North Carolina - April Edition

Back in NC- April Edition

When we left NC in March, we knew we’d be back for an extended stay in May and June due to some previous obligations on our calendar. It was comforting to know we were only setting off for a couple months for a test run and could finish things up when we arrived back. We still had some painting and building to finish, but the first thing we did was dump ALL the things out of the van that we thought we needed but didn’t actually need. The “first leg” as we call it was all about reorganizing and rearranging and feeling out what we actually needed to be successful on the road full-time. (There were also a few items that we forgot to leave in storage in our haste to get on the road in the beginning. Oops!)

Wilkes

Our first weekend back, we celebrated Mama Doe’s life with family and friends in Wilkesboro, NC. It was a beautiful weekend filled with all the Mama Doe stories. Some made us laugh, some made us cry, but mostly, they helped us feel closer to her beautiful soul during our time of heartache. We were thankful for our time with family.

While in Wilkes, we celebrated Easter with TC’s dad and family. It was great having everyone in one location so soon after we arrived back in NC.

While backing out of dad’s driveway, we had our first bump up. I backed The Canoe into dad's neighbor’s mailbox. :( Yikes! It left a nice dent and a scratch. It was bound to happen eventually. Thankfully, the neighbor was very kind and understanding, so our first battle wound wasn’t too terrible.

Shelby

After a few days with TC’s family, we headed to my parent’s house in Shelby, NC. Home for me is really wherever my MooMoo (mama) and Daddy are, but I grew up in the same house my entire life, so I instantly feel at home when I pull into my parent’s driveway. The air breathes differently in the backyard of MooMoo and Daddy’s house. I was thankful for a few days of respite. I love life on the road, but I am a MooMoo’s girl through and through and was excited to be back with my parents.

Peep our welcoming committee in the window, FinnyGene

While in Shelby, we relished in puppy dog snuggles! FinnyGene, our goldendoodle, lives with my parents full-time. They took over custody years ago when I could not care for him by myself. I was working 90 hour weeks and could not give him the attention he deserved. But have no fear, he loves life with his grandparents, and I know he is always in good hands. (very spoiled hands, but good ones. haha!) . We wish he could live with us because we miss him so much, but he’d definitely miss his GPop too much! He’s GPop’s boy. <3

We also got lots of nephew snuggles! Which we’d been missing!! We could not believe how big our sweet nephew had gotten since we last saw him!! They grow so fast, especially when they are babies. We absolutely love being Auntie SK & Uncle TC.

On our first leg, we did not have a working sink. We had to reorder a part for the faucet five times and still did not end up with the correct piece. Finally, we just made the parts work. The sink was one of the first things we fixed when we got back to NC. It was super exciting the first time water came out!! It wasn’t too much of a nuisance to not have a sink, but we are glad that it is finally working.

Working on the sink!

Charlotte

Our third weekend in NC, we went to Charlotte for a concert. One of our fav bands, CBDB, was playing in Charlotte on Thursday and Raleigh on Saturday. Of course, we bought tickets to both concerts! A few years ago, CBDB played in Raleigh on a Friday night, and Asheville on Saturday night. We followed them to Asheville after seeing them in Raleigh. It is super fun to follow a band! About mid-way through Thursday, we got an email saying they were having to cancel their concerts for the weekend because someone on the team had Covid. We were so sad!!

We’d already made plans to go see my childhood bestie and her husband for dinner, so we still headed to Charlotte. It was so, so good to see my Lindsey! Lindsey and I have been friends since we were babies! Our sisters did gymnastics together when we were babies and then we took gymnastics together and eventually taught gymnastics together! No matter the season of life, she’s my person and I am so thankful for our nearly 30 years of friendship!! She also married a pretty great guy last year! T and I love to spend time with them!

After dinner, T and I went into a nearby restaurant for a night cap and late-night snack of deviled eggs. They were delicious!

We decided we’d stay parked in the lot for the night before heading to Greensboro the next day for a wedding. Not too long after we went to sleep, we both woke up feeling horrible!! We had food poisoning from the late-night eggs. I stayed up all night (literally all night…) dealing with nausea. T was able to get a couple hours sleep but still felt terrible. Halfway through the night, I had to drive to the closest gas station because we needed a bathroom.

I spent the night counting down the hours until it was an appropriate time to call my mom and beg to come home. (lol, didn’t actually have to beg. The beautiful thing about Moo’s house is the door is always open. No question.) Home was an hour in the opposite direction from the wedding, so T wasn’t game to back track. At the time, we did not know if it was food poisoning or the stomach virus. I told him we probably wouldn’t even be able to go to the wedding. Also, we didn’t know if it would get worse. We have one trash can, and no toilet. Not the best situation to have something going on with the stomach - especially both of us at the same time!

