SUGAR GROVE, WV TO MORRISTOWN, TN (340 miles)
We’re finally both out of the military. Seems like it was yesterday that I finished working but it’s felt like a dream. I’ve enjoyed staying home everyday to work on things although at times I definitely have to get out. But I think it’s made it easier to stay home the fact that my to-do list is endless. With the wedding and the move, it just never ends.
We had planned to head out West last Thursday but we decided to take out time cleaning the house and getting it ready for the inspection because we were so beat, and I hadn’t taken a break from even before my trip to Miami. So we decided to take Thursday to rest and head out Friday but that also changed after we spent a whole lot of time trying to figure out how to fit everything in the car, getting stuff organized, weighing our vehicles and things like that…so we took off Saturday. We had really planned to leave at 10 am but one thing led to another and we didn’t leave til about 4:30pm.
I really wasn’t ready to leave, not because of any “attachments” but because I wasn’t looking forward to the drive…dreadful. Ryan tried to encourage me but that wasn’t working. I was just feeling my back pain already, before we even started. I guess it would be more exciting if we were both driving together, but with our two cars packed, bikes, and pets…time I knew wouldn’t go by as fast.
We finally got to say our goodbyes to a few peeps and had dinner in Harrisonburg.
With full bellies and loaded cars (with turtles and fishes) we headed to Morristown, Tennessee, got there late and had a nice rest. I always look forward to our stays in hotel rooms, I really like staying in hotels, although some can be kinda creepy and jucky. So I’m excited about getting there and resting and maybe even working on wedding stuff and sight-seeing if we’re not too tired.
The next morn we drove to my uncle’s in Hermitage, TN, wasn’t too long of a drive. Got there around 4pm or something, stayed there that night. Enjoyed the day with them, he grilled some good ribs and beef for us for dinner, too much to finish. We hadn’t seen them since Christmas so this was nice. We talked about different things, funny to see him worked up about conversations. When he believes in something, he believes in it. There’s no other way around it. Watched a great show about “Predator X”, the largest and most “fearsome” I guess marine dinosaur (if that’s the right term) to live…ever. Pretty cool, extremely impressive. I went to bed exhausted, sleepingon my little cousin’s bed which was also little.
Ciara cracks me up. Poor little one was sick. She comes in the room the next morning and says “why did you put that on the floor?” (referring to the little cushions that were on her bed before we went to bed). I told her because we were going to sleep on the bed. Then she said “I put my shoes in the closet, because that’s where they go.” Referring to our shoes that are randomly placed without any intent to keep things organized (in her room). Apparently she’s more of a neat freak that anyone I know. I thought I was bad. She continues to “inspect” the room and wondering why things have been moved. She asks “where’s the little one that was sitting on top of the bed?” she’s talking about this stuffed white tiger that barely had his front paws on top of the bed. See, her bed is next to the window but in between the window and the bed there’s a space that’s packed with stuffed animals, strategically placed a certain way and that was one of them, well, she began to fix him…and the rest. Ryan and I laughed as she continued to fix stuff around the room, like putting her movies into their boxes and placing them exactly where they were before she watched them. Unbelievable, but awesome.
Sunday morning they cooked a nice Nicaraguan breakfast for us, including “huevos con queso” like Ryan said. Said more goodbyes and started our drive. Next stop, Memphis, Tennessee, specifically to walk down Beale Street, ”Home of the Blues…Birthplace of Rock N’ Roll”. Oh yeah. Also, to take the Sun Studios Tour. More on this later. Pictures of this part of the trip will be added later :)
