anolefan

I haven’t read all the replies in detail, but I know that my activity on here has all but been eliminated. Life has been extremely busy for our household and my time spent on forums has decreased as well. I still lurk a bit, but not nearly as much as when the kids were all so much younger. As for camping at The Fort, we are here as I type this for our annual trip, but that is the only time we are able to get here anymore. We used to visit 4-6 times a year [emoji25]. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Wow, I knew what this report was going to be about by reading the title. You have such a special bond with your girls that all you are doing now is entering into a new journey. Remember that the foundation you have set, with the emphasis on family time, will all come back to you many times over once they have their own families down the road. Then the Fort trips will be especially cool :) We just took our oldest boy to his junior high open house last week and I was already getting sappy just walking him around the school. I'm amazed at how our children have grown in the short time from our

Made it! Bragging rights for me, but even more for you as the Gators ran it right down our throats Saturday. Looking forward to another great report!

Happy Thanksgiving Fiends! I have been really busy with work and baseball lately and have been slacking on updating this report. First, I need to brag a little. DS10 and his baseball team have been together for just over a year and won their very first baseball tournament over the past weekend. Up until this championship they have been runners up 3 times over the past year, but just could not get over the hump. This tournament was probably the best baseball they have ever played. They put together a 5-0 record over 2 days and outscored their opponents 51-11! It was awesome to watch their

Thank you for reading along! Thanks KFK! I appreciate you following along and commenting. Thanks for replying to that, I've been swamped lately. Roaring Fork is wonderful and you would most definitely enjoy it.

We left off driving through Roaring Fork Motor Trail and stopping off at Jim Bales Place. Just down the road from Bales Place was Ephraim Bales Place, Jim Bales' older brother: Ephraim owned 70 acres here in which he farmed 30 and used the other 40 for construction materials since it was naturally wooded. Here are some shots of the cabin and the property: I've seen this shot done on here with much greater success, but figured it was worth a try: I'm not really digging my result. When my wife saw this picture on the computer she asked why I took it. I thought it looked neat, lol: Down by t

Well played on the USC hat comment. You can't go wrong with a trip to this area. Thanks! It really is a neat drive. I actually enjoy it more than Cades Cove since there it is usually less crowded. Thank you! Thanks! Have you ever camped in this area? I'm not sure if I have seen any pictures on the other campgrounds thread or not. Unfortunately we did not go to Cades Cove. It was actually the only thing I wanted to make sure we did because it has been a while since visiting there, but we had to pick up my birthday cake that my wife ordered from a local bakery between 2pm-5pm Saturday,

Great updates! I'm sorry you had to deal with the news of your father being ill, but glad things worked out. You are very talented with a camera. I admit, I laughed at the Woody sketch, only because an effort by me would be 100 times worse.

Awesome report! I LOL at the trading card scenario. Is that the first time that the twins refused a photo opportunity? They must have been even more nerdy than you described :) I can't believe how busy your days are. I don't last more than a couple of hours at any theme park, much less on a day trip. My hat goes off to you, maybe you should come up with a TCDRMOG award for yourself.

Definitely and when you travel with a group and split it up three ways they are even better. You get a lot for those prices.

It is now mid morning Saturday and everyone is up and ready to go. We had plans to meet my brother in Pigeon Forge at noon for lunch so we decided to hit Roaring Fork Auto Trail. For those who are not familiar with this trail, here is a link with some information about it. I highly recommend doing this if you visit Gatlinburg. The trail is located just shy of the GSMNP entrance at stoplight #8. Seeing how we had the kids and we were on a tight schedule, we didn't get to stop at all of the cabin areas, or get all the information that goes along with each stop, but we did get some pretty go

Thanks! I totally agree about Gatlinburg, and the reason we enjoy it so much also. Roaring Fork is always a must do for us when we visit. In fact, when we stay for longer periods, I will get up early and drive it myself so I can take my time and get lots of photos. When the kids get older we will try some of the hikes located along the drive.

Loving this report! I'm not fully caught up yet, but had to comment on the wonderful VIP visit, awesome. I love the behind the scenes photos! Very cool indeed!

Loving all the pictures, and the GG looked like a wonderful time! Can't wait for more.

Thanks Kim! It is a great place to hang my FSU hat on :). We have had raccoon encounters camping at Fort Desoto, down past St Petersburg, Fl and they can definitely be a nuisance. Nana always comes through with activities to keep the kids busy. They love when she visits. She also brings lots of food goodies as well, which I love. Thanks, and that is a good suggestion. I write my reports a little differently in that I prepare everything as I write them. I find that having the photo webpage open and looking at the pictures helps me put my thoughts together easier. I will try this in the