Carly and Corbin

Last weekend, we flew into Elmira to meet my new niece and visit our families. We had a great trip, timing the weather just right - we flew up just before a massive snowstorm pummeled Philly and we flew back after they had cleaned out but before the next storm hit.

I know all anyone is interested in is baby pictures so I'm just going to skip right to that.


Mike holding Carly on Saturday




Corbin on the floor, face full of chocolate on Sunday


Carly in the dress we bought her that she wore for church dedication on Sunday

Carly is a very sweet baby and I really enjoyed holding her. Corbin is a riot - up and down and here and there and just insanely funny. We played basketball with him and bribed him with treats. Whatever it takes!

Matt and Rachel were with us on Saturday but drove back to Philly early on Sunday to start shoveling out from their weather. But not before we could have Pudgies!

We also went to Tanino's with Ray and Jocelyn O'Donnell. Mmm, that place is delicious. And it doesn't hurt that the company was awesome! Of course, there was also a stop for a Wegmans sub.

So a great trip. We'll probably be back up that direction for Mike's 15 yr reunion this summer. Maybe we can see more peopl then!

Cat Attack

We haven't been very good at blogging here. How about a quick catch-up today?

The holidays were nice. Very quiet and we enjoyed just hanging out. We did take a quick trip to DC after Christmas to see Tai Shan (the panda) at the National Zoo before he heads home. I think he's traveling this week actually.

On January 15th, my sister Christine had a baby girl, Carly Noel. Mama and baby are fine. It seems nephew Corbin is even trying to help out now that he realizes Carly is there to stay.

Mike's birthday was last week and we celebrated by going to Maximillian's Pizza Grill down the street from the house that night. Good thing we did because snow and ice happened Saturday and we had to skip out on our dinner and Mamma Mia! plans that evening. Instead, we stayed snowed in and did a lot of nothing.

In kitty news, Mike took Ripley to the vet on January 22nd because he had chewed his back leg raw again. We have no idea if it's allergies, a skin condition, or stress because he has to live with Tasha. And speaking of Tasha, she lost a bottom fang on January 26th. Sadly, it's probably due to tooth decay - the girl will be 10 in April and I guess these things happen. We took her to the vet last Friday to have blood drawn to see if she can handle the anesthesia they would use to clean her teeth. It took 3 vet techs and the doctor to hold her down for the blood draw, at which point Tasha SCREAMED. She has certainly fought hard to earn her reputation in that office.

Soon, we'll be visiting the Elmira area, primarily to meet Carly and remind Corbin of who we are. We're looking forward to seeing everyone but keeping an eye on the weather - you never know what you'll get flying into the Northeast this time of year.

2009 Year In Review

2009 started off with a freak January snowstorm in Raleigh (7 inches) shortly after construction began on our screen porch.

The porch project defined much of the first part of the year for us. When it was finally completed in April, we added a vegetable garden to the backyard and had an acoustic guitar (Brian Vanderark) concert with some friends in May to formally break it in.

 

In June, we headed to Topsail Island with Stacia's family for a week's beach vacation. In July, a lightning strike paid an unwelcome visit to our house and damaged many electronics but we were otherwise okay (as was the house).

The rest of the summer was filled with various concerts in NC leading up to our much anticipated vacation in September to the Bay Area of CA including San Francisco, Napa Valley, and Yosemite National Park. It was simply amazing and is now one of our favorite places to visit (Mike was lucky enough to go back for work later in the year).

We also made our annual fall foliage trip to the mountains of NC/VA including stops at local wineries along the way.

In late October, Mike visited his family in NY. Stacia and I spent Thanksgiving in FL with Mike's Aunt Brenda so that Mike could run his first full marathon (the Space Coast Marathon). We were also able to see a shuttle landing while we were there.

We spent the holidays at home in NC with a quick trip to DC just before the new year to enjoy some holiday activities and say goodbye to our beloved Tai Shan, the panda born at the National Zoo in 2005 and scheduled to be sent to China later this month.

Tasha and Ripley are their usual selves...and wish you a happy 2010!

Fall Foliage 2009

Originally we scheduled our annual "Fall Foliage" weekend for the 9th through 12th. But due to many circumstances, we drastically changed our plans, instead heading back out this past Saturday and Sunday.

