By We snuck away to Asheville for my birthday weekend. We’d actually planned the trip twice before but moved it in the fall due to calling for bad weather and moved right after the holidays due to double pink eye for L. Landon surprised me and booked it for my birthday!
We had a *mostly* quiet drive there as L slept but about 8 miles shy of our exit he threw up EVERYWHERE. It happened once before on another 3 hour trip so we are assuming it’s car sickness. He was fine as soon as we got him changed and then we finished up our drive.
We stayed at the Four Points hotel downtown and had an easy walk to everything! We decided on dinner at Pack’s Tavern and were super impressed. It was kid friendly and had a great vibe. We also loved the mashed potatoes! 😬
Our tiny tour guide was excited for hiking and couldn’t stop talking about it but when he realized hiking meant walking through the woods when it’s 28 degrees out, he decided he’d like it more if mommy and daddy would carry him. Needless to say, this was not our best hike but I did love his enthusiasm. We checked out some big rocks and downed trees before heading back to the car to warm up. (He took his mittens off twice and refused to put them back on)
We decided to check out the WNC Nature Center on the recommendation of my friend Cassie. I’m laughing as I type this: L wanted to see a pig and they had no pigs, he got excited when I said “bobcat” but I was talking about the animal and he was talking about the construction vehicle.
Landon and I really enjoyed the center and were impressed with the space. It’s much larger than you’d think going in – plus we learned some fun facts about animals while there. It started feeling colder and colder while there so we off to warm up with lunch.
We had been talking about tacos and L said he was excited so we went to the original White Duck Taco Shop. Being a toddler, he was actually not interested in food at all but did eat some chips and ice while we devoured our tacos. The crispy pork belly taco is AMAZING!
It was nap time for everyone after that. L cried and cried because he didn’t want it to be my birthday and then he passed out for 2 hours. We bundled up after that and ventured back out to explore, have dinner and visit French Broad Chocolate.
When we went to Asheville in 2016 and I was pregnant, we talked about how much our babe would love Mast General Store. We decided to take him in on this trip and it was not as magical as we imagined. He zoned in on the toy trucks, picked out one and said “Let’s Go!” and proceeded to whine as we moved slowly through the rest of the toy selection.
Regular macro day meant I could eat pizza without blowing my carbs for the day! We got a veggie pizza and a couple beers.
After dinner, we bundled back up and hiked up the hill to French Broad. L was VERY excited to “get da chok-lat” and did not love that we had to wait outside. Once we got in we quickly decided on a chocolate dipped shortbread cookie for him, chocolate caramel mousse for me and L and a couple truffles.
It was cold and wonderful turning 33 in the mountains. I had so much fun seeing L’s face light up at #allthethings and always love explore with Landon. Traveling with a toddler can be challenging but it’s worth it — you just plan what you can and remind yourself to be flexible.
Chapel Hill Baby 