Ice maker installation went well...and the dinghy has cleaned up better than we had hoped...with things going so well, we booked a trip to the Biltmore in Ashville, NC for next week. It is some sort of bed and breakfast special...includes unlimited time at Biltmore, wine and chocolate, hotel, and breakfast. We also booked some behind the scenes tours...butler, friends and family type places. We are excited to see the place...stay tuned for full report. I think Floyd is just as pumped about this as I am. As we were looking at the travel route, we also discovered that we'll be traveling through Scotsborro AL...home of the lost luggage store. LOL...yep, we'll be stopping there. Should be the high and low of it!!!! Happy Mother's Day ...we are taking it easy...like always!!!!

As I have always loved magnolias, I have certainly enjoyed seeing all the trees here in full bloom. The fragrance is awesome. When I commented to Floyd about those at the cemetery, he decided to take a closer sniff. Interestingly, they seem to have a stronger aroma downwind that at the bloom...must be the bark as well. Anyway, it smells really good when magnolia trees are around!

Next stop, the Bunganut Pig Pub and Eatery....big burger and curly fries...we had worked up a hunger. Then a couple of hours and we were back at the TUMBLEWEED....where the ice machine had been busy busy busy....a full day of chores on Friday...ready for the weekend...yea, like that'll be different!!! Ha....

Hundreds of tomb stones...identified by the state, initials and a number...records kept by the family to help relatives identify their fallen soldiers....all maintained and handled by private citizens.  This is believed to be the largest private military cemetery in existance. It was a site to behold....

And just a way up the road and across the railroad tracks we last visited the Carnton Plantation, Home of Carrie and John McGavock...which served as the largest Confederate field hospital...blood stains still mar the hardwood floors. Again a house furnished with lovely antiques, very few of which were original to the McGavocks. This family also donated two acres for a cemetery and oversaw the reburial of nearly 1,500 soldiers. Carrie is immortalized in a bestselling book, THE WIDOW OF THE SOUTH...yep, I bought it and will be starting it shortly. We were there with a rather large gathering of elementary students...in period costumes...while scary, they were very well behaved...and actually kind of cute...those little lunch pails...and some creative moms had tried really hard to make 'em look Civil War...ish..was extra nice to remember that I'm out of that business...LOL

The next morning we returned to the same intersection...and just across the street is the Lotz house...another compelling story of the battle and family...and a truly spectacular collection of antiques (none are original to that house...but an awesome collection of antiques)...We learned that one side of this house was completely blown away...during the repair process, the owner chose to not replace the windows on that side...I imagine it wasn't a hard choice...windows would have been hard to come by...and who knew if and or when there might be another battle...

We arrived just in time to catch the last tour of the Carter House which now sits on a busy Franklin intersection. However, on November 30, 1864, this middle class farmer and his family found themselves just inside the center of the Union defensive perimeter.  As Rebel troops approached, no one thought they would attack. Boy, were they wrong. The Battle on Franklin lasted 5 hours and was one of the most savage and bloody...and it happened right in their yard.  Nearly 10,000 casualties...2,500 dead, 6,500 wounded, and over 1000 missing...including 9 Generals dead. The buildings still bear the obvious scars of the shooting...not to mention the scars left on the families that took shelter in the basement...and dealt with the aftermath of all those bodies and injuries...amazing....