windy hill apple orchard & cider mill

we made it a point to spend time together as a family all weekend… we all needed this. friday evening, we tried an indian restaurant that we had never been to… and we learned that we have been missing out. in fact, i used to live right by it when i first moved to charlotte (the 1930’s bungalow i lived in for my first two years here was a dream) but it is a shame that i never walked over. it was so, so good! parks even had some naan and was the best boy while we enjoyed dinner. (fun fact: besides mexican, indian is my favorite!) saturday morning, the boys went on their weekly ‘guys date’ … which they weren’t able to do the month of october due to mr. monaco’s job. then we decided to head over the border to south carolina for the afternoon to check out an apple orchard… and it did not disappoint. in fact, we were both blown away by how much we enjoyed it. if you live in the charlotte area, i recommend windy hill apple orchard in york, south carolina.  i felt like i needed to escape the city for a few hours and it was the perfect spot for a fall day. we enjoyed so much about this family-owned establishment so i wanted to share with you.

highlights of the orchard: live music, flights of hard apple cider, chickens, a bonfire, beautiful trees… and most of all: the apple cider donuts. (best of my life) 

my favorite hard ciders: the ginger and the pumpkin

we took a walk through the orchard… and spotted this guy strolling.

how beautiful is this sign!

in january, they are having a 2nd annual oyster roast… we are hoping to go! 

we sat around the bonfire and chatted

while parks flirted with the ladies

windy hill apple orchard is known for being the home of ‘everything apples’ and for being a family tradition. and i think we now have a new tradition. 

for more information: windy hill apple orchard

what are your favorite fall recipes?

…especially those that include apples…

please leave them below if you are willing to share

(my mom is visiting next week and is the best cook and baker! it would be fun to do some together)

…

lastly, i saw this the other day and wanted to share

“you act like it’s you against the world but really it’s just you against yourself.”

lately, i have been telling myself to be kinder to myself… and you should as well.

you are worth it.