2008 Christmas Review
Alright folks, here's a quick review of how our Christmas 2008 went down...
We decided to do things a little differently this year by taking a little trip to the Smoky Mountains over the holidays. The plan was to give the kids a white Christmas and let 'em romp around in the snow and go tubing and all of that fun stuff. Things didn't go exactly as planned though as the weather was unseasonably warm. So no 'natural' snow was to be found. We remedied the lack of snow situation by going to Ober Gatlinburg, a small ski resort near Gatlinburg, TN. They make practically all of their snow, so even with the temps in the mid 60's, there was still some white stuff on the ground.
The first stop on our way to the mountains was Little River Canyon, in north eastern Alabama. This is the deepest canyon east of the Mississippi River.
A couple hours later and we were in Chatanooga, TN. We attempted to visit the model railroad museum, but being the 24th, it was closed. So we hung around and let the kids climb on a few old trains.
We then headed to Ruby Falls, located inside Look Out Mtn. It was actually pretty cool. We descended a 260 foot elevator shaft into the mountain and were then led on a 1/2 mile walk through a cave to the point of the water fall...one of the tallest underground waterfalls in the world. The kids loved it and everybody thought their little lanterns were cool (thanks Kimberly!!).
Who doesn't love a little cave bacon?
The next morning the kids awoke only to realize that Santa had managed to track their travels and locate their room in the hotel. They found stalkings loaded with cool stuff.
After opening a few prezzies, it was on to Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg, Tn. We did a small hike in Smoky Mountain National Park in the afternoon.
The next day was our snow day. We got up early to beat the crowds to Ober, rode a tram 2.1 miles from Gatlinburg to the ski hill and then got fitted for our boots and skis. We were on the slope by 10 am. Angela took a series of shots of Gavin and I that look like popparazzi (sp?) shots you would see in the Enquirer or the Weekly World News.
Gavin took to skiing really well and by the end of the day was skiing on the intermediate slope. That's my boy!
Gavin and I are in this picture somewhere...
You can see how the warm temps were really crippling the skiing. The base was only about 15" deep and in some spots, grass and mud was showing! It was a lot different than skiing at Alta, that's for sure.
While the boys went skiing, the ladies filled in their time by riding a scenic tram and racing on the Alpine Slide.
Overall, we had a most excellent Christmas. We did miss the normal routine of having lots of extended family around. But, this trip was a nice change for us. We kept things simple, and we maintained flexibility in our schedule so that we could change plans for whatever reason may present itself. Plus, since we didn't buy any big gifts for the kids, we could focus on what is really important, our family and the Savior. Christmas 2008 will certainly be one to remember.
We decided to do things a little differently this year by taking a little trip to the Smoky Mountains over the holidays. The plan was to give the kids a white Christmas and let 'em romp around in the snow and go tubing and all of that fun stuff. Things didn't go exactly as planned though as the weather was unseasonably warm. So no 'natural' snow was to be found. We remedied the lack of snow situation by going to Ober Gatlinburg, a small ski resort near Gatlinburg, TN. They make practically all of their snow, so even with the temps in the mid 60's, there was still some white stuff on the ground.
The first stop on our way to the mountains was Little River Canyon, in north eastern Alabama. This is the deepest canyon east of the Mississippi River.
A couple hours later and we were in Chatanooga, TN. We attempted to visit the model railroad museum, but being the 24th, it was closed. So we hung around and let the kids climb on a few old trains.
We then headed to Ruby Falls, located inside Look Out Mtn. It was actually pretty cool. We descended a 260 foot elevator shaft into the mountain and were then led on a 1/2 mile walk through a cave to the point of the water fall...one of the tallest underground waterfalls in the world. The kids loved it and everybody thought their little lanterns were cool (thanks Kimberly!!).
Who doesn't love a little cave bacon?
The next morning the kids awoke only to realize that Santa had managed to track their travels and locate their room in the hotel. They found stalkings loaded with cool stuff.
After opening a few prezzies, it was on to Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg, Tn. We did a small hike in Smoky Mountain National Park in the afternoon.
The next day was our snow day. We got up early to beat the crowds to Ober, rode a tram 2.1 miles from Gatlinburg to the ski hill and then got fitted for our boots and skis. We were on the slope by 10 am. Angela took a series of shots of Gavin and I that look like popparazzi (sp?) shots you would see in the Enquirer or the Weekly World News.
Gavin took to skiing really well and by the end of the day was skiing on the intermediate slope. That's my boy!
Gavin and I are in this picture somewhere...
You can see how the warm temps were really crippling the skiing. The base was only about 15" deep and in some spots, grass and mud was showing! It was a lot different than skiing at Alta, that's for sure.
While the boys went skiing, the ladies filled in their time by riding a scenic tram and racing on the Alpine Slide.
Overall, we had a most excellent Christmas. We did miss the normal routine of having lots of extended family around. But, this trip was a nice change for us. We kept things simple, and we maintained flexibility in our schedule so that we could change plans for whatever reason may present itself. Plus, since we didn't buy any big gifts for the kids, we could focus on what is really important, our family and the Savior. Christmas 2008 will certainly be one to remember.
Comments
P.S. that Christmas vest was given to me by a teacher.