The Biltmore Estate

Cheryl and I left all the kids with the Nanny for the day. Wahoo!! They had a fun time playing on Hudson's jungle gym in the backyard, while we enjoyed a visit to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina. It was amazzzzing! I loved it!


The balcony view was spectacular!
This was the Banquet Hall. It was huge. This is the biggest fireplace I have ever seen. There were three side by side. We weren't allowed to take pictures, but I found a few online. It was so neat to learn about the history of the house and all the treasures inside. We purchased the audio tour. It was well worth it!
This was the library. The fireplace looks normal size, but take a closer look at it compared to the chair to the right of it. Up above the fireplace is a balcony that wraps around the room. There was even a Sistine chapel-like painting on the ceiling. This was one of my favorite rooms.
OK. This place was built in the late 1800's. An indoor swimming pool??? Yep, complete with it's original underwater lights.
And a bowling alley too.
Cheryl to the rescue!!!
When we were headed to check out the gardens, there was an old lady, who had fallen down the brick stairs. Yikes!! Cheryl and I were one of the first on the scene, along with a dorky Biltmore guy. Good thing Cheryl is a medical professional, she jumped right in and asked the lady her medical history, what medications she is on, and started to take her pulse. It was low (But not low enough for Cheryl to get her defibulator from the trunk of her car. Yes, Cheryl owns one and carries it in her car.) Cheryl started to notice that Margret could not move anything on her left side and was worried about a potential stroke. The biltmore guy started to panic and was radioing "Where is the ambulance??? She is having a stroke!!!" The biltmore proberty is huge, so it was a good 20 minutes before they came. Anyway, Cheryl was impressive. She got the lady covered in a blanket to help her from going into shock, kept her talking and kept taking her pulse, while the Biltmore guy got her an ice pack. Those Biltmore people need to go to Cheryl's CPR/healthcare provider classes and get some better training. When the ambulance finially got there, Cheryl told the EMT's Margaret's medical history (which was lengthy, she was 72) and what medications she was on. By that time, Margaret wasn't talking much because she was in so much pain. We were pretty sure she had broke her hip again. The EMT's told Cheryl she was "on top of it" After seeing the poor lady being lifted onto the stretcher, we were one our way to the gardens. I managed to get a shot of Cheryl and the ambulance.


This was a crazy plant!
lots of pretty flowers!
This was really cool. It was a snail shell, hanging from a tree with some suculent plants growing out of it. There was a lot for a horticulturist to appreciate!
The dogwoods were huge!! It was fun to see them in full bloom!
(This pose was just for me, Cheryl wasn't cooperating to let me take her pic next to the ambulance. I think she is making fun of me though!) I love these stone bridges! We got to build some in college.
I love bamboo! It is amazing how fast it grows, fast enough you can almost watch it grow.
There was a lot to do and see at the Biltmore Estate. I was sad we did not have more time. Next time, I will be sure to go during the "grape stomp" at the winery and take the behind the scenes tour.
Travis wtched the kids in the evening while we drove home. After being there a week, Alyssa mastered the iphone. Travis was nice--its risky to let a kid play with it. She also enjoyed the wii. Travis was so good with the kids. Cole tried ridding a ride on car up the slide in the playroom and so Travis helped him ride the car down the slide and around the basement. Cole was laughing so hard and got nicknamed "Cole Canevil" Hudson and Cole Canevil took turns riding the car down the slide. They loved it!
Me and My Huddy Buddy, the night before we left.

Cades Cove

One of the days, Cheryl had to work, so Travis took us to Cades Cove. It is a scenic drive through part of the Smoky Mountains. It was beautiful. There are lots of old cabins, barns, and churches along the way.
We saw lots of wildlife too. Three deer and 4 black bears.
Cole and Hudson are best pals.
This barn was pretty big. Can you see Alyssa? There were lots of funny shaped barns.
This was an old mill that was grinding corn meal. Looks too old to be operating, but it was.


They had all the old stones outside the mill. These ones were the oldest.



This was one of the old cabins along the way. It was fun to go inside and "explore". Most of the upstairs were blocked off the other cabins, but this one wasn't.


An old stinky church.

