April in North Carolina

So, I'm getting caught up on my April North Carolina trips! I've been twice and plan on going again next weekend... In the beginning of April, Darrin and I went to stay with his younger brother in Raleigh. We went to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers play and it was an awesome show! I have never seen Darrin so pumped before! The next day, the guys took me around Duke University and I was in awe. The campus was so gorgeous and it made me want to be back in college again. Miss Maddie Duke got a picture in front of the chapel of course! We had lunch in Chapel Hill and saw UNC. Their sorority/fraternity row was so beautiful. It reminded me of the houses in Palo Alto.

Then last weekend, my Mom came to visit! She flew into Charlotte and we stayed the night. The next morning, I showed her around the area and she was very impressed. Then we headed off for a two hour drive to Asheville, NC. I had no idea this town was so artsy! I felt like I was in Santa Cruz again. We had lunch downtown at Mayfel's which is a New Orleans style restaurant. The fried green tomatoes with goat cheese and muffuletta were sooo good! This place had such a cool atmosphere and loved how they were dog friendly;)
I found this Antique Tobacco Barn that is #1 in the Western NC. My Mom and I drove up and our jaws dropped. This place was 77k sq. ft. and we had only an hour to look before they closed! This store was amazing and not like the crappy antique malls. I wanted everything, but found one item I will cherish forever! That will be a separate post:)
That night we wanted some Carolina bbq, so I found this cute place online that had great ratings. We had the best ribs, collard greens and mac and cheese! We had the best Bloody Mary's too! They make a BLT Bloody Mary, which we didn't try. It had bacon, lettuce and tomato all stuffed inside the drink. Talk about Southern! Yep, we ate pretty well on this trip.


Our last day was spent at the Biltmore Estate. One of the most beautiful house tours I've ever been too. It makes Hearst Castle look tiny!
This weekend we are going back to Asheville again and it will be fun to experience it with Darrin this time.

Miss Maddie Duke at Duke Chapel.
Who's named after her Daddy's favorite bball team.

HUGE!!

The Biltmore Estate

The Estates Backyard. It was a gorgeous day.

My big redneck NASCAR weekend!

My first NASCAR experience in Martinsville, VA was a great one! 

I remember watching a couple of races with my Dad on t.v. while growing up, but NASCAR is not a big deal on the west coast. I would have never imagined going to a race, but now that it's on in our house eleven months of the year on Sunday afternoon's, I am beginning to like it. Mostly, I like the goss on the racers and the wrecks. Then Darrin fills me in on the rest, ha!...The past weekend was quite an experience and quite a party! The weather was absolutely perfect, but the ticks were out in full-force! I had a total of 7 blood sucking ticks attached to my skin! I guess that's the nature of camping in a field;)...We had a group of about fourteen and we all wore our high fashions from Walmart! Goooood times!

"If you ain't first your last!"--Ricky Bobby

American pride.

Of course you have to have camo solo cups!

Camping field that was right next to the track.

Will's sweet mullet for the weekend!

So stylin'

Chuck who's creeping in the back.

Race time!!!

My man Tony #14 didn't win, but his team mate Ryan Newman won.