a.d. elliott - Take the Back Roads

I was so excited to see this place, Henry! These were some of my  favorite books  when I was growing up, so exploring this museum was a lot of fun for me (not so much for Fish, but he was a good sport about it). I was a little bummed that they didn't allow any indoor photography (the flash will degrade things faster but most curators will allow non-flash photography, not here though). Laura loved her china - and seeing one of their wagons that they traveled in, I have no idea how her china survived the moves. It is making me sad that her books have come under so much controversy because of the strong bias she and her family had against Native Americans. I think that addressing the bias is important, and, when reading these books to children it is crucial to address how incorrect and repugnant that bias is, it was a bias that was taught to everyone at that time, and rather than push it under the rug, we need to address it.  xoxo a.d.

850 Feet Long & 10 Stories High This isn't a cave Henry: Its a tunnel, and one that wasn't made...we stumbled across this during our tour down Hwy 23. This is called the Natural Tunnel and it is big enough to drive a train through (we didn't do the train ride though) The park is nice - with a very steep and crazy ski lift that you can take down to the tunnel - you can also walk, but the ski lift is fun and the walk is pretty steep. We were so glad to have come upon this awesome little park on our drive. xoxo a.d. elliott

My first foray into this mountain range I was so excited about this road trip Henry! I haven't ever been into the Appalachian mountains before, most of my road trips have been in the western U.S. They are so green, covered in trees and Kudzu.   Hwy 23 is also called The Crooked Road: Virginia's Heritage Music Trail, with signs and info about the musicians who were raised in the Appalachians.  I had no idea there were so many.   There are also antiquing opportunities all along this route. All in all, it was a fun drive. xoxo a.d.

Patti's 1880's Settlement was a cute little place to stop and hang out Henry, While wandering around the village, we noticed the peacocks, in particular, this guy, who is trying so very hard to impress the lady.  She is having none of it, and would rather eat. I thought it was a funny courtship story and then...... as I was processing the images, I noticed this blur that only exists in the peacock pictures (the rest of them look fine). I *think* (hope) that this is some sort of weird refraction caused by the humidity, the cage, and the sun.  Otherwise, I was nose to nose with "something". xoxo a.d. elliott You never know what is going to appear on camera.....