John and I don’t go on a lot of dates, or we go on dates all the time — depends on how you figure it :) I generally don’t consider going on a hike, heading to a swimming hole, going to a concert or a movie, or even getting dressed up for a fancy dinner as a date. That all just seems like doing life with my husband. Maybe that’s what a date is when you’re married?? Anyway, we recently tried something new, and if you’re looking for a “date” idea, this might be it :)

Last weekend, we decided to do a dessert crawl in downtown Raleigh. We started at 5pm at our favorite patisserie, lucettegrace. Triangle friends, if you haven’t been here, absolutely put it on your list — SO GOOD. We split the Videri Chocolate Cream Pie (dark chocolate cremeux, almond shortbread, brown butter cocoa nib custard) the Blueberries + Cream (vanilla cheesecake, blueberry mousse, pistachio cake, almond cake, blueberry compote), and a citrus agua fresca.

We walked around the block a few times (June was in the stroller!) before heading to our next destination, Bittersweet. Their seasonal peach and blackberry cobbler (with pie crust “fries”!) was a delicious second course.

A few more laps, and we were ready for our last sweet of the evening, at Treat. They have a kiddie scoop that is practically thimble-sized, making it the perfect final stop on our sugar quest (though John opted for two scoops!!).

By 7pm, we were back in the car and headed home to tuck June into bed. Once she was asleep, we ate a small (healthy) dinner. The novelty of eating dessert first, combined with walking Raleigh’s summery streets, made for a fun evening out (and, no babysitter was required).

I’m curious: If you’re in a long-term relationship, what do you consider a “date”? Every fun activity? Maybe an activity that one person plans? Or one that simply has advance planning? Something expensive? Something fancy? I’d love to hear your criteria!

After seven years in the South, I have come to love SO many things about our sweet, sweet adopted homeland (despite what you may have been thinking after my last post!). Some of the 15 I’m sharing today are about the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill), some are specific to North Carolina, and a few are about the South in general, but I’m grateful for all of them. Here goes!

1. Vibrant churches. I’ll start here because though all of these reasons are fun, this one has been truly life changing. It’s amazing to live in a place where the default is that people are actively engaged in living out their faith, and to have access to earnest, active, flourishing church communities. I have learned and grown SO much by being around the Christians I’ve met since moving here.
2. Biscuits and barbecue. Y’all, the food in the South can’t be beat. Biscuits and (Eastern North Carolina) barbecue are two of my favorite examples, but there’s also fried chicken, pimento cheese, deviled eggs, hushpuppies, red velvet cake… the list goes on, and it’s all finger licking good.
3. Amazing restaurants. The Triangle is overflowing with amazing, innovative restaurants that are constantly striving for excellence. (And I’m not the only one who thinks so: Southern Living named Durham the tastiest town in the South a few years ago!) Between the empires of Ashley Christensen (Poole’s Diner, Chuck’s, Beasley’s, Joule, Fox Liquor Bar, Death & Taxes), Andrea Reusing (Lantern, The Durham), and Matt Kelly (Vin Rouge, Mateo Tapas, Mothers & Sons, Lucky’s Deli), you’ve got more quality spots than most towns can claim.

4. Bluegrass and country. I never listened to either genre before moving South, and now they’re two of my favorites! The Triangle is a great place to listen to bluegrass, especially; I got to see Steve Martin and Edie Brickell play with the Steep Canyon Rangers at Wide-Open Bluegrass a few years ago.
5. Warm ocean. This one’s pretty simple, but worth mentioning: the ocean is C-O-L-D in the north, and W-A-R-M in the South. Makes beach days even more pleasant :)
6. Greenways. The Triangle has miles and miles and miles of greenways, which are perfect for bike riding and evening walks. There’s one in our neighborhood, and we also love the American Tobacco Trail – 22+ miles of trails that wind through three counties.
7. Proximity to mountains. There are plenty of mountains in New England, but they’re all pretty far away from where we lived in Connecticut. Here, we can get to Boone in about two hours and Asheville in four — perfect, since hiking is one of our favorite activities!
8. Weekend trips. The Triangle is a fantastic launching pad for weekend trips! Greenville, Asheville, Charlottesville, Atlanta, Beaufort SC and NC, Charleston, Richmond, Wilmington, and so many more destinations are all options for weekend exploring. (Another one of our favorite activities!)
9. Community events. With three world-class universities, enterprising businesses, and awesome arts organizations in the area, our calendar is stocked with fun and often low-cost activities. Festivals, Durham Bulls games, antique fairs, pop-up shops, outdoor concerts, choral performances, and outdoor movies are a few of my favorites.

