Wrap Up

Well, its been over a month since our trip to Tennessee.  I've had time to reflect on the things we did, the places we visited and the fun we had.  I've sorted through each of the snapshots in my mind and have attempted to finish this post.  But I'm never quite sure how to finish, how to summarize what I feel.

It occurred to me, then that I cannot summarize the trip because traveling changes us.  Spending time as a family, sharing experiences, enjoying one another.  We can't explain it unless someone joined us on the journey.

So that's exactly what I'll remember about our trip this summer... the laughter we shared and the memories we made.  The snapshots I took in my head will forever remind me of how we grew.

Thanks for taking the journey with me.  Scott, Tyler, and Sammy... you were each a critical part of how this trip helped me grow and change!  I will never be the same... and I suspect, neither will you!

Trip Home, Part A - Day 8

After a good night sleep, we all took showers and had a big breakfast.  Scott and I worked on getting prepped for the ride home.  Scott took care of the bikes and our tow car last night so today he focused on all the outside prep: water, electrical and sewer.  I worked inside to get cleaned up and stow our things for travel.  The kids were a big help as they are now starting to understand the steps it takes to be ready.  

We pulled out of the Dell a little after 11:00 am.  We were met with some slow traffic as we left the greater Sevierville area but after 45 mins or so, we found our highway and got up to speed.  The kids settled right in!

We stopped at a Loves station in Kentucky around 2:00 pm.  I made lunch while Scott filled up with diesel.  While eating lunch, the boys say up front to watch a UPS truck hook up to a new trailer.  Sammy and I enjoyed our tacos and salad from the comfy dining table.

We were making great time until we hit Cincinnati, OH around 4:30 pm.  There was just no way to avoid traffic... Head west and the highway drops to a single lane over the only bridge to cross a river and the state line into Indiana OR go 20 miles out of our way but right through the city with its Friday night rush hour traffic.

We took our chances with the road work, figuring traffic cannot be too unbearable when you have a bathroom and kitchen along for the ride.  I brewed Scott a cup of coffee and we made the best of it.

We spent just less than an hour in that construction traffic.  I took advantage of the time to bake chocolate chip cookies.  We even offered some to a truck driver next to us.  He was so excited, so I hopped out on the highway and have him some. I think we made his day!

I fed the kids their supper on the road and they settled in to watch a movie right about the time we hit a stretch of rain showers.

We stopped for the night at 8:30 pm at a Flying J in Beaverdam, OH.

We haven't left the RV in 9.5 hrs and have travelled 441 miles.  It's been a big day but everyone is doing great!

After the kids were settled in for the night, Scott and I ate supper... tilapia with broccoli & cauliflower.  Who says you can't eat well while traveling?

Its 10:36 pm and its time to sleep!

Side note:  Sammy left her hair in a French braid so she would have curls today...

Mining, Minions, and Ziplining - Day 7

Today flew by in a whoosh!  We woke up just before 9 and decided to expedite our breakfast and just do cereal.  We were all dressed and ready to head out at 10.

We were trying something new today... I found this place online prior to our trip that offered gem mining.  In essence, you pay for a bucket of dirt that is preloaded with fossils, gemstones, rocks, etc.  Then you take it over to the "river" and sift through the bucket to collect your treasures.  It looked a little hokey from the parking lot but we figured the kids would enjoy.  Boy, were we right!  They LOVED it.  It took about an hour to sift through our bucket, wash our treasure and have it assessed.  The kids were so proud of their collections... amethyst, emerald, topaz, fossilized squid, clam and plants, petrified wood, shark teeth, several sea shells, and an arrow head.

We could take home all of our finds but decided to have one of the amethysts cut for Sammy since its her birthstone.  We'll decide later if she wants a piece of jewelry made.  Tyler had his choice for a souvenir and zeroed in on the Megladon teeth.  He is SO excited about this one!

We wrapped up at the Gem mine and decided to take yet another go at seeing the Minion movie.  And, the third time was the charm!  We got in just in time although we did have to sit in the very front row.  Seriously, I've never seen a theater so small.  There weren't even 50 seats in it.  We all enjoyed the movie and the air conditioning.  The weather was warm today - over 90* - we just aren't used to that!

