We spent a lot of time at our new apartment this weekend, unpacking the things we brought along with us in the car. It's mostly wedding gifts, so finally opening them for real was pretty fun, even if there's nothing to sit on while we did it.

On Saturday we went hiking with Rob's parents, and we got to visit them for dinner on Sunday. It's really nice having them (and Daisy the golden retriever) in the same city!

Our place is a quick walk away from one of the light rail stations, so we took the train into Uptown for the Charlotte Pride parade yesterday, which made me smile and cry (so many huge corporations sponsored the event and it just made me feel really good about the world--I'm a sap).

Tomorrow I'm off to Richmond before heading to Delaware for a super long weekend celebrating my best friend Tina's bachelorette festivities! I've been looking forward to it for so long; and despite spending so much time enjoying our new neighborhood with my sweet husband, it's been a rough past few days for me personally, so I think some time at the beach with girlfriends will be really good.

Rob got in on Thursday night as usual and we spent a lot of time packing and seeing friends all weekend. Part of me wanted to make the most of every minute of every day, and while I think we did a decent job, a bigger part of me was just overwhelmed with the thought of making everything sentimental in some way. I almost forgot that the past year here has been fantastic whether we make it to that place in St. Paul, say goodbye to our favorite bartender, and have one more brunch at Modern Times or not.

We move to North Carolina on Friday, so I'll be here all week, packing up the last of our stuff and doing a whole lot of reminiscing. 

Hope you had a good weekend, too!

Happy Monday! I spent the past five days hanging out in Charlotte with Rob and some old friends that live in town. It's been so fun checking out coffee shops, farmers markets, parks, and lunch spots. I have a huge list of restaurants to visit once we've moved officially, and I can't wait to get started.

Now I'm spending a few days in Roanoke before heading back to Minneapolis for the weekend, so I'll be home until Wednesday afternoon. For now, here are a few shots from my time spent so far in North Carolina.

How was your weekend? Keep those Charlotte recommendations coming!