First days

One upon a time. . . or. . .One day last week. . .A Northwest born and raised girl moved to a place called Franklin, TN. She had heard many things about this place, also know as "The South", and some of those things have proven true. These are my observations thus far. . .

A collection of short stories about this journey with her husband, whom we shall affectionately call "The Dad", and their three children.

Our first week in TN: All of our earthly belongings arrived in our new home, on time and in one piece. The Dad was seeing our home for the first time, since I had picked it out without him, on a previous house hunting trip! He was pleased with our new "digs",complete with surround sound, garage with built in storage, and a HUGE lawn to mow. . .full of weeds!(more to come on that)
We were greeted on move-in-day by friendly neighbors bearing gifts of honey baked ham, cookies, brownies, and wine from a local vineyard! Observation #1 People down here are super nice, friendly, and generous!
Day 1
Our first family trip out was to Lowe's, (on a Sunday) to set up house. My son was very observant of the man assisting us in the hardware section and thought it was interesting that he was missing the same two front teeth he was! Observation #2 It is common practice to be missing some front teeth and it's not a big deal!
#3 When going out to Lowe's,on a Sunday, you may be the only family not in "church clothes" if you skipped that week!
Day 2
After touring the beautiful stat-of-the-art new school and enrolling the two oldest. The youngest and I set out to get some coffee and a bagel for breakfast together. After driving around for two hours, because I was getting lost and discovering new stores along the way my youngest asked why everyone in TN is named "Ma'am"?! Or, if I was now called "Ma'am"!?  Observation #4 everyone is Ma'am or Sir
We finally had our bagel and she cheers whenever Mommy doesn't get lost!
#5 People don't flip you off if you drive 10 miles under the speed limit on the Hwy or make a last minute turn off the road.
Day 3
School is a bit harder here academically, but the kids are doing amazing at fitting right in and are making lots of new friends! They already had a play date with the neighbor kids, who are the same age!
I love cooking in my new, bigger kitchen, making our beautiful house a home, finding places with all our great storage options and drinking iced tea all day long. . .it's kinda hot here!
Observation #6 People drink lots of sweet tea! And if you ask for tea, it's gonna be SWEET, unless you say otherwise.

My mom has just gone home after spending the last 5 days with us, we had a great time exploring more of this great town, shopping and dining, getting lost and drinking more fruit tea! Observation #7  Store owners or grocery clerks etc. will talk to you all day, like you are there old friend from up the road, even if you have just met them! Even the bank teller will sit and chat and invite you to a cook-out!

The Dad and I had our first date night out! Thanks to Grandma. Drove around. . . a lot. . . looking for quaint place to sit and chat over coffee after dinner. If all else fails, you can go to a Starbucks!
Observation #8 They have lots of Starbucks, but the don't know how to make a descent Americano! After all. . . it isn't Seattle.
Observation #9 A cold spell is when the temp dips below 60, then people will wear boots and a parka to church!
Observation #10 It's green, lush and beautiful with amazing birds and bright, sunny cloudless sky! (The Dad hasn't lost his sunglasses yet, because he wears them every day. . .it's a record!)