The Perfect Plan B

We had a vacation planned at the beginning of May that was supposed to be in Destin. Well, the oil spill happened and we didn't know what to do. There were so many conflicting weather reports about the oil and we didn't wanna take a trip to a beach that could possibly closed when we got there, so we went with our "old faithful" - Gatlinburg!! It's "our spot" so it was fitting that we took our first family vacation there!! This was the first time we had ever taken a vacation just the three of us and it was awesome!! We loved it!! I don't think Destin has even been touched by the oil yet, but Gatlinburg was the perfect Plan B!!

We left a day early and went to see our friends Zach & Whitney, and their little boy, Parker, in Birmingham. Zach and Scotty have been best friends since 3rd grade and we love getting to hang out with them!! They live on Shade's Mountain so Zach took us on a tour right before dinner!! It was beautiful!!

The boys minus Parker (he had to stay behind and eat!!) Zach, Tanner & Scotty.

A sweet hug from a cute little mountain man!!

These two are so crazy together. They're pretty much the same person and when they get together there's not telling what they'll get into!!

They paid no attention to this sign!!

See what I mean!!

Zach, Parker & Whitney

They are awesome hosts!! This was our first time to see their house and meet Parker and they pulled out all the stops!! Thanks, guys!!

Tanner on one of their back porches (they have two!!)

They literally live on the side of a mountain (like...the porches are on stilts!!) and this is the view of the drive way from the back porch. It just drops off!!

A view at sunset.

Tanner & Parker are gonna grow up to be best friends just like Zach & Scotty!! The White's have family in Jackson so we're excited that we'll see more of them when we move back!!

The next day we headed out and made a pit stop at Rock City before arriving in G'burg!!

The Grand Corridor.

He loved hiking through all the rock formations!!

Tanner & Daddy near the Deer Park.

We loved going through all the tunnels!!

Daddy on the swinging bridge. We decided it may not be a great idea to take Tanner across there so Scotty had to go by himself!!

Just the 3 of us!!

These fits used to get Scotty riled up too, but he handles them really well now!! Look at that smirk on his face!! Way to go, Dad!!

Such tourists!!

An Eskimo kiss before going through Fat Man Squeeze!!

The Rainbow Windows.
Lover's Leap

What a view!!

Scotty read all the nursery rhymes to Tanner in Mother Goose Village!!

One last picture before leaving Rock City!!

Playing in the gift shop!!

We drove into Gatlinburg and got a good night's sleep. We stayed at this awesome hotel - Springhill Suites- that was brand new!!! I didn't take any pictures of it, but it was so cute!! The next day was our mountain day at the Chimney Tops!!

Part of the fun is driving around and looking at all the beautiful scenery. Here we are on the way to The Chimney Tops!! (Tanner was asleep in the car.)

Here's the bear cub we saw!! We never saw the mother, but I'm sure she was close!!

By the River at the Chimney Tops.

After the Chimney Tops we went to a local spot called the Y and played for a little bit!!

Then we had a picnic at Metcalf Bottoms!!

After lunch we headed back and had to stop by the grocery store. Scotty got us a lottery ticket, and in case you were wondering, we didn't win!! But it was fun to do!!

We drove back into town and walked the strip. Tanner loved touching the kugel!!

The Candy Man let Tanner sample the yummy taffy!!

Scotty tasted the hottest hot sauce in the world at All Sauced Up and got a wristband to prove it!!

Monkey see, Monkey do!!

Sleepin' on the Strip

Gatlinburg Space Needle

No vacation is complete without a dip in the pool!!

We spent the next day at Dollywood and had SO much fun!! And we caught a ride on the Trolley, which is the best way to get to Dollywood - no lines!!

LOVE this picture!!

Yummy lunch with a souvenir plate!!

Playing in the huge tree house.

He was obsessed with the carousel and would ball every time the ride was over!!

Choo Choo!!

This is the only picture we got of Tanner riding the elephants, but you can't even see him!! I promise I didn't just ride this by myself!!

The Tea Cups!!

A little queezy?

The Pigs!!

The Bees!!

This was a first for Tanner!!! His first ride by himself on the ducks!!

My first lesson in letting go!! =( Sniff, Sniff!!

He loved it!!

Scotty rode the roller coasters before we left and I got some good shots of him!! See if you can find him!! Hint: He's in the pink shirt!!

Where's Scotty?

I'm a total party pooper when it comes to roller coasters!! I hate them so this is as close as I came to one at Dollywood!! It was a seat for people to see if they weighed too much to get on the roller coaster!!

And the Finale!!

Bye Bye, Dollywood!!

Waiting to get back on the Trolley.

We left Dollywood and ate at Happy Days Diner!!

The next day we stopped at The Apple Barn (of course) to get a piece of pie before heading home!!

And here are some pictures that got out of order so I'll just tell you what they are!!

Another one of our Gatlinburg traditions is eating breakfast at Flapjacks. Tanner thought these pancakes were so good he didn't even waste time eating with a fork!!

Tanner couldn't get enough of his Daddy on this trip and Scotty couldn't even look at the computer without this little monkey on his back!!

Looks like Daddy couldn't get enough of him either!!

Continental Breakfast in our PJ's!!

Tanner loved to push the buttons in the elevator!!