Farewell to my twenties!

On January 3rd I celebrated my 30th birthday. I've had a few weeks for it to really sink in and I must say that it isn't all that bad, especially considering that I got to celebrate my big day in Jamaica! I honestly haven't given it much thought and I don't think it will really hit me until someone asks my age. I would certainly prefer to say that I'm 29 but I welcome this new chapter in my life with open arms.

My twenties were really great years. There are times where I wish I could go back and relive some of those moments. The four years I spent at NC State were some of the greatest years and I will always cherish the memories I made there. I managed to make the most of my time at NC State while graduating right on time!

One of my best friends, Sarah, and I pledged the same sorority our freshman year and we were inseparable from that moment forward. We even shared the same big sister! We lived in the sorority house our sophomore year in a room the size of a shoe box. How the two of us managed to live in that room with all our belongings is still beyond me. Our junior year we thought it would be a good idea to move to Brent Road. At the time Brent Road was a party street.....a filthy, loud, rundown street. But heck, at the time that was right up our alley. Our senior year we decided to move into an apartment, just the two of us, and discovered how to go out every single night of the week and still manage to get our work done. The memories I have of those years and the friendships I made will stay with me forever.

Over the course of those four years we also burned up the highway between Raleigh and Wilmington to visit Kim. Kim managed to spend most of the fall and winter weekends in Raleigh for football games and fraternity parties, and we managed to spend most our of spring in Wilmington soaking up rays and enjoying all the beach bars. Those were the days where our biggest concern was what we were going to wear out each night. Boy have the times changed. Practically every single memory I have from college involves Sarah and Kim. I couldn't ask for two better friends and even though many miles have separated us over the past seven years nothing has come between our friendship.

After I graduated from college I packed my bags and moved back to Charlotte and tried to put off getting a real job for as long as possible. I pulled it off until the end of the summer in 2004 at which point my Dad told me enough was enough. He had even gone to the lengths of finding me a job. It was September 2004 when I first stepped into the campaign office of Congressman Robin Hayes and little did I know that my life would never be the same from that moment forward.

I knew nothing about politics at the time and I don't believe I had even taken one political science class while at NC State. I quickly became immersed in the campaign world. I volunteered for three days and was then offered a full time position on the campaign. As folks made their way to town I constantly heard stories of their days in DC and they all seemed like such great friends so I began to wonder what the working world of Capitol Hill would be like. Little did I know that the backbone of all these politician's offices were folks in their twenties and thirties. I'm not sure you could find a better place to work coming right out of college!

Those were great days. That was the first time I met Chris and many people that are now some of my dearest friends. At the time I started my job I had no clue who Robin Hayes was and little did I know how close we would become. I admire Robin more than words can express and there isn't a single day that doesn't go by that I don't wish I still worked for him.

After Robin's re-election in 2004 I was convinced to move to DC to be his staff assistant. I packed my bags and made the move in January 2005. I had no idea what I was getting myself into and was scared to death, but it was one of the best decisions I ever made. After about a year in his office I took over as scheduler. I basically ran Robin's day to day life and I miss those days dearly. We were a very close office and always knew how to have fun. The day that Robin lost his re-election in 2008 was one of the toughest days because I knew nothing would ever be the same.

Robin lead me to DC and most importantly introduced me to Chris. It wasn't long after I moved to DC that Chris and I started dating. We were engaged in March of 2007 and married on May 17, 2008. If my Dad hadn't pushed me to volunteer on Robin's campaign seven years ago who knows where I would be right now.

My late twenties were filled with plenty of ups and downs. I worked for a very difficult Member of Congress in 2009 and thought I may not make it out alive. Somehow I survived and made it to where I sit today as Chairman David Dreier's scheduler. We faced deaths in our families and were fortunate enough to welcome additions to our families too. We celebrated graduations, weddings and milestone birthdays. Chris changed jobs. We bought our first home. We both bought new cars. I grew up considerably.

 

It's impossible to capture everything that happened between turning 20 and 30. They were unbelievable years and I'm so grateful for every single one of them. As much change as I faced over the course of those years, I realize that my twenties will have nothing on my thirties. Chris and I are extremely blessed to be expecting our first child this year. The little one is due on July 5th and I know that we're in for a life changing event this summer!

We have nephews, nieces, and friends with children that we love dearly but there is nothing like having a child of your own. There are times where I still can't believe that it's really happening. I can't imagine a more important, rewarding and difficult job than being a parent. It has been a roller coaster ride so far and I can't wait to see what lies ahead.

