Happy 70th Mama!

[This post is only 45 days old ;) - forgot to hit that pesky publish button]

To celebrate my mom's fall birthday, we headed up to Charlottesville for lunch and apple picking purchasing!  First stop was lunch at Michie Tavern, which has been providing libations to weary travelers since the late 18th century!  It sits at the base of Carter Mountain, on the only road up to Monticello.  I highly recommend it if you're in the area at lunchtime (the only meal they serve).

In addition to dining, they offer tours of the house, but you have to be willing to do the Virginia Reel with strangers once you reach the top floor.  You game?  Neither was I.  There are also several outbuildings on the property, plus some shops where you can purchase colonial garb and metalworks.

But we skipped all that and dug into the buffet.  I'm sure that surprises no one.  This is the inside of the tavern - set your watches back 200 years folks, it's so authentic! 

Down to the vintage metal plates and mugs on which the food is served.  They had a good selection of food, and I'm ashamed that my plate doesn't look more balanced.  I'm not really.  I like carbs.  THey had black-eyed peas, green beans, carrots, greens, and then the carbs.  The fried chicken was fantastic, but the Diet Coke tasted too modern and seemed inauthentic ;).

After lunch we headed next door and up Carter Mountain to my favorite apple orchard!  It was the last weekend of their Apple Harvest Festival, and though we didn't go into the orchard to pick apples (why when they already did the work?) we had a good time walking around the country store and wine shop.

I picked up some Jonagold apples - my favorite!  Sometimes Martin's carries these, but when I see them anywhere else I must pick some up because they are hard to find.  They lasted long enough in the fridge to make an apple pie for Thanksgiving :).

This is my current desktop background, even though it is almost Christmas!

Here is Hurricane/SuperStorm Sandy rolling in.  We decided, based on these ominous clouds + every newscast in the country, that we should head home and batten down the hatches.  Turns out that really wasn't necessary, but who would have guessed based on this sky 48 hours before expected landfall?

Happy Birthday Mama!