Summer Dance Camp

Waterfalls and Mountain Views!!!

We woke up and headed down to get some breakfast before checking out and going on our search for more waterfalls.  This one was a hike and had steps that went into the clouds...JuJu was a trooper and was determined she was going to see the waterfall too.  The waterfall was absolutely beautiful.  We then did a little shopping in Cherokee.  After shopping we decided we would drive to Gatlinburg, Tn for a little prior to heading back to Charlotte.   In