Probably what got me started doing this was a co-worker of mine asked me to keep a journal of our trip to North Carolina. She liked hearing about our last family vaca to Mt. Rushmore. And I must admit, it was a rather interesting saga. If I remember to, I'll add that story on a later date. (Can you have flashbacks on a blog?) But to start things off, I'll begin with our current adventure into the great unknown, North Carolina.
We picked NC for a couple of reasons.
1) we've been there before
2) my wife has family in Raleigh
3) we're going to bring the girls to the beach for the first time
We found a great deal on a house rental for a couple of days and then planned the rest of the trip around that. It worked out fairly well, but looking back, I wish we didn't have so many stops. Oh well, there's always next time.
Here's a blow-by-blow of what went down:
Wednesday, July 22nd
The trip started with Michelle and the girls picking me up at Coral Ridge Mall. That's where I work and it's sort of on the way. We wanted to get going right away, but of course the girls had to get one more ride on the carousel. Heaven forbid we leave on time or without riding on the carousel one last time. Oh well. Michelle is great and packed PB&J so we just ate in the car. We had to make it to Indianapolis tonight so we could make it to Kannapolis the next day. I know somebody who plays for the Intimidators, Jon Gilmore, and were planning on seeing him play on Thursday. Everything was going fine until we crossed into Indiana. All of a sudden we were dive-bombed by the biggest bird I have ever seen. This wasn't your average hawk. I swear it was a terradactyl. What kind of strange science experiments are they doing in the Hoosier state?
Thursday, July 23rd
Our big driving day, 10 hours in the car. Yikes. We made it in time for the game, driving up just before the National Anthem. Jon went 1-for-4 and made a couple of nice plays in the field. The Intimidators won 3-2 in the ninth and the game went really fast, which was good for the girls. The stadium was nice, very clean, but a little bland. I wish they would have carried over the same brick exterior to the inside of the stadium. The vinyl siding just didn't do it for me. The food was ok, but the nachos were awesome. $5 got me a ton of chips, chili, beans, salsa, cheese, peppers and sour cream. By far the best deal I've gotten in a long time at the ballpark. During the game, we sat with Jon's wife Jessie, who used to work at the ice arena with me. The girls have seen her one time, at their wedding, and for a total of 15 minutes. Well, you would have thought they were long lost friends as they both had to sit right next to her. And I think Molly almost started crying when it was time to go. Jessie carried her out to the parking lot and I think one wrong move or phrase would have pushed her over the edge.
The hotel we stayed at was ok. The Super 8 in Salisbury claims to be the newest indoor entrance property in town. Well it might have been, but it didn't look it. Have you ever been someplace that looked good from far away, but on closer inspection, there were paint drips on the floor, dents in the drywall and weeds in the garden? That's how I would describe this property. Clean, but worn. What do you expect? It's a $60 Super 8.
Friday, July 24th
I would say out of all the free hotel breakfasts we've ever had, Super 8's are the skimpiest. Bagels, danish, juice and coffee with a couple of dry cereal choices. After eating, it was off to Raleigh. I sort of forgot what hot felt like because it's been so mild back home. When we stepped out of the car, I was instantly soaked. It was hot, and not your normal 90 degree hot. It was 90 degrees with 90% humidity. Needless to say, I was thrilled when I found out a trip to the pool was on that evenings agenda. Upon arriving, I was a little disappointed. I guess I'm spoiled by the Cedar Rapids pools and all the water slide having, zero entry, kiddy themed pools. Maybe I just have high expectations of Raleigh because all I've ever experienced is Michelle's sister and brother-in-law's place. They both work for IBM and I guess he is pretty high up on the food chain. He told me once what he does, but I either can't remember or didn't understand it when he told me. And that goes for pretty much everybody who has an office type of job. Michelle? Not sure, pays out money in the commissions department at Aegon. My friend Brian? Not sure, hooks up telephones for MCI/Worldcom/Verizon/whatever they're called now? My friend Jaime? Collects money for MCI/Worldcom/Verizon/whatever they're called now? Why can't everybody have an easy to describe job like mine? Zamboni Driver - what's left to explain? Back to Kevin and Maryanne. Needless to say, they don't live in the same neighborhood as Michelle and I do and it's not the one where all the shootings happen, if you know what I mean. Now back to the pool. The water felt nice and the kids had fun so I guess that's all that counts. Dinner that night was awesome. Grilled chicken with noodles and some yummy tasting sauce. Holy Crap I ate too much. They also gave the girls some boogy boards and sand toys for the beach, which was much appreciated.
