This year, the timing of our annual trip to Hilton Head allowed us to tag along to Mate's pharmacy conference in Nashville, beforehand. The event took place at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel, which happens to be the largest Marriott in the world. The indoor gardens, waterfalls, shops, restaurants, pools and children's activities sure kept us busy.
Future pharmacists, perhaps?
Exploring one of the hotel atriums
Hanging out with Johnny Cash in the lobby
Enjoying the garden skywalk
While we were there, the hotel was set up for Summerfest, which provides themed activities for children throughout the resort. We had a great time participating in all the Alice in Wonderland fun, especially the scavenger hunt and boat ride.
Yes, they have a 1/4 mile river right in the middle of the hotel.
We loved the fountain shows each night and all the colorful garden lights.
By far, their favorite spot was the learning log. They played in here for hours during our stay.
Only my children could be this happy playing in a log.
We sure had our fair share of adventures, here.
Next to the hotel, there is a giant mall which has an Aquarium Restaurant. We were lucky enough to be traveling during a week when the Mystic Mermaids were making an appearance. The girls are now convinced mermaids really do exist.
We also ventured over to the Nashville Adventure Science Center thanks to our reciprocal membership at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
Every once in a while, we got to see this guy in-between conference sessions.
I must admit, I was really glad when Mate was finished with his work responsibilities because managing three kiddos in a huge hotel for four days was exhausting!
Before leaving Nashville, we stopped at the main branch of the library to check out their puppet show story time and explore the Kidman-Urban Children's area. If you're ever in Nashville with young children, I highly recommend a visit here.
After the library, we headed to Robert's Western World for the real Nashville experience.
I researched kid-friendly venues and this place was on the top of nearly every list. The girls thought the writing all over the walls was pretty cool and we all enjoyed the Honky Tonk experience.
Which, we ended with a Nashville staple, Moon Pies.
En route to Hilton Head, we stopped for a few days in Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg. During the planning phase, we were skeptical about this destination, but really wanted to see the Smokey Mountains.
On our first evening, we stopped at the Island, a popular attraction for tourists. Unfortunately, the first shop we stepped foot in was a toy store that was selling confederate flag sunglasses. To each his own, but it was pretty nauseating to see something like that in a children's store. We woke up the next day hoping for a better experience at Dollywood.
On our trolley ride over, I chatted with a lady who visited the park often. When I asked her where she was from, her answer included some pretty harsh comments about people in her community living "alternative lifestyles". In that moment, I wish I would have responded in a way that made her know I didn't share her bigotry, but I just said "oh". I could have and should have done better.
Despite the icky start, we really did enjoy the day at Dollywood and quickly saw why this amusement park is voted "friendliest" year after year.
On our final full day, we took on the Great Smokey Mountains
It was AWESOME!!! We had the best time hiking up to Laurel Falls.
After resting for a bit, we joined other hikers and waded in the refreshing water.
We spent the second part of the day driving through the park to Cade's Cove, which gave us even more impressive views. Seriously, the best day of our entire trip!
We treated ourselves to a southern dinner at the Old Mill, which was definitely worth the calories.
We dragged the girls out of bed bright and early the next day so we could get to the final stop on our vacation: Hilton Head Island.
We were so happy to see our family!
We gave putt-putt a whirl for the first time.
Mia and Mate scored holes in one.
We enjoyed time at the beach
and time with each other.
There was swimming...
...and dancing.
There was a broken bike...
...and a brother-in-law who came to the rescue.
There was quality time with their great-grandma . . .
. . . and making sure she stayed cool in the heat.
There was singing with our favorite performer . . .
. . . and racing hermit crabs.
There was outdoor movie watching . . .
. . . and a sunset dolphin-watch cruise.
A perfect way to end our trip.
All in all, we had a great two weeks away from our daily routine. We made countless memories and found ourselves challenged by some of what we encountered along the way. Needless to say, there's no place like home.
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