Nick and I have spent the last two summers living and working in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Although we have been vacationing there for years, being able to call OBX “home” for a few months each year is so special to us! This summer was much different than our first Outer Banks summer (spoiler alert- we planned a wedding and got married within a 3 month timeframe last summer!). Here are some highlights and memories made during our second OBX summer:
Quarantine // It wouldn’t be a Summer 2020 post if I didn’t mention the main thing that made this summer so unique- we began it in quarantine! Even though our last college semester wasn’t finished, we packed up our Knoxville house and spent the first month of our summer finishing our college classes in quarantine. It was definitely a unique time, but we truly enjoyed the downtime together so much.
Graduation // After finishing up our final exams and presentations, we logged off of Zoom for the last time in our undergraduate career and threw ourselves a little quarantine graduation celebration. While we may not have gotten to walk across the stage at a graduation ceremony, we were so relieved to be finished with classes and finally have our diplomas!
Sunrise Walks and Seaglass // Before we began our summer jobs, we took sunrise walks on the beach nearly every day. We love hunting for seaglass, and early mornings tend to be some of the best times to find it. We would wake up around 5:30 in the morning, make coffee, and head to the beach before the sun peaked up over the horizon. These peaceful mornings were some of our absolute favorite parts of the summer!
Water Days // We don’t tend to go in the ocean much, but we love a Sunday on the sound! My sport of choice is stand-up paddleboarding while Nick’s (and Tucker’s) is kayaking. We especially loved boating further out on the sound where the water is clear and shallow like in the photo on the left!
Our New Car // We bought a car! This was our first big purchase as a married couple, and after spending the year saving up as much money as we could, we were so excited to be able to purchase a car that we love and that will serve us for years to come!
Day Trips // We lived on a small island on the Outer Banks, so taking a day trip up off the island was a big deal for us! We had so much fun trying new coffee shops and restaurants and visiting some Outer Banks icons like Jockey’s Ridge State Park 🙂
Sunset Cruises // I’ll be the first one to admit that I am definitely not an avid boater! I love being on cruise ships, but smaller boats usually aren’t my favorite. However, a few times this summer, when the water was particularly calm, we would pile on to the boat to watch the sun set. The evenings were so peaceful and any colorful sunset is always a photographer’s dream!
Even though 2020 has been a *unique* year, this summer was truly one for the books! The Outer Banks was the perfect place to spend a socially distanced summer, and our love for OBX has grown even more!
