I’m excited to share with you our day trip in Gatlinburg, Tennesse and more of our family vacation!
Just in case you missed part one of our family vacation, you can check it out right here!
Kyle and I decided to take a day trip to Gatlinburg while we were so close by in Dandridge. What a beautiful area between those two places! I was constantly talking about how gorgeous the mountains were. Ever since this trip, I’ve been trying to appreciate the Appalachian Mountains we have here in southern Ohio!
We were relying on our GPS and naturally, it got us a little sidetracked, haha! The neat thing about that is we got to pass by the Bush’s Baked Beans Visitor Center and Factory while we were trying to find a place to pull over. We actually pulled into their general store parking lot. Such a cute place, I should have went inside!
I was amazed at how many people were in there when we arrived. It was hard to find a parking place, but we finally found one near the Gatlinburg Space Needle that overlooks the town. Most of you know that I’m afraid of heights so that would not be for me!
We walked by so many cute shops and loved the atmosphere there.
There were a couple of mini golf places along the way so we decided to stop at one! My husband is a golfer so it’s absolutely no surprise that he beat me and it wasn’t even a tiny bit close, haha. I’m pretty sure I could have broke my little putter a couple of times, but of course I did not actually do that! 😉
Sadly, the day took an icky turn after mini golf. I wanted so badly to be able to eat some lunch while we were there, but I started feeling so exhausted. Between feeling drained and the massive amount of people there, I just needed to go back to our Airbnb. I literally went to bed and laid there until Kyle woke me up for dinner. Even though I wasn’t hungry at all, I tried to eat a little bit and then I just went back to sleep. I still felt awful the next day and of all days, it was my day to fix dinner for everyone. Eeek! I’m pretty sure it was some sort of heat exhaustion.
My husband was so kind to stay with me all day! He helped me with dinner, even though I tried every way possible to talk him into hanging out with the family. They were renting jet skis that day and I knew he would have fun, but he insisted on staying with me. I would have been too scared to do the jet skis even if I wasn’t sick! Between Kyle and my sweet SIL, our baked spaghetti dinner came together and seemed to be a hit.
I was so thankful, I just stress myself out over these sorts of things even though I know there’s nothing to really be worried about. Just my anxiety! I can’t believe I didn’t actually take a photo of my baked spaghetti. I do have this photo (above) from a day or two after our trip. We still had ingredients left, so I made some to share with my side of the family. It’s the same minus the yummy cheese!
Also, while I wasn’t feeling the best, I took advantage of the Hulu app and watched season two of Cruel Summer. Have you seen that show? Season one was so much better, but definitely worth watching season two. The very end really shocked me!
We decided to take one last boat ride, just the two of us! It was at sunset and just so beautiful and peaceful.
For the long trip home, we stopped at the Food City for some snacks! That helped make the drive so much better and I couldn’t wait to see my cats. They hid from us for awhile when we got home though because they were used to our sweet neighbors popping in and out all week. I’m not sure how I raised such unfriendly cats, haha!
That’s a wrap on our day trip to Gatlinburg and our family vacation as a whole, friends! I hope that you’ve enjoyed these two posts and can’t wait to hear your thoughts!
![Thoughts on 2020 & My Word for 2021 BEFORE READ-MORE Let’s be honest, 2020 was a tough year! I had a whole lot of beautifully-laid out plans that unfortunately just didn’t happen. Partly because of the pandemic, and partly because of my mindset. I found myself just sort of depressed and couldn’t really find the motivation I needed. Thankfully, ever since the holidays, I’ve felt like this universal shift is coming and things are going to be so much brighter this year. I’m definitely pouring all of my positive energy into making my goals happen this year, no matter what things look like with the pandemic. I have to realize that it’s not within my control what happens in the world. I just have control over myself. I wanted to share with you my biggest takeaways from last year. I want to stay mindful of these three things during 2021, and beyond. Plus, I’ll be sharing my word for this year at the bottom! Take Care of Your Loved Ones This past year tore us away from our family and friends. It was heartbreaking for so many, especially to those who are now grieving over some of them. As each year passes, it is almost always on my mind that some of my loved ones may not make it to see another year. That probably sounds very morbid and daunting, and is probably just a result of my life experiences. But it has opened my eyes to really pay special attention to those I love the most. I want to show them that I care while they are here. I want them to know without a doubt that I’m there for them and will do anything in my power to help them. I work very hard to not take anyone for granted because we never know when our time is up. Protect Your Peace I learned how important protecting my peace was last year. I felt like I was going through a multitude of things. Some of the things that were bothering me the most, I couldn’t even control and didn’t directly involve me. They involved loved ones. I’m sure many of you have had similar situations where you have family members that can sometimes play a toxic role in your life. As a result, I really needed to rely on creating healthy boundaries and sticking to those. It’s an ongoing difficult situation for me, but I have truly handled it better than I ever have before. I hope to continue to grow in this area and get better with those healthy boundaries. Try to Control What You Can Control (Not What You Can’t) This one is pretty much directly tied to what I just mentioned about protecting my peace. I’ve spent so much time (that I can never get back) stressing myself out over things I can’t control. Mostly in regard to loved ones, but also the world as a whole. While I choose not to talk politics in this space, I think we all can agree that things have just been a mess in the United States for the past year and even right now. The pandemic, the mud-slinging, all of the sad news that’s plastered all over the tv or our social media...it’s just exhausting. I just had to cut out most of the news because it was so depressing. Short of voting and praying for things to get better, that’s really all I can control. The rest of it will be what it will be, and I’m really trying to remind myself that each day. My Word for 2021 is Growth I’ve been flip-flopping between ‘change’ and ‘growth’ for my word this year. I realized what I wanted for this year was way more like ‘growth’ than ‘change.’ My thought process on using ‘change’ was that I was creating these new habits that were going to be life-changing and help really boost me to achieving my goals. When I thought about it a little more, I realized ‘growth’ really summarizes what I want to embody this year the best. It still requires change to happen, but it just seems like a better fit to choose ‘growth.’ [PIN] I hope you’ve gained a little something from reading this post, friend. I’m wishing you an amazing week filled with lots of joy. ust on a fun side note, I’m looking forward to watching The Bachelor and WandaVision this week. Do you have any fun shows/things in general you’re looking forward to? Let’s Chat! Do you identify with any of these takeaways from 2020? Have you chosen a word for this year? Fun question: Have you been watching The Bachelor this season?](https://i0.wp.com/www.makelifemarvelous.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Thoughts-on-2020-and-Word-for-2021.png?fit=150%2C126&ssl=1)
Wow, what an incredible time! The views from the water look absolutely beautiful. Sounds like a great family vacation. Thank you for sharing such lovely photos!
