A walk, a meal, and lots of cooking.

This morning I awoke to no alarm clocks, no deadlines, no work to get to. It has been a very very long time since I have been able to actually take a full Tuesday off. I started the day off experimenting with some McDougall style hashbrowns. They turned out great and were a very yummy way to start the day. I kept on cooking right through lunch time...my type of stress relief. I made Marinara sauce for the week and a Indian red lentil, chickpea, potato stew + lots of brown rice. I also made some plain boiled potatoes. I am trying to eat a bit healthier and doing mostly McDougall style foods. This year I will be turning 34 and I have to keep my health in check so that I can live an active life for years to come. With all of that said, I should maybe mention that you will see atleast one picture of delicious Indian food that is not McDougall style at all. Gotta live life in balance, right. After lunch we went for a walk.

This is the farm trail at the Biltmore.

Our dog Molly enjoyed the walk, even with the heat. The kids tried to hang batman from a branch on our snack break. Ashleigh stopped to look at...

The Biltmore Inn. We also noticed,

Beautiful butterflies were all around us on our walk, this was the only one that sat still long enough to take a photo. We also walked along this river most of the way. Our farm trail ended at a farm ofcourse.

There were horse, geese, ducks, goats, lots more ducks and this sweet sheep. It was quite a hot day and we were out for almost two hours, but the animals and the walk brought a little extra happiness to our day. After we rested at home for a bit, we met my sister and Michelle at Chai Pani. Delicious Indian street food. You just can't go wrong with ethnic food.

These were just the appetizers we shared. Bhel Puri, Okra Fries, Green Tomato Pakoras, and Sabji Paratha. I was so enthralled with the deliciousness of the food that I forgot to take a picture of my main meal. I think this might be my favorite Indian restaurant in town...probably a good thing that I don't live closer. Needless to say, we are really enjoying this summer and I only wish that I could have enjoyed more days like this earlier in the summer rather than working all of the time. Alas, I try not live life regretting the past and I try to cherish every moment, however normal they may seem.

Happy Tuesday and peace, Yasmin