Loving Simple Living – Road Trip

Here is where we started:

Day 1

Here is how we ended:

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Starting the two day drive home today. Originally we were going to come home now. Then when we were leaving we figured we would add on a few days at the end if we could save enough money. Now that it is the end of vacation we are not sure what else we want to see and we have things we need to figure out at home… and we have spent a bunch of money.. so we are headed back as planned.

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Hung out with family today and saw some of downtown Knoxville.  Kids played at the park and we talked.  Camera was out of battery but these are some of the best memories of vacation

This bridge made me a little nervous… Walking it is one thing.  Watching my babies walk it is harder.

The Smoky Mountains are awesome! We decided to get out and hike today because it would be our last chance. I was worried about it being cold but really it was about perfect. (leave with a sweater and then take it off and not get to hot and sweaty hiking). We went up to a waterfall along the Porter Creek Trail off the Greenbrier entrance  It was a really neat trail. We hiked in 1.8 miles and saw lots of old rock walls covered with moss, old graveyard, historic farm, cool bridges, and a waterfall. Someday I want to come back when it is warmer and do more longer hikes. The whole place is just gorgeous.

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Today we had a day to rest, catch up on work, and hang out with family. The day was very long yesterday and we were all tired. I have been fighting some bad headaches in the past week and I was hit hard today. … so a mostly painfully uneventful today but still fun My family is spread out all through the country and now Bryon’s sister also lives far away so vacationing has been a great way to stop and see family that we wouldn’t see otherwise. All our trips have had stops to friends and family on the way

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The day started at 5:30 when the alarm rang and we crawled into the car in search of sunrise and bears. We found both!

Sunrise at the Smoky’s was beautiful  Frost covered all the grass … and really everything, reflecting the early light. We got there just as they were opening the gates to the Cades Cove scenic loop. It was really cold, less than 30 degrees, but from the car the place awesome. Bryon braved the cold to take lots of pictures.

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We got up early and drove up into Smoky Mountain National Park. Thankfully we have super awesome family in Knoxville that are letting us camp out for a few days so we don’t have to camp or spend for a hotel. Family rocks!

By early morning we were in snow and 32 degrees F. Bryon was in photography heaven with snow and waterfalls and I was able to chill in the car, rest, and stay warm.

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Drove up to Tennessee today. We have now been in 38 states as a family (and 2 provinces in Canada). We drove the long way through the mountains and it was so gorgeous. Wow! This corner of the country has both beaches and mountains… and I am not sure what else is important after that

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As we were driving out of Orlando last week Ian found a advertisement for Lego-land. Ever since then he has been asking to go back there and check it out. He loves his Legos! Turns out there is Lego-land all over the country and we found one in Atlanta. We took the pack of cousins there today.

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Got great pictures of the kids with daddy today.

We spent this weekend with Bryon’s sister in Georgia. The cousins immediately started talking and playing when we arrived last night and have been talking and playing all day. It is so cute to watch them play, they are all so good together.

In the morning we went and explored the Berry College campus. Beautiful stone buildings, amazing architecture, huge forests. I had never heard of it before but it looks like an awesome place to go to college. Bryon loved it for taking pictures!

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