December 13-14: Return to the U.S.
After spending 3 amazing months in Germany and a week in Paris with Matt, it was finally time to return home to Charlotte. The trip home was NOT easy, extended layovers, missed flights, complete exhaustion. Worth it? Of course.
It seemed insane that once I got home it was already time to start preparing for Christmas. But the first matter of business was to have a proper Mexican meal, the Mexican food was severely lacking in Europe. I went to one Mexican place in Stuttgart, it was not the same folks. Below are tacos from Cantina 1511. I recommend the place, but make a reservation it was SUPER crowded!
December 26 - 30: Trip to Ohio
Thankfully it wasn't TOO cold in Ohio during the time that I was there, and it was nice to see my grandmother, my parents, and even my sister and her husband since they were visiting too. I got some shopping done, ate my dad's traditional Christmas breakfast, and even got to see some of my girlfriends. Since I didn't have Sadie with me, the only times I needed to be outside in the cold Ohio weather were to walk to & from the car!
The whirlwind continued with a trip to Charleston to visit Rachel & Matt, and spend New Year's Eve with them. We played games, ate some Mellow Mushroom pizza, and despite being exhausted, even managed to stay up until midnight! Ha! New Year's Eve in your 30's is never quite as crazy as it was 10 year ago. The best part about spending New Year's in Charleston was that the weather was fantastic, so Rachel & I took advantage of going to the beach. It was a little chilly, but the sun was shining and the beach was SLAMMED. There were a ton of other people there taking advantage too.
As you can imagine, after the 3 months in Europe, the crazy holiday schedule, all the yummy food I have been eating, the past week has been focused on getting my diet back on track. More to come on that later, I'll share what I'm doing and some healthy & easy meal ideas.
In other food news: Charlotte Restaurant Week is coming up, and Matt & I have some delicious dinners planned - don't worry - I will fit these into my diet! Remember, it's all about balance, right?