Tuesday, August 31, 2010

His Name is Earl and Missing My "Zzzz"

Okay, I've found the first disadvantage of living so close to the coast--his name is Earl and he's projected to possibly hit very close to us. We are currently under a hurricane watch and they've issued a mandatory evacuation for Okracoke. Yikes!

I'll be watching the weather very closely during the next 36 to 48 hours. At the moment, the weather folks are saying things could start to get rough late Thursday into Friday morning.

In other (boring) news, I discovered today the possible reason for my failing memory, fatigue, general confusion and terrible headaches. My doctor thinks I may be suffering from sleep apnea. He's sending me to a pulmonologist and I will more than likely have to take part in a sleep study. Wonderful.

Oh, and I've completed my UT pedicure--it's officially the start of college football season! I can't wait!!

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Williamsburg, Random Turtle, Bruschi Visits and School Starts

Well, it's been a busy month here...we ended July and began August celebrating Charles' birthday in Williamsburg, VA. Neither Charles nor I had been in years and we were excited for Riley to explore the town. Overall, she loved it and we had a good time re-acquainting ourselves with the spots we remembered from earlier visits.
This guy was an amazing story-teller!

The Governor's Mansion.

Tree-covered walkway in the gardens.
While there, we enjoyed a ghost tour. Riley was super-excited and we had a great time listening to the more "modern-day" ghost stories as related by our tour guide. Quite a few of her stories really made you think...

Riley listens intently to a ghost story about a young boy and a man said to "reside" in this house.

I took a picture of this particular window because this is where people have seen a face staring back at them...I guess he was camera-shy.

Another stop on the tour...

The last stop on the ghost tour...and the creepiest story of all!
Riley acted up a bit during our trip, but we took care of that...

We were tempted to leave her there, but realized we'd really miss her...
It's been unbelievably hot here with the heat index reaching as much as 109 a couple of weeks ago...even the creatures around us must be searching for a shady place to rest. This guy showed up out of the blue...

He was right at our doorstep, but had trouble reaching the doorbell.
We also visited Beaufort a couple of weeks ago for their annual Pirate Invasion. Riley got all dressed up and revelled in the excitement!
The perfect pirate pose.
Taking part in the costume contest...
Meeting up with a couple of her old friends...
Highlight of the day: Lunch with Blackbeard!!!

As I've mentioned before, our neighbors' dog Bruschi is Riley's best friend. Last week, Mark dropped by and asked if we could babysit for the afternoon--of course, I (mostly Riley) said yes. He was very well behaved, but really wanted to play with Bailey. Bailey just wanted to hiss, growl and smack Bruschi on the nose. You'd think Bailey would find a nice, quiet spot during Bruschi's three-hour visit, but no one has ever accused Bailey of being the smartest of cats. He'd stroll right by the dog and the whole "let's play/no, let's hiss and smack" scene would start up all over again...

Look deep into my puppy-dog eyes...you know you can't resist...
Last weekend we made the short drive to Emerald Isle--it's one of the nearby beaches we had not yet visited. I think it's now our new favorite beach...very quiet, great sand, good shells and not very crowded!

Where is everybody? Wait, who cares!?!!!

Unobstructed  view of the ocean!

Riley digging holes.
Oh, and kids, don't trust that your SPF 30 lotion and sitting in the shade will prevent a sunburn. It won't--especially for those of us so incredibly pale that we actually glow in the dark. Here's the proof...

One word: Ouch!
We stopped at a few shops on our way home from Emerald Isle and while at one very cheesy surf shop I spied this:

I want this so badly--I can't even put it into words.
If you didn't know, I have this thing for VW buses. This was obviously made with me in mind. Hello! UT colors!