Recap of Memorial Day camping

I almost didn't get to write this post about camping in the outer banks because we almost didn't get a campsite! Thankfully, the people who got the last site shared it with us.  We were actually there first, but they talked to the ranger first.  And, the site was large enough that we could each be fairly far apart.  Here's a short recap of our weekend in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and camping in Frisco.

The first, and largest National Park Service campground we tried was closed due to flooding, so we knew we might have trouble finding a spot in the second campground in the area.  But, we got lucky, or at least encountered some nice people who were willing to share.

Our campsite

Darwin found his shady spot immediately!  It was hot at 11am.

On Saturday, the beach was packed with SUVs lined up next to each other.  It made the beach look so ugly with so many cars on it!  It was super windy and the sand actually hurt because it was blowing so hard against you. We didn't lay on the beach very much and ended up going for a long walk instead. We also set up our campsite, drove around the area a bit, and spent most of the evening watching wind surfers that were loving the breezy conditions.  Apparently, I forgot to use my camera on the first day, but made up for it on day 2.  Here is a picture recap of our Sunday.

Heading to the beach to enjoy breakfast during the beautiful morning (~6:30am)

Some scattered showers allowed us to experience a rainbow

Darwin loved laying on our beach towels all weekend!

He did go into the water on his own and actually played in it 

(but no swimming yet - he's still afraid of the water when it gets above his belly)

The walk from the campsite to the beach

Rushing to take down our camping gear before the rain came. We had everything packed, except the tent! I'm so glad our down (feather) sleeping bags were already packed.

Darwin hiding under the table at lunch during the start to our drive back.  The rain was heavy in Frisco, so we made our way up the coast and stopped for lunch for a little delay in the hopes the rain would pass and we'd be able to enjoy a beach day.

My fish tacos were pretty good at the Atlantic Coast Cafe in Waves, NC

Colin opted for the fried medley (fries, shrimp, grouper, crab cakes)

We seemed to be driving away from the rain as we headed up Cape Hatteras National Seashore.  When we got to the last spot before getting on the main road away from the beach, we decided to take a little nap (full bellies after a night of poor sleep in a tent leaves you feeling so tired) and it seemed we were about 20-30 minutes ahead of the rain.  There were lots of clouds, but very little rain when we arrived around 1pm, so we put up the beach umbrella and rested our eyes for a bit.  As the day progressed, the clouds diminished and we slowly brought more of our things out to the beach.  By 3pm, we experienced more sun than clouds.  And with the threat of rain most of the day, we had the beach mostly to ourselves.


What started off as a day with scattered storms, turned into a day with heavy rain,
and later into a pleasant afternoon/evening.  

 Nags Head around 5pm - perfect!

It was a difficult 3 hour ride home from the beach, but after a nice, long shower, it felt amazing to sleep in my own bed.  My bed always feels amazing after sleeping on the ground and it was especially wonderful after experiencing two days of salt water and ocean air.  The best part was that we could sleep in on Monday since it was Memorial Day!

What did you do Memorial Day weekend?

Where is your favorite place to go in the Outer Banks?

Lots of Upcoming Travels!!

Happy almost long weekend to all!!

It's going to be in the upper 80's this weekend so Colin and I are headed to the outer banks this evening!!  The plan is to stay with our friend's parents tonight and then head down the coast to find a campground with room for Saturday and Sunday night reservations.  I know that I always look forward to camping, but never sleep well in a tent.  But, I am just so happy to have a long weekend ahead of me and we haven't really spent a lot of time of the beach since....gosh I can't even remember.  I'm guessing some time last summer, or maybe even before that.  No wonder I can't wait!

We've also been planning other fun summer adventures the past few weeks. Colin's got a work trip to Fort Lauderdale in early June (yes, right around the corner!) and his conference finishes up on a Friday.  I'm very excited to go and spend a long weekend at the beach (3 full days).  And that trip will be even better than the outer banks because 1.) we will be more comfortable in a hotel and 2.) it will come at the end of a very busy time at work (which I am in the middle of now!!).

