On Friday evening, I turned to Ryan and said, “I love feeling like there are SO many new things to do this weekend and not enough time to do all of them.” Oh the joys of moving to a fun new city! I have to continually remind myself that we have plenty of time to explore, but the little kid in me wants to do everything now. Patience, patience.
Ryan and I have definitely gravitated toward Lake Norman, a giant and incredibly gorgeous lake just outside of Charlotte, for many of our activities.
(That’s Ryan flipping off a tall wooden post on Lake Norman on Saturday!)
On Friday before dinner, we took Sadie on a walk by the lake and found a secluded area where we were able to do some impromptu swimming. It was amazing but something kind of crappy happened. Ryan lost his wedding ring.
We were obviously quite upset but we’re trying not to get caught up in the loss of something material even though the ring was quite sentimental to both of us. Ryan always takes his ring off before swimming or working out but didn’t this time and without the Florida heat to swell his fingers like he’s used to, it slid off into the abyss of the lake when he was swimming around with Sadie. Finding it was impossible and when we arrived back home, Ryan showed me a nifty $27 replacement ring he ordered on Overstock.com. Ha! I’m hoping to find a similar ring to replace his original band, but for right now, that will work!
Losing Ryan’s wedding ring was the low point of the weekend, but fortunately everything turned around from there. We spent all day on Saturday at the lake with two of my blogging buddies, Brittany and Caitlin, and their sweet families. The husbands all had fun watching the World Cup while Brittany, Caitlin and I parked ourselves in front of the food (isn’t that always how it goes?) until the sun called to us and we spent several hours outside.
Brittany’s husband and Ryan swam in the lake with the dogs (and some stylin’ pink noodles).
Nope, that’s not Sadie. That’s Koda, Brittany and David’s vizsla! It was great to be around another couple who fully understands the craziness and neediness of a vizsla. They encouraged us to bring Sadie with us for the day so she could play with Koda and the two of them ran around for hours and looked like the most adorable little hyperactive twins.
(They’re both six though Sadie looks like Grandmother Time with her white face.)
We were there all day and left around dinnertime after an evening boat ride. It was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday. Days on the water are the best days in my book!
Sunday
On Sunday morning, Ryan and I met up with Steve and Lisa, the friendly couple I met at the coffee shop last week and checked out a new church. We really liked the feel of it but since the main pastor was out of town, we want to be sure to listen to him preach (and figure out where we’ll actually be living!) before settling on a “home church” in Charlotte. I have a few more churches I’d like to try out and am hopeful we’ll have no trouble finding one that is the right fit. It took us months of “church shopping” in Ocala to find Meadowbrook which we absolutely loved.
After church, Ryan and I changed and leashed Sadie up for some outdoor adventure!
Crowders Mountain State Park
We drove a little less than an hour to Crowders Mountain State Park where we hiked up to the top of the mountain and soaked in gorgeous views of the city of Charlotte in the distance.
We started at the park entrance and unknowingly went the opposite direction on the Crowders Trail loop that most hikers seem to go and ended up tackling some serious stairs to get to the top of the mountain.
What I thought was going to be a nice, leisurely hike turned into a workout! All the stairs gave me and Ryan a flashback to the challenging Koko Head Crater hike we completed in Oahu. (If you ever go to Oahu, you have to do that hike. It’s tough, but the view from the top is unreal.)
The hike was also quite humbling since we did it with Sadie who laughs in the face of elevation changes. The Florida kids in us aren’t used to inclines!
The whole hike was 5.6 miles and took us right around two hours. The first half of the hike wasn’t too strenuous, but those stairs were killer!
It was an active and fun weekend for the Fagan family!
Question of the Morning
- Tell me about some of the highlights from your weekend! Any beach/pool/lake days out there? Hiking fun?
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You handled Ryan losing his wedding ring better than I would if my husband lost his! Hopefully it won’t be too hard to find a replace that looks similar to the original! We actually made our way to North Carolina to get the keys to our new apartment. We also did a little bit of cleaning and checked out the area (i.e. found an awesome burger place and a farmer’s markets with a coffee shop!) before heading back. It was an exhuasting but exciting weekend!
I think I said, “So how loose was your ring!?” about 10 times. 🙂 Glad you had a fun weekend!
I did the same thing the first time I went to Crowders Mountain! I could not understand why everyone else wasn’t drenched in sweat at the top from all the stairs.
Exactly!! When we got to the top, we realized we made a rookie mistake! It was intense!
