Historic Town

No trip to Franklin would be complete without a visit to, of course, Ben and Jerry's. Never mind that we could drive to the actual factory in Vermont in a few hours, we had to go to Tennessee.

Seriously, Franklin has a lot of History, due to being the site of a battle during the Civil War. Read "The Widow Of The South" which takes place in Franklin, and you'll see what I mean. Lots of boys died, and there is a graveyard, and the famous Carter House, to prove it. But the Carter House looks downright shabby when compared to some of the grand homes we drove by - huge porches and gables and columns and trees... And the folks in the downtown area like to prove that the town is grand by keeping open a number of pricey and interesting shops. Like that soap store that makes it in the shape of food. And the toy store with really sure toys... and the second hand, the boutiques, the craft shoppes...

I took the boys into a craft shop so I could peek at some handmade quilts, and the lady there asked if she could give them crackers and jam... which they eagerly ate, and then walked over to me with their sticky fingers. "Mom! What are you looking at?!" Oh, just a quilt that costs more than you STEP AWAY WITH THOSE JAMMY HANDS!

Also, in case you were wondering, taking Aunt Betty to a Pizza Place called "The Mellow Mushroom" might be a little awkward.