I had the blessing of spending about two weeks in North Carolina with my family and parents and it was such a sweet time!
We stayed at my parents’ house in Kill Devil Hills and squeezed in so much fun and relaxation. I have plenty of pictures and lots of thoughts. Join me for a rambling vacation recap!
Getting There ✈️
We all arrived in a staggered way. My parents drove to their Outer Banks house a few days before us. I flew from Pittsburgh to Norfolk, VA with the kids and my parents picked us up from the airport. We then drove 1.5 hours to Kill Devil Hills. Jimmy stayed home in Pittsburgh for about five days to install new kitchen floors! Did you follow all that? It’s confusing, I know!
Before we left, my sister-in-law said I was brave to fly with three kids all by myself. I didn’t think twice about it for some reason?! Flying used to be my biggest fear (I was once on a flight with a lot of turbulence and it really freaked me out), but I’ve kind of talked myself out of it over the years. It cuts so much driving time!
So how did the flight actually go? Well, Sadie and Mordecai were angels. The Pittsburgh Airport has a kids area. We arrived early and they got to play. Once we were on the plane, they were allowed to pull out their special new toys (stickers for Sadie and mini magnetic tiles for Mordecai). Sadie played, ate snacks, and tended to Mordecai (they sat across the aisle from me and Dakota). Mordecai pretty much sucked his thumb and observed everything going on.
Dakota was tough! The flight happened to be around her nap time, so we had that working against us. Mostly she didn’t want to sit still for even the hour-long flight. The last 20 minutes of the flight included me holding her against her will as the plane descended and she cried while throwing her shoes and any toys or food I gave her. Sooo, that wasn’t fun. But still better than driving 8+ hours with all three kids.
We also filmed a vlog of our travel day from Pittsburgh to the Outer Banks! You can watch it (including me holding Dakota as she screamed on the plane 🤣) here.
Enjoying the Outer Banks 🐚
Once we arrived, it was basically two straight weeks of fun, laughter, good food, and memory-making!
I soaked in that first magical moment on the beach. The kids all saw the ocean, felt the sand, and ran in the waves and it was pure bliss.
I enjoyed seeing their different personalities come out around the ocean. Sadie was a boogie boarding queen, Dakota sprinted straight into the ocean as often as possible, and Mordecai was into playing in the ocean and sand.
We didn’t have too much of a daily routine, which was equal parts amazing and occasionally difficult for the kids. With no obligations, our days were gloriously open to play in the pool, soak in the hot tub, do crafts, walk to the beach, visit local attractions, and ride bikes around the neighborhood. The only things we knew we were doing were Sadie’s homeschool lessons and church on Sunday. No appointments, no work, no chores. What a dream!
We ate so much good food—from ahi tuna to scallops, desserts, ice cream, and Jimmy even brought my sister’s smoker so I could make pulled pork and chicken thighs. I found myself asking questions like:
- Is 7:00 am too early to eat ahi tuna leftovers?
- Is it weird to visit Outer Banks Brewing Station for their giant soft pretzel twice?
- How many times per day should the kids have ice cream?
It was a good place to be in food-wise. I baked a couple of pies, made lots of granola, and we had a mix of ordering in, eating out, and cooking at home. Nobody was left hungry, that’s for sure!
All the Activities 🦀
We truly squeezed in so much during our stay. Here’s a bit of what we did:
- Caught ghost crabs at night.
- Played at the beach in Kill Devil Hills.
- Drove Jimmy’s truck on the beach at Oregon Inlet.
- Went to a fun park with go-karts, an arcade (Sadie won a Beanie Baby in a claw machine!), and bumper cars.
- Went on countless bike rides to a little free library in the neighborhood.
- Visited a splash pad and park.
- I shopped at a bookstore (nobody wanted to look at books with me 🤣).
- Went thrift shopping.
- Took Sadie and Mordecai mini golfing at Professor Hacker’s and Jurassic Putt.
- Painted, played with stickers, and did crafts.
- Candy shopped at Sugar Planet.
- Worshipped at Son Rise Church of Christ.
- Did schoolwork by the pool.
- Visited Jockey’s Ridge State Park.
- Spent a morning walking around the boardwalk in Duck.
- Ate gourmet donuts from Duck Donuts.
- Played at Dowdy Park. Sadie made a friend here and we ended up meeting up with her new friend there again!
- Walked on Jennette’s Pier and the boys fished off of the Avalon Pier.
- Went to an Arts & Crafts Festival.
- Sadie and I went to a cat cafe together.
- My mom and I took Mordecai on a date to a coffee shop.
Memories 📸
While I can list out everything we did, there were moments that I want to remember forever.
Uninterrupted time with my parents and family. The blessing of this is not lost on me. To have the time and place to have one-on-one time with the kids, Jimmy, and my parents was everything I could ask for in a vacation. My mom and I were talking about how their home in the Outer Banks was always a goal for my mom and dad and now they’re living it and it’s such a source of joy.
