Grandfather Mountain

It has been so long and so much has happened!

So...

I give you the cliff notes version.

Last Wednesday I listened to a storm roll in while I worked on my plan of care.

Alley enjoyed the storm. I cracked the window slightly to let her enjoy some outdoor smells...and I got to listen to the raindrops. 

I finished up the evening with some blueberry tea and Chapter 8 of the book "Pushed".

My plan on Thursday was to rush home after class and get my maternity quiz for the week completed.

Well, I came home and reviewed the material and then looked on blackboard...and...the quiz was not posted! I was a little upset because I wanted to get it out of the way before my mom came into town. 

I ended up knocking out the week's Peds quiz.

I cleaned up a bit and headed to the airport.

RDU does not let you park or wait at the curb to pick someone up. I left too early and ended up making 7 drives around the airport before my Mom was at the curb.

I was glad to see her and we headed straight for Sushi Love.

We each had a salad, sushi roll, and then split some lettuce wraps.

Within the first 5 minutes, my mom was cleaning my back porch.

It was hosed down and ready for the Fall. 

We spent the evening relaxing.

For dinner we went to Bali Hai-my favorite Mongolian place around here (well, the only place).

The next morning we awoke bright and early and headed to Dunkin Donuts.

We hit the road for Linville, NC.

It poured on us half of the ride there. I knew there was rain in the forecast and I was hoping for a miracle.

Well, I got my miracle.

The clouds parted and we entered Linville.

Christmas Tree Farm

 We drove by several Christmas Tree Farms

We entered the road for Grandfather Mountain and began our journey.

It was the first day of Fall and I was glad to spend it in a place where the leaves are already changing colors.

We made many stops on our way up the mountain and saw a lot of wildlife. 

Split Rock

 They have a self-maintained Fudge shop on the mountain. We had to try some. It was yummy...and a bargain!

We had lunch at the cafe and this was the message displayed on my cup. 

The Beautifully Blue
Blue Ridge Mountains 

 Once we made it to the top, the clouds quickly rolled in.

It rained on us while we walked across the bridge.

We took a scenic drive to the Linville Caves.

We passed by a cute little community that had some displays.

Once we made it to the caves, we spent a couple of minutes in the shop before the tour began.

I stuck one of the for sale kittens on top of a real cat. I thought it was entertaining. 

We made it into the cave that was 58 degrees. The fish you see below are fully or partially blind.

We learned that it would take around 4 months for you to go blind if you lived in complete darkness (not really sure if it's true). We also learned that it would take you around 2 weeks to go mad if you got stuck in complete darkness.

After the caves, we headed towards Linville Falls. 

We had to take the Blue Ridge Parkway to get there. It was my first time on the parkway.

 We hiked to the falls and then we were pretty much done for the day.

We had a scenic 45 minute drive to the town of Blowing Rock-where our hotel was located.

We checked in and then had dinner at a hibachi restaurant 6 miles down the road.

We called it a night.

The next morning we went shopping!

The town of Blowing Rock has SEVERAL cute shops with antiques and holiday decorations.

We also stopped at some outlets. I got a VERY good deal on a Coach purse. 50% off plus an additional 30% off after that!

I also got me a pair of Ray Bans to match my mother and my boyfriend.

Here are the new decorations I picked up:

would you believe this was $7?

another $7

69 cents each

$8

Once we made it back to Durham, we picked up some flowers and a wreath. 

Adds a Fall touch to the place.

Sunday we went out for a walk.

What started out like a great idea to show my mom my walking route through the woods ended up being a nightmare. We were immediately chewed up by mosquitos!!! My mom counted 10 on me at one time and they were biting her through her shirt! 

Miserable.

Once we made it up to the main road we were fine.

We had lunch at RockFish.

Then we went and saw Dolphin Tale. Make fun of me all you want, but I loved it. 

A great story.

Monday we had lunch at Noodles and Company. My mom loved it. 

Keep in mind I was trying to introduce her to all my favorite food places while she was in town.

her meal

my meal

We decided to take a drive to Lake Jordan.

It was about a 30 minute drive from my place.

I drew Lance a little note in the sand and sent it to him.

I can't wait to see him next week.

That's right! I'm heading back to Texas next week.

It is our Fall Break and I cannot wait!!!!

That night we cracked open some wine and watched some DVR'd TV shows.

By Tuesday it was time to get back to reality. 

I had to take my mom to the airport and say goodbye.

Not only was my home empty, but I had to study for my Maternity exam.

I spent around 5 hours (6-11) studying. 

By the time I was falling asleep, the sirens started going off. I was in a dreamlike state and I didn't know if I was dreaming or not. All of a sudden it starts thundering and raining.

I didn't fall asleep for 2 more hours because of all the noise.

I woke up early this morning and went up to the school to get some last minute studying in.

By 10:15 I was done and I had survived my first Maternity exam.

Then I had to sit through an hour and half lecture...followed by another 3 hour lecture after that.

I just wanted to come home and sleep.

I stuck it out and decided to run when I got home.

I ended up running 3 miles and then walking another .85

I finished up my Peds online exam and then called it quits for the day.

I've been watching DVR'd TV and updating my blog.

Chao!