A moment in Greece, a walk through the Jungle, & we never left TN!

 During our adventures in our hometown's counterpart, the "Big Nashville" (Nashville, TN) we had the opportunity to walk around the Parthenon... well the American version anyways!

It's spectacular ceilings alone are testimony enough to the kind of imaginable structures that humankind is capable of producing.

It's beautiful columns make the edge for elegant, long walkways which seem to stretch on endlessly.

Brilliantly and carefully constructed,
this massive Grecian inspired building contains no straight lines or right angles.

It was unlike anything we had ever seen, and was even awe-striking upside down!

Thank you to these wonderful gentlemen who offered to take our picture for us!

"Live another day."

"Experience something new."

"I get up to go to work!"

The beautiful state of Tennessee flies their flag, and the American flag, high and proud!

Downtown in Nashville!

Nashville is filled with music on every street corner and a good ole country atmosphere wherever you go!

The famous Ryman Auditorium. :)

Exuberantly detailed and enormous on the outside & even more lovely on the inside,
 we were lucky to take a tour through this magical place!

It was almost as though we'd stepped into a jungle,
 complete with waterfalls, pathways, and even food plants!

The lobby of the hotel was grand and intricately detailed with marble and tile designs on the ceilings.

We're only able to give you a glimpse of the beauty inside of the Gaylord hotel in Opryland.
It's definitely something that you need to see firsthand!

"Sing me back home with a song I used to hear,
Make my old memories come alive."
(Merle Haggard, Sing Me Back Home)

Music connects people of every language, every background, and every distance.
And it's here, in the heart of country music itself, that even states away, we can find ourselves at Home.

Love Always,
The Crew

A, B, Cookies!

Good ole comfort food - a breakfast of breads, omelets, and biscuits and gravy at Benton's!

A great start to the morning of an even greater day!

"I have too!"

The Museum of the Alphabet was a highlight of the day!

Even though we'd all learned our letters back in our home-school version of preschool, this museum was about so much more than the Alphabet song.

Walking through the museum was like walking through an interactive history of languages, their origins, and how they have developed through time.

Right through the entrance of the door is an intricate wood carving of a tree showing the "roots" of languages and how they have "branched" out into the 6,500 known languages that exist today!

"I like my job and meeting people."

An artist had constructed this sculpture for the museum. It is a beautiful exhibition of the Tower of Babel complete with tiny people!

We've talked before about how much we love when there are fun activities we can do! This particular museum had a station where we could use stamps to write out our names in hieroglyphics! 

"I love doing my job."

North Carolina really spoiled us with beautiful views and sunshine when we stopped in to the Crane Park for a picnic lunch and an afternoon of reading.

Being on the road there are a few things that you tend to miss doing. For Jennifer, one of those things was baking. It's kind of hard to bake desserts and pastries in the back of our Yoda...although we have contemplated the real possibilities of frying some bacon and eggs on a hot engine...

Our last night in North Carolina, our host family was gracious enough to let Jennifer bake some cookies!

With dinner in the oven, Jennifer poured all of the ingredients into the bowl and started mixing. Minutes later, their little 5year old comes rushing down the stairs and peeks into the bowl. With wide eyes he looks at Jennifer and exclaims, "We're having cookies for dinner?!?!?"

We had an incredible stay with our North Carolina family! It was great fun to play guitar and read stories with their kids and get to know their family as they welcomed us into their home! :)
Thank you all for your amazing kindness.

"I get out of bed every morning because the good Lord lets me!"

"When I met my wife, I told her that I hated my job and I was never going back to work in it. Working with computers was sucking the life out of me! Then I got married, had kids, and realized I had more lives to worry about then my own. So now, filled with new life, I get up every day to ensure my family is provided for and happy. (But that doesn't make me a morning person!)"

To another beautiful day!

Love,

The Crew

Experiencing the future

Our sweet North Carolina family treated us to a tour of Charlotte...

...in a very unique and fun way...

...scooting around on a Segway!

With a little help from our tour guide, and some fast thinking, we got everyone lined up for a picture!

It's a little difficult to maneuver five people into a straight line on a Segway, but we made it work! With us girls being newbies at this sort of thing, our tour guide was very helpful but wanted to make sure we kept going somewhat on schedule. At one point he said "Don't go faster than you're comfortable but we need to speed it up a little bit."

It was our first time on Segways, or anything like it for that matter, but with a little practice and a lot of help from our tour guide we mastered it in no time! (Or in other words, we got the hang of it by the time our tour was done...) 

"It is a blessing to have another day."

"To make money to support my family and life."

During our tour we passed a sweet little diner, Alexander Michael's in the fourth ward of Charlotte, and decided to go back for lunch. :)

"To make the most of each day."

They had really yummy food and sat us in a cute little window seat-like table.

If you ever stop in, and happen to go to the Ladies Room, make sure you don't run into the pole!

When they turned the building into a restaurant, they weren't quite sure why it was there, or what it's purpose was, except that it is right in front of the door when you walk in, and if you're not careful you may just hit your head!

"Just grateful for another day."

A beautiful walk back through the park where we had driven our Segways just hours before was warranted by the incredible skyline of Charlotte.

Here we are at the four corners in the middle of Charlotte which distinguish the four wards. The corners represent transportation, commerce, industry, and future. 

While walking around Charlotte we found ourselves in a museum. 

 Jeanette thought this art looked suspiciously like a lollipop... :)

They also really enjoyed their cats.

A lot.

Without a picture for one person who answered our question, so instead, here is a photo of her favorite sculpture instead.

"My puppies wake me every morning to go outside.. And they make me smile. Good way to start each day."

"Because God allows me another day to live and experience life with family, friends, and others."

"Too many mid afternoon naps and usually time to go to work. And because I'm so happy!"

After many people had recommend that we stop by, we decided to go to the Billy Graham Library.

"When I get tired of sleeping I see what the Lord has planned."

While we were there we had a tour which showed pictures, memorabilia and excerpts from his sermons. On display were things such as letters that had been written to him and other gifts individuals and groups had given him throughout the years. 

We all have dreams and goals we want to achieve, plans for the future. The future that more often than not doesn't turn out the way we think it will, or should. Thank goodness things don't always go the way we think they will all the time though, how boring would that be? :)  The unknown future can be a little scary at times but also brings us hope in what is to come. We are never really sure what tomorrow holds. But, hey, that's half the fun! :)

Love,

The Crew