Desiree & Isabella
Rhett & Olivia
Brian Anthony & Micah
At the entrance of Wonder Works
Micah laying on the Bed of Nails
Tony beating everyone in Putt-Putt
Micah striking a pose!
Rhett concentrating on the game!
Tuesday was "Hello Kitty Day"
Hanging out at the creek
Wading in the water
family pic
Blair taking time out for a smile
At the cabin
Here's a recap of our week in Gatlinburg:
Sunday: We left after church, stopped to eat at Wick's Pizza while Beth & Josh dropped off their dog, and then were on our way. It was about 7 or so when we got to our cabin. We unloaded everything, decided who would sleep in each room/area, and then Beth and I header to the grocery store while Tony and Josh stayed with our kids who spent most of the evening going back and forth between the hot tub and the theater room.
Monday: Beth took family pictures of everyone on the balcony before we left, and then we all headed up to the mountains for some sight-seeing adventures. We stopped several places for some pictures and to let the kids play. Then, we headed to the shops in Gatlinburg. Beth went on home to make sure her kids had naps and to get tickets to a show they were seeing that evening. We split up between the girls (Tabby, Cindy, Blair, Olivia, Desiree, and myself) and the boys (Danny, Johnny, Rhett, Tony, John, Devin, Brian Anthony, and Micah wanted to go with them). The only thing I bought was a small rolling suitcase for the Blair & Micah to store their American Girl clothes in. Desiree and Olivia had matching airbrush shirts made and I think Cindy bought a pair of flip-flops. That evening everyone else went to the Dixie Stampede and our family went to the Nascar race car track to let the kids ride the little cars, do some rock climbing, and ride some of the kiddie rides. We stopped and got ice cream on the way back to the cabin. Again, the evening consisted of the kids playing in the hot tub.
Tuesday: The guys (minus Brian Anthony) left fairly early to go white water rafting and the rest of us headed toward the outlet mall. Beth stayed back with Isabella and McKinley and just did some small shopping in Pigeon Forge. Micah, Blair, Isabella, and I all had Hello Kitty shirts, so we declared Tuesday to be "Hello Kitty Day." I didn't get a picture of Isabella with us, though. At the Disney Store, Micah bought 4 little Disney Princess dolls and Blair bought a crayon/marker set. I also bought them some flip-flops at Old Navy and some outfits at Gymboree. We met back up after shopping and ate at Olive Garden. We arrived back at the cabin just after the guys came back from their trip. We all just chilled most of the afternoon. Well, except for the fact that the kids decided to play tag through the 3 levels of the cabin. ;) That evening, each family did their own thing. Cindy's family joined us for some putt-putt and then dinner at Texas Roadhouse. Tuesday night was pretty rowdy at the cabin but definitely a good time hanging out!
Wednesday: Beth made plans for us all to eat breakfast together at the Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant and then we all headed to Wonder Works. The kids really liked it! The highlights were the mind game (I can't remember the name of the exhibit), the rock climbing, and laser tag. Each family went on their own when we left so Tabby's family and our family decided to go up to Ober Gatlinburg to do the Alpine Slide. However, due to the winds, it was closed for the day. So we decided just to go back to the cabins. Rhett was really tired and had a headache, so we took a nap. The girls played with Desiree and Olivia and Tony ended up taking his own nap in the theater room. When I woke up, I packed everything except for what we would need in the morning. That evening it was raining, so we all decided to go bowling. Beth found a place on-line and it was clean, cheap, and we had a lot of fun. Tony had a really good night, I can't say that for me. I think I had one strike and one spare all evening. After we left there, all of us headed back up to the shops in Gatlinburg to eat at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. The food was great and our waiter was very entertaining. It was extremely late for my kids, and I was very proud of how well behaved they were because I knew that they were so tired! Micah and Blair actually fell asleep on the way home and Rhett went to sleep as soon as we got back to the cabin.
