What a great weekend

This past weekend was so great. I had one of the best birthdays ever!!

Friday - Dad came to town. The three of us went to City Beverage (a great local restaurant) and enjoyed dinner. We went back to our place and chatted for a bit. It was so good to see Dad and to be able to catch up with him.

Saturday - Bill took me to a surprise dinner at Second Empire in Raleigh. He had me convinced we were going to a different restaurant. I was completely surprised. The restaurant made a menu that had "Happy Birthday, Susan" written across the top with the date. The chef even signed it for me. I had a fantastic meal and a wonderful bottle of wine. Bill really enjoyed his food, too. For dessert, they brought out a plate with Happy Birthday written in chocolate. It was fabulous.

Sunday - Bill, Sammy, and I took off for the NC mountains. We enjoyed the beautiful leaves changing on our drive up. We stopped in Black Mountain for lunch in our favorite little pizza place, then shopped downtown. The weather was so nice - sunny and about 70 degrees in October! We got some beer and headed to our hotel. The Madison Inn is a kitschy place in Black Mountain. Each room has a different theme. We were in Cedar's Retreat -a 2 room, 1 and 1/2 bath suite with a 2 person shower made on stone. It was so cute. We chilled Sunday night and watched TV. It was so relaxing!!

Monday - I finally got to open my presents. I am very good at not opening them until my b-day, but then all bets are off! I got some great gifts and even a surprise. My aunt got a federal tax refund check from my mom's estate. That was a nice chunk of change I was not expecting! We went in to Asheville for the day stopping in Biltmore Village and then downtown. It was another beautiful day to walk around and just enjoy the day. We had dinner at the inn - really great seafood in the mountains, no less!

Tuesday - We had breakfast at the inn - a full, freshly made breakfast is complementary. It includes fruit, eggs, meat, toast, potatoes, and pancakes. Not healthy, but it sure was good!! We left to head home, but quickly changed course. We wound up going to Linville Falls and seeing the water. We were so close to Blowing Rock, we decided to go there as well. We wandered the town and had a relaxing afternoon. We even got back home in time for 6 trick-or-treaters.

I had a fantastic, fabulous birthday. I have to thank my wonderful husband, my cute dog, my friends, and family for making it so wonderful. Love you!!!