One of our really good friends is about to deploy and his wife will be headed home for the holidays so we wanted to make sure we got to see them before they both left! Living a state apart doesn't make it incredibly easy, but definitely easier than multiple states/across the country!
We picked a day. Google mapped the "middle" and found a town nearby that offered golfing for the guys and shopping/historic sites for us girls. That my friends is how we ended up choosing "the South's prettiest small town," according to their website.
We kept little man's morning schedule as close to normal as possible, but it was moved up one hour. We got up, cuddled/played, ate breakfast, changed clothes, and got in the truck. We packed a change of clothes and shoes for all of us along with sweaters in case the weather got funky. Husband and I had our hydroflasks (love them!) and baby his nuby bottle, along with a bag of adult road trip snacks (beef jerky, granola bars, nuts, and Annie's bunnies) and baby snacks. We set up his "command center" with binky attached for easy access, a swaddle for comfort, a couple books, and his current stuffies of choice Panda & Honu. Away we went!
We met at the golf course and the boys checked in for their tee time while us girls took to Facebook (because where else do you get up-to-date event info?) to find events taking place in the area. We ended up at a craft show at the American Legion, even being one of the first 50 to arrive, earning us a "swag bag," haha! We each purchased an adorable handmade nativity scene to put up next month. Then we headed over to the local farmers market where we bought mini pumpkin bread loaves and chatted it up with the locals.
Once we ran out of "events" we headed to the town Visitor's center which is actually in the Historic Barker House (built in 1782) right on the Edenton Bay. We sat on the porch for a bit, learned about their Tea Party (happened after Boston's), and got the info for the lighthouse tour. We decided to wait for the guys and do the tour together, so we walked Broad Street (basically their Main Street), and ended up popping into the Edenton Coffee House for some chai tea freezes and turkey panini's. After refueling we walked through all the cute shops before we found the Veterans Memorial, pretty cool considering it was the weekend prior to Veterans Day. We received the phone call from the guys that they were done golfing and headed to the visitor's center so we started our walk back.
Once we met the guys in the parking lot it started pouring, the kind of rain that comes in heavy sheets! So we ran into the visitors center so the guys could check it out and we could buy Christmas ornaments. My husband and I, as well as our friends, purchase an ornament from all the places we travel together. Our Christmas tree is basically the story of our travels! We took more photos on the porch, talked about the future, goofed off with the baby, and the rain finally slowed down enough for us to change shoes and head to the lighthouse.
The Roanoke Lighthouse sits directly on Edenton Bay, it was originally in the middle of the Roanoke River and Lightkeepers completed 3mo rotations. The house had a living room, kitchen/small dining area, and two bedrooms, along with a wrap-around porch. Not too shabby if you don't mind being in the middle of a river! It wasn't a spectacular tour, but our guide was funny and gave us dinner recommendations. Plus it was only $3.50/per... After the tour we walked around the Cupola House and Gardens before heading to Waterman's for dinner.
Once dinner ended we said our "goodbyes" but are already looking forward to getting together next year! I gave my friend a "deployment survival kit" with specific orders not open it until after he leaves... My way of being there with her even though I physically can't. That first week is always rough so I hope the items I included can help with the transition just a bit... Maybe I'll do a post on that later... Since my husband drove there, we prepped baby then it was my turn to drive. It was a whirlwind day, but totally great. If our friends are willing to meet us halfway, I don't see us saying "no," because true friendships are always worth making the trip!
Have you ever done a day trip to visit friends?
-Tay
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