We headed home to have some quiet time, hoping to be well rested for tonight.  I made supper at 3:45 and we got on the road by 4:30 to head south-east to Pittman Center where we would go Ziplining at ClimbWorks.

This is the same company we used in 2014 and it was gorgeous...  9 zips, the longest over 1250 ft long... At times over 100' off the ground.  It takes about 2.5 hours to complete and the entire way down the mountain you are staring into the National Park.  BEAUTIFUL!

Disclaimer:  Sammy did have a hard time for the latter half of our evening... she just couldn't deal with the heat.  So there aren't a lot of pics of her smiling but we did have a great time.  We had an amazing guide (again) who has experience with autism who helped make it fun for her in spite of her frustration.

At the very end, we got to repel down out of the trees.  It is so intimidating to just step off that platform.  But so much fun!

We headed right home after we finished the zip lining.  Sammy was back to her sweet self once the A/C kicked in and she had cooled down.  Kids were both in bed by 10:00 pm.

We all agreed it was a great week and today was the perfect way to finish!  Tomorrow morning we will pack up and head for home.  

Ober Gatlinburg and Over it! - Day 6

After breakfast and showers, we headed out to spend another day in the Smoky Mountain National Park.  But if yesterday taught us anything, it was the importance of staying flextible.  So after being stuck in traffic for 1:15 hrs and only travelling 8.7 miles, we decided to stop there and spend the day in Gatlinburg instead. 

We found a place to park and walked to the an air tram ride to the top of the mountain.  After the 10 min ride, travelling appx 17 mph, we arrived near the top of the mountain at Ober Gatlinburg. 

 

First the kids wanted to take a ride on the swings.

Then we took a turn on the alpine sleds.

 

 

Next we headed in for lunch and then took a quick walk through their animal preserve. 

 

We headed back down the mountain and back to our motorcoach for a quick rest time before heading out for our helicopter ride.  This was a highlight for me!  It was an 60-mile tour covering Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, the Smoky Mountiain National Park and then the return trip.  There isn’t nearly enough room for all the pictures… but let’s just summarize by saying it was beautiful!  I’m so glad we did it.  Tyler sat shotgun beside the pilot and loved every minute of it!

After our ride, we headed home and fired up the grill for some Ribeyes right from Sobies.  We watched the recording of the dinner show we went to the other night, highlighting Sammy and Tyler’s cameo.  After enjoying a bowl of ice cream, our neighbor Mr Doolittle invited us over to watch the fireworks from Dollywood (from afar).  We did and then it was a bedtime story and tuck in.   

Today was another great day!

My favorite quotes from today: 

• "I miss my cats..."(We all pause thinking how sweet that was) "But I want to stay here forever"
• (At the top of the alpine slide)  Me:  Sammy you remember how to drive these right.  Sammy:  yup.  See, there's a sign (pointing to the directions between her legs in the cart)
• Scott:  Sammy, keep the gun inside the window while we drive (pause). Wow, I thought she'd be older before I had to say that!
• Sammy:  this is my best day ever (as the helicopter takes off)
• (We couldn't figure out why Tyler didn't stop talking the entire time we were in the helicopter.)  When I asked him why afterwards... Tyler: "well, I didn't want it to be awkward... you know, the silence?!?".  We explained that it's totally ok, if not preferred, to have long stretches of silence while using pilot headphones.  To which he replied, "oh, sorry". Ahaha

The Unexpected - Day 5

Well today certainly didn’t go as planned…

We woke up to some heavy rain with storms overnight.  Scott wasn’t feeling good so he slept in trying to ward off a migraine.  The kids played quietly while I did my devotions.  We had breakfast and  based on the rainy weather forecast, decided that we would see a movie at 2:00 pm.  We were scheduled to go zip-lining at 6:00 so it would all time out perfectly. 

I used the few hours we had to get caught up on some emails and computer work.  Scott nursed his headache and the kids did their homework and played.

We decided to eat snacks at the movie and then a hearty meal at 4:00 pm on our way to the zip line place.  However, when we arrived at the theater, the movie was completely sold out.  So, disappointed and really hungry we walked across the parking lot to Five Guys and ate lunch at 2:00 pm.

After that we headed back to the RV.  Scott took a nap while I watched the weather… we had severe storms coming in and 2 confirmed tornadoes.  We called the zip line company prior to our leaving and they decided to cancel our trip.  So, we hung out for a little while longer before deciding to try a new restaurant for dinner.