At the end of June and into early July, my dear friend from college is getting married in Burlington, Vermont.  So, we've got a whirlwind of a trip planned to fly into and out of Boston, visit friends in the area, spend some time in RI and be in Burlington for the weekend.  All of that is planned in just 5 days!!  I wish I could go longer to visit with more friends in the area, especially since there are so many babies I haven't met (and some are already 2).  But alas, we're trying to save up some vacation time for a big trip in the fall (I won't disclose until we are sure we are going).  Thankfully, many of my college gal pals will be with me at the wedding (though none are bringing their babies) and they all live fairly close to each other in Boston. To make things easier, I'm trying to plan a day (or night) with each set of friends along the route between RI and VT.  New York friends will have to wait until a visit in that direction.

And if these three trips were not exciting enough, I had a meeting today at work regarding a conference in Asheville in September.  I love that town because the vibe brings me back to Burlington and always get excited to spend some time there.  The best part about the conference is not that it is in Asheville, but that we are all staying in The Grove Park Inn!  My friends in the area will need no explanation, but for those of you unfamiliar with the resort, it is a large antique resort spa that boasts a "bed and breakfast" feel and is located in the middle of the mountains with amazing views all around.  The spa is supposedly a-m-a-z-i-n-g and September is usually a fantastic time of year in the mountains of North Carolina.  Though I do have to present at this conference on Sunday, I'm getting excited at the prospect of going up early to enjoy the area, especially since all rooms are discounted for conference attendees.  I hope I can convince Colin that it is an opportunity he does not want to miss.

I'm sure that by now you know that I love planning trips and getaways.  With the beautiful weather we've been having in Raleigh, we've been enjoying "staycations."  Now that the weather is getting a bit too warm, it's time to escape to places that offer more comfortable temperatures (like the mountains) or places to cool off from the heat (like the beach).

I'll keep you posted on how Darwin does with his second attempt at camping.  We will definitely be taking the "chew-proof" tie out cable and stake to prevent him from chasing night time critters in case he's still scared of the tent.  And we are taking our big tent in case it rains and he needs to sleep with us.


What are you up to this long weekend? 
Any summer vacation plans being made?

Sometimes Soccer Takes a Toll on the Body

(Warning - today's post has some graphic images.  You may not want to read while eating)

I have been playing a lot of soccer lately - as in averaging about 3 games a week.  During the past month, it has taken its toll on my body.

A few weeks ago I played in a soccer game that left me wondering why, at 31 years old, I still put my body at risk for injury. When you get back in the game, you forget about the pain and the injuries.  Unfortunately for me, I sustained another injury last week.  So now I'm thinking it might be getting close to the time to "hang up my boots" and retire... until I play another game with no injury.

The first injury happened during an over-30 women's soccer game.  A few minutes into the second half of a physical game, I took a ball square to the face.  When my eyes stopped watering, I could see that my nose was bleeding, so I took myself out of the game to take care of both dripping nostrils.  When my nose was under control and someone needed a sub, I made the biggest mistake of putting myself back in the game.  Within 10 minutes of being back on the field, I jumped to head the ball out of the defensive end of the field and felt the solid mass of another player's head hit my eyebrow after I hit the ball.  Again, my eye watered, but I didn't think anything of it.  It wasn't until I put my hand to my eye that I noticed I was bleeding again.  This time I took myself out of the game for good, especially since people who were looking at me coming off the field had very concerned expressions on their faces and one girl even asked if  had split my eyelid open.

Day 1: A small cut on the eyebrow, swelling and bruising on the eye, and swelling on the nose is visible after cleaning up.

Day 2: Heavily painted eye makeup to cover the bruising eye.  Swelling is improved.

Day 3-9 by night: A nice light purple gives way to dark purple and red/maroon.  Glad I have purple and red-toned eye makeup. Hoping it doesn't turn yellow or green.

Day 3-9 by day: Using my red and purple eye shadows and going through the clothes that match.

