing, Paul!) as well as sharing our new t.v. We are a long way from finished with the house, but every little bit feels good!!! While Sabrina and I were in the kitchen, Paul was in here changing the face of the entire room. Well done, honey!!!! It's perfect!

Table is set and ready to receive our sweet friends and our little contribution to a Thanksgiving feast!!! We have SO MANY things to offer Thanksgiving over it is mind boggling. I just think it was wonderful to be able to spend it with our friends ....

Even the friends who couldn't personally share it and we just had to settle for their photographs. There are photos all around the deserts of friends who we are Thankful for and whom we have shared other thanksgiving feasts with ... and the family members photos are on the wine buffet (which the "photographer" neglected to document - sorry!) Also shown is an incredible apple/Gruyere cheese torte that Janine and Mark brought (OMG! It is to die for!). Unfortunately, the pumpkin, cheese cake double cream pie that Beth brought didn't make it in to the photo (another OMG - squared!) ... and then there is the trifle, which I do believe was still in the refrigerator at this point. The refrigerator that I am still saying thanks for to the Rosenfarbs for their generosity ... and the stove, without which we would NO WAY have had such a successful dining experience!

All in all, it was an absolutely LOVELY Thanksgiving evening if I do say so myself.

To our precious friends:

Beth - who drove all the way to Rock Hill, NC to cook Thanksgiving Dinner for a friend of hers who was convalescing, and then back to Elk Park so she could sit at the table for a few minutes and enjoy friendship blessings;

Sabrina, who drove all those miles and hours up from Atlanta to visit, to enjoy "the mountain thing", sisterhood, good food, giggles, story telling and time away from the city;

Janine and Mark, who both worked the tree "cut and choose" lot the entire day before going home, grabbing food, changing clothes and showing up with their beautiful smiles and enthusiastic spirits ~~~

We would just like to thank you, friends, for joining us and sharing friendship and some fun times.

We would like to also thank the friends and family members (who could not be here) for all the times we have joined together and feasted and laughed and loved.

And to my sweet Paul, without who I would prefer to have no Thanksgiving at all, I love you. Thanks for sharing the adventure with me honey.

Happy Holidays to one and all,

Paul & Cheri