Knoxville, TN

There has been lots going on at our house. We've gotten more animals for the kids-11 chickens and a puppy. We got the swing set issue resolved with Toys-R-Us and got the set we wanted. We got a new adjustable air bed mattress. My jewelry party went great. Mark told some that couldn't come that I would do it again, so I've got another one booked, to give those that couldn't come, another chance. We also had our community vision rally. We have been planning for months for it. We were worried because we had to have at least 94 people come in order for us to get our grant, we had 125+. As soon as it was over, I went home and went straight to bed. Then we were up at 4am to drive to SLC, to catch our flight to Tennessee. We have been there for the past week. It was a wonderful trip. The only thing that would have made it better is if we could have had Mark come and if we could have stayed. See??? Lots to blog about. Its going to be hard to blog it all, but I'll give it my best. I'll start with our first couple days that we spent at Dollywood.

When we paid to park our car, the employee told us it was a great day to be at Dollywood because The Duggar Family was there and Dolly was coming to the park too. Really it was a great day to be at the park because the weather was great and with it being a Thursday, there were NO lines for all the rides. WooHoo!
Alyssa was so excited to be at Dollywood. I told her we would take her there for her birthday last September, but we didn't end up going because my brother got married. She has been talking about it ever since.

One of the first rides we went on was the flying elephants. It was a wild ride that we all enjoyed. Alyssa and Cheryl. Travis and Hudson are in the back.

We all held our breath on the ferris wheel.

The bee ride was a miniture version of the elephant ride. The kids loved it. Alyssa and Cole are in the first bee and Hudson is in the one in the back. I have no idea why we didn't stick them all in the same bee. The operator was sure to teach baby Hudson how to make the bee go up and down. Cheryl almost had a heart attack.
While I took Alyssa on the swings, Cole and Hudson rode these ducks again. Cole and Hudson decided they would climb in the back seat while the ride was in motion. The operator had to stop the ride. This wasn't the only time we had the rides stopped because someone in our group broke the rules... Wink

There are some big roller coasters too, but with 3 adults and 3 kids, it made it hard to ride them all. Travis took me on Thunderhead, while Cheryl watched the kids. I am regretting not buying the photo. My face was hilarious! I hadn't ridden a roller coaster since before Alyssa was born. I can't wait to go back with Mark!
Coal-fired steam engine train ride around the park.
Cole Makai loves trains!
Cole enjoying ice cream while sporting his new train hat and whistle.
Hudson loves ice cream too. He pulls the most hilarious faces!
After our 2nd day at Dollywood, we went to Dolly's Homecoming Parade in Pigeon Forge. Dolly and the Duggars were in the parade. It is on You Tube if you want to see it. This is a Zorb ball. If you look close, you can see a person inside. The Duggars did this while vacationing here. I hope I catch that episode of 18 kids and counting. What surprised me most about the parade though, was Santa Claus...in May. There is a Christmas Themed Store there, so I guess it makes sense.
Pigeon Forge is the funnest town. There is SOO many fun things for families to do. If you think you want to take your kids to Disneyland. Rethink the idea and consider going to Dollywood instead. In my opinion, it was just as fun (maybe more), just as big, and less money. You can get a Hotel for 30 bucks a night and so many of the places to eat say kids are free. It is kinda like Las Vegas for families. On "the strip"are tons of elaborate buildings with different themes. Mini golf, magic shows, dinner shows, comedy barn, arcades, go carts....I've never seen anything like it!

Feeding The Squirrels

Today my Mom and I got to go out to my Grandma and Grandpa Rhodehouse's for a quick visit. I made sure to bring my camera because they have a squirrel that eats nuts right from the windowsill. He is so fun to watch and the kids just love it. Here are a few pictures that I got.

Birthday Party With Aunt Julie

The kids have been very excited for Aunt Julie to come all the way from Texas for a visit. Since she only comes about once a year, she likes to throw a birthday party for all the nieces and nephews, when she comes. The kids love it. They get to have lunch with Julie, play at Blastoff, and blow out candles on a birthday cake. We all had a great time together and even got to see Grandma Weaver too. We were so happy to get to see Julie, but wished she could have brought Ted, Joe, and Patrick too. Its a bummer having family live so faraway, so we really cherish the times when we do get together.