We're currently counting down to February 13th. That is when we'll find out if we're having a boy or girl. That day can't get here soon enough. My Mom always told me not to wish my life away, but I think she would be in agreement that she can't wait for that day to get here either. I look forward to being a parent, to see my parent's as grandparents and my brother's as uncles. Our lives are all about to change drastically and it's all because of one of God's greatest little blessings!

So closing the chapter on my twenties is a little bittersweet. I'll miss those carefree days when there were no worries but I gladly await my thirties and what they have in store.

Bon Voyage!

My Mom celebrated a special  birthday on July 27th. She turned 60 years old and while I'm sure she doesn't appreciate me announcing her age I believe everyone would be in agreement that she looks FABULOUS!

Back in January I decided to plan a family vacation to celebrate her special day. For most of my life it has always been my Mom and me up against my Dad and two younger brothers. Once I got married that made their side one man stronger. And as most of you probably know, it can be hard to rely on the men in your family to pull together any kind of vacation.

Most of our family vacations as kids consisted of a week at the beach. Don't get me wrong, those were some of the best week's of our childhood and we have many great memories. But for years my Mom commented on how she would love to go on a cruise, especially as a family. Once I went off to college in the fall of 2000 we haven't taken one single family vacation. Since that time at least one of us has been in college. Brandon is still at NC State so as you can imagine it has been nearly impossible to coordinate everyone's school, work and personal schedules for the past 11 years. We are lucky to be together at Christmas!

For years Chris's family has made an annual summer beach trip. It's a great tradition and is usually the one time of year that we can all be together. Last year we had 17 people, all in one house. That breaks down to 10 adults, 7 kids (one of them around 4 weeks old) and 1 babysitter. It was a lot of fun but absolutely exhausting. I don't know if I've ever come home from a vacation that tired. Chris and I haven't vacationed with my family before so we decided that this was the year. We don't have any kids so it was a perfect time to enjoy an adult vacation with the Cockerham clan. Even though the process of organizing this trip was extremely stressful I will have to admit that it was worth it in the end!

Wall Family Beach Trip 2010

I looked into cruises out of Baltimore, Charleston, Port Canaveral and Miami. Chris is the only one in our family that has gone on a cruise before so for all of us first timers I figured a four night cruise would be perfect. The cruises out of Baltimore, Charleston and Miami were all seven night cruises so Port Canaveral it was! My family was able to drive to Cape Canaveral in about seven hours and Chris and I were able to catch an easy flight into Orlando.

If you're looking for an affordable vacation with family or friends I would highly recommend a cruise with Royal Caribbean. I wouldn't suggest it for one-on-one time or quiet relaxation. It's definitely more of a group and party environment.

Here is a recap of our trip!

On Sunday my family drove down to Cape Canaveral and were kind enough to pick Chris and me up from the Orlando airport. The drive from Orlando to Cape Canaveral was about 35 minutes. If you're ever considering taking a cruise out of Port Canaveral, rest assured that it's an easy commute from the airport. We spent the night in Cape Canaveral and set out for the port around mid morning on Monday.

The check-in process was a little more lengthy than I expected. It took us about two hours before we were on the ship. Once you drop off your luggage outside the check-in facility you go through security just like you do at the airport. After the security screening you get in line to officially check-in. This is what took the longest amount of time. After we all checked in we had to take a family photo before making one last stop at Homeland Security.

Bahama Mama anyone?

Our living quarters for the week.

Around 2:00p.m. we were finally on board the ship and read to party! We didn't waste a single minute before we were on the pool deck enjoying our first Red Stripe.

When we left Florida on Monday the waters were a little rough. A tropical storm had just moved north-east of us so that contributed to the problem. The ocean certainly didn't look rough but as I was sitting in the pool at one point trying to enjoy a drink, I was repeatedly tossed from one side of the pool to the other. Keep in mind that we were probably only going 10mph. After Monday evening passed the rest of the cruise was smooth as silk. Never once did I ever feel like I was on a moving ship.

We sailed on Royal Caribbean's Monarch of the Seas. It was originally built in 1991, weighs 73.941 tons, accommodates 2,354 passengers and 827 crew members. This ship sails back and forth from Port Canaveral to the Bahamas year round.

Monday night was our first dinner on board the ship. This was our first evening meeting our wait staff for the week. I cannot get over the entire staff on board the ship. Everyone was extremely friendly and accommodating. Our dinners each evening were definitely a highlight of the day. We got to know Mustafa, Imade and Alejandro very well and can't thank them enough for taking such great care of us.

