Parents Weekend in the Mountains

This weekend, my parents made the trek from Louisburg to see Elkin first hand and to stay at the Kennedy's. We relaxed, talked wedding, and toured the town. It was a great time and we are both fortunate to have such great families!

As usual, the weekend involved food and drink... in large amounts.

Dad and Bella were exhausted by the day in Elkin, and all of the good football on tv.

PK and Ma Brown.

All smiles after a good meal.

Stone Mountain

We went to Elkin this past weekend to see the Kennedy family, and early on Saturday morning, we left to hike up to the top of Stone Mountain. Its a short drive from town, so PK and I went to celebrate his birthday and to get a little break from wedding talk. Haha... no, really. At the start of our hike, it was pretty cold, but by the end, we were shedding layers as the sun came out. It was a gorgeous day!

First sighting of "stone"

For the parents...

Taking in the view from the top... and wishing we had made the trek a few weekends before since the leaves had mostly fallen.

PK was filming an advertisement.

I was excited about the Blue Ridge behind me... pretty obvious how they got their name. We could see one of the Parkway lookout points along the ridgeline.

Malfunctioning Camera!

Okay, so my camera has been out of commission since the first weekend in November, however it is back on track now and ready to shoot. Without pictures, I'm afraid the blog isn't as exciting. Nonetheless, I will attempt to give a brief synopsis of what we have been up to.

So, first and foremost we attended the beautiful wedding of Will and Laurel down in Edisto, SC. It was an absolutely gorgeous location and was fun for all as the Avett Brothers provided the music into the evening. We had a great time getting out of dodge and seeing all of Paul's friends. Congratulations to Will and Laurel! We are so happy for you!

Since then, we have been doing a lot of wedding plans ourselves and trying to sort out our lives! We are steadily looking for a house in New Bern in the mix of all of this and trying to successfully get me out of my apartment in Raleigh. Hahaha-- can we add anything else to our plate? Well, since you asked, yes.

Paul was gone to Florida for the whole week after the wedding for a few promotional Camp Nights down South. Lucky for him, he had a chance to visit Disney World and play around a little while he was down there. I was sad it wasn't me going to Disney, but oh well.

Then of course for Thanksgiving, we were with Family. We spent this Thanksgiving in Louisburg with all 20+ members of my family. On Wednesday night we avoided a head-on collision driving back from a friend's house (they aren't kidding about crazy drivers over the holidays), Thursday was a busy day of eating and being thankful for our lives, and Friday PK, my dad, brother, and cousin, all went Duck hunting early in the morning. Apparently, due to the huge drought we are in, there was little water- so the Ducks were flying, they just weren't stopping where the guys were. Oh well, hopefully when the season comes back in, water will be in as well.

Last but not least, PK celebrated his 29th year on this earth yesterday! We are officially celebrating this weekend, so no gifts yet, but soon!

Alright, well I think that is all for now, but soon enough I will have pictures from upcoming events to share. Oh, and in case you didn't know, October 11th, 2008 is the day! Plans are going well, so get excited!

Pictures of the Hardware as Requested

So, here are some different angles of the ring. I was told it is an antique dating to the 1920s. It includes a platinum setting with diamonds and sapphires. The ring is truly unique, which I love, and it is gorgeous. What I love about it is that the diamonds are set down in the ring-- its flush with the setting and hopefully won't get caught on things. Thanks to Kristen Bentzen and John Kennedy for being my photographers.

Three diamonds across the front and sapphire baguettes.

Another view of the top, and some of the platinum hand carvings on the side.

The Antique setting.

We're Engaged!

Hello all, just wanted to let you know (if you don't already) that Coach and I are engaged! He proposed on the beach of the Neuse River last week, and we are extremely excited about making plans for the event. I don't have any details yet, but we are starting that process. Anyway, I will post pictures soon, but just wanted to share the good news!

North Carolina State Fair!

The NC State Fair is in town! We went with Addrian and Alison, and while there, we ate everything we could. The food is always so good at the State Fair. Its always fun to be among the diverse crowd and to see and hear all of the events around you.

