USS North Carolina

After the beach, we decided to check out the USS North Carolina battleship that was used in World War II. It was right across from downtown Wilmington and was easy to find. The ship was just massive, and we were able to go on a self guided tour (my favorite) throughout the many levels and decks. When in use, it held 2,300 passengers, which is truly amazing. I was surprised at how roomy it was, as it was basically a tiny town below the decks. The restoration of the ship was incredible too, as everything felt like we were back in the 1940's. We really got a feel for what it must have been like to be on that at sea and how life was so different back then. Made me feel really thankful for the men and women that fought and died during that time for our freedom (yes, cheesy statement, but I am definitely thankful). You also got the feel for how many huge guns there were above the deck and just how difficult they were to operate. We enjoyed checking them out. And for those of you that want to see my "baby belly", there you go. You can see it more from the side view:) Overall, another great weekend.

A Day at the Beach

Jamie and I had a pretty busy fun-filled weekend. One of the reasons why we wanted to move here was to explore a different part of the country and really experience everything about the region that we could. So, on Saturday we went to the North Carolina State Fair in Raleigh. If you like a variety of food, especially fried, this would be the place for you. Since I'm pregnant and really the only thing that I crave so far is fattening, fried, food, I was in luck! We really only tried two fried things though. The fried mac n' cheese wasn't very good, but the fried Twinkie was awesome. I would highly recommend it! Overall, we had a good time and enjoyed seeing what there was to offer. I think we both agreed in the end, though, that the Illinois State Fair in Springfield was bigger and had more to offer. Also, after a long conversation about fairs/festivals, we both agreed that the Morton Pumpkin Festival is by far our favorite. Gotta love the pumpkin chili and ice cream!!

On Sunday, we woke up early and went two hours east to Wrightsville Beach. The drive was super easy and a short trip. It's always so fun to go to a beach, and we were glad that it is definitely within a days drive. The beach was really pretty and reminded both of us of the beach outside of Charleston, SC, that we visited last year. It seems like the east coast beaches all have a similar feel, a little different than those on the Gulf or Caribbean. We had a picnic lunch and then walked along the beach to the pier. There were a lot of people out and we saw a large group of surfers, which was fun (felt like we were in San Diego again). We both needed the exercise after all of the food that we had eaten the day before;) Although, there were times when I realized that I was indeed getting bigger, because I couldn't walk as fast as I used to be able to in the sand. We're excited to go back and check out other beaches in the area too.

Birthday Fun!

After a week of trying to unpack and get everything in order, Jamie wanted to do something special for me to celebrate my birthday. So, we first went to the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh. It was great and because it was a Sunday morning, there was virtually no one there, so we could take as much time as we wanted exploring. After wishing I could take all of the old European paintings home with me, we went to lunch and then to Duke University to the famous chapel and the Duke gardens. At first, I thought that it would just be a typical college campus. Wow, was I wrong. It felt like we had stepped onto a college campus in Europe, as we heard the chimes of the chapel and saw all of the buildings that looked like they belong in movie Dead Poets Society or on some ivy league campus. When you walk on the campus you run right into the garden which is basically a huge park with different types of ponds, trees, and flowers. Much different than looking at the Iowa River, but you can still feed the ducks in the pond:) It was so pretty and a place that you could definitely get lost in looking at the scenery and beautiful landscaping. All in all, it was a great birthday and first weekend here.

Upstairs

Here's what the steps look like (sorry, people told me to take pictures of everything, so I did). We were able to have the builder install the iron spindles which go with the rest of the decor of the house. The last picture is of Jamie's bonus room or "man room". Not pictured are his big TV and tiny refrigerator with beer.

Dining Room

I was super excited to finally have a dining room. For some reason, I've always loved dining rooms with beautiful tables and china cabinets/buffets (although we still need to buy both). Now that Jamie and I have inherited A LOT of china we need a place to store all of it and use it throughout the year.

Kitchen/Family Room

Here are the kitchen and family room that are attached. We were so happy to finally see it in person. We were able to pick out the tile backsplash, wood floor coloring and paint colors, which sounds like fun, but it's just so hard to tell what it'll look like from a small sample. Luckily, we made the right choices as the colors are really warm and go with the style we were looking for. Phew.....big relief!

We're finally here!!!

We are finally here and connected to the Internet...yeah!!! The trip down was great and we were really lucky, because everything went smoothly with no problems. The movers were awesome and it was impressive watching them load the two cars and bike into the big semi. So far, we have been greeted by three of our neighbors who have given us flowers and apple cake to welcome us into the neighborhood; they're all so nice. It's funny that no one around us (so far) is from North Carolina but from Massachusetts, Ohio and South Carolina. We were told that this is a very family friendly neighborhood with lots of babies and kids, which is perfect for us. I've had lots of requests for pictures, so get ready, because here they come! Since the pictures come out small on the blog, if you click on them, you can see a much bigger image.