Apologies as this is also not the Scotland post, but as I'm trying to blog photos so I can get them off my phone, you're stuck with it, haha.
Thing Three finished school May 31 and as soon as he got home, we popped him into the car with Dada, Thing Two, and myself because Thing One had to work and relished the idea of staying home, watching the dogs, holding down the fort, etc.
First things first, for a road trip you need some essentials; your GPS/map/atlas, your water bottles, "Road Trip Chips" which are Pringles- specifically the Sour Cream and Onion ones though I also grabbed a canister of cheesy ones- and a jar of Goober or imitation goober. You know the stuff- it has both jelly and peanut butter in stripes in the same jar. Grab a bag of buns and a plastic knife and you're all set for quicker rest stops and easy car food to stuff into your face, thus spending less money on vending machines or fast food. Unless you're Liam, who refuses to eat Goober because he insists you don't stir it. In which case it utterly destroys your bread by being unspreadable. Anyway...
I SWEAR we are all turning into Star Trek's Borg. Everybody wears ear buds anymore/anywhere, but I have to say that they do cut down on the backseat squabbles.
We stayed that first night in Lexington, KY because that was about halfway to where we were headed in Georgia. One of Dada's friends recommended the hotel area and we heard good things about the Double Dogs restaurant so we checked it out and gave it 8 thumbs up. We especially liked the "sit, stay, eat" motto. And that dogs were welcome!
We made it safely to our destination on June 1 and were welcomed with open arms by our friends whom we hadn't seen since 2016 or 2017. Their two biggest kids were both off in separate states with summer jobs, so we had the stair steps of our Thing Two, their Thing Three, their Thing Four, and our Thing Three, haha. They all got along really well and Damon missed them sorely once we were back home.
We did a bit of running around, seeing sights, eating ice cream, goofing off as well as time in their pool and on their porch. Their property is gorgeous and we had so much fun catching up.
Even saw my first Summer Tanager, who was attacking a wasp nest just under this railing. Brave little birdie!
This Honeybee Festival even featured a country music concert, which, as you can see from Liam's face, was absolutely right up his alley. He is my child. It was a fun evening of meandering around and checking out wares anyhow.
We also took a trip into Chattanooga for more eating and sight seeing and general Shenaniganery.
Bridge over the Tennessee River. I apologize that I don't know which bridge it is, but it isn't far from the Tennessee Aquarium.
We went to the Yellow Deli in Chattanooga and all eight of us had amazing meals. Everyone was completely delighted with the food, the decor, the breezy outside porch, all of it. Definitely check it out if you are in Chattagnooga! You can learn more about it here (and it will open in a new window.) Liam ordered Belgian waffles and when I looked over, he had demolished it. LIAM! The world's slowest eater. He ordered another round!
Our friends took us to Walker Rocks which immediately felt like camp. We had a wonderful hike and I, of course, took bajillions of pictures. I'll share only a few, I promise.
Because everyone needs a photo of a dead armadillo. It's the only one I've come across in the wild. Sad.
My first Georgia flat-backed millipede. I have a bug ID app!
And the Damonater is now a full-fledged teenager, turning 13 whilst we were in Georgia. So more ice cream and cake. And someone learned a valuable lesson: don't eat an entire bag of blue Taquis in a single sitting.
We were so sad to leave and hope very much that it isn't another 6+ years before we see them again! Made it home safe on the 6th in time to unpack, do laundry, repack, prep the kids and house for our Scotland trip. We left June 8.
To be continued!
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