A Blue Ridge Road Trip (Pt. 2)

It was our second full day on our Blue Ridge Parkway trip and we (rather I) woke early once again before the girls did. For some reason, this whole trip I was always the first one up. I guess knowing that I had Robin and Ashby to contend with for the bathroom, my subconscious decided it was best to be first before anyone else was up and avoid fights over the bathroom.

It wasn't long after I was done and ready, that Robin was up and at 'em. Not long after Ashby and Dinah were both up and going, we were packed up, loaded up, and ready to check out of the Hidden Valley Motel by 9am. Our first task was to sequester breakfast. It wasn't hard, as we had eyeballed a Cracker Barrel in the heart of Boone the day previous to this.

A Blue Ridge Road Trip (Pt. 1)

The third weekend in July is always family reunion time on my mom's side of the family. Every third Sunday in July, the Patteson Clan gather for fun, food, and reminiscing at Glenwood Park in Princeton, WV. Seeing how Dinah was new to the family, and all my aunts absolutely love to see her we decided we would go to the reunion this year. As an added bonus, I thought it would be fun if on the way back home we spent a couple days driving down the Blue Ridge Parkway. The four of us (Tim, Robin, Ashby, and Dinah) as a family doing a mini version of the vacations Robin took as a kid with her family.

Once the reunion was over, or rather close to the time people were starting to leave, we loaded back up into our SUV and we were Blue Ridge bound. We had made arrangements to stay over night at the Allegheny Inn in Sparta, NC shortly after making it to the Blue Ridge Parkway. We got all checked in and hung out for a little bit before going out in search of food. The Allegheny Inn was a wonderful motel, located in the heart of the quaint downtown of Sparta, North Carolina and only 15 minutes from the Blue Ridge Parkway, where we would begin our adventure on the next day. Unfortunately, our adventure wouldn't begin without some sort of hiccup.

Evening Strolls

We haven't been going to many places lately to enjoy the outdoors as much as we would love to. We have made impromptu trips to Mississippi and then up to West Virginia for a family reunion and a 50th wedding anniversary party for my folks (Rose and Larry). We've also been busy with upkeep around the house such as clearing the outside of and patching a barn. (Really it's a huge detached garage that serves more as a barn, and up until recently a plush home for some four-legged masked bandits). There's been a yard to keep mowed, weeds to kill and eat with a weed-eater, flower gardens to tend and such.

While that has kept us quite busy we have made time for some outdoor fun, not much on the hiking, backpacking, or camping scene, but more so on the try everything we can to stay cool. Yes we've had plenty of trips to Aunt Patty's pool including a nice 4th of July celebration which included games of volleyball and a few libations.

Other than that, we have been having evening strolls for the last week. Mainly just some walks in the parks (Big Ridge and Norris Dam State Parks to be exact). The trusty side kick has been dying to get out so we have been trying to humor her by our evening strolls not to mention keeping ourselves active in addition to all that was stated above.

So with that said, it's late and time for bed. Here are some select shots of the past few days that the most excellent photog of the house (Wifey Robin) has taken. Enjoy.


Peace,
Tim and Robin

Trusty Side Kick Clover on the Sniff

Smooth Phlox

Rose Pink

Fog on the Clinch River

Sunset on the Clinch

(Those are not our poles)

Kiddo, Side Kick Clover, our God Sons 

(L to R Zorro and Gizmo) and me

Wifey Robin and I munchin' on hotdogs at Frozen Head

 Mom and Dad Surprised at Anniversary

Mom and Dad's Wedding Photo

(Aren't they beautiful?)