Taking Mordecai on a date to a coffee shop and simply watching him sip his hot cocoa and eat a cookie was the sweetest thing. I had nothing on my agenda that day except to enjoy my son. Jimmy and Mordecai spent a ton of time playing with his RC car, too.
It was the same with taking Sadie to Meowter Banks. She absolutely loves Cat Cafes and I was more than happy to indulge her with a coffee and cat date together! We left and she literally said “This was the best thing ever!” and it was the best girls’ afternoon for us. Jimmy and I also took Sadie on a night scooter/bike ride and it was so fun for just us three to chat and ride in the warm evening air.
One morning before Jimmy arrived, my mom and Sadie went out together on a date and I was on Mordecai and Dakota duty. I put them in the wagon and we walked down to the beach with them still in their pajamas. It was lovely to have no plans except playing in the sand with my littles.
When Jimmy and I visited the town of Duck, we brought Dakota along with us and it was really fun having her as an “only child” for the morning!
It was a dream to have help parenting, too. It’s usually me with three kids from 5:00 am to 4:30 pm every day. To have three other adults to help with diaper changes, bath time, and meals was huge! I didn’t make my bed, vacuum, mop, or do laundry for two weeks! It was a great break.
I had grand plans of writing a lot, but I think I opened my laptop twice while away. I ended up doing craft after craft! My mom and I went to a thrift store and I hit the “jackpot” when I found a bag of scrapbook stickers. My mom was probably wondering why in the world I was so excited to buy someone’s leftover scrapbooking stickers, but Sadie and I ended up spending countless hours playing with them. 😂
I also bought a pack of canvases and painted my little heart out! I enjoyed picking away at these paintings each day. Sea shells, every shade of blue, and all sorts of inspiration surrounded me daily. I’m thankful my mom and dad put up with me cluttering their counters with pots of paint, glue, tiny shells, and paintbrushes for two weeks.
The scenery left me in awe. Each morning, my body would wake me up around 4:00 am. I wasn’t mad about it because it gave me time alone to drink coffee and read my Bible. I made it a point to go outside—usually to the beach—before the sun rose.
Every morning, my jaw would drop as I looked at the stars in the sky. The ocean? It never got old. When Jimmy and I went to Duck, we saw a bald eagle in a tree! My dad and Jimmy caught fish, we caught crabs on the beach, Sadie and I saw a stingray, and the views at Jockey’s Ridge State Park and Oregon Inlet were unparalleled.
Even hard moments were sweet. Late night baths with tired and dirty kids? Still sweet. Not being able to relax on the beach because our 18-month-old threw herself into the waves with no fear? Still sweet. Our big kids woke up at 6:30 am every day no matter what time they went to bed? Extra snuggles!
The laughter. My stomach hurt from laughing at my mom one night! Mordecai had picked out a hand-operated fan at a gift shop that evening. I made sloppy joes for dinner and forgot to not make them Allie-level-spicy (sorry, mom!) and she ended up using the fan to pretend to cool her mouth down. 😂
Watching Dakota grow to love the Outer Banks. The last time Dakota was in North Carolina, she was only months old. This time, she’s a full-blown toddler. She learned how to blow a kiss and sign the word bird. She absolutely loved seeing seagulls and has developed a deep love of birds! She enjoyed the sand and the sun and all the ice cream she could get her hands on!
Making connections. As I said above, Sadie ended up making a friend at the park! Her mom and I exchanged numbers and she now has a friend from Virginia we are keeping in touch with!
I also met a photographer at the Arts & Crafts Festival. I bought a necklace from her and my mom remarked on how beautiful her photography was. I was kicking myself for not buying my mom a photo, so I ended up contacting the photographer after the festival and went to her house to buy my mom a picture. Sadie and I also met the illustrator of the children’s books based in the Outer Banks that she loves. We were able to spend time with friends we’ve made at our home away from home church, too!
The weather! Before we left for vacation, I was convinced there would be a hurricane that would cut our trip short (probably because that happened once before in September!). We had the most perfect weather I’ve ever experienced in the Outer Banks. It rained once for about an hour while we were there. The rest of the days were sunny and in the 80s. The ocean was 80 degrees and the pool was 86 degrees! What a blessing.
Whew, this is a long post! If you stuck with me through the end, thank you for reading my sappy, thankful ramblings about our yearly trip to the Outer Banks. It’s such a special place for our family!
I’m currently driving home with Jimmy and Dakota as I type up this post (poor Dakota is currently fighting a nap 🥴). Sadie and Mordecai insisted on driving home with my poor parents, lol. I’m in that weird zone after a vacation where I have no clue what day it is! We left in August and now it’s mid-September. How wild is that?! There’s so much I’m looking forward to back in the ‘Burgh, but for now, I am really loving reflecting on these special memories. I have about a million more pictures to share, but those will have to be in my next post. 😉
Living My Full Life 