What is it that binds us to this place?

What is it that binds us to this place as to no other? It is not the well or the bell or the stone walls. Or the crisp October nights or the memory of dogwoods blooming... No, our love for this place is based on the fact that it is, as it was meant to be, the University of the people.” -Charles Kuralt, 1993 UNC bicentennial

Well John and I are about to find out because we're headed back to Chapel Hill on Saturday for the first time since we moved in August.

We're headed back for a little of this...

  Images via UNC Basketball

 And a little of this...

 The eggnog is representative of our friends' holiday party- ha!

And a lot of this...

I'm probably going to eat at Med Deli five times even though we'll only be in town for three meals.

I'm so excited to be going back to Chapel Hill!  It's so hard to image that it's been almost five years since I moved to town sight unseen on a strangely warm January day. Through some combination of coincidence, providence, and good fortune, my six month, 20 hour a week job turned into an incredible experience where I found my professional passion, the love of my life, new friends, old friends, and a lot of maturity. A lot of life, both joyful and sorrowful, happened in those five years.

Thankfully, I will get to experience this homecoming with the best thing I found in Chapel Hill.

Bona Fide

A few weeks ago, we celebrate John’s official swearing in to the Mecklenburg County Bar, the final step in making him a bona fide attorney.  After a long three years of school, a stressful summer studying for the bar, and a seemingly endless 5-week wait until the “Congratulations!  You passed” letter arrived, we were sure glad for this day to serve as the culmination of all that hard work.

Even though the Mecklenburg bar is very large (about 250 people were sworn in that day), each new potential admittee is introduced by a current member of the bar. The member tells a little bit of background about the person and where they are working (or hoping to work in about 50% of the cases- yikes!).  I thought this was a nice touch given how much time and effort each person put into getting to that point.  Many stories were ordinary, but some were so remarkable.  The one that stands out to me is the high school graduate who started twenty years ago as an assistant at the firm, got her associate’s degree at night, graduate magna cum laude with her bachelor’s, graduate with honors from law school and, as her mentor said, “in about 10 minutes was going to be his new partner.”

The judge John is working for introduced him to the bar, which was really special because all of the local, state, and federal judges from the Charlotte area and district preside over the swearing in ceremony too.  No one else had a judge introduce them to the bar and the audience was duly impressed (as they should have been!). The judge said some really nice things about John and the job he’s doing for him. And I was glad to finally meet him!

John and his parents…

and the happy couple!

Crafty Spurt, Part 1

In our bedroom, the bed it centered on the largest wall, which leaves the largest amount of wall space above it.  Since this glaring expanse called out to me each day, I started looking for a high impact, but low cost solution to fill it up. Even if I didn’t get it at first, I’ve completely fallen down the Pinterest hole now, so I knew that would be a good place to start looking for inspiration. 

I first spotted these large geometric prints in minimalist frames back when we went to the registering party at Crate and Barrel.


And then, when these pictures kept popping up on Pinterest, I knew I had found my solution.

    Source                                                  Source

Using the directions from Frugal Life Project (right picture), I set off in search of my supplies:

• 9 sheets of 12 x 12 scrapbook paper from Michaels- $4.00 total
• 14 12 x 12 canvases from Michaels- $18.00 total (I got so lucky with these!  Normally, a two-pack sells for $8.00, but they were running a one-day sale on the 7-packs for $10.00 each, plus an additional 20% off your entire purchase)
• 2 packs of Command picture hooks- $10.00
• Already owned: craft glue, Gildden paint sample, and foam brushes

I knew I wanted the scrapbook paper to be in shades of blue and green and I tried to chose some that were bolder and some that were subtle for contrast.

I started by painting the edges of the canvases with the deep navy Gildden paint sample that I got for free at Wal-Mart a while back.  I love navy and I thought since you would be seeing so little of it that it would act like a neutral while complementing the blues and greens in the papers.


I forgot to take a picture of the next steps, but I added the craft paint to the canvases and then smoothed out any bubbles with my old Wake County library card.  I should have thought to thin out the paint with some water so it would be easier to apply, but I didn’t.

After letting the canvases dry for a few minutes, we got busy trying to arrange and space the prints using the leftover craft paper from painting the edges- another handy Pinterest trick.


Check out my handyman!  If you use this trick, don’t be like me and actually cut even 12 x 12 squares to accurately gauge the correct proportions. And now for the finished product!


Overall, I think it turned out really well.  It definitely fills up the room and adds some visual interest.  The Command hangers made it super easy to reposition the canvases if they were looking a little crooked.  Eventually I might replace some of the pieces of paper with ones I like more, but for now I really like it.

