DIVA.CHRONICLES : Birthday and Mountain Fun!

My mother's birthday was last Friday, so I decided to make dinner for her on Thursday night for the big reveal of her special birthday present! Grandfather and I have been cahoots for 2 months or so trying to order some cognac boots my mother fell in love with. They came about 2 weeks ago, and my mother was so surprised because she didn't think the boots would arrive for another month or two. I was very proud of myself for finding the boots for her, and also for making a fancy dinner! Since I'm still learning how to cook, this was pretty gourmet for me.

Video of my mother opening her birthday boots!

Menu:

Aperitif: Prosecco (to celebrate my mother buying a little condo in Southern Pines!)
Appetizer: Cantelope & prosciutto (one of my mother's favorites)
Entree: Balsamic-glazed pork chops, roasted beets with horseradish quark (quark is sold at Whole Foods!), & roasted okra
Dessert: Mexican chocolate pots-de-creme (EASY!)

Cantaloupe & Prosciutto

Roasted Beets

Mexican Chocolate Pots-de-Creme

She immediately put the boots on!

Having my mother and Louise over for dinner was only my and Kyle's second dinner party. I want to be better about having people over, because it is a lot of fun and more enjoyable than going out to eat (in my opinion. Although y'all know I love to eat out because other people are better at making food than me (for now!)).

On Friday, my mother and I headed to Boone/Blowing Rock for a weekend in the mountains! We stayed in the same cabin as Kyle & I did when we went to the mountains for our anniversary. We had great fun driving on the parkway on the way into town, partially due to all the butterflies fluttering around!

On Saturday we watched a great sunrise, ate lunch at ODB (excellent as usual), went on a perfect little hike, right in downtown Blowing Rock, and then did some damage in the stores in Blowing Rock. I don't know how we've been going to BR my whole life and never knew about the Glen Burney Falls hike just off of the main street in BR. Check out the hike HERE!!

Moses Cone manor in the fog.

We had a great lazy Sunday morning - it was foggy and drizzly up the mountain where we were staying, so we had the screen doors open to listen to the rain while we drank our coffee. I was so happy and relaxed because it was so serene! We very slowly made our way out of town with another lunch at ODB and a great stream stop along the parkway. When the clouds finally lifted, we had great visibility of the mountain range! The mountains were almost an electric blue!