The worst thing about vacations is that they never last long enough. If you think time flies when you’re doing the mundane, that’s nothing compared to how fast time flies when you’re doing something fun, like taking a vacation. We just got home yesterday, but if I had the money, I’m more than ready to take another. Vacations with family are the best. Unfortunately, not all of my clan was able to go on vacation with me, but I’m hoping that soon we’ll be able to do a huge family vacation. For this adventure, it was just Nicole, Travis, Ashley, Mady, Lily, Jimmy, and me.

We left on June 15 for Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. We stayed at Sunrise Ridge in a unit with two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, two baths, and a balcony. We’ve become pretty spoiled and generally stay only in a place where we have room to spread out. Having a full kitchen, complete with dishes and a dishwasher, allowed us to cook breakfast and dinner in our room every day, which saved a lot of money. We did eat lunch out every day, and we chose lunch because lunch menus are generally cheaper than dinner ones when you’re eating out. The fully furnished room also came with a rocker/recliner, and with a baby and a toddler in the group, having a rocker is very important. A washer and dryer allowed us to leave with clean clothes. And having two bedrooms and two baths allowed for privacy. As I said, we’ve become spoiled and the regular room at the Days Inn just doesn’t cut it for us if we’re staying for more than one night’s sleep. The location of our room also allowed us to sit on the balcony each night and watch Dollywood’s fireworks show. We also made use of the swimming pool and playground. If you are going on vacation for a week, it’s well worth it to rent a place like this.

We traveled to Gatlinburg one day to take the girls to Ripley’s Aquarium and to Knoxville to take them to the Knoxville Zoo. Both of these were successful trips. The adults in our group have made numerous trips to aquariums and zoos during our lifetimes. What’s amazing about these visits is that you get to see everything through the eyes of the kids. Too often as we age, we lose the wonder of the world around us. Watching as the kids see these sights and animals for the first time serves as a gentle reminder that there is still awe and wonder in the world. We just have to take the time to see it. We also went out one day and let Mady ride the kiddie carnival-type rides on the strip in Pigeon Forge. Seven tickets cost $15, but for an almost two-year-old, that was plenty. She loved the rides, but by the seventh ride, the day was getting hotter and she was more than ready to move on to something else. During our trip, we also went to the Smoky Mountain Knife Works and the Old Mill and Apple Barn districts. We avoided the outlet malls, though we did pay one visit to a bookstore while we were there. When we’re there, I’d rather visit and buy from the local shops than from retailers I can shop from anytime I want.

As I said, we like to eat out when we travel, but in order to save money, we tend to eat out for lunch. This trip, we chose to eat at Bubba Gump’s in Gatlinburg, Huck Finn’s Catfish in Pigeon Forge, and Fuddrucker’s and Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant in Sevierville. We enjoyed each of these restaurants. Huck Finn’s is a go-to whenever we are there, and I’m pretty sure we decided to add the Applewood (Apple Barn) restaurant to our go-to list as well.

After visiting the Knoxville Zoo on Friday, we went a little farther south to Sweetwater and spent the remainder of the weekend with my brother and his family, before returning home yesterday. We watched my nephew’s ball practice and we visited a flea market, but mostly, we just hung out at his house and spent time together. Since he lives about four hours away, we don’t get to see him as often as we do my other brothers who live much closer, so it’s always a treat to just hang out with them.

We made it back home about 7:00 P.M. last night, which allowed Nic and Jimmy to prepare to go back to work today. Fortunately, the rest of us didn’t have to worry about that. It’s always nice to get back home and sleep in your own bed, but I’d certainly like to have both the time and money to do more traveling than we currently do. There’s still a whole lot of country I’d like to see, and hopefully one day I will, but for now, I’ll take these vacations that are closer to home. After all, the important thing is getting to spend the time with your family while getting away from the regular chaos of life. Even if all you can do is a mini-vacation, I encourage you to get away for a few days, spend some time with your family, and don’t stress and worry about the things that take up your time in the “real world.” Vacations rejuvenate you and make the rest of your ordinary life even better.