We landed at a local Pizzeria that the neighbor Mr Doolittle recommends and it was AMAZING!  Everyone raved about our meal… and it was just a pepperoni pizza!!!  They even brought out dough for the kids to play with while we waited and then baked and covered them with cinnamon sugar for dessert.  It was fun!

  

We purchased tickets online for another showing of Minions so we wouldn’t run into the same issues we had earlier.  So we rushed over to the theater right after dinner, only to wait in line 15 minutes.  When we finally headed into the theater we were so incredibly frustrated to find not even a single seat available.  The manager apologized and gave us vouchers to return later in the week. 

Sammy and Tyler handed it like a rock star!  We decided to play mini golf instead.  So we wandered around the mall to the entry to get prepped to play.  EXCEPT that there was an incredibly long backup at the first four holes so we decided not to stay.

Ugh!  We grabbed the Jeep and drove across the street to another course and actually got to play!  Finally, something went right!

 

After golfing, we headed home for bed.  Its been a disappointing day but we made the best of it.  And very likely, the slow schedule and down time is just what we needed!

We Have Arrived - Day 2

It seems like forever-ago since we woke up in our little rest area back in Ohio.  Its been a BIG day!

Our sleep was pretty short considering the day we had yesterday and given that Scott and I have been staying up late nights to prepare for this trip, it definitely could have been longer.  But 7:00 am seemed like a good time to start the day.  It was slick just getting up and having some cereal for breakfast, taking turns in the bathroom and getting dressed.

We recently have showed the kids how to geocache and it just so happens that there was one located at our rest stop... so we walked across the parking lot and looked for treasure.  We found it!  What a great way to start the day... fresh air and a bit of exercise!

We were on the road by 8:30 am... with 6 hours of driving remaining.  It was a smooth ride this morning.  The kids watched a movie before we stopped for fuel (and donuts).  Next the kids and I did Bible and worked on homework.

We decided to stop for lunch and found a McDonalds in a Flying J along the route.  As we pulled in the parking lot, our rear tire dropped into a HUGE pot hole and we had quite a rough ride... I mean cupboards open, stuff falling, the works!  There was no damage but we all agreed to eat lunch inside.

Once we got back on the road, the kids got another set of prizes for good behavior and I went to work on making reservations for our week.  I cannot wait to see how each day pans out... so EXCITED!  While I worked, Sammy took a turn in the Navigator's Seat.

Yup, she looks comfy

We hit a major traffic jam the last 10 miles and that last stretch took well over 45 minutes.  But we finally arrived and set up on our lot around 4:00 pm.  After we checked in, we ate supper and met our neighbor.  Then decided to head out for a little fun.

We didn't have much time so we decided to just do a quick ride on the SkyWheel, a giant ferris wheel in town to check out the views of the mountains.  What we didn't know is that the SkyWheel is at the far end of a major tourist attraction called the Island with musical fountains, games, stores, restaurants, etc.  We parked and walked the distance to get to the start of the complex.  (There goes my planned early bedtime).

Can you even see the Ferris Wheel in the distance?   Yup, that's how far we walked.

But as it usually is, it was worth it!  We had lots of fun on the Sky Wheel.

Then got some yummy treats... Frozen Yogurt and Auntie Annes.

I promise, they only offered one size bowl for the yogurt.

Just to be completely honest here.  The frozen yogurt place was self serve and then you paid by the weight.  So, Scott helped Sammy with the yogurt and then I helped with the whipped cream which she desperately wanted to do herself, and... well, this happened.

 

Let's just say, she was one happy girl!

We took a different route to finish touring the whole space... it really is a cool area and we'd love to come back.

Because it was getting late, we found a tram to take us back to our car.  Then we headed to Walmart for a few things, including a pair of shoes for Tyler.  (Side Note:  Did you know that literally every road trip we have taken as a family (even when he was a baby) we have lost a pair of Tyler's shoes on the ride down???  How is it even possible?  Seriously, we didn't even get out of the RV yesterday except to fill up fuel and its not like he was walking around barefoot... where did they go?)

We made it home a little before 10 and headed in to prep for bed... brush teeth, PJs, and a quick read... Good Night!

Its been a long but really good day!