My body still rocks as if still being tossed by the great waves of the Atlantic.  My hair, newly tinted a perfect gold, spills across my sun-kissed shoulders.  My mind nearly sighs with relaxation as the treasures of summer dance around me.
  Summer.  Great a thing as school is, sometimes you just gotta have a break.  I'll admit it.  Finals, much as I don't exactly like them, went great.  But once the last day of finals were over, we packed the car and got the heck out of Arizona.
  I think I forgot that Arizona is in fact a desert.  After a long flight and upon stepping out of the airport, I could've fainted with shock.  North Carolina is gorgeous.  The air is slightly heavy with humidity, but a breeze brushes coolness against your face.  And holy cow, the greenery.  Even in the city, forests of trees lean across the roads or shade the buildings.  Their heavy branches seem to touch the sky.
  For the first two days, we stayed with my Uncle Tommy and Aunt Mayme.  They live in a little house (actually in South Carolina) with five adorable little kids between the ages of eight years and sixteen months.  One of the days we went to the Confederate Museum.  We also went to the zoo, which was pretty fun with all these kids fascinated by the animals.
  Today we just left a giant beach house in North Carolina with three stories and several large rooms that made plenty of room for both my family and my Grandpa Paul and Nana Hanny.  Behind us was a fantastic view of the Corrutuck sound, and the ocean was only on the other side of the fancy "neighborhood." 
  We were there because my aunt April's wedding was on Monday.  She was married in a little church by a lighthouse.  We rarely see her, but it was wonderful to be able to see her in her lovely white gown and share that happy moment with her.  Following the wedding was a reception on the beach.  You know, that was always one of my dreams-  to let my bare feet be lapped by the waves as I clutched the skirt of my expensive gown. 
  The rest of the time we spent, basically, on the beach.  I thought beach in San Clemente was great, but it was nothing compared to the one we were at.  The water was perfect temperature with perfect rolling waves, and the sand was soft.  Scattered everywhere were hundreds of beautiful seashells.  Exhausting as it was, I loved to wade deep into the water with Rachel and Adam and be, well, beaten upon the by the waves.  We spent lots of time either boogie boarding or body surfing.  And yes, I am very much tanner and blonder now, thank you very much! 
  Then yesterday we were surprised when some guys swimming just a few feet away from us started shouting.  We swam over to them, and they were holding a stingray!  It was dead, but nevertheless neat (and a bit tainting to my trust of the beaches safety...).  Among the other animals I (or at least other members of my family) saw were dolphins, pelicans, a dead jellyfish, and crabs- Oh, lot's of crabs!  Last night we also went "crabbing."  After the sun went down, we slipped on our flip-flops, grabbed some flashlights (AKA this cool app on my parents' new phones), and searched the beach for the little spider-like creatures.  Almost everywhere you looked you could see them scurrying across the sand.  BTW, I have officially nicknamed Adam the "Crab Whisperer."
  Anyway, it's almost midnight.  We just arrived at a hotel in Manassass/Bull Run.  Tomorrow we will be visiting DC, and I know I will probably be needing my energy!