Meridian, MS to Ozark, AL

This morning Mike took Tinker out for a walk and got a luggage cart on his way back to our room. He put Tinker on it and took a photo of Tinker riding on the cart.

 

We checked out of the La Quinta in Meridian, MS at 8:30 and went to the

Jacksonville, TX to Meridian, MS

We checked out the La Quinta in Jacksonville, TX this morning a little before 8:00 ($81.36 for the room). We stopped at the Denny's near the motel for breakfast and we both ordered the Scrambled Eggs & Cheddar Breakfast (Senior).

We took US-79 up to Henderson and then TX-43 north to I-20 east and stopped at a Raceway in Shreveport at 9:30 to get gas ($1.789 a gal),

We didn't stop for lunch since we had had such a large breakfast and we arrived at the La Quinta in Meridian at 4:30. We did stop for bathroom breaks and to walk Tinker.

After checking in at the motel and checking out our room, we went to the Pizza Hut nearby for dinner and ordered 2 individual pan pizzas and Mike had the salad bar. By 6:00 we were back in our room for the night.

We drove 417 miles today. We used our La Quinta Rewards for tonight's room, so it's not costing anything.

Granbury to Jacksonville, TX

This morning we left Carole's house and started our trip back to the east. Carole offered to make us breakfast before we left, but we said we would just get something on the road since she was leaving this morning to go spend a couple of days with some friends. Carole did give us some snacks to take with us. We were on the road by 8:45 and were heading south to go to Centerville.

We stopped at the Burger King in Glen Rose about 9:15 for breakfast where we had our usual croissants with sausage for Mike and bacon for me with orange juice and coffee.
After breakfast we drove south along county roads and passed through Meridian where I took a photo of the Bosque County Courthouse.

and from there we drove to Waco and then east to Centerville.

I wanted to stop by the Leon County Genealogical Society in Centerville to do some research on Mike's Fletcher and Manning ancestors that lived in that county in the 1800's. We arrived in Centerville about noon and found a parking place on E. Main Street by the courthouse. The genealogical society doesn't open until 1:00, so we walked Tinker and then sat down on a bench and ate some of the snacks that Carole had given us.

While Mike stayed with Tinker, I walked over to the circuit clerk's office to do some research, but didn't find any new information. Then I walked back over to the Genealogical Society's office (it was a little after 1:00) and it was closed. I checked with the office next door and they said someone had just left the society and was going to be gone the rest of the day. I would have called the society's phone to be sure someone would be there today, but they don't have a phone number listed on their website.

But I did get to see the restored courtroom for the district court. It's on the second floor and I took a few photos. The current courthouse (the 3rd courthouse) was built in 1886 on the site of 1858 courthouse that burned down in November 1885. The courtroom was restored to its

Visit with Carole

Yesterday morning we checked out of the La Quinta in Bossier City at 9:00 and paid $55.25 for the room. There was a Burger King near the motel and we went there for breakfast. We both had croissants (Mike had sausage, egg & cheese and I had bacon, egg & cheese), orange juice and coffee.

I did get a call yesterday from Clyde from the Florida Genealogical Society. He is checking over the application I sent in for the Florida Pioneer Descendants and he said that I had omitted correcting a couple of items. He said that if it was OK with me, he would make those corrections for me and then the application could be approved. OF COURSE, I told him to make those corrections for me and thanked him again for his help and advice. Now Mike and Fletcher will get their Florida Pioneer Descendants certificates and I will get a certificate for doing the research. I had also submitted Mike's brother Chris for a certificate and had hoped that it would be approved while he was still alive because he was really interested in the Fletcher family history.

We were on the road by 9:45 and heading west on I-20 to Dallas where we connected with US-67 south which took us to Pecan Plantation where Carole lives. We arrived at her house a little after 2:00 yesterday after driving 255 miles from Bossier City.

This was a difficult visit for us since Mike's brother Chris died just 3 weeks ago on Aug. 27. We didn't come out sooner because no memorial service has been planned yet.

We've spent the last 2 days just visiting with Carole and talking about Chris. Carole is still in

Visit with Lance and Ann

Yesterday morning we checked out the La Quinta in Tallahassee a little before 9:30 - our room cost $46.75 which isn't bad, but it sure is more expensive than our camping fees were.
We decided to not have the free breakfast at the motel and have breakfast at the Cracker Barrel near there. Mike had the biscuit and gravy with sausage and I had scrambled eggs with bacon.

It was about 10:30 when we left Cracker Barrel and we stopped to get gas ($2.039 a gal) before heading west on I-10.

We arrived at our friends' house at 2:00. It has been too long since we've seen Lance and Ann. They are living in a rental house since their beautiful home burned down earlier this year. They managed to get out of the house with just the clothes they had on. The house was a total loss and both of their vehicles were in the garage and they were destroyed.

Lance and Ann are waiting to have their new home rebuilt on the same lot and we drove over there yesterday afternoon to see the progress. The foundation is done and the outer walls are being put up now.

Lance and Ann took us out to dinner last night to one of their favorite

Sebastian to Tallahassee

This morning after breakfast we loaded our suitcases and Tinker's bag into the car and left the house at 11:00 and started on our trip out to Texas. Since we were going to spend the night in Tallahassee there was no need for us to get an early start today.

Instead of heading north on I-95 this morning, we drove north on US-1 up to SR-50 just north of South Titusville and then drove west on SR-50 to US-27 at Clermont. We stopped at 1:30 for a late lunch at the Wendy's at the intersection of SR-50 and US-27 before heading north on US-27.

We took US-27 north up to where it intersects with I-10 east of Tallahassee and then drove west on I-10 to Exit 199 to get to the La Quinta where we are spending the night. We arrived here at the La Quinta at 6:00. After checking in at the front desk, we went up to our room to check it out before heading out for dinner.

We drove down to El Jalisco Mexican restaurant on US-27 South for dinner. We both ordered the Steak Fajita Quesadilla for dinner and ice tea. By the time we got back to the motel from dinner, it was 7:30 and we were ready to relax.

We drove 352 miles today and tomorrow will be a really short trip when we stop in Pensacola to visit our friends Lance and Ann

Trips to Kissimmee and Ft. Lauderdale

We took our new Subaru Outback on a road trip over to Kissimmee. My brother Cyril has been having health problems and is in a rehab facility there. We met my sister-in-law at their house and took her out to lunch at Perkins Restaurant before going over to visit with Cyril. We stayed for a little over an hour and had a good visit with him and Elaine before it was time for us to head back home.

I got an email from Clyde who is the final reviewer for the Florida Pioneer Descendant application and he said that I needed to write a Statement of Proof for Mike's great-grandfather William Howe Fletcher, Jr. linking him to his parents. I had to state what documents I had (there is no birth certificate since he was born in 1845) showing his