Going out with a BANG!

Well today was our last day of vacation before making the long drive back home, so we decided to go out with a bang and take the kiddos to Dollywood.

Both Dan and I had never been there but have heard positive reviews. Here's my review, for what it's worth.

First of all, in all the literature that I read, it says that your own food and drinks are not allowed in the park; however, we saw tons of people who brought their own stuff in and nobody cared. We should have done this too because this is where they get you.

The price of admission is relatively in-expensive, at $52/Adult plus Tax (TN state tax is crazy high btw). Kids 3 & under are FREE!!! Happy day! Parking is $8, but if you ride your bike it's free. Note, we DID see a guy riding his bike into the park. I think he's an employee though. Smart guy!

The food is where they get you! They charge $8.99 for a hot dog w/fries, $9.99 for a hamburger w/fries, $6.99 for a kids meal which is either a PB&J or a hamburger meal. Drinks are a whole separate item, as it's $13.99 for a souvenir cup that will get you unlimited refills at .99 cents plus tax per refill. It's $2.00 plus tax for small Bug Juice (fruit punch in a small water bottle with kid-friendly spout) like-drinks for the kids.

Make sure you keep your family hydrated bc it's quite humid. They do have nice fan-water spritzer sprayers throughout the park, which is soothing! They also have a few water rides to cool off on, but we didn't go on them because we didn't want to get wet or rent a locker to put our stuff in. They have family dryer rooms though, which is neat because your family can literally stand in them and dry off (like a huge shower-like stall). Bizarre!

We mainly hung out in the kiddie land area due to our party. After talking with a random local, I learned to take my kids to get measured at a station and they'd get a colored bracelet that tells us which rides that they are tall enough to ride. Sweet! This was very helpful! Olivia got a purple bracelet and Gabe a white with smiley faces on it (I think this is the very basic one ;) he didn't want his on, which didn't really matter, but Olivia liked hers and it helped us and the ride attendants.

We started out by riding the Ferris Wheel, which was really neat to look out over the park. Gabe rode with me and he was a little squirmy. Then we took the kids to ride the Bees, Ducks and Piggie rides. They had fun, but the Piggie ride is a little scary, as the lady sings this weird song about piggies. Gabe thought it was creepy anyway.

Then Olivia wanted to try the kiddie roller coaster, which we weren't sure how she'd do...she LOVED it and ended up riding it 3 times! That girl amazes me with her bravery! She also went in the ride that shouts you up and down in the air and ride that 3 times as well, joyfully laughing the whole time!

We enjoyed part of a show from some rocking chairs by the mill. Word of advice: check out the mill shop because you can buy fresh homemade cinnamon bread! Mmm! It is by far the best food-related thing at Dollywood ever! $5.99/loaf is quite a deal if you ask me.

They have a real locomotive that takes you on a 5-mile jog through the Foothills of the Smokey Mountains. Just be careful because cinder can easily get in your eyes. It's nothing that doesn't go away in a matter of a few minutes though.

We stayed until they closed at 7:00pm and then walked all the way to our car, which was a dumb idea considering that we were in D, and all we had to do was wait for the shuttle. Oh well, we needed the exercise! Plus, it wore Olivia out, as she fell asleep at dinner.

We went to Bennets BBQ in downtown Gatlinburg on our way home. This place is delicious, clean and has great service! It's also cheaper than our McDonalds-type lunch at Dollywood. ~$30 for our families' dinner and it has free parking. Also, note that if you get any of the local coupon books, there's a 10% off dinner coupon for Bennets in it. Cha Ching, there's some of your tax off ;)

Well speaking of tired, it's starting to hit me all of a sudden. Long review made short, Dollywood is a must-see. All employees go over the top to make you feel truly appreciated! From 0-99, years old, Dolly does a phenomenal job at capturing all audiences! Check it out! Now, I'm out! Goodnight y'all!

Vacation Day 6...Olivia's Long Hike

Well today we went on a 3.24 mile round trip hike to & from Laurel Falls. This was a completely paved trail and Dan pushed the umbrella stroller with Gabe in it the entire time, while I walked with Olivia. She did amazing for a 3-year old, only resting a few times. During one of our rests she took out one of her Doctor toys out of her backpack and started to call "Daddy and Gabe and tell them that we are almost there!" Once we reached Laurel Falls she loved the waterfall and noticed that Gabe seemed a little cold and got a bug bite, so she started coddling him. Precious!

Then we went by Townsend to the Foothills Parkway. This was a beautiful drive with fantastic views of both sides of the mountain!

