# Back from the Smoky Mts.



## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Hi y'all!! You can tell I was in NC. Gosh it seems like I've been away forever. There was NO internet service at all at the house and then we were out in the Smokies and spotty cellular so I really felt like we went back in time...which was great. :thumbsup: 
We had a wonderful time. The house was beyond our expectations with a killer view of the mountains. It was in Waynesville (I kept saying, "Wayne's World, Wayne's World:HistericalSmiley about a half hour West of Asheville. Jim's three sisters, his BIL and a beau of one sister's made up our merry group!:chili: 
We loved the Smokies and the Blue Ridge Highway...our mouths were agape much of the time as we drove west. Made it as far as Clingman's Dome. Just incredible. We were indeed able to scatter Jim's parent's ashes to the wind somewhere in the Smokies (don't even ask how we found a place away from the madding crowd) and we really felt like they had us do that to bring us all together to their favorite place.:wub::wub: Very touching and meaningful. 

We also visited the Biltmore Estate which was amazing, especially since they already decorated it for the holidays.:aktion033: We spent about 8 hours in the house and on the grounds. Then we spent a day driving to some falls to the south of us and shopping in Asheville - great arts and crafts. Lots of eating great food and having lots of laughs and remembering old memories and making new ones. We all said we want to go back in foliage season. Trees were bare at altitude. We totally enjoyed ourselves and will return.

Tyler did great with my cousin. :smheat: Slept on their bed, under their down comforter and she loved having him and spoiling him. I think he had a great time with walks on the road and playing in the leaves in East Hampton. He of course did his picky eating thing.:angry: Ate some meals, left others which freaked my cousin a bit, but he just does that. He was spinning around with excitement and jumping up to me when I got home and showering me with kisses. No hard feelings apparently. :wub::wub:
I'll post some pix in the Picture Post forum as soon as I can download them. Missed you all a lot and have no idea how I can catch up on old threads after being gone for nearly a week. Please forgive me if I missed any. You know I'm thinking of you.:huh:


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## Summergirl73 (Sep 18, 2011)

So glad that you had a wonderful trip! I've traveled by Asheville, but not yet had the chance to stop. Living fairly close (we are in Virginia), there's no reason for not visiting....and now you've inspired me! I'm not a Mtn. girl, but my hubby would absolutely love it. Can't wait to see your pics


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## The A Team (Dec 1, 2005)

Glad the trip was so great!!!! I'd love to go there sometime, it sounds beautiful!


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## mfa (Oct 5, 2009)

ive visited that area before and its beautiful!! so glad you had a nice time! welcome home Sue and im sure your little boy is so happy to have you back!! :aktion033:


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## munchkn8835 (May 23, 2010)

Happy y'all had a great time!! Did you get any pics?


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## Maidto2Maltese (Oct 19, 2004)

Susan... so happy for you that your trip was so memorable for you !! I bet the time flew!! 
Tyler sounds like he had a great 'vacation' as well!! :thumbsup:


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Summergirl73 said:


> So glad that you had a wonderful trip! I've traveled by Asheville, but not yet had the chance to stop. Living fairly close (we are in Virginia), there's no reason for not visiting....and now you've inspired me! I'm not a Mtn. girl, but my hubby would absolutely love it. Can't wait to see your pics


Bridget - you have to take a trip down to the Smokies. It's just beautiful and I think looks vastly different each season. I saw pix of all the wild rhododendrons and Azaleas that are growing in many places and bloom I think in May. Then summer is so rich in greens and colors and I think that fall foliage must be off the charts. I'm not a mountain/camping girl either but the beauty is amazing. And I'm not a huge hiker but like going on some easy trails at this age.


The A Team said:


> Glad the trip was so great!!!! I'd love to go there sometime, it sounds beautiful!


Thanks, Pat. I know you'd love it.


mfa said:


> ive visited that area before and its beautiful!! so glad you had a nice time! welcome home Sue and im sure your little boy is so happy to have you back!! :aktion033:


Florence - then you know what I'm talking about. It's a good thing it wasn't fly season or they would have gone down my throat with my mouth open so much oohing and aahing


munchkn8835 said:


> Happy y'all had a great time!! Did you get any pics?


