Dolce Vita

Chicken fingers with honey mustard dip.

When we first moved to Richmond our daughter’s family introduced us to the Dolce Vita  restaurant. We were impressed by the staff’s efficiency and friendliness and their swift attention to our dining needs.
Now it is five years later and we have visited a number of restaurants near us, but this is the one we return to again and again. What initially attracted us to them still prevails.
Dolce Vita is a family place with the emphasis on family. It has a real Italian ambiance without being overpowering. There is a variety of entree’s from which to select. A family may dine here without breaking the bank.

Lib and I were there for a light supper. I had chicken fingers with a honey mustard dip, she had a sampler platter of calamari, onion rings, and cheese stuffed ravioli.  Delicious garlic rolls complimented the meal.  

We went early before the main dinner crowd had arrived so we had a relaxing meal together.. 

Where they cook it....

 

A Perfect Fall Day

Blue Ridge Fall

My Kingdom for a Quilt....

For some time now Lib and I had discussed buying a new quilt for our bed. The one there now had been there for quite some time and was beginning to look a little frayed and timeworn. I knew sort of the design I was looking for (for most of our marriage Lib has picked furniture patterns and other household items based on her aesthetics as we have irreconcilable differences there. Now I get to pick and she is slowly coming around to my artistic values. Sometimes there are just either/or choices and one or the other has to acquiece.)

It’s been quite an adventure. First I went online and showed her the sort of patterns I was interested in. They are strong, big, colorful and usually geometric. I like patterns that are bold and in your face so to speak. These were  what I was interested in. Quilts with similar patterns are available online for about $800-$2000. They are really works of art and way beyond what we could afford. The two on the left were types that appealed to me

Last week we went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond and perused the choices they had. Not quite as dramatic but similar in a more subdued way and for around $200. We had heard of a Mennonite Quilt Auction in Harrisonburg this past Saturday so thought we might make a trip there to see and appraise quilts, the Fall leaves on the mountains, and perhaps visit Lib’s shut in sister.

 We were on the road by 7:00 am and arrived at the Rockingham County Fair Grounds near Harrisonburg where the auction was held. This is no small affair. Money from the auction goes to support Mennonite charities and there are literally hundreds of  quilts from which to choose. We registered, received a bidding number and entered a very large auditorium like room. There must have been at least  800 or more interested people gathered there. At 9:30 the action began.
Suffice it to say the event is well organized. Between the large and beautiful quilts up for bid there were art items, furniture ,and knick knacks. One bidder paid $80 for a large hot cup of fresh Brunswick stew! It was entertaining, but we realized that unless we were prepared to
pay a reasonable king's ransom, we were not going to leave with one of the really beautiful ones. They were bid very close to the prices seen online.We left the auction at noon and went to the Dayton Farmer's Market for lunch and some more looking around. Next we spent some time with Lib's shut in sister and her husband in Bridgewater. The last picture is from the overlook on Afton Mountain on the return trip home. Leaves were still green. A good day all in all.

At the auction

Lib looking over goodies at Farmer's Market