Incredibly Average: Vernon Family Vacation!

This past week was a great week! My little family went to Pigeon Forge, TN for our first family vacation with our little boy. It was such a great trip. We had a great cabin on the edge of Pigeon Forge so we weren't in the mess of all the tourist stuff. It was a perfect location next to a rolling river. It was three master suites with king sized beds and a huge wrap around porch with a porch swing. On a side note, it also had Bravo which meant I got to catch up on my Real Housewives of New York!

Mom and I went down a day after the boys because I had a bachelorette party for one of my best friends Emily and mom kept Eli so I could just enjoy my time with the girls.

We got an early start at 5:00 AM Sunday so we would beat all the traffic into Pigeon Forge and so we could get there before the boys even woke up. It was a great drive and Eli was an absolute champ.

Our first day there was very lazy. We took naps, sat on the porch and read, watched tv, and played games. That night I had everyone say two things that they would have to do to make this trip the best vacation ever. The combined list included shopping (me and mom), putt-putt (everyone), hiking in the Smoky Mountains (most of us), reading, games, and eating.

Monday opened with a bang when mom and I hit the outlets hard and got tons of great deals! We picked up a little volleyball outfit for Eli and some super cute little sunglasses to complete the look. We then had lunch at the Old Mill and walked around the candy shop and the pottery store. They were both very neat places. Don't worry folks, we didn't walk away empty handed. We got a pound and a half of salt water taffy. Yum! We then spent the evening playing Settler's of Cattan. I won!

Tuesday was another fairly quiet day. We went putt-putting, to a mirror maze and some lazer things too. It was a very fun time. That night at dinner mom asked us all what our favorite part of the day was. My answer, "When Aaron came back to get me in the mirror maze when I was lost and couldn't get to them." It was so true. I was getting a little nervous because the only person I could see was a very large man. It just made me feel claustrophobic to know I couldn't get to Aaron and my family without getting closer to this stranger. So...Aaron saved the day.

Wednesday was our day of adventure. We left at 8:00 AM which is super early for Alex and drove into the Smoky Mountains. It was gorgeous! We walked a mile into a waterfall, played and explored for awhile and then hiked back out to have a picnic by the river. It was truly gorgeous and so quiet. We had the place all to ourselves. It was certainly a challenge to carry Eli, but what a fun day to share with our little family. We finished the day with an amazing dinner at the cabin. We had crab legs and ribs. Yum!

My very handsome and single younger brother. Just sayin' ladies.

Aaron living the dream, hiking with his little boy.

Aaron in the palm of my hand. Haha, yeah right.

My Beautiful Mom!

Putting Eli's feet in the river

Alex blends in with the trees behind him.

Thursday was our last full day and we took it pretty easy again. In the morning mom, dad, Eli and I went to an Indian village in NC. Sadly it was not worth the price so we just looked around town a bit and then came home. We went shopping after lunch, played more games and had a great fried chicken dinner in our cabin.

It was just a wonderful time with family. I miss my family now that they are in Indiana so the time with them was very special to me. Also, it being our first family vacation with Eli made it doubly special.

This is just a few more shots from our trip.