The Famous Ferris Wheel.

Everyone gets love at the top of the Wheel!

The view from the top.

Alison and Addrian enjoying the ride.

Its our state's fair... and we're happy about it.

Ocracoke Island

Since October for the most part has felt like August, we decided it would be a great time to go to Ocracoke. After a very interesting Ferry ride to say the very least... we got over to our campsite and had a wonderful time relaxing and hanging out on the beach. Of course, no trip to Ocracoke would be complete without a trip to Howard's Pub and the Ocracoke Coffee Co.-- so we paid our dues. Unfortunately, Coach was unable to come with us due to a prior engagement, and so April, Meredith, Addrian, Alison, Kristen and I went-- leaving Addrian as the lone male ranger. He was a good sport. Its always so refreshing to go to Ocracoke, and I can't wait to go back.

The Village.

My new tent...away from all the sandspurs.

Taking a break from all of her running around.

At the Pub.

All smiles... they were happy with their beer selection.



The beaches of Ocracoke.

Katfo and Freddie P

So, in late September, my great friend Katherine Forehand Smith and her fabulous husband Fred came to Charlotte to surprise their sister (and sister in law) on her birthday. Amanda Niles, Alison Henry, E.A. Ritter and I went to celebrate with the family and spend some good time with our friends. It was great to see them state-side as the last time we saw each other was in London. I hope to see them again soon back in London.

Nice.

Hahahahaha.

What a good-looking bunch!

The Smith's.

A few drinks into it...

The Hog!

A couple of weekends ago, we went with Sarah and David Madison (the newlyweds) to Hog Island. This is a private island that was donated to camp, and actually used to be an entire village in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It also served as a hunting lodge well into the 20th century. But now, the lodge and island, belong to Camp Sea Gull and Seafarer-- so we run programs and trips out to the Hog during the summer. We just wanted to go for a weekend to hang out and to see if the rumors of it being haunted are true. We had a blast...David cooked the best Shrimp and Grits I have EVER had, and then we listened to music and played cards all night. Consequently, that same night Kentucky beat Louisville (which a hardcore KY fan friend of mine wanted to make sure was included since it is so important). Happy now, Mac? Anyway, we didn't see any ghosts but we were awakened in the middle of the night by the island's wild horses causing a ruckus outside our windows. Its such an amazing place.

Bella loved the island, and thought she was being really fierce with the crab pot bouy in the water. That's me and Sarah after making our way through the marsh on the island...don't ask. Anyway, then we cleaned the main lodge and a little of the kitchen as it was left in disarray after the summer. The last picture is of our ride back on the Baby Whaler that we used-- since the skiff was out of commission. You can see Hog Island behind us.

P is for Party!

Over Labor Day we traveled up to Elkin for an engagement party for Will and Laurel, and although I did not take many pictures, these are a couple that I thought were fun. Anyway it was a great time. The following weekend was Elizabeth Seeger's 30th birthday party. Coach was facilitating a weekend at camp and so Kristen Bentzen and I went for a fun girls night.

Adam and Cindy Beshears-- two of my favorites. And no, Adam is not missing any teeth, he has a piece of candy in his mouth.






Coach and I were watching the ping-pong games and posed for a picture. At the B-day party, we were trying to go back a few years in the time machine. Unfortunately, we tried the experiment without a sufficient power source--so next time we are certain it will work. Elizabeth and Ryan are smiling about the popularity of their time machine. Haha-- it was a great night.

Bella's Photo Shoot

Bella was being so freaking cute one afternoon, so I just started taking some pictures and she totally started posing. Haha. She is so funny.

Sarah and David Tie the Knot

Coach and I left Wild Dunes to fly out of Wilmington to attend the wedding of Sarah Kronour and David Madison in Ohio. The happy couple met at camp and now live in New Bern, as Sarah is the marketing director at camp. We had a great time at the wedding and are excited about all of the fun we will have living in New Bern. Check out the beautiful setting for this wedding. The colors were amazing. That's Sarah and David saying their vows, Coleman and Matt being ushers, and the entire camp crew at the wedding.