On this day today.

Exactly one year ago today, and I do believe at this very minute EST, Kevin and I were just arriving in Charlottesville, VA (rosalicious' hometown!) after 26 hours in the car together. We pretty much drove that bad boy straight, stopping only to sleep for 4 hours in a dank, dingy motel somewhere in Illinois.

After nursing my margarita-good-to-see-all-my-friends-and-my-brother hangover in Charlottesville the next morning, we stocked up for the week at Whole Foods (compliments of Mama's discount!) and once again took our places in the Subaru.....K at the wheel (although it wasn't really that way the whole trip--we would each drive for a full tank and then switch), Rose in the front, Lucy-Lu-Cutie-Cutes curled up in the back).

We stopped at a veggie stand right over the VA/NC border, just like we always did when I was a kid. Sweet corn and peaches and cantaloupe and peanuts and sweet vidalia onions and everything fresh and good and Southern!

Then it was over the Pamlico Sound and on to the beach and the thick salty air and weathered gray beach houses and sea oats and sand dunes and big bridges over waterways and trucks with fishing poles poking out of PVC pipes on the front. It was K's first trip to the Outer Banks. You could say I was just a little bit excited (and a little bit high....ahem, on life silly!).

This is the Hal 'N' Gail, the house we rented for the week:


It was just a short dash to the beach! Running home for a mid-morning Corona was never easier!

This is a view of the screened-in porch where we spent many evenings sipping alcoholic beverages and indulging in other adult pleasures:


The screen porch was essential in protecting us from all those pesky bugs that live on the island. It was also essential in hiding our debauchery from the more family-oriented types that were our neighbors.

This is just a sample of Gail's decorating sense. If you like shells and the colors pink and teal, then this is the place for you. Gail went to town with the hot glue gun. I mean, even the trash can had shells glued on it:


See that table in front of the window? Lucy chewed the rattan one day while we were down at the beach. We just spun the chewed part around towards the wall and voila, like new.

See the table between the couches? Well, that's where you can find the ubiquitous guest book. I think I probably signed it, oh, about 20 times. It sort of became my personal journal for the week, seeing as I forgot mine. I hope the people who have subsequently stayed there have enjoyed my daquiri-induced revelations about beach life and house decorating (sorry Gail, sorry Hal, but the shells glued to all the lightswitch plates were just a tad overkill).

We really did love our stay at the Hal 'N Gail and had ourselves a vacation that as you can see I'm still swooning over today.

I miss you, beach.