Oh, wait, there’s just one little thing missing… our bed would never actually look like that.  And, no, I don’t mean because it’s made.  This is how it actually looks!


Hello Sleepy Bear!  Wave hello to the good folks, Sleepy!


Sleepy is just eight months younger than me, and though John keeps trying to send him to the bear retirement home in Florida, he’s too smart for that ol’ trick.  Sleepy is most definitely Real and probably the first thing I would grab in the hypothetical fire.

"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real. "…You become. It takes a long time… Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."
– The Velveteen Rabbit

It's Back!

I think the conversion to a born and bred Tar Heel is just about finished.  I've watched less than one quarter of UGA football this year (and that was just because it was on in a restaurant during dinner), but I'm giddy for the opening of basketball season!

Late Night with Roy tips off tonight with a team that is arguably deeper and more talented than both the 2005 and 2009 national championship teams.

And then in about a month we take on Michigan State at the coolest venue ever- the desk of the USS Carl Vinson, the aircraft carrier that burried Osama bin Laden at sea.  There will be one very special Tar Heel in attendance, too!

After some chemistry problems were taken care (eh hem, Larry Drew), last year's team came together, played hard, and lived up to the Carolina Way.  I'm glad to cheer for a team that the biggest off-season story is about pick up games and 5-star recruits, instead of arrests.

No wonder we've been setting the standard for 102 years!

A Little Vanity Project

Our new apartment has a master bedroom, but we chose the other bedroom because we are such generous hosts the layout works better for our furniture and the master’s bathroom is teeny tiny. We figured it made more sense for us to use the larger bathroom instead of squeezing into the smaller one, which would leave no one in a good mood before the coffee was poured.

The shower curtain from my last apartment was too short, so we moved it to the now-guest bathroom.  We picked this curtain up from Wally World because it’s fun, but not super-girly and still matched our towels.



The bathroom is long and narrow with a long counter, which works well for us during the madness of getting ready on weekdays. While the space is great, the counter also had a cut-out for a vanity stool.  And, let’s be honest, I’m never going to be doing any sort of make-up routine that requires me to sit down.



This gapping hole is also the view you have from the hallway. I had the idea of making a curtain to cover the space, so we could use it as storage.  But since I don’t even know how to sew on a button I knew it would have to be a very easy project.

Luckily, the Taj Mahal of fabric stores, Mary Jo’s, is four miles from my office, so I stopped by one day to scope it out and strategize.  After getting lost for a few hours, my honing senses led me to the sale section, where I found a great piece of fabric marked down to $6.99 a yard.  After picking up some hemming tape and a tension rod, I was set.  Or so I thought.



I thought the fabric was a fun variation on the shower curtain. I also think it’s upholstery fabric, which I thought would be nice for the thickness and body, but it really meant that the hem tape I bought didn’t work a darn.  It seriously didn’t begin to melt or bond even when I left the iron on it for like a minute.
I also thought hem tape was the thickness of Velcro, hence the three rolls when about 20% of one roll would have worked. Remember, can’t sew a button… I have a lot of learn.

So, the Stick Witchery was out and I picked up a single roll {see, I’m learning} of Heat N Bond Ultrahold, which actually worked!


Did you hear the angels singing just then?  I measured the fabric and got to ironing.  A short while later, I strung up my very first curtain.



But I’m going to let you in on a little secret, it looks seriously wonky from the back. Yet, more than two weeks later, it’s still holding strong.

Overall, I think this was a great $13 solution because it’s much more fun to look at and gives us more storage room.

I would like to attempt some more projects, so I’ve been looking at getting a sewing machine. Amazon offers some nice models for decent prices. So we’ll see what the Paycheck Gods or Santa Clause have in store.

Hello From Charlotte!

Hi friends, remember me? After a whirlwind month, we're settled in Charlotte and enjoying our new jobs and exploring our new city.

Fifteen months after moving to Raleigh on a steamy May morning...

....we waved goodbye on a steamy August morning from our big yellow Penske truck.

Well, John waved goodbye because there is no way I could move that thing two feet, and he's an incredible moving truck driver.  I mean it's really a resume-level skill.

After this move, John and I have decide that the ability to afford to hire movers is one of the clearest signs of achieving the American Dream.

We enjoyed a last meal at one of our favorite restaurants, the State Farmer's Market Restaurant, to thank our friends, Bo and Julie, and brother, Jacob, for helping us move (notice all the ginormous water cups).

Is there anything better during a Southern Summer than a veggie plate?  I already miss their fried green tomatoes and cat head biscuits.  

