Harvest Dinner and Lake Time...

On Tuesday, September 20th, Katy and I met up with our friends, Lindsey and Cade, on the outdoor mall to eat dinner and watch Matt Kearney in concert. That is one of the wonderful things about Charlottesville is that they have a great music scene and get a lot of good shows to the area. On Thursday Katy and I joined Josh at King Family Vineyards for their annual Harvest Dinner. We enjoyed a variety of excellent appetizers and some sparkling wine in the tasting room, and then we were able to tour the winery and sample some petite verdot juice that had been fermenting for just four days after being picked from the vine...it was extremely sweet, which was exactly what Katy and I like. For dinner we enjoyed a three course meal with wine at each step of the way. The main course consisted of four different cuts of pork served with braised parsnips and chard and then barley cooked with walnuts and apples. The best part was desert where we were served a pear tart that was absolutely delicious. The caterer that prepared the meal buys all of his food local and organic, including the pork. It was an excellent meal and a great way to spend the evening....good food, good wine, good company, and an absolutely gorgeous setting.

On Friday our whole family gathered down at Smith Mountain Lake for a relaxing weekend. Friday was a rainy evening so we sat around inside eating pizza, chatting, and playing rummikub (one of our favorite games) before calling it an early night. 

Saturday was spent watching football, swimming in the indoor pool, throwing football and hitting some volleyball, and taking a long walk down to the water to let the dogs do some swimming of their own. It was a beautiful day outside and we spent as much time as we could enjoying the nice day. That night after dinner we played some more rummikub and once again hit the sack early as both Josh and Seth were getting up early to head to work...Josh at the vineyard and Seth at church.

The rest of us stuck around until noon before heading home. We were able to take Kylie and the dogs on a nice long walk before saying goodbye to the lake. That night was Seth's big Youth Kickoff at church, so we all headed over to the church to join in on the fun. Now that I am not only helping out with Youth group but also substitute teaching in the county schools, I have gotten to know a lot of the middle schoolers, and boy are they a handful! Its a lot of fun, but definitely a tiring way to spend your Sunday evening.