As if November hasn't been busy enough, Jeff, Dallin, Danny, Jonas, and I joined my sister, Nichole, and her family for a Thanksgiving trip to Tennessee. (My parents were supposed to join us but Dad got sick so they decided to stay home.) Nichole's family travels for Thanksgiving every year, but this was our first. I have to admit it was a little weird not cooking a massive meal at home while watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, but we had a blast. We actually flew into Nashville on Friday, November 19th, (a couple days before the Lowe's) so that we could tour some of Dallin's mission areas and meet some of the people he knew. We arrived Friday evening and immediately went to pick up Kristin and her two kids for dinner. Dallin met Kristin while serving in the Nashville area. He was privileged to teach her and baptize her while he was there. She is an amazing person. Life has been hard on her, but as I listened to her positivity, optimism, and overall faith, I was humbled. I think we could all learn a lot from her.
Saturday (November 20th) was filled with all things mission. We met a senior missionary couple that Dallin worked with in the office. It was fun to hear their mission story and to consider what ours will be. Jeff and I have a goal to serve at least one (hopefully more) mission as a couple.
From there, we moved on to Tullahoma. Dallin served in this area the longest of any of his areas. He will readily admit that this was probably his favorite area...and it shows. The ward members and converts couldn't say enough good things about him. We even met some of the elders he knew. We spent the most time with Brother Lynn. Dallin is convinced that Bro. Lynn is one of the three Nephites, and I can see why. He was the kindest, most bold in the faith man I've met. He never shied away from an opportunity to talk to someone about Christ...and we were only with him for a few hours! We had lunch together then he took us to a beautiful little waterfall on some property he owns. He became our own personal tour guide around Tullahoma. We hiked back to another waterfall, drove around the town, stopped at a chocolate factory, and then visited with him and his darling wife at their house before saying goodbye. I am grateful for the Lynn's. You could tell that they genuinely loved Dallin. It's nice, as a mom, to know the people who cared for your child when you couldn't be there.
After saying good-bye to the Lynn's, we met up with the Hernandez family for dinner. Again, I felt humbled to be with this family. Their humility and faith was apparent. Even with the male machismo that plagues the Latin community, Eduardo teared up several times as he talked about his conversion story. Today was a little rough for Jonas as we mostly just visited with people, but Jeff and I enjoyed seeing Dallin in his mission element and witnessing the effect these people had on him (and vice versa).
Sunday (November 21st) morning, we attended church in Tullahoma before finally meeting up with the Lowe's (who had flown in that morning) in Franklin. When Jeff and I visited Tennessee nearly two years ago, we came to Franklin because we had some time to kill after doing everything we wanted to in Nashville. I discovered some Civil War sites and suggested that we visit them. Jeff will readily admit that he wasn't too excited about doing so, but that, in the end, he was so glad we did. These sites are poignant reminders of the horrific battles of the Civil War. They are preserved moments in time to help us reflect on the reason behind the war and how far we have come since then. Because of how impactful these homes were on us, we suggested that we meet up here so the others could experience it. I realized that perhaps my exuberance for these locations may not have been felt by all, but I still wanted to share it with them... and surprisingly, everyone seemed to enjoy the tours, even Jonas! Jonas was so engaged in what the tour guides were telling him. He asked me for frequent clarification as he tried to understand what occurred here. Danny also said that he was impressed by the tours (and luckily for him, he was able to use what he learned to complete a school assignment!).
After we finished the tours, we left Jonas and Danny with the Lowe's while Jeff, Dallin, and I went to visit Dallin's mission president and his wife. Nichole took the boys to downtown Franklin where they visited a fudge shop and got ice cream. They quickly learned that traveling with the Lowe's means frequent visits to sweet shops wherever we can find them! The rest of us enjoyed a nice visit with the Weavers. Again, it was evident how much they truly cared for Dallin (and vice versa). As we ended our visit, Sister Weaver gave me a hug from one "mom" to another. We both teared up. It truly takes a village to raise a child, even a missionary. I am so grateful for those responsible, faithful adults in my kids' lives that have helped them on their journeys of faith.
Finally, we ended the evening on Broadway in downtown Nashville. If you go to Nashville, you have to at least experience one ruckus night on the Honky Tonk laden street of Broadway. Jeff and I took everyone to our favorite restaurant there before casually wandering the street. There were so many talented entertainers in the bars and on the streets. Jonas found one guy playing makeshift drums and gave him some of his own money as a tip.
Monday (November 22nd) was all about Nashville. We spent the entire day touring museums, visiting shops, and of course, eating! One thing I love about traveling is experiencing the local foods. We parked across the Cumberland River by the Titans stadium then spent the rest of the day walking. Nichole calculated that we walked over 6 miles that day...and yes, Jonas survived! I was actually really proud of him for keeping up with minimal complaints. In any case, we walked over the river and found our way back to Broadway where we toured the Johnny Cash museum. I knew who Johnny Cash was, but I appreciated learning more about his history and his influence on country music. The boys even enjoyed the various exhibits. Jonas liked the listening exhibits the most and even admitted that he might start to like some country music.
