2016 January 1 Friday, "New Years Day" Star wars The Force Awakes

Had a great New Year's Day

We rode to the Carmike Thoroughbred 20 Theater in Franklin, Tennessee 

to watch the action, adventure, Sci-Fi, and fantasy movie Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Movie Tickets

The Force Awakens

Carmike Thoroughbred 20 Theater in Franklin, Tennessee

This theater has rocking seats, and wherever you sit, you can see the movie without breaking your neck. 

I was surprised to see a new droid addition, BB-8, which replaced the archaic C-3PO and R2-D2 droids. 

Apple sells the BB-8 App-Enabled Droid by Sphero for $149.00, which is controlled by your iPad or Iphone.

This BB-8 droid is on display at Target.

BB-8 relates to your interactions, showing a range of expressions and actually perks up at the sound of your voice commands. 

I had seen one of the droids for sale at the Apple Store and wondered where they had come up with the Idea. 

The movie was action-packed and kept my interest throughout.

The movie brought back a couple of the original characters, Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and C-3PO.

I had cooked waffles, bacon, and eggs for breakfast earlier that morning. It was after 2 P.M., and we were both getting hungry, so we rode to Restaurant Alley at Cool Spring.

We decided on Famous Dave's, one of my favorite places to eat.

I ordered 1/3 St. Louis-style spare ribs, collard greens, sweet corn on the cob, & sweet cornbread.

Their iced tea is to die for, and I got a cup to go. 

My husband ordered their special 8-oz rib-eye steak with Caesar salad, baked potato, and toast. 

We had enough food for three, so we brought a box home for later. 

Cornbread, corn on the cob, collard greens, ribs

The mall parking lot was full, so we decided to ride home.

We rode south on I-65 to the Spring Hill Exit.

My husband asked if I had ever been through the historic town of Mount Pleasant, and I said no. 

He said that before the four-lane highway was built, you had to go through several small towns to reach Nashville. 

We stopped at Rite-Aid, which was built right next to an ancient cemetery. It was so old that the brick wall was falling down on the back side, and that is where I walked through to take a few pictures.

Cemetery near Rite Aid

We stopped right in the middle of town, where we saw the Civil War monument and several Indian markers. 

Indian Plaques Statue

Civil War Statue

Mt Pleasant

It was getting dark by this time, and it is hard to get good pictures while riding in the car.

I took a few pictures of the setting sun as we rode home. 

Blue Sky with a hit of white, yellow as the sun was setting 

We had a good day, we watched a good movie, filled our bellies with good food, rode through a historic town (that I had never seen), and watched the sun go down on our journey home. 

🚗2015 ~Tuesday, June 30, Day Trip to Loretta Lynn's Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee

We traveled up Highway 43 to St. Joe, Tennessee. We turned left onto Iron City Road 227/326, turned right onto Old Railroad Bed Road to Highway 13, and traveled a couple of miles North on Natchez Traces. We got off the Trace in Collingwood and took Highway 13 to Waynesboro.
In Waynesboro, we stayed on Highway 13/Waynesboro. We traveled through Smith Hill, Linen (Squirrels Hollow Drive), Lobelville, Lobelville Highway, crossing into Perry County, Buffalo. We stopped to use the restrooms and fill up with gas at Pilot. The price was $2.49 per gallon. We had just crossed I-40, the interstate between Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee.

Pilot in Buffalo TN 

Arby's, Cinnabon at Pilot in Buffalo

We saw a sign for Loretta Lynn's Kitchen and a massive statue of a Buffalo outside the restaurant, along with some old farm equipment, so we stopped to take pictures.

Buffalo at Loretta Lynn's Kitchen in Buffalo 

Antique farm equipment at Loretta Lynn's Kitchen in Buffalo 

Loretta Lynn's Kitchen in Buffalo 

From Buffalo, we were just six miles from Loretta Lynn's Ranch.
We arrived at the ranch, we toured the free doll museum, the Old Grist Mill store, some gift shops, and we purchased tickets to tour the home, Butcher Holler House, The #5 Coal Mine, and Loretta's Museum.

Old farm truck at Loretta Ranch Park 

Bank at Loretta Ranch Park 

Land Office at Loretta Ranch Park 

Wanted Dead or Alive 

The tickets for the whole tour was $25.00 each.

Loretta Lynn Park Information 

Tickets and Colton's coaster 

Loretta Lynn Park Information 

Our tour guide, Brooke, took the group up the hill, up several stairs to the replica of Butcher Holler, Loretta Lynn's childhood home in Van Lear, Ky.
The house had two bedrooms, with two small beds for the eight kids, a kitchen with a wooden table with four wooden chairs and a bench, a coal stove for cooking, an outhouse, and on the back porch was a small washtub where the children took baths.
When Loretta's mother washed cloth she hung them inside to dry to keep them from getting coal dust on them.

Replica Butcher Holler Home

Replica Butcher Holler Home

Walking down long wooden stairs, Indian on the hill

We walked down a long line of wooden steps onto the street, we crossed the street, and we walked up to the simulated # 5 Coal Mine where Loretta's father (Ted Webb) worked until his death. As we walked through the simulated coal mine tunnel, we saw the tools used by the coal miners, the coal & the rail carts they filled with tons of coal that had to be pulled to the top by a donkey; he never saw daylight.

Coal Mine # 5

 Coal Car at Coal Mine # 5

Coal at Coal Mine # 5

Coal Mine # 5

We boarded the tour bus and were taken to the former home of Loretta Lynn (The Anderson Plantation Home).
As we were getting off the bus, we saw several carriages, a massive barn with two beautiful horses. In the background, we could hear a peacock. We all walked inside to the kitchen, which had a large fireplace, chandeliers in every room downstairs. We saw the green bathroom, Loretta's collections inside a cabinet built by her husband, her many albums that were hanging in the hallway and all along the stairway.
We saw her bedroom, and the room with her family pictures, we were not taken upstairs.
The house is said to be haunted by the former owners the Anderson Family.
They were plantation owners with slaves, the mother lost a child at birth and she walks the rooms looking for her baby. Many ghosts have been spotted thought out the house.
We exited out the front door, we all walked back to the paved drive.

Standing on Loretta Lynn's Ranch Porch 

Loretta Lynn's Ranch 

I walked over to the horses, I took many pictures of the horses with my cell phone.
I did not bring my big camera because we could not take pictures inside the house or any of the museums.

Loretta Lynn's Ranch Horses

We loaded back onto the bus, and we were taken to the Museum where Loretta has all kinds of memorabilia.

Loretta Lynn's Ranch Museum

After touring the museum, we stopped to take pictures of the tour bus outside.
We stopped at the gift shop to purchase a couple of postcards, and we left.

Loretta Lynn's Ranch Postcards I purchased

It was very hot and humid so we had enough of walking outside.
We stopped in front of Loretta's Ranch Home to take pictures and pictures of  Hurricane Creek.
We rode behind Loretta's Ranch house where we saw a couple of donkeys, Loretta's present home, and The Anderson Family Cemetery.

Standing on steps of Loretta & Mooney Lynn Hurricane Mills Home 

Hurricane Mill Falls 

Loretta's Home 

Anderson Family Cemetery 

Mules

We left the park, taking I-40, stopping at Colton's Steak House & Grill in Dickson, Tennessee, where we ordered a whole order of Ribs, one baked potato, two Caesar Salads, Tea, Water, Rolls, and butter.

Colton's Steak House & Grill 

Colton's Steak House & Grill 

Colton's Steak House & Grill 

We got off I-40 traveled through Spring Hill, Columbia, we stopped at CVS in Lawrenceburg, then home.