Saturday, July 25th
Happy birthday to Michelle and Molly. Molly is now 3 and Michelle is 30 with one year experience. Hah!
We got a late start due to a power outage. Just sort of hung around in the morning and then went to an old-time park in the afternoon. It had kiddy train rides, boat rides and a carousel. It's no Coral Ridge Mall carousel, but nice because it was old and had this air powered music thingy. At night we went to a Durham Bulls game. The park was awesome as well as the surrounding neighborhood. Very cool. A definite must see if your in Durham. As cool as the stadium, was, the highlight of the day came before game. For dinner we ate at your run of the mill Mexican restaurant, The Fiesta Mexican
a. The food was great and there was lots of it. I recommend it if your in Raleigh. Since it was Michelle and Molly's birthday's they brought out this huge sombrero, put it on Michelle's head and started singing. Molly put it on and was laughing and screaming the whole time. Ah to be so easily amused. Thanks again to Kevin and Maryanne for dinner and the tickets to the game. Much appreciated and all-in-all another great day in the Tar Heel capitol.
Sunday, July 26th.
After going to church in the morning and eating some lunch (eggs for brunch-yummy!) we packed the car and headed out to the OBX. That's local speak for the Outer Banks. It seemed to take 6 hours to get there, but in reality only 3 1/2. The house is nice, not too flashy, and in a real neighborhood with people who live there year-round. After getting some pizza at Papa Nino's and getting jobbed at the grocery store it was too dark to check out the beach scene. Probably good because the girls were wiped out. Forecast is for the upper 80's with scattered thunderstorms. Hopefully we'll get some sun.
Monday, July 27th
I think Katy could have slept until noon. Molly on the other hand was up at 7:30. After a quick breakfast we headed for the beach. This was the girls first time and crazy is a good word to describe their reactions. We had a blast. Katy practically dove in while Molly was a little more cautious. We swam and played in the sand,
For dinner we ate at The Froggy Dog. A nice looking place, but we probably won't go back. We sat for about 15 minutes before I flagged somebody down. The waiter was super nice, but that didn't make up for the small portions. We're talking cruise ship meal small and this at this place it wasn't all you can eat. And the kids meal, well, $6.99 for just a chocolate milk and a little dish of mac-n-cheese seemed a little steep for me. Katy and Molly liked it though, at least they liked saying the name anyway. Each time we passed it on the road, "There's The Froggy Dog!" Ah kids.
Tuesday, July 28th
We went to the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in the morning. This was something more for Michelle and I, but the girls still had a good time. Katy & I bought our tickets to climb to the top, $7 for me and $3.50 for her. 278 steps all the way up. We listened to a short talk about the lighthouse and the rules. One in particular was "No carrying children up or down the steps." I wanted Katy to hear that so she wouldn't ask me to. What's great about Katy is that once she knows the rules, she's pretty good about following them. Let me tell you something. Walking up all those steps is tough. That's a 10 story building with no A/C. About halfway up Katy said her legs were tired. I asked if she wanted to stop and rest but she said no. All the way up to the top, no complaining. What a trooper. It was nice at the top. Great views of the ocean and sound. We saw Molly and Michelle down on teh ground and waved. But like most tall structures I've been up (Arch in St. Louis, Freedom Tower in San Antonio and the John Hancock building in Chicago) after about 20 minutes I've seen enough. The trek down was easier, but it was still about 100 degrees inside. On the way back to the house we
made the mandatory stop at the souvenir ship. The p
rices actually weren't that bad. Wings does a nice job and i would go back next time. After lunch it was back to the beach. I think Michelle and I are in trouble. The girls liked it too much and want to come back next week. I better ask for a raise at work.
