The Friday we were in Gatlinburg, we were blessed with a warm day, so we headed over to the much recommended Cades Cove. The drive up the mountain to the cove was gorgeous...lots of snow and ice in the rivers!! The road around the former cove community was lots of fun, filled with deer, historic churches and homes, horses, and more beautiful views! We enjoyed getting out some to get up close to the deer and tour some of the sights. We only got out at one of the churches, and the graveyard was so sad!! There were so many infants buried there, many only being a day or less old...and several families lost more than one infant. I know the grace and comfort of God is a powerful thing to get people through such trying times! We checked out a plantation in the cove, which was really neat. It's the house where we're sitting in front of the fireplace. It was so neat to check out all of the different storehouses and read all the history of the family and plantation. The next house we checked out had a brick fireplace, unusual for the times. The owner had material brought in from the other side of the mountain and then made the bricks right there on the property. The TINY staircase was in that house too. It's amazing how much we think we need this day in time when you see a small house like that and imagine they probably had lots of kids and all slept together in the loft upstairs, probably all sharing one outhouse too. It was all beautiful property and so quiet and peaceful. It seemed like heaven to me, and I was wondering if they felt that way or if they wanted more like we do in our culture these days. I know it was a hard way of life, too though. I would just love the limited distractions from family time but with modern conveniences such as running water, central heat and air, and prepared foods! : ) I can imagine those women must have felt like all they did was cook and feed all day! That night we headed down the mountain to hit up The Park Grille for a nice dinner. It was wonderful food, and I splurged for the sirloin even though the amazing salad just about filled me! It is a gorgeous restaurant with all of the logs brought in from NC and cut and milled on site to fit perfectly. There were all kinds of stuffed wildlife and great live piano music. It was the perfect atmosphere and well worth the splurge!
Our second day of the week-end, we went to The Pancake Pantry for brunch. I think it was a little overrated for my taste even though we enjoyed it. It was quite PACKED and VERY busy, and we were in the "off season". One of those "unique to the town" experiences that I enjoyed but could surely leave it as a once-in-a lifetime experience. It was a much cooler, and dreary day. We shopped around town a little and then went to Ripley's Aquarium where we were once again awed by God's creation! The uniqueness of all the sea creatures and some of their gorgeous colors is so amazing! We kept wishing we had Emma for that one, but we took lots of pictures and little videos to share with her. We shopped a little more after the aquarium to find Emma a gift...ultimately ended up with a bag of colorful stones, which she has LOVED! She's probably enjoyed them way more than she would have any of the pricier tees and toys we looked at. Unfortunately, I've had a hard time with Braxton Hicks contractions for the last couple of months...they really put me out when they hit, so I had to sit several times in the aquarium and couldn't endure a whole lot of shopping...of course, neither of us could have endured a whole lot more shopping anyway, not our forte! Instead we headed back to the the cabin for a snack, some mancala, some pool, and more swimming. We headed back to town that night for one of our favorites, Italian!! We went to an old local place, Legends by Max, where we got to sit at a table for two by a fireplace. We also had probably the best waiter ever who was soooo helpful, informative, attentive, and yet somehow kept his distance. He should train all waitstaff!! It was an odd place, didn't seem like they could pick an atmosphere. There were tv's, pizza hut kind of dishes, and paper tablecloths with crayons, but the tvs were quiet, and there was nice romantic music on, there were a couple of three sided fireplaces like the one we sat at, and the staff was so well trained. The place and owner and/or founder were rich with Gatlinburg history too. Another perfect dinner out! : )
We really couldn't have asked for a more wonderful and relaxing time together! Now we're home, back to reality, and trying to get ready for little Bryson to turn our world upside down! ; )
