"Nothing could be finer than living in Carolina""

I have taken a little hiatus from blogging to actually do what we have come out here to do - besides bring Matt home with a Degree in Physical Therapy - enjoy life. Sometimes I feel so busy trying to keep up with home that I don’t take the time to enjoy being here. So we did just that. And now I am happy to report all the fun we have been having to you. That is, those of you still out there.

Let’s see, Matt is in his third semester of school with only a few weeks left. He is really enjoying it, and they are certainly keeping him busy. We keep finding ourselves looking back to all the milestones we were going through this time last year, researching, packing, driving, driving and more driving. It is incredible how much we have learned so far about ourselves, each other, and our relationships, not to mention a few minor life lessons along the way...

1. How to get a tow truck, autobody shop, and spare car when your only car overheats and you have no friends or family around to lend a hand, or just give you a (much needed) hug.
2. How to survive a three day campout with three-thousand crazy grad students on little sleep, all for a shot at basketball tickets.
3. That slow southern lifestyle isn’t so wonderful when you are driving down the highway at 15 under the speed limit.
4. Barbeque is a food, not a method of cooking.
5. 100 degree days here are NOT the same as 100 degree days in California.
6. If you refer to California as "Cali," you've probably never been there.
7. Sometimes life requires you to trust others, try new things and laugh at yourself.

Over the past few months we have loved getting out to explore a little bit, here are some pictures of what we’ve been up to here in the southeast.

Celebrating a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!

A summer night at the Durham Bulls game.

A day at the beach.

Picking strawberries

A trip to Asheville, a pretty town in the Blue Ridge Mountains, it reminded us a lot of Nevada City. When we saw this store, we knew we were going to love it. We found a ornament of a covered wagon that we will use to remind us of our journey out here. Fitting don't you think?

Happy 23rd Birthday Matt!! Linus and I threw him a tiny little party. Just the three of us.

And then in June a day trip to Virginia Beach.

Old Cape Henry Lighthouse. Our legs were KILLING us after climbing to the top, but it was such a pretty view.

Our little guy.

Mmmk any of you who have seen the movie Bull Durham will recognize this one. One evening we went to see an old film in Durham's Central Park. We got there a little early so decided to walk around downtown, and scope out the old Bull's baseball field. This is where the movie was filmed.

And now time for the movie...

All the essentials.

And there you have it... our life lately. Plain and simple, but we are definitely learning a lot. As I sit here thinking of all the unknowns our future held last July as we drove I-80 east with the few possessions we had gathered throughout our barely one year of marriage, the largest playlist known to man, and all the faith we could muster, I realize that we have both grown so much and still have a lot to learn. There are probably just as many unknowns in our life now as there were then, we are still living on a prayer, but we have each other and I am so thankful to be experiencing it all with my best friend’s hand in mine.

We had visitors!

Matt is intently watching Duke play Purdue in the Sweet Sixteen right now (go Duke!) so I am taking the opportunity to share some pictures with you all. We were SO excited to have Jake and Kate come out to visit during Matt's spring break. We couldn't wait to show them around. Thanks mom for helping get them out here! Here are just a few pictures of our trip to DC with them.

So you can't see it here, but there is a person on the very top of the Capitol building. Maybe you have all noticed already, but none of us had a clue who it was supposed to be. After fifteen minutes of staring, debating, and googling WikiAnswers to see who it was, I decided to be brave and just ask a guard. He quickly told me it was Jesus. I guess I should have been more skeptical when he couldn't keep a straight face, but I quickly questioned why on earth Jesus would have a hat on.
For all of you as curious as we are, it's Lady Liberty. Personally I think she looked a little manlier than she should have, but hey blame our forefathers.

It was shocking how long it took to get this picture. I think about a dozen tourists kept jumping in there no less than a foot away. Really? Nope, we aren't taking a picture, just standing here trying to look pretty. Ya, that guy there is posing as a photographer taking our picture, why don't you jump in, we love having people in the background that we don't know from Adam.

Just a few snapshots, but we had a perfect time with you guys. We were so happy to see you, but again so sad to say goodbye. Thanks for visiting!

PS: Speaking of March Madness, I would like it to be on the record that my bracket is killing Matt's. :)

Who says you can't have a luau in the snow?

A couple weekends ago, a friend of ours hosted a Murder Mystery Luau. It was so much fun! We were all mailed characters to dress up as, and were given scripts to follow to help us determine who we thought was the murderer.

It had snowed a couple of inches the night before, we thought it was a wonderful break from the winter cold to whip out our bathing suits and sandals.

We had a yummy hawaiian-themed meal to go along with the evening.

Mike did a great job playing a So-Cal surfer dude.. especially considering that at the time he hadn't traveled further west than Michigan. We will forgive him that his surfer accent slowly morphed into a distinct Southern accent. After all, he only had a couple of episodes of Saved by the Bell to model his California character after.

Michelle and I.
Mike and Michelle have been our neighbors since we first moved to Durham. Mike and Matt actually interviewed together last year, so we were so excited when we got a text from Mike that we were in the same apartment complex as they were. They helped us unload our moving van, we introduced them to Settler's, and the rest, as they say, is history. :)

The guys.

The girls.

And what better punishment for the murderer than silly string?

Needless to say, it was a night filled with lots of laughter.

The newest Ithurburn...

I am proud to introduce you to the newest member of our little family...

Linus!

Matt has always said that as soon as we can, he wants a hunting dog. Well, let's just say that Linus won't exactly grow up to be the intimidating predator Matt had always dreamed of, but he fits perfectly in our equally tiny apartment. Someday Matt. :)

And the night we got Linus, we had a pretty big snow storm, well for North Carolina anyways. We ended up with about 8 inches in Durham, but you would have thought the world was ending. Everything was closed, including schools.. for the entire week. And the weathermen did little to calm everyone's nerves. We loved it, even though our friends from Michigan thought it that everyone had lost their minds! It looked like Y2K all over again, empty grocery store shelves, desolate roads, basically little short of mayhem.
As excited as we were about the weather, Linus wasn't so thrilled to begin his potty training adventure in it. He was a trooper though!And then... a visit from mom! Linus was so excited to meet his Nana. We had a rainy weekend when she came, and barely made it in from the storm, but we were thrilled to have a couple of hours to spend with her!And of course we never pass up an opportunity for Five Guys!! Love you mom! We will be thinking about all the laughter we shared as we wait anxiously for your next visit!