I figured that I better hurry up and get a post in about our recent vacation, or it might not happen at all! That’s just how things have been around here these days – ha!
We tend to do family vacations and have lately been alternating between my family and Kevin’s. Over our spring break trip to visit Kev’s family, it was decided that we’d all try and head to Gatlinburg, TN for our summer vacation. With our tight budget these days, I wasn’t sure how it would work only having 2 months to come up with the money, but the Lord was so faithful in providing all the funds. Kevin had some money for extra duties roll in and had been working extra events at school and mowing yards to help with our spending money.
We left for Tennessee the day after Kevin’s final day of school. I don’t know about him, but I was giddy about getting away as a family for an entire week. I was thrilled to spend some good time together and also have Kevin around during the days (it’s such a treat for me to have him around to help with Savannah!). Savannah did really well travelling, although our 7.5 hour drive took more like 10 hours with all the stops to feed Savannah (and ourselves). But, we took our time and enjoyed the journey. Life is more about the journey than the destination anyway, right? 🙂
We stayed in a chalet way up in the mountains in Gatlinburg, TN the week of June 18th-June 25th and had a wonderful time. Here’s a little rundown of our trip in case any of you plan to visit there.
Sunday – We spent most of the morning relaxing, but did make a trip to the grocery store to stock up on food for the week. Since this was Father’s Day, we let the dads decide where to eat. Can you believe they chose Pizza Hut?
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| Can you tell MawMaw (especially) and PawPaw were in heaven? |
Monday – We rode the Tram into the town of Gatlinburg and spent the afternoon there. The Tram is basically a car attached to a cable that runs from the ski resort area down the mountain to the valley where the city of Gatlinburg is located. It was a nice way to see the city as we came down the mountain. We walked up and down the main road in Gatlinburg and looked around lots of shops.
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| On the Tram |
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| Savannah was a real trooper! |
Tuesday – We spent the day in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. We had a picnic lunch at one of the picnic areas – we were planning to eat by the stream, but it was super crowded and ended up raining. The rain stopped by the time we got to one of the overlooks. We continued up the mountain to Clingman’s Dome. From what I was told, it’s the highest point in the Great Smokey Mountains, so it is quite a view. The climb up was a huge reminder that I need to get back to exercising regularly, but we made it just fine!
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| Thank the Lord for husbands who are willing to push a stroller up Clingman’s Dome! |
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Wednesday – We went and had a late lunch/early dinner at the Dixie Stampede in Pigeon Forge, which is only about 8 miles from Gatlinburg. We enjoyed eating a southern meal without utensils and watching the North and South compete in various “events.” The Eddins family let me sit with them on the Confederate side of the arena (I continue to remind them that I have spent more of my lifetime in the South than in the North- I spent part of my childhood in North Carolina and my middle and high school years in Maryland) even though they claim that I’m a Yankee. And in case you forgot who won the Civil War, the North also managed to pull off a win at the Dixie Stampede.
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| Getting ready for the big show by listening to some bluegrass music at the pre-show. |
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| Us waiting for the show to begin. |
Thursday – We ate lunch out at a local BBQ place and then headed to town to play some miniature golf at the world renowned Hillbilly Golf. It was recommended to us by some friends and I have to admit that it was a ton of fun. The course starts at the top of the hill in the trees and then you play your way down. I wasn’t sure how I would do playing with Savannah in the Baby Bjorn (strollers weren’t allowed due to the steps), but I did pretty well considering. Later that night, we also drove over to a mountain near Pigeon Forge and climbed up an old fire tower. I am seriously getting way more fearful in my older age, because I almost didn’t make it up to the top. I’m glad I pushed myself through the nerves because it was a remarkable view.
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| Being silly while playing mini golf! |
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| Can you tell I’m holding onto the rails of the fire tower for dear life? |
Friday – We spent the afternoon visiting the Arts and Crafts Community in Gatlinburg. Kevin totally surprised me when he took the initiative on this excursion. I had no clue he would be interested in seeing homemade/crafty items.
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| Having some fun outside the Christmas shop! |
We had a wonderful trip and enjoyed lots of good family time! This was my first trip to Gatlinburg and the Great Smokey Mountains, so I was glad I got to see something new. I will always be a beach girl at heart, but it’s so nice that we live in a country that has such diverse climates/geography to enjoy and celebrate! And to think that God spoke those beautiful mountains into existence just blows my mind! He is a mighty God!
Gatlinburg looks like a lot of fun! I think we are only a few hours from there so we will have to plan a trip to check out some of the things you wrote about! So glad you had a wonderful vacation with family! Savannah is growing so fast! She is beautiful!