Mount Vernon

This past weekend Rich had to be in Northern Virginia for work, so a day trip was in order. Even though we had lived close to Mount Vernon, George and Martha Washington’s home, we had never taken David there. Both Rich and I had taken school trips to visit this historic house. One of my school trips even included a boat ride up the Potomac to the house. One of the reasons we never took David was that as a historic landmark with much of the original furnishings it is not a good place for a child that needs to touch everything.

We were very fortunate since last week was very cold we weren't sure how long we would tour the grounds. But, the weather was beautiful with the bluest sky and just the right temperature for a light jacket.

David standing in George’s fireplace

Mount Vernon is unusual in that it never left the Washington family until a group of ladies in the early 1800s formed a group and purchased the property for $200,000.00. The ladies felt the house should remain as it was during our first president’s years in residence. The ladies were very fortunate that at the time of George Washington’s death there was a complete inventory of everything in the house, down to the smallest item. So most of the pieces in the home were in use during the Revolutionary War and the years of Washington’s presidency. The house remained open for tours during the Civil War and many soldiers on both sides passed through the house, but they were required to lay down their arms first.

David's picture up the inside of the fireplace

You know David. His favorite part of the trip was playing in the yard next to the river. His second favorite activity of the day was eating at the Mount Vernon Inn. There is a food court at the complex with pizzas and burgers, but we went for atmosphere. The Mount Vernon Inn specializes in Colonial-era food and is served by workers in period costumes. The portions were so large that we decided to save half to take home in order to save room for dessert. Since we were at George’s house I had to order a cherry pie to honor him. Yes, I know the chopping down of the cherry tree is not a true story, but I still couldn’t resist. David ate his whole meal, Rich’'s potatoes, his dessert, half of my cherry pie and half of Rich’s chocolate cake.

This is a must-see place for anyone in the area.

Death Wish David

While we were at Dollywood David rode "Thunder Head." It has won an award for the best wooden roller coaster in the world so you know David had to try it. He and Dylan waited for their turn and got the front of the car (always the best seats.) After riding David came running out and told us he loved the ride. But, as you can see from this picture he wasn't quite feeling that on the ride. Make sure you take notice of the white knuckles gripping the bar. I had to purchase this picture!

A Friend From Home

Yesterday it was back at Splash Country. Boy, are we making use of our season passes. We found it was cheaper to buy the season passes then if we paid on a day-to-day basis. We also found that upgrading my pass to a gold pass was well worth the price. It was $30.00 more then the regular season pass price, but it gives us free parking plus 20% off everything in the park.

David at the end of his Water Drop

They are also running a special in August, if you buy an adult meal with a season pass the kid's meal is free. Anytime you make a purchase at a store you are entered into a $500.00 spending spree at Dollywood. I'm keeping my fingers crossed since we hope to come back for a weekend in the fall.

After playing at the wavepool David wanted to go down the water drop again. I, on the other hand, declined the offer. At the bottom he began to talk to the boy that went down at the same time. You will never believe this. Nicholas is from our hometown and they knew each other from playing at the Y pool. He was there with his father and two older brothers who left home the same day we did and are leaving here today. The boy joined our group and he and David had a blast together. But, after several hours together, David began to get very quiet and wanted to cuddle with me. I think there were two reasons for this. First, Nicholas never shut up and I think this was wearing on David's nerves. Second, Nicholas talked about his mom but she wasn't with them. David is so used to the traditional family, with vacations together and all, that the thought of not being together was hard for him to think about.

David giving me water rides

After lunch David became a cuddle buddy with me. I got lots of kisses and he took me out to the wave pool in an inner tube and gave me rides. You would think a day at the water park would water log David, but no way. He was back in the pool at the hotel.

God has really given us a wonderful week. The weather forecasts said it would thunderstorm on Wednesday and yesterday it was to rain on and off all day with thunderstorms in the afternoon. Neither of those predictions came true.
It is hard to believe that it is already time to pack up and head home. But even in that we are very fortunate. We have lots of wonderful friends that we have missed and a wonderful home to return to. And we have all missed Roger and look forward to seeing him.

The Craftsmen and Beauty of the Smokies

Glass working artisan

Visiting Dollywood is a great way to see traditional craftsmanship at work. There is a section called "Craftsman's Valley" where the age old crafts are being plied. You can watch glass blowing, candy making, candle making, and even a blacksmith at work. Then you can purchase the products that have been made there.

