Tennessee Trip!

We spent the weekend in Tennessee! We left early-ish Friday morning, loading the van with a single suitcase (because I'm awesome like that), a backpack of electronics, and a large insulated food tote. My kiddos were super tired (except Elias because why not), so they (except Elias) slept a good four hours. Around 11am, we stopped at a Target in Alabama for an in-vehicle picnic before continuing our journey.

Foods to pack:

• Grapes
• Cheese string
• Granola bars (makes a quick breakfast)
• Trail mix (homemade)
• Egg salad and bread for sandwiches
• Juice boxes
• Applesauce pouches

TBH, I packed a bit much in the way of food, but it helped make the trip easier and the snacks will be useful to toss in a bag while exploring Gatlinburg.

Zac woke me from a nap to see if it was alright if we made a stop at Ruby Falls. Duh, Zac. It was actually super cool. Two checks on the bucket list of A: spelunking in a cave, and B: seeing a real waterfall. Cole slept the whole time and we walked a whole mile... Zac had to carry Elias because strollers aren't allowed. Elias' cast may come off the day after we get back, so there's that, ha.

Saturday, we woke up early and decided to head to Pancake Pantry because I was wanting crepes ever since we arrived. The line was super long and we didn't want to stand there in the cold for an hour, so we decided pizza for breakfast, pancakes for lunch. We found a Mellow Mushroom and the kids were so happy. The local one by our house closed up, so we haven't had really good pizza in ages, even though Elias just wanted tater tots.

We headed back to the hotel to drop off leftover pizza and Zac asked the front desk if there were any trails. A few were hiking trails, but since Elias is still in a cast, the receptionist suggested a motor trail. We figured it'd be a good way to see a lot of leaves and mountain views, as well as get off our feet for a little while.

We made it back to the hotel and parked the van, then walked back to the Pancake Pantry (no lines!) right as they were closing... because we didn't realize they closed at 4pm. However, the cashier insisted we come in anyway. It was the fastest we'd ever been served food in a restaurant and probably the fastest any of us had ever eaten as a family (lol). We walked around The Village and explored all the cute cottage-like shops to kill some time before. My favorites were The Candle Cottage, Coffee & Company, The Spice & Tea Exchange, and Celtic Heritage.

Sunday, we woke up a little later than we planned, but enjoyed some leftovers for breakfast before heading to Pigeon Forge to meet up with Jena at The Incredible Christmas Place. It was so magical! Christmas EVERYTHING. And we found an ornament for Cole! We hung around for a short while before having to head back to the hotel for our time share conference. Jena stayed with the kids and they watched a movie and ate pizza while Zac and I (and Cole!) listened to a presentation on how to throw our money in the toilet. But, we were refunded for our trip as promised and headed back to our room. We brought Jena with us to Loco Burro for Mexican food (then caramel apples for the kids) before taking her on the nature drive. We did try to participate in the whiskey sampling, but my driver's license expired (on my birthday), so that was a no-go. Oh well. Nature drive instead. We arrived just at sunset and pictures can't capture what the view looked like in my eyes. Just stunning. Once the sun went down, we brought Jena back to Pigeon Forge to get her car so she could head home.

I was reluctant to check out of the hotel this morning. Zac can tell you that. I was mad to go home, but also sad. Did I mention Gatlinburg is due some snow tomorrow? It SUCKS that we will miss it, even though my logical side tells me it would've been more dangerous to drive home on icy roads. My other side is stamping a foot and holding a grudge.