When T and I first started this journey, I made him promise we’d get a hotel room if I ever had the stomach virus. I have only had the stomach virus twice in my life, so it is very traumatic when I have it! While my head was in the trash can, I reminded him of this promise he made. I also brought up that one day, we will be in some random place, very sick, and far from home. We will have to pay for a room. The beauty of being an hour from mama’s house meant we didn’t have to pay for a room or suffer without a bathroom!! He was finally convinced. We turned The Canoe around and headed back to Shelby.

We both slept nearly 22 hours over the next 24 hours. We only woke up long enough to drink some Gatorade and eat some mashed potatoes. We even slept straight through the construction going on in the kitchen! We were so thankful for a place to rest and recover.

Raleigh

After a day of rest, we felt good as new and decided to head to Raleigh! Each April, Raleigh has a beer festival named Brewgaloo. I had been before, but T had never been because it always fell during Merlefest, the music festival in his hometown. We decided that since our plans had been completely derailed, it was the perfect chance to go! We had the best time!! We absolutely love Raleigh, and we were so excited to be back in our town, walking our familiar streets. The weather was perfect! We ended the evening with a walk to the Cookout I used to frequent near our house. We were able to park for the night right on the street I parked on when I worked downtown. The night was filled with a lot of nostalgia.

The next day, we spent some time being tourists in our own town. We got coffee from a local coffee shop - Sir Walter Raleigh, walked around the streets and took in all the changes. Before brunch, we went to look for a Geocache. It was actually located on the museum campus that I used to work at! It is crazy to think that I walked by this Geo for four years and never knew it was there!! I was so giddy to find it!

We met up with our Joey, former roommate, forever bestie for brunch at Parkside Restaurant. We’d passed this restaurant a million times, but never been. It was absolutely delicious!!! We all split a piece of key lime pie just like in the old days. <3 We were just missing our Andy, other former roommate, other forever bestie! After brunch we convinced Joey to go Geocaching with us for a nearby find. Another fun one, except lots of spider webs!

FOUND A GEO!

On our way back to The Canoe, we stopped by one more geo location. This one was in the parking lot that I parked in for the first two years I worked at the museum! Working downtown was one of the highlights of my life. I not only was working my dream job, but in the dream location. Being back in the city that has raised me over the last ten years was surreal!

GEO find in my old parking lot!

After looking for geos, we were so hot! So we went to one of our fav local lakes. We usually kayak in the lake, but we didn’t have our yaks with us, so we just got in the water to cool off before laying in the grass to enjoy the sun.

Falls Lake

For dinner, we met up with my sister and niece. We were so excited to see them!! Our niece is obsessed with Uncle T! She gets so excited when he is around, and often calls me to talk to him. It’s fine that I am not the fav, I am holding out hope that our nephew will think I am the bee’s knees! Hahaha Their relationship is super cute though! When we got to dinner, Audrey and I were both wearing cool hats! So we had to snag a picture. She is the cutest!! And changed so much since we had seen her last!

On Monday, T had to return back to his office for an important business meeting, so I made plans to meet up with my friend Kelley! Kelley and I worked together for about three weeks before I left. The day she started, I introduced myself and then broke the news that I was moving into a van soon, so my time at the museum was dwindling. Kellz and I became instant friends!! It is crazy how quickly two people can connect. It made leaving the museum even harder!!

We spent the day in Chapel Hill catching up, grabbing coffee, and of course, Geocaching. She had never been. We ended up finding one in an amphitheater she used to work at. It was a fun find! Being a couple weeks after Easter, we also found a bonus easter egg with a mini glow stick inside! I keep the glow stick in my fanny pack to remind me of the fun day!

Merlefest

After T’s meeting, we headed up the mountain for Merlefest!! Merlefest in an American roots and folk music festival in Wilkesboro, NC. It takes place at Wilkes Community College which is right behind TC’s dad’s house. T hasn’t missed a Merlefest in the past 30 years - wild!

Back in 2015, while I was studying abroad with TC’s sister, she told me about this festival and said I should come. She invited me again the following spring, but I had a prior commitment so I couldn’t go. Once T and I started dating, Merlefest was always on the same weekend as the big gala at the museum, so I wasn’t able to go. FINALLY, last fall I was able to attend my first Merlefest!! COVID pushed it to September. Although I was excited to go last fall, it didn't feel as authentic being in September, so this Merlefest made me feel like a REAL Cleary!!

T and I love music, especially festivals! We had the best time hopping around to all the stages. This year for album hour, they played a Grateful Dead album! So fun!! We also got to visit with our sweet buddy Reid during album hour. His dad and TC have known each other since they were kids and were roommates in college. His mom and I have become great friends too! We’ve tailgated at many NC State football games and have even gone to Colorado together to see some concerts at Red Rock! We are thankful for our friendship with The Andersons and were so glad to see them!!

Overall, April was an amazing month!! Stay tuned for what shenanigans we got into in May!