Tennessee for the New Year


The kids and I took off the day after Christmas to spend the rest of our holiday break in Tennessee. It was exactly what we all needed. Best visit we have ever had. By best I mean, it was fun and relaxing. We took a more planned approached, and had at least one outing we did everyday. That allowed us to do a lot of new things: Elf on the shelf scavenger hunt around downtown Knoxville, ice skating at Market Square, rock climbing at Obed, Lady Vols game, swimming at the civic center, jump jam, the zoo, chick fil a, going to the movies, hiking in the Great Smokey Mountains, and lots of Wii playing. Dad even played super smash brothers with Henry. Can you believe it? I witnessed it, and that is the only reason I know it happened.
The day after Christmas is special, because it is Mom's birthday! We enjoyed spending it with her. 

Zoo Knoxville with cousin Ruby. 

The tradition continues!
I loves these little buddies and how they immediately gave me a silly face when asked too. 
Uncle Sam playing monster with them at the red panda enclosure. Hearing them having fun made me so happy. 
Rapha insisted on wearing this Santa hat, and I love him so much for it. 

Making biscuits with Grandma. Lots of baking sessions with her while we were there.
And spent lots of time with Pa. 
We spent an afternoon in Downtown Knoxville doing an Elf on the Shelf scavenger hunt. We went to different participating stores and found the elf, got a stamp, and had a marvelous adventure on the way. 




Found the very first book I learned how to read featured at the library. My kindergarten teacher gave it to me. I read it so much I had it memorized. It will forever hold a special place in my heart. 
This is one of the most adventurous girls you will ever meet. She is not afraid to try new things. She has been roller blading to church every week, and was so eager to get on the ice. She went ice skating twice this trip, and did so well. It was just me and her on this outing. She took off and I hardly saw her till it was time to leave. 
There she goes, full concentration. 

New years eve game playing. The kids learned how to play "Peter, Paul", and Ticket to Ride. 
Picture by Henry. 
Me and the sweetest boy in all the land. I do not know what I would do with out my Rapha.
Happy New Year! We stayed up till mid-night, and saw the ball drop in our home town. 
Regardless of their faces, we had a fun night cheering the Lady Vols to victory. 

Dad took us to Obed State Park to go rock climbing. Every first Saturday of the month the park host free rock climbing. It is first come first serve. We went on a cold rainy January day, so we did not have to wait very long. C, R, and I all took turns rock climbing. H decided to observe this time around. 

Made it to the top of the "baby" wall. It has been over a decade since I went rock climbing, but I still have it. 
Rapha going up. He was so cute. The guys running the climbing were so nice. This guy help Rapha with his foot placement, and let him use his knee to climb up on. Rapha did make it to the top, but as he told everyone, "I am only four". He did great. He went twice, and I am proud of him for trying something new. 
The fun part, free "falling". 
As I said earlier, this girl is the most adventurous girl I know. Not only did she tackle the little wall, she climbed up on the big wall several times. She made it up pretty high. The guys said they have never seen anyone climb like her with out any experience. Way to go my girl. 
It had rained and rained and rained the couple days before we went. The river was really high. 
Hiking in the Smokies. 
We had Ranger Henry lead us on the way.

Christmas light viewing at Concord Park. 
Now we are back to reality. It has been hard to come back. However, winter so far has been pretty mild. I just need to enjoy the non 'freezing" days, and we have. Happy New Year! Gong xi fa cai, because it is now Chinese New Year.

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