Summer vacation ~ Gatlinburg, TN

Wow, what a fun time in Gatlinburg!  We hadn't been to Gatlinburg before and weren't sure what to expect, but we had a great time. This was our first vacation where we weren't worried about naps, diapers or strollers! Amazing how much easier it is when the kids are a little older. Below are some highlights from our trip.

Day 1 - Sunday, July 5th
We decided to break up our drive and stop halfway to Gatlinburg Sunday in Salem, Tn.  We got there in time to go to Gander Mountain and did some shopping, had dinner and let the kids play at the pool at a brand new Hampton Inn before going to bed.  Then we were up early and hit the road Monday for the rest of our trip.

Day 2 - Monday, July 6th

We drove the rest of the way to Gatlinburg, Tn on Monday.  We arrived just after lunch after a stop at the Bass Pro Shops. We surprised the kids with a cabin in the mountains in Severveille that had a hot tub and indoor pool.  The kids were absolutely ecstatic and ended up playing in both every day.  They decided when we left they liked this house better than ours and that we should move to TN! The only disadvantage was the HUGE hill we had to drive up to in order to park at the house. After some play time in the pool we decided to head in to Gatlinburg.  We had dinner at a fun restaurant called Tom and Earl's Back Alley Grill.  We then walked around downtown Gatlinburg and took the kids on a ride on the Gatlinburg Trolley.  Cole has a love for anything with wheels, but most specifically, buses and trolleys.  He was absolutely in Heaven.  Reagan also thought it was pretty neat to see Reagan Terrace Mall and Reagan Drive in downtown Gatlinburg.

Day 3 - Tuesday, July 7th

On Tuesday the kids were up by 6:30am asking to get into the pool.  I pushed them off until 7:30am and then gave in.  They had a fun morning playing in the pool and then we headed out to find the Little Pigeon River swimming hole.  It was easy to find and there were a few other people swimming in the river in that area.  It was such a fun learning experience for the kids to figure out what it means when a rock is green…yes, slippery!  They also learned that river water may not taste salty like the ocean, but it was MUCH colder.  They had a lot of fun looking at all the different types of rocks and throwing them in the water watching how they made bigger splashes when the rock was bigger or when the water was deeper.  After swimming for a while we went into Pigeon Forge for lunch at the Little House of Pancakes and then did some shopping for cowboy boots.  You know what they say, when in France…well we're in TN so boot shopping was a must!  After some shopping we went back to the cabin and made dinner and yes, more time in the pool.

Day 4 - Wednesday, July 8th

Wednesday we had reservations for white water rafting with one of the 12 rafting companies in the Smokey Mountains, Rafting In The Smokies.  We had about an hour drive and needed to be there 45 minutes early for check-in. So we packed lunches and left in the morning to head to the launch site.  There was a fun playground there with picnic tables so we sat and ate while we watched other kids doing the zip line.  Although Reagan weighed enough, Cole was not able to do the zip line so we decided to hold off on that.  We loaded up on the boats and were ready to raft!  The kids absolutely loved rafting and both did a pretty good job.  Cole sat in the front and loved pushing his limits by standing up and leaning on the front of the boat squealing with joy at every bump we hit.  Halfway through the trip the kids were also able to get out and swim.  We couldn't
convince Cole to get in, but Reagan jumped in and loved floating down river.  It was tough for Reagan to keep two hands on the paddle, but she worked really hard and did a great job!  Although it was considered a "family float" and therefore not classified rapids, it was still pretty bumpy and exciting for the kids.  After rafting we took a bus back to our car and Cole was SO excited about riding the bus.  Not to mention, he picked up a few new jokes from our rafting guide on the ride back.  Next time you see him you'll have to ask him!  After rafting we headed back to the cabin for showers…and yes, you guessed it…more hot tub time!  Then we headed to Pigeon Forge to meet a coworker from Johnny's AOL days at the Chop House.  Although we got home from dinner pretty late, we kept promising the kids they could get in the hot tub at night to see the stars.  So we let them have some time in the hot tub when we got home.  We had a great conversation about stars and constellations.  Cole loves talking about planets so it was fun for him to see the stars.
Sadly we don't see many stars at our house because of the city lights.

Day 5 - Thursday, July 9th
Thursday started with the pool again since it was our last day.  We headed into Pigeon Forge for breakfast at the Pancake House.
Wow, there were a lot of pancake houses including Reagan's House of Pancakes.  Then we did a little shopping, had lunch in Gatlinbug and then headed to Ripley's Aquarium.  This was by far the best aquarium I've been to.  There were extensive underwater areas that allowed you to view sea life from under the water.  It was amazing how close you could get to the creatures.  There were numerous species of sharks and seeing them up close really helped highlight their differences. We also decided to pay for the special penguin

encounter.  I was glad I called ahead because they only do encounters twice a week and only two times each day. It was intriguing learning about how the penguins are being bred and managed across the country.  I was expecting the penguin to feel rubbery, but he was very soft.  Unfortunately Cocoa wasn't a big fan of children so the handlers had to block his beak when they pet him.  But both kids decided petting Cocoa was the best part of our trip so it was totally worth it!



After the aquarium we headed back to the cabin and changed to get ready for our show time at Dolly Parton's Dixie Stampede.  Never having been, we weren't sure what to expect.  I called ahead, but unfortunately all the shows at 3pm and 6pm were sold out for Wednesday and Thursday.  So we purchased the 8:30pm tickets.  They didn't have special seats for the visually impaired, but we did decide to get front row hoping that would help Cole be able to see better.  The Dixie Stampede is a dinner show that starts with a band playing in the "carriage house."
 There is general seating and the band plays banjo style music while you eat popcorn, drink orange smoothies and get geared up for the main event.  They even played Cole's favorite country song, Wagon Wheel.  It was priceless seeing his face light up when he realized what song they were playing.  After the pre-show, everyone is escorted into the main theatre where there is a large ring in the center. There were 32 horses, stunt riders, bison, doves, pigs and chickens set to a family comedy.  There were elaborate costumes and a lot of laughs throughout.  Reagan's face was priceless when she was served a full chicken on her plate.  Not sure she's ever seen a full rotisserie chicken!  She was enamored throughout and especially loved the horses and beautiful southern bell gowns.  Cole wasn't able to see all of the show, but he loved the music and the riders as they passed in front of us.  As the show kicked off our waitress asked the kids if they could run fast….to which both
resoundingly said YES.  She asked if they wanted to chase chickens and they both agreed.  Toward the end of the show she gave us the cue and we walked down to the ring with two other children.  They had been selected for a contest in the ring!  Unfortunately Reagan got very nervous and didn't want to do it.  Cole had to chase a chicken from one end of the ring to the other.  He had a blast and although he didn't catch the chicken, he got a medal and was SUPER pumped about it.  He also got a book that was signed by Dolly Parton as part of her Imagination Library Project.  Such a fun opportunity!

Day 6 - Friday, July 10th
Friday we woke up and packed up the car.  We decide to give the kids some final time in the hot tub before we left.  Then we hit the road and drove back to good ole Virginia making it back in just under 9 hours with a stop for lunch.  We all decided it was a great family vacation and that we will definitely go back again!

We are gearing up for Reagan's riding camp next week.  This will be her third summer in riding camp but her first year doing the full day camp.  Cole will have another week of swim camp (they were both in swim camp last week).  Then we're off to our adventure in Baltimore!