Tuesday, January 15

Florida Trip Day 3

After leaving Newport, we traveled down I75 into Tennessee. Jordan had been waiting for this ever since we left. He loves the Tennessee Mountains and had requested that we stop at an overlook so he could take a photo. We told him we'd do our best. However, we stayed overnight in a motel in the Tennessee Mountains because it was raining and foggy. I don't believe in taking chances. If the weather turns bad, we stop. Hubby and I don't totally agree on this, but I had my way. I'm not risking lives to get where I'm going. The photo below was taken from the motel parking lot. To get to the motel we had to go up a huge grade. The boys said they'd never seen a driveway that was so steep and of course it was just as steep coming down in the morning. LOL

Once we were in the car, Brandon settled back for a relaxing ride. He was still tired and decided just to veg out and watch the scenery.


In the morning, the sky was a beautiful blue. I don't think I've ever seen such a blue sky. I took a photo but didn't know if the blue would show up. It did! Isn't it wonderful? The Earth is full of beautiful sights and sounds.

An hour or so down the road, the blue had diminished a little. However, Jordan wanted me to take a photo of this huge hill.

We came to the overlook and since it was posted Grandpa pulled over. There was a tractor trailer there. The driver was sleeping. Grandpa and Jordan are in a discussion below about the scenery.

Brandon got out as well and took some photos on his new digital that he got for Christmas. Here he is starting back to the van.


As Jordan came back to the van, another tractor trailer pulled in behind us. The trucker waved and Jordan put up his hand and signalled for the driver to blow the horn. He accommodated Jordan with two little blasts. The boys had a good laugh about the air horn.

That day we also crossed Georgia. It is beautiful country there as well. We stopped at a Wal Mart for a break and Brandon went in with me. There were a couple of things I needed to pick up. He visited the toy department and found Disney Pixar Cars from the movie. They are real hard to get here in southern Ontario, so he bought six. They were on sale for $3.00 each, which is a big savings. Here they are $4.99. When we got back to the van, he gave Jordan three of them and Jordan paid him for them. These, according to the boys, are very rare. LOL That's because they are hard to find here.

We were hoping to make it to Florida, but since there was rain and fog again that night, we stopped about 40 miles before the Florida border.

The trip continues tomorrow. I hope you enjoyed seeing the beautiful sights of Tennessee.

~Blessings, Mary~

22 comments:

  1. Yes you did capture the beautiful blue sky!!!

    Mari-Nanci

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  2. Mari-Nancy,

    I was thrilled when I uploaded the photos to my computer and saw that I'd captured the beauty of the blue sky. Thanks so much for your enthusiastic comment.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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  3. Good Afternoon Mary,
    Oh, what a beautiful Blue Sky indeed. You camera got a good shot of it and it shows. "THANK YOU" for sharing one of GOD's beautiful creations with us. I have been thru TN with DH before. We were going thru the Smokey Mountains. Since I am scared of heights, I had to crawl back into the sleeper. LOL. I remember going up one steep mountain and it had a sign for truckers, something about the grade and all, and I could see down into the Smokey Mountains, and I just got all squirmey. The boys do look all happy. They did get a bargain on their items they got at Wal-Mart. I don't blame you for wanting to stop and spend the night and being out of the fog and rain. I'm the same way. I wouldn't want to chance it either. I always say, I have more time than I do money, to get there. LOL. I have heard that all of my life growing up. "THANK YOU" for sharing another day on your trip with us. Take care my friend and have a great day. May God Bless You and Yours.

    Love & Hugs,
    Karen H.

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  4. Karen,

    I am not fond of heights but the mountains of Tennessee are one of my favorite places in the world. I love the Smokies and if I had to chose to live in one of the US states that I've already visited, it would be there. It is beautiful country. I do love Arkansas' Mount Magazine and the rolling hills of KY also.

    Like you, I always have more time than money. LOL We found the food to be more expensive this trip and believe it or not most of our traveling money was spent on food. We did have a little left over when we got home, but we had it pretty much right about what we needed as far as money went. We saved for this trip for the three years since we took our last one. Next time I'm hoping to go west and see some of the states that I've never seen before.

    Thanks for all your kind comments. Tomorrow will be some information on our first day in Florida.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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  5. Those are some awesome pictures Miz Mary, it is almost like being with you!

    PS...I like your new header too!

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  6. Tammy,

    I'm glad you enjoyed the photos. It's really pretty country there in Tennessee and Jordan and I loved it.

    The header was made by Mary at Isabella's Closet. She is a very talented lady. Thank you for the compliment.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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  7. I am just loving my virtual trip. Thanks so much for sharing.

