Happy New Year!

Once again, another year is over. 2013 had its up and downs, but it was still a great year. Besides the adventures I wrote about, I also graduated.

Chapman University's Dodge Film School at night.

I tried new foods.

A Kringle from the Solvang Bakery in Solvang, California.

Pumpkin Gnocchi from Paul's Fine Italian Dining in Winston Salem, North Carolina.

Pumpkin Ravioli from the Bonefish Grill.

Sweet Potato Cake from Tabor City's Sweet Potato Festival.

I explored new places.

Universal Studios' Backlot Tour

Santa Monica Pier

La Purisima Mission

Solvang, California.

And even made a few new friends.

A friendly Cheetah at the San Diego Safari Park.

An Okapi from San Diego Safari Park who loves Hibiscus Flowers.

These Red River Hogs from San Diego Safari Park are adorable!

Also, my blog turned a year old! 2013 was a good year. I can't wait to see what 2014 has in store for me. 

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you have a great day and that you achieve your New Year resolutions.

Can one of your New Year's resolutions be to stop dressing me up?

~A.E. Keener

Interested in my adventures? Click the links to learn more:

~The Solvang Bakery:

 http://solvangbakery.com/

~Paul's Fine Italian Dining:

http://www.paulsfineitaliandining.com/

~Bonefish Grill:

http://www.bonefishgrill.com/

~Tabor City's Sweet Potato Festival:

https://www.ncyamfestival.com/

~Universal Studios Hollywood:

http://www.universalstudioshollywood.com/

~Santa Monica Pier:

http://santamonicapier.org/

~La Purisima Mission:

http://www.lapurisimamission.org/

~San Diego Safari Park:

http://www.sdzsafaripark.org/

Christmas

I'm a little late writing my post for Christmas, but I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I spent my holiday with my family enjoying our Christmas decorations and meals.

Christmas Tree

Our den is where we really decorate.

Behind the sofa

Even the TV is decorated.

Our Dining Room Decorations

The countertop of our kitchen.

The other side.

Our apple tree

The other half of our kitchen

Another Christmas Scene

And, of course, our luminaries.

Even Rocky was forced...I mean... swept up in the Christmas Spirit.

Do I really have to wear the hat?

I love this time of year because it is fun to see my house transformed into a magical Christmas-themed wonderland. Even as an adult, I can still feel my inner child's excitement when Christmas day rolls around.

Christmas was also a time for new adventures. During the month of December, my family and I decided to explore Christmas attractions around the state.

The first place we visited was the Christmas Tea at the Pegg House Tea Room in Kernersville. Built in 1885, this house now serves as a tea room where you can have lunch or a proper English High Tea. They hold a special fixed Christmas Tea every year, and we decided to stop by and try it.

The Pegg House Tea Room

The staircase in the house.

Inside, the house was decorated for the holidays.

Christmas Tree

They even covered the seats to make them elegant.

The place setting was festive yet beautiful.

The tea came in two courses. The first was a delicious soup followed by the standard tea consisting of mini sandwiches, scones, and desserts. As always, I chose Earl Grey as my tea. Armed with that tea, I was ready to enjoy the feast they had provided for us.  

 Their butternut squash soup was amazing!  

Besides the mini sandwiches and desserts, they also had mini homemade quiche.

Of course, no tea is complete without scones and homemade Devonshire cream.

I loved the tea. It was delicious, and I'm definitely planning to come back and try their regular tea as well.

The other adventure my family and I chose this holiday season was to see McAdenville. Nicknamed Christmas Town USA and voted #7 on Yahoo's 2011 Top Ten Christmas Attractions, McAdenville lives up to its name. The entire town decorates for Christmas, transforming itself into a magical Christmas Light Wonderland. 

Welcome to Christmas Town USA

At one of the schools, they wrapped the air conditioners to look like presents.

One of the many houses that were decorated.

The lake

The reflection of the lights in the water was beautiful.

Driving through the town.

They really go all out.

I love these lights.

With over two miles to explore either by foot or car, there is a lot to see and marvel at. The lights start at 5:30 and weekdays are the best time to go. We were able to drive through the town twice without enduring too much traffic.

Charlotte is about 20 minutes from McAdenville, so we decided to treat ourselves to dinner in Charlotte at the Capital Grille. The food was amazing and enjoyable after the long drive.

Filet Mignon perfectly cooked.

You shared the sides so my family and I decided on Lobster Mac and Cheese

and French Green Beans and Shallots with Heirloom Tomatoes. 

I throughly enjoyed the holiday season this year. Whether experiencing new holiday events such as the Christmas Tea or McAdenville or reliving holiday traditions like decorating the house, this Christmas has been fun and rewarding.

Regardless of whether you celebrate Christmas, I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and are looking forward to the new year to come.

~A. E. Keener

Interested in my adventures? Click the links to learn more:

~Pegg House Tea Room:

http://www.pegghousetearoom.com/index.html

~McAdvenville:

http://www.mcadenville-christmastown.com/

~Capital Grille:

https://www.thecapitalgrille.com/pages/home.aspx?id=8025

Halloween

Ever since I grew out of trick-or-treating, my excitement for Halloween has diminished. I wanted to try to bring back that old excitement I used to have for Halloween so I decided to start some new Halloween traditions with my family this year.

So, we decided to have a small Halloween feast.

Here it is with decorations included.

Close up of the centerpiece.

I've been trying to cook more so I figured Halloween would be a great time to try some fun, new recipes. For lunch, the recipes I prepared were:

Munchable Mice

Taco Mac Cupcakes

Apple Sangria

And Parmesan Basil Biscuits.

I didn't make these. My mother found them at Williams Sonoma and they were too cute to pass up.

She also purchased these candies from Williams Sonoma. They were so good.

It was so much fun trying these new recipes. With classic Halloween tunes playing in the background and a tablescape that created an elegant but spooky atmosphere, it wasn't hard to be swept up in the Halloween spirit.

Even Rocky got into the Halloween Spirit.

And, at night, the tablescape looked even more elegant and spooky.

The full tablescape lit up at night.

And here's a close-up of the centerpiece.

We ate pizza (a family Halloween tradition) and watched It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, another Halloween classic. Still in the Halloween spirit, I decided to try one more recipe.

Goblin Good Orange Cookies. A perfect way to end a meal.

While cooking all day was exhausting, I really enjoyed making the new recipes and sharing them with my family. I definitely think that I'll keep this Halloween tradition.

I hope everyone had a happy Halloween. And most importantly, I hope everyone remembered...

~A.E. Keener