Wednesday, July 29th
Time to leave the house. We piled in the car and headed north to Kitty Hawk. We toured the Wright Brothers Museum and National Park. It was another hot day in NC, but we made it up to the top of the monument. Molly of course had to be carried. Katy didn't understand why she couldn't be. That's the cross Katy must bear; being 5 but the size of a 12 year old. Next we went to the public beach and hung out there for a while. One good thing, for me anyway, was the eye-candy was a little better than the semi-private beach we had been going to. Don't get me wrong, I'm very happily married, but I'm still a guy so back off. Let me sidebar a little here. Michelle and I had been talking about making this a regular part of our vacation plans, every year or more likely every other year. While discussing where to stay, I wanted farther south, away from the touristy spots. Still stuff to do, but it's not forced down your throat. Michelle wanted just the opposite, crazy Wisconsin Dells type of atmosphere. Well I think I won because the beach we went to is practically right where Michelle wanted to go. It was crazy packed, dirty and for some reason the water was colder. Quiet, relaxing vacation here we come! After a couple of hours we bid farewell to the ocean and left for our hotel in Greenville. The hotel was a Microtel and practically brand new; easily the nicest one so far. Of course it was also the most expensive. Coincidence?
Thursday, July 30th
Up and at 'em for another "free" breakfast of waffles and bagels. Then off to a little side trip to Greensboro to tour a revolutionary war battleground. It was nice (for Michelle & I). the girls just ran around during the documentary and watched a movie in the car during the driving tour. I guess their a little young for early American history. After that we headed to the Smokey Mountains. When we got to the hotel, it was about 15 degrees cooler. Nice. The hotel was nice, a Ramada, but a few strange things made our stay sort of weird. First of all, at check in, I had to fill out a guest information card. I haven't seen one of these since I worked at Super 8 back in 1994. Second was Kathy at the front desk. There are two opinions about her on the Travelocity review section of their website, you love her or hate her. I am more of a middle ground type of guy. She wasn't mean like some people said nor was she super bubbly nice like other people said. My theory is that society's customer service expectations have been lowered so much that when we encounter even the a halfway nice person they appear to be the nicest person in the world. the third thing was the pool/hot-tub, both of which were super small. the size didn't bother me as much as the extremely slippery tile used around them. And I mean EXTREMELY slippery. I don't think they used the correct type of tile when they put it in. It was borderline dangerous. The other thing about the pool was the handwritten rule taped on the door about no jumping into the pool. No diving I can understand, but no jumping? The reason given is that the pool is too shallow. It's 5' on one end and 3' on the other. My kids jump in and out of the bath tub with no problems. Don't give me that lame excuse, you fun-haters. I think the real reason is they're aware of the slippery tile and using the depth as an excuse so not to alarm anybody their life is in danger from slipping and having their brains spill out all over the floor after cracking their skull open. Oh well, at least the water in the hot-tub wasn't boiling hot so I could enjoy it. I really despise being boiled alive.
Friday, July 31st
Spent about 6 hours driving around the Smokey Mountains. Wow, they're pretty. When we first got there it was pouring rain and Michelle and I were a little bummed. We made it to the first waterfall and decided that since we were here we might as well suck it up and make the 1/4 mile hike to see it. It was well worth it. Absolutely spectacular. I'm so glad we went. About 15 minutes after we
got back in the car, it stopped raining. Figures. Onto Clingman's Dome, the tallest mountain the Smokey's. I was very cloudy/misty when we got there so we couldn't see much, but it was still nice to say we made it to the top. The path was super steep. Next time your on the treadmill, crank up the angle all the way and walk on the for 1/2 mile and you'll get the idea. Katy made it all the way to the top all by herself. She wanted to be carried a couple of times, but convinced her that Grandma and Grandpa would be proud of her if she walked up all by herself.
One thing I noticed was that the rain was a blessing in disguise. Every little trickle of water was turned into a fast moving, white-water rapids. Little waterfalls sprung up all over the place that wouldn't have been there if it hadn't rained. The Lord works in mysterious ways. The Sinks was the next and on the way we stopped every so often to look at other rapids and waterfalls. It was just awesome and words can't describe it. We spent a little longer than expected and didn't get to Louisville until about 10:30 that night. Needless to say, that was not a fun walk with the girls from the car to the room.
