You Say Goodbye and I say Hello.

For the first leg of what we have dubbed as our farewell tour, our goodbyes have mainly focused on places and things.  While we have spent some fantastic time with loved ones, we have yet to say goodbye to any one person for real, knowing we have plans to see each other again over the next month or so has brought about a comfort in terms of friends and family.

Landon says goodbye

The first hard goodbye was to our bed.  Landon and I have had the same bed for thirteen years.  That probably is well past the expiration date for a mattress, but it is one we have absolutely loved.  Well.  Minus that small stint after I broke my ankle in which I referred to it as the torture chamber.  There was really no comfortable place to sleep in a cast though, so I suppose it is unfair to let that blame fall on our bed.  In retrospect, I feel kinda bad about that one.  Sorry bed.

Anyway, for anyone who truly know us, I'm more of a "we haven't used that in at least a week- get rid of it" kind of girl and Landon is more of a "I wore this shirt in 1997 so I might want to wear it again- let's keep it" type of person.  Landon has a much harder time letting go and saying these goodbyes.  I suppose this is part of the tricky balance between the two of us.  Once, on a long camping trip, I collapsed our tent around him as he lay sleeping.  It was 7:30 a.m. and I had already packed our entire campsite into the car.  He looked at me like I had lost my mind and with very good reason.  If my drive for the next adventure were to go unchecked, who knows what enjoyments I would miss.  If his nostalgia were left unchecked, you would find us on the next episode of hoarders, but more importantly we might find ourselves missing treasures from our youth.

Goodbye Jeep

So needless to say, this goodbying is already very troublesome for Landon.  We said goodbye to our beloved "Crow's Nest," or as others might know it, our condo on the lake.  We said good by to our Jeep.  We said goodbye to our favorite watering hole, Krafty Draft, where we spent many a Friday afternoons celebrating the end of another work week and welcoming the weekend.  We said goodbye to our gym, Planet Fitness.  We said goodbye to our Publix and Subway.  We said goodbye to many of our favorite places.  We said goodbye to all of our things.  We said goodbye to all of our routines and norms.


Of course with goodbyes also come hellos.  From my perspective, this means we have opened up a whole new world of adventure.  Seeing people, visiting places and the freedom of a nomadic life!  It's right in my wheel house.  So far our farewell tour has been filled with people we care deeply about and visiting places near and dear to our hearts. 

At the Crow's Nest

Our first week of the tour was spent with my sister Whitney and her wife Heather.  We met my mom at the lake for the weekend then traveled to Rock Hill to see my dad for father's day.  We then spent the majority of the week lounging lakeside, playing cards and treating ourselves to intricate dinners.  On Thursday we headed back to Lexington for a night at the Crow's Nest and a day by the pool.

View of the Lake

At Lugoff House of Pizza

Steak & Potato Salad

Landon and I spent Saturday night dancing the night away in Columbia with my friend Becki for her birthday.  We worked on cleaning and packing the condo Sunday and then traveled to Mt. Pleasant to spend a few days with Landon's sister Tiffany, her husband Chris and adorable boys Wyatt and Waylon.  Maya treated us to dinner at her restaurant on Tuesday for her birthday.  I know.  It was weird that we were the ones who ended up with a delicious meal for Maya's birthday while she served us, but it was really cool to see where she works and be flies on the wall of her life for a minute.  She's too good to us.

Mottrams at the Beach

Waylon

Tiff and the Boys

Maya and Waylon

Maya and her friend Jill joined us for a beach day with the boys on Wednesday and we returned the favor with a steak dinner.  Plans for Thursday and Friday fell through as Waylon came down with a virus and needed a little TLC, so Landon and I returned early to finish up at the condo and continue the tour.  We said goodbye to the Crow's Nest on Saturday.  It was a busy, tough day, but rewarded with an impromptu camping trip in the mountains of North Carolina.


In North Carolina, Landon and I took a few days for ourselves to enjoy the beauty of the South.  We explored trails of Dupont State Forest and Pisgah National Forest.  We saw waterfalls and wildlife, but what we tried to fill our eyes with the most was the lush greenery all around.  We realize that in a few short weeks, we will find ourselves in a place filled with desert sands and the world's tallest buildings.  Green might be a color we miss.

Rhododendron

The Blue Ridge - View from Dupont State Forrest

Wildflowers

Green Trails

Bridal Veil Falls

Moore Cove Falls

Looking Glass Falls

Landon Swimming at Looking Glass Falls

On Our Way for Kayaking

Kayaking on the French Broad River

Our Kayaks

As the farewell tour continues, we look forward to spending more time with our friends and family.  With T-42 days and counting, we have just over a month to make each and every goodbye meaningful.  I'm glad Landon will be here to help slow down time.