Things I will miss...

I love North Carolina. It has long been my favorite state. It has the beach and beautiful forests, but let's be honest...it has the ocean. I love, LOVE going to the outer banks or, for that matter, any beach. If it has waves, salt water, and sand, I'm game (this is not to confused with a "beach" on a lake--salt water and waves are a must). This is one thing I will NOT miss about IL. I hated being landlocked for 16 hours in any direction. Being 3 or so hours away from the beach is FANTASTIC.

I created a top ten list of things I'm going to miss (I did not include family or friends on this list because that's kind of a given). They are in no particular order.

1. The City Museum. I'm like a really big kid. It's my jungle where I bruise/cut up my knees and bump my head. If you haven't been to the City Museum, go.

2. The Muny. I wasn't able to go this year what with it being ridiculously hot and my being pregnant, but I thoroughly enjoy watching various musicals from the free seats.

3. Freeness. There is a whole of stuff to do in STL that is free. Most cities aren't like that (thank you Anheuser Busch).

4. Madison County Trails. These are the best trails in the whole.wide.world. They are flat and smooth. Roller blading on them is a cinch! The trails in the city...not so much. When we lived in the city, we'd venture over the river for the trails alone.

5. Volleyball. I played volleyball every Sunday (up until I couldn't play physically anymore). I'm going to miss the group I played with and playing volleyball in general. I really need to find a league out here. Pray it's not too far away.

6. Chorale. I sang with my mom, Dean's aunt, and his cousin. I loved it. It was more challenging than church music and it gave me one more opportunity to sing during the week. Our director was fantastic. Actually, make that stellar. I absolutely loved singing under him.

7. Crown Candy Kitchen. St. Louis's oldest ice cream parlor. Yep. It's delish. Again, if you haven't been there, go. The food is cheap (The BLT (minus the L and T of course) might give you a heart attack, but it's so worth it.) and the ice cream is quite yummy. If you dare, take the 5 malt challenge. I'd probably throw up, but I don't like ice cream as much as some people.

8. Flat. People who live in "upper" southern IL take the flat for granted. When storms are coming, they're visible for a good ten miles if not more. As I'm sitting on my porch typing this, I think I can see maybe three. This is probably only due to the fact there's a hilly field across the road, or it'd be more like one. Don't get me wrong. I love trees and hills, but I am going to miss the flat lands filled with corn, wheat, and beans that are the norm back home.

9. Schnucks. Don't mock me. I like habits, routines, and knowing where things are. Plus, I love their produce.

10. Forest Park. This includes everything from picnics, the Zoo, Jewel Box, History Museum, ice skating, etc. It does not include the Art Museum. I still do not enjoy going there, but I am going to miss all the other features of Forest Park. Off the record, one day I really want to roll down Art Hill.

I didn't include the Melting Pot (original chocolate fondue--the kind with chunky peanut butter in it and Carmel Apple Martinis, OH MY!) because there is one in Raleigh. Heck, yes.

I also didn't include the Collinsville Book Sale on here because I'm currently sitting next to a flier that has information on it about Warren County Library's upcoming book sale in October. Shh. Dean doesn't know yet. :)

I'm obviously also going to miss teaching, but I didn't want to put that on my list since I did get paid to do that. That being said, I got a whole lot of book reviews and ideas from my students. I'm going to need book suggestions sometime in the near future.

I am NOT going to miss living in the city. Neighbors, cars, and smogginess are not my idea of fun. I'm looking forward to the quiet of the country. In fact, Sawyer and I are already enjoying it sitting on our front porch.

I am looking forward to exploring the activities around the area. I've already gone to the library, and we ventured into Raleigh. Unfortunately it wasn't for anything to exciting, but I did get a hot dog and Sprite at Costco. :)

After we dropped Mom off at the airport, Sawyer and I took the opportunity to snuggle on my new chair. I snapped a picture of him as he was starting to stir (I put him in his swing so I could get stuff done and he slept another 1.5 hours...).

Hugs and Kisses from Norlina!