Finding Sweet Moments in Historical Alexandria, Virginia

This week my "spare-ent", Jan, is visiting me from California.  From the minute she landed to the moment we open our eyes in the morning we are constantly on the go.  Living in Alexandria, Virginia, just 15 minutes outside of D.C., there's lots to do and see.


Today we ventured out to Old Town Alexandria.  The heart of downtown and a hub of activity and history preceding the American Revolution and the Civil War.  The architecture here is very sweet and filled with whisperings of times I'll only ever read about.  But still, just to be in the midst of buildings that have seen so many changes and historical marks of U.S. history makes me sigh.


Here are a few pictures of today's outing...

Apple Picking

After spending the past few days being sick with a fever, I was ready to get out and stretch my legs.  Today was my annual trip to the apple orchards to pick the fresh harvest of apples ready for pies, crumbles, apple butter, apple bread, and a sweet treat to look forward to in my lunches. 

This year Steve and I decided to go to Hollin Farms in Delaplane, Virginia.  It’s about an hour’s drive West of D.C. and a great place to go for a change of scenery from the usual hubbub of the city.

When you get out into farm country around here, there are a few things that stand out immediately.  Unlike California’s yellow-gold fields, the fields here are a rich green.  We get a lot of rain even during the Summer months and the sunshine is plentiful making for very happy foliage, happy cows, happy bugs, happy everything!  There’s even been the occasional beaver and brown bear off the side of the road to catch you by surprise.

Hollin Farms sits up on a hill and you have to hike a bit to get to the fruit and veggie picking, but it’s well worth it because when you get to the top, you have spectacular views of the valley and holler below.  In fact, the last time I was here with my friend Heather, we sat at the edge of the hill and ate a picnic lunch admiring what lay before us after we had finished gathering zucchini, potatoes, and raspberries.  It was another perfect day like today.

For picking, there were a large assortment of apples to choose from: Jonagold, Daybreak Fuji, Golden Delicious, Empire, and Idareds.  We even picked some asian pears- which I never knew grew here in these parts of the U.S.  Fresh eggs from the hen house, squash, broccoli rabe, turnips, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins (rows and rows of beautifully ripe orange globes) were plentiful too.

Within an hour of arriving, our wagon and bags were full.  We were ready to hit the road and get back home to begin making some of our Fall favorites.  

Now I can't wait for pumpkin picking in October up in Maryland and will be sure to share that adventure in the next few weeks.  

Quiet Walks, Spaces, & Places...

Nearly everyday I love to go on a quiet walk with my friendly thoughts free to wander.  I walk through my sweet little neighborhood "Lyon's Village" in Northern Arlington.  The houses here are mostly from the 1920's and 30's and their owners are new families mixed with a few retired folk who dilly dally about their yards, or sit on their porches with sun-tea in their hands. 

I love the gardens I come across when I walk - especially at this time of year.  They are usually filled with the last hums of cicadas who mourn the last days of summer while the crickets and grasshoppers come out to play their fiddles in celebration of the coming Fall.  Even the small lightbulbs strung across fences and backyards give off a low buzz and make me feel like little stars hung themselves to be a little closer to us to join in on the festive block parties and Fourth of July celebrations of summer.

I'm also reminded of being back home in California this past Summer- spending time in my family's back yard for very similar fanfare and my heart can't help but ache.  

Despite that bittersweet sadness I feel being so far from home, there are so many things to love about living on the East Coast.  There is the Fall change of color, the smell of ripened apples ready for picking, the feeling of soft and cool earth under my finger nails as I push my hands deep in the soil to pluck out potatoes for harvesting.  The pumpkins are a deeper orange here, and while the West Coast does experience some color changing, there is nothing that can compete with the technicolor spectacular from the door steps of Mount Vernon and out along the Potomac River.

My husband and I go apple picking soon so I will be sure to share the many joys of the day with you.

Until then, here are some photos I took over the past few months during my visit home this Summer to California and during my evening strolls in Arlington.  Be well. :)