Doughnuts, Palaces, and Queens

Happy Hump Day!  This post was intended for much earlier in the week, but bare with me, I'm a busy lady.  So with that said lets recap the weekend!  My weekend rocked!  My mom and I went to see the NC Symphony perform at Tryon Palace on Saturday and it was wonderful.  We headed down to New Bern early in the afternoon and had a  delicious dinner date.

Once we arrived at the palace we put down our chairs in a good location and headed out to explore the grounds.  If you live in eastern NC and have never been you really should take a day trip or even stay overnight in historic downton.  The gardens of Tryon are absolutely beautiful and you could go multiple times each year and see completely different plant life each time.  They even have a vegetable garden, which my mom and I oogled over because we love fresh veggies!

Much to my surprise they have built an amazing new museum in New Bern called the North Carolina History Center and its breathtaking!  We got there too late to go, but I am already planning a weekend getaway for Daniel and I to visit.  I envision myself working there one day ;)

The symphony concert was nothing short of amazing.  The NC Symphony was celebrating their 80th birthday in conjunction with Craven County celebrating their 300th so there was a celebration all around.  The concert was a lovely mixture of 1920's pieces with George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue being the feature and songs dear to the heart of the symphony.  They played a piece that was played at their first concert in 1932 and paid tribute to one of their own musicians who composed a brilliant piece of work that was used when the US Open was played in Pinehurst a few years back.  

Families were stretched out across the lawn in a sea of picnic baskets, blankets, and lounge chairs.  As the sunset, the illumination of the orchestra created a magical glow on the palace and immediately following their last piece fireworks began to go off over the riverfront.  The star of the show was certainly the director, who was from Wales and he threw in some lovely English humor about the American Revolution and Governor Tryon (a British royal governor).

I know this post is getting a little lengthy, but I cannot go without mentioning the event of the century that I would have loved to of attended.  The Queen of England, Elizabeth II is celebrating her 60th year on the throne this week and it looks like the Brits had a fantastic time celebrating.  Not to mention the fact that I love any excuse to see the beautiful frocks that Kate chooses to wear for these events.  Do you find it ironic that the two longest reigning monarchs have been women?  I don't... it simply proves women can handle the strains of power far better than men. :)

the hiking chronicles

The gloomy rain has set in once again this week and its making me itch for the outdoors.  This past weekend Daniel and I did have the luxury of getting outside for a little while before the rain rolled in, so we took a hike in a local park and had a lovely morning.

We set out to a park we had not been to before (well I have, but not in many, many years) called River Park North.  Its a lovely little sanctuary of nature in the middle of a city and they even have paddle boats!  We didn't get to try the boats this time, because you have to reseve them, but they are certainly on the list for next time.  We walked the entire span of the trail and back again, during which we saw some incredible animal and plant life.  I even saw a snake in the water!

my new running kicks

My two favorite animals of the day were the little family of turtles and the beautiful blue dragonfly.  They were everywhere chasing each other... we were actually afraid they were going to crash into us a couple of times.

daniel's best karate kid pose

 We really had a lot of fun and I recommend it to any looking to get outdoors.  In addition to the hiking trails they have fishing areas, paddle boat and fish boat rentals, picnic areas, a playground, and a science and nature center.  Also for all you local Greenville residents "Sunday in the Park" starts up this weekend.  Its an awesome free concert series in Town Common Park every Sunday during the summer months.  Pack a picnic, grab your lawn chair, and enjoy an evening of free music.  I hope to see you there!

One last thing... if you are interested in music you may want to check this out this weekend too.  The North Carolina Symphony is playing at Tryon Palace.  Tryon Palace has a special place in our hearts, because if you remember thats were Daniel asked me to be his wife .  We went to this event last year and it was phenomenal.  They play outside on the giant lawn overlooking the river and it is simply beautiful.  They performed a Star Wars tribute last year... much to Mr. Pennington's liking!  Best part of it all... its free!

happy weekend!

summer