Saturday, August 1st
Baymont Inn & Suites. Another $70 night with the same "free" breakfast as the other 4 hotels we stayed at. I couldn't force myself to choke down another waffle but that's ok because we're headed home today. How come the drive back always seems to take longer than the drive there?
We picked NC for a couple of reasons.
1) we've been there before
2) my wife has family in Raleigh
3) we're going to bring the girls to the beach for the first time
We found a great deal on a house rental for a couple of days and then planned the rest of the trip around that. It worked out fairly well, but looking back, I wish we didn't have so many stops. Oh well, there's always next time.
Here's a blow-by-blow of what went down:
Wednesday, July 22nd
The trip started with Michelle and the girls picking me up at Coral Ridge Mall. That's where I work and it's sort of on the way. We wanted to get going right away, but of course the girls had to get one more ride on the carousel. Heaven forbid we leave on time or without riding on the carousel one last time. Oh well. Michelle is great and packed PB&J so we just ate in the car. We had to make it to Indianapolis tonight so we could make it to Kannapolis the next day. I know somebody who plays for the Intimidators, Jon Gilmore, and were planning on seeing him play on Thursday. Everything was going fine until we crossed into Indiana. All of a sudden we were dive-bombed by the biggest bird I have ever seen. This wasn't your average hawk. I swear it was a terradactyl. What kind of strange science experiments are they doing in the Hoosier state?
Thursday, July 23rd
Our big driving day, 10 hours in the car. Yikes. We made it in time for the game, driving up just before the National Anthem. Jon went 1-for-4 and made a couple of nice plays in the field. The Intimidators won 3-2 in the ninth and the game went really fast, which was good for the girls. The stadium was nice, very clean, but a little bland. I wish they would have carried over the same brick exterior to the inside of the stadium. The vinyl siding just didn't do it for me. The food was ok, but the nachos were awesome. $5 got me a ton of chips, chili, beans, salsa, cheese, peppers and sour cream. By far the best deal I've gotten in a long time at the ballpark. During the game, we sat with Jon's wife Jessie, who used to work at the ice arena with me. The girls have seen her one time, at their wedding, and for a total of 15 minutes. Well, you would have thought they were long lost friends as they both had to sit right next to her. And I think Molly almost started crying when it was time to go. Jessie carried her out to the parking lot and I think one wrong move or phrase would have pushed her over the edge.
The hotel we stayed at was ok. The Super 8 in Salisbury claims to be the newest indoor entrance property in town. Well it might have been, but it didn't look it. Have you ever been someplace that looked good from far away, but on closer inspection, there were paint drips on the floor, dents in the drywall and weeds in the garden? That's how I would describe this property. Clean, but worn. What do you expect? It's a $60 Super 8.
Friday, July 24th
I would say out of all the free hotel breakfasts we've ever had, Super 8's are the skimpiest. Bagels, danish, juice and coffee with a couple of dry cereal choices. After eating, it was off to Raleigh. I sort of forgot what hot felt like because it's been so mild back home. When we stepped out of the car, I was instantly soaked. It was hot, and not your normal 90 degree hot. It was 90 degrees with 90% humidity. Needless to say, I was thrilled when I found out a trip to the pool was on that evenings agenda. Upon arriving, I was a little disappointed. I guess I'm spoiled by the Cedar Rapids pools and all the water slide having, zero entry, kiddy themed pools. Maybe I just have high expectations of Raleigh because all I've ever experienced is Michelle's sister and brother-in-law's place. They both work for IBM and I guess he is pretty high up on the food chain. He told me once what he does, but I either can't remember or didn't understand it when he told me. And that goes for pretty much everybody who has an office type of job. Michelle? Not sure, pays out money in the commissions department at Aegon. My friend Brian? Not sure, hooks up telephones for MCI/Worldcom/Verizon/whatever they're called now? My friend Jaime? Collects money for MCI/Worldcom/Verizon/whatever they're called now? Why can't everybody have an easy to describe job like mine? Zamboni Driver - what's left to explain? Back to Kevin and Maryanne. Needless to say, they don't live in the same neighborhood as Michelle and I do and it's not the one where all the shootings happen, if you know what I mean. Now back to the pool. The water felt nice and the kids had fun so I guess that's all that counts. Dinner that night was awesome. Grilled chicken with noodles and some yummy tasting sauce. Holy Crap I ate too much. They also gave the girls some boogy boards and sand toys for the beach, which was much appreciated.
