As an end-of-summer hoo-rah, we took the kids on a trip to the Smokies with some friends from church who also have 3 daughters. Terry & I have been to TN together 3 times now, and it has become somewhat of a tradition to kiss the wild-boar head on the wall of the Pancake Pantry. This trip was no exception, only this time Tess got to.
Well, sort of!
Here we are riding on the Tram (big box with glass windows) up the mountain at Ober Gatlinburg
Then we rode on ski lifts further up the mountains
We actually rode a slide down the mountain, but we couldn't take pictures while we were driving our little tobogan-thingies.Megan & I took the babies (Danielle-6 wks, and Tess) shopping one afternoon at the Tanger Outlet mall (a BIG thank you to our husbands for that), while the guys took the older 4 girls sight-seeing. Olivia did the rock-climbing wall at Wonder Works
They stopped at a look-out to take these beautiful shots
We enjoyed our cabin in the mountains with the hot tub, the Dixie Stampede dinner show, and lots of other yummy eating spots. On the last night, we took the kids to Ripley's Aquarium. This was, by far, Tessa's favorite part of the trip. Most of my pictures are of her in absolute awe of everything there!
Here is our friend Megan, and her pretty girls: Gabby- 7, and Sarah, 4 (same ages as my girls)
Here we are touching some horseshoe crabs
There were several tanks there that you could crawl under and poke your head through. We thought these were fun, and great photo opportunities!
Tess liked it, anyways! :)
Lots of good spots for picture-taking...
They stopped at a look-out to take these beautiful shots
We enjoyed our cabin in the mountains with the hot tub, the Dixie Stampede dinner show, and lots of other yummy eating spots. On the last night, we took the kids to Ripley's Aquarium. This was, by far, Tessa's favorite part of the trip. Most of my pictures are of her in absolute awe of everything there!
Here is our friend Megan, and her pretty girls: Gabby- 7, and Sarah, 4 (same ages as my girls)
Here we are touching some horseshoe crabs
There were several tanks there that you could crawl under and poke your head through. We thought these were fun, and great photo opportunities!
Tess liked it, anyways! :)
Lots of good spots for picture-taking...
A very fun trip, and well-needed vacation before school starts back up! I return to work this coming Monday (the 9th), and Olivia starts back on the 18th. Summer is quickly coming to an end. I will miss all of the concentrated time I've gotten to spend with my kiddos this summer. With Tessa being a little bigger this summer and able to swim, play, and participate in what we do, it's been really fun. I guess it will be nice to return to a routine for our bedtime, mornings, evenings, and meals once the school year begins. Yet, there are 4 faces that I will miss for many hours of my weekdays for sure! We have had a blessed summer, thank you God!
FYI, teachers always measure their years from summer-to-summer, rather than January to December. So, this is my "Happy New Year"! Looking forward to another great year. :)
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