July!

July was a busy month!!

First, Lisa and Dave came to visit, and we had so much fun!!  We packed in MANY activities - including...

1) a trip to Guy and Mae's for ribs...

2) a surprise birthday party for Mom: )...

 

3) a trip to the bowling alley...

4) a trip to the Sandbar...

5) and many lunches, dinners, etc. together!  I'm so glad they were able to come!  We had a great time with them, and enjoyed getting to know Dave a little bit better!  The last time Dave was in Lawrence...Nick and I were getting married: )

We had other fun in events in July as well!

- Stephani and Bobby got married!!

- Nick's sister and fam were here...and Callie got to meet her cousin Max!!

I love Callie: )

The picture and video below reminded me of my sweet puppy, Cal: )

North Carolina Anniversary Trip - Monday

Unfortunately, Monday came quickly: (

We woke up, and then we had some anniversary pictures taken by Jamie of J and J Photography. They turned out great, and they will be a wonderful way to remember our anniversary and lovely NC!











We spent a little bit more time with Grandmom and Granddad, and we had one more delicious meal before heading back to the airport! This trip was MUCH NEEDED, and I can't wait to go back! Love you, Grandmom and Granddad!!

North Carolina Anniversary Trip - Sunday

Sunday was our anniversary - and probably our most relaxing day: )

We slept in a little bit, and then we had a bit of an ordeal trying to rescue the car from the parking garage! Asheville is kind of like downtown Lawrence because street parking and parking lot space is limited. Nick parked the car the day before in a parking garage a few blocks away, but he forgot his wallet Sunday morning and had to come back to the hotel in order to retrieve it. The good news was that the hotel refunds the parking fee, so we got our money back after he paid!

We drove back to Grandmom and Granddad's, and we spent the rest of our vacation at their house. We had pizza and smoothies for lunch - and Klondike bars: ) Nick and Granddad rested for a while, and I spent time chatting with Grandmom. She told me about a book - Womansong - that her neighbor wrote, and it sounded like something I would like! Grandmom called the author, Gwen Suesse, and she came right over! Grandmom purchased a copy for me, and Gwen signed it! I started it, but I had to put it down to read the book club book (Unveiled: The Hidden LIves of Nuns). I just orded our next pick (The Abortionist's Daughter), so I hope to read soon! I think it will help me as I sort out some of the current struggles I am facing after quitting my job, etc.

Later in the afternoon we decided to go for a swim! Oh how I wish I could be in NC for two weeks at a time like when I was little - sometimes I forget how relaxing it is there! We lathered up with sunscreen and sat in the sun to heat up, and then we spent some time in the water - SO fun! We didn't have a ball (We'll have to put it on the list for next year!), so we played catch with an empty water bottle: ) Such a great time!


Before long, it was time to start dinner! Grandmom made a cute - and yummy - little platter of food to snack on while Nick cooked the steaks on the grill.

So thoughtful!


Grillin' some steaks: )


Dinner was delicious, and sitting around the kitchen table reminded me of all of the years that I sat there i the past. For me, there is definitely something special about growing up with a tradition and then being able to share that tradition with Nick. After our NC visits, he always says that he can't wait to go back: ) For our anniversary dessert, Grandmom picked out a FANTASTIC lemon cake - this one maybe! (I even had a second piece for a late-night snack!).


We spent some of the evening looking through old pictures and sharing stories; it was an lovely evening - the kind that I wish we could have more often! I wish Grandmom and Granddad's house was just a few minutes away!

North Carolina Anniversary Trip - Saturday

Saturday morning we slept in, and it was awesome! We headed downstairs for our gourmet breakfast, and everything we had was DELICIOUS! I had the cinnamon battered french toast and Nick had an omelet. SO SO SO good. We were SO full! We quickly packed up and took a few pics before we headed for Asheville.

Our beautiful bed!! I wish I would have taken pictures before we destroyed the room - maybe next time: )


View from our room - amazing!!


Our next stop was Asheville, NC - one of my favorite cities! We had lunch at Neo Cantina. We had never heard of it, but we were in the mood for some Mexican food! Yummy: )



We thought Mom would like this triple-decker chip!