Side note: we knew my Yankee father was fully converted the day he asked for "a big ol' cat head biscuit" for breakfast. Well done, Mom!

Image

 Unfortunately, we arrived in Charlotte to a nasty surprise. 

My beloved, less-than-a-year-old car had been vandalized!  After signing our lease in Charlotte on Friday, we left my car there while we went back to Raleigh for the rest of our stuff.

Some hoodlum took a landscaping stone and tried to break the window.  But, being an awesome Super Car, her window didn't break, so they broke the window of the 4-Runner next to me.  Sadly, being an awesome Super Car, it took $1,500 and a week to repair her damage and the 4-Runner's broken window was replaced in two hours.

There was no worse feeling than pulling up to our yet-to-be-moved-in home in Charlotte after 10 hours of moving already and find this surprise.  Thankfully, John and my parents pulled up right after me and the police, Geico, and the body shop couldn't have been nicer and more accommodating.  My girl is all fixed now and as pretty as ever.

With the help of my parents, we finished moving into the new apartment at 10:30, 14 hours after we started moving in Raleigh.  We enjoyed a cold Corona and plate of Lexington barbecue on the floor surrounded by boxes and furniture, and promptly passed out.

The damage to my car is one of the risks of living Uptown (downtown in all cities less concerned with downtown revitalization).  But we're choosing to focus on the positive ones, like John being able to walk to work, so I could drive his car while mine was being repaired, and a view like this from our porch.

Obviously, that's not our real view of the skyline, but once the trees lose their leaves, it will be pretty close.

We've already had some fun adventures in Charlotte and I have a lot more to share with you soon!

Forty-Four

Here's the follow-up to the "awesome news" teaser I left you with last week...

That's the number of jobs I have applied to in Charlotte since April.  Forty-four jobs that I met the education and experience requirements for- not the senior vice president of Bank of America or the head coach of the Carolina Panthers, even though both of those might have been easier to come by.

Of those forty-four jobs, I received rejections from seven, interviews from two, and deafening silence from thirty-five. 

And one job offer that I accepted last Friday!

I knew it was going to be a very difficult year to find a job in the public or education sectors after years of major budget cuts and the first Republican-led budget in 130 years starting in July, but it's still humbling to feel you've done everything "right" to set yourself up for a career in a field you're passionate about and get seemingly stonewalled.

New York Times articles about rising unemployment rates served as little comfort when I felt like it was my fault we were going to be eating beans and rice for the next year, instead of enjoying our first big adventure together in the big city.

I will be working at a local community college in a data and policy analyst position related to increasing the rate of student retention and success.  It's a great fit for my skills, and it gets me back in the higher education world, particularly the college access and success world, which is my true interest. I am most excited about how enthusiastic and welcoming the college is in letting me expand the position beyond a narrow "number cruncher" job description and into a broader policy and program role.  I think there is potential for great things for myself professionally and the college.

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So, as you can see now, the silence on the blog sure doesn't mean I haven't been writing this spring and summer.

Home!

I am off to Georgia for the first time in more than seven months!  This is definitely the longest I've ever been gone, and just another reason I'm so glad we're moving to Charlotte!  Hello, three hour trip versus the seven it will take tomorrow.

Last time I was home it looked like this after our White Christmas...

This time it will be hotter than Hades, which I won't mind because it means peach ice cream from Thomas Orchards for breakfast!

I'm headed home for the wedding of a lifelong family friend.  One of my very first memories is someone saying we had to be quite while we played because they just brought her home from the hospital.  And now she's getting married.  Aw!

The werewolf is getting married, the Chic-fil-A cow and the grim reaper will be in attendance.  It will be quite the festive reception, don't you think?

Halloween 1996

And I will have you know that we were quite creative in Birchmore Hills because the cows were only introduced in 1995.  None of this "Dress Like a Cow" Day back then!

Don't believe me about that creativity?  How many picnics did you see running around your neighborhood on Halloween?

 Halloween 1994

Wedding Update: The Bridesmaids Dresses

I figured I would follow up last night's post with one on the bridesmaids dresses!  They are too spectacular for words, if I do say so myself, so we'll save the big reveal for the big day, but here's some details on how we eventually selected the dress.

I envisioned a classic cocktail-length navy dress that did not scream "bridesmaid!," but I wasn't sure it was possible to really fulfill the bride-promise of "oh, you can definitely wear that again!"  Navy is pretty much the only decided wedding color we have at this point because I love blues and I think it will be a rich contrast to all the grass and trees outside and wood in the barn.

