Stormy Morning Out at Sea

This was the scene out my bedroom door this morning (7am).

As the first one up today I thought I would try to get some work done before everyone got up. I had to grab my camera first because there definitely was a storm out to sea. It never rained on us, but there it was in full force. That is one of the things I love about the ocean, the sea. It is in a constant state of change. It's several hours later now and beautiful out. Nature's simplistic rebirth and renewal is so peaceful, inspiring, amazing, and HopeFull.

As much as I love watching the Canadian Geese fly at home I love the pelicans here. They seem to have a lot of ambition and teamwork! They were definitely taking advantage of the stormy skies with their breakfast flight.

We are headed out to Ocracoke Island today. 

Black Beard's home as Sam remembers it...

Taking a ferry to get there is what Beth remembers.... and

Howard's Pub is all that is on Brian's mind!

On my mind is a tiny, quaint, enchanting island village (in a Stephen King type of way) that is full of history and somewhat trapped in time.

I'll have photos to share later!

~Tara

My Beach Baby

My Elizabeth.

Her and  I were in the hot tub tonight. 

I told her, "You look so stinkin' cute in that bikini!"

She said, "Hola. That's how I say thank you in Chinese."

:) 

Boogie boarding, fishing, pool...

We have had a lot of really great weather.

It was a little windier yesterday and the waves were really choppy. Perfect for boogie boarding and kite surfing! Sam did a great job and remembered how to do it pretty fast.

Brian and Beth tried their hands at fishing. No luck today.

Since Brian turned the pool heat to 90 degrees we can't get the kids out! I love it... they swim, and swim, and swim some more and then at 7:30/8pm they fall asleep on the couch!

Christie Brinkley.... eat your heart out!

Yes, she had 3 different bathing suits on through out the day.

Getting some reading and relaxing too!

Outside our bedroom on the balcony. I had lifeguard duty at the time.

Kite surfing... an Outer Banks staple.

I haven't been able to upload pictures since yesterday morning... sorry about posting so late!

~Tara

Finished

For those of you that know, and those that don't,  I have become completely obsessed with a series of books that I found out about because of a new HBO series, True Blood. After I watched a few episodes I knew I had to investigate the books. (Mostly because I couldn't wait for a weekly episode, I needed to find out what happens next!)

What has happened next is that my life has been a whirlwind!

Reading 8, 300-400 page books in less than a week had taken on a life of it's own.

(Brian has pretty much resorted to being Mr. Mom. God bless him.)

So I have retreated into my books, into Sookie Stackhouse's life. Absolutely, 100% addicted. I truly could not put them down. Yesterday when I picked up #8 and headed to the beach I was a little sad because I knew when I finished... I finished.

Thank goodness Ms. Harris wrote a ninth... it will be out early May '09.

(I read on her website that she will release the first chapter around Christmas time. Only a couple more months until I get a clue into what Sookie's next adventure will be... although I have a few of my own ideas of how I would like it to go. :)

Never in a million years did I think I would be so taken with science fiction... but I have been sucked into the underworld... hook, line and sinker!

Charlaine Harris 

True Blood

(click onto the names.... if you dare be swept into my obsession and addiction!)

~Tara :)

Not a Cloud in the Sky

Well, Sam was up at the crack of dawn this morning, literally. He came into tell us the sun was coming up. So, being the good dad that Brian is, he got up with him to watch it rise. I on the other hand decided to stay in bed a little while longer.

We did start our day at the beach a little after 8:30am.

The kids were between the beach and pool the entire day.

It was 85 and sunny, not a cloud in the sky. The waves were pretty mild too.

Brian spotted Manta Rays jumping.

He and the kids tried their hands at fishing later in the evening but no luck.

The beach is very quiet this week, not a lot of visitors.

After our grilled dinner, Sam fell asleep on the couch and Beth was shortly after.

Not much else to write about.

It was simply... the PERFECT beach day.

(Sorry, I don't mean to rub it in.)

The 'Nights in Rodanthe' house is at the end of this row of homes, if your interested.

It's pretty beat up. A couple of storms have gone through in the last few weeks. The cement foundation is showing and there is very little beach in front of it.

Good catch Sam!

We're Here!!

We made it safely to our beloved beach house!

We had a quick visit in Philadelphia with Luke and Danielle yesterday. Brian and Luke took the kids out and about for the day while Danielle and I stayed back. I have the onset of a sinus infection I think and wasn't feeling too good. I slept most of the morning then Danielle and I laid on opposite couches in a wonderful silence reading our books. (K.A. - by the way, I just started #7) The guys had a great time with the kids. :) We finished off the night with milkshakes from Nifty Fifties.

Got up early this morning and hit the road. The kids were GREAT in the car.

Four movies and two potty breaks later we were here!!!

Nothing too spectacular happened on the ride down. Brian drove the entire way, the kids were zoned to movies, and I was in the back, back seat all cuddled in and zoned to book #6.

As soon as we got settled in we hit the beach, let the kids run through the sand and look at shells. (For those of you that have been here with us, (my family and Kristin A.), the beach is very eroded.  It seems that at high tide the water comes right up to the dune in front of the house.) So after a great sunset we are here... safe and sound.

Doorbell just rang... pizza is here... got to go! :)

(Special thanks to my mom who showed up on Friday morning with a new DVD player for the car. With out that this would have been an entirely different entry! Thanks to Luke and Danielle for the overnights and craziness.)

~Tara

*** Don't forget... you can click on each individual photo to see it larger, if you want.

Pumpkin Patch

I decided to take the kids to get our pumpkins this morning. We usually go together, as a family, down to LaFayette to get pumpkins and apples, but Brian has been really busy with work the last... uh- well, 9 years!:) He couldn't get away this morning and we have much limited time now that the kids are both in school. Anyways, I didn't feel right about going to our annual spot with out him so I took the kids someplace different. Hopefully when we get back we'll head down there. 

This place was great too. All pumpkins... $2. There were so many great ones, still on the vine, fresh and alive! I could have brought home 100+ but restrained myself to just 14. The kids were having fun looking for their "perfect" finds. Beth ended up having a slight meltdown when she remembered that she didn't have her breakfast and was now hungry. As I was giving her a quick lecture, Sam was frantically calling for me to come over. He found deer tracks in the mud. He then proceeded to tell me that he followed them a little bit and was sure they were headed South. (Where does this kid come from?) Meanwhile, Beth is now yelling me to come over because she has to go potty. Ok- now we are in the middle of a field with no bathroom in sight. What do I do?

I walked her over to a higher patch of grass, giving another quick lecture, pulled down her pants and had her go right there. It was priceless. I am holding her up and she is whining about the grass touching her bottom. After she was finished she said, "I feel so much better... but I am still hungry." Needless to say it was time to leave. 

One by one I carried each pumpkin through the field and into my car. (I have now considered this my workout for the day, walking hundreds of yards carrying 30+ pound pumpkins.)

She always has to have one picture with "the look" and her hip sticking out!

Our pumpkin pile.

I had to take this picture. As we were in the patch we witnessed one of my favorite parts of autumn, the Canadian Geese flying South for the winter. It's something that is truly beautiful. This group was just a small flock with in the HUGE migration. It was so loud.  We stopped, listened, and watched the "V's" fly overhead. 

*** Oh- and by the way, Beth had 2 bowls of chicken noodle soup when we got home! :)