Fall Foliage (VA)

Our initial plan was to have a late lunch on Friday (the 9th) at Wegmans in Fredericksburg, followed by dinner with friends in Richmond. Saturday morning, we'd make our way to Charlottesville and Roanoke, taking in the sights and maybe checking out a couple of wineries. Sunday, we'd make the rest of the trip from Roanoke on home to Raleigh.

Instead, we got a very late start on Friday afternoon. We made it to Richmond just in time to meet our friends for dinner and had a great evening with them. Saturday, we grabbed some breakfast, spent some time at Wegmans, and then stopped at Friendly's on the way back to Raleigh that night.

One take two of our trip, we were more successful. We left Saturday morning and took our time wandering up the Blue Ridge Parkway. Usually we jump on and then head South but this time we turned to the North and covered a lot of area we don't usually see.

Mid-afternoon, we stumbled upon Chateau Morrisette. We've been there once before and knew they had great wines so we stopped in for a tasting and a few purchases. We ended the evening with a late but yummy dinner at Logan's Roadhouse before retiring to the hotel.

Sunday morning, we spent a bit of time at a Starbucks before heading down 81 back towards home. Along the way, we stopped at a vineyard we hadn't been to before - Round Peak Vineyards. We were delighted when they told us that they specialize in dry wines - our favorite kind! We really enjoyed our tasting experience there (especially their cabernet franc!) and are glad we stopped in.

One final stop in Greensboro for late lunch/early dinner at Print Works Bistro in Greensboro. This is our second visit there and I really wish they seemed to be doing more business. It's possible we've just visited at off-times but it makes me worry that they won't be around for long.

In all, we had a great weekend. It was a bit cold and windy and overcast but the leaves were gorgeous and we had a lot of fun just being away from home.

U2 Comes to Raleigh!

The anticipation was killer...and U2 did not disappoint!

Some six months after snagging tickets via a U2 fan club presale code, the day finally arrived. Just over a mile from home, U2 played a show that was...simply out of this world!

We walked to/from the venue and beat everyone sitting lamely in traffic. Once inside Carter Finley, took in the opening act - Muse (awesome BTW) before U2's spaceship arrival became imminent.

Once U2 took the stage, its power was clear. Below is the set list.

Breathe
Get on Your Boots
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day
No Line on the Horizon
Magnificent
Elevation
In A LIttle While
New Year's Day
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
Stuck In A Moment
Unforgettable Fire
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I'll Go Crazy - Remix
Sunday Bloody Sunday
MLK
Walk On
One
Where The Streets Have No Name

Ultraviolet
With or Without You
Moment of Surrender

Every song was amazing and I did not want the night to end. The weather was perfect...everything was as it should be. This was truly one of the best experiences of my life. Pics to come!

San Francisco

I've been slowly working on posting photos and posts for our trip to San Francisco. We were gone Sept 2-8 and had a fabulous time.

All of the posts and photos are now up so be sure to check them out!

San Francisco Trip Posts:

Day One - Bus Tours Galore
Day Two - Bus Tour, CA Academy of Sciences Museum, Japanese Tea Garden, Ferry Tour
Day Three - Wine Tour to Napa & Sonoma
Day Four - Drive down coast to Santa Cruz, Redwoods, San Jose, Fog
Day Five - Day Trip to Yosemite National Park
Day Six - Alcatraz, Pier 39, Chinatown, Little Italy, Sunset
Day Seven - Heading Home

Our Trip Photos - broken down by day

Mike's Running Report (photos)

San Francisco, Day 7 (Heading Home)

Tuesday wasn't much of a "day" in San Francisco though Mike had a really great run that morning, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge at sunrise. I highly suggest you read about his running experiences on his blog, complete with photos.

Once he returned, we packed up our things and grabbed a shuttle back to the airport. Check-in with our box of wine and our bags was no problem and security had a long line but it moved quickly. The flight from San Francisco to Las Vegas was without incident though we didn't have much time to make our connection. Mike did manage to snag us a couple of slices of pizza before we hopped on the plane.

We had just reached our cruising altitude when a man near the front of the plane stood up and then collapsed. His family, who had been seated in various rows rushed to the front. Short story is that he was fine. I'm not sure what happened but he woke up quickly and the flight crew gave him some oxygen before returning him to his seat. For a few minutes, I wondered if our flight would be diverted but it turned out not to be an emergency.

The rest of the flight was without incident, landing us safely back in Raleigh around 11:15pm. We gathered our things successfully from baggage claim and then came home, greeted the kitties, and collapsed into bed.