Today feels like a day to wear sweatpants and a sweatshirt. After showering, I put on my PINK sweatpants and grey sweatshirt. Probably the fanciest place we will stop today is a Love’s Truck stop and I will fit right in….besides I’ve invoked my ‘I will never see these people again’ philosophy. We left Jackson, TN about 9 am. After driving for an hour, we stop to get our second latte (seems to be the pattern on the road). For lunch we stopped at Krogers and picked up chicken slices, cheese and crackers. They gave us a jar of Boar’s Head spicy mustard free with our purchase. We ate while driving. We hope to watch game 1 of the World Series so as we get closer to stopping time, I look for an RV park with ... read more

Pops got up around 7, put Lola in bed with me and left to go to Jason's. They are going to blow the leaves out of his yard down to the creek. His yard has lots of trees. I enjoyed so much snuggling with Lola and slowly waking up. We got up and made coffee and hot chocolate. We used the leftover liquid chocolate for her hot chocolate. It was so good! We are making Pumpkin pancakes and applewood bacon for breakfast. Jason, Amy and Pops will join us in a bit. I found this recipe on 'My Baking Addiction' website. I am not a pancake lover and these were so, so good. Very much worth the effort...especially when you have an 8 year old helper who loves cooking. Pumpkin Pancakes Recipe Yield: 4-5 servings Ingredients: ... read more

We arrived in Asheville around 4pm and went straight to Rutledge Lake RV Park, the same place we spent the summer. It's a beautiful park, just some weird managment quirks that can be easily overlooked. We set up and I left to go to the grocery. Jason, Amy and Lola will come over at 5 for a little happy hour (and to catch up) before going out for dinner. I bought some cheese, crackers, olives, mozzarella balls, juice, beer and wine. I also bought a 'Birthday' balloon and a 'Southern Living' magazine for Amy. I bought her a subcription (and another one for myself!). It's so good to see everyone. We went to Pomodora's, a local Italian Restaurant a few miles away. We came here often last summer and has become a favorite. I asked for ... read more

The next three days were pretty uneventful. I worked all day, we had lunch, took a walk. The weather seems to have a pattern. It was overcast in the morning, cleared up with bright sunshine and blue skies by noon. In the afternoon the wind would really pick up and by dusk it would be calm again. On Wednesday night we went to Karl Strauss for dinner. it was so good. We sat outside on the heated patio. Ken had a delicious caesar salad that he ended up sharing with me-it was so good! I had a mixed green salad that was just ok. We shared a dinner: French cut pork chops (my fav), steamed green beans and broccoli. It also came with yummy mashed potatoes that I passed on. It is a micro brewery so ... read more

We were all up by 7 am drinking lattes by the fireplace. Ken made oatmeal for everyone. We sat around discussing what to do today-another gorgeous day. I found a place to visit-The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch-(50 acres of color in bloom on a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean. For over sixty years, the rolling hills of Carlsbad have been a spectacular and coordinated display of natural color and beauty. The nearly fifty acres of Giant Tecolote Ranunculus flowers that make up The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch are in a full bloom for approximately six to eight weeks each year - from early March through early May - literally bringing the famous fields back to life. This annual burst of color, which has become part of the area's local heritage, is also one of ... read more