I had been saving pictures of dresses I liked for a few weeks, so I sent them to my maid of honor, Lindsay (click on the picture to make it larger).

Obviously some of those dresses aren't navy, but I just liked their shape or details. Like my gown, most of them have a fun twist on a classic design. The Lilly Pulitzer dress in the middle was probably my favorite out of the bunch, but the price was well more than what I wanted them to have to spend.

A week or so later, I saw gorgeous bridesmaids dresses featured on a wedding blog, and I immediately emailed them to Lindsay.  Luckily, it came in a rich navy color, and we both agreed that it was our favorite of those we had looked at so far.  I was excited about the dress, but decided to wait a few days to make a decision.

When Lindsay called back a few days later with a list of all the places she was planning to wear the new favorite dress, I knew it was the one.

The dress is made of beautiful cotton taffeta, which echoes the luster, texture of my gown.  While I had looked at the store's dresses a hundred times before, the little thumbnail pictures had never caught my eye. To sweeten the deal even more, if you order the dress from the store, they give students and teachers a 15% discount and free shipping!  Doubly sold.

I'm thinking the girls will wear their favorite pair neutral or metallic shoes, and we've still got to decide on jewelry.

Let's round out the attire posts with my shoes!  I love 'em!  I think wedding shoes is one of the areas where things have changed a lot since our parents got married.  Gone are the demure bridal slippers and in are cowboy boots, funky heels, bare feet- whatever makes you feel your best!  To complement the girls' dresses, I'm wearing navy shoes from Nina.

I won't say which ones, but they are included above.  Any guesses?

For dancing shoes at the reception, I'm thinking of some wedge Jack Rogers.

And that's the wedding style as best as we know it.  Now that John can think of other things than studying for the bar, he'll start thinking about what the guys will wear.  What do you think... spring, mountain wedding... classic tuxes, seersucker suits, blazers and khakis, gray suits, tan suits?

300 Short Days!

We're just 300 short days away from the wedding!! For the last couple of weeks I've been wanting to do a wedding update and this seems like the perfect day for it. After our initial struggle to find a venue, a lot of major pieces have fallen into place beautifully.

As I was thinking through all the things I wanted to write about in this post, I started to wonder why I hadn't felt any of the stress/anxiety/pressure/hatred/insanity that seems to accompany stories of wedding planning.  With the exception of the venue, everything else has seemed, well, easy. And I also know we're 300 days away, so there is still time for plenty of freakouts, but then I thought, "well, duh, Caroline!"

Let me share an excerpt of my Myers-Brigg personality test:

"Outgoing, gregarious, usually quite direct, and very upbeat to be around, ESTJs see the world in terms of hands-on, practical, realistic situations. Those perceptions are translated into objective, non-personal, analytical decisions and freely imposed upon anyone within earshot {you're welcome!}. Likes and expects practical facts and details presented in logical order. Valued communicator will tend to be precise, literal, objective and clear.  Decisive, quickly move to implement decisions. Organize projects and people to get things done, focus on getting results in the most efficient way possible."

Ah, there's the rub! Wedding planning plays into my natural strengths of organizing and making decisions quickly. While John insists there are some negatives to this personality type (eh hem, 90% Judging preference), I have yet to see them. If you believe that, let me show you some of my ocean-front property.

Psychoanalytical Hour is over, so let's move onto the fun stuff.  

The Dress!  I actually bought my wedding dress more than a month before we chose the venue or set the date. My mom came to visit for my birthday during the middle of April and we went shopping at a big bridal outlet (a large store, not necessarily for large brides, though they didn't discriminate). Going into the store, my dream dress was Melissa Sweet's Dora, which I loved because it was traditional with a fun twist (the swiss dot fabric). Even though I feel like I need to put a big black box over the chest area in this picture, the sweetheart neckline was one of my favorite details.

We had a very helpful sales lady, who, even though I had a general idea of what would work for me, really helped us narrow down styles. There were a couple of promising dresses, but none that made us "puddle up." And we're big puddlers. Even more than not crying over any of the dresses, none of them felt like me. I felt like I was playing dress up in someone else's dress, and I didn't feel like a bride.

The next week, I had Good Friday off of work and I saw online that a small boutique in Durham, Tre Bella, was having a sample designer sample sale. Like any good engaged couple, when we prioritized our wedding (budget), the dress wasn't near the top of mine, so I had pretty much written off all small bridal designer boutiques, but the "all dresses $500-$1,000" sure got my attention.

