Gatlinburg, Day 2 (and 3)

On Friday, we spent several hours in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Prior to coming on this trip, Kyle and I had recently talked about going there to spend some time on the trails, etc. Many of them were closed in the winter (and we were thinking when the girls are a bit older than 1!), but we did get to check out the Sugarlands visitor center, the museum, some of the auto touring and the Cades Cove scenic loop.

The journey back "home" was a bit hectic, as the girls were very tired and very hungry. We eventually made it back to the hotel for some downtime, though naps were a bit wonky (read: nonexistent) at that point.

When everyone else returned from the Park, we all hung out at Terrie's again for an early dinner. In the evening, our immediate family and Kim, Ayed and Abdullah went to Ripley's Davy Crockett mini golf (one of our family's favorites!). It was a bit more trying than we expected, to say the least! We brought the girls along specifically because we knew they'd enjoy the course. Instead, because they hadn't really slept all day, they were a little bit harder to deal with and very much in the way! :) It was fun to have them along though, especially watching Elise take her "turn" throwing her ball into the cup. We had a really great time, despite the extra hazards! (Sorry for the lack of photos there, but we had two very good excuses...)

As quickly as the trip had come, it was nearing an end. We went back to the room to put the girls down and pack. It had been a quick but fantastic little getaway!

On Saturday morning, as soon as everyone was up we loaded the car and were on the road. We made a quick stop at the Old Mill in Pigeon Forge (wishing we would have had more time to spend there, since it's a perennial favorite!), another in central Kentucky for lunch, and one more in Florence to snag some good deals at the closing Disney Store (boo!). The rest of the day was a bit thrown off because the girls caught a few cat-naps here and there but no actual sleep after about 10am, but we were able to make it home in a reasonable time and enjoy a huge extended family gathering that evening.

We had a really great time and are so thankful for the opportunity to have spent a few extra days with relatives visiting from around the country and around the world. I'm so thankful for the gifts we got from family to make the trip possible, the fact that Kyle was on a flexible rotation and could join us, etc. It was just perfect for all of us right now!

(Lots more pictures in the January picasa album)