A Morning In Virginia

Road Trip

It's 8:00 and I have been up for an hour, enjoying the quiet and solitude of a winter morning. My son-in-law Drew is usually up with me watching Sports Center on ESPN but he must have had a late night so he's still sleeping as are the rest of the household. 

Yesterday, a Friday, was, fortunately, an easy seven-hour drive from Chautauqua to Bristow, in northern Virginia. We left just before 8:00  and by now, know this drive my heart because it's the 13th year we have done it. This time we skipped the PA Turnpike, taking RT 30 to Breezewood and RT 70  instead which saved time I am sure. 

Halle

Granny And Hayden

We arrived around 3:00, to an already packed parking area. Both granddaughters and their parents were home so it was a fun greeting. Halle is a freshman, home from Virginia Commonwealth in Richmond, VA, and Hayden a recent graduate of Western Virginia University, interns for Culmen International, a company in Alexandria, VA. We relaxed and caught up on their lives before Drew and I brought in our bags, food, and presents. Around 5:00, Jill brought out the cheese and crackers and wine and my sister, Ellen, who lives nearby in Herndon, arrived to to spend happy hour with us as well as dinner. We haven't seen Jill's family or Ellen since the summer so there was a lot of catching up to do. Drew left around 6:30 to pick up our dinner, sushi, so when he got back, the six of us feasted on various sushi delights, a fine way to spend our first night with family. 

Chanel In Her Heated Bed

Ellen left around 8:00 and Jill and Drew had a neighborhood party to attend so they left around 9:15 leaving us with Hayden. Both Evie and I were weary from getting up so early and the drive so we decided to go up to bed early at 9:30. It was a good decision because neither of us stayed up long reading. It was a good start to a family Christmas as so far, no one has Covid19... inshallah!