Thanksgiving 2008

The first picuture above is the General Lewis Inn in Lewisburg, W. VA. The next picture is the front entry hall. Spouse and I stayed here on our way to Virginia for Thanksgiving with spouse's side of the family. Some really good friends live on a farm in a little town near here. It takes 5-6 hours to get to Lewisburg and unfortunately we got a late start and did not get any time in the town. But, I did enjoy having dinner with our friends and the General Lewis Inn. Spouse liked it too. Here is a description from the General Lewis brochure:

"Lewisburg, West Virginia

Nestled in the broad rolling Greenbrier Valley, surrounded by lush evergreen and maple covered mountains, Lewisburg blends a unique mixture of natural and man-made beauty.

The main section of the Inn is a 1929 addition to a home constructed in 1834. It is furnished with antiques collected by the original husband and wife owners. But it's not so crowded w/ antiques you can not bring children. They even have games for kids in the living room. The front desk where you sign the registry was built in 1760. According to the inn's brochure both "Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson stood at this desk when they registered in the Sweet Chalybeate Springs Hotel, one of the many mineral springs resorts in the area visited by the antebellum aristocrats of the South."

The dining and living rooms (and the master bedrooms above) date back to the original home. The 1834 bedroom rate is $155.00 a night. We did not stay in one of those rooms but we got a look at most of the other rooms. The doors were wide open. Just adorable. Most of the beds are 100 years or older. You can see where the ropes were strung. Which I thought was probably going to be uncomfortable. I was pleasantly surprised. They have 25 very different rooms, including at least 2 Two-Room Family Suites.

Pictured below is one of the 2 double beds rooms. The room pictured on the right is similar to the one spouse and I stayed in Tuesday night.

I keep thinking this has so much potential for a fun family trip in the future.

Area attractions include:

Civil War Sites: On May 23, 1862 the Confederates (led by Col Henry Heth) fought and lost to the Union led by George Crook. The General Lewis Inn (old section, called the Withrow house) was the center of the Confederate's line.

So there are some other Civil War Sites.

Plus there is the Greenbrier River Trail (4 miles), easy opportunity to fish, bike, hike, canoe, kayak , bowl and more. Cass Railroad state park, has a tourist switchback train, is 77 miles from the inn. The Greenbrier is 8 miles away. And the New River, supposed to be some of the best whitewater rafting, is only 35 miles away. Many old 1830's (Jacksonian Era) homes still in the area, some are within walking distance of the General Lewis.

Also, Lewisburg has some really great restaurants and shops. We had dinner at Food & Friends Tuesday night with our friends. The next day we had breakfast at the inn and drove 3 hours to get to Richmond.

We celebrated Christmas while we were in Virginia as we will go to Indiana for Christmas this year. Spouse's mom gave me pictures of him from baby to graduate school graduation. So now I have what I need for another project for baby. My MIL remembered the family life books I'm making. Lifebooks are something adoptive parents are encouraged to do for their children (which I have a general outline already) but I'm also practicing on doing one for us. The only book close to complete is Lucy's.

In order to avoid the forecasted snow, rain and traffic on the highway, spouse and I headed home Saturday. We stopped at Tamarack for lunch and saw friends heading home from Charlotte. Once we got home we were greeted by a very vocal and lonely kitty. After she spent a little time outside, Lucy followed us like a puppy. It is amusing to watch an independent creature like her alternate between complaining, purring, prancing and playing. It's not like she had been alone and neglected for 4 days. While we were gone two people had been to our home to feed and play with her. By Sunday morning Lucy was back to herself.