Gatlinburg weekend

We were able to sneak in our first family vacation this past weekend. Since the last few weeks have brought some stress & our 5th year anniversary is coming up, we felt a vacation was in need. Gatlinburg was the place of choice since it had an indoor water park (the largest in the southeast), an aquarium, & an about 4 1/2 hour drive. Logan took Friday (Sept. 23rd) off so he could pack the car. We left as soon as I got home from work which was about 4:30pm. Stryker surprised us on the ride up by only sleeping for 30 min. I kept him entertained in the back with movies, books, drawing/coloring, throwing the ball, tickling, music, snacks, & anything else that came to mind. Trying to keep a very hyper child still in a car seat that long is challenging. We only stopped once to stretch our legs & grab a bite to eat at Wendy's. We checked into our hotel (Fairfield Inn & Suites in Gatlinburg) that night only to find out that Stryker did not want to be in a different place. He cried, pointing to the door, & saying "door door" in a pitiful voice. It took awhile for him to calm down & fall asleep between us. He slept all night & woke up talking as usual. We dressed for the day & headed down to eat breakfast in the hotel lobby.





The picture above is Saturday morning's breakfast which included waffles, doughnuts, muffins, fruit, & juice. We left the hotel headed to Pigeon Forge for a day at The Wilderness at the Smokies. It's about 66,000 sq ft of indoor water fun! Unfortunately, we didn't realize that this was a resort that only allowed guests to enjoy the park. They graciously told us that if we sat through a sales pitch, then we could enjoy the park for free. Guess we can thank Stryker for getting us this special pass. I mean, who could say no to our handsome boy?!

The water park had a roped off area specifically for little kids. There were slides, swings, etc that Stryker could not get enough of. He kept wanting to slide down on his feet...such a dare devil!

sliding down fast

pointing to something that he wants to do

my 2 favorite guys

this boy LOVES the water

swinging in the water

go higher mom

After the water park, we headed to The Tanger Outlets. I'm not a big shopper so we only hit a few stores Saturday afternoon & then a few more on Sunday before heading home. Of course, we bought mostly for the little guy. Stryker decided he was happier riding on Logan's shoulders while walking around the mall. Every time we passed by someone, Stryker would say "hey" while waving his little hand. He loved all the attention.

We ate dinner at Captain Jim's seafood buffet before driving to Gatlinburg's main strip. The waitresses stayed at our table most of the meal flirting with Stryker. Little boy, you're an attention hog! They gave him a yellow balloon & a toy. The above picture is how wide-eyed Stryker stayed the entire ride around Gatlinburg. He loved all the lights & people passing by. Can't believe he actually stayed in the stroller the whole time.

It's Herbie!

Saturday night, Stryker was trying to figure out how to fall asleep while holding his blanket, teddy bear, & balloon. Such a determined little boy.

Sunday morning

The Ripley's Aquarium was top priority Sunday morning. Stryker had an amazing time! It was worth every penny.

In 2006, a shark attacked the glass & they still don't know why.

Spider Crab

Stryker thought this penguin was a duck & shook his hand while saying "quack quack." Priceless.

We ate a late lunch at The Apple Barn. It was delicious. Stryker was restless at this point & wanted to stay watching the display of birds. The birds were enclosed in a big fish tank looking thing that allowed them to fly around. Stryker was amazed, so Logan & I took turns taking him up front. Hey, whatever works right?! Stryker again only slept about 30 min on the way home. We really enjoyed our mini-vacation. It was the perfect remedy for our loss, Stryker's upcoming surgery, & upcoming 5th year wedding anniversary. Maybe next vacation can be for a little longer.