Chocolate! Chocolate! Come here.

Jen got sick off imported Swiss water.  

Obviously I've been having a grand time here in Asheville with my sister. And more family is coming tomorrow! Yippee. Basically, Jen pointed out that the majority of what we've done is exercise and eat. But, I suppose there is nothing wrong with that, right?

Here have been some highlights of my trip:

-Running 7.2 miles my first day here (with a little jet lag...I was feeling ambitious! And the low altitude didn't hurt either)
-Going to church at a small branch and meeting a mutual friend of one of my best friends in Utah.
-A magnificent pie party with quite the variety including: savory samosa pie, gluten/vegan free pie, classic apple pie, and the delicious triple-berry lattice pie that Jen and I made.
-Eating the best chicken sandwich ever (seriously. delicious.) at Early Girl Eatery
-Walking around downtown with Jon and Jen. Poor Jon has to put up with our constant movie quoting, singing, and inside joke-telling. No, no. He gets to put up with us.
-Deeming The Ultimate as in the winner in my book of the great debate between two local icecream shops.
-Finding an adorable owl wristlet at a local shop. There were so many cute owl trinkets to choose from.
-Going with Jen to her gym for a core strengthening class (still feeling that one this afternoon)

I love seeing my sister extremely happy and content with the place she lives. I love that she knows all the roads like the back of her hand & that she will travel & explore them with me. I love that she and Jon have visited many of the restaurants and shops so they can give great recommendations ... that my sister knows the history of a certain downtown building that has a man with a pig face etched in stone. But, feeling that passionate ... that's what home should be, don't you think?

Jen and I enjoying black licorice taffy.

Oh, in case you were wondering how I'm doing on my half marathon training, Jen is an excellent trainer :) I'm also officially registered for the race! It's real, folks.

You can see more of our adventures on Instagram (@cheripeacock or @jonnifer).

east coast, here I come.

My sister snapped some photos of local graffiti art in Asheville ... and we all know I'm fan of that after this post from Spain.

Well, pretty soon I will get to see all this — and more —in real life. Tonight, I'm taking a red eye flight & I'll wake up in beautiful North Carolina (eh..more or less). I can't wait for this time with my sisters and sister-in-law. 

I know there will be a lot of quoting While You Were Sleeping, You've Got Mail, Sleepless in Seattle, and Return to Me. I can guarantee there will be moments where I end up crying because of laughter. There will be more half marathon training with my sis. I'm sure I'll take loads of photos. 

And, I'll probably end up singing my "I love Chiiiiiina...that's what I love" song. Just you wait, sisters. It's coming.

I seriously feel like a little kid on Christmas Eve, knowing that in less than 24 hours, I will be with my sister! EEK.

Pictures, posts, & good times ahead. 

california girls.

This blog post is being written in the lovely city of Laguna Hills, California.

It's beautiful here.
The ocean waves are breathtaking (even if I've seen them only at night so far).
The air is humid, but not overly sticky.
There are great stores like Trader Joes and Whole Food Market that offer many delicious options.
There are more malls than I can count.
Rebekah and I have already had some adventures (my first mountain biking experience, taking a shot with slack lining, and going for runs up neighborhood hills) & there will be more in the next few days that I'm here.

We're going to the Newport Beach Temple on Thursday & I can't wait!


My summer vacation is going by way too fast!

I've taken a lot of pictures. Don't worry. I'll post them next week because for now? It's time to go play.