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  8. Mary
    Thanks for complimenting our Great State of Tennessee. At one time we had a slogan the three states of Tn and it was beacause each section has its own terrain. West Tn is flat, Md Tn has rolling hills and East Tn the mountains . I am a native Tennessean and as you can tell just love my state.
    Great pictures you made and shared with everyone.
    Peace

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  9. I love it when people go on trips and then post about them...makes me feel like I was right there:-) I remember my mom saying how beautiful all those states are when she & my step father (now deceased) would go spend every winter in Florida. She always said her favourite state to cross through was Tennessee...they always drove at the end of October so it was Autumn then and she said the colours in the smoky mountains were amazing. Loved the pictures again today...that first one, I can't believe how blue the sky is, no wonder you were hoping the camera would pick it up! xox

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  10. That is really Blue! So beautiful! I think TN is a beautiful state! We were all over it in Sept. I found out later we were in the town where Denise (Shortybear) lives!! If we had know that we would have stopped in for sure!

    I am glad your grandson found the bargin at Wal-Mart! I know that made them both happy!! Thanks again sharing your trip!! Love and Hugs, grams

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  11. It is just beautiful through that area. We traveled through there this past summer on our way to South Carolina. It was a Sunday afternoon and we had some praise music playing on a CD. It was the perfect thing to listen to while enjoying God's beautiful creation.

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  12. Jackie,

    I'm so glad you are enjoying the photos of the trip. It's so nice to be able to share all of our experiences.

    Lady Di,

    I have seen all three landscapes of Tennessee. Years ago, I took a trip to the Smokies during autumn. I'll never forget it. So beautiful. Jordan loves the rolling hills along I75 and in 2005 when hubby, Mom and I went to Arkansas, we saw the western side of the state. I love it there. You are so lucky to live in such a beautiful state.

    Pea,

    If you have never been to Tennessee, you don't know what you're missing. Talk your hubby into taking you to the Smokies this autumn. You'd love it.

    I couldn't believe the beautiful blue of the sky and am glad you enjoyed it. I was hoping to pick it up to share with all of my blogging friends.

    Carolyn,

    Thanks for your comments on the blue of the sky. It was awesome. I also love Tennessee, but Arkansas and Missouri are also beautiful.

    The boys each had their own money. They saved $200 each for the trip with their paper route money from last summer. Their parents gave them each $100 for Christmas. Brandon is very wise with his money and always looks for bargains. Jordan is more of a spender, so has to be watched more closely.

    Mari,

    Tennessee is beautiful in autumn. I'm glad you were able to experience the beauty of God's Earth while listening to praise music. A perfect companion for the scenery.

    Thanks to Everyone for dropping by and commenting. I've enjoyed your visits and will post more photos of our trip tomorrow.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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  13. What a beautiful azure blue sky! It was like that today here in Arkansas. Deep, intense blue and not a cloud in sight. Also, no digital camera because I left mine in my purse, which was locked in my sister Cecil's trunk.

    Hugs,

    Diane

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  14. Diane,

    I'm sorry that you didn't have your digital camera. I love the deep blue of the sky when it's like this. I think this was the bluest I've ever seen.

    Thanks for stopping by. I hope all is well with you.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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  15. I love road trips. It looks like you and your family enjoyed a trulywonderful one. Thank you for sharing.

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  16. Welcome Mrs Staggs,

    Yes, we did have a lovely time. I'm so glad you dropped by so you could see the photo of the lovely blue sky.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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  17. I wish I knew what part of TN you were in. I have a brother who lives in Chattanooga TN.
    We go through there every summer. And one of my best friends lives in Georgia.

    I am glad you loved the mountains--I do too. I soooooo feel the presence of God when I am standing on the tops of those mountains.

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  18. That was a very beautiful blue sky! You were wise to not take chances. I have such a fear of heights, I'm not a good traveler in the mountains.

    Katherine

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  19. Your trip was wonderful sweetie. Did you come to chattanooga? I love you.

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  20. Mary,

    I love that photo of the deep blue sky! Wow! All your photos are wonderful, but that one really stands out.

    Brandon and Jordan are savvy collectors. I'm impressed. I'm glad they were able to get the cars. :-)

    I eagerly look forward to the next part of your trip!

    Hugs,
    Tina

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  21. Mary,

    Yes those pics look like Tn.!

    Sometimes when you are going 'down a mountain' you will see what looks like a long driveway to the right that has been graded to go uphill. These drives were made in case the brakes on a vehicle (especially a truck) should stop working.

    I can't remember the correct name for the uphill drives.

    Did the boys ears 'pop' going up the mountains? High altitude causes this. Even though I'm use to the mountains, my ears still pop from time to time.

    :)

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  22. Deborah,

    I have seen those uphill grades. They're like a safety net.

    Our ears did pop. We live on the Niagara Escarpment, so we do go up and down the mountain when we travel east. Even though I've lived here all my life, my ears still sometimes pop because of the change in altitide.

    Thanks so much for stopping by.

    Blessings,
    Mary

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