I am so excited, practically giddy with anticipation. Today is our long-awaited post-Covid visit to the Farm. Due to Covid restrictions and an abundance of caution, it has been almost a year since Terry and I have visited. This will be the first time we have seen Dad, Janice, Jill, Josh and Levi in person since August of last year. Way too long for this family loving gal.
Of course, it rained the entire time we were driving to Gallatin but I was not going to let that dampen my parade. No siree Bob.
When we arrived, Dad and Janice and canine Jack were standing on the front porch of the cabin waiting for us. Oh joy!! I told everyone that I had to hug them at least seven seconds, a second for each holiday we missed with each other; New Years Eve, Easter, 4th of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and a birthday for good measure.
Dad and Janice showed us all the changes they have made around the cabin in the last year. Big changes indeed. Last fall, after decades of building and sustaining a successful optometric practice, Dad and Janice retired. As such, they had to find room for a lot of furniture and memorabilia. They did an amazing job merging the worlds. Dad’s antique desk looks great under the windows that look out upon the pond and the bookcase that was in his office is perfect in the living room filled with his story-filled collectibles.
Josh, Jill and Levi made their way down to the cabin and we hugged it out again. Chris also made a surprise appearance. He wasn’t able to stay long but it was so good to see him after all this time.
Jill and Levi gave us a tour of the big house to show us all the changes they had made as well. They had moved the vintage exam chair from the office into the living room for extra seating (I think Morticia and Gomez Addams would approve), renovated the shower in the master bathroom, moved Levi’s bedroom upstairs to the attic – a rite of passage, and turned his old room into a guest room. Everything looked fantastic!
While we were looking around the house, Josh prepped hamburgers to grill. When the burgers were finished, he brought them down to the cabin and we enjoyed their charred, meaty goodness alongside baked beans, Greek pasta salad, homemade potato salad and deviled eggs. We sat on the back porch just visiting and catching up watching the cows meander through the fields and the birds flitting hither and thither.
For dessert, Dad made his world famous mini-cheesecakes with a crust made of finely chopped mixed nuts. This certainly brought back memories as I know all the kids consumed mass quantities of these in the late 80’s and early 90’s. Dad put on a pot of coffee and we all savored our time together.
