Our OBX Vacation

Omg, this is going to be a long post! If you make it to the end, you deserve a cookie! So, let me say that the Outer Banks {OBX} of North Carolina are b-e-a-utiful!!! Neither Aaron nor I had ever been and that's where we decided...along with the Mincheys, Palmers and Arnolds... to go for our vacation this year. We rented an adorable house in Corolla and set up camp for 8 full days of sun, food and beach fun!! I guess I should back up and start with how we got there. We took Southwest...by far my favorite airline right now. Even though you have to stop at every possible airport along the way, you get great service, smiling faces and NO fees!!

So, Saturday morning we left our baby girl with my mom and dad and headed to Love Field to catch our 11 am flight. Now, let me preface this by saying that our tickets were free. Aaron had a free flight and we used credit card miles for my flight....so, with all of the restrictions on credit card miles, we had to stop in Houston, Orlando and then finally Norfolk. When the flight attendant asked where all we had to stop, her exact words were, "Wow, was that ticket like $5.00?" Our flight didn't get in until about 8 pm...and we still had about a 2 hour drive to Corolla. But we were on vacation and that's all we cared about!!

We pulled up to this cute house around 11pm to be greeted by the Palmers and Mincheys! Yay!

"The Carolinian"

Here it is in the daylight

And definitely our attitude for the week was painted on the wall:

We hung out and caught up and then went to bed entirely too late. Well, most of us went to bed... Aaron and Kyle had other plans...they went to the beach to watch the East Coast Sunrise. Unfortunately, my camera didn't make it out that evening, but Jammi has some really good pics on her blog if you want to check them out!

Sunday we all got up and ate some breakfast {technically it could have been lunch} and then caught the trolley that took us to the beach!!
Actually, we had to make a stop at the Corolla surf shop to buy some beach towels...so we all piled into a dodge avenger to get there.

Aaron, me, Nicole and Jammi all in the backseat...reminds me of the good ol' college days {specifically a spring break in padre!! :)}

Finally made it to the beach...yay!!

Look at that coast line!!

Aaron's just happy to be on vacation at a beach!

Our group from afar

And the cute Palmers diggin their toes into the sand

Jammi decided she wanted to be buried...so we happily obliged ;)

and Kyle soon followed

After all of the digging and burying, we felt that it was only fitting to take a dip in the ocean, but then I saw this guy and a bunch of his friends and I decided the sand was a better place for me hang out.

I can't remember who did the challenging...but there was definitely a foot race between Kyle and Derek. Here they are in starting position.

Here's the video of the awesome challenge. Please excuse the craziness at the beginning. I was trying to stand up and I didn't want to miss one second of this race! :) It gets better after I finally stand up, I promise!!

Ahh, sweet victory!

Must re-hydrate!!

As we were packing to leave the beach for the day, Jammi and Kyle spotted this little guy.

That evening, Derek made a delicious dinner of fajitas. Thank you Derek!!

Some time in the wee hours of the morning, Brad and Michelle Arnold arrived. Yay!! Our party of 6 became a party of 8!! So, the guys decided to golf and the girls decided to get pedicures and shop! My kind of day!!

The finished product

On our way back to the house, we may have been talking and missed our turn into our little neighborhood, so we turned around to drive back...and look who we saw! If you can make out the little people in the picture, you will see that its Aaron, Kyle, Derek and Brad! Hi guys!!

That evening, after an AWESOME meal by Michelle, we decided that since it was the only night with all 4 couples, that we should hit the town. Jammi and Nicole thought that if they rode in the trunk, we would all be able to fit in one car. Sorry to break it to you girls, but I think that might be illegal...and not very safe!

So we took 2 cars and found our way down the island to a place called Sunset Grille. It had a cool outdoor area and we hung there for a little bit.

Michelle and Brad

I decided that we needed a drink in a coconut, so Derek went on a mission and found these guys:

Jammi thought they worked better as a bikini

We left Sunset Grille and headed even further down the island to a little hole in the wall called Jolly Rogers....oh ya, it was a karaoke bar! We had a blast, and I'm pretty sure everyone really wanted to see Elvis Cardwell (also known as do-rag Aaron), fortunately he did not make an appearance. We all sang a tribute as the Bobby Rose Group, and unfortunately I don't have a picture of that. Just a video, and I'll spare you that one. :)

Tuesday we said goodbye to the Palmers and for some reason, my camera went into hiding that day. The remaining 3 couples hung out and went to the movies...a rarity around the Cardwell house so, I was super excited!!

Fast forward to Wednesday...we loaded up the car and went to the beach again. Here are Aaron, Derek and Brad trying to set up the canopy thing...

notice I said trying...

...Michelle and I took pictures

...and Nicole applied sunscreen

...and in the end the canopy thing won, and we rented 2 umbrellas!!

Brad found our friend the jelly fish...and we definitely spotted a couple of sting rays that day!

When Thursday rolled around, we said good-bye to Arnolds...and then there were 4. Aaron was on sun-probation, so we decided to go to Kitty Hawk to the Wright Brothers museum. Um...that was a disappointment. And poor Aaron didn't even get to stay out of the sun.

The monument...oh ya, we're gonna climb that hill!

The Mincheys in front of something significant...??

We made it to the top and got a quick picture before Aaron melted. By the way, don't be jealous of my awesome tan lines!

Nicole found her calling as an astronaut

Friday...our last day at the beach :(

Saying good-bye to the ocean

Saturday morning, we woke up bright and early and headed to the Norfolk airport. After all, we had to catch our flight that connected THREE times before we could get back home to our munchkin pie. Yes indeed, we stopped in Jacksonville, Tampa, Houston and then finally Dallas. It was a long day, but such an amazing vacation. Thank you Mincheys, Palmers, and Arnolds for a wonderful time!! We LOVED it!!