LAST weekend, on the other hand, we spent basking in the sun and couldn't get enough of it. After a very rainy work week the weather was perfect and we were itching to take advantage of it. It was the type of weekend I wish I could duplicate over and over again in the summer months. Here's how our sun-filled weekend went!
Although it's great to sleep in, the best Saturdays, in my opinion, are the ones where you wake up early. You can fit so much more fun into your day! My alarm was set for 5:45AM. I had to be at the station to meet friends at 7AM to head to Asheville's very first official Color Run! Unfortunately, I didn't set my alarm right and it never went off. I found myself scrambling to head out the door. There was no way I was missing out on picking up some coffee from Starbucks no matter how late I was! I can't function this early without it. Luckily for me, everyone was running 5 minutes behind, so all was well. Whew!
Also, lucky for me, my friends had everything planned out ahead of time, right down to our outfits. For a mere $20, Julie (in pink) found us matching tutus, gloves, headbands and tank tops. We were rockin' it!
Tessa (in purple), even personalized our tanks with our team name, Color Us Badd (pretty clever, huh?) and our names using puffy paint. Can you tell she's a teacher?
Yellow was my color and I felt a little more like a sun-shiny ballerina than a runner. I was totally fine with that! I haven't been able to run as much as of late, so the idea of running that morning had me worried.
I took this picture half way through the run. There were SO many people participating that it was more of walk and nearly impossible to run competitively, a bit of relief for me! It was estimated that nearly 7,000 people showed up and when I saw this sea of white ahead of me, I believed it.
I didn't really get any great pictures during and after the the run. It's very messy and the plastic bag I held my phone in didn't make it easy to snap away. To read more about our experience at the Color Run and to see some great after photos, head on over to my friend's blog, Running In A Skirt! She pens it perfectly!
After the run, I headed home to Ryan and Keira. She was fascinated by my blue-pinkish hands and yellow hair! She's still talking about it. I jumped in the shower and was quite surprised at how easy all the color washed away. Apart from blowing blue out of my nose for awhile, it was like it never happened!
It was still early in the day (benefit to getting up early!) so we decided to head to the Biltmore Estate for a picnic lunch. It was the first time we've been able to use our new annual passes! Ryan and I get free media passes every year and we've never been able to upgrade them to annuals, that is until this year. When we took my Grandma Emma in June, we found out that they changed their policy and that we could upgrade at a discount. It was a no-brainer! Co-workers take note!
The property is large and a little overwhelming. I'm sure the more we come on the more we'll learn to navigate the roads. We weren't really sure where we could stop to picnic. We drove past Antler Village and ended up parking near a small pond where a couple other families were also fishing and lunching.
I think we came upon the boat used in the Biltmore Estate commercials last year. I was tempted to take it out but didn't want to cause any trouble on our first visit. But really, it's just sitting there and it doesn't look tethered down. It's practically yelling row me out! I believe the grand building in the back ground is the Inn.
We set up our blankets in a big open field across from the pond. Even Dutchie got to come along! I'm so glad they allow pets on the property, which was a huge factor in getting the annual passes. It's fun for the whole family!
We picked up a foot long from Ingles. Spicy Italian on honey wheat... yum!
Keira got a Lunchable. Of course she went for the Oreo cookie first. I didn't realize they were in there or I would have hidden them until they she finished her meat and cheese!
We really do love picnics! It was awesome to step away from the television, the computer and our phones and into one of the most amazing backdrops we've even seen. There is so much we have yet to explore on the Biltmore Estate and I look forward to all the memories we'll be able to create in the coming year. While I don't wish summer to leave, I am looking forward to Fall & Winter here!
There weren't a lot of people around us after we finished eating, so we were able to let Dutchie off her leash for a fun game of fetch.
These are some of my favorite photos of the day! We have a small yard and Dutchie HATES dog parks. It was awesome to be able to let her stretch her legs and run around without feeling intimated or scared. She is very good at playing fetch!
Like me, Dutchie wears her emotions on her face. You can totally tell when she's happy and on this day, she was very happy!
After we tired Dutch out, we decided to explore the pond and the road around it. Just a few minutes into our stroll we came across this little fella! Ryan is terrified of snakes, so this is the closest he let me or Keira get to it. It was probably harmless, but we quickly moved on!
While we were eating lunch it felt like we were the only family around, but
as soon as we starting walking along the pond we passed nearly half a
dozen families or friends fishing, eating or swimming in the French Broad River,
which was on the opposite side of this little road. Everyone was very friendly and complimented our little girl on her cuteness. I have to agree, she's pretty cute.
Of course, we had to take a selfie. Not the easiest to do with a DSLR but I think it came out ok. A little artsy!
We headed home, but their was still a lot of sunshine left in the day - again a benefit of getting started early, coupled with a long summer day! Keira took a quick nap and then we headed to our neighborhood's pool.
Keira's not a fish by any means. I wouldn't say she LOVES the water, but she does enjoy going to the pool. She likes to splash around and push Ryan below the surface from the safety of her floaty, but God forbid you try to put her under water! After a lot of coaxing we did get her to plug her nose and dunk, a huge step forward. Lots of high-fives were made, but we could not get her to do it a second time! Oh well, baby steps.
You work up an appetite being out in the sun all day! Before the Color Run, my friend Holly (in blue) had mentioned blue cheese burgers she had made the night before. Suddenly I had a craving! I had to try her recipe out for myself. I picked up some blue cheese and cream cheese which made up the topping. It was perfected with caramelized onions and a side of sweet potato fries. It was like summer in your mouth! Thank you, Holly! We will definitely make it again.
After church the next day, we hit up the Farmers Market in search of peaches. Score! I wasn't sure if her tastes had changed since last summer, but Keira loves them just as much as she did the year before. It's like catching up with a best friend you haven't seen in awhile, but carrying on like you've never been apart. Southern peaches = heaven. She could eat them all day.
Sunday turned out to be just as beautiful as Saturday, so I brought out Keira's mini pool. (Well, the day was just as beautiful.... the night was a different story.) The pool is really too small for her now, especially after she fills it with ALL of her toys, but she enjoys it none-the-less. Most importantly it fits on our back porch and I can watch her while I work in the kitchen. Peaches, after all, meant I NEEDED to bake a peach pie! I pulled up last year's blog entry with the recipe.
Yes, sometimes it's best and necessary to rest from the craziness of the week, but other times it's even better to get out and just do! In many ways it can be more rejuvenating then a quiet weekend at home. Luckily summer's not over yet and we have many more weekends to fill before the cold comes. I say, bring it on! It's what summer is all about... lots of sun and lots of family!
Btw, here is the pie. We didn't get enough. A second one is in our future!