Our next stop was the Biltmore Estate! I have visited the Biltmore several times, but this was Nick's first trip!

To give you an idea of the size of the Biltmore, look at the little people behind Nick!


We went on the tour of the house, and then we had some ice cream and tried to cool off a bit! The house is NOT air conditioned, and this was one hot day! We drove over to the Antler Hill Village. I walked around and did some shopping while Nick took a little snooze in the car: )


Next, we completed the complimentary wine tasting...and shipped home six bottles: ) Because it was our anniversary, we also enjoyed a complimentary glass of champagne!


Although we had originally planned to eat dinner in the Antler Hill Village, we decided to check into our hotel and see what was nearby. We settled on Tallgary's Pub and sat outside to relax. We had decided on a night out and were hesitant to leave, but we wandered around a little bit...before heading back to Tallgary's: ) We sat inside when we returned, and we rocked out to the live band!





Great day and night!

North Carolina Anniversary Trip - Friday

I had a few weeks between my last day of teaching and my first day of my summer class, so Nick and I scheduled an anniversary trip for our first anniversary! We decided to visit NC, so we could celebrate our anniversary and spend time with my grandparents! We had SO SO SO much fun! It felt like we hadn't spent much time together because I was so busy at the end of the school year, and this gave us a chance to relax!

We reached NC late on a Thursday night - in fact, it was actually Friday morning (after 12AM) when reached our hotel! Friday morning we went straight to my grandparents' house in Tryon, NC. My grandparents' house and the surrounding area is probably my most favorite place in the world! It is BEAUTIFUL and so peaceful! Tryon is so close to SC, so we visited both states during our (too-short) stay.

Tryon on the map!


Tryon Horse


I LOVE hugs, and it was SO good to hug my grandparents: ) Nick and I were not able to make it out to NC last summer, so I hadn't seen them since our trip in 2008!

After a yummy lunch - with Klondike bars for dessert! - Nick and I made our way to Victoria Valley Vineyards for a tasting! I enjoyed the wines more than Nick did, but we agreed that the atmosphere was AWESOME!

Overlooking some of the tiered landscape!


Nick taking pics with his phone: )


Parking Lot Pic


Vineyards


After our tasting, we purchased a glass to enjoy on the terrace. We are people watchers, and we always wonder what other people's lives our like. The other people on the terrace appeared to be local people who just have this little vineyard/deli tucked away in their neighborhood. It was a Friday afternoon, so it was clear that some of the people were starting the weekend with a glass of wine on the terrace with a friend or spouse. We definitely wish there was something like this right by our house in Lawrence, but I think we'll have to keep dreaming: (

The rest of this day was unbelievable! When planning our vacation, we decided to splurge for our anniversary! We stayed at La Bastide in Traveler's Rest, SC.


After dropping our stuff off in our room (which we found out is the most requested room and is Kurt Russell's favorite room!), we headed down for wine and cheese! We snuggled on the couch and filled up on flavorful cheeses, crackers, walnuts, fruit...and wine: ) There were some other guests there, but the quickly left because they were preparing for a wedding at the inn the following evening. We went for a walk in order to see the full landscape and to see the vineyards!

Vineyard


Grapes


We headed back up to our room to freshen up before our dinner reservation, and we took a look at the pantry full of food and drinks: )

View from our room - SO pretty!


Guest Pantry: )


Dinner at La Bastide was one of the best dining experiences I have ever had! SO SO SO good! We were the only ones there for a while, so we had the waiter's full attention. We shared a bottle of wine, and we both decided on the seared filet mignon. It was one of the best steaks I have ever had, and I can't even begin to describe the potatoes! The chef came out to talk with us, and he told us about this easy video recipe! I haven't tried to make it yet - because it looks a little more difficult and time consuming than I had hoped: (

YUM!


Happy anniversary!!


When we reached our room after dinner, there were candles and chocolates waiting for us! We were surprised and delighted: ) I am so happy we chose La Bastide - I can't think of a better way to celebrate our first year together!