Visit with Mom part 3

After Luray Caverns, Mom and I drove back to Warrenton to meet up with my brother and sister-in-law. My brother and I had not set a place to meet. We were going to decide once Mom and I were close. I decided to go to my brother's father-in-law's furniture store. I mentioned this to mom as we approached town. Mom thought that was a really good idea. I nearly fell out of the car laughing because she agreed with something I said. We had been joking all week about our differing opinions.

We met Spade and Bev and Bev's dad, Mr. Rankin, at the furniture. Mr. Rankin is being celebrated for fifty years as a business man in Warrenton. He showed me the accounting general ledger book that he used back in 1966.

On Thursday Mom and I dropped her old tube tv off at the county refuse and recycling center. Then headed to the National Zoo in Washington, DC. I used to live near the zoo and was a frequent visitor. We were mostly wanting to see the pandas.

It turned out to be colder than we had planned. We were dressed for the rain but not the cold so we grabbed a hotdog across from the zoo to try to warm up.

The landscaping at the zoo has grown so much. I guess after 30 years that is what happens. It was surprising and nice to see the trees so tall. The two adult pandas were out in their enclosures so we had no difficulty seeing them. We could not find the entrance to the inside and didn't see the baby panda, Bei Bei.

Thursday evening I did a thorough cleaning of mom's bathroom. Mom didn't seem to happy with me but I think it resulted in a more inviting environment.

Mom and I had a great time traveling around Virginia. It was a great trip.

I've often mentioned how lovely mom's apartment building is. The photo below shows the building as you approach up the drive.

Visit with Mom Part 1

Old PanAm terminal

I arrived late Monday after a big storm passed through northern Virginia. I am very familiar with National airport so made it quickly to the car rental and out to I395.

Tuesday we drove to the Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoah National Park. We stopped in Warrenton, Virginia where I went to all 12 years of school.

Just off Main St. The mural behind us is interesting

We placed flowers at Forrest and Ella Heflin's graves and their son Bernard. The Heflin's were our neighbors and owned a farm.

It was raining by the time we got to Shenandoah National Park. We got a $10 senior annual national park pass and drove Skyline Drive to Skyland Resort. I had reserved a cabin for us for Tuesday night.

Cloudy, foggy, rainy Skyline Drive

The weather was changing by the minute... cloudy, sunny, foggy, windy. The dining hall was positioned for sunset viewing. It looked like we were going to get a good one until the last minute when clouds rolled up from the valley and fog rolled down from the top of the mountain. It was classic.

Fall Sisters

Mom, Aunt Donna and I went to Warrenton to find some fall color. We found it on the site of the old elementary school.