We woke up early and drove from South Carolina straight to North Carolina.
We rented a cabin for three nights with our dear friends Rita, Scott, Pedro, and Enzo, in a small city called Bryson
They drove from Virginia and we drove from Florida.
They drove from Virginia and we drove from Florida.
It had been about 6 years since we saw them last!
Once we got settled we went to the city to grab a bite. There were very few choices of restaurants and this place was pretty much the best :)
Our cabin and the surrounding area
They arrived shortly after we got back from our fancy dinner in town :)
I was so excited to spend the next few days catching up with Rita.
The cabin was really nice. Kalei and Gabe shared a room with two double beds and Pedro and Enzo shared another room with two other double beds.
The adults' bedrooms were downstairs. I actually ended up sleeping upstairs on the open loft, leaving Ruffin with a bedroom all for himself :)
On our first day, we woke up to a very cold weather and the grass was totally covered with frost.
Kalei ran outside hoping to see snow.
Our first day we went snow tubbing in Cataloochee Ski Area at the Tube World in Maggie Valley
The drive was very beautiful and we found a lot of snow as we drove to the the pick of the mountain. We didn't stop because we had reservations at the snow tubbing place and were running late, which we regretted later.
The snow tubbing slop was a major disappointment. There was nothing to be done other than let go and have fun...and we did! The boys did!
It.was.so.so.cold and raining
After the snow tubbing we drove to Asheville.
How cool is this coffee place inside of a bus?!
Walking through Asheville downtown
It rained on and off and we were freezing
The coolest bathroom wall
The next day, on Christmas Eve, we went to the Smokey National Park.
The trail that we had planned to hike was closed due to the icing and snow conditions.
We had fun hiking and the weather was gorgeous. Cold but sunny.
We visited Cherokee City
Then we visited Bryson City
Our Christmas Eve was about cooking, talking, and enjoying each other.
We did the gift exchange
***
Initially we were supposed to stay until the 26th but we decided to drive back home on Christmas Day.
They opened their stockings on Christmas morning before we left.
On our drive back home there were no restaurants open.
We kept taking exits along the way to find only The Waffle House open, exit after exit. So after a couple of hours we decided to give in and dined on the third Waffle House we found. It was our first time ever eating there!
We drove for 12 hours, getting home at 10:00pm.
The boys could.not.wait to open their gifts. As tired as we all were we went on with our Christmas tradition.
Each got the latest iPad
Home sweet home. So grateful for my family, for good friendship, and the opportunity to travel and bond with them.
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