Good Ol' Dub Town

It happened again. The heart strings are a tuggin'. Every time I go home for a few days I realize how incredibly MUCH I miss my hometown, Wilmington. I think it would be impossible to grow up there, and it not be a HUGE piece of you. A true Wilmingtonian knows what it means to "walk the Loop," that you best not be arriving to the beach bridge any later than quarter till' the hour or you're going to get caught, that the best burritos are at Flaming Amy's, that you would never be caught dead at El Club Scorpion, and that you start wearing Rainbows when you're a toddler! I miss feeling so connected to the place where I live! 

Kyle and I spent the 4th in Wilmington, and I could totally see us having a GREAT life there!

Where else can you get the beauty of the beach (Wrightsville, of course!)

And, the charm of the riverfront downtown...

Where else do you have the amazing selection of food that you just can't get anywhere else!? 
You want the best cheesesteak in the world (better than the ones from Philly, I swear!), you go to J. Michael's Philly Deli. You want the best breakfast, you go to Sweet & Savory. You're in the mood for a hot-dog, you go to Trolley Stop. You're craving a burger, you go to PT's. You want to eat a meal on the water...well, first you'd have to choose--ocean-front or river-front...Oceanic, Bluewater, Dockside, Elijah's, Pilot House...you name it! I love local restaurants that aren't chains, and maybe I'm just biased, but Wilmy's just got such a great selection of them!

We even had Trolley Stop at our Wedding Reception! Yum, yum!

And of course, Wilmington is the home of my all time fav splurge treat...the Mocha Shake! Anyone who knows me well knows I love me a Mocha Shake, and you can only get them at Port City Java, which is more popular than Starbucks in Wilmy.  PCJ is where you go for EVERYTHING! Bible study, coffee dates, committee meetings, etc! We had all of our wedding planning meetings there...it's just the best place to go! When I got my wisdom teeth out, I'm pretty sure I had 2 Mocha Shakes in one day! Yes, they are super high on calories...BUT they are heaven in a cup! Good news if you live in Raleigh...they now have 3 Port City Javas! Everyone run out now and try the Mocha Shake! You can thank me later! I'm not sure if regular access to PCJ would be a pro or a con in my case for moving to Wilmington...blissfull treat versus too-tight jeans....hmmmm...I'll have to ponder this more!

Kyle learned to get a smoothie instead so he didn't have to share the Mocha Shake with me!

Of course I found a PCJ during my bachelorette party!

The thing that is keeping us where we are is that we both have AMAZING jobs that we love. We work with wonderful people, under wonderful bosses, and when you've got something that good, you just can't give it up! I love my school, and it's the only school I've really ever known. I student-taught there and started teaching there for real the year after. My principal is the only principal I've ever worked for, and I couldn't imagine working for anyone else! We have some amazing friends up here, and we have enjoyed the independence of starting our life together away from our families (but close enough to visit!!!). So, for now, we'll stay put...but I can't say that Wilmington may not be an option down the road....we'll see what the big Man upstairs has planned for us!