Day 11: Cut healed, swelling gone, and just a tiny purple spot remains above the lash line.  Back to using only eyeliner and mascara and wearing whatever I want.

I did take a week off after my eye injury (not choosing to play on my "part time" teams and because my full time teams had games cancelled.  And played with a bit more trepidation (especially in regards to heading the ball) when I came back.  But, after that first week, I was back to a 3-4 games per week schedule.

Unfortunately, just as my eye finished healing, I sustained another injury.  I'm not even sure how it happened, really.  I was playing coed and lunged to poke the ball away from an approaching male opponent.  Someone I rolled on top of it instead of poking it away.  Since I was lunging, my opposite knee went down to the ground - or so I thought. Maybe it scraped against the cleat or shinguard of my opponent.  Whatever I hit made my knee and shin hurt like heck!  It took at least 5 minutes for the pins and needles to stop radiating through my lower leg and I managed to play the rest of the game (though it was not comfortable).  

I iced it as soon as I got home and told my friend I didn't need her icing machine (used after her knee surgery).  Thankfully, she had the foresight to leave the machine for me because I woke up in the middle of the night with a hot, throbbing injured knee.  Once I got it covered in a compress and had the ice machine working its magic, I slept much better.  The swelling did not go down quickly, even with the ice machine, nor did the pain go away very quickly.  Because the cut is on an area that bends, a dried scab opens when you bend it.  I have learned to keep my knee bent after showering (and wetting the area) to minimize the pain of opening the wound.  The area with the largest cut remains tender and slightly swollen even after 11 days!

Photo taken 6 days after the injury. Cuts are healing and bruises are improving.

Even through these injuries, I still want to compete (some days more than others).  I love playing with the women's teams and have a love/hate relationship with coed leagues.  Coed is fun when you are on a team that moves the ball around the field well and plays against teams that do the same.  Unfortunately, the league I currently play in has a mix of skilled and non-skilled players. It's usually these non-skilled players who can't control their bodies and hurt people.  I try to stay away from them. 

This weekend's schedule - 1 women's game on Saturday and a women's and coed game on Sunday!

What's the worse injury you've sustained while playing a sport?

What keeps you motivated to keep playing?

A Pre-Technology Practice in a Post-Technology World

A few weeks ago, someone went around the neighborhood leaving these books on everyone's doorstep...

Phone books for all in the Oxxford Hunt neighborhood

After a quick rant about this outdated practice, we threw our books straight into the recycling bin. Talk about a waste of paper!

Cupcakes and an Urban Park

On a recent trip to Whole Foods in Cary, we decided to look around the plaza for a cupcake shop that Colin's coworker raved about.  Imagine our surprise to find the cutest gem in the form of an "urban park!"

There is a little grassy area where people were kicking around a soccer ball, a playground for the little kiddos, and a fancy restaurant with tables outside.  Most of the business spaces remain empty as the plaza is a new development, but I have a feeling this is going to be a popular place when it fills up.

We found a seat near this fountain.  As the evening came to a close, the fountain transformed into a fire pit.  We are big fans of fire pits and haven't yet found a used one that's inexpensive for our backyard.

We found the cupcake place, Gigi's, but with 1 hour until closing, the selection was minimal. Thankfully, they had my favorite - chocolate/chocolate - and it was divine!  We also split the vanilla/vanilla and gave the chocolate/vanilla to a friend.  

Imagine my delight when our friend returned the favor and brought us a lemon cupcake and chocolate velvet cupcake two weeks later, and just as I was getting ready to post about them on the blog!  It was a nice reminder about how good they are so I could blog about them with a more recent memory.

Gigi's cupcakes, at $3 each are fairly large and are delicious.  Apparently, they are a chain, and my favorite part about the start up story is when the owner shares, 

"Then, in September 2007, my brother Steve went to New York City and stood in line for two hours at one of New York's famous cupcake shops. He called me while eating the Red Velvet Cupcakes. “These aren’t as good as yours and mom’s. You should open a cupcake shop in Nashville!” Steve told me.