:HistericalSmiley: Yup, got a a little of that y'all goin' on, Donna People were SO nice down there too. Got lots of pix. Am uploading them to Photobucket so I can post them tonight or tomorrow. Though pictures don't do the view justice.


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## Lacie's Mom (Oct 11, 2006)

Sounds like a wonderful trip. Can't wait to see the pictures. So glad you're back on-line -- I missed you and Tyler. And, of course, I'm sooooo glad that Tyler had fun at your cousin's. I knew he would -- but I'm sure that both of you are happy you're back home and together.


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## RudyRoo (Jun 24, 2011)

I'm so glad you had a relaxing vacation! I bet you were so anxious to get back and see your baby! Happy you are back with us. 

The mountains of North Carolina hold a very special place in my heart. When my grandfather found out he had incurable cancer, he decided that he wanted to take his girls (i.e., his 3 grandchildren) to the mountains for a vacation. I was around 9 years old, and I remember it like it was yesterday. We laughed. We ate anything we wanted. He gave us candy and ice cream. We stayed up late. We visited Biltmore and pretended like we were royals and lived there. He taught us about how clouds form and what all of the signs meant that said "Elevation Level". He was so happy and wanted to make sure that we remembered him that way. So when I think of him I always picture him smiling with those beautiful mountains in the background. It's a magical place to make memories! I can't wait to see pictures!


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## sassy's mommy (Aug 29, 2005)

Susan, once you have been to the mountains you will find time to re-visit. There are no words to describe the beauty of the Smokies. Glad you enjoyed your time away. 

P.S. Sassy loves being a little hilly billy girl.


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## sophiesmom (Apr 21, 2006)

Next time you go, make it to Cades Cove in the Smokey Mountains, then you can imagine what the settlers saw when they lived there. Loved it when we went, but they have now paved the road, and it is more "modern" but still a beautiful place to visit and view wildlife....


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## Bibu (Jun 3, 2010)

Yey, Sue is Back! :chili: I am so glad you enjoyed your trip but so glad you're back safe too!!! We're so used to being near computers all the time that its almost hard to be away from them. Taking a week off from that frenetic city life can be so relaxing yet stressing... I know what its like as I've taken a vacation from the city life for almost 1.5 years now and I've officially lost it! :HistericalSmiley:I am happy Tyler had no hard feelings. I was sure he was going to love you like crazy when you came home. His vacation sounded like a fun one too!

Can't wait to see pictures!


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

I missed you. I am an easterner transplanted in California. I love California...really really love it, but oh you do make me so nostalgic for the east...I want to go back to New York, I want to see Vermont for the first time...and now I want to see the Smokey Mountains. I'm glad you had a revitalizing vacation, now I am glad to have you back.


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Lacie's Mom said:


> Sounds like a wonderful trip. Can't wait to see the pictures. So glad you're back on-line -- I missed you and Tyler. And, of course, I'm sooooo glad that Tyler had fun at your cousin's. I knew he would -- but I'm sure that both of you are happy you're back home and together.


I missed you too, Lynn. Funny but I kept saying to Jim's sisters, "I have a friend who..." "A friend of mine..." and they said, "Boy, you have a lot of friends." :HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley: Most of them are SM friends. I really consider so many of you part of my life that the on line part is just coincidental. :thumbsup: So it's REALLY hard being off line. :w00t: Am glad to be back with Tyler. Home? Cleaning and cooking? Not so much, since we had such a good time.


RudyRoo said:


> I'm so glad you had a relaxing vacation! I bet you were so anxious to get back and see your baby! Happy you are back with us.
> 
> The mountains of North Carolina hold a very special place in my heart. When my grandfather found out he had incurable cancer, he decided that he wanted to take his girls (i.e., his 3 grandchildren) to the mountains for a vacation. I was around 9 years old, and I remember it like it was yesterday. We laughed. We ate anything we wanted. He gave us candy and ice cream. We stayed up late. We visited Biltmore and pretended like we were royals and lived there. He taught us about how clouds form and what all of the signs meant that said "Elevation Level". He was so happy and wanted to make sure that we remembered him that way. So when I think of him I always picture him smiling with those beautiful mountains in the background. It's a magical place to make memories! I can't wait to see pictures!


