Around Gatlinburg

We recently had the opportunity to take a much needed, long overdue vacation. Originally, Dave and I were going to go without the kids to get a break from all the real life we've been living, but as the date approached, we were both feeling like we needed to take them with us. I'm so glad we did. They needed a break from real life, too, and we all needed the time with each other without all the real life intruding on our time together.

We took a long weekend and went to Gatlinburg. We stayed busy but relaxed. We didn't worry about cooking, cleaning, laundry, and who needed to be where at what time for four days. Unlike our recently ridiculous schedule, we did kid-friendly things on a kid-friendly schedule. It really was perfect. They had a blast. We had a blast.

I collected my favorite quotes along the way, and here they are, a summation of our trip from their mouths.

"I not a baby! I me. Wuke." - Luke's response to Ella calling him a baby one night. There is so much truth in his idignation. He proves every day how much he is not a baby anymore. I'm so grateful for a few days of focused family time that allowed me to soak them up.

Daddy pretending to be a sleeping bear.

"Why is Daddy being so funny?" - Ella asked me this at bed time the last night. I had to ask a few more questions to understand, but she was basically telling me that she enjoyed all the play time with us during vacation and that she's been missing it. It was a very poignant moment; one that pointed out a problem in our recent home life. Dave and I haven't been doing enough playing. Since vacation, we've made a point to play more, and in response, some of our daily challenges with them are less challenging. It's not a new idea, but we did need the reminder. I'm grateful for her complete honesty and for the rolling in the floor, giggling play time.

Luke liked yelling, "Yee haw!" at the Dixie Stampede preshow.

"This thing's really moving." - Said in a worried voice, by Dave, while riding the kiddie balloon ride. In general, he and Ella were very cautious about all of the things we rode while Luke and I were more like, "Whoo hooo! Do it again!" I'm grateful for the opportunity to see their little faces experience new things.

"Dixie Stampede!" - Ella randomnly shouted this for a few days after we had supper at the Dixie Stampede. It was expensive enough that we questioned our sanity, but so worth it. We all loved it. I'm grateful for the resources to take a vacation.

"I fly." - Luke said this with wide-eyed wonder when our tram stopped on top of the mountain at Ober Gatlinburg. It was my favorite moment of the entire trip. I'm grateful for the things my children teach me every single day.