Saturday, July 25th
Happy birthday to Michelle and Molly. Molly is now 3 and Michelle is 30 with one year experience. Hah!
We got a late start due to a power outage. Just sort of hung around in the morning and then went to an old-time park in the afternoon. It had kiddy train rides, boat rides and a carousel. It's no Coral Ridge Mall carousel, but nice because it was old and had this air powered music thingy. At night we went to a Durham Bulls game. The park was awesome as well as the surrounding neighborhood. Very cool. A definite must see if your in Durham. As cool as the stadium, was, the highlight of the day came before game. For dinner we ate at your run of the mill Mexican restaurant, The Fiesta Mexican
a. The food was great and there was lots of it. I recommend it if your in Raleigh. Since it was Michelle and Molly's birthday's they brought out this huge sombrero, put it on Michelle's head and started singing. Molly put it on and was laughing and screaming the whole time. Ah to be so easily amused. Thanks again to Kevin and Maryanne for dinner and the tickets to the game. Much appreciated and all-in-all another great day in the Tar Heel capitol.Sunday, July 26th.
After going to church in the morning and eating some lunch (eggs for brunch-yummy!) we packed the car and headed out to the OBX. That's local speak for the Outer Banks. It seemed to take 6 hours to get there, but in reality only 3 1/2. The house is nice, not too flashy, and in a real neighborhood with people who live there year-round. After getting some pizza at Papa Nino's and getting jobbed at the grocery store it was too dark to check out the beach scene. Probably good because the girls were wiped out. Forecast is for the upper 80's with scattered thunderstorms. Hopefully we'll get some sun.
Monday, July 27th
I think Katy could have slept until noon. Molly on the other hand was up at 7:30. After a quick breakfast we headed for the beach. This was the girls first time and crazy is a good word to describe their reactions. We had a blast. Katy practically dove in while Molly was a little more cautious. We swam and played in the sand,
For dinner we ate at The Froggy Dog. A nice looking place, but we probably won't go back. We sat for about 15 minutes before I flagged somebody down. The waiter was super nice, but that didn't make up for the small portions. We're talking cruise ship meal small and this at this place it wasn't all you can eat. And the kids meal, well, $6.99 for just a chocolate milk and a little dish of mac-n-cheese seemed a little steep for me. Katy and Molly liked it though, at least they liked saying the name anyway. Each time we passed it on the road, "There's The Froggy Dog!" Ah kids.
Tuesday, July 28th
We went to the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in the morning. This was something more for Michelle and I, but the girls still had a good time. Katy & I bought our tickets to climb to the top, $7 for me and $3.50 for her. 278 steps all the way up. We listened to a short talk about the lighthouse and the rules. One in particular was "No carrying children up or down the steps." I wanted Katy to hear that so she wouldn't ask me to. What's great about Katy is that once she knows the rules, she's pretty good about following them. Let me tell you something. Walking up all those steps is tough. That's a 10 story building with no A/C. About halfway up Katy said her legs were tired. I asked if she wanted to stop and rest but she said no. All the way up to the top, no complaining. What a trooper. It was nice at the top. Great views of the ocean and sound. We saw Molly and Michelle down on teh ground and waved. But like most tall structures I've been up (Arch in St. Louis, Freedom Tower in San Antonio and the John Hancock building in Chicago) after about 20 minutes I've seen enough. The trek down was easier, but it was still about 100 degrees inside. On the way back to the house we
made the mandatory stop at the souvenir ship. The prices actually weren't that bad. Wings does a nice job and i would go back next time. After lunch it was back to the beach. I think Michelle and I are in trouble. The girls liked it too much and want to come back next week. I better ask for a raise at work.
