Birthday Bash

Yesterday Ray turned 36 & we were able to celebrate the day at one if his favorite places, The Biltmore Estate. Have you been there before? If not, it's a must visit.

How beautiful is this house? Addison & Kate were excited about visiting the "princess castle."

After finishing out coffees on the terrace we walked the inside of the house. They've opened up new sections & closed others since we were last there over five years ago! Even only seeing small portions of the house it takes a couple of hours to walk through.

After touring the house we went for lunch at the stable cafe. Just as it sounds, it used to be the stables & we ate in one of the stalls where a horse used to be kept. The birthday boy & Clay "eating" crayons while waiting for lunch.

After lunch we began our walk through the gardens.

Before going to the conservatory we went on a hike through some of the grounds. This place is so huge, there's just no way to do everything in a day, even two!

We made it down to the Bass pond for a rest before continuing our walk through the gardens & back to the house.

Back at the house Ray & Addison went back inside & made a whirlwind visit through the entire house in only twenty minutes! We then drove over to the winery. The estate is so large that driving over there takes nearly twenty minutes - the kids were so exhausted they all fell asleep on the way.

We made it to the winery, petting zoo, & we finished the day with ice cream at the creamery!

None of us wanted to leave & today the girls wanted to go back. We left Asheville around 7:00 & drove to stay the night in Savannah, GA. We finally made it completely exhausted around midnight!