I landed at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport late on Thursday night. There was snow on the ground but it was dark and I didn't get a very good first look at these incredible cities.

On Friday morning we woke up together and I took Rob to work in case I needed his car for something, which I really didn't, because after driving through a McDonald's for some breakfast and coffee, I ended up spending the day writing and unpacking boxes; decorating little corners of his apartment and maybe sort of pretending that I was moving in, myself. I had lunch delivered and took a shower and did something fun to my hair and at 3:30, left to pick Rob up at his office because he's done at 4:00 and that's awesome.

We planned our evening and the next day mostly around the food we would eat. After hearing that Minneapolis and St. Paul are something of a foodie haven, Rob compiled a list and we got right to it. Dinner on Friday night was at Yumi's Sushi Bar, and Saturday consisted of an amazing breakfast at Modern Times, a delicious (and almost completely Paleo) lunch at Brasa, and a romantic tapas dinner at Solera (get two orders of the dates--we did).

Spending time with Rob is always wonderful, but there was something really different and special about coming somewhere new, unpacking a few boxes and helping to make an apartment feel like home, and exploring a new city together. It was difficult to leave.

As my flight back to the East Coast took off (after some tears) on Sunday afternoon, I finally got a good look at the surrounding area, and it took my breath away. Covered in snow, the whole thing looked unfamiliar to me, but clean and new and beautiful, and it seemed to go on and on forever.

I can't wait to go back.

This morning, Rob and I sat down together by a window in the Roanoke Airport's little cafe with a cup of black coffee and a plate of greasy hash browns as we waited for his flight to Minnesota.

"What if we got something that was just mixed with a pit bull?" Rob asked, in regard to the breed restrictions of most apartment complexes. The discussion of our future dog is just one of the hypothetical conversations we have. I don't know if it's a coping mechanism or what--because as much as we'd love to plan out the rest of our lives, the truth is that we're really just taking it two weeks at a time now. I have a flight booked for mid-February to visit him in Minnesota, and then in early March he'll be coming to Virginia for our anniversary. And then we'll plan another month.

Rob hasn't even landed in Minneapolis yet, and already I get so many supportive and uplifting comments from you guys, telling me that my positive attitude for this whole thing is inspiring; it's what's going to get me through. I appreciate all of that so much, but I'm not really sure if "we'll figure it out as we go" is just something I say or if it's really enough for me so far. I look at families with a parent in the military who gets deployed, and friends with fiances in different countries, and I still feel like I have a pretty good deal in all of this.

But as lucky as I feel, I still fell apart this morning as he packed up his bags and put on his heavy winter coat. I still cried over our shared plate of hash browns at the airport, and I still felt a little lost as I walked to my car after hugging and kissing him goodbye at the security checkpoint. Only taking it a few weeks at a time can be really simple and effective, and it can also be really overwhelming.

So here I am, on my own on a Sunday morning, feeling a bit overwhelmed, but determined to make the best of it.

It really feels like it was just last week that Rob moved into his room at the Residence Inn, but it was the end of August. And in early October, he moved into his apartment in Arlington. DC was always meant to be a temporary stop for Rob, but I'm surprised at how quickly this time has flown by.

I have loved having a reason to meet up with friends like Melissa and Whitney; have brunch with Betsy or drinks with Sarah. I have loved being able to meet Rob in Richmond or Charlottesville and spend the weekends with friends from home. And I have loved this little adventure with Rob, and the reminder that a little distance isn't an issue for us.

So this is Rob's last week at his office in Tyson's Corner, and then on Friday he'll drive to Roanoke, and movers are coming on Saturday morning, and his one-way flight to Minnesota takes off on Sunday. This move has come to fruition even faster than his stint in Northern Virginia felt.

The five months of weekends we've had so far have been fun, and I will hate to see Rob go even further, but I think the next adventure will be even better.