Visiting Lindsi in North Carolina!

The BEST almond cake... so delicious! Thank you Mandy!

After a whirlwind of a wedding and spending an extra day with family, Paul and I returned Monday and it was back to work!  Mandy surprised me with a huge cake with a massive slice of "cheese" on it.  It was so nice of her, and well, one of the best almond cakes I've had in a while!  I had to save the cheese slice piece for my upcoming adventures to visit Lindsi in Carolina!

Hilton points from interviews paid off big... a good breakfast too!

Yum, yum goat kibble.

After a long drive through the rain on Friday night, I finally met up with Lindsi in Chesapeake, Virgina.  We planned the trip over a few Facebook chats, because Paul was going to be out of town at a conference - I had a free weekend with the car.  I was about to go cross country and put on more miles than I could imagine.  I loaded up some audio books including Tina Fey, Jim Gaffigen and Lean In.  It was an adventure!

Hello my weird friend.

Probably only weighs 15 pounds under that fluff.

We found a kayaking tour and wanted to head out to the Ocean, but the tides were too high, and it was well, October and freezing. Instead of the ocean, we were going to kayak inland. The morning started with driving to small farm that was rated highly on Trip Advisor.  The place was adorable!  It had a petting zoo and we both used a few quarters to feed the goats/sheep.  We wandered around to look at the animals and finally sat down inside to grab a bite to eat and buy some local jams.

Milk in glass bottles = love.

Homemade Pot Pies, my Grandma would be so proud!

Farm fresh sandwiches and homemade pumpkin ice cream.

It's harvest time in this little town.

The sandwich was amazing, and after we finished, it was off to the kayaking adventure.  We arrived at the boat launch only to find out that we were going to be the only two people on the tour - which was pretty awesome.  Of course we chose to be in a double kayak, because it was my honeymoon with Lindsi, the first weekend after my wedding. Haha!  We kayaked for hours and didn't let the rain or cool weather bother us, it was still warmer than Wisconsin and the scenery was beautiful.  The pictures don't do the fog, trees and calm water justice - but the trip was awesome.  We apparently put on a lot of miles with the guides.  Usually they have to stop along the way with the group, but Lindsi and I were in it for the long haul and didn't stop paddling once during the trip.  

Perfect kayak conditions  with beautiful views. 

Honeymoon kayakers!

Our guide providing information about trees and such.

Such beautiful views on the river... a nice way to explore the area.

The "after" photo… absolutely frozen and drenched.

After the kayak tour was over, we hit the road and drove back to Lindsi's place in Fayetteville.  We apparently miscalculated when we thought that Chesapeak was in the middle.  Turns out it was quite a hike back to her place in the poring rain.  Little Richie my Hyundai was throwing up spray and all Lindsi could see were taillights. Haha, needless to say, it was a long drive, but worth it.  

Lindsi showing me the grounds!

The creepy head in one of the plane windows...

Sunday morning we woke up and since we had the time, we got dressed up and Lindsi showed me around the town.  We started the day with Starbucks and then had some good ol' fashioned southern BBQ.  I didn't even know I liked pulled pork and pork rinds - but when in Rome!  They were delish!

Watch out for the goose poop.

After we were stuffed to the brim with BBQ, Lindsi took me on base and I had the grand tour!  We found a small area that was displaying planes and tanks and took a walk around.  It was a great day, and beautiful fall weather.  I also was able to meet a few of Lindsi's ladies which I really enjoyed.  Hopefully we can schedule another adventure together soon!

Me and Lindsi on base!