It makes me sad when I think of "progress" and how it has replaced so much of the artistry that can only happen when things are made by hand. We have purchased many items to stash away as Christmas gifts for our family and friends. I would much rather help enable a master craftsman to be able to continue his proud heritage then to hand my money over for mass produced gifts.

Hand made glass pumpkins

Dollywood has been very careful to keep the beauty of the Great Smokey Mountains as a focal point. The land has remained hilly and windy with the most amazing flowers and plants throughout the park. Pride in both the area's heritage and Dolly's own personal history is evident everywhere you look. Many people become ashamed of their humble beginnings when they achieve success. Not so with Dolly. She is rightly proud of her roots and the people of her home.

Blacksmith in action

Something you also begin to notice about Dollywood is the abundance of workers that are what our society would call "retirement age." Talking to these workers you sense a deep respect for Dolly and a love for their jobs. We have seen several that used scooters to get around or walk with canes. Most employers would not view these as prime candidates for employment but they do a great job and have very upbeat personalities. The food vendors seem to be college or high school students.

Yes, we had another full day of riding the rides. The coal burning train is always a favorite of David's. He rode the Demolition Derby for the first time. You know David—he had a blast and rammed everyone he could. Then we ended up getting soaked on River Battle.

We found a place we knew we had to eat at for breakfast today. In fact it's been a running joke in our family for 22 years. You'll have to wait until tomorrow to hear about it.

What Was I Thinking?

Splash Country's Lazy River

Yesterday we hit Dollywood's Splash Country, a waterpark. We started the day with a lazy ride down the river. It was wonderful to just lay back and let the river gently rock you. Needless to say this didn't last long with David along.

Next we headed to a raft ride. You have to walk up a whole lot of steps, get on a raft that takes you down and around tunnels then lands you at the bottom. This was not quite as relaxing as the lazy river. But, it was lots of fun.

One of the raft rides

Next the wave pool and lunch. We ate our lunch next to the wave pool and enjoyed watching all the others getting rocked by the waves. After lunch Rich and David played in the wave pool while I worked on my tan.

Have no fear my resting didn't last long. Before you knew it David had me heading up an even bigger flight of steps to the water drop. David almost chickened out of the ride as he saw person after person going back down without riding. If the older kids were scared he was considering not riding.

Yes—that's David

But, up and up we went to the top of the stairs. We layed down in the slide, crossed our legs crossed our arms and whoosh. A straight drop down before the slide bends and you land at the end of the slide. You'll hear no screaming on this ride since if you tried to open your mouth the water would choke you. I had water going up my nose the entire ride and I lost my headband somewhere along the ride. It was fun, but David decided not to try it again—just yet.

Next David decided to head for the water playground. This was quite a sight. Kids running all over a jungle gym with water squirting everywhere. Rich headed under the overhang to get some shade while I laid out some more. David must have played for two hours running around having a blast before he was ready to stop.

One of the water playgrounds

So it was a trip to Logan's Roadhouse for dinner (since David had accidentally dropped the leftovers that were to be dinner). We headed for Aloe Vera for Rich's sunburn then it was an early evening at the hotel. O.K., earlier then we have had the last two nights but still after David's bedtime.

All Tuckered Out

It's 7 a.m., do you know where your child is? Mine is still fast asleep and hasn't moved since around 4 a.m. (maybe earlier). Usually David does a lot of moving even in his sleep so this is really amazing. We are often woken up several times in the night by his moving around in his sleep. Before we bought him a full size bed for his birthday we often heard a loud thud in the night as he fell out of bed. This was so normal he would just yell "I fell out of bed again," then pick himself up and return to sleep. You can't tell in the picture but David is sleeping in his normal place in the bed—sideways.

In the bed is his new friend Smoothie. Since babyhood all his stuffed animals have been named with an "ie" sound at the end. Smoothie is a ten-foot stuffed red and black snake. David was required to work at special chores around the house in order to earn spending money for the trip. Besides the normal make-your-bed and take-out-the-trash chores, he had to weed around the front of the house, lay down new mulch, edge the sidewalk and wash the cars. Some of the money he spent last week before we even left home and he would have spent the rest if he could have.

When we saw the sign at the front of the John Deere store yesterday he desperately wanted to buy a toy truck there. We refused to allow this and told him he would have to wait until the end of the vacation and we would return if that is what he chose. All day yesterday as we walked around the park he, with great glee, announced he was right and had not seen anything he wanted more than the truck. That lasted until we were leaving the park, when he saw Smoothie and had to have him. He still has a few dollars more to spend and is very happy with his purchase.

It is now 7:24 a.m. and he just woke up and is very happy and wants to go to the pool. But, breakfast first!