We learned that the crew on board these cruise ships work grueling hours for little money. Most of them work six to seven month shifts, with absolutely no break. Then they'll typically get two months off to be back with their families. When we pulled into port on Friday they were clearing off the ship just to board a new group of folks a few hours later. So as you can tell, there isn't much rest for the crew. It's also interesting to see the large number of nationalities in the crew. There are many different cultures and each person has a unique story to tell.

Early Tuesday morning we threw the anchor down close to Cococay. Most of the cruise lines have their own private island where folks can enjoy a beach day. Chris left our ship bright and early to head over to Cococay to go scuba diving. While he was out swimming with the sharks the rest of us took some time to make a few laps around the ship and take in the beautiful views. You could see a storm moving in but we knew it wouldn't last long because there were blue skies directly behind it.

Arriving at Cococay in the rain

Around 5:00p.m. we lifted anchor and were off to Nassau. Tuesday evening was our formal dinner night. It was very entertaining to see how differently folks were dressed for the evening. We saw plenty of couples dressed in tuxedos and formal ball gowns. Then there were a fair share of families dressed just like we did- khakis, sport coats, nice dresses. However, I did notice a gentleman sitting a few tables away from us wearing a bright orange t-shirt, jean shorts and blue crocs. Whatever floats your boat! :)

Once you're on board the ship you'll notice photographers everywhere you turn. There is always someone wanting to snap your picture. They have a photo gallery on the ship where they print all of the pictures at the end of the day and put them on display in hopes that you'll buy them- for $25 a pop! On formal night they had folks lined up everywhere to take family/couple shots. It was hilarious because it was your typical prom photo all over again. We decided to go a different route and I think our photos speak for themselves, ha-ha.

Mom's birthday dinner

Cheers!

Each night Mom and I found ourselves in the casino. I don't believe that my Mom has ever gambled before so we would go with about five dollars each night and take a seat at the slot machines (we're big gamblers as you can tell). One night Mom won around $30 and the next night I won around $40. We didn't dare try the tables- that took too much thought, ha-ha!

Around 8:00a.m. on Wednesday we pulled into Nassau. After breakfast we got off the ship and took some time to walk around the town. It was fun to see but I can't tell you how hot it was. MISERABLE! I think the guy's lasted all of about 30 minutes before they were back on the ship. Mom and I lasted a little longer and did make a few rounds through the straw market. We both bought a few things but overall the ladies there drove me crazy. You couldn't look at one single thing without them hassling you on the price, how many you wanted, etc. It was very aggravating to say the least.

Later that afternoon we took a boat out for a snorkeling excursion. We snorkeled around several great coral reefs; however, the snorkeling in Cococay was definitely better. A highlight of the boat ride back in was hearing about all of the celebrity homes we passed. Our guide pointed out homes that belonged to Chuck Norris, Oprah Winfrey, Tiger Woods (or I guess I should say Elin Woods), among many others.

Atlantis

After dinner that evening Chris and I decided to take a cab over to see the Atlantis hotel. We're trying to decide on where to go in January for my 30th birthday so we thought we'd check things out. Atlantis is unbelievable. It is an entire world to itself. We were there for about two hours and I don't even think we saw half of the place. It was breathtaking and I definitely haven't taken it off my list of possibilities.

On Thursday we spent the entire day cruising back to Florida. It was a picture perfect day to spend at the pool and take in the beautiful views. Chris and Brandon decided to participate in the men's belly flop contest, which was quite entertaining. Brandon didn't even place. I believe the emcee actually compared his splash to Flipper. Chris came in second place; however, he most certainly deserved first!

Chris & Bjorn, our pool bartender for the week.

Chris was very proud of his metal

That evening before dinner we watched a gorgeous sunset. There is nothing like being surrounded by 360 degrees of deep blue ocean water and watching the sun disappear on the horizon.

This was our final evening with our dinner crew. We were sad to say goodbye!

Imade, Erin, Chris & Alejandro

Alejandro

 Here are a few of the cute creatures that greeted us in our room each evening.

 We pulled back into Port first thing Friday morning. I was worried that de-boarding the ship would take as long as boarding, but I was wrong. We were off the ship and had our luggage in 30 minutes. We were sad to see our wonderful vacation come to an end but what great memories we made!

Happy Birthday Mom! We love you very much!!

XOXO