North Carolina

Look at this face.... Could you stay away?

Last Saturday, we flew to Charlotte to see two of our adorable randchildren.  Emaline greeted us with a poster that she had made, welcoming us.

We started off our stay by visiting Bojangles for fried chicken and biscuits.  Nothing says "Southern" quite like fried food.  On Monday, Allison, Mark, and I jogged along the greenbelt path near her home.  It is amazing to me how wooded and green this part of the country is.  Dave told us that the average rainfall is about 3-4 inches a month andit actually rains each month, unlike California.  Hence, the muggy weather when it is hot.  People don't really bother with sprinkler systems here.  While we were in NC, it rained, thundered and lightninged (is that even a word?)  But not all of the time.

I had mad another one of these and sent it to them ahead of our arrival:

Mark had fun throwing Annabelle around and doing "ta-dah" with her.

We also made the obligatory trip to Toys R Us for the kids to pick out a toy.  Since Emaline rides the school bus and Annabelle loves to see her come home on it, she got a Little People school bus that played music when you pushed the driver down.  Each time the song came on, Annabelle would rock back and forth and flap her hands to dance to the music.  If one can dance while sitting down.

Emaline read to me and we played math on her white board.  She is in first grade, but already is doing very well in her reading and math.

Allison and looked at model homes in a few areas that they would like to live and we just had fun hanging out.  She made us delicious food as well.

One day we went to South Carolina, just a few miles away and went to Historic Brattonsville where they have some homes from Revolutionary War time.  The Bratton family first built a small home, called a backwoods cabin like this reproduction to live in while their larger home was being built.  And when I say small, I mean small.  Here is Mark and Emaline just inside the doorway:

This is the McConnell House:

The hogs and chickens:

The Brattons built this home in the late 1700s.

Later, Wiliam's son John, built a side wing where they established a school.

Dr. John Bratton built the Homestead between 1823 and 1826.  It was used in the movie "The Patriot."

These stairs had beautiful detailing.

The nursery:

The parlor:

Dining Hall:

Basement:

Gin house with cotton gin inside:

The area was just beautiful and I loved the chevron pattern on this barn:

Hightower Hall, also used in the movie, "The Patriot."

It was a beautiful area and the heavily wooded area illustrated how difficult fighting a battle in the area would be.  (Love the fences!)

This area was also interesting to us because several of Mark's ancestors came from North and South Carolina.  It made it easier to imagine what life was like for them.

Annabelle loves to copy everything Emaline does.

We were sad to leave on Thursday, but excited as we headed to New Jersey to board our ship for a New England cruise!

Note:  I don't know how much I'll be able to blog on this vacation.  I've been very frustrated with trying to blog from the ipad and then it not uploading.  I don't know if it has to do with the connection I'm using, but I may have to wait until I am home.