Jennifer and I did meet up for one crazy weekend in Tennessee. First and foremost, it was SO GOOD to see jen and the girls, I love seeing friend after a while and not missing a beat. So it WAS worth it, but barley. We did encounter some mishaps on our trip. Number one, it was raining, a lot, constantly. We did get to enjoy some time in the beautiful Smokey mountains, but in the rain. We hiked with the kids (who thought the rain added another element of fun) out to an old homestead building. It was really cool. We also saw dozens of deer in a field, it was almost zoo like, there were so many animals. That night I convinced Jen to go to Gatlinburg, I should have trusted her hesitation but I just have to see a new place when I can. I have NEVER seen anything quite like it. Imagine Disney World with a lot more airbrushed tee shirt stores. It was incredible. Hard to imagine that one might plan a trip here, I suppose if you are into Ripley's it would be worth it. The kids were running down the very narrow packed sidewalk while cars zoomed by...kind of nerve racking. But hey, I've been to Gatlinburg!!
The next day was not quite as relaxing. I went to get Nora's shoes out of the car bright and early to realize my battery was dead. Jen and I got out the jumper cables and the manual and set out to give my car a jump. The minute we got all four cables connected, my car alarm alarmingly went off. We immediately took of the cables and threw them in the bushes. The rain set in and we were starting to realize our day was going to be consumed by this. Jenifer luckily (and smartly) has a sort of AAA protection with her car insurance and in no time Big Daddy (this was his name on his coat) was out to boost us. Luckily, my dad and mom came down with us to hang out in Knoxville. They were touring a nearby plantation home when the distress call came. My parents drove out to the cabin (after getting lost and exploring the country) and Pop followed me back into Maryville to get the battery changed while mom stayed to help child sit. Keep in mind, my alarm keeps going off and we seem to have tried everything. Anyway, the boys at the Autozone might as well have had halos hovering because quickly they solved the battery problem(loose connection) and alarm problem (hit the unluck button on keys twice).
Jennifer was a little frustrated that we sort of "choked" but I think the torrential rain (this was some serious weather that caused major flooding) and four kids under six running around validated our panic.
We did get to hang out with our wine and luke warm dirty hot tub (perfectly fitting) that evening. Then, get this, as I go to bed, Drew wakes up to vomiting and well, loose stools, for the rest of the night. He has never been so sick and I was up ALL night. I think Jennifer was up most of it too... thank goodness my parents had taken Nora to the out-of-place posh and high tech cabin up Rudd Hollow Road where they bunked for the night.
I'm not sure where the lesson is. Had it not been for the rain, car trouble and sicky kid it would have been perfect. It was still great but next time we may just make the trip all the way to Columbia SC, to the comfort of Jen and Daniel's home...
Pictures to come, hopefully
