The Wright Idea...

Christopher and I got to visit Kitty Hawk on our way home last week. Fact: I did not have the best attitude about this. I was hungry, and it was raining, and I had sand in my shoes. But deep down, I really did want to visit the Wright Brothers Memorial and Christopher and I are both glad we did.

We hiked up Kill Devil Hill where Wilbur and Orville did most of their early glider experiments. It was raining pretty hard by the time we made it to the top so we didn't get the best pictures, but a couple turned out. At the foot of this very hill the first flight took place. Pretty amazing. I am so grateful for these two men right now! Especially since I just went on Expedia and booked a flight to visit my family in Connecticut next week. Their glider has come a long way!

Also, as soon as we left the Wright Memorial, Christopher and I bought a pizza and I changed into my sweat pants in the car. So everything turned out okay after all.

Outer Banks

Christopher and I had the best time during our weekend at the Outer Banks. I realize that this is a lot of pictures. There are tons more so you can all look forward to that in the future. :) Maybe we're just hoping that they convince you guys to come with us on an Outer Banks trip next time. Spring Break, anyone?

I got to see a cotton field for the first time in my life. An old farmer told us to go ahead and pick some, so we did. And it was cool. It turns out that cotton on the plant is pretty much the same thing as the cotton balls under your bathroom sink.

We had to take ourselves and car across Pamlico Sound on a ferry in order to get to Ocracoke Island. So gorgeous. We played Scrabble to kill time and I won by one point. It was a sweet victory.

We rode these bicycles all over Ocracoke. We were glad we went in October because some people told us that before Labor Day it's so crowded on the streets, you can't very far on a bicycle. We rode them to the lighthouse, all around the harbor, and to the ice-cream shop.

I had no idea Christopher was taking this picture.

We went kayaking in the Sound, and discovered a really cool trail on the nature conservatory section of the island.

I love this picture of Christopher.

On our way home we stopped at this famous lighthouse in Cape Hatteras and climbed to the top. It was so so cool. I hummed Pete's Dragon songs the whole time.

On the way home we also stopped at Kitty Hawk and checked out the Wright Brothers Memorial. I'll definitely post pictures of that later. We really did have so much fun playing on the pier and eating pancakes at our little B&B. Happy Fall Break!

Fall Break

In celebration of Fall and the fact that we have survived NC for over a month, Christopher and I are going to take a ferry out to Ocracoke Island next week, where we'll be staying at this little beauty...

Can you tell I'm excited?

Crash with us

So I'm not so sure how I feel about North Carolina yet. Things are definitely getting better, but I still sometimes ask Christopher if we can move back to Utah. He always says yes, but I know we should stay here. :(

I'm being a whiner. What I really want this post to be about is......the new guest room! Which means that Utah (and Connecticut, Tennessee, Hawaii, Kansas, and Alaska) can now come to me!

I have to tell you guys--remember this post? How we almost killed ourselves bringing the mattress back home? Okay. After driving that very mattress across nine different states and buying a lovely bed to place it in, we discovered that we had a full-sized mattress in a queen-sized bed. And just in case you are wondering--that makes a big difference. Just one of the many mistakes we've made since moving. After many tears, we decided to rent a van and drive the stupid mattress to the nearest IKEA--in Charlotte NC which is 2 hours away.

You know what? We had a great time. We spent a ton of money. We returned the too-small mattress and bought one that fits perfectly. And now the guest room is completely finished and we need to advertise it so we can get some visitors soon.

Ta-Da! We can't wait for you guys to see it in person. :)

North Carolina

Okay you guys, we made it. And there is so much to report, I feel bad it's been so long.

1-Our apartment. Small and cute, second floor, with all windows facing the busy complex swimming pool. This is not my favorite feature. As of this moment, I can hear kids playing some crazy tag game that involves a lot of squealing. But it hasn't been such a big deal. I mean, who really cares if it's noisy during the day? Everyone is really good about leaving when it gets dark except for this one large man who murks in the pool after hours and always creeps us out. But it should cool down soon and be less of an issue. Right...? Right?

2-Christopher's first couple weeks at Duke. Awesome. He's made friends, become a Stats 101 TA, and is even challenged with homework occasionally, which is great. He works really hard at school and then comes home every night to hang pictures.

3-The job hunt. Yikes. The market here isn't great, and there are all kinds of rumors about hiring freezes and high competition for the few jobs that are available. But I'm doing fine-I've applied all over the place and work hard to find a job every day. And I'm taking the time without employment to fix up our apartment and become acquainted with NC. Also to watch America's Next Top Model...don't judge.

Every day gets a little easier. I'm getting used to the lack of Mexican food available both at restaurants and grocery stores. Maybe I can turn my attention to the overabundance of Asian stuff instead. The weather is graciously cooling down a little. We're being nice to people and making friends. But we miss Utah like crazy!

oh my gosh...

According to mapquest, the drive from alpine UT to durham NC should take 32 hours and 17 minutes. With a moving truck stuffed to the brim, it will take hours longer. We've got books on CD, podcasts, music, and I'm in charge of treats, so obviously, they'll be good. Also, Christopher's generous father is coming to Utah to help us get as far as Kansas City. Hallelujah! But what will really get us through is seeing this little baby...

and this not so little baby...

We can't wait!

moving

We have exactly one week before we head out to Durham, North Carolina. In Durham we will become DUKE Blue Devils which will be quite a change from BYU Cougars. Especially since with BYU's honor code and the way they convert every building into a church house each Sunday, they could easily be known as the Blue Angels. Ha ha....

Needless to say, we're busy packing and playing with friends before we leave. I told Christopher last night that we will be eating every dinner at Cafe Rio and getting Red Mango every day before we leave. He didn't take the news well.

The good news about our move is our apartment has 2 bedrooms and we're already working hard to convert the spare into a fabulous guest room. That means everyone who reads this blog needs to plan on visiting if they would like to remain friends. (Or sisters, in most cases).

We even bought a guest mattress at IKEA the other day, since they offered a deal we just couldn't pass up. However, in all the excitement, we forgot that Christopher drives a small Mazda 3. Yikes. But we secured our new purchase with all the free rope IKEA could offer and headed home. The mattress was safely tied on the car, but both ends hung off the roof and we had to hold on to the rope from the inside. We drove about 50 mph on the highway, and EVERY SINGLE CAR laughed and pointed as they drove past. I was positive we were going to a. die b. get arrested c. both. It was the longest drive home I have ever experienced. When we stopped at a red light, a man next to us rolled down his window and laughed hysterically.

When we (finally) made it home, Christopher was laughing too. And he insisted on taking a picture. In the picture, I do not think this is a funny story yet. It's taken awhile.