Wednesday, July 29th
Time to leave the house. We piled in the car and headed north to Kitty Hawk. We toured the Wright Brothers Museum and National Park. It was another hot day in NC, but we made it up to the top of the monument. Molly of course had to be carried. Katy didn't understand why she couldn't be. That's the cross Katy must bear; being 5 but the size of a 12 year old. Next we went to the public beach and hung out there for a while. One good thing, for me anyway, was the eye-candy was a little better than the semi-private beach we had been going to. Don't get me wrong, I'm very happily married, but I'm still a guy so back off. Let me sidebar a little here. Michelle and I had been talking about making this a regular part of our vacation plans, every year or more likely every other year. While discussing where to stay, I wanted farther south, away from the touristy spots. Still stuff to do, but it's not forced down your throat. Michelle wanted just the opposite, crazy Wisconsin Dells type of atmosphere. Well I think I won because the beach we went to is practically right where Michelle wanted to go. It was crazy packed, dirty and for some reason the water was colder. Quiet, relaxing vacation here we come! After a couple of hours we bid farewell to the ocean and left for our hotel in Greenville. The hotel was a Microtel and practically brand new; easily the nicest one so far. Of course it was also the most expensive. Coincidence?
Thursday, July 30th
Up and at 'em for another "free" breakfast of waffles and bagels. Then off to a little side trip to Greensboro to tour a revolutionary war battleground. It was nice (for Michelle & I). the girls just ran around during the documentary and watched a movie in the car during the driving tour. I guess their a little young for early American history. After that we headed to the Smokey Mountains. When we got to the hotel, it was about 15 degrees cooler. Nice. The hotel was nice, a Ramada, but a few strange things made our stay sort of weird. First of all, at check in, I had to fill out a guest information card. I haven't seen one of these since I worked at Super 8 back in 1994. Second was Kathy at the front desk. There are two opinions about her on the Travelocity review section of their website, you love her or hate her. I am more of a middle ground type of guy. She wasn't mean like some people said nor was she super bubbly nice like other people said. My theory is that society's customer service expectations have been lowered so much that when we encounter even the a halfway nice person they appear to be the nicest person in the world. the third thing was the pool/hot-tub, both of which were super small. the size didn't bother me as much as the extremely slippery tile used around them. And I mean EXTREMELY slippery. I don't think they used the correct type of tile when they put it in. It was borderline dangerous. The other thing about the pool was the handwritten rule taped on the door about no jumping into the pool. No diving I can understand, but no jumping? The reason given is that the pool is too shallow. It's 5' on one end and 3' on the other. My kids jump in and out of the bath tub with no problems. Don't give me that lame excuse, you fun-haters. I think the real reason is they're aware of the slippery tile and using the depth as an excuse so not to alarm anybody their life is in danger from slipping and having their brains spill out all over the floor after cracking their skull open. Oh well, at least the water in the hot-tub wasn't boiling hot so I could enjoy it. I really despise being boiled alive.
Friday, July 31st
Spent about 6 hours driving around the Smokey Mountains. Wow, they're pretty. When we first got there it was pouring rain and Michelle and I were a little bummed. We made it to the first waterfall and decided that since we were here we might as well suck it up and make the 1/4 mile hike to see it. It was well worth it. Absolutely spectacular. I'm so glad we went. About 15 minutes after we
got back in the car, it stopped raining. Figures. Onto Clingman's Dome, the tallest mountain the Smokey's. I was very cloudy/misty when we got there so we couldn't see much, but it was still nice to say we made it to the top. The path was super steep. Next time your on the treadmill, crank up the angle all the way and walk on the for 1/2 mile and you'll get the idea. Katy made it all the way to the top all by herself. She wanted to be carried a couple of times, but convinced her that Grandma and Grandpa would be proud of her if she walked up all by herself.
One thing I noticed was that the rain was a blessing in disguise. Every little trickle of water was turned into a fast moving, white-water rapids. Little waterfalls sprung up all over the place that wouldn't have been there if it hadn't rained. The Lord works in mysterious ways. The Sinks was the next and on the way we stopped every so often to look at other rapids and waterfalls. It was just awesome and words can't describe it. We spent a little longer than expected and didn't get to Louisville until about 10:30 that night. Needless to say, that was not a fun walk with the girls from the car to the room.Saturday, August 1st
Baymont Inn & Suites. Another $70 night with the same "free" breakfast as the other 4 hotels we stayed at. I couldn't force myself to choke down another waffle but that's ok because we're headed home today. How come the drive back always seems to take longer than the drive there?
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