Outer Banks

It's about time that we headed to the Outer Banks for a little beach vacation with our good friends, the Bells. It was AMAZING! We had a blast and I wish we could be back there right now. Here's a ton of photos, but they are in random order. sorry.

I think this is my favorite picture of the whole trip. Cute Jamison with Sierra and Anna at Jockey's Ridge.

Jockey's Ridge is the biggest sand dune in the eastern US and so awesome. Gorgeous views of the ocean and the sound, soft sand, and great for flying kites!

Here's Anna at the marker for the Wright Brother's 3rd flight. She was not happy about taking a picture, but she did want to stand next to "her number."

Oh Sweet Baby Zack!

He is heavenly and was a great baby all trip. He hung out in his little beach tent and took in the ocean air and dozed off into dreamland every now and then. We just love this little man.

He started rolling over while at the beach too.

And a little collection of Zack's day by day.

Dave showing off his cool tricks to the kids.

Paige, Jamison, Sierra, and Anna so excited to be playing on the beach.

A little trip to the aquarium

AHHHHHH!

Dave and Jason caught a jellyfish. We decided it wouldn't make a good pet.

Dave at the top of Cape Hatteras light house.

Gorgeous beaches

Zack's first dip in the ocean!

You'll notice that in almost every picture, Anna is wearing the same dress. No, we didn't take all of these on the same day. It's just that she insits on wearing that dress. every day. And the matching pants. yeah, at the beach. funny girl.

Anna was in heaven playing with her best friends 24/7. Sierra and Anna shared a bunk bed and she thought that was pretty cool. The Bells had to leave early, so Anna wanted to sleep on top after Sierra left. I didn't think she'd do it because our room was upstairs and the bunk room was downstairs. She didn't care, she was too excited. Can't believe my little girl is already into bunk beds!

Here's Sierra and Anna giggling while playing "catch"

And doing a little downward facing dog.

Protecting the castle.

Saying goodbye to the Bells!

Silly Faces

Jason caught some awesome fish in his net.

Check out that adorable face

the Kelly boys on the beach

A little ride on the boogie board for Anna

We love you Outer Banks! We hope to visit you again soon!

And if any family members are reading this...call me and I'll convince you to come here for a little reunion, OK?

One down

It's just over a year ago that we backed up our 26 foot Penske truck into this driveway, not knowing what we were in for in this new stage of life. That seems like just yesterday and yet living back in SLC seems like so long ago. But it's been a year. 1 down. 5 to go. Dave is finishing up his "intern" year and will be getting a HUGE raise to pay off all of student loans. (NOT!) Our life here is pretty settled and it's been fun and having so much change. Although change is sometimes uncomfortable and hard. But it's good. And I'm learning a lot.

I've been meaning to write a post about our life here really since we got here. Just the boring stuff. What's it like? What's different? etc. I actually started this post last August I think. So it's about right that I'm posting it now. I'm always late. If you've ever invited me somewhere, you already know that. I have time denial issues. I always think there's more of it than there really is.


So here's just a little randomness about our new life here. What it's been like, my impressions of our city, etc. In case I haven't filled you in on the boring details yet. This will be totally random and I'm in a weird mood, so we'll see what pops up...

• Just to clarify, we live in the South. Yes, it's the south, even though we're in North Carolina. I'm surprised how many people are surprised by this. And something that I've learned since I've been here, Alabama, Mississippi, etc. are the deep south. And Florida isn't really considered "southern" at all. (culturally, not geographically of course.)
• Southern Hospitality is real. Everyone's nice here. People drive by and wave at you. I love it! They don't know you, but you're both on the street so you might as well wave. People are friendlier and polite. And I think it's quite charming.
• The roads don't make sense. Instead of North/South, East/West streets, most of the streets here are diagonal, but then they turn and wind and really you have to drive in a horseshoe to get somewhere that should just be a straight shot. But that's just me, coming from Brigham Young's grid system. Where numbers actually meant something. No disrespect to the Moravians, but seriously, when it comes to street planning, leave it to the mormons. Actually I bet it really has something to do with old farm roads and all of the dense woods and hills here. Maybe. I have no idea what I'm talking about really. All I know is that it takes longer to get 10 miles here than it does in SLC.
  
