North Carolina for the day
This past Friday, Oliver & I took a little road trip down to Raleigh, North Carolina, where we finally met our "Instagram" friends, Amanda & her son Finley. I first heard about Amanda through an Instagram shop I follow called Modern Moses Clothing Company & they were advertising a giveaway put on by Amanda's Etsy shop called, Finomenally Clothed. So, I followed her Instagram account & actually won the scarf giveaway near Thanksgiving! I was so excited, because I thought her scarves were the cutest things ever & couldn't wait for Ollie to wear them. Long story short, we started talking & then exchanged numbers, now we text & snap chat ALL.THE.TIME! We actually had been planning this meet up for quite some time, but this past Friday worked out the best! Prior to this trip, Matt was joking around saying, "what if she isn't who she said she is?" or "be careful". I knew he was joking & he always teases me about becoming such good friends with someone I hadn't even met. I really wasn't nervous, but I did hope our boys would get along & I didn't want the meeting to be awkward. I am ridiculous in awkward situations. I usually start rambling on about weird things & then I never make any sense while talking, which usually leaves the other person puzzled. And since this was a semi-blind Instagram mama & son date, I knew I could use Oliver as a crutch if things got weirdly quiet.
So, with that being said, we started our mini road trip around 5:45am, where I immediately decided I should get coffee to stay awake. Bad idea. At the coffee shop I went to, I ordered an iced coffee with one pump chocolate with some coconut milk & I am pretty sure she gave me water mixed with chocolate (seeing as this is my normal drink & it tasted not so great)... I decided it wasn't worth it to go back & so I just drove on because it was a three hour trip. Once we arrived in Raleigh, we met up at Yellow Dog Bread Co. for some much needed, delicious coffee & a chocolate croissant. Honestly, when we met, it was like seeing an old friend (that you haven't in a long time) & picking up right where you left off! The cashier even asked if we were sisters & I laughed and told her that we JUST had met! Our boys instantly hit it off & even gave each other a hug (we may have prompted them a little). FYI, this is one of the best coffeehouses I have ever tried & Amanda & I still text each other that we want to go back there :)
They were so cute together & check out Finley's awesome hair!
From there, we drove to the Natural History Museum & walked around a bit so that we could talk & let the boys look around at all the different animal exhibits. After about an hour or so, we were getting really hungry, so we decided to go to this amazing Asian Fusion restaurant called, Bida Manda. We ordered take out because we knew our boys wouldn't stay still at the restaurant. After searching for a place to sit (we were trying to find a park, no such luck), for what seemed to be forever, we ended up in the business district, where there was lots of people & even more wind! The food was delicious, even though Amanda's Pad Thai plate flew off the table & noodles went everywhere... Clearly, we were a sight to see, especially with two rambunctious little boys who just wanted to run around & play. But, Amanda saved the day with two lollipops for the boys, which instantly made them quiet for a good 15 minutes! Oh sugar...
We finally found a nice, big grassy area (at the Capital building) & decided this would be a great place to spend a few hours. The boys had so much fun trying to climb trees, petting a dog, blowing bubbles, & even drinking some milk together from their matching NUBY Wash & Toss Straw Cups! They love their little cups & would clink them together, while Finley would say "cheers"! The cutest thing ever! Oliver always sees me with a straw cup & he was so excited when Nuby sent us some! They are super easy to use & really lightweight for the boys to hold. Amanda also loves Nuby products as much as I do, so it was awesome for the boys to have the same cup (although, they both wanted to keep sharing their cups...haha)!
Oliver totally had red lips from the lollipop ;)
Beautiful Amanda & her handsome little boy, Fin!
Friends that drink milk together, stay together!
I really did not want that day to end. It was so lovely to meet Amanda & her sweet Finley in person! We already are planning our next trip & I am getting so excited to hang out again! One thing that I am thankful for, is all the meaningful relationships you can make with someone who lives hundreds or thousands of miles away. It is incredible how you can follow someones blog/shop/Instagram one day & become life long friends the next. Thank you so much Amanda & Finley, for such a wonderful day & can't wait to get coffee & croissants with you all again ;)
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I did not receive any compensation for this post, although, as part of the Nuby Parent Blogger program, I did receive items to sample or review. All of my opinions are 100% my own.