There Is No Place Like Home

It's about 850 miles from our house to Kerry's family in Burlington, WA. While we are both glad we did not fly, it still is a long way; especially on the way home when all you want is to be home. We both felt like kids at Christmas waiting for Santa to arrive. The photo is of Mt. Shasta in northern California. It's taken from a gas station in Weed. Mt. Shasta and Mt. Lassen are the tail end of the Cascade Mountains.

The good news is a that we did not need the chains that Kerry purchased for his Honda Element. That means he can return them and get his money back. We sort of have this driving thing down pat. The night before we leave we have Chinese take out. The leftovers go with us the next day so we don't have to spend much time (or money) having lunch. This time we heated them in the microwave until they were really hot, wrapped them in a beach towel and then put them in the insulated cooler/warmer.

As usual, the trip to Gary and Susan's (that's where we stayed) included so much food that I may not have to eat for a week. Highlights of the food were:
+ Susan's homemade caramels (they melt in your mouth);
+fresh crab cocktail and clam chowder for Christmas Eve dinner;
+ real fruitcake complete with green cherries (made by a friend; I was the only person who ate);
+ Banana cream pie, chocolate cream pie, apple pie, and cherry pie made by Millie, the family baker (I combined banana cream and chocolate);
+ Gary's special breakfast of pancakes made from scratch, fried eggs (over easy) and bacon;
+ no bowling, but still Mexican food at Esteban's in Anacortes;
+ two pretty decent meals at Applebees (quesadilla burger);
+ homemade peanut brittle; and
+pomegranate martinis (Oprah's recipe) before Christmas dinner.

The other fabulous part of the trip was my visit to three fabric stores. I came back with two large bags full of wonderful fabric for future quilts. One place I went had remnants by the pound. I bought 1.6 pounds at $4 per pound. The highlight of the trip was Fabric Depot in southeastern Portland. I have never seen so much quilting fabric under one roof. The store covers 1.5 acres. If you are so inclined, go to http://www.fabricdepot.com Amazing place!

Last night we stayed in Medford, Oregon at the Windmill Inn. We expected snow over the Siskiyou Pass but woke to sunshine so hurried through showers and breakfast so we could get on the road. We stopped in Williams, CA for pasta at Louis Cairos. This restaurant is a legend along I-5. We had the Louis garlic bread. That's what they are famous for; the bread is smothered with garlic pieces that have been cooked in butter. The many pieces of garlic that fell off the bread were added to my penne pasta in a pesto sauce which I brought home for this evening's dinner. I can hardly wait. Kerry has leftovers too.

So what does tomorrow bring? Certainly a more austere food menu and time on the treadmill. Dorothy was right, there is no place like home.