Side note: At sample sales, the store sells their floor samples as-is and at deeply discounted prices to make room for new dresses. One of the best things about them is you get to take the dress home right then instead of waiting up to four months for an ordered dress to arrive. The dresses are all in average sizes and might have typical signs of wear since many people try them on. If you're close to average in size and height, sample sales are definitely a good place to start a dress hunt.

I arrived when they opened and I was blown away by the beauty and quality of the dresses. Three young sisters, the bellas, own the store and each brings a slightly different ascetic to the collection. The Wedding Industrial Complex was right on this one; from the styling, fabric, and construction, you can tell a big difference in designer gowns.

I selected three and headed back to the dressing room, literally a huge room with chairs and couches good for ohh-ing and ahh-ing. I wish I could describe the first and third dress, but I can only remember that the first one was pretty but without the special something and the third one was matronly because all my mental capacity was spent on the second dress!

Oh, the second dress! The Manuel Mota dress was everything I was looking for. Classic, A-line, modified sweetheart neckline with a fun something special, beautiful Douppioni silk, figure flattering (didn't make my look like a linebacker). Best of all, though, for the first time, I felt like I bride. The bride I wanted to be walking toward John, the best version of myself.

It was a little weird to be at the store by myself, but I am so thankful for camera phones and that I had gotten to try on dresses with my mom the week before. I called her up, sent pictures, described it to her, and she said "go for it!"

I whipped out my credit card, nearly elbowed a girl away from my dress (old soccer habits die hard), and texted John "I bought my dress!" Well Mr.-30-Minutes-to-Order-Dinner (not that I judge or anything) was so alarmed that he up and called my mom to check on my mental state!

Because let's be real, at 10:00 I walked in the door, and at 10:42 I walked out with a giant pink garment bag, which is a little unheard of in bride-world. But I just saw it as the result of efficient decision-making.

On the way home I couldn't stop smiling, calling 25 girlfriends (didn't know I had that many!), and staring in my rearview mirror, eh, I mean, envisioning the dress. I tried it on two more times that evening, and I got to model it for my grandmother the next day and my parents a few weeks after that. I've looked at hundreds of weddings since then and haven't seen another dress I like more than mine.

I definitely found my dress.

Well, I was a little too loquacious tonight, so I will update the rest of the planning checkmarks throughout the week.

Mental Leftovers

We've established that I have Doug-like tendencies, but, hey, this is my our blog, so I get full content control.  Here are some things that have been bouncing around in my mind over the last few days:

If you haven't already, you must go read the Bloggess' adventures!  Particularly:

• And that's why you should learn to pick your battles
• Would you like to buy a monkey?

Intrigued yet?  Believe me, it's worth it.

Three weeks ago, I finished listening to Laura Hillenbrand's Unbroken on audiobook and I cannot stop thinking about it.

Amazon describes it as "the inspiring true story of a man who lived through a series of catastrophes almost too incredible to be believed."  As I first discoved with Seabiscuit, Hillenbrand's writing is extremely engaging, particularly her ability to weave larger social and political issues into a very personal story.  I read she researched the book for seven years, but the book reads as a page-turning thriller and not a textbook-boring recounting of World War II veterans' stories.  This book made me laugh out loud, weep at the cruelty Louie experienced, and want to leap up and start singing the "Star-Spangled Banner."

Unbroken really made me think about the experiences of WWII soldiers returning home compared to that of soldiers returning home from the current wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, particularly related to PTSD and their ability to move forward.  I wish I knew more and understood it better at all, so I'll have to see if there are any books written about it.  Recommendations welcomed.

Look!  It's another paint chip DIY! I believe my mother, who wants to retire to the gift wrapping counter at Belk's, will particularly like this one.

If you need a few more laughs after reading The Bloggess, check out the most hilarious auto-corrected texts of all time.  Well this is awkward.

And now for The Sweetest Picture of All Time.

 

See ya tomorrow for a wedding update!  Just 301 days!  Oh yeah, there might be a little (awesome) reason I've been able to post twice in one day that I will share soon.

The Shortest Major Life Decision Conversation Ever

*ring, ring*

Caroline: Hey John!
John: How do you feel about moving to Charlotte?
Caroline: Sounds good!
John: Great, let me call the judge back.

*click*

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the extent of the conversation that's leading us to Charlotte in a few short weeks. Now, there were more major conversations before and after that one, but they were more about logistics and less about deciding if it was the right thing for us to do individually or as a couple. There really was no doubt that we'd take this step together.

If you're wondering how such a major thing could be decided so quickly and nonchalantly, there are two important things to know:

This guy is going to be there.

And, while the story could almost end there, there is also this little Google map:

Versus this one: