Our sojourn into the South began and ended in Atlanta. My parents arrived a day earlier and saw a few extra sites, including the house of Margaret Mitchell, author of Gone with the Wind. This ended up being my mom's favorite spot on the entire trip.
Before moving to the highlights of Atlanta, I need to give a shout out to Delta airlines, which I flew direct from LAX to ATL. I have written off United and American Airlines as terrible domestic airlines, and now actively try to fly Delta when possible. The service is a step above American and United. I recently learned that Delta has a non-unionized workforce. I wonder if Delta employees are especially compensated on customer service. I recently flew Delta direct to JFK had a good experience as well.
Here are the highlights of Atlanta:

I missed this attraction, so hopefully my mom will comment about this in the comments area. I have seen Gone with the Wind, but have not read the book. Maybe I will someday.
World of Coca-Cola

CNN Center

Atlanta Cyclorama & Civil War Museum
The Cyclorama, located in historic Grant Park, is interesting way of telling the story of the Battle for Atlanta (which the Yankees won). It is one of the largest of its kind.
Atlanta History Center
The Atlanta History Center is amazing. Our time was cut short here since I had to fly back later that day. However, we had enough time to go through the Civil War exhibit. If you know nothing about the Civil War, or even if you have a solid understanding, this exhibit is worth it. It will fill in the gaps in your knowledge.
Silver Skillet

Up next, Charleston....