Road Trip - Tennessee to Illinois

We loved visiting my parents, and Tennessee.  We can see why they love it there so much.  

My dad showed us his garden and his fiddle.  He's learning to play it. 

He also braided Taylor's hair.  He does a better job than I can do.  That's why Taylor's hair is usually in her face or in a ponytail. 

We found a school's playground one day, and let the kids run around for awhile. 

They were usually worn out every night.  

We did a little sight-seeing in Manchester.  We found a Russell Stover's store.  We also got to go to a Cracker Barrel.  Just thinking about it, makes me want to have some dumplings. 

I found another dream home.  

We attended church with my parents and met some of their new friends.  Everyone is so nice. 

I couldn't believe it was time to get in the car, 

and hit the road again.  

We left Sunday afternoon and drove through Franklin, Tennessee on our way to Illinois. 

Franklin is another famous Civil War town.   This is the town square.  

This is the Lotz House.  During the Battle of Franklin, the Lotz family left their house and sought refuge down the street with the Carter family.  I understand there are still bullet holes in the house from the fighting.

There are several historic looking homes in Franklin too.

Whenever I saw one I liked, I rolled down the window and snapped a picture as we drove by.  

Sometimes it made for crooked and/or blurry pictures though.  


We didn't spend too much time in Franklin.  We decided to move along.  Our goal was to get a hotel in Mt. Vernon, Illinois that night.

 First up though, was Kentucky. 

 Then we crossed the Ohio River, which brought us back into...

Illinois.  

This time we went through during the day, and spent a lot more than a couple of minutes in it. 

We arrived at Mt. Vernon, Illinois, right at sunset.  We got settled in our hotel and rested, after another busy day. 

The next day we wanted to be on our way again.  Carthage Jail and Nauvoo, Illinois were on the agenda, as well as crossing the Mississippi River!