I have been in the Roanoke-Chowan area for about eight months now.

I spent the first four months here without my wife and daughter. They remained back in Alabama tying up loose ends and selling a house there.

I was here, getting my feet wet at Roanoke-Chowan Publications, learning the community and trying to find a house in which to bring them.

After finding and buying a house in Ahoskie, I traveled to Alabama last February to bring my girls to our new home. Guys, if you ever want to test your marriage, try buying a house sight unseen by your wife. I did that and fortunately for me, it worked out.

A moving company had already delivered the majority of our belongings to Ahoskie, but I still needed to rent a U-haul truck to transport all the stuff that Stephanie had accumulated while our furniture and clothes were in storage. It’s amazing what a wife and a four-year-old daughter can accumulate is such a short period to time, but that’s another story for another day.

So we made the trip in two vehicles and each of us had a dog riding along. I was obviously dreading the long trip, but surprisingly enough, the trip back to Ahoskie went very smoothly.

Now, four months later, we are settled in and absolutely love the area.

Stephanie’s father is retired from the Air Force and was once stationed at Langley Air Force base in Hampton, Virginia, so Stephanie had an idea about the general area. I, on the other hand, had never spent much time in this part of the world. The only time that I had ever spent in North Carolina was when I was born at Cherry Point Air Station in 1969. I guess I spent all of three months there and my recollection of that time is pretty fuzzy.

After being here now for about seven months, we have fallen love with the Roanoke-Chowan area. The biggest reason is you, the people who live here. I will be the first to admit that this place is different than anywhere that I have ever lived, but that is what I have grown to appreciate. I have great neighbors and everyone has welcomed my family and me with open arms. Stephanie and I are so thankful to be able to raise our family in this atmosphere.

We recently found out that an addition to our family will arrive in early December. We are proud that our next child will be a North Carolina native and especially a Roanoke-Chowan native.