• There are no sno-shacks! yes, really! I don't understand this because it gets really hot here in the summer. It seems like an obvious solution to hot summer day, but I haven't seen one. Okay, one. At the fair. But it's the old chunky ice kind. Doesn't count. And last summer, I really missed my pina colada with cream sno cone. Maybe I'll start my own shack this summer. The overhead is cheap, right? I have found some divine custard though. Nielsons has nothin on this place!


• There are WAY too many bugs here. I'm not one of those girls that shrieks at the sight of a bug. I'm usually the one that had to kill all of the bugs. (Except in Hawaii when Sara was the bug master. She killed a centipede and many a cockroaches for us) But there are just so many here. And weird ones that I've never seen before. And my neighbor told me that last year he found a black widow in his yard. And so he caught it and released it in our greenway. What?! If you catch a black widow, why on earth don't you kill it? Sure, I love Charlotte as much as anyone, but until I see "terrific" in a web, that spider is going down the toilet. But the real reason I don't like bugs is because they LOVE me. If I go outside for 5 minutes, I've got 5 new bites. And I really hate bug repellent, but I must use it if I want to be a fun outside mom for Anna. I guess this just means that my blood has a really good flavor. Which is good news, in case I ever meet Edward.
• The plus side of this is that we have Fireflies! I'm looking out my window at some right now. Love those cute little lightening bugs!


• Get ready for this one...they don't have cinnamon bears here! Not even lips, or Santas, or any holiday shape gummy. I know. It's a travesty. I don't understand why. Although I did see some in Myrtle Beach at a "Dylan's Candy" copycat store. But this was before I knew they were a rarity out here. This is a problem for me because for some reason I crave these on occasion. There were a few times at work where I would try and hunt some down, but it wasn't something people kept in their desk drawer. Weird, huh? Well, maybe my teeth will be thankful for this.


• Hot Chocolate selection is dismal, but they have a huge variety of tea, sweet tea, and grits. Sweet tea seems to be much more popular than Starbucks.
• I miss sidewalks. Only the really nice neighborhoods have them here.


• Garbage pick up - silly! Instead of the truck picking up each trash can. A guy goes around and collects everyone's bags into one trash can. Then the tuck picks that one up to dump. I don't get it.
• Did I mention it's really green here? If you've been East you know, but just to reiterate, it's pure green lusciousness. I really have no idea how big our city is because I can't see it all.
• The falls and springs here are REAL! It's so beautiful. I'll try and post some pics one day. Beauty, beauty all around. Trees and flowers blossom in the spring. And the trees glow in the fall.
• I really like the fact that I only had to wear my winter coat 5 times or less last winter. That's my favorite kind of winter. Although in some ways this is too bad, because I do love cute coats.
• Instead of putting Christmas lights up, people put candle lights in their windows at Christmas time. Which I love because it's cute and colonial. But I missed all the adorned rooftops too.
• I LOVE the fact that we're a few hours from the beach. It's rare for Dave to have a whole weekend off, but we try to take advantage of this as much as possible! The beaches here are beautiful and peaceful and warm. And I don't miss all the seaweed from the Cali beaches. We haven't made it up to the Outerbanks yet, but I'm excited to see what that's all about too.
• We've explored so many new places here. Little nearby towns and the big cities. I love going new places and learning new things about people and history. We have much more ground to cover, so hopefully Dave's schedule and our funds will allow us too.
• Having a two car attached garage and a car with keyless entry has changed my life. Really. I am grateful every day.
• Purses are pocketbooks. Shopping carts are buggies. A BBQ party is a cook out. Just a few of the new terms that I've learned here. I also really like it when the ladies at the store tell Anna how "smart" she looks. Although I think she's smart, I think they mean she's cute.
• I think I kind of like Christian Rock.
• Most people love God here and it's okay to talk about it. I really appreciate that.
• I can't do as much on my own as I thought. But I just try my best. Sometimes I don't. I think I used to be "together" and now I'm just, well, not. And I'm working on balance in my life, right now there isn't any! I admire any mother that has found it.
• I have aged 5 years in one year. Really. I've recently noticed that I look old now. My face has wrinkles. I look at pictures and think how different and "younger" I look - and it was just last year! I wonder what did it to me. The moving, the residency, or the 2 year old? hmmmm. Maybe I'll have to have Dave sample Botox on me some day.
• Dave's schedule hasn't been as bad as I expected. Sure, he's gone a lot, more than most husbands, but I really expected it to be worse. I think I did that on purpose so I would be happy instead of disappointed. He's had some rough rotations, but he'll get a good one some months where he only has to work 40-60 hours per week instead of 80-100. And those months are the best. He's doing a great job and has enjoyed most of his intern year. Next year should be better, so we're looking forward to that. I must give him credit that part of the reason it has been a good year is because of him. Even though he is worked to death, he doesn't complain much and has a good attitude. When he has time off he wants to go and do stuff with us. Which I am very grateful for. If I worked that much, I might be curled up in my bed crying on all my days off! Sorry to call you out, but thank you for being so great Dave!

