thoughts on wrightsville beach area

[phytoangel]

dh and i are looking at areas, coastal, that we may think of moving to in the south.  we currently live between boston and cape cod and are looking for something warmer and crunchier.  we have two little girls, we are vegetarian, no vax, homebirthing, homeschooling, looking to be more sustainable and looking for an area with similar minded folks. 

all opinions and thoughts appreciated.  definitely living by the water is very very very important to us.  we are not corporate folk, not hung up on living in a big home, but rather simple beach living in a safe little town. 

thanks mamas!

[Ambystoma]

I hate that no one has replied yet, and it's been a couple of years since living there, but I'll comment about what I can. I lived in Wilmington-which is the town on the mainland where Wrightsville Beach (shell island) is. I loved it. It is a higher cost of living than many places-but definitely lower than Boston or Cape Cod. 

There are some nice crunchy areas and stores (like Tidal Creek Coop) but the public transit is terrible. It's a nice mainly liberal area, especially because of UNCW, but also bordering some very non-crunchy rural areas. There are small children's museums that are nice, a serpentarium, an aquarium nearby, lots of parks, and of course the beach is lovely--though over decorated with tourists in the summer. The azalea festival is nice, a couple of nice beer festivals, and there's usually a symphony or play going on at UNCW. You're within 2 hours of Raleigh, which has large museums, the nice large airport, and many extra things to do. As far as homebirthing, I thought CPMs could be prosecuted, so you have to go under the radar, but someone recently said something different, so you'd need to check into that. 

[eli's mama]

subbing to this thread.  We are from CT and have been thinking of heading to the carolina's for a couple of years now.  This winter has sealed the deal I think.  We have some family in and around Charlotte but we prefer something coastal.

[julietd]

being selfish here but move to myrtle beach so I am not alone!! We are vegan, crunchy and living in Myrtle Beach. i actually spent time as a child in wilmington and it was really nice. They have redone the downtown and it is nice. Now if you would consider SC I have heard Murrels Inlet south of Myrtle is nice too. but I want more people like us here!

[Nicole88]

check out midwiferyservices.net for homebirth; it's a legal practice with a CNM/ CPM partnership just north of Wilmington. also google women in the center; it's a new organization with lots of natural childbirth and parenting resources. And I'll second what the other poster said, we have Tidal Creek and Lovey's health food stores here, lots of yoga, farmers markets, and family friendly activities. All that being said, it will always be the South, and in the South there is a certain segment of good ol' conservatism. You might also look into Charleston/ Folly Beach area. 

[BriannaLeigh]

I lived in Wilmington for three years and still have many friends who live there. Wrightsville Beach is a nice place to visit but I think you might be disapointed if you are truly looking for a crunchy community. There is alot of snobery on Wrightsville Beach and you will be hard pressed to find many families that share your views. My husband and I moved to Asheville NC when I was 6 months pregnant with my daughter..We moved because I could not find a midwife in the area.. Wilmington dosen't really have a sense of community..We made some great friends when we lived there but we always felt like something was missing...