Oh, Leigh. You brought tears to my eyes with the story about your grandfather. How wonderful of him to have thought of doing something that special with his grandchildren. He knew they would be forever memories, long after he was gone.:hugging: I felt the same way with Jim's parent's wishes. There was a reason behind them and it was this get together. :thumbsup:


sassy's mommy said:


> Susan, once you have been to the mountains you will find time to re-visit. There are no words to describe the beauty of the Smokies. Glad you enjoyed your time away.
> 
> P.S. Sassy loves being a little hilly billy girl.


Pat, you told me I would love it and was so right. I never before had a great desire to go there but now I'm a convert. Dying to see it in spring and October. Sassy - a Hillbilly girl. :w00t: A real stretch of the imagination. :HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley: I guess denim chic. :wub:


sophiesmom said:


> Next time you go, make it to Cades Cove in the Smokey Mountains, then you can imagine what the settlers saw when they lived there. Loved it when we went, but they have now paved the road, and it is more "modern" but still a beautiful place to visit and view wildlife....


Dianne - I saw Cades Cove in the book but we couldn't get everywhere. Next time Especially with a mini-van and our car.We needed the two cars since there were 7 of us and you needed a shoe horn to get us out of the way back. BTW, we rented a Nissan Ultima Hybrid. OMG -- we drove 2.5 hours from Charlotte to Waynesville (mostly up hill) and then the next day all the way to Tennessee boundary of Smokies, then trips around town back and forth and only used A HALF A TANK!!!! I was in shock since our usual car is a gas guzzler. Makes me really think about getting a hybrid.


Bibu said:


> Yey, Sue is Back! :chili: I am so glad you enjoyed your trip but so glad you're back safe too!!! We're so used to being near computers all the time that its almost hard to be away from them. Taking a week off from that frenetic city life can be so relaxing yet stressing... I know what its like as I've taken a vacation from the city life for almost 1.5 years now and I've officially lost it! :HistericalSmiley:I am happy Tyler had no hard feelings. I was sure he was going to love you like crazy when you came home. His vacation sounded like a fun one too!
> 
> Can't wait to see pictures!


Thanks so much for the welcome, Cory. I missed everyone here as well. :grouphug: It was like going through withdrawal with no internet but also very freeing. And at night we played a card game called Apples to Apples. I think we kind of bent the rules too. :innocent: We were laughing out loud like crazy with it and had the best time. I hate going away and having people looking at tv and not interacting. We usually play board and card games in Vermont when people come up. Tyler did have a very good time. Probably even more attention than at home. :thumbsup:


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## Katkoota (Feb 18, 2006)

Happy that you had a blast Sue :chili:

Sounds (& look from pix) like a wonderful place 

Aaah there comes sometimes where I enjoy connection-break (cell phone or Internet) too, away from the city  and just enjoy some quiet time to recharge my energy ^_^


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Sylie said:


> I missed you. I am an easterner transplanted in California. I love California...really really love it, but oh you do make me so nostalgic for the east...I want to go back to New York, I want to see Vermont for the first time...and now I want to see the Smokey Mountains. I'm glad you had a revitalizing vacation, now I am glad to have you back.


