Travel Archives - life from the ground up

Mt. Mitchell and Linville Falls

October 20, 2013 By: Gabecomment

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While we were down in North Carolina last weekend, we took the kids (and my parents) on part of the Blue Ridge Parkway, stopping at Mt. Mitchell and Linville Falls along the way.

Mt. Mitchell is the highest point east of the Mississippi, at about 6700 ft. So that means while C was riding on Papi’s shoulders, he was the highest point east of the Mississippi 🙂 The view is nice from up here, provided there is a view – since it’s high, you’re often driving up into the clouds. S and I were here several years ago, and our view consisted of my hands held in front of my face, plus maybe a few feet beyond that.

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Six months in North Carolina

July 12, 2013 By: Gabecomment

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No, we didn’t, nor are we going to spend six months in NC. We were there for the long holiday weekend, at which point E celebrated her half-birthday (half-birthdays are a big deal around here)! Six months already! And C will be three next month!

Speaking of that boy, what a fish he is – we couldn’t get him out of the water. I don’t know where he comes up with the energy he has, but I wish I could dip into it a little… NC was nice, similar weather to here right now. We had a couple pop-up showers each day, but no total washouts. Good to get away for a bit.

I only let him ride it alone for a couple minutes, and he managed not to hit anything.

“Enough with the pictures already!”

Helping with the laundry.

And just in case you were concerned, that first caption is totally bogus.

Restaurant review: Early Girl Eatery

November 27, 2012 By: Gabecomment

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“A farm-to-table Southern comfort food experience” is how the Early Girl Eatery describes herself. This Asheville establishment serves breakfast all day, and has a nice variety of regular dishes and daily specials to fit your mood. As with most everything in this city, it’s a bit quirky, but in a good way. It’s a good place to stop for a bite to eat for lunch, which is what we did after some walking around.

We had C, which complicates anything we try to do, as he cannot sit still or keep his attention on anything for more than a minute or two (not that we expect a 2 1/2 year-old to be able to). The staff was very accommodating though, and brought out not only crayons, but an entire bucket full of little toys. Not that it made an ounce of difference or kept him satisfied any longer, but it was a nice gesture. This boy is just not one for sitting and playing with toys. What kept his attention the most was the squeeze bottle full of jelly on the table – he’d put some on his spoon, then eat it, a little bit at a time. Whatever keeps him happy.

Quite coordinated – maybe he has a future as a heart surgeon.

S tried the sweet potato black bean cakes, and I had the meatloaf. I’m pretty sure I’ve never ordered meatloaf anywhere, because that’s one of those things that just doesn’t compare to homemade, but it was really good. We had a variety of sides, which were mostly pretty good. The grits were on the bland side, but the house biscuits were fluffy and delicious. C managed to eat his applesauce before trying to climb out of his chair to go outside and see the music (one of the quirks of Asheville is the street music – almost literally on every corner; some are quite good, and some, well, C could have joined in and nobody would have noticed the difference).

All in all, Early Girl gets a 5 out of 7. The food was good, service was very nice, and the prices… well, Dad paid for us, but the prices were fine too 🙂 Stop in for a visit if you’re ever that way.

Christmas at the Biltmore

November 26, 2012 By: Gabe1 Comment

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While in NC, we took a little day trip to Asheville, and also spent an evening at the Biltmore for their Candlelight Christmas event. The Biltmore is an old Vanderbilt mansion (the Vanderbilts had a lot of money), actually the largest private residence in America, and is extravagant, to put it mildly. We visited a few years ago when we were in Asheville, but wanted to head back when everything’s all nice and lit up for the holidays. Of course, I couldn’t take pictures inside the house (there are some on the website), but I got a few outside – any assumptions you make based on looking at the exterior are probably accurate 🙂

Playin’ in the sand

November 21, 2012 By: Gabecomment

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Forget the fact that it’s November – granted, it’s North Carolina, so it was a bit warmer, but there’s still a chill in the air out of the sun, and the water’s certainly not warm. We did go back to “Carolinas,” as C calls it, a couple weeks ago, and not surprisingly, he insisted on getting wet and sandy. And silly us, we didn’t pack appropriate attire, thinking he wouldn’t want to be in the water. Of course, after two years, we should have known better and at least packed some water shoes. But he would wade out slowly in his tennis shoes, just getting his toes wet, then his feet, then eventually he was in up to his knees. And not just once, every day we were there. We went through lots of socks and pants. At least he had a good time.

Just chilling by the fire, eating s’mores. Or at least whatever didn’t end up on his face.