Little Cabin and The Woods

We decided a few months ago that no matter what it cost, no matter what we had to sacrifice, we would go on a family trip over Spring Break. Because of Handiman's work schedule he hasn't had a vacation in 3 years. We hadn't spent more than a long weekend together as a family during that time and we desperately needed a change of scenery. So on the day after Easter we headed to the Great Smoky Mountains

We are of the belief that half the fun is getting there so we went all out. We stopped at Cracker Barrel for breakfast on our way out of town then we found the most redneck country classic station on the radio and sang along to Loretta Lynn, The Oak Ridge Boys and Crystal Gayle for hours while The Ocho enjoyed Selena Gomez on her MP3 player. She has no idea what fun she missed.

When we pulled into town we set out to find our cabin in the mountains. It turns out it as very close to the top of the mountain. It was truly one of the scariest rides of my entire life each and every time we had to venture out or back again. Once we were there, however, things were grand. The Ocho especially loved her set-up. She had the upstairs loft all to herself which included a air hockey table, her own TV and a king sized bed:

On our first day we kicked things off by riding the air-tram in Gatlinburg which takes you straight up and over the mountains and gives some of the most spectacular views imaginable.

The next day was all about enjoying nature and wilderness living. We spent the morning hiking in the National Park. It was a 3 miles trek up to Laurel Falls and back and The Ocho completed with with very little whining. Very impressive.

I'm pretty sure this was the first time I'd ever seen a natural waterfall up close and personal. God had a few show-off moments on this trip and this was definitely one of them:

That afternoon we traveled to Walden Creek Stables for a trail ride. It was to be The Ocho's first time on horseback and I was just a little excited. I grew up loving horses and had 3 of my own as a teenager. Of course, it had been a few decades since I'd ridden but it turns out it's alot like riding a bike. We knew our ride was ordained when we found out our horses names. The Ocho was assigned to "Sweetheart" and I was given a horse named "Alabama". Perfect. I suppose Handiman was expecting a horse named "Ty Pennington" or "Bob Villa". Instead he got a horse named "Bill". That's it. Just Bill. Oh, he tried to spruce it up by calling him "Wild Bill". But, he was just Bill.

Ocho & Sweetheart:

Me & Alabama:

Handiman and (just)Bill:

On the hottest day or our vacation we chose to go to Dollywood, as did every other tourist in the southeastern United States. The lines were long. The sun was hot. The food was over-priced. All was as it should be. I only snapped one picture all day. It was us waiting in line for the Thunderhead roller coaster (which is awesome by the way).

Rain was in the forecast for our last day so we made plan to visit the Wonder Works museum. We got there a few minutes after it opened, bought our tickets without waiting and walked right in. Of course, within an hour all the people that had gone to Dollywood the day before showed up. We managed to spend a few really fun hours playing before becoming exhausted by the crowds and leaving. On our way out, the line for tickets was all the way into the parking lot. Perfect timing. Before we split we managed some fun stuff.

Like rock climbing:

Walking on the moon:

And dancing on a giant piano:

We had a great time just being together and made some sweet memories. Hopefully 3 more years won't pass before we do it again.