Sylvia - it is tempting, isn't it? But come to think of it I just saw some Living Social deal in Healdsburg at a beautiful inn.:thumbsup: Thanks for the welcome back. I'm still kind of tired after all the running around we did. :blink: 


Katkoota said:


> Happy that you had a blast Sue :chili:
> 
> Sounds (& look from pix) like a wonderful place
> 
> Aaah there comes sometimes where I enjoy connection-break (cell phone or Internet) too, away from the city  and just enjoy some quiet time to recharge my energy ^_^


Thanks, Kat. Good for the body and good for the soul to go to a place like we did. Our federal park system in America is pretty awesome and I've been lucky enough to go to the Smokies, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Yosemite and Grand Canyon. :chili:


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## njdrake (Apr 23, 2007)

Sue, it sounds like a wonderful time! It also sounds like this should be a yearly trip to get some rest and relaxation. The mountains are beautiful in the fall. 
I haven't been to the Biltmore House but we've talked about going so many times. I plan on making it one of these days. I think every friend I have has been there at least twice and loved it.
Glad you had a safe trip and Tyler did well at your cousins.
Can't wait to see the pictures!


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## Katkoota (Feb 18, 2006)

Snowbody said:


> Thanks, Kat. Good for the body and good for the soul to go to a place like we did. Our federal park system in America is pretty awesome and I've been lucky enough to go to the Smokies, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Yosemite and Grand Canyon. :chili:


I sure don't doubt that  

I was in Yellowstone (in a school trip to Montana actually for students exchange), but the school arranged the weekend in yellowstone for us. It was breathtaking! let me see if I can find some pictures from back then. We didn't go through the whole plan / places in yellowstone due to fire that blocked our route to the planned hotel, but from what we were able to see, we loved it


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## Bonnie's Mommie (Mar 2, 2006)

Sue, that sounds like a great trip. I'm sure your in-laws were smiling at the group of you. North Carolina is very beautiful and the mountains are breathtaking. I'm so glad that you survived without internet, lol!

Tyler may have been treated like a king, but nothing compares to mommie love, does it?


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## aprilb (Jul 9, 2010)

I'm so glad ya'll had a good time!:chili::chili: I just love the mountains and the Blue Ridge PARKWAY.:HistericalSmiley: That is where my DH and I took the 5 mile hike and I came out limping.:smilie_tischkante: We were closer to Boone where Grandfather Mtn. is. Next time, you need to see Grandfather Mtn. We also have good skiing..:thumbsup:


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## edelweiss (Apr 23, 2010)

Sue-- :chili::chili:-WELCOME HOME:chili::chili:
We ALL missed you---esp. your sense of humor. 
So glad you had a relaxing, family-memory-making time! I think Jim's parents were pretty smart to con you into going! 
Glad little Tyler didn't hold a grudge & that he got spoiled by your cousin. Maybe I should be your dog! :innocent:
So get rested up from your vacy & get busy w/getting caught up on all the msgs. you missed.:HistericalSmiley:


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## Hunter's Mom (Dec 8, 2008)

So glad that you had a wonderful time and that you were able to find a special and quiet place to pay your respects.


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## donnad (Aug 22, 2006)

Glad you all had a great time...looking forward to the pictures!


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## MoonDog (Jun 6, 2011)

Welcome back Sue! It sounds like you had a very lovely trip. I would have loved to see Tyler's reaction when he saw you after nearly a week! Once when my husband was out of town for 10 days, I made him wait down the road from our house for a few minutes until I got home from work so that I could be in the house when he walked it! Our dogs went NUTS!!! Poor guy had driven over 500 miles and I made him wait on the side of the road...:HistericalSmiley: Isn't it the most wonderful thing to be greeted with such love?


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

njdrake said:


> Sue, it sounds like a wonderful time! It also sounds like this should be a yearly trip to get some rest and relaxation. The mountains are beautiful in the fall.
> I haven't been to the Biltmore House but we've talked about going so many times. I plan on making it one of these days. I think every friend I have has been there at least twice and loved it.
> Glad you had a safe trip and Tyler did well at your cousins.
> Can't wait to see the pictures!


Jane - you HAVE to visit the Biltmore Estate. There's so much to see. And besides touring it and the little village with the winery, there are acres and acres of beautiful land. They have kayaking, bike, horseback and Segway rentals.:chili: Strangely enough, Christmas is their busiest season - i thought it would be summer or foliage but I guess their Christmas decorations are on a lot of must see lists.


