Monday, June 19, 2017

A Week-end Get Away

Gone with the Wind is one of my favorite movies.  One of my favorite lines from the movie is when Scarlett is feeling quite overwhelmed and says:  "I can't think about that right now.  If I do, I'll go crazy.  I'll think about that tomorrow."  There was a time in my life when Scarlett's procrastination annoyed me.  I am older and wiser and realize there are times in life when a girl feels overwhelmed and needs a week-end get away.

AppleJack and I took a trip east to revisit some of our favorite places and discover some new ones.  One of our stops was to the University Gardens.  The gardens are located on the Agricultural Campus of The University of Tennessee, Knoxville.  Some 4,000 annuals, perennials, herbs, tropical plants, trees, shrubs, vegetables and ornamental grasses grow in the gardens.  The plants are under constant study and evaluation.  New plant species are introduced and the gardens are a great way for home gardeners to learn about new varieties and let the experts do the trial and error.

The hydrangeas were in full bloom.  There was an evening wedding scheduled and the hydrangeas were especially beautiful.  I will be adding more of these beauties to my garden.

A red variety of coneflower!  It was beautiful.  Another must have to add to my garden.  The bees, butterflies and hummingbirds love this plant.  

A single red annual--zinna.  Grandmother Bessie called this annual Old Maid.  

A garden bench, a place to sit, relax and breathe in all the beauty of the gardens.

We took a trip down memory lane for lunch and ate a Hoagie sandwich from Sam and Andy's.  The sandwiches are steamed which softens the bread, heats the meats, and melts the cheese.  They are delicious!  Why doesn't anyone in Nashville steam the sandwiches?  Grrrr

Ham 'n Goody's is another favorite Knoxville eatery.  Founded in 1978 using old family recipes they are renown for their world famous lemon cookies and home made cakes.  These cookies are better than good, they are melt in your mouth delicious.  It was worth the trip just for a dozen of these cookies!

The last time I was with the Homespun stitch girls, one of them was talking about a new quilt shop in Greenback called MountainCraft Quilts.  Feeling adventurous and with the assistance of MapQuest we set out to find the shop.  WOW!  A gem of a quilt shop located on Hwy 411 just outside of Maryville.  The shop is owned and operated by a mother/daughter team and is everything this quilter dreams about in a quilt shop:  bolts and bolts of beautiful fabrics, wools, tools, fibers, models, classes.  Perhaps, if Scarlett had access to a quilt shop like MountainCraft, it would have helped with her feeling of being overwhelmed.  It sure helped with mine.

I highly recommend road trips.  Stay tuned there are more road trips in our immediate plans--Berea, Sauder Village, Paducah, Little Rock.





11 comments:

  1. That is a garden I would love to visit. We were in Huntsville and all the hydrangeas were blooming. Our spring has been so cool and rainy everything is so late. The food looked good too!

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  2. I could spend all day in a garden like that.
    Don't believe I have ever heard of steamed sandwiches before.
    The quilt shop looks very tempting. Did you bring home much loot?

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  3. What a wonderful road trip, the flowers are amazing and beautiful.
    Love hearing about food places, I am a foodie and love it.
    I have heard of steaming hamburgers before that is something White Castle does, yum.

    Blessings
    Catherine

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  4. We have test gardens here at Colorado State U. It's a wonderful and beautiful place to visit as well. Hope your road trip helps to eliminate your overwhelmed feeling.

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  5. I'm so glad you got this time away--especially the quilt shop. Your tales of UT Knoxville sent me down memory lane. Family history from my maternal grandmother's side tell the story of a relative planting trees on the campus about 100 years ago. I need to go back and research which one. Lots of fun stories from those old audio tapes.

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  6. OH YES ! I've been to Ham and Goody's and had those lemon tea cakes - they are simply amazing - I wish I had one right now. If I lived there I'd weigh 500 lbs. If I ever make it over to Maryville again - I'll check out that quilt shop. glad you had some respite and relaxation away from home. Everyone needs to reset and recharge once in a while
    Mel

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  7. Its fun to be able to take weekend getaways at times. Planning on doing that myself next weekend. Janice

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  8. What a fun rod trip, always fun to stop at a land grant university garden and a quilt shop and local eatery.
    Looking foreword to the next road trip

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  9. Looks like you had a great road trip! Such fun!

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  11. The view at this place was amazing. This event was in the evening so it’s really a site to see when the sun sets. Just beautiful wedding venues NYC! If you are planning your wedding here, don't worry too much about how to make it look even more beautiful.

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