Several weeks ago, Leanne Shirtliffe (aka Ironic Mom) sent out a worldwide (web) call to temporarily house her twins, Thing 1 and Thing 2. Not her actual twins, just their internet doppelgänger. For some reason, the post office frowns upon shipping humans.
First stop for the Things, our lovely town in East Tennessee. All the way from Canada!
They're HEEEEEERE!
I knew my Bug and Bean would love to play host to a couple of stuffed toys for the sake of my blog, and I was right. Except sometimes Bug, my creative assistant, was too embarrassed when shooting some of the photographs. Embarrassed for posing with a couple of blue-haired dolls in the middle of the sidewalk/museum/road while strangers passed around us? Amateur.
Bug Welcomes The Things
The Shenanigans Begin
Beanie immediately reached for the colorful dolls, then tried to kiss them, then discovered the unpleasantness of fuzzy lips.
Oh, Hi!
Oh, Fuzz!
Things 1 and 2 were definitely polite house guests (don’t worry, Mom), even when I treated them to some Filipino cuisine as their Welcome-to-Tennessee dinner. I know, makes perfect sense. Especially when we treated them to champorado before shipping them off to the next stop. I figured we could sandwich their first American stop in between some Filipino culture. You know, for culture’s sake.
Filipino-style Chicken Adobo
They ate all their dinner
Afterwards, once released from their long trip inside a padded envelope, they were eager to enjoy the fresh air. Even if it did come with a triple digit heat index.
Everyone loves bubbles, differing citizenship notwithstanding
We tried to fit the Best of Knoxville in the week that we had our Canadian house guests, and did an okay job of encompassing the vibe of East Tennessee. We even managed to visit Hogsmeade by way of our local library. (I had a hard time finding that tricky Platform 9 3/4…we finally found it in the Large Print section.) We also took a day trip to the East Tennessee History Museum, where legendary frontiersman Davy Crockett’s first gun Ol’ Betsy is on display. The Things even got to hitch a ride on the famous (maybe?) historical (definitely) Gay Street streetcar, after getting whisper-yelled at by a curator for touching a non-touchable exhibit. (To be fair, Bug was doing the touching, but I’m pretty sure the Things were egging him on.)
Hogsmeade!
Butterbeer!
Gay Street streetcar
Don't Shoot!
Historical Tennessee Theater
Photobomb!
Beanie and Bug were sad to see them go, but after our allotted week, we shoved them in an envelope and sent them on their way. (But not until they had their bellies filled with champorado, as promised.)
Farewell breakfast
Happy trails, Thing 1 and Thing 2!
Make sure to keep up with Thing 1 and Thing 2’s adventures here, and be sure to check out the talented bloggers along the way who are making it happen!
Meet the Buttrams 
Looks like you guys know a thing or two in Tennessee.
Badump-ch!
Love that! Can’t wait until we get our hands on them. Wait, they are going to be washed from time to time? No? 😉
I briefly considered that a half-second after Bean put her mouth on them, then I figured riding all that way from Canada in hot post office vehicles basically steam-cleaned them.
And we were the first recipients, so there was that.
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You know I’m going to bring the real things someday…
Thanks so much for participating! 😀
Visit! Why should the Things have all the fun and ethnic food?
Great post, Jessica! We’re next!
Looking forward to reading their shenanigans in VA!
That champorado looks delish! Looks like they did well for themselves.
Chocolate for breakfast? There is nothing disappointing about that formula.
I don’t think the Things adventure could’ve started in a better place. My fave pic is the one of Bean posing with them and giving the stink eye. I’m also jealous as no one has ever thrown me a farewell breakfast.
My favorite too.
Farewell breakfasts are a Buttram way of life. On yours and Leanne’s international blog-hop (or, your book tours), I’ll be sure to have a welcome/farewell meal too.
That’s because you never leave, Clay! 😉
What a delightful idea! Leave it to that Ironic Mom! (And you’re never too young for a road trip, right?)
Good to know about the fuzzy lips thing. Will keep that in mind, in my own most excellent (dating) adventures…
There’s nothing romantic about fuzzy lips!
Okay, this post is BLOWING my mind, Ms. B!
My wife and I just got back from a trip (part of which was spent visiting my parents). Anyway, my mother gave me her Thing 1 and Thing 2 dolls to take along / photograph along the way on our trip, too! (which we had actually done a few years before, too)! How BIZARRE! *swami music playing* 🙂
Awesome! I bet we have the same swami song in our heads right now.
You should post your own pictures of the Things around your trip! Except I bet your pictures will be better.
I want chocolate for breakfast more than I want most things.
(not more than world peace and my children’s eternal happiness of course; but maybe next after that.)
So I promise to wax my upper lip if I come to Tennessee, just in case Bean wants to drop a baby kiss on me.
I wouldn’t want to be fuzzy.
Just chocolatey.
Anyway, you brought the goodness to this visit for sure, Jess.
What a nice start to the Things travels…
I will absolutely make you some champorado for breakfast if you visit me in Tennessee. I’ll even sprinkle crushed Coco Puffs on top.
Just to warn you, Bean gives full-on, open-mouthed kisses. And I’m talking, accidental Frenching. (Hence…fuzz.) They’re wet, but they’re delicious.
Her kisses, not fuzz.
Our kids are open-mouthed kissers, too. They watch their mom too much.
I’m glad that Thing1 and Thing2 were well behaved and that you showed them such an excellent time. I am excited to see where they will find themselves on Thing 1 and 2’s Excellent Adventure!!
Yes, they were quiet and well-mannered! And they didn’t mind one bit being dragged around the house by the hair (thanks to Bean’s affinity for blue fuzz).
Way to give them the grand tour of Tennessee! I’m glad they were in good hands. 🙂
We had a lot of fun! Will they be visiting your new northern digs? I’ll bet they have more than two seasons up there! (Summer, Football, Hockey, Snow Drifts?)
Looks like they had an awesome time! And your kids are so cute! I just want to squeeze them. 🙂
But I have to know….butter beer??
Thanks, I squeeze them all the time! Well, when they let me.
Butterbeer is the drink of choice at Hogsmeade, a wizard village in the Harry Potter books. 🙂
That second pic of Bean is good stuff. The classic kids’ taste test.
She makes the most awesome facial expressions fer sher.
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