Trip to the Smokies

We took our first camping trip as a family this Mother's Day. We were a little bit nervous about the weather since Joe & I have never stayed dry on a camping trip together but everything worked out perfectly. Our plan was thrown a bit off course by the heavy winds coming over from all of the recent storms. The park ranger advised against tent camping the first night because of the 60 mph winds so we headed to a KOA just east of Asheville, NC & rented a cabin aka a tiny shed. Sayre made himself right at home by dumping his legos on the floor & Dixie curled right up on our sleeping bags. The winds kept Joe & I up most of the night, but the crashing of the porch swing into the front wall didn't bother Sayre or Dixie a bit. The weather cleared up the next day and we headed into Smoky Mountain National park (right after buying Sayre a Smokie the Bear, this is one of his many nicknames). Our goal is to eventually take Sayre into the backcountry but for now a great spot along the river was a beautiful home for a night. Sayre loved helping his dad set up the tent, he was so excited to hold the poles and ofcourse taste them while Joey worked. He explored the whole campsite and licked just about every rock he could find. He also caught a caterpillar but we were able to release him before any harm was done! We took a really nice hike on a trail near our campsite. Sayre rode in the backpack carrier & loved every minute of it. It turns out that he loves mac & cheese so much that he will even eat the freeze dried kind. He fell asleep by the campfire and after we finished our s'mores we tucked him into my sleeping bag where he slept beside me until 9am! He was so giddy & excited when he realized that we had slept in the tent. It was a great trip with many more to follow!