I can't believe our vacation is almost over! Just one more day and then a full day of travel on Saturday...bittersweet! Tonight at dinner Olivia told us that she's had a nice vacation and has enjoyed getting to spend time with daddy, mommy and Gabe!
LOVE!!

Day 5---A Beary Close Encounter

We started off the day by enjoying a lazy morning at the Cozy Nest. Then we packed the car and drove up the mountains to Clingman's Dome area. This is the highest point in the Smokey Mountains at 6,643 feet, but first you have to climb up the paved trail to get there...very exhausting & exhilarating at the same time. It had some fantastic views and was so peaceful & serene as you could only hear the birds chirping. Although once I reached the top, I noticed that Gabe was getting fussy, I took him out of his stroller and noticed that he pooped his diaper but guess who forgot to pack diapers/wipes in the backpack up the trail...Super Mom! I rushed back down the path with Gabe to change his diaper before he leaked again, only to see a cub bear 12 feet away from the path...eek! Gabe loved it though, and I went on by thinking of our safety first. Then Dan took Olivia down the path and they also saw the bear and got a good pic of it. We then got the kids each their own stuffed animal bear at the park gift shop, which I'm regretting now because they're still up (I can hear them) laughing and playing with their bears in bed. Oh well, at least they're having fun and getting along. No harm no foul.
Then after our beary exciting hike, we went to downtown Gatlinburg again to check out the homemade candy shops. There is a neat shop right by The Pancake Pantry in The Village that has a huge window that you can watch them making the candy. We saw a guy making taffy. Very cool! But they're prices are even more than DeBrand's, so we just enjoyed the visit and went own down to the next candy shop for some homemade treats. Then we went to dinner at Best Italian Pizzeria for some New York Style Pizza. After this we were ready to call it a day and headed back to the Cozy Nest to FaceTime friends and family before bed. Today Olivia is thankful for the hills, bears and of course the Cozy Nest! I love her bedtime prayers! Goodnight all! Peace and Blessings!

Vacay Day 4

Today started out with Olivia showing me that she accidentally broke her signature headband. She insisted that we get her another one, but since Charming Charlie is nowhere near here, we tried changing the subject and keeping her distracted, which seemed to work most of the day.

Daddy had a fun-filled day of surprises in store for us. He wouldn't even tell us what to wear, except he told O to pack her backpack bc we were going exploring. Dan took us to downtown Gatlinburg. We parked in The Ripley's parking garage and walked to The Donut Friar...oh my goodness, homemade donuts...so sinfully delicious. I highly recommend this local bakery. Great customer service, atmosphere, and reasonably priced.

Then we walked on to his second surprise of the day, OberGatlinburg. We took the awesome aerial tramway all the way up the mountain. Then we got out and had no idea what to expect. Dan took us to the Alpine Slide area and asked if we thought it would be a smart idea with Gabe/Olivia. I wasn't sure bc it's a huge skylift ride to the top and then 1800' down the slide, but truth be known, I was a little scared of it myself. I finally gave in and said why not, and oh my goodness, it was a BLAST & the kids loved it! Olivia sat with me and Gabe with Dan. We could control how fast we went and it was like we were in a bobsled, totally fun!
Then we rode the tramway back to Gatlinburg and Dan took us to lunch at No Way Jose's Mexican Cantina. It's located right on the river and had huge tasty portions. I'm going to have to workout like crazy once I get back in the Fort bc this is nuts, but it's vacation, right!
After lunch Dan took us for a long car ride to Cades Cove. Gabe & O both took naps, while Dan & I saw Deer, Turkey & horses. It's a beautiful drive and last year we saw bears.
Then we went back to the cabin to relax and I did some laundry. Later on we went out to the Tanger Outlets to look for a headband for O, but no such luck. We then found a Wal-Mart and got some needed necessities, and buy golly, I found Olivia 9 adorable headbands for less than the price of one at Charming Charlie. Sweet deal! The best part was upon leaving Wal-Mart, I felt a trickle on my foot, looked down & noticed that Gabe peed on me. Yes, that's right, he peed thru his diaper, even though I just checked his diaper before going in there. Oh well, I fit right in at Wal-Mart, right. Good times friends, good times!

Overall, despite getting peed on, it was a nice day and the best part of all, I see that Dan is photo journaling our vacation on his iPad! Awesome!

Day 3

Today was day 3 of our vacation and I'm loving the relaxation! There's something special about the Smokey Mountains that calms one. Maybe it's the ever-abundant earth that God has created and being surrounded by the tranquility of it all without the everyday stressful distractions. I feel so blessed that my parents are letting us stay at their incredible cabin for the week and even happier that we could bring our kids with us. I hope they remember this vacation! I posted some of the highlights from our day. Enjoy!