On the road....

Fall is by far one of our favorite times of the year. We love the colors, the cooler weather & all the yummy fall scents. I didnt think it was possible to love it more than we already do until last week. Then I got the dreaded call from Scott that he would have to go out of town for the week. No that didnt make me love it more. However the realization that we would not see Scott for a week led us to planning an overnight camping trip near where he was working. Thankfully he just happened to be working near somewhere known for its history & beauty.... Cumberland Gap National Park.

So a day after Scott left we packed up the camping gear & bikes and headed to Wilderness Road Campground. No video games allowed!! On the 1.5 hour drive we learned about different states and reviewed our math. We also laughed, sang & the kids tried setting fire to themselves with a magnifying glass. Believe me that only lasted until they realized that it actually can burn you. I dont think they even missed their video games. Once we got there we set up camp which by the way made me very proud of the both of them. They worked really hard.Then we went on a bike ride around the campground.

After a visit to the local Walmart where we suprisingly learned about the history of coal mining in the area we stopped for a much needed lunch break. I joked that our school cafeteria just happed to be a Dairy Queen.

The kids were not amused with my jokes or my picture taking.



Oh well I always say... good parenting=frequent humilation.

With belly's full we headed on to the visitor's center.There we learned about the Wilderness Road,  Daniel Boone and the importance of the Cumberland Gap to western expansion.

We also had some fun dressing Lotus up in early pioneer garb.

At the gift shop we picked up some carved redbud & cane whistles for the kids to (annoy mom with) play with. Then we drove up to the pinnacle and learned about the history of the civil war in Cumberland Gap . Of course the only picture I got from up there was this one & this doesnt do it justice..

It was beautiful and the kids & I had fun exploring the woods around this, but the trip wasnt just about us having fun. It was about getting to see dad. So after this we headed back down into town and picked up Scott from his hotel. Im quite sure that the guys working with him thought I was crazy for driving to see him way up in Kentucky, but the kids (& mom) miss their dad when he's away. At least that's my excuse and Im sticking to it. Scott didnt seem to mind and in fact loved getting to ride bikes back at the campground and take a 3 mile hike which led to petting & feeding a bison nearby. Yet again I didnt have my camera for this one.

Later we cooked veggie burgers and relaxed fireside before taking him back for the night. He would have stayed, but road foremans must watch out for the crew. That and I told him the tent was too small for him to stay. Hey I had no idea he would want to stay. As funny as it might sound we woke up in TN, explored KY, then went to bed in VA all in one day. We were less than 10 minutes away from each other, but in a whole different state. 

As you can see we had a full day, but the story doesnt end here. Sadly I must save it for a later date because Im tired just thinking about it again. Til then......

TO BE CONTINUED