I'm guessing that famous cupcake shop was Magnolia - one of our favorites. I actually prefer a soft, moist cupcake with a soft, creamy frosting. With that said, I prefer Gigi's to Magnolia. But, Colin insists that Magnolia is better.  Personally, I think it's just his bias that everything in NYC is better than in NC.

In the Triangle, Gigi's is certainly better than the cupcakes I've had at two other cupcake shops - The Cupcake Shoppe Bakery in Raleigh and Sugarland in Chapel Hill. Colin and I can both agree on that one!  And now that I've found the "urban park" oasis where I can enjoy the cupcake, grocery trips to Whole Foods are much more appealing!  The only problem I have with Gigi's, is that it closes at 8pm. The early closing makes it hard to get there on a weeknight and if you can get there before it closes but after dinner there is not much to choose from.

And, I really want to enjoy my delicious cupcake sitting by the fire pit....a fire pit is more appealing when it's dark...and it gets dark after 8pm.  Gigi's - are you listening?!??

Where is the best place you've ever had a cupcake?  What flavor did you get?

1 Year Ago Today we Added a Member to the Family

"Let's go take a look and see what kind of dogs Petsmart has for adoption" one Saturday morning turned into the adoption lady telling us, "I'll be back here tomorrow if you just want to take him for the day - I bet he'd love a trip to the park."  So, we borrowed a leash and a collar, left our contact information, and took a sweet little lab/beagle, then called Bubba, to the park.

We went back to Petsmart the following day, not to take him back, but to complete the adoption paperwork and return the leash and collar.  The sweet little 18 pound pup, Sir Charles Darwin, became an official member of the Miller family on May 1, 2011.

An introduction to the rest of the family, came in the form of an e-mail,
"Sir* Charles Darwin, who does not yet recognize his called name "DARWIN" was officially adopted on May 1, 2011. He is the largest of six children born on January 4, 2011 to a 30 pound Beagle mother and 40 pound Labrador father. As his features show, he has received more of his father's characteristics, but does have some white accents on his chest that come from his mother. While his temper is very good so far, a few of his alerting barks have been that of a Lab while some have had a bit of a howl to them. It didn't take long to get comfortable in his crate and he is starting to learn how to sit. Potty training is still a work in progress, but it helps that he can learn from his model cousin Phoenix. So far his favorite activities include being Phoenix's sidekick, chewing on sticks and pinecones, sleeping, and exploring. He doesn't mind his feet, ears, and teeth being poked and prodded, and can sit pretty still when he wants to.

His new mom and dad are staying up late and getting up early with him and are patiently trying to teach him the skills he will need to grow into a well-behaved dog. We all look forward to the day when you can meet the little guy - who may not be this little when you see him next!"

 May 2, 2011 - Darwin practicing his sit at 18 pounds

 As a pup and a 1 year old, he prefers sticks to toys, 

but could certainly enjoy a toy when sticks are not available.

In the first month, Darwin's model "cousin" Phoenix 

taught him how to behave at home and how to play.

The first few months were difficult since we didn't know if he could hold his pee for an entire night or an entire day at work.  After about a month, we learned that he could - which was a relief for us.  Then he went through a bout with Mange, a skin condition common in rescue dogs.  He was on some medicine for part of the summer, but the discoloring and hair loss around his eyes disappeared after 2 rounds of medication.

July 2011 Weighing in about 35-40 pounds

August 2011 Weighing in about 40-45 pounds

Starting around September, we had a seemingly chronic problem with soft stools and upset stomachs.  After 2 rounds of antibiotics and probiotics (an effort to restore balance to his gut), several food changes, and about 5 months, Darwin finally seemed to have overcome his problem.  We are not 100% sure of the reason, but we have stopped using "high quality, grain-free" food and that seems to work better for him.  He still has an upset stomach every now and then, but it seems to correlate with drinking water from the lake or puddles - which we can't always avoid.

