Tweetsie Railroad

A few weekends ago we took a quick trip to the mountains so we could take the children to Tweetsie Railroad. Our friends Lisa, Patrick and Garrison went with us.

great friends!

It was a quick trip, basically up the mountain and back down again!  We arrived at lunch time on Saturday and after unpacking the car and getting the house situated, we headed for a few hours at the park.

The very first thing we did was ride the train. Now, I have vivid memories of crying my eyes out as a 5-6 year old child on this very train. For the most part, the kids really did do well. Avery got a little upset but was quickly over it and was flirting with the cowboy sitting behind her on the train!

the kids on the train

watching the cowboys and indians fight

making googly eyes at the cowboy

Will, Avery and Garrison had a blast on the various rides. We called this trip our "practice Disney" trip but with no lines or crowds, I really don't think it was very good practice. The kids were spoiled by the ride operators who let them ride over and over. Seeing the excitement on their faces was priceless and a memory I never want to forget.

Avery does everything Will does, period. It is a minor miracle that we have gotten her to actually sit down when she potties. So when he goes to get on the fast, spinning rides, she is not going to be out done and climbs right up on them too. Now the 2 fast rides were not her favorite and she begged to get off the one she rode with me. But we were spinning so fast that I couldn't even raise my arm off the bar to wave down the attendant to let her off!! She was a trooper though....she even said they were fun, once her feet were on solid ground!!

best buds

Worse to me than the fast, spinning rides was the chair lift. I can't believe I let my children get on this thing...multiple times! The first time we rode it I had Will with me. I had such a death grip on him it is a wonder he could even breathe!

After a quick dinner at Chick-fil-a, we went back to Matt's dad's house and made smores down on the river's edge. What a wonderful evening. Fun, food and friends.....it really doesn't get much better than that.

This trip was also Will and Avery's first time sharing a room, which was also sort of a practice Disney aspect of this trip. In fact, when they were trying to take their nap that first day, we let them even get in the same bed. Poor Will was trying (for the most part) to be good and take a nap. We could hear him over the monitor telling Avery to sleep and if she couldn't figure out how to sleep in the same room as him, they weren't going to be able to go to Disney, etc!! Ha!

The next morning, the kids were cute lounging around in their pjs, watching cartoons!

After breakfast and getting the cars packed back up and the house closed up, we headed back to the park.

The Three Musketeers

We re-rode the kids' favorite rides and the few we missed the afternoon before. By about lunch time, everyone was tired and ready for a nap. So we grabbed some pizza and then hit the road back to Raleigh.

Matt has a pic of him and Gray sitting on these same horses

Matt & Garrison, hanging out in jail!

If you could have only seen him get on this horse...

We rested our legs for a bit and watched one of the shows. Will and Garrison even got to go on stage and participate!

It was a short trip but such a fun trip. Makes me look forward to even more family vacations, especially Disney!