Katkoota said:


> I sure don't doubt that
> 
> I was in Yellowstone (in a school trip to Montana actually for students exchange), but the school arranged the weekend in yellowstone for us. It was breathtaking! let me see if I can find some pictures from back then. We didn't go through the whole plan / places in yellowstone due to fire that blocked our route to the planned hotel, but from what we were able to see, we loved it


Kat, I think Yellowstone was my favorite. I went with a friend back when we were in our 20's and I loved all the variety and all the natural settings and animals I saw including bison.


Bonnie's Mommie said:


> Sue, that sounds like a great trip. I'm sure your in-laws were smiling at the group of you. North Carolina is very beautiful and the mountains are breathtaking. I'm so glad that you survived without internet, lol!
> 
> Tyler may have been treated like a king, but nothing compares to mommie love, does it?


Linda - I had no idea I would be so impressed with it. And I do think Parky and Brownie, my in-laws nicknames, were smiling at us.
Tyler's wondering why we won't let him under the down covers like his Aunt and Uncle did. :blink: He really did adjust well to being away and being back home. My cousin reported that he used the wee wee pads very conscientiously in her house every time. :chili::chili:


aprilb said:


> I'm so glad ya'll had a good time!:chili::chili: I just love the mountains and the Blue Ridge PARKWAY.:HistericalSmiley: That is where my DH and I took the 5 mile hike and I came out limping. We were closer to Boone where Grandfather Mtn. is. Next time, you need to see Grandfather Mtn. We also have good skiing..:thumbsup:


April -- hiking there is pretty tough stuff in some places. 5 miles...I would have been crawling. We didn't do much hiking - we were on a very short schedule with a lot of ground to cover and one member of our group had health issues and really couldn't walk extensively. We will be back Not sure about the skiing since I'm used to VT and Colorado. 


edelweiss said:


> Sue-- :chili::chili:-WELCOME HOME:chili::chili:
> We ALL missed you---esp. your sense of humor.
> So glad you had a relaxing, family-memory-making time! I think Jim's parents were pretty smart to con you into going!
> Glad little Tyler didn't hold a grudge & that he got spoiled by your cousin. Maybe I should be your dog! :innocent:
> So get rested up from your vacy & get busy w/getting caught up on all the msgs. you missed.:HistericalSmiley:


I missed you too, Sandi. It wasn't all that relaxing since we were on the go nearly every minute.:blink: But still such a great experience. Tyler's such a sweetie. Most of the people I know want to come back as my dog. :HistericalSmiley: Trying to catch up but it seems to be a losing battle. :huh: 


Hunter's Mom said:


> So glad that you had a wonderful time and that you were able to find a special and quiet place to pay your respects.


Thanks so much, Erin. Very special. 


donnad said:


> Glad you all had a great time...looking forward to the pictures!


Thanks, Donna. I finally uploaded the pix and will try to get them up. I had to bathe Tyler last night so didn't do it then. 


MoonDog said:


> Welcome back Sue! It sounds like you had a very lovely trip. I would have loved to see Tyler's reaction when he saw you after nearly a week! Once when my husband was out of town for 10 days, I made him wait down the road from our house for a few minutes until I got home from work so that I could be in the house when he walked it! Our dogs went NUTS!!! Poor guy had driven over 500 miles and I made him wait on the side of the road...:HistericalSmiley: Isn't it the most wonderful thing to be greeted with such love?


Leigh - there is nothing like that unconditional love. We got off the elevator and apparently my DS let Tyler out to greet us. I think he had gone down the hall to check on his Havanese girlfriend Lucy, since Tyler suddenly came from in back of us. :blink: He was going nuts and doing his happy dance. :chili::chili: Yeah, our DH's take a back seat to our fluffs. :HistericalSmiley:


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## Katkoota (Feb 18, 2006)

Katkoota said:


> let me see if I can find some pictures from back then.


found some. Yellowstone, September 2009.































































We didn't get the chance to see many animals and the ones whom we saw, we were quick at passing by them; didn't make a stop, but I caught this little guy, waiting for his family as they checked the hot spring:wub:









it sure was as good as you thought of it :thumbsup:


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