Outer Banks ... Day 2

We were prepared for a very soggy day 2.  All of the weather forecasts said 100 percent chance of rain.  Well, after getting a break on our first day, we were just thankful that we had gotten a reprieve.  

I woke up early this morning.  6:30 which is very unusual for me.  I listened and heard ... nothing.  No sounds of rain.  I peeked out the window and saw the sun hiding behind clouds.  I was elated!  Maybe we would have a bit of time today too!  I quickly checked the weather forecast and was delighted to see that it had changed since I had checked it the previous night.  Now we had weather that looked promising until about lunch time.  Thank you God!

We hadn't firmed up our plans for the day as the weather really impacts what you are able to do.  Since we had some sun, we decided to first go out to the beach for some play time before breakfast.   

What a fun start to the day.

It was cool, but very beautiful.  Loved seeing the sun shining through the clouds in places.

We decided to head up to Currituck lighthouse.  Some of us went early to take advantage of the sun and others decided to spend a bit more time on the beach.

This lighthouse is the same style as Bodie, but obviously the outsides are very different!  Isn't it beautiful?  I do love lighthouses!

The inside is different in color and style, but not basic shape.  I love that you can see how thick the lighthouse walls are at the windows.  The walls get thinner as you go higher up into the lighthouse.  

I took Eliana with us this time.  She was scared.  The view at the top was amazing!  I got some great shots of all the children too.  (Well, not Eliana as she would not get up off the floor.)  The bottom left is the Whalehead Club.  The bottom right is the lighthouse keepers house (now gift shop).

This is our lunch spot.  Isn't it lovely!!!  The bridge is a historic one.  Loved the row of cute little ducks following their mama.

Got a picture of the whole group after meeting up again with our friends.

After one too many photos, they loved the opportunity to have us stand and smile for multiple pictures too.

And have you noticed the weather?!  No rain!  A little tiny sprinkle around lunch time for a few moments, but that's it so far!

We went back to the Wright Brothers site to finish up the Junior Ranger badges.  We hurried out yesterday without finishing so that we could make it to the lighthouse.  We knew that we could finish this inside in the event of  poor weather.

The boys talked with the ranger about what they had learned and then were sworn in.  Proud of them for their efforts and they were excited too.  In addition to the badge, they received trading cards of famous aviators.  This is something new being done at some of the Eastern National Parks.

We looked around some at the inside museum that we hadn't visited yesterday.

We made a stop at Sweet Frog before heading home.  Who doesn't like a treat before dinner?  Just as we were loading up in the van to head home ... it started to rain.  Wow!  I couldn't have asked for better timing on that one.

Sometimes we get the breaks that we hope for and don't expect.  Its is a sweet gift.  Sometime too though, the rains come in spite of our prayers.  Sometimes the rains bring gifts that we don't yet understand or appreciate.  The rain and the sun are both needed in our lives.  And through it all, God is there.  He is faithful.  He is with us.  He will keep His promises to us.  We had this sweet reminder of God's promises as we left.

Daniel and his collection of goodies - mostly from this trip.

Thankful for a fast and fun and well-packed field trip with friends!  We are hoping to go down again sometime soon and hit some of the things that we missed this time around.  (Daniel is wanting to earn more Junior Ranger patches!)

Have fun exploring your city/state/world!

Blessings
Leslie