Southport - A "Safe Haven"

The next leg of our journey took us through the town of Southport.  If you are not familiar, Southport is the setting of the recent movie "Safe Haven".  It's a beautiful coastal town with similar attributes to Brevard.  The downtown stores were fun and busy going into the holiday weekend.  We also got to experience the weekly  farmers market.  It was a short stop, but definitely a place I would return.

Carolina & Kure Beach

After only two nights in Surf City, we were once again off down the Carolina coast to Carolina Beach, NC.  This area had much more build-up than Surf City.  The beaches were much shorter than we were use to and reminded me of visits to the Jersey coast.  The sand was also much coarser than the fine sand of Ocracoke.  


We spent most of our time on Kure Beach near the fishing pier.  It was perfect conditions for the kids to surf and they had a wonderful time.  We did hear tale of a gator in the ocean earlier in the day, but we didn't have any encounters. We were always under the impression that alligators stayed out of salt water, but we learned that isn't always the case.  It was a fun day, but not our favorite beach on the trip.  Regardless, it's still fun seeing new places.  Next up Myrtle Beach!

Surf City, NC

Upon exiting the Cedar Island Ferry, we headed south down the North Carolina coast to Surf City.  With expectations based on name alone, we were pleasantly surprised to find a small fishing town without much build-up.  The island was lined with coastal houses, and only a few stores and restaurants keeping it quaint. 

 

Lanier's Campground was a wonderful stopping spot for us.  Their staff was friendly and the kids enjoyed playing pool and air hockey in the campstore area.  There was a pool that unfortunately we didn't get to swim in because of passing thunder showers.  We did get to crab, fish, and shrimp off the campground pier! Most was done with the cast nets which was great fun.  Catching shrimp was a whole new experience for us and we all got involved in the process. 

We also enjoyed visiting the seafood market.  We bought some fish and shrimp and enjoyed a feast!  It was definitely a place perfect for the Meile's and one we hope to visit again. 

Islands

June has been a month spent along the North Carolina coast. Our first two weeks were in Ocracoke. It is the place I've gone my entire life so it always feels like home. The first weekend we enjoyed the Ocrafolk Festival with my parents and neice. It was a whirlwind of music and fun. I had the opportunity to meet several other artists whose work is also sold at Local Color in Brevard. It was a terrific bond and a sweet reminder of home.  

The next week was filled with relaxing beach time, wonderful restaurants, some clamming and fishing. 

Week two was spent enjoying time with my family. It was sooo good to see everyone again and it was just a wonderful week!

Saturday we took the Cedar Island Ferry for another Meile first. We played cards and hung out with our neighbors and new friends from the campground.

It was a fabulous two weeks and a lead in to a weeks worth of new adventure. Stay tuned for our updates heading down the Carolina coasts.

Exploring North Carolina

It's been a long time since I've written a post, but we have simply been enjoying day-to-day life in Brevard. For those of you who don't know already, we have decided to make Brevard NC our permanent home. We have fallen in love with this little town and can't imagine living anywhere else.  

We spent a month living once again in our camper at Adventure Village in Brevard. We will also spend the month of July there before we rent our cabin again.   We are hoping to find our own home soon enough but we just take each day as it comes. 

WeBgypsies Photographic Art has been growing slowly but surely. I now have pictures in two stores and will have two photos in a local exhibit in July. I love the challenge of capturing an image that moves someone regardless if they've been there themselves. 

The kids are totally involved with Brevard Rock Gym and are so excited the Austin Family has taken ownership. The kids are hoping to do some competitions in the upcoming year.

Right now we are exploring the Carolina coast and enjoying the beaches. We always love a new adventure and hope Brevard holds some for us when we get back. 

Thank you for continuing to follow our adventures. We will post updates about our coastal trip soon. Until then live life!

Getting to know Asheville

February has flown by and we have truly enjoyed every minute of it!  One moment it is 60 degrees and sunny and the next we get 3 inches of snow, and that in no exaggeration!  I simply love the variety of weather around here.  One morning the kids were snowboarding and sledding with their friends and that same afternoon we went to the park and were in short sleeves, no jacket.

This year for my birthday we went to explore downtown Asheville.  We ate breakfast at Early Girl, walked around and explored many of the shops, had a snack at The Gourmet Chip company, enjoyed pizza at The Mellow Mushroom for lunch, and completed it all with delicious treats from The Chocolate Lounge.  All in All it was an amazing birthday! If you've never been to Asheville I highly recommend  the trip!

Today I had the pleasure of touring the Biltmore Estate with my friend Kathleen.  It's an amazing mansion nestled in the mountains just south of downtown Asheville.  It was built by George Vanderbilt in the 1800s and was incredible even by today's standards.  I was intrigued by the elegant decor paired with the animal mounts throughout the home.  Ironically my two favorite rooms were the smoking and gun rooms, of which I would not have been allowed to go back in the days of their use.    The women's quarters were too frilly for my taste.  The other feature I truly appreciated was the view.  It was quite spectacular and I can only imagine how beautiful the gardens will be this spring.  I'm so glad I got to experience this American treasure.

So, one more month in our sweet little cabin before we adventure again.  In April we will return to the Emerald Coast of Florida to enjoy sand, sun, and ocean.  May we will return to Brevard to enjoy spring  and the highly anticipated White Squirrel Festival.  June is our return to the Outer Banks and July is to be determined.

For those of you who don't already know, I started sharing my photography.  My work is currently for sale in a local shop called Local Color.  I started a website and facebook page, and I've joined some local groups to help promote my photography.  I am really excited to share something I enjoy so greatly.  Please feel free to visit my website if you haven't done so already (http://alyciameile.wix.com/webgypsies).  If you've followed this blog then you know where many of the images were taken.

Take care for now.  We will keep you posted on all our new adventures!

Life in the Mountains

Whale Back put in on the Davidson

Looking Glass after rain

It's been quite some time since I last wrote. Life in the mountains suites us well and we are enjoying even the day to day activities.  The weather here is simply beautiful.  It is a combination of spring and fall most of the time.  We were expecting snow last week, but it was just too warm to get any of the powdery stuff.  We could see some snow on the mountain peaks along the Blue Ridge Parkway, but that was the extent of it.  We did have four days of rain, but even that wasn't so bad.  Most of the creeks were up which meant Dave had more opportunities to kayak.  He ventured down the Davidson and the North Fork of the French Broad.  He even got to run Hooker Falls!

Hooker Falls on the Little

The kids started back to climbing last week.  They really missed being in the gym and were excited to see their friends.  Lauryl is taking hip hop on Friday's and she also started with a new violin teacher last week.  Her and Grace are taking part in the Transylvania Youth Strings orchestra program too.  Camden started basketball after the New Year.  He is the tallest on his team!  They won their first game on Saturday thanks to several of his baskets.  I am working on  getting my photography projects in some of the local shops.  It's a nice outlet for me and something I truly enjoy.  Even with all these activities, the pace in Brevard is much slower than we use to keep, making life very enjoyable.

The kids are also making lots of friends here.  They've done sleepovers and we've had cookouts and we even enjoyed watching the Raven's Bronco's game with our new friends from Denver.

We will be in our little cabin until the end of March and then we have some travelling on our radar. We simply take each day as it comes and we enjoy it for all that it's worth.  I honestly forgot today was a holiday for most and that is an amazing feeling.  We still have much to see and explore around here so I will keep you all posted as new discoveries are made.  If you haven't been to Western North Carolina, you really must make the trip.  It is truly a wonderful place!