After the museum, we walked across the street to Goo Goo Cluster. This is a chocolate coated truffle-type candy that was created in Nashville. I had assumed this was a simple store where we would purchase pre-packaged clusters, but we soon discovered we could create our own! We decided to make two and share them. I think the favorite was Danny and Dallin's sweet/salty creation with pretzels, potato chips, and more. It might sound weird but it was really good!
Now that we were all sugared-up, we continued our walk down Broadway. We browsed some shops, stopped by the Ryman, had hot chicken (another Nashville staple), and visited the Giving Machines. This is the first time the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has placed these charitable vending machines in Nashville. They have placed them at a couple locations in Utah and Arizona before, but they have always been so popular and busy that I haven't had an opportunity to actually donate. I was excited that I now had the opportunity. There were a few sister missionaries at the machines that Dallin knew. While he caught up with them, Jonas and I picked out an item to donate. Jonas wanted to find something that would create the biggest impact. Since we have been dealing with a pandemic and he has learned about the importance of vaccines, he decided that we should purchase 100 polio vaccines through UNICEF. Dallin and Danny later picked a couple more items to donate. We decided that this was an excellent way to kick off our Christmas Acts of Kindness everywhere (CAKe) for this year. The boys even suggested that instead of limiting ourselves to 12 acts of kindness, we should do as many as we could. I couldn't agree more. I love that we're being Christmas minded even before Thanksgiving!
After we left the Giving Machines, the boys begged us to rent some scooters to use to transport them to our next stop. It made me a little nervous to see them buzzing around (with Jonas) on the busy streets, but thankfully, everyone stayed safe. We left the downtown area and went to a record shop/recording studio and a vintage guitar shop. Tyler wanted to go to the record shop and Kate wanted to try out the guitars. Jeff even helped Jonas pick on a banjo.
By this time, we had exhausted all we wanted to do in the downtown area so we walked back to our cars and headed towards the 12th South District. Here we did some shopping in the boutique stores and went on a mural scavenger hunt. I love all the street art in Nashville. Jonas was pretty tired at this point, but with the promise of a famous donut from Five Daughters Bakery, he kept walking. That kid will do anything for a donut! Once we were finished there, we went to an outdoor mall in Hillsboro for more shopping and dinner before calling it a day.
On Tuesday (November 23rd), we visited one more stop (after a delicious breakfast at Biscuit Love...another must if you're visiting Nashville) before leaving Nashville - the Parthenon. This is an exact replica of the Parthenon in Athens. It was built for a World's Fair and has been preserved by the city. This was what Kate had been waiting for. Honestly, the boys decided to toss around a frisbee in the adjacent park rather than tour the building, but I went inside with Kate, Nichole, and Ryan...so it was a win-win for everyone. Kate loved every second of it, and the boys had a blast outside. In fact, frisbees became a staple on our trip. We had one then Tyler bought another one in Knoxville and they accompanied us on all our walks. Who knew a simple frisbee could create so much fun? You know what else is fun...scooters. Yup, the boys rented some again. This time they could ride around the park, which made me feel a lot better.
After we spent some time there, we left Nashville for Knoxville. This stop had been planned with my parents in mind because Mom really wanted to visit the gravesites of her ancestors and get a feel for the area that her Tarwater side had settled. I was sad that I couldn't make that happen for her this trip, but we still enjoyed the stop. When we got there, we headed to the quaint downtown area to visit this fun general store. There was something for everyone. While the older boys browsed the clothing section, Jonas enjoyed the toy and candy section. I like downtown Knoxville. It has the small town feel with picturesque brick buildings and a fun community vibe. We had dinner downtown, strolled through an alley full of murals, visited more candy stores, grabbed some ice cream, then headed back to the hotel through a light filled park.
The next day (Wednesday, November 24th), we took a morning stroll along the river to the World's Fair park to see the SunSphere and the world's largest Rubik's cube before moving on to our final destination, Gatlinburg. But before we could leave the Knoxville area, we decided to visit our 3rd great grandmother's gravesite to wish her a happy birthday. I had been to this site before so it was easy to locate. While there, I expressed my desire to find my 4th great-grandfather and Revolutionary War vet, Jacob Tarwater. After leaving TN the last time, I discovered that I had been close to locating him, and I was determined to find him when I returned. I informed everyone that I could do this when I came back a third time with my parents, but everyone decided they were up for the adventure so off we went. After knocking on three doors and talking to some extremely gracious people, we found him! His grave is located on a private residence. The owners kindly allowed us to walk to the little cemetery where we found him. Even Jonas was excited to discover his Revolutionary War ancestor.