How's that for random facts? I know there's more to say, but I'm done for tonight. Maybe I'll continue to add to this list for fun.

It's been a good year. Lots of adjusting, but a good year. Dave and I have said all year that I really don't think there's a better place for us to be right now. It suits us great. Even without cinnamon bears. We've met some really great people that have made our year much more enjoyable too. Especially for me. I'm so grateful for my friends here! They will probably laugh at my random list. I'm such a rookie.

Here's to hoping the next 5 are as good or better than the first!

In-N-Out

INs

Anna has been coming up with new things every day to keep herself entertained. Here are a few things she's been doing while we're just hangin out at home.

Couch Potato


I guess you're not a couch potato if you're sitting in a box, eating a graham cracker, and coloring at the same time while you're watching Curious George.

Downward Facing Dog
Anna is in this position quite frequently lately. I don't know where she learned Yoga. She thinks it is so funny, especially when Mommy does it too. Sometimes she flips herself all the way over and is thrilled about doing a somersault.

our little artist

Anna loves to doodle. She usually always has a pencil or marker in her hand. She doesn't bother sitting to draw anymore. She sprawls out on the ground and really gets into her work.

Take a Seat She still loves a good seat. She and her friend Milo decided they preferred the bench to eat their hot dogs.

OUTs

We have been doing our best to get around town and out of town as much as possible to discover this great new place we're living. Dave doesn't get around town much, basically just to and from the hospital, but when he does get a day off, we try to get out.

Blowing RockA few weeks ago we headed to the North Carolina "mountains" and we loved it. There are cute towns kind of like Jackson Hole or Park City and then of course gorgeous scenery. The mountains aren't like the ones we're used to, but we sure can't wait to go back in the Fall to see the colors change in these lush hills.

Our first stop was Blowing Rock. There is an old legend about an Indian brave who jumped from the rock and after his lover cried to the Gods, her man blew back to her on this rock. Ever since then there is a strange wind here and it pushes everything up, or something like that. When it snows, it supposedly snows upside down.

It was rather foggy. Actually that's an understatement. I have never seen so much fog. I felt like it was the end of the earth because you couldn't see anything in front of you but white. I bet the view is great on a clear day!

Grandfather Mountain and Mile High Bridge

Next we went to the beautiful Grandfather Mountain. Anna loved the wildlife habitats there and we got some good bear sightings in. The whole area has spectacular views. We couldn't visit Grandfather mountain without going on the famous Mile High Swinging Bridge

Here I am going across the scary suspension bridge clinging to Anna for dear life. I'm not afraid of contained hights, just afraid of my baby falling from them. I sang the Barney song to her so she would hug me the whole way across.

