Twenty-five

Saturday was my 25th birthday. We had a "party at the pond" at my sister's house Saturday afternoon/evening to celebrate.

There was wading in the creek:

And riding in the back of trucks:

And lots and lots of good food and good company. It was a super laid back affair, which was right up my alley.

What did I get for my birthday?

Cash, some gift cards (they always fit!), a Kindle and leather cover from my mom and dad, and a zoom lens from Lee. And a few things I bought for myself.

All in all, it was a great birthday. Here's to a great 25th year of life!

Mountain Camping

For a variety of reasons, Lee and I decided to forgo the beach and the river on Labor Day. We were planning a quiet weekend at home with our dog who has a broken toe (long story).

But, at the last minute, Lee talked me into going camping in the mountains for a night. So we loaded up on hotdogs and ingredients for s'mores on Friday night and then set out west at 6am Saturday morning.

In an effort to keep it real on this here blog, I'll share with you the good and the bad highlights from our trip.

Campsite

The BAD:

I am a born planner. I like to have everything planned to a tee. This trip was not planned at all. Therefore, we drove 4 hours to Mortimer campground only to find they were full. (Labor Day weekend and all, duh.) We went to a nearby private campground which was run by a group of mountain hippies. They were clearly full, but offered to squeeze us in anyway. As we scanned the area, we realized there were nothing but men and horses and the strong smell of weed (it's 11am at this point mind you). We decided to pass. Then we drove another hour west to the Linville Falls area only to find those campgrounds full.

The GOOD:

We finally found a private campground full of quiet old people in RVs. We fit in perfectly.

Gem Mining

The BAD:

We went to Gem Mountain tourist trap gem mine and paid $25 for a bucket of rocks.

The GOOD:

Although hokey, it was actually pretty fun. And we scored a humongo raw emerald, among other pretty stones (although we were too cheap to have any of them cut into jewelry).

Crabtree Falls

The BAD:

It was a mile hike into the falls, which is definitely doable but the terrain was REALLY rocky and I was gingerly picking my way through the rocks so as not to break my dang ankle. Lee said I was embarrassing him because I was going so slow.

The GOOD:

The hike was beautiful, the falls were beautiful, I got a lot of great pictures and Sugar loved it too.

Camping

The BAD:

Although our campground was quiet, there was a dog somewhere in the distance that howled all. night. long. I honestly did not know dogs could bark that long.

The GOOD:

It was actually kind of fun being snuggled in the tent with Lee and Sugar. And did I mention nighttime temps were in the 50s? A very nice change from the 90 degree weather recently.

All in all the trip turned out pretty well but it will be another year before I'm ready to go camping again. Once a year is about my limit.

And now for some pics.

P.S. - S'mores are good for breakfast. I absolutely refuse to even consider going camping unless there are s'mores involved.

Beach Weekend

This weekend we took Chrissy and Mike (and their German Shepard Ali) to the beach with us.

The weekend consisted of:

1. Dinner in Kinston on the way down at The Baron & The Beef. Chrissy and Mike marveled at the awesome salad bar and the even more awesome 70's wood paneling.

2. Cruising around Beaufort on Saturday morning. It was Ali's first boat ride and only Chrissy's second.

3. Lee and Mike fishing.

4. Chilling on our own private Shell Island.

5. Lots of fetching from the doggies.

6. Ali eating a lot of sand.

7. Swimming in the rain off the dock at the house (a religious experience in itself).

8. Dinner at Clawson's, followed by drinks at Dock House, where Lee befriended a man named Bubba.

All in all, a pretty great weekend.

My Husband is Handsome

That is all.

How to Catch Crabs

We're talking crustaceans people. Get your mind out of the gutter.

Step 1: Take a nice boat ride to the Waterfowl Impoundment. Enjoy the scenery.







Step 2: Tie a disgusting fish head (chicken necks and legs work well too) to your piece of string and toss it into the water (don't let go of your end of the string, or the whole thing will go in the water -- duhhh).



Step 3: Wait patiently for a crabby to attack your fish guts.



Step 4*: Look like you just came out of the Outback, even though you haven't been to Australia yet. *optional



Step 5: Reel your string and bait in, being careful not to shake the crab off. Then scoop 'em up.



Step 6: Dump 'em in the bucket.



Step 7: Don't stop until your cooler looks like this.



Step 8: Family togetherness and happiness.

On the Cover of Rolling Stone

Ok, so it's not Rolling Stone and it's not the cover, but the starfish escort cards from our wedding were featured in The Knot magazine!





My dear friend Stephanie, who's currently planning her December wedding, texted me to let me know she had spied my escort cards in the magazine. Of course I had to rush out and buy a copy.

My photographer submitted some photos to The Knot a million years ago and we never heard anything back, so I didn't think anything else about it. Without Steph's keen eyes, I would've never known the pic had made it into print. Thanks Steph!

Summer Stir Fry

This stir fry via Pioneer Woman has become our go-to meal this summer.

The grape tomatoes and basil are from our garden, as well as some of the corn (the corn we planted only yielded two small ears before the critters got to it).

It's fresh, easy to make and (fairly) healthy. The sweet corn is really what makes it. Try it...you won't be disappointed.