Our Week in Meals #241 + Lake Lure, North Carolina

Good morning, and happy Sunday! This past week was full of parties and vacation travel, which meant time off from the kitchen for me. As a result, this recap is a lot different than most — instead of a week’s worth of homemade meals and recipes, you’ll find a summary of our travels and the foods that we enjoyed on the go. All of the highlights from the past few days, along with each of our dinners, are included in today’s roundup of Our Week in Meals.

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For those of you who are new to the blog, Our Week in Meals is where I share a little bit about what we’ve been up to over the past week — as it relates to our dinners each night. This series gives you a glimpse “behind the scenes” at some highlights from our life, shows you how I balance a busy schedule with feeding my family, and offers a few new ideas for your own weekly meal plan. Now, let’s back up to last weekend…

Sunday was Father’s Day, so we celebrated Keith with fajitas and tacos for lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Ruckersville.

Our neighbors hosted a party at their farm that evening to celebrate the summer solstice.

They served lavender lemonade, and offered live music, a bonfire and lanterns by the lake.

Plus food! I was asked to bring an appetizer, so I made baked Italian pinwheels from a a recipe that my mom’s friend shared with us. The pastry is filled with prosciutto, cheese, Dijon mustard and Italian seasoning. I’ll share the full details on the blog soon, because these are so good (and so easy).

I spent much of the evening following Spencer around the farm,

checking out the lavender fields,

and finding new paths through the woods, before ultimately walking home to put everyone to bed.

Such a beautiful start to summer!

With the heat index over 100° F on Monday, the pool was the place to be!

We packed up a picnic lunch and spent a good part of the afternoon in the cool water at Graves Mountain Lodge.

And dinner that evening was once again enjoyed at a party! This time it was the end-of-season picnic for the older boys’ soccer team, so we feasted on pizza and plenty of sweet treats with the kids and their friends. I always appreciate a night off from dishwashing, too!😊

We hit the road early on Tuesday morning to head south to Lake Lure, North Carolina for vacation.

Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina about 25 miles southeast of Asheville and not far from the South Carolina border, this beautiful little lake town is a perfect spot for family fun.

We stayed at the historic 1927 Lake Lure Inn and Spa, and arrived just in time for an afternoon swim. Fun fact: this hotel served as one of the filming locations for the movie Dirty Dancing (including many of the famous dance, restaurant, and lake scenes)!

Next up: dinner at the Lake House Bar & Grill. We arrived early, which was a good idea because this waterfront restaurant is quite popular and it filled up very fast. I ordered the locally-caught blackened fish sandwich with a Caesar salad, and while it wasn’t fancy, it hit the spot at the end of a long day.

We drove about 5 minutes up the road to Chimney Rock on Wednesday morning, where we saw some amazing views in the state park. This was definitely one of the highlights from our trip!

We shopped in the village of Chimney Rock, mined for gems…

…and played mini golf.

And took a dip in the pool at the hotel later that afternoon!

Finally, our day ended with dinner and drinks at the Hickory Nut Brewery, where we had the most beautiful riverfront table…

…and shared plates of soft pretzels, bbq pulled pork quesadillas, chips and salsa, and a cheese plate. Vacation mode!

Thursday was our last full day in North Carolina.

We spent a cool, cloudy morning in nearby Hendersonville, where we hit all of the highlights: a train museum, a toy store, a deli for lunch, and a delicious bakery for cookies and cake.

Then back to the lake when the sun came out!

We were tired of sitting in restaurants at that point, so we ordered takeout from an Italian restaurant for dinner and enjoyed pizza, pasta and salad on a picnic table near the water.

Friday was a day of travel. We left the hotel early, stopped at my parents’ house on the way home to pick up the dog, and spent most of the afternoon unpacking. We had a great trip, but we’re always so happy to be home.

I read a great summer book while we were on the road! The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave is such a perfect “beach read” for the season. It’s a page-turner that I would call a thriller/suspense/mystery…but not scary at all. Just fun, light, and fast! I really enjoyed this one…

After our time away, I was very glad to be back in my own kitchen for a home-cooked meal (minus the dishes). We had Taco Pie for dinner, along with chips, salsa, corn and refried beans. Easy and tasty!

Saturday was devoted to home chores and getting back into our “normal” routine. We did so many loads of laundry, picked up orders from both the farmer’s market and the grocery store, and even got some work done.

Keith took the older two boys and a friend to the movies in Charlottesville that evening, so Spence and I were on our own for supper.

I sat on the front porch while he played in the yard, and then we came inside for the world’s easiest meal: a tuna melt for me (taking advantage of a small ripe tomato from the garden), and a bowl of cereal, vegetables and chips for the 7-year-old. 😂 I let him choose his own menu for our “dinner date” and that’s what he requested…

So there you have it — a rather odd week of easy, travel-inspired summer meals! Thank you for joining me here today, as always. I hope that you have a wonderful Sunday and a great week ahead.🌞