Then Dave took her across and he wasn't quite as paranoid as I was.

With a little freedom, Anna let loose and starting running across the bridge. I about had a heart attack. Yes, the bridge is secure, but it's called MILE HIGH bridge. And it swings with the wind and motion from all the people going across. Dave went up to check out the view from the end of the trail and I stayed with Anna so she wouldn't jump off the mountain. All she wanted to do was run across the bridge. I bet that was a funny sight - Anna running away from me across this scary bridge, while I'm chasing her, but trying to be gentle so she doesn't fall. And getting chuckles as well as disapprovals from our bypassers. I don't what I thought would happen. Somehow she would jump over the railing, or impossibly slide through the side rails or something. I don't know. I just didn't like it. And I was relieved to finally get Anna off that bridge. I bet it's a pretty view when you're not worrying about a 19 month old!

On the drive home we drove on Forrest Gump Curve. Recognize it?

The Butterfly Farm
A few Saturdays ago, it was just us girls as usual and I was in the mood to do something more than Target or grocery shopping. I read about this cool Butterfly Farm. It's the place where people order them from if you want to release butterflies at your wedding or barmitzvah. I thought it sounded like fun so I promised Anna some butterflies and we loaded up and hit the road. After the 45 minute drive where the last 10 minutes consisted of driving down a dusty country road, we pulled up to a house. with a small screened greenhouse in the field in front of it. This was the Butterfly Farm? I'm not sure what I expected, but it was not this. And just my luck, they're only open to the public for an hour. That hour was 3 hours before we got there. But I promised Anna some butterflies, so we made the most of it and got out and Anna chased around the 2 butterflies that were outside of the greenhouse. She had fun. I felt a little betrayed. To make the trip worthwhile, we stopped at a Farmer's Market on the way home and got some tomatoes and a peach milkshake.

Charlotte

Dave had last weekend off, finally! And so we drove down to Charlotte on Saturday. We stopped by this humungo outlet mall and I knew we had to get out of there fast or else I would find something to buy. I will definitely head back there when we actually are in need of things though. We made our way to Charlotte which is a very fun city. We went to this big science museum, Discovery Place.

Anna liked the bears and kept giving them her best growls.

We saw a dinosaur puppet show (it was so ridiculous) and then Anna lifted a 4-wheeler.

But her very favorite was throwing balls into this bowl. This made her day. And ours.

After all that, we went to The Cheesecake Factory and indulged with some scrumptious dinner and dessert. It was a great day!

Gymboree

This really isn't too far "out". It's actually just down the street. On Monday Gymboree hosted an RSA (Resident Spouse Association) playgroup. Anna had a blast. They give residents discounts, but I still think it's expensive. Has anyone done it before? Do you think it's worth it? Anna really loved it, so I'm trying to decide...

And that is a glimpse of what we've been up to lately. Things are starting to settle. Realizing that we're here, for real, and that we're really never going back to Hollywood Ave again. It's fun. We're making new friends and figuring out our way of life here.

This is right.

You know when you just know something is right? You can just feel it? It's such a great feeling. It gives you confidence, peace, and comfort for what's ahead.

On match day when Dave opened his envelope and read "Wake Forest", I had this overwhelming feeling of "rightness." I just knew this is what was right for our family.

Months later, now that we are sort of settled here, I felt this confirmation again. This is so right for us. At the end of church today, out of nowhere, I felt this strong feeling that we are here in North Carolina for a reason. I'm not sure exactly why, but I just got this feeling that this experience will be good for us. Not necessarily good as is fun. but good, as in growth, opportunity, learning, etc. And don't worry mom, this doesn't mean it's right for us forever, but for these six years at least.

I know there will be hard times over the next six years and we'll miss our family and friends, but having felt the Spirit whisper this strongly to me twice, I need to document this so I can remember this feeling when those hard times come. Maybe its the hard times that we will go through that will make it good for us in the end. Who knows? All I know for now, that this is right. And it feels good to be here.