We had a wonderful little get-away earlier this month for our annual trip south to the Great Smokies Gift Show, though we were disappointed with the offerings this year and made only one order for the Gardens. Actually we didn't spend as much time at the 2 locations for the show because we had car trouble; the starter on our Element went out. It might have been a huge ordeal if it had gone bad on our previous stop at a waterfall on a 2-track road 8 miles out of Gatlinburg. But fortunately it stopped dead in front of our motel on the main street. We learned that for us there was no better place to break down---a very prompt and reasonably priced tow-truck driver and ditto on the mechanic. That combined with the kindness of a local police captain, the next day we were on our way to Greensboro to see Laura and Bob only 3 hours late. Before the breakdown we enjoyed some wonderful weather for hiking. It was rainy in Greensboro, but that didn't dampen our time with the kids. Now back in Grand Rapids, we're enjoying our first snow at the Gardens. I couldn't resist snapping the palm tree.
