Bristol to Chantilly

The house we stayed at in Bristol was the most idyllic place for family I have ever been.  Aside from the fireflies there was the trampoline...

The treehouse...

The expansive, border-less lawn...

And, of course, 9 children ages 4-9, running barefoot and fancy free.

We enjoyed a morning at the park, which had the most beautiful walk through the woods, along a lake and stream.

This pic includes Mary and James, our 2 host kids.

On the walk, we tasted wild berries.  Not, perhaps, the safest practice, but they looked and tasted so much like small blackberries, that I was not at all afraid.  

And besides, this place is so like Eden that there could not possibly be anything poisonous growing here.  (As you can tell, Bristol Tennessee is not at all my favorite place ever.)

Berry-picking girls.

We found a few wild strawberries too.

And, of course, there were geese.  This place is really awful.  Did I mention that it was pleasant and cool (and it's JUNE?!)? 

The kids did a little exploring.

The other thing notable about today, is that we have now been on the road for five days.  That's a lot of late nights, early mornings, and constant companionship.  We are all on our emotional last straw.  As demonstrated below:

While exploring, Isaac made friends with a piece of wet driftwood that he named "Wood."  I, being the cruel mother that I am, declared that he could not bring the wet piece of driftwood into either of our vans. I was not expecting the reaction I received.  Isaac teared up, telling me how much he loved Wood and how important Wood was to him.  There was not an ounce of whining in his voice, only heartbreak at the thought of losing a dear friend.  A little more compassionately, I explained to him that Wood needed to stay in his home.  I suggested that Isaac find the best spot for Wood to live.

He carried Wood for a ways on our walk until he found the perfect, peaceful home for his friend.  And then, with sweet tears, he said goodbye to his new friend.

This was a sweet, sad moment where Aunt Robin took pictures as Isaac and I released Wood.

It was very much like a funeral and Isaac was so deeply sad that both Robin and I got teary-eyed watching him say goodbye.  We were laughing at ourselves through our tears.  How in the world could we be crying over a piece of driftwood?

Wood is now in a good place.  Isaac grieved for him a few times throughout the day, a true sign that this little boy is really, flat-out, just plain old tired. 

As another piece of evidence of how tired we are, Abby, my happy go lucky, had her own little hissy fit today.  

She was mad at me for finally following through with a consequence for not listening.  But, she is Abby, and she was back to good in about five minutes.  This face is not one you see very often, so it's good to capture it on camera.

We caught two more State signs.  Turns out Bristol spans both Virginia...

...and Tennessee.

And, just to capture a moment, I am including these pictures of four of our girls sticking to me "like cactus." This is a term they came up with themselves if they don't want to hold hands in a parking lot, but we still insist they stay close to us.  They put both arms in the air, like a cactus, and one of them sticks to some part of your torso.

There's lots of cuteness.

And noise.

 And invasion of personal space.  But they are safe.

Today we completed our final drive from Bristol, Tennessee to Chantilly, Virginia. Robin pointed out that some of the old barns along the way have these colorful tiles on them.  They all look different, but have the same meaning.

She explained that they were symbols for the runaway slaves on the Underground Railroad to know that it was a safe place to stay.  How cool to know. 

We have now arrived in Chantilly to put these poor, over-run kids to bed.  And the best part is, we don't have to travel or pack again for a whole week.  I am SO glad we have arrived at our destination.