A family visit.

My family spent the past week (my sister's final Spring Break of high school) with us in Charleston. Though I wasn't able to take any days off to spend with them, evenings were filled with family dinners, dusky beach walks, Mario Kart races, and lots of laughing. Even though it's a lot quieter and calmer without the whole brood here, I already miss them.

(Clockwise from top left: a Monza lunch date with my sis and her boyfriend / paparazzi-style shot of my folks strollin' / a sunrise Easter service on the pier at Folly Beach / the Pip doing a somber impression of the Easter Bunny.)

Eat and drink, repeat.

The theme of most, if not all, of my weekends is "eat and drink (and thrift)." Last weekend was no different:

• Wine and cheese and gossip at Bin 152
• shepherd's pie at Leaf (not pictured)
• a Saturday bike ride to brunch at 3 Little Birds
• vintage suitcase and a cool old drawer curb finds on the way home (not pictured)
• amazing Ferragamos found at a thrift store (not pictured)
• delicious ramen at Kanpai
• a hazy, gray Sunday
• a boisterous brunch and tasty bloody Marys at the Variety Store brightened things up 

A new year and a new year.

So, it's 2012, and as of this weekend, I am 28 years old. This is the first time I have ever been a little bit scared for a birthday. Everyone I've told this to over the age of 28 has told me to shut up, but everyone younger than 28 has nodded furiously with furrowed brows. I am now in the middle of my late 20s, and it's weird. But that's OK! It really is! That's what I've been telling myself in the mirror each morning for the past few days.

On my birthday, we threw a Celebration Party to group together Housewarming, Christmas, New Years, and me getting closer to being middle-aged, and this is a little of what it looked like:

Over my nearly five years here (has it really been that long?), I've met such fun people. It was really neat to get them all together in the same place. I actually probably wasn't that good of a hostess, because I was having too much fun playing Mario Kart and making s'mores outside. Hopefully everyone else had a good evening, because, for me, it was a perfect way to ring in my 28th year.

Mountains and apples and more.

The weekend was as lovely as I expected. Warm, beautiful days; chilly, cozy nights. Good food, family, long drives, piles of apples, a trip to Asheville, a stop at the French Broad River, outdoor cooking, and a pretty drive home.

Mom's Day Weekend

Mother's Day is this Sunday, which is exciting, because it gives me the opportunity to repost my favorite picture of meine Mutti:

I'm not able to spend the day with her, but I did get to spend parts of the past three weekends with her, which was lovely. She's the first person I call most mornings, and the first I call when I need help or advice. I also think there is no better accomplishment than making her laugh.

Happy Mother's Day to the greatest one of all.

Weekend