Hey Guys! As you might have heard I recently went down to Wilmington, North Carolina during my spring break. It was a time I will never forget. My mother and I had decided to drive there and just split the drive. The GPS that we had used said that it would take us about 9 ½ hours to get there, little did we know that 9 ½ hours would turn into 12! Ha. We left at 8:30am on March 7th and did not get into our hotel room until 8:30 that night. It was the longest drive I have ever taken, and believe me I have been on some pretty long car trips with the family. Surprisingly enough we got there in one piece and even though there was some arguing on the way day we managed no to kill each other.
Once we got into our hotel room, we both just relaxed for the night. We ordered some pizza and tried to figure out what we were going to do the next day.
The next day, Tuesday March 8th we got up had some breakfast and
then It
was time for me to call KT. I had messaged him prior to me coming and he had told me to just call him and let him know when I got to Wilmington and we could set up a time to get together. I was so nervous about giving him a call. I mean its one thing to talk to someone online or see pictures, then when you actually meet them. I gave his office a call and he answered the phone say “Production”. At first I didn't know that it was him so I just said “Is Mr. Kelly Tenney there?” I told him who I was he was really sweet and asked how long I was staying. After talking for a little while He said that he would see what was going on and what time he had free so we could get together and would call me back. Later that day I got a call from Alicia one of our lovely SGP Team members and she asked if we had seen anything yet and gave me some suggestions of some places to visit. Then before we hung up we set up a time for us to meet up with KT and it was going to be the next day at 12 or 12:30 for lunch and then we were going to head over to the studio, I was soo excited!!
The rest of the day we spent walking around Wilmington, we walked along the river walk, went into the Two Sisters Bookery (cutest little book shop ever!), we also stopped into the Black Cat Shop( such a neat store, they have all kinds of incents, candles, t-shirts, jewelry, and their back room is called the “sea sick” room because you get dizzy just by looking in it..Ha-ha. Not to mention the owner of the shop was so nice and was handing out bead necklaces for Mardi gras and Fat Tuesday.) We had lunch at the Front Street Brewery and the food there is fantastic. I got the FSB ( Front Street Brewery) Pita Wrap w/Portabella, you can also get it with chicken but I love Portabella mushrooms.
After lunch around dinner time I had gotten a text telling me that there was going to be filming with the cast at a local movie theater that night. So my mom and I drove to the theater and watched them film for about 4 ½ hours. It was so neat actually getting to watch them film. We actually made new friends while we were watching them film. There was this couple that had driven down all the way from Tennessee. They're names were Katie and Mickey and they were so nice to us. They probably thought that my mother and I were crazy, but at least we all were laughing and having a good time...hah. I mean we were all standing out in the cold for at least 4 ½ hours so the least we could do was complain about the coldness. It was definitely a bonding experience. The best part of the whole night was when we got to meet Lee Norris(Mouth), Lisa Goldstein(Millie) and Mark Schwan. They were all so nice. When I got my picture with Lee my mom said “she drove 12 hours to see you.” and he was like “12 hours where are you from.” We of course told him and he was like “ I love Pennsylvania, lets make sure we take a good picture.” Such a nice man and Lisa was the same way, although she was in a little bit of a rush so we didn't get a chance to really talk.
Mark was awesome of course, he stood out there with the fans for a little while answering questions and taking pictures. Mark came out a little bit later on in the night, around 9pm. So we ended up leaving after he said goodbye to the fans. It was like the best night of my life. Never thought that it would happen, but I'm so glad that it did.Then Wednesday March 9th we got up and had breakfast. Got ready for my meeting with Alicia. I was so excited and nervous at the same time. My mom and I walked around downtown for a little while before our meet up with Alicia. We went to the Cafe and waited there for about 15/20 min before we get a call from Alicia saying “I think you went to the wrong Cafe!” hah. We ended up going to two other cafe's before we got to the right one. It was insane, but once we got to the right place Alicia was so warm and welcoming.
We talked for a little while about SGP and Wilmington. It was so nice putting a face to the name. You talk to so many people in the SoGoPro c-box that its hard to keep everyone straight. After lunch we headed over to the studio andmet Kelly. It was so fascinating to see how everything is run behind the scenes. Usually we as viewers only see the finished product, but you would be amazed all the work that gets done for a 45-50 min show. My mom and I got to tour the sets and got to take pictures. We got to see Naley's room and bathroom, Jamie's room, Mouth and Skills Apartment, along with thier room we also sawClay and Quins room, Alex's hotel room/ bathroom, Brooke's house, and Red Bedroom Records. Its was just the best, could not have been a more happier person. Once the tour was over my mom and I headed back to the hotel to see some filming that was going on near by. We stood there for about an hour then went and had dinner. We ate at Fat Tony's Pub. The food was good, but the Front Street Brewery wasso much better, even though the people who worked there were very nice. Then after dinner we went back to the filming and it was about 6ish. We stood out there watching them film till about 12 midnight. It was once hectic night..haha. We saw Stephen Colletti running around, he is such a goof ball. I wish that he had come over and taken pictures with us.
Then the event that made my night was at around 9pm we were standing back by the trailers and James Lafferty walks into one of the trailers. I think it was hair and make up, maybe wardrobe...anyway...he came out of the trailer he walked right up to us and started signing autographs and taking pictures. I asked one of the girls since I was by myself if she could take the picture for me and she was like “yea as long as you take mine..lol” She literally pushed me ahead of everyone since I was not being very aggressive..lol. I was so nervous when I asked him for the picture, I could not wrap around my head that he was actually there in flesh and blood. That I was not imagining it in my head. I got a picture with him and he also signed a hat that I had brought. Currently he is the only cast member to have signed it. If I get the chance to go back before the show ends I want to try and get the whole cast to sign it. A whole group of us stayed till the end of filming that night and tired to get a couple more pictures or autographs from Sophia Bush and Bethany Joy Galeotti, but by the time everything was all said and done it was so late and everyone just wanted to get home but it was still worth staying and watching the rest of filming on my last night.Once I got back to the hotel room I soon realized that once I woke up, it was time for me to leave and go home. That my time in Wilmington, NC was over and I was definitely not ready for that, even if OTH was not filming there I just felt at home, I know its weird but I just
cant explain it, the people are just so friendly and welcoming, the atmosphere is just unbelievable. The ending of the night was totally bittersweet but it was totally worth the 12 hour drive down to Wilmington. I would do it again in a heart beat if I could. Getting to meet KT and Alicia two very important SoGoPro members and going to the Two Sisters Bookery was the icing on the cake to the BEST Spring Break a girl could as for! My only regret was that I wasn't able to spend more time to enjoy more of Downtown and meet more SoGoPro members. Oh and I almost completely forgot my mother and I had one of the best cupcakes ever from the bakery called Hot Pink Cake Stand I think. I had the Red Velvet with Cream Cheese Icing, and it was da bomb! I encourage ALL to go there if you make the trip to Wilmington. It will be well worth the price that you pay. Thats all about my trip everyone! I hope that you enjoyed this blog and let me know what ya think!xo Kait
