Gatlinburg Vacation

The kids were out of school for fall break so we planned a trip to the Great Smoky Mountains. On our way, we stopped in Hendersonville at Elijah Mountain Gem Mine.

Friday morning we got up and headed to the Roaring Fork Motor Trail. It's like hiking in your car.

This is the gnarled trail to Grotto Falls. A 2.8 mile hike round trip.

Stopping to rest on a log. Are we having fun yet?

Yay, we made it to the falls.

This little guy had to be carried all the way back.

A few miles down the rode, we stopped by this beautiful creek running all along the motor trail.

Trying to get a shot with my little snuggle buddy.

We stayed about a mile from the strip so we were able to walk downtown.

Next we went Hillbilly Golfing. It's a unique mini putt since you ride a train car up the mountain to get to the first hole.

All the kids had to play, no spectators allowed at this place.

Everyone had fun and Aaron keeps asking to go mini golfing.

Evening bubble bath in the jacuzzi tub.

Saturday morning we went to Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies.

This place was awesome! We've been once before about 4 years ago.

We went to several of the exhibits twice.

We were able to see the divers in the shark tank, penguins being fed, and the string ray diver.

In the afternoon we visited the Smoky Mountain National Park. Our intention was to drive to the highest point called Clingman's Dome.

We almost made it. Short by 1000ft.

On the way back down no one except Benny would pose for a picture. What a sweetie!

Sunday was my 36th birthday and all of these special people were there to celebrate with me.

The McMahon's came from Knoxville and my mom drove down the night before.

Kelli brought these yummy birthday treats.

In the afternoon, the grandma's went to the craft district while we went to the Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum.

The museum had tons of cool stuff and interactive exhibits.

After the museum, we walked across the street and rode the chairlift.

Benny sat by me and didn't move a muscle on the ride up. The views were amazing!

We ended our last evening with dinner at the Mellow Mushroom.

Saturday Adventures

I didn't bring my camera for our trip to Salisbury for the day. We took Josh this time to Dan Nicholas Park to the gem mine. We also used our passes to get into the NC Transportation Museum and rode the train for FREE.

We are trying to hike every Saturday. I found a Charlotte hiking guide book, we are using for ideas. The Reed Creek Gold Mine was our first real hike.

It's only about 30 minutes away. The history of this place is so interesting.

We did a self guided tour through the mine, then went hiking on their trails.

Here's Addy at Reedy Creek where the biggest gold nugget was found in NC by a young boy.

The next weekend we went to the Latta Plantation. Benny has rocks, or what he considers gems, rolled up in his shirt.

Love this sweet foursome.

Most of the hike bordered a beautiful lake.

Every great hike should end with a picnic lunch.

Another weekend at the beach!

We went to Myrtle Beach again since it's so affordable and the accommodations are great.

The kids spent tons of time digging in the sand.

We found this little crab. And we even saw some dolphins from our balcony in the morning.

I wish this family picture was closer. We had to wipe our computer and I don't have any programs to crop pictures. At least this way, the very cool tree in the background can be seen well.

We just had to putt putt in Myrtle. This course was awesome. Joyce won!

Last weekend we visited the NC Zoo! The best part was that our passes got us in for FREE.

This zoo is known for it's natural habitats. It's by far the most beautiful zoo I've ever seen.

It borders the Uwharrie National Forest. We took the scenic trip there and it was under 2 hours.

Because of the natural beauty of this zoo, it was lots of walking. We considered it the perfect Saturday hike.

There was luckily a tram to take us back when we were tired of walking.

The kids said it was their favorite part.

I couldn't believe we stayed until closing and Benny was the only one sleeping on the car ride home.

I LOVE U North Carolina!!!