We finished up our doctor/dental appointments on Thursday of last week and pulled out of the NC State Fairgrounds on Friday morning. We were headed west toward Nashville to visit our daughter and son-in-law and our 4 grandkids.
A couple days before, I had gotten an email from our friends Laura and Bruce. They were thinking about a weekend in the Statesville NC area and touring some wineries. They were wondering what our travel plans were and if that would fit into our schedule. It was perfect timing. We agreed to meet at Van Hoy Farms in Harmony, NC on Friday afternoon and do some wine tasting on Saturday.
Before Friday arrived, our group had grown to 6 with Tricia and Dan joining us too. All 6 of us had taken part in the Cheraw SC First Annual Carolina Clan Reunion. We were really looking forward to a fun weekend! Saturday also happened to be Rick’s birthday, so there was no better way to celebrate 
We took the scenic route to Harmony, avoiding the interstate until the very end. We pulled into Van Hoy Farms, the last to arrive. The owners had given us large pull through water and electric sites right by the office so we could be together. Everyone else that arrived chose the FHU sites in the back of the property, so we had this area all to ourselves.

We commandeered a nearby picnic table and, with the owners permission, dug a fire pit for a campfire later. We found out later that these sites were usually not used except when there was some big activity going on, so they were not equipped with the standard table and fire ring. No problem for us. We are nothing if not creative :)

The ladies had the best job of all! Supervising 

A cool front had come through for the weekend, so a fire was the perfect solution. While Bruce and Dan started the fire, Rick manned the grill. That’s Dan with the blow torch. No overkill here!

Rick grilled brats, we all added sides and before you knew it, we had dinner.


Marshmallow roasting and Mexican S’mores for dessert…Yum!


It was a great evening right down to the sliver of a moon.

Saturday morning, we hit the wine trail. We stopped at 4 wineries and 1 Amish store. This is the view from our first stop.

As the 3 of us ladies were wandering through their gift shop, we came across a kitchen towel that sent us all into waves of laughter. It brought back memories of Cheraw and a private little joke. So, Nancy Mills, this is for you! (Trust me, you had to be there :) !!!)

After the first 2 wineries, we stopped at the Amish store, purchased some lunch items and had a picnic lunch on their porch. I was so busy eating, I forgot to take a picture :) We finished off with the remaining 2 wineries and we are now the proud owners of 8 more wine glasses! Each of our tastings included the glass. I have stashed them for future use :)
Once we got home, another fire was started and we sat around and visited until dinner. Laura had a big pot of chili going in her crockpot and it was the perfect day for it. The wind was brisk on Saturday and we decided to eat inside rather than try holding onto our food outside. Laura and Bruce hosted in their 5th wheel. No chili pictures but it sure was good! For dessert, we had a birthday cheesecake.

Tricia and Dan

Laura and Bruce

Rick and Gail

We ended the evening back around the fire, but it was an early night for us all. We had a wonderful day and we were all very tired.
Sunday we all went our separate ways. It will probably be another year before we see each other again but we have great memories to take down the road with us. Thanks for stopping by 