Vacation recap

Whew! We survived our 9 day travel extravaganza/whirlwind tour. We had lots of fun, got to catch up with my family and saw lots! I'll try to recap without boring you.

The following takes place between June 5 and June 14 (sorry had to get a little Dragnet in there).

Fri., 6/5: DH & the kids picked me up from work and we drove to Louisville for the night. A lesson learned....if the hotel directions include "behind the Uhaul store" - you probably don't want to stay there!!!!! (Let's just say I'm glad we were only there to catch a few hours of "sleep" - eeeek!)

Sat., 6/6: We continued our trek into Kentucky (have I mentioned I LOVE that state - it's SO pretty!). We stopped at Lincoln's Boyhood Home & Birthplace - both very nice! We went to Mammoth Caves and the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green. We also stopped for ice cream at Chaney's Dairy Barn - mmmm!!!!!!!!

Sun., 6/7: We headed for Tennessee. We stopped at The Hermitage (President Andrew Jackson's home) - that is quite a place and I wish we had spent more time there. We also made a quick stop at President Polk's home. (Are you getting the theme here?) We checked into our hotel in very northern Georgia and drove to Atlanta for a few hours - we played at Centennial Park and had dinner at Hard Rock.

Mon., 6/8: We visited Chickamauga Battlefield. We had never visited a battlefield memorial - it was very interesting and there were LOTS of monuments and landmarks that were amazing! We continued on to Chattanooga where we visited Point Park and rode the Incline Railway - both were very nice. We took a tour of the Mayfield Dairy outside of Chattanooga - interesting to see how they package and send out their dairy products. We made it to our cabin outside Pigeon Forge around dinnertime. It was great to see everyone!

Tues., 6/9: We took a drive through Smokey Mountain National Park - VERY pretty but oh are those roads twisty!!!! The WHOLE family went to the minor league baseball game (Tennesse Smokies) that night. It was a hot one but we had great seats and had plenty of fun. DS got to throw out the 1st pitch - he as thrilled. One of my brothers and nephews got on the jumbotron - that was awesome!

Wed., 6/10: My sister, brother in law & baby brother left that day. Seven of those of us left went rafting - what a GREAT time!!!! We had an amazing tour guide (the one in camo) who was very familiar area so we learned some about the area and he got us through unscathed. DH, the kids and I went into town that evening - we rode go karts, had a nasty bbq dinner and avoided the storm that came through.

Thurs., 6/11: We drove up to visit President Andrew Johnson's home and to Cumberland Gap National Park. Unfortunately, as we decided to take a hike - the skies opened and it POURED for almost 2 hours. My FABULOUS husband agreed to let this "crazed" fan drive through Kenny Chesney's hometown. (Did I mention my husband is wonderful?!) It was a twisty ride to pretty much the middle of nowhere but I took pictures of the sign (see previous post). Thanks, honey!

Fri., 6/12: DH, DS & I went back to the Smokies to go to Clingman's Dome. Well....as was with most of our outdoor activities - it was so cloudy we could hardly see 20 feet in front of us, misted and was WINDY!!!!! What are you going to do? :) Then we drove into Gatlinburg to see Hard Rock and get a snack.

Sat., 5/13: We left Pigeon Forge early and started the trek back north. :( We stopped in Cincinnati and toured Great American Ballpark. It's a beautiful park! And why should we miss a presidential home here??? William Howard Taft! DS was thrilled that we found a Big Boy to have dinner at. We used the pool at the hotel that night - DD wore herself out, it was wonderful.

Sun., 5/14: We drove to the Lincoln Boyhood National Historic Site in southern Indiana (near Santa Claus). We visited William Henry Harrison's home aka: Grouseland in Vincennes Indiana - THAT was a painful tour!!!! We ate dinner on the road and made it home by 8 that night.

The whole clan:

We covered 2,859 miles and saw 7 states (plus Illinois).

(You should be able to click on the pictures if you want to see them larger)