So sorry about the wedding ring! But maybe in 100 years someone will have a lucky day.
The highlight of my weekend was definitely celebrating my grandparent’s 60th wedding anniversary. It was a very happy occasion.
(Also this is totally nitpicky but you might not have realized that you used the word “obviously” twice in one sentence.)
Congrats to your grandparents! (And I deleted the second “obviously” — I was a little overzealous!)
Thanks! (And thanks!)
I was sick Saturday morning, and that kindove threw off my whole weekend. I vegged out and had a Netflix marathon Saturday, and then spent some time with family on Sunday. It wasn’t the most active of weekends, but it was still a good one!
I’ve never really hiked! I’m a Texas girl, and you have to search pretty hard (or travel) to find a REAL area for hiking, plus it’s always SO hot, but I’d definitely love to find some place nice to hike on vacation.
Ahh that’s too bad about Ryan’s ring! At least it was his and not yours? Haha I’m guessing your ring would have been more expensive to replace! And what a fun weekend – I bet you all are loving the cooler, less humid summer!
We said the same thing! It could’ve been worse!
A friend of mine came to check out my church yesterday, and we had a guest speaker. The same thing happened when my best friend came for a visit. I’m always anxious for people to check out my pastor, because he’s a good speaker. I’ve actually heard that to really get a feel for a church, you need to visit it three times. I’d invite you to mine, but it’s in Iowa, and that’d be a BIT of a drive every week. 😉
I’m in need of a nice hike! I work weekends…busy busy in the restaurant!
Looks like an absolutely fun weekend! That mountain view is gorgeous! Next time I’m in Charlotte, I need to take a hike there!
Been hiking around our Oak Mountain state park some, it definitely changes things up from the usual running and workouts.
That hike sounds like so much fun!! I’m so sorry Ryan lost his ring, but everything will turn out right in the end :). And yay for being able to spend time with your friends, your weekend sounds like such a fun weekend!
You should post to a metal detector forum and see if you can get someone to help you find it in a lake 🙂 I scuba dive and my friends are always bringing their underwater metal detectors to help out people who lost stuff!
Really?? Definitely looking into this!
YES! my friend Mike went to a strawberry patch and helped a couple find a wedding band that was lost while strawberry picking 🙂
here is the facebook group he is a part of and how he met the woman whos ring he found 🙂
https://www.facebook.com/lostmystuffgroup
I am sure you can find someone in your area! Good luck!
That’s the coolest thing I’ve heard all week. (Though it’s only Monday… ha)
it is really cool! They find so much awesome stuff! Old gold pocket watches etc! but its amazing to reunite someone with a lost really meaningful item!
Wow what an awesome weekend! When the hubby loses his rings it is never a good feeling. Ryan lost his on day 4 of our honeymoon when we were swimming in the ocean. It was the only time he didn’t take it off and we spent hours trying to find it, but with no luck. So we bought a wooden ring from the gift shop to get us through the rest of the trip 🙂
That’s awful he lost his ring! High of my weekend was spending the weekend with my Mom. I haven’t seen her since her heart surgery in April. It was so nice to see her and how well she is doing.
The same thing happened to my husband while swimming in the ocean- total bummer! But, after he got a replacement ring, someone gave us the idea of getting his new ring blessed. A few years after our wedding it was sort of really special to have our marriage blessed again!
Aw, love this idea!
Looks like you had a great weekend, despite the loss of Ryan’s ring! We only spent $50 on my husband’s ring in the beginning, knowing he would likely lose it! I had a brief scare last week thinking my daughter swallowed both of my rings, but they were later found under the bed 🙂
I worked a lot over the weekend, but squeezed in a fabulous 11 mile run!
I had a blast kayaking for 3.5 hours yesterday with a friend. on a lazy river. Saw kids jumping from a rope swing, a couple holding hands tubing, dogs in kayaks (with owners of course) and young girls dancing in bikinis and singing to music. Everyone was feeling summer yesterday!
Oh my gosh! Pretty sure I would be freaking out if either the hubby or I lost our rings. Hopefully you can find something similar that you both like. What a gorgeous hike too! I can see why you have gravitated there for sure. We went on a hike this weekend too but ours was very very flat and included a lot of Iowa corn fields and a tiny pond 😉
Exploring a new city is so much fun- especially with the mountains right there!!
I met up with one of my best friends from my sorority to celebrate our birthdays! We both live hours away from our other sisters during the summer, so it’s always sweet and refreshing to see her!
