We Did It!!!

As you can tell by our faces we're very excited but extremely tired. After months of searching the internet and one busy weekend with our realtor, we found the perfect house :)

The Sun is Shining!

We're here. Traveling with an anxious dog and a precocious cat definitely makes for an interesting road trip but we made it. Clay's parents met us in Raleigh to take Lucy and Desi down to Wilmington so we can house hunt in and around the Raleigh area this weekend. I found it fitting that we left New York (while it was snowing of course) on the first day of spring...a new beginning. As two northerners attending Clemson University, we challenged our comfort zone but we emerged with the sentiment that there is no other place in the United States we would rather live than the Carolinas. We're home.

Speaking of Clemson...what the hell? Villanova? Seriously?

We missed you this past weekend Julie!

Still in New York

Just a couple more days of this dismal weather...



We're back from Pennsylvania and diving right back into the fury of organizing, packing and making multiple to-do lists. Mom and I attended Megan's bridal shower on Saturday while Mike and Clay vegged out on couches watching basketball. I forgot my camera in West Chester so no pictures to share from the fun weekend.

We're leaving in TWO days...TWO days!!! Words can't begin to describe just how excited we are but New York will always hold a special place in our hearts.

For Your Viewing Pleasure...

As we leave for a weekend getaway in Philadelphia, PA we leave you with two videos that have entertained us over the past couple of weeks. Enjoy!


Matt Damon


Ben Affleck

They're Just Being Mean Now...

Mom and Scott kayaked on Lake Lanier, Georgia this afternoon while I celebrated the temperature rising to 26 degrees. Woohoo! Just to make sure I understood the beautiful weather they were experiencing, Dad decided to send me a picture via email..just to rub it in :).

Days Like This...

Clay is still in Pennsylvania and I am trying to accomplish as much pre-moving To-Do's as I can between random power outages. Snow, sleet, freezing rain, etc...the storm did not discriminate any winter weather item. I will admit, the snow is gorgeous but my thin blood can't wait to bake in the southern sun. Days like this only validate our decision to move to North Carolina. Less than two weeks!


Outside our front door.


Lucy doing her best Robert Downey Jr. impression.
Lucy's brother, Boone, also played in the snow today...in Kentucky.

The Last Lecture

"Experience is what you get, when you don't get what you want."

Randy Pausch reprised his last lecture on The Oprah Winfrey Show and the video is now a certified Internet phenomena. We're about to leave an experience that has made us smile, laugh, cry and see far too many young souls leave this wonderful Earthly existence. As we paddle through the rest of our life together, we hope to follow the advice set forth by Randy and never ever forget the experience.

Quarter Life Crisis

I am 25 today. I love growing older. With each passing year I grow more comfortable with myself (not 100% yet) and I am starting to appreciate the good (and the bad). In my first quarter century I have lived in Michigan, Arizona, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and New York. Graduated college, married my college sweetheart, started graduate school and became the proud mom to a chocolate lab and a curious cat. My first quarter century was filled with tears, growing pains and exploration but I came out of it okay and (I think) a better person. I am looking forward to the next quarter century being filled with children (no minivans), new careers and gray hair (colored over of course).

As the first birthday celebrated together as a married couple, Clay brought home a delicious cake from Alteri’s Bakery and sang “Happy Birthday” as Lucy and Desi watched the flames while licking their lips. We were amazed Lucy was still hungry because she devoured ¾ of a loaf of uncooked bread dough earlier in the afternoon…the joys of living with a dog.

It was while we were eating cake that we had an “oh shit” moment. We will be leaving New York in three weeks…three weeks! The movers are scheduled so there is no turning back now. After leaving NY, we’re going to stay with Clay parents in Wilmington, NC while finishing the house buying process in Raleigh, NC. So, we will be self-sufficient twenty-somethings moving back in with parents…I smell a sitcom! To ease our pride, we’re referring the stay as an extended vacation.

In true Army fashion Clay is being sent to PA for training during the month of March. He is planning on leaving early so he can finish the clearing process and leave the Army for good (well, unless he gets called up while on IRR but that is a whole other subject). Our house-hunting activities have been pushed back while Clay plays Army in PA and I finish work in the frozen remote tundra of northern New York. However, we’re trying to keep a positive attitude and focus on the light at the end of the tunnel. Three weeks!!!