Kittens

As I go through my phone looking for photos to dump onto my blog, I realize I have not only a large number of puppy photos but also a large number of kitten photos. See below.

Puppies

If you're tired of reading about my life, this post should make up for it.

A recent Morehead-Cain graduate trains service dogs as a volunteer activity. A couple of weeks ago, she brought a litter of TEN seven-week-old golden-labrador puppies to our office. Happiness ensued.

Second ENCIP Summer Draws to a Close

Last year, the nonprofit my dad and I co-founded, the Eastern North Carolina Internship Program, hosted its first cohort of summer interns in Tarboro. The five interns were matched with us through their funding scholarship, the Robertson Program. 

This summer, we hosted eight interns: a new set of five Robertson Scholars, plus one intern matched through UNC's Shuford Program in Entrepreneurship, one intern recruited through UNC's School of Education, and one hometown intern (a Tarboro native). The eight of them worked in a variety of nonprofit and governmental organizations— including the county health department, the public school system, a summer learning program called Freedom School, a local girls' club, and the Tourism Development Authority. 

The mission of the ENCIP is two-fold: bringing the world to Eastern NC—and sharing Eastern NC with the world. We accomplish this by designing and managing community-oriented summer internships. Our goal is to facilitate meaningful and sustainable community development while providing inspiring, high-capacity learning opportunities for young leaders. We're learning as we go, but I think we've done a pretty good job so far! 

Yesterday was the last day for most of our interns. I'm looking forward to debriefing with them once they're back on campus. One of my favorite parts of managing a small, young nonprofit is the accelerated learning curve, the rapid improvement we can achieve by constantly evaluating ourselves and looking for ways to improve for the next internship cycle.

Below are some photos from our goodbye dinner, graciously hosted by ENCIP board member Mary Jane Jenkins! Sadly, we don't have a group photo of all eight interns this year. That's something to remember for next year...

(L to R) Shanell and Christine, the leaders of Michael's Angels Girls Club; Katherine, the health department intern; and Serena, the public school intern

hostess Mary Jane Jenkins, with her spread of traditional Southern food

our Edgecombe cake!

Second Annual LKG Friends Reunion

I've started an annual tradition where every summer I invite everyone I know to my family's house at Lake Gaston for a friends weekend. Last year, 12 people came, including one from Seattle and one from Austin! This year, there were 8 of us.

I actually planned the weekend around Alban's visit to NC

We drank margaritas and ate tacos

MM and I saved a giant catfish!

Just before tossing it back into the water

It was rainy and cloudy and actually COLD most of the weekend, but the sun did come out briefly on Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon.

Weekend in Asheville

Not to be confused with my recent blog post titled "Weekend in Nashville."

A few weeks in advance, Mary McCall and I started talking about doing a sister weekend in the mountains. We booked an Airbnb for the first night and planned a out-and-back overnight hike for the second night. About a week in advance, we found out our THIRD sister Janie would be in North Carolina that weekend! So I called the Airbnb host to ask if we could be three instead of two. She was very gracious, and off we went!

MM and me at Posana, waiting for Janie 

burrata 

Sunburst Farms trout

after our French Broad ice cream

the next morning: waiting for our brunch table

Saturday morning brunch at Sunny Point Cafe

3 sistahs

my diva sister Janie

bye Janie </3

sad to go

Blue Ridge Parkway! 

MM and I hiked to the top of Mount Mitchell in time for the sunset, which was spectacular. MM brought her DSLR camera on our hike, so we got some great photos— but I don't have those. 

Second Half of June

First, I hung out with some goats:

This is from a bluegrass/jazz concert in Cary:

And this is from Jazz Brunch at Weaver Street Market in Carrboro:

I try to buy flowers every week from the farmers market.

This is from Bida Manda, a Laotian restaurant I visited in Raleigh with my friend Elena. This was super, super spicy. I had to drink coconut milk afterwards to cool off my mouth. 

lake dayz

What I do during my lunch break every day 

This is me on the way to trade-in my faithful Nissan Maxima, a reliable friend for the past 9 years.

I was actually very sad.

But then I ended up with this beaut!

This is me at 7:30am in line at the DMV, waiting to get my new NC license

success!!!

I love cooking dinner with friends!

Bonus pic: inspiration of the day. Can't wait to meet her when I visit New Zealand in December!