Aww, thank you for stopping by and reading! 🙂 It was an amazing trip and so glad we all got to go spend some time together and have fun!
Your vacation was very entertaining and that spaghetti looks so appetizing!
Aww, so happy you enjoyed following along, Rebeca, thank you so much! 🙂
Maddi Mae’s, such a delicious coffee place! I can’t believe we both walked by it a week apart. I don’t like heights either and that bridge that went over the mountain terrified me too! I am sure your spaghetti was delicious! I am not one to cook for big groups! That boat looks so, so nice and relaxing.
Carrie
curlycraftymom.com
I know, it’s just wild to me! Yes, that bridge would have gave me a heart attack, haha. Thank you tons my dear friend, it was really a fun trip!
What a wonderful day trip! I loved all the fun things to do in Gatlinburg. Those pics from the boat ride are beautiful! I remember the Donut Friar sign. I never forget donuts. Lol! I’m sure your spaghetti dinner was delicious.
https://www.kathrineeldridge.com
Haha, I’m so with you, I never forget places that have yummy treats! Thanks so much my dear friend, the boat rides were probably my favorite and it felt pretty special for just Kyle and I to take one by ourselves. Just a beautiful and peaceful place! 🙂
This place looks so magical! Beautiful pictures. Wonderful and Lovely Post dear! xoxo
Allurerage
Thetrendybride
Aww, thanks so much Jiya! 🙂 It was really beautiful there!
I’m so sorry you got sick. I must say Gatlinburg has really changed. It’s a fun place to visit, but the crowds have just gotten to be too much so I completely get it girlfriend. My husband and I actually eloped there many years ago and it was a completely different place back then. That spaghetti does look delicious and I’m glad that your night for cooking dinner for everyone turned out! I actually met another Blogger in person at the donut Friar a few years ago when she was in town with her family. So good. Always love boat rides.
Thanks, friend! It was unfortunate, but truly could have been worse, so it’s okay! Oh wow, that’s so neat that you and your hubby eloped there, I bet that was wonderful! I’ve been hearing from friends that have been there often that it’s been so much crazier lately with crowds. Thank you tons on the spaghetti note, and that’s so neat that you met another blogger there! There’s something about bloggers and Gatlinburg, haha! 🙂
This looks like a great trip, although I’m sorry that you were ill and didn’t get to enjoy all of it! The boat trip looks amazing and your spaghetti dinner looks delicious
Julia x
https://www.thevelvetrunway.com/
Thank you tons Julia, I appreciate that! It was a bummer but just so glad it wasn’t worse. The boat trip was one of my favorite parts, it was a great way to close out our trip. 🙂
This area is so full of natural beauty and fun things to do! I am so sorry to hear you got sick!
It truly was, and I really enjoyed just being there and being present. Thank you friend, I appreciate that! It was not fun, but just so glad it wasn’t worse, especially being so far away from home.
The view of Douglas Lake looks so beautiful! Thanks for sharing this, I loved reading all about your trip!
https://melissakacar.com
Aww, thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment, Melissa! I appreciate you and am so glad you loved this one! 🙂
What a wonderful trip! The views from the lake looks amazing.
Ashh | https://www.thatseptembermuse.com xo
Aww, thanks so much Ashh! It really was a beautiful place and we enjoyed the trip so much.
I’ve never been to Gatlinburg – it looks like such a cute town! I’m sorry you got sick and didn;t get to enjoy the jet skis! The baked spaghetti looks delicious!
Jill – Doused in Pink
It was really a pretty place with lots to do! Thank you so much friend, I appreciate you! Just thankful it wasn’t worse, and thanks a ton about the spaghetti! I was really stressed about it, haha!
I love your day trip. I need to recreate your trip. It looks like fun.
http://www.rsrue.blogspot.com
Aww, thanks so much Regine, so happy you enjoyed this post! It really was a beautiful trip and place to stay!