weekending

this weekend started with my birthday, number thirty three
complete with a visit from my mama and the compilation of my annual gratitude list

there were blueberry muffins and coffee for breakfast, prepared by papa before
he headed out for the day to finish up a week of training

there were weak plans for a dinner out, but with no reservations, the three places I was interested in trying were all booked.  well, except for 9:30 and 10:15 openings... but we're not all that wild
and crazy, I'm afraid.  especially not with our little lady in tow

so it was leftovers for dinner, and he brought dessert from the always fabulous French Broad Chocolate Lounge.  lots of dessert.  lots of chocolate.

Claire stapled together a bunch of hot pink paper to make me a present- it was a book/card/"something I could look through".... and of all the scraps she could have chosen from to cut up and glue on the front, she found a piece of paper with my birth date on it and placed it front and center.  What are the odds?

Saturday was ballet of course.  I let her sleep in but then rushed her through breakfast so we wouldn't be late.  Silly mama, thinking I was doing her service but really it was the opposite.  Ah well.  Mothering is like that for me often, a series of realizations that my good intentions don't quite pan out like I'd hoped.  A work in progress, I am.

We made it just in time and I grabbed a chair and brought it out to the balcony with tea, toast and yogurt in hand, along with a book and then some friendly conversation with another ballet parent.

Afterwards, it was time for our weekly standing date with the market.  After another month the market will end until May and I'll mourn that loss for a bit but find new ways to treasure Saturday mornings.  Extended coffee and tea dates with friends, perhaps.  In front of the wood stove, eventually.

This morning Mike came home from work with a beautiful bouquet of wildflowers in hand, and there was coffee ready when I got up.  We checked out the garden and ate breakfast, then headed to town for some shopping, with a 1pm lunch reservation at Curate as the eventual goal.

It was a beautiful day in Asheville today~ fall blue sky, just the right ratio of sun to clouds.....

We had a great lunch.  A lingering-over-many-tapas-plates kind of lunch that ended with a watermelon and roasted strawberry sorbet topped with honey, frozen/powdered goat cheese, edible flowers and mint, and honey candy.  yum.

It was a nice weekend.

I'd like to do some fall exploring this week.  Maybe Hickory Nut Gap Farm, maybe a drive up the parkway to Mount Mitchell, followed by a little hike.  Maybe head back to Catawba Falls.  Next Saturday is the True Nature Country Fair, and I'm planning on taking Claire, doing some exploring, and taking classes in vermicomposting and a home dairy class.  Also, thinking I need not blink for the next four weeks or so, at least not in my waking hours.  Fall is so quick and I don't want to miss a bit of it.