This past year was, without question, the most tumultuous (yet wonderful) year of our lives, together or individually, since before we met a couple decades ago. And it didn’t just end quietly. It ended with a bang. More like being shot out of a cannon or launched from a catapult straight into the unknown.

How could we have known, almost 25 years ago, the adventure we were about to embark on? When Joey and I found each other on April 20th, 2003, we knew immediately we were meant to be together. Instant certainty and instant attraction. We’ve hardly been apart since that day.

December 17th Netflix releases its' newest game show, What's in the Box hosted by Neil Patrick Harris - we are lucky enough to be invited to compete to win huge prizes over 6 episodes. So much fun and so exciting! ~ Joey and Scott

Here we go!! The time is finally upon us, and it’s so exciting. We’re officially putting ink to the calendar: trips mapped, dates set, flights and hotels booked. East Coast to West Coast, then across the Atlantic to London and Paris, followed by Spain, Morocco, and Portugal… all between now and May.

We don’t drink alcohol. Joey doesn’t drink at all, and Scott very little to none. But we still enjoy a good time — social events, a nice glass in hand, even a cocktail or two. Just not the booze part. But we have found an alternative, that can include a mood booster! THC cocktails - zero alcohol and 10mg of THC.

I’m not sure what I thought D.C. would be like, but what we did find was inspiring, exciting and left us wanting to plan our next visit.

It’s hard to believe, but our year of travel starts now. Well… tomorrow, technically. But today is for packing, cleaning, and mentally preparing to hop into an Uber at 6am, then off to the airport, boarding our plane, and just like that—this whole adventure officially begins.

The original cabin at Linwell Falls was our last looming visible remaining reminder of Hurricane Helene. It was the last of our recovery projects and will now be our new project - sometime down the line. It came down last week, leaving a wonderful wishbone shaped fireplace and chimney, and a small portion that houses our well system. Portions of the stack stone foundations remain as well.

If there is one thing Joey and I are pretty good at it's making lemonade. Give us lemons and we'll make the best lemonade we can, probably with some local honey, foraged sumac, and a hint of homegrown hibiscus. When Covid and the pandemic causes lockdowns and quarantines, we had to figure out how to keep our businesses afloat, ourselves sane, and employees working - so we had four pivots, and made the best of them all. ~~ Joey and Scott Linwell

Joey and I are project people, we love the challenge, the process, the creative energy, and even the work. Over the years we've designed and built out a couple 1930's bungalows, an uptown penthouse, a barn-to-cabin conversion in the mountains, two commercial lounge spaces, a large traditional 1910 home, a mill house, and now - new for us, so extra exciting - a mid-century modern home built in 1964. And it's a split level!

October 13th is our wedding anniversary. One of two we celebrate, our first wedding was in 2004, and the second - legal - one in 2014. Both were influenced and part of the fight for marriage equality, something we were happy to be a part of and get to celebrate twice a year ~~ Joey and Scott

We weren't necessarily looking for a new home, but we weren't closed to it either. We love our place in NoDa, the Warp Street home, but as noted quite a few times before, we are project people. If you are a project-oriented person you know that once a project is done it's hard to just settle in. It's tough to just sit back and be done. That itch is always there. The itch to find the new project!

And so it begins! Choreographed destruction to finally wipe things clean at Linwell Falls. The first step in the process of wrapping up our Hurricane Helene recovery projects. The Old Cabin. It's a little complicated, but it started this week and we can't be happier to finally see this huge unmistakable reminder of the disaster gone, and to see what we have left to work with once it's been hauled away. We have some needs and we have some ideas. ~~ Joey and Scott

September 27th marked one year since Hurricane Helene ravaged western North Carolina, including our community and our home and property. It's been a year of hard work, determination, struggle and victory.

In 2013 we moved into a dream home in the heart of NoDa. At the time we both lived and worked out of the front two rooms - the home was large with extra rooms up front and zoned commercial. We were just a block off the main strip and entertainment hub of this uptown Charlotte neighborhood. ~~ Joey and Scott Linwell, Linwell Farms

I love our little cabin at Linwell Falls. While it’s small, it’s the perfect size for us for now as we formulate plans for this place, including building out a larger (about 1800 SF) post-and-beam stable into a more substantial house. The soaring ceilings - 12’ to the top of the walls and 20’ to the peak of the ceiling make it feel much bigger than it is, and the 500 SF deck around it gives us lots of outdoor living space - and we live both inside and out when we are here. ~~

I had to mow our hillside and meadow yesterday. The same place that was so barren, that looked like a moonscape, or where a bomb had gone off, following Hurricane Helene and the huge surge of water that came with her and tore this place apart. The recovery and regrowth from Mother Nature is astounding to see - and I'm so happy I had to do this yesterday! Seeing the flowers reemerge in the meadow... ~~ Joey and Scott Linwell, rebuilding after the hurricane - Linwell Falls at R

Edible Landscape Design emphasizes both food and function - blending formal gardens with vegetable and kitchen gardens. Spaces to wander and enjoy, but also filled with edible options to grab along the way. A garden with an outdoor kitchen and a space to dine. This is how we love to create our outdoor spaces, little lawn, intense landscaping, magical & enchanted ~~ Joey and Scott

We have a strong sense of determination and that part of us immediately kicked in once we were finally able to reach our place after Hurricane Helene. the damage we saw was so immense in scale, and the work in front of us so looming, we knew we couldn’t get bogged down in despair. We aren’t afraid of work, so we dove in, first night back after making it in, and began figuring out what we had to do next. We work together well, we plan well, and we'd be put to the test. ~~ Joey

PART 2 OF 3 - Hurricane Helene rampaged through Western North Carolina, and directly over our home. She destroyed small town around us, changing the course of rivers and streams, and devastating our property, washing much of it away. It took us 6 days to finally get back in to survey the damage, this is that story. ~~ Joey and Scott