Tapitas with the family!

After living in Spain for the year, Brian and I decided that it would be fun to cook up some tapitas for our family. That way, they had a chance to try some of the food that we ate and loved while we were living in Spain.

Here was the menu for the evening:

queso manchego

montaditos con queso filadelfia y camarones

falafel

pescaito al albahaca

solomillo al roquefort

Of course, they were some minor adjustments that we made so that it wouldn't be a culture shock:
1. Everyone had their own plate
2. There was no paying attention to the "lo de la vergüenza"
3. No tapita-size plates - I'd say we each ate the equivalent of a ración!

As you can see, everything was a success!

Birthday Dinner

That night, Brian and I met Madre, Padre, Heather, her boyfriend, Adam, Aunt Dee, and Grandpa for a little dinner. This picture might fall under the "You know you're a tourist when..." category, but it's one of my favorites all the same!

Birthday Lunch at Panera

After Madre and I spent the morning in the Pisgah National Forest, we met Padre and Heather at Panera to have lunch together. I don't think that it could have been a better birthday!

Pisgah National Forest

To celebrate my birthday, Madre and I took a scenic drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway through the Pisgah National Forest.

Along the way, we saw Looking Glass Falls, which measures 30 feet wide and 60 feet tall. Although it is not the largest waterfall in Western North Carolina, it is safe to say that it is among the most popular.

We also stopped at Mount Pisgah to see the views out over the overlooks and the Pisgah Inn. On our way back into town from Mount Pisgah, we stopped off at the Blue Ridge Overlook.

Having been born and raised in the Asheville area, it was interesting feeling like a tourist for the day!

Lake Julian

If you are from Asheville, then I am sure that Lake Julian needs no explaining. For those non-Ashevillians, it is a little lake located in South Asheville where you can feed the ducks, have a picnic, etc.

As a homecoming gathering of sorts, we got all of our family together for a picnic at Lake Julian. Everyone brought a covered dish, so there was lots of food to go around. That seems to be a common theme with Asheville so far…

Elisha and Kennis

While we were in Asheville, we stopped by and visited the Flanders family. I thought that this picture was adorable – do you recognize the jewelry that Kennis is wearing?

Dusk in the Mountains

This was a picture that I took one night of a wind chime.

Madre and Padre's Front Yard

After being in Sevilla for the year, one of the most shocking things I noticed when we got back to North Carolina was just how much you can hear all of the birds and the bugs make noise. I didn’t realize I had missed that so much until I could hear it all again!

Check out the last picture - there were little birds eating the seed that had fallen from Madre's bird feeder.

Home Sweet Home

Aren't the mountains beautiful?

Birthday Dinner at Scott and Chrissy's

To celebrate mine and Uncle Scott’s birthdays, we had a family gathering (with fabulous cake!) at Scott and Chrissy’s house in Woodfin, North Carolina. Once again, I found myself in a rocking chair on the front porch gazing off into the mountains trying to digest what seemed an insurmountable amount of food!