The hotel where we stayed was a place Jeff and I had stayed before, back before Biscuit was even thought about. It’s on the sound in Wrightsville Beach, just outside of Wilmington.
The rooms are nice and big and are kinda like efficiency apartments. There’s a full kitchen and living room, as well as a queen bedroom and a queen Murphy bed in the living room. And since it’s not on the ocean, it’s affordable, too.
At the end of this post, I’ll put in a column I wrote for the paper about the first time we stayed at this place. It was pretty funny.
Anyway, having the kitchen was great with Biscuit. The kitchen even had a dishwasher, and anyone who has a toddler knows that a dishwasher is a blessing … cups, pacifiers, spoons, even some toys.
We had a great view of th
e sound from our balcony, and thankfully, the railing was really tight, so we could let Biscuit stand on his own while we were out there. And in his current stage of independence, that was a good thing. He learned how to say “boat,” and he already knew how to say “bird,” so he was having a great time out there.
We had the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner Friday night. The wedding was at Aerlie Gardens, only 10 minutes from our hotel. It was really pretty with the flowers starting to bloom, although all of our shoes were coated with pollen when we got back to the car. The rehearsal dinner was at an oceanfront resort at Wrightsville Beach, also about 10 minutes from where we were staying.
Biscuit was wide open the whole night. Poor Jeff was the sole wrangler since I was a bridesmaid in the wedding. Biscuit socialized and just couldn’t find a stranger. He went up to the groom’s dad, who is in a wheelchair, grabbed the wheel and said, “Vroom. Vroom.” I apologized to this man we had never met before and told him that anything with wheels is a car to Biscuit. He laughed and thought it was pretty funny.
When the bride finally made her way over to visit with us, she reached out to hold Biscuit. He leaned out for her to hold him, then he promptly put one hand squarely on her boob. Granted, it’s not a small target, but I still explained to the boy that there’s protocol for that sort of thing and that you have to build up to a boob-grab. Plus, I told him that the groom is way bigger than him and might not like him getting handsy with his soon-to-be wife. I’m pretty sure Biscuit didn’t understand what I said, but I swear, the child looked at me and just grinned!
My 1-½-year-old is already a dirty old man!
We got to spend some time Saturday morning and Sunday morning on the beach. Biscuit wasn’t too sure about it. I’ll share more about that later.
We had to get to the wedding pretty early, so by the time the ceremony rolled around, Biscuit was getting antsy. He had been so good for so long, and he just didn’t want to sit still anymore. Luckily, with the wedding being outdoors in the gardens, Jeff just carried Biscuit around for a while and that seemed to satisfy him.
I guess the excitement of the night before caught up with him, because Biscuit didn’t see too much of the wedding reception. He fell asleep about halfway through. Unfortunately, I left the stroller just outside of the reception tent, and the dew had fallen and made the fabric seat wet, so I had to hold him. I love to hold my sleeping baby, but that 21 pounds gets heavy after a while!
Everyone bragged on how good Biscuit was the whole weekend, and I agree. He had fun meeting everyone, and so did Jeff and I.
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Here’s the story about the hotel:
Greensboro News & Record (NC)-May 29, 2007
Trapped four flights up, but, hey, who cares?
BY KIM MILLS
Personal Adds
I was recently held captive by a sunset.
Actually, I was held captive by a locked fourth-floor balcony door that forced me to enjoy that sunset.
And how did I get stuck on a fourth-floor balcony, you ask? It's my husband's fault, of course.
Jeff and I went on vacation for our anniversary, splitting a week between Wilmington and Wrightsville Beach.
Our hotel at the beach was on the harbor side of the island, and there were plenty of goings-on to keep my attention as I sat on the balcony.
Boats, jet skis and windsurfers were cruising around the harbor.
Traffic was picking up on the bridge as people came over from Wilmington just in time for the early dinner specials.
And employees at the restaurant next door were setting up the patio tables for the dinner rush.
Jeff decided to come out and join me, and before I could tell him to check the balcony door, he had already slid it closed.
"Did you make sure that wasn't locked before you closed it?" I asked.
"Um, no," he said.
I got up and grabbed the handle and pulled. Nothing happened. I moved into a steadier stance, grabbed the handle again and pulled harder. Nothing. The door was locked.
My husband is a calm man. His feathers rarely get ruffled, and this situation didn't seem to concern him in the least.
"What are you going to do about this?" I asked.
"Enjoy the sunset, I guess," he said.
So, if you can't beat 'em (and I was plenty ready to beat him at this point), join 'em. So, I did.
I sat down in one of the rocking chairs and finished my Sprite.
After a little time passed, a nicely dressed couple parked their car across the street and started walking toward the restaurant next door.
Jeff looked down and in a very polite but way too quiet voice said, "Excuse me. ... Excuse me," and got no response.
So, I yelled down, "Hey! Up here on the fourth floor!"
The couple looked up. We explained our situation. And they said they'd be happy to let the hotel manager know so he could come let us in.
Meanwhile, a couple of guys from the restaurant kitchen were taking a smoke break.
One of the guys yelled up, "Are y'all stuck up there?"
I said, "Yep. And if they can't get us down, you might need to send some food up!"
He laughed, snuffed out his cigarette and went back into the restaurant.
Apparently, he felt the need to share the news with his co-workers because a few seconds later, about six other employees came out the back door of the restaurant to stare up at the idiots stuck on the balcony.
I could feel my face flushing with embarrassment, but when I looked over at my husband, the whole experience was put into perspective for me.
He was wearing this huge grin, doing his best parade wave to all the gawking restaurant employees below. The sunset behind him was something you'd see in a photography book. And if all else failed, the restaurant guy was ready to send up some fried shrimp.
By letting go of my worry, I had just experienced one of those moments that I will always remember.
Kim Stacks Mills is down from the balcony and back at her job as day desk chief for the News & Record.
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