Syon Abbey - Blue Ridge Parkway, VA

There usually are many trees lining the road along the Blue Ridge Parkway. To our surprise the trees open up about Milepost 145 to a huge green field and a stunning monastery in the distance. Syon Abbey is a Benedictine monastery that sits on 243 acres and houses. There are no signs naming or calling attention to the monastery or the monks that live there. It took me a while to find its name and learn about this monastery. Privacy clearly is important to these monks. You can contact them and arrange a visit if you follow the link above. Wish we would have known that earlier.

I love these kids! Thanks for appeasing me with some photos!

After stopping to admire the Syon Abbey we headed into Roanoke for our last visit there before moving in the spring.

Braxton always is my photography buddy!

We love the Roanoke Star and have a family tradition of always taking a photo with it when we visit Roanoke, VA.

Roanoke, VA is so picturesque!

Rakes Mill Pond - Blue Ridge Parkway, VA

We love the Blue Ridge Parkway!

One of the stops along the Blue Ridge Parkway is the Rakes Mill Pond at Milepost 163.0. It has a lovely, gentle waterfall. 

Love these kids and the way they dress themselves.

Our family's favorite reasons for visiting Rakes Mill Pond are the salamanders. My kids get the biggest kick out of finding them. The water happened to be quite murky on this visit, but Hotch succeeded in finding one salamander. Love its little orange spots!

Glad we were able to make a stop here. It is always quiet and peaceful. 

Jack's Creek Covered Bridge - Woolwine, VA

After visiting the Bob White Covered Bridge we headed over to the Jack's Creek Covered Bridge. One of the most endearing things about Braxton is that he names everything. All of his stuffed animals and the people in his imaginary worlds have names. He has some favorite names: John, Jonathan and Jack. When I told him we were going to see Jack's Creek Covered Bridge he was stoked. Jack is one of the best names ever, according to Braxton.

This view is stunning! We were all taken by the quiet tranquility and crisp green of the grass. There was a home right across from the bridge and above Jack's Creek. We all wished we had a home here. Braxton wanted to live by Jack's Creek forever. 

The kids had a blast quietly snapping shots of what they believed was photo worthy. I inserted some of them below my own.

A storm had come through a few days earlier so most of the trees were bare, but the trees with leaves were still gorgeous. 

Right before we entered the Blue Ridge Parkway we caught sight of the some darling cows munching on pumpkins. It was so neat!

I love the bridges along the Blue Ridge Parkway!

Bob White Covered Bridge - Woolwine, VA

The Sunday before the presidential elections we took a mental hiatus. (Things got really heated and critical before this year's elections.) We decided that a lovely drive through Virginia is just what our family needed. Hotch noticed on the map that there were two covered bridges nearby as we headed toward the Blue Ridge Parkway. We love checking out rare attractions so after a unanimous family vote we headed through back roads to them.

After driving through the most gorgeous countryside and seeing such picturesque views as in the photos above we arrived at the Bob White Covered Bridge. It was just far enough off the road that we almost missed it.

Honestly, these are my favorite people because they are such a unique brand of awesome. I love how their personalities show up in these photos.

Delaney and Braxton were nervous as we crossed the bridge on foot because the boards creaked and moved beneath us. Hotch started jumping on the bridge to make it shake which really didn't help at all. Leave it to Hotch to enjoy himself thoroughly at our expense! The little ones took lots of pictures once they noticed the creek below through the cracks in the bridge.   

Let it be known that I love bridges. Covered bridges are especially full of charm and even a bit eerie. (They always remind me of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving circa 1820. Love Walt Disney's 1949 cartoon version.)

My favorite part of bridges are their beautifully symmetrical trusses. The light inside the bridge lent itself to some great truss shots.  

On our back to the car Delaney discovered Pride Rock. You can't discover Pride Rock and not reenact the scene from The Lion King.

Watching my gorgeous girl while in this gorgeous location made me sad that she is almost a teenager. Miss her being a little girl.

Aren't these fall leaves exquisite! I love all the different hues. 

We really enjoyed this gorgeous place. Since we had a blast at the first covered bridge of the day we were stoked to get to the next one.