Thursday: Each family left on their own time. Some were headed straight home, and some wanted to do a little more sight seeing. We went to the Nike and Addidas store at the outlet mall, ate at Chick-Fil-A and headed home. I unpacked and got caught up on the laundry (I had try to do a few loads at the cabin, which helped a lot!) and Tony took Rhett to baseball practice. My mom was at our house to pick up the kids as soon as Tony and Rhett got home from practice. She missed them and wanted them to spend the night. Although we had a great vacation, it was nice to sleep in my own bed that night!
It was a fabulous trip with fabulous friends! I'm hoping that this will be the start of a new tradition!
Monday: Beth took family pictures of everyone on the balcony before we left, and then we all headed up to the mountains for some sight-seeing adventures. We stopped several places for some pictures and to let the kids play. Then, we headed to the shops in Gatlinburg. Beth went on home to make sure her kids had naps and to get tickets to a show they were seeing that evening. We split up between the girls (Tabby, Cindy, Blair, Olivia, Desiree, and myself) and the boys (Danny, Johnny, Rhett, Tony, John, Devin, Brian Anthony, and Micah wanted to go with them). The only thing I bought was a small rolling suitcase for the Blair & Micah to store their American Girl clothes in. Desiree and Olivia had matching airbrush shirts made and I think Cindy bought a pair of flip-flops. That evening everyone else went to the Dixie Stampede and our family went to the Nascar race car track to let the kids ride the little cars, do some rock climbing, and ride some of the kiddie rides. We stopped and got ice cream on the way back to the cabin. Again, the evening consisted of the kids playing in the hot tub.
Tuesday: The guys (minus Brian Anthony) left fairly early to go white water rafting and the rest of us headed toward the outlet mall. Beth stayed back with Isabella and McKinley and just did some small shopping in Pigeon Forge. Micah, Blair, Isabella, and I all had Hello Kitty shirts, so we declared Tuesday to be "Hello Kitty Day." I didn't get a picture of Isabella with us, though. At the Disney Store, Micah bought 4 little Disney Princess dolls and Blair bought a crayon/marker set. I also bought them some flip-flops at Old Navy and some outfits at Gymboree. We met back up after shopping and ate at Olive Garden. We arrived back at the cabin just after the guys came back from their trip. We all just chilled most of the afternoon. Well, except for the fact that the kids decided to play tag through the 3 levels of the cabin. ;) That evening, each family did their own thing. Cindy's family joined us for some putt-putt and then dinner at Texas Roadhouse. Tuesday night was pretty rowdy at the cabin but definitely a good time hanging out!
Wednesday: Beth made plans for us all to eat breakfast together at the Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant and then we all headed to Wonder Works. The kids really liked it! The highlights were the mind game (I can't remember the name of the exhibit), the rock climbing, and laser tag. Each family went on their own when we left so Tabby's family and our family decided to go up to Ober Gatlinburg to do the Alpine Slide. However, due to the winds, it was closed for the day. So we decided just to go back to the cabins. Rhett was really tired and had a headache, so we took a nap. The girls played with Desiree and Olivia and Tony ended up taking his own nap in the theater room. When I woke up, I packed everything except for what we would need in the morning. That evening it was raining, so we all decided to go bowling. Beth found a place on-line and it was clean, cheap, and we had a lot of fun. Tony had a really good night, I can't say that for me. I think I had one strike and one spare all evening. After we left there, all of us headed back up to the shops in Gatlinburg to eat at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. The food was great and our waiter was very entertaining. It was extremely late for my kids, and I was very proud of how well behaved they were because I knew that they were so tired! Micah and Blair actually fell asleep on the way home and Rhett went to sleep as soon as we got back to the cabin.
Thursday: Each family left on their own time. Some were headed straight home, and some wanted to do a little more sight seeing. We went to the Nike and Addidas store at the outlet mall, ate at Chick-Fil-A and headed home. I unpacked and got caught up on the laundry (I had try to do a few loads at the cabin, which helped a lot!) and Tony took Rhett to baseball practice. My mom was at our house to pick up the kids as soon as Tony and Rhett got home from practice. She missed them and wanted them to spend the night. Although we had a great vacation, it was nice to sleep in my own bed that night!
It was a fabulous trip with fabulous friends! I'm hoping that this will be the start of a new tradition!
