The Shafferland Shuffle

Drumroll please! :)

Well, the time has come for the big reveal of our anniversary trip! (And the reason for my crazy inability to have my own blogging brain this week.)

We went on a trip that we named the Friendtastic Fifth Anniversary Adventure, which took us through nine states over eleven days. I have sooooooooooooooooooooooo many stories for you. Settle in, my friends! Settle in!

But until I can catch you up properly, here's a peek at the last portion of the trip!

* When we woke up a week ago today, we were in Siesta Key. Yes, we went back to the lovely beach where we were married!! It was so wonderful! So last Sunday we took in beach walks, sunsets, and the chance to see two friends of ours who live in that area. It was such a wonderful day. And by wonderful, I also mean EIGHTY degrees. My soul.

* Monday was our last full day in Florida, so we went on all kinds of adventures. Hunted for shark teeth, went kayaking in a clear boat, walked through beautiful Christmas lights, and wondered why in the world we thought it was a good time to leave shorts weather! (A decision we would continue to question as the week progressed, that's for sure!)

* Tuesday morning, we said goodbye to our beloved beach and then got in the car for a FULL day of driving. A lot of prayer, a bit of coffee, and a good GPS got us to our next destination, where we were able to catch up with more friends - and they even opened their home for us to stay the night with them!

* On Wednesday we drove a few hundred more miles to see friends of ours who moved away about a year and a half ago. It was SO GOOD to see them! We had dinner together, looked at Christmas lights, and settled in at their house for a couple of days!

* Thursday we were still with our friends, and we had a fun day. Donuts at a revolutionizing donut shop, a fun museum that included a butterfly garden and some actual rest time. (This vacation did not lend itself to a ton of rest, so that day was so welcomed!)

* Friday was the busiest of all! We got up early and drove to Mt. Airy (aka Mayberry) to see the Andy Griffith sites. CLEARLY we will need to go back here when we have more time to devote to the place! But we sure had fun! Then we drove in a snow storm to Asheville to the Biltmore. Oh my word. Apparently North Carolina never gets snow and they had a complete shut-down-the-city storm while we were there. Thankfully the Biltmore remained open. It is lovely at Christmas!

* Yesterday...well, can I say it did not go as planned? We had stayed in the night in Asheville and got up with a plan to see a few things around town and then come home. Town was still shut down, though, so finding things proved EXTREMELY comical. We had a great trip home until we got ALMOST home and then the wet roads turned to ice. On the advice of friends and family, we pulled off the interstate and got a hotel for the night, even though we were seriously ALMOST home. Better to get home in one piece. Sunday morning is ALMOST Saturday night, right? But even though it was a plan B kind of day, it was also a beautiful sight in the mountains!