10. Duke basketball. Speaking of world-class universities :) John has been a Duke fan since middle school, and it’s a pinch-me kind of thing to live so close to Cameron. Tickets are still hard to come by, but we’ve been to several games since moving here!
11. Swimming holes. I’d never been in an honest-to-goodness swimming hole until I got to NC, but they are delightful — the perfect antidote to blisteringly hot summer days.
12. Warmer winters and springs. I think this is the classic reason to love the South, and definitely the one that most convinces John! We have four solid seasons, but cut out the bitterest cold and the rainiest, most depressing days of “spring” that New England gets in March and April. Instead, we might have a 70 degree day in January, and switch on reliably delightful days in mid-March. John is also very proud of the fact that the sun never goes down before 5pm here.
13. Southern architecture. Creaky farmhouses, gracious front porches, snuggly bungalows, plantation drama… yep, the South sizes up pretty well against New England.
14. Great chains. The mall near my house in Connecticut is sad and the butt of many jokes, so the opportunities that come with living in a more metro area still kind of blow my mind. Pretty much every awesome chain you can think of, including Whole Foods, Anthro, Crate & Barrel, J.Crew, Madewell, West Elm, and Sephora, is an easy drive. And of course, NO list of great Southern brands would be complete without mentioning Chick-fil-a — I could write an entire post about all the reasons I love them!
15. Innovation. (Almost) nothing ever changes in my corner of Connecticut, which is both a blessing and a curse. The opposite is true in the Triangle, where things are always changing, growing, trying, failing, building, and experimenting. Sometimes it can feel like a whirlwind, but it’s also exciting, exhilarating, and inspiring. One of my favorite examples? The American Tobacco Campus, which was transformed from urban blight to one of my favorite spaces in Durham a few years ago.

I’d love to hear: What’s your favorite part about the South? Did any of my reasons particularly resonate with you?

This is a long list of summer fun, I’ll admit. But this is the good stuff, friends!! I am ridiculously excited about everything on this list, and I plan to check off every single one. My advice, if you’re planning to make your own: print it out! Ours is hanging on the fridge where we can see it every day, which just plain makes me happy, but also helps us remember to get out and do! In no particular order, the list to enjoy before September 21…

— go to a Bulls game
— feed June her first solid food
— road trip to Maine
— host my childhood friends for the weekend
— roast s’mores
— make bruschetta with our garden produce
— jump off the wharf at the Island
— outdoor movie at Koka Booth
— outdoor movie at the Art Museum
— make strawberry lemonade
— picnic at a Back Porch Music concert
— spend a day at the beach
— make chicken souvlaki
— finish our June in June movie
— watch fireworks
— ice cream at Maple View
— road trip to Connecticut (I have a whole other list I’ll share of CT fun!)
— take June swinging at a playground
— pick blueberries
— make a pizza with our garden produce
— lemonade at the Honeysuckle Tea House
— camp with friends (June’s first camping trip!!)
— buy a new flag for our house
— visit our friends in Brevard
— squeal over June in her adorable swim outfit
— BLTs at Merritt’s
— renovate our backyard

What’s on your summer fun list?

Hello, friends! May and June are always two of my busiest months of the year, and 2016 has been no exception. They are usually filled with some of my favorite things, though, so I can’t complain. However, as I commented to my Mom on the phone last week, pretty much all I’ve had time for this month are things I absolutely had to do, with little time for wants – and blogging falls into the latter. (The only reason I got June’s birth story up was because I had already written most of it a few months ago!) To jump back in here, I thought I’d share a little bit about what I’ve been up to.

June started school at the beginning of the month. It has been going really well so far! She always gives me a big smile when I drop her off and pick her up, and her teachers are smitten. We are so grateful for a smooth transition, and that we can afford care we feel so confident in!

John’s parents and Natalie and Joe and their daughter came to visit Mother’s Day weekend, the first time for June to meet Miss Maisie! Our two gals are only about four months apart, so it was a fun peek into what June might be up to by the end of the summer. We had brunch at Lucia in Durham and picked strawberries across the street from our neighborhood!

Week two was my company’s annual team retreat, so John and June accompanied me to The Carolina Inn for a few days. It took some extra effort to get her to school and back, but it was worth it to get in evening snuggles! I also scored some Lake Pajamas, which I was pretty pumped about. I’ve been wearing them around the house ever since; I feel pretty fancy walking around in matched jams.

My Mom arrived at the beginning of week three just in time to accompany June and me to The Greenbrier in West Virginia, a work trip for me. Have y’all even been?? I had done a bunch of research on it beforehand, but it still blew my mind – I think it’s the kind of place you can’t really wrap your head around until you experience it in person. The color and pattern are incredible! We laughed ourselves silly, and it was really fun to have June by my side while I did one of my favorite parts of my job. (Only possible because of my Mom – so thankful for her!!)

My Mom flew home the same day Marget, Seth, and Weston flew in! Two of John’s aunts also drove down for the weekend, and we had fun taking walks, cooking at home, exploring playgrounds, and riding the Pullen Park train. And reading bedtime stories in a tent, as you can see below.

We clocked our final two overnight guests last week, before another big work day for me. We were planning to finish out the month much like we did last year, with a weekend trip to Wilmington and Bald Head Island, but the rain scared us off. (Poor decision – the Triangle ended up getting more rain than the coast!) To console ourselves about the missed beach time, we ate almost every meal out this weekend, including an afternoon tea break at the Honeysuckle Tea House. Little muffin loved the open air seating!

And that’s that! As you can probably imagine, all of these adventures meant I didn’t make a ton of progress on my May goals… but that’s a story for tomorrow! :)

P.S. Another life lately post