From there, we moved on into the Great Smoky Mountains. I really need to come back when there is foliage on the trees. At least this time, I got to enjoy the few remaining fall colors. However, regardless of the fallen leaves, the Smokies are beautiful. We hiked back to Laurel Falls (which is the same hike Jeff and I took before). When we got to the falls, we hung out there for a bit before going back. The kids brought out the frisbee and tossed it up and down the falls and back and forth across the river. At one point, Jonas threw the frisbee a little short of his intended target and the frisbee fell in the river. It got logged by a large boulder. Danny, with Kate and Tyler holding his legs, ended up diving into the frigid waters up to his waist to retrieve it. Silly kids and silly adventures with the frisbee!
We finally ended up in Gatlinburg for the remainder of our trip...and it was BUSY! I have never seen so many people milling around a tiny town. Maybe this is why we don't usually travel over Thanksgiving. It was mind-boggling to see the massive crowds everywhere we went. At first, it didn't effect what we wanted to do, but Thanksgiving day ended up taking a different turn for us from our original plans based on the insane amount of wait times at the various locations we went to. However, this night, we simply marveled at the craziness as we wandered the festively decorated main street. Jonas enjoyed seeing all the different snowmen. He even asked to get his picture with several. I'm glad I have one kid that doesn't mind pictures.
Thursday (November 25th) was Thanksgiving. The day started off with a huge, delicious breakfast from Crockett's. I have never seen pancakes so thick! And their fried cinnamon roll with caramel sauce could have been considered life-changing. Haha!
From there, we went to the SkyBridge. This is the largest suspension bridge in the nation. It stretches nearly 700 feet across a valley nearly 140 feet below. We rode the ski lift up to the top then made our way to the bridge. Jonas was a little nervous (and it didn't help that the older boys, Jeff included!, walked in such a way that bounced the bridge until they were warned not to by the staff), but by the time we made it across once, he was more than ok to do it again. The views of Gatlinburg nestled in the Smoky Mountains from the bridge were stunning. Once over the bridge, we decided to walk a path back to the other side that led us to a couple of smaller suspension bridges connected to a treehouse. We explored all that we could before going down the mountain.
This is when the day took several turns. We had hoped to go to Anakeesta to let the kids ride the Alpine coaster and do the treetop walk. We sauntered in and out of shops as we made our way there, but once we arrived, we found an extremely long line just to get the tickets. We decided it wasn't worth the wait so we walked back to our cars at the hotel and moved on to Pigeon Forge. It was here that we had hoped to have a delicious southern Thanksgiving dinner at Paula Deen's (a famous Southern cook) restaurant. We were warned that we'd have at least a two hour wait, but when we got there to check in, we discovered it was a 6 hour wait! At first, we decided to wait it out and wandered around Island Park, an outdoor amusement park/mall, but ultimately we decided leave that location altogether. The boys found a non-crowded trampoline park where they spent a couple hours jumping, playing dodge ball, and yes, tossing the frisbee. Kate stayed back at Island Park to do a ropes course then Nichole, Ryan, and Kate headed to a near-by Cracker Barrel where they got us on a much more manageable wait list for our Thanksgiving Feast. While today did not end up as planned, we made the best of it...and the meal was made even more delicious because I didn't have to cook it or clean it up!
After dinner, we decided to return to the SkyBridge to see it all lit up at night. I'm excited to really start celebrating the Christmas season now! I admit that I have been listening to Christmas music on occasion, but now I can do it without shame! Plus, Jonas is dying to decorate after we get home. I love my Christmas loving little buddy!
Our final full day in Tennessee (Friday, November 26th) took us to Dollywood. I wasn't really sure what to expect. I knew it wasn't going to be Jeff's favorite day, but we were all surprised at how much we enjoyed it. Yes, we had to wait in lines for rides, but it wasn't horrible especially since we did it together. The rides were also really fun! I loved that Jonas was tall enough to go on all the adult rides so we didn't have to split up. He would get a little nervous on some of the rides and chose to sit by me a few times so he could hold my hand, but he loved it all. We honestly only rode about 7-8 rides before we decided we were done. We then wandered through a few stores, enjoyed all the holiday light displays, and ended the evening with a Christmasy train ride in the Smokies. The train's conductor, of course, played a few Christmas songs from Dolly Parton. As he played Joy to the World, I glanced up at the sky and noticed one big, bright star. For a moment, tears filled my eyes as I reflected on the joy that came to the world because of our Savior's birth. I am excited to celebrate Christmas. I am determined to make a more concerted effort to bring Christ into our festivities; after all, He is the true reason for the joy of this season.
Our trip had finally come to an end. Everyone enjoyed one last dip in the hotel pool then we said goodbye to the Lowes. The next morning (Saturday, November 27th), we woke up early and made the 4 hour drive back to Nashville so we could catch our nearly 4-hour flight back to SLC. We figured there would be more traffic and larger crowds at the airport, but we were pleasantly surprised. The only downside was it gave us an extra hour of time we didn't need to be at the airport. Thankfully, Dallin knew of this quiet green space on top of the parking garage...and we had a frisbee. The boys threw the frisbee around until we had to put our face masks on (yes...still traveling in a COVID world) and go into the airport. It was an awesome trip! I think we all had fun. There was a little something for everyone. I am grateful that we had this opportunity.