This video (on the longer side) is amusing. Check it out to see Darwin hiding his bone in the couch cushions.  This was back in December 2011.

1 year later, Darwin weighs in at 60 pounds (on the dot!).  Potty training was very easy with him, as was teaching him to sit and lay down.  But, even after a full year, we still struggle with "come" and getting his attention if there are more exciting things around.  If you have treats, and there are no major distractions in the house, Darwin responds to sit and down in oral and silent commands.  He can also stay when told to do so, and when he walks at your side, he stops and sits when you stop.  

It's difficult to get on video, but I tried to show how great he is at listening and paying attention to silent and verbal cues when it's just us!

We've been working with him off-leash in the park, and sometimes he is really good at staying near us.  Every now and then, a squirrel or rabbit is just too tempting and we have to spend about 1-2 minutes calling him to come back.  Thankfully, he has come back each time (but only when he's ready).  We plan to keep working on that.

 May 1, 2012 Weighing in at 60 lbs.

He still loves sticks, but knows they are "outside toys"

He loves the few bones he has for inside.

He's so smart, he can differentiate between his "ball" and his "toy."  "Bone" is confusing - I think it sounds too much like "ball."  

While having a dog has been a big responsibility, and has greatly changed how we've been traveling, he has brought great joy to both Colin and I over the past year.  Now that he is getting older, he enjoys "cuddling" with me and will paw at anyone who tries to stop petting him.  He doesn't mind going to fetch a ball or a toy, but the best part for him is fighting you for it.

This month Darwin goes back to the vet for some 1 year follow-up shots and an exam. We are hoping all the health problems are behind us and he can continue to grow into a calm, loving, and devoted companion.

What are your fondest first year memories with your pet?

Or, what are your fondest memories of Darwin in this first year with us?

A Wonderful Dining Experience in Cary

Last week Colin and I decided to try the restaurant Lucky 32.  When I was traveling to Greensboro for work a few weeks ago, I saw the restaurant listed on Eat Well Guide, the site that informs consumers about where they can find sustainable foods.  The website indicated a restaurant was also located in Cary, not far from our home.  Receiving a coupon from my coworker was the sign that told me it was time to try it out.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, we saw there were lots of seats available outside.  With temperatures warm near the 80s and the sun lowering in the sky, it was an amazing night to enjoy dinner outdoors.  

Since we had the coupon, we decided to try an appetizer and a dessert.  The server offered to split our beet salad on two plates and when we received them, it seemed like we had each ordered our own salad!  Even the waiter seemed surprised at our large portions.  The beet salad was more like a leafy green salad, with beets, blue cheese, pears, apples and walnuts.  It was very good, but we had expected more beets.

My "half" of the beet salad

Colin opted for the local, grass fed burger with cheddar cheese and french fries.  If you have never had local, grass fed burger meat, you are certainly missing out!  We always notice how much better it tastes when we buy it at Whole Foods.  And we were not let down at Lucky 32.  The meat was perfectly cooked - a little pink and very juicy! 

Local, Grass-fed beef burger with cheddar cheese and fries

I decided to get the lamb sliders - 3 mini burgers made from lamb sausage - from the seasonal menu.  The beet salad also came from the seasonal menu, which is available from April 4-May 15.  We rarely eat lamb, and have enjoyed it in the past, so I figured it would be a good choice. I didn't think it was possible for the mini burgers to taste as good as Colin's burger, but it was equally delicious.  Colin even thought it was better!  I would have enjoyed it more if it wasn't for the pepper jelly.

Lambtastic sliders with goat Lady chevre cheese and pepper jelly

For dessert, we opted for the chess pie.  Nothing seemed better than chocolate pie to end an evening enjoying burgers outdoors.  The only unfortunate part of the evening was that I didn't get photos of our little outdoor nook or the chess pie.  It was too tempting to not dig in right away.

When friends and family visit, we will definitely look forward to taking them to Lucky 32.  I look forward to trying future seasonal menus, listening to their variety of southern music, and enjoying a wonderful dining experience indoors or out.