Some Vacation Highlights

          I had almost forgotten how beautiful East Tennessee is in the Spring.   The lush greenness of the landscape is vastly different from the urban sprawl of Los Angeles.  In 1966 my family moved into the house where my mother still lives.  Now after forty some years the trees in the yard have grown considerably.   I spent a good bit of time just strolling through the yard, enjoying the variety of birds, the squirrels, and rabbits. It felt like being in a park or a nature preserve.  There is a peacefulness in this place that I did not realize how much I have missed.

View of my mother's house from the backyard.

         One day my daughters, sons-in-law, and my granddaughters all rode up to Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains.   The national park is less than twenty miles from my mother's house.  We visited one of the old Baptist churches that dates from the early 1800s.  We also stopped by the Cable home site which includes a grist mill which still operates and produces corn meal sold to the tourists.  Two and a half year old Marley delighted in seeing wild turkeys, deer, and a large black bear as we drove around the scenic loop--we all did for that matter.

Two of my daughters, my son-in-law, and the two granddaughters in front of the  Cable Grist Mill.

         It was the family time that really made the difference though.   I had the opportunity to spend time with my youngest grandchild, Lillee, for the second time since she'd been born.  I'd seen her when she was first born, and a couple of times in video chat, but it was nice to be around her and to be able to hold her again.  I see my other granddaughter, Marley, more often, but I never tire of watching her learn and grow.  It seems strange being a grandparent, but it's a wonderful strange.  Four generations under one roof can make for a might joyous occasion.   I wish these times were more often.

Granddaughters Lillee and Marley--different parents, but they could pass for sisters.

           On the first leg of my flight to Tennessee, I briefly met a blogger by the name of Kristi Ryan who has a fine looking blog called A Chick, a Flick, and a Kitchen.   She talks about movies and food--two of my favorite subjects.   Check out her blog and let her know that you heard about it from Arlee at Tossing It Out.

          On Monday I will be continuing the Blogging from A to Z evaluation.  Please stop in and voice your thoughts.

           Do you have vacation plans for the upcoming summer?   Have you visited the Great Smoky Mountains?   Do you find yourself talking about blogging to total strangers sometimes?

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