Travelling to Heaven in the OBX

To get to A Perfect Escape, required planning, shopping packing, and of course, driving. Since we were staying for two weeks at the beach, and since for part of that time we were having lots of people and some with special dietary likes and dislikes, we did a lot of planning for meals. We wanted to have good food,but not include things that took a great deal of preparation, after all, it is a vacation! We decided to take two cars to avoid using our luggage carrier, packed up (always an ordeal), gassed up and hit the road.

We left really early to try to get ahead of traffic- a strategy that has served us well. Since check-in time is usually 4 o'clock, the later you wait in the day the longer your wait to get to your destination, and we couldn't wait to start our stay. If you are headed to a destination like the Outer Banks, even if you can't check in, it is best to be there before noon. You can always kill time at shops, and many rental companies will allow you to park your car at the home and go to the beach even before check in. Or follow our lead and negotiate an early check-in to beat the rush.

Between our house and the OBX are two required stops, both related to food. The first is a store my husband calls the world's best store - The Border Station- a combination restaurant-convenience store-souvenir shop that straddles the state line between Virginia and North Carolina. For years we thought he was exaggerating and we would sit in the car, until once, seeking a restroom the girls and I went inside, and what a surprise! They had a little restaurant making fresh foods all day long, beach and North Carolina goods including some made locally made goods. And this is where we found the "world's greatest fries". You know those fries you had as a kid- crispy on the outside and tender on the inside? These are the Border Station's fries- a real trip down memory lane. You can see on the left, Bridget preparing to enter Nirvana, and to the right the reason for our excitement (and weight gain!) If you get a chance try these fries, and from the looks of the lines they make an awesome homestyle breakfast as well!

Our second food-related stop was a bit healthier. One of my favorite parts of the trip to Corolla is passing the many fruit and vegetable stands that crop up during prime season.

There are several some small and some larger, advertising watermelons, peaches and corn all along the way, but our favorite is the Morris Farm Market is a huge market with all manner of produce, freshly made bread and baked goods, fruit ciders, and condiments. Morris is very busy on the weekends, with travelers stocking up for their beach stay and those coming back trying to take the tastes o the beach with them. Since they also have the cleanest restrooms, they are a popular stop, but well worth braving the crowds.

The best way to cap a great road trip was getting to a fabulous destination. We arrived at our Perfect Escape, and settled in, unpacking and getting organized for the week and then explored the beach to get started on a vacation to remember!!!

A More Perfect "Perfect Escape"- Part 1

Family vacation. Those two words can strike fear in the hearts of many, but in the Dowd household, it is something we look forward to and plan for all year long. For many years before I began working at Jefferson Lab I never had paid vacation and when my children were young,when there was time there was no money, and when there was money there was no time. So now, vacation is an almost sacred time for our family. And while we love the mountains, vacation for us means the beach at the Outer Banks. This year was particularly special since,for the first time, we were taking 2 weeks !!! We were saving, and planning and comparing and negotiating from January to find a house that would provide a view of the ocean,and a pool,and were thrilled when we found out that the house we had rented last year in the Whalehead section of Corolla, A Perfect Escape, was available. We enjoyed the house so much last year we had reserved it for 2010 and were disappointed when we were told that it would no longer be part of the rental program. After three trips to scout other homes in the Outer Banks, we found out that it was again available through Sun Realty, and we jumped at the chance to stay there again. The house is situated just steps from the beach, has great views and plenty of room, and a great pool and hot tub- a perfect get-away whether you love walking the beach, swimming laps, or just soaking up the sun on the beach.

Planning is an important part of a successful vacation and for us that means making arrangements for our two dogs, making lists of what we want to take and planning menus. I ordered special shirts from Queensboro with the Dowd Beach Week logo. We actually started our countdown at about 145 days out, with Molly writing the number of days to the beach each day on the chalkboard in our kitchen. Since we knew we would have a large crowd the first week with extended family, we needed to plan meals that would be easy enough that I would still have a vacation, but still fun and festive and taking full advantage of the the local produce and seafood. Our meals had to appeal to a variety of eaters, some adventurous, some meat and potatoes, some gourmet. We had decided to carry some meats, cheeses and condiments that we thought we would have trouble getting or that might be more expensive in the Outer Banks. We carried our panini maker, which was a great hit last year, our own coffee grinder, and a couple of our own good knives since even the best rentals often have knives that are past their prime. I printed out new recipes I wanted to try, and carried along a couple of tablespoons each of baking soda and powder in case I decided to bake. We decided to take two cars in order to carry everything we needed, and packed the cars the night before. as a real treat,since we were going to be leaving on Memorial Day weekend and our rental was not occupied the week before, we were able to negotiate a price on an extra day to arrive on Friday instead of Saturday so that we could get settled and unpacked before the rest of the crew arrived.

Two weeks is a lot of time and a lot of family, fun and food I want to share, so this is the first of several posts that will take you through our perfect escape.