On Friday afternoon, I ventured to Longwood to meet with my thesis advisor and then spent a few hours hanging out with my brother while he set up for his band to play a show later that night. It was warm and sunny and so good to see him.

Back in Charlottesville, it's cloudy and cold, but yesterday my mom came to visit for the night along with my childhood friend Patrick's mother, and we spent the evening eating and drinking and laughing. Rob has been super busy with end of the semester work, and it was so good to not spend the afternoon alone at the computer again for a change. My mom and I packed some things up after lunch and coffee, then reunited with Patrick, his mom, and his fiance for a nice dinner at one of our favorite places.

Who doesn't love spending time with great people? It's been a good few days.

I got all stressed out and dramatic about leaving that SD card in Roanoke, so my parents, knowing how much my blog means to me, went out of their way to go home and get it, then bring it to their office as soon as possible and have the photos emailed to me. What wonderful people.

This afternoon, I started going through all of them and realized that I have not even one photo of either of my parents from this weekend. What a terrible daughter! I'm sorry, Mom and Dad. Thank you for everything you do for me. How I love you!

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Any holiday at home with my family is just magical. This was no different.

The dishes we use for Easter are my favorites.

The girls--my cute cousin, Macarena (left) and my brother's sweet girlfriend, Alisha (right).

Antipasto

Bloody Mary

Deviled Eggs

The boys--Rob, our childhood friend/Rob's old roommate Stephen, and Sean.

Rocky!

Easter brunchin'.

Sean and Alisha

Hope you had a joyful holiday weekend! Best wishes for a happy Easter season.

The more time I spend at home with my family, the less I want to leave when Sunday evening rolls around. 

This reminded me of a scene I saw in Downton Abbey; in which one character says to another that being homesick isn't something to be ashamed of, because it means you come from a happy home. I don't know any of the characters' names, because there are far too many of them and I've only seen three episodes so far, but that exchange stuck with me.

I am a sometimes anxious and often strange young woman full of quirks that confuse even myself. But I'm not ashamed of much. And I'm certainly not embarrassed to admit that I started crying in the passenger seat as soon as we drove away.

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Most of the pictures I took this weekend are of food. 

My brother and his friends were on Spring Break this week, so on Friday they all came to the lake. I rode with my mom from Charlottesville, and Rob came to meet us from North Carolina. Together, we ended up having a wonderful time and sharing some really good food. My parents' house has always been the perfect place for magical little gatherings like this.

Spring is coming. I have never been more ready.