Pedal Boating on Lake Wheeler

There a beautiful lake in Raleigh called Lake Wheeler that we’ve taken the boys kayaking on recently.  Last Saturday, for his special trip, Bennet decided he wanted to go pedal boating. It was a fun time and the weather was beautiful.  I’m sure we’ll have many more kayaking adventures here in the months to come. 

A New School and School Year–2nd and 4th Grade

The boys have officially started 2nd and 4th grade and will be on a year round schedule.  One of the reasons why we loved this house is that the boys could still walk or ride their bikes to the grade school, middle school and even high school which are near our neighborhood.  It’s like a little slice of Morton and we love it.  The boys got out of school on May 18th and started their new school year July 9th.  Jamie and I were very happy with the timing of our move.  The boys didn’t have to start in the middle of a school year as everyone at WLE started a new school year on July 9th.  They also got to have a nice summer break and enjoy time at the pool before going back. Bennet got Mrs. Stanton and Hayden got Mrs. Liu.  So far, the boys are enjoying their new school and have made some new friends.  Jamie and I have already attended meet the teacher night and are pleased with the school and curriculum.  I especially like what the school is focusing on this year with their positivity project – manners.  The boys are learning to say “yes, ma’am” and “yes, sir.”  Doesn’t get any more Southern than that.  We have been really lucky and some of our old play group buddies/friends are still in the neighborhood and have welcomed the boys.  They have been riding their bikes over to their houses and played, which is just so sweet and warms my heart. The four of us are ready to see what year round schooling is all about and are excited about all of the trips we have planned when the boys are “tracked out.'”

Walking to school on the 1st day with all of our supplies.

Bennet and Mrs. Stanton – Hayden is now too cool for a picture with his teacher;)

The Before Picture

Here’s a before picture of our new house.  We’ve already ripped out all of the over grown bushes in front and a huge holly tree that was by our front porch.  Jamie and I did the majority of it, but had to hire a landscaper to get rid of the big tree and some of the roots of the other over grown bushes. We  love how it is now all open and plan on planting new bushes/plants in the front and around the side.  We are loving all of the trees in our backyard and can’t get enough of our screened in porch.  I remember when the kids were just babies and I would take them for walks in this section of the neighborhood.  I just loved the houses.

A Little Dancing in the Rain

The 4th of July

The Outer Banks–Nags Head

Our First Two Weeks

Ironically, we had the same moving guy, James, and company that we had from our very first move down to North Carolina in 2008.  Our moving company, Mordue, did awesome once again and we continued to have a great experience with them.  It took about a week for us to get all of the boxes unloaded and things situated. We have been going to the neighborhood pools about every day and the kids have been really enjoying swimming and the slides.  This past weekend, however, Jamie and I decided that we needed a break from all of the moving stuff, so we headed out to one of our favorite beaches, Emerald Isle.  We loved this one when we lived here last time, because the water has more of a green’ish’ color compared to Wrightsville or Carolina beach.  And better yet, it’s a really easy drive at only 2 1/2 hours away. The weather was awesome and the water felt great.  We stayed all day and had a fun lunch picnic on the beach.  It was great to be back.  After, we decided to take a little detour and went to Kinston, NC to see where the show A Chef’s Life is filmed.  It’s a show that I used to watch all the time on PBS.  To say the least, it wasn’t really worth the extra trip as the town is in the middle of no where, but I’m happy we did it nonetheless.  When I would watch the show in Illinois, I always wondered what it was like there, now I know.