Monday, January 21, 2008

Holy coldness...

So we were off to Boone, NC this weekend with some friends of ours, namely Ben and Nathan to relax and be cold. And cold it was. We left from Nashville during rush hour on Friday evening and sped, literally, to Asheville to pick up Ben's two kids, Caroline (13) and Matt (8). Due to the snow in the mountains, portions of the Blue Ridge Parkway (where we were going) were closed off, so we had to make alternate routes. I'll be honest, I feared for my life at times. Ben, bless his heart, is a very talented and gifted surgeon, but a skilled driver he is not. But we love him anyway...after all, it was his parents house we were staying at, so I need to keep in good graces.

We finally arrived (alive) in Boone around 11 p.m. and got the kiddies into bed before sitting by the fire and having some nice chat time among us adults. This chatter lasted until around 2 a.m. when we finally headed off to our own beds. Our room was incredible and is the second phase of their new renovation to their home, which is enormous. I took a few shots...check out our room


And the great room...


Saturday morning we bundled up for breakfast at The Mountain House and then came back to snow falling...so of course, we played. That was fun - feeling like a kid again and throwing snowballs, wrestling, etc. Well, no wrestling for me, but the boys did rather well at that. After hot cocoa and naps, we were off to see Vicki before her performance. She was leading worship for a high school church retreat, so that was fun to see her. Then we headed to dinner (way too late and everyone was cranky)...First to Mellow Mushroom where there was more smoke than a forest fire and who happened to be out of small dough, why they can't make small dough from large or medium dough I do not know, but they couldn't, and they didn't want to make any accommodations for it either. Second to the place across the street, where there was a twenty minute wait, and knowing how cranky we all were already, this was not an option. Third to the place Ben wanted to go in the first place - oh well. We went, the menu was huge, it took forever to get our food, but it was good. Very good. Back to the casita to continue in our chats from the previous evening. Again very in-depth, challenging, engaging - just plain good stuff.

Sunday morning we woke up and the crew went to Hardees for some good old fast food breakfast items. Then it was time to pack up and head for Charlotte. We met Mom in Hickory and headed home. Overall, though it was cold (never got to 30 degrees) it was great. Really good to not think about work, talk about work, but only to engage in deep and meaningful community with fellow believers. I have more on this, but it relates more to the "drama" of tomorrow, so I think it will make more sense to pair those thoughts together. Thank you Ben for the pleasure of staying at your parents house, complete with treadmills and racquetball court, and more rooms than I know what to do with. Thank you Ben and Nathan for the incredible conversation, challenging mantras, and encouraging verse that was spoken from both of you. What a blessing you have been since we arrived in Nashville. Thank you God for such an inspiring and fulfilling weekend away. And thank you that it's almost spring!

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