Flashback: "Hey, Fattybread..."

"And I said 'Hey' "

On Summer Vacation this year we went to the Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina.  It is this huge house built in 1895 by George Vanderbilt for his family and friends.  Okay, I know Garrett and I have a summer home in Wichita but I don't see us setting it up for y'all like this. 

Side view of the Biltmore.  All the green stuff is a patio with a wisteria cover.

So, I think this is the perfect reading tree... I can just see myself in the backyard at my summer home reading under this tree. This was the view of the backyard of the Biltmore.

You see the estates sits on 125,000 acres of forest, farms and even a dairy. It has 33 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, 3 kitchens and even an indoor pool.  And don't get me started about the gardens... I loved them.  Bug, Nana, and even Little Bug were all impressed.

The gates to the garden.  You do get to drive through at the end of your visit.

The Walled Garden was planted to have flowering plants all year round. The grounds were designed by the same person who did Central Park in New York, Frederick Law Olmsted.

Little Bug, tired and thirsty needing a break.

My favorite flowers were all the orchids.  They were fabulous.

We ventured through the house and decided to go ahead and spend the extra money and get the audio tour. Totally worth it.  Little Bug was so into seeing and learning all about the Biltmore because of the headphones.  The little stories that were from friends and staff of the Vanderbilt's were the best part. Bug's favorite stories were the ones told with a Southern accent.

One was about a young girl that worked at the house who on her first day she dropped a tray of dishes and Mr. Vanderbilt came and helped pick up all the dishes.  He always remembered her and every time he saw her he would call, "Hey, Fattybread!" because she was a bit on the round side and she would answer "Hey." Bug will go around the house and randomly holler "Hey, Fattybread".

Nana wishing Papa a happy birthday from the Biltmore on a coffee break. 

We let her rest every once in a row.

The bugs and I enjoying a moment in the gardens.  Aren't they cute.

After the tour, we headed into town and had lunch at TGIF's and learned how to make good roasted potatoes from our animated waitress and then on the road again... Because "Aparently, Dolly Parsons is from around here..." at least according to Bug.

'Til the next adventure...