I can’t get over how beautiful North Carolina is and how much there is to do there! I definitely want to live in a place that has many opportunities for active people to get outside. And that picture you took or Ryan is really neat! You could always get tattoos in place of a wedding ring…but I’m not sure if that’s y’alls style. Haha
SO much fun! I’m loving all of your NC adventures. So much to do, so little time!
It was actually a pretty indulgent weekend. My friend and I drove to Indy for the day (about an hour away) and went to this local meadery where we sipped on cider, ate truffles, and gossiped. It was much needed and fabulous.
After that we went to Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods, because if you’re in the area anyway…
That hike with all the stairs looks tough!
I went for a long walk in a local park yesterday. It was really pretty.
It’s funny that you mentioned Koko Head Crater because when I was looking at your pics I had flashbacks of that hike. My husband and I did it last year as a sunrise hike. You head out with a group at 4:30am with headlights on and hike it to watch the sunrise. It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever done … I still get choked up when I think about it. Once the sun was up and we hiked down I looked at what we had just hiked and was glad we did it in the dark so I couldn’t see what was ahead of me! lol
Oh my gosh that sounds incredible. I can’t imagine watching the sunrise up there! How cool!
Aw no! What a bummer that he lost his wedding ring. I know you two will be able to maintain the meaningfulness of the ring whatever ends up happening!
That hike looks incredible, even if those stairs were killer!
Highlight of the weekend: the three graduation parties I attended! So much fun, dancing, and SUGAR.
SO FUN!!! That mountain climb looks tough! I’m pretty sure my thighs and butt would be screaming today! Glad you guys are really enjoying the new city!
I know how disappointing the loss of a wedding band is. My husband took his off and put it in his pocket at the gym about a month after vows….it fell out of his pocket and nobody reported it found 🙁 It was sad, but it was an accident. I was talking to a friend of mine about it, and she admitted that her husband had lost his ring several times by accident. She shared this website with me (below) and I was able to order him a brand new ring that was actually more comfortable (& more affordable) than the original I spent a small fortune on. I was so surprised by the quality when it arrived – it’s awesome! So I feel a moral obligation to pass along to other wives out there 🙂
tungstenfashions.com
Thank you for sharing! Glad we aren’t alone! 🙂
how lucky that you get to do so much exploring! looks like a wonderful outdoor weekend!
That’s lousy about Ryan’s ring- sorry to hear that! On the unrelated bright side, your hike looks gorgeous!
I travelled to my hometown to do a bit of crabbing and fishing…two of my favorite activities!
Sounds like a blast! Another water baby. 🙂
I’ve tackled those stairs before! My boyfriend and I accidentally stumbled upon them and were like “they can’t be that bad.” WRONG.
Lake Norman on 4th of July is the BEST time! If you’re in CLT for the long weekend, definitely find somewhere to hang out on the lake 🙂
Exploring your new ‘hometown’ can be so exciting! We’ve lived just outside St. Louis for 3 years now and still haven’t done everything I want to. Our weekend revolved around my husband’s triathlon, which was so fun! If you ever need a little fitspiration, go to one of those. An 82-year-old man competed! Made me tear up.
So sorry to hear about his ring! Is it weird that I just lost my absolute favorite necklace from my boyfriend today? He gave it to me on my 18th birthday – and it’s a key from Tiffany&Co. that I am in love with! I’m hoping it is just hiding at my CrossFit gym right now! But on a positive note, a highlight for me was getting some boxes packed, and just relaxing yesterday morning before work!
My husband did almost the exact same thing, but he was tubing on the lake and his hand hit the handle. Somehow it caused his ring to go flying in the air and then drop straight down to the bottom. We were so sad (because of the sentimental reasons), but we were able to replace it with the exact same ring. Hope you guys can find a similar one!
And as my husband kept saying, at least it wasn’t yours! So true.
OMG! My hubby lost his wedding ring in Lake Murray this weekend too! What are the chances. BOOOO! Such a bummer, but it is just a thing. We also talked about how glad we were that is wasn’t mine.
I think I’m going to steal his overstock.com replacement option until we can save more to buy another gold one!
No way!!! So sorry this happened to you guys, too.
I’m so jealous of you guys! Exploring new places is the best. My boyfriend and I are currently living 4 hours away from each other. He was visiting me in Sioux Falls, SD this weekend so we tried to fit in as many fun activities as possible. On Sunday afternoon we covered 15 miles of the bike trail that goes around the city. The trail is along the Big Sioux River which makes for some pretty gorgeous views and even some wildlife sightings. We saw two deer!
We also spent a good amount of time lounging by the pool at my apartment complex and soaking up the sun. Gotta love summertime Sundays!
I’m just curious which church you tried out or are looking to try out? I”m on the hunt for a church as well. 🙂
Just to clarify, I’m also in Charlotte.
We tried Elevation and I’ve heard good things about Forest Hill!
Haha you handled that well! I went snorkeling in costa rica a few months ago and was SO paranoid since my engagement ring hasn’t been resized yet… definitely on my to do list again after reading this LOL. Love this!
Kim
http://trendkeeper.me
despite ryan losing his wedding ring, what a weekend packed with outdoor fun! i live in LA, so i’m always craving the outdoors, so your weekend looks absolutely perfect to me!
Incredible weekend, you pictures are always amazing 🙂
We had a long weekend in cape cod where I did the RRCA coach training. That meant my husband had the 3 kids to himself for 2 days, and, surprise, they all had a great time. No mommy guilt for me and everyone wins 🙂
Awe I’m sorry Ryan lost his wedding ring. That’s so sad… good thing they can be replaced (even though not the original). Those things unfortunately happen. This weekend was relaxing for us – we pulled out the slip n’ slide in the backyard for the little one.
My husband and I returned from our beach vacation to Hilton Head Island, S.C., on Saturday so we had a lot of beach days lately. 🙂
My rings are pretty loose, so I’m always worried just taking a dip in the ocean and typically remove them. My husband’s isn’t as loose and doesn’t worry with it as much, but we were throwing a football the other day and his almost slipped off into the Atlantic. I would’ve been sad about the sentimental value, but his ring was a Sam’s Club bargain and wouldn’t have been a big financial hit!
I love being out on the water too! My boyfriend and I went down to the beach yesterday and had out first paddleboarding adventure. I was seriously afraid I was going to fall off since I’m not the most graceful person, but I was actually pretty good at it and didn’t fall once! Definitely easier than I thought it would be and a lot of fun!
My friend’s husband has lost his wedding ring not once, but twice. His is now about $10 and she said she will never get him another good one because he will just lose it! haha
Charlotte area is my absolute favorite. We try to make a trip at least once a year. This year we will be down in September on the way to Myrtle Beach. As for my weekend, we went camping. Got some kayaking and walking in….but mainly I got some relaxation. And I found out my rummy card skills way out match my husband’s!!
I think my stomach went into my feet when I read he lost his ring. I’m glad you are handling it better than I am! LOL I seriously don’t know how I’d handle that other than cry uncontrollably for days. I’m a huge sentimental nerd!
I am so happy for you and Ryan for your successful move to such a beautiful area. I am from CO and whenever I had read about you taking Sadie out for hikes or walks, I just cringed at the thought of walking around in that heat and humidity. Living in a place that has perfect hiking weather (such as where you or I live) makes wanting to be outside so much more enjoyable I believe. Also, my dog’s name is Koda (2 year old lab) and I have never heard of any one else using that name so that is exciting! Bummer about the wedding ring, but you are right in that at least is was just a material object and not a family member or having something really terrible happen, but I completely understand about the sentimentality regarding the ring. Glad to hear you guys are taking it like troops though!
Hi Julie! Welcome to NC. I’ve lived here in Charlotte for the past few years after graduating college and love it. I’m not sure which type of church you and Ryan prefer (or denomination), but if you enjoy a traditional service, I have fallen in love with Myers Park Methodist, close to the area where I live. The preacher is wonderful and very relatable. Just throwing out a suggestion to add to your probably endless list!
Thank you, Lucy!
All that adventuring looks like a good time! Love that Sadie got some play time with her twin. My parents got a pittie that looks like just my dog Puddin’ and this weekend we had a big party at our house and everyone was getting them mixed up all day.
Aren’t those stairs tough?! Not sure which trails you took, but we usually hike the Pinnacle trail at Crowders Mountain because we can walk to it from my parents’ house. You can also see Charlotte from this peak, it’s a little higher of an elevation than the peak at the top of the killer stairs.
I have lost my wedding band too. Thank god it wasn’t the engagement ring.
Have a little re-dedication of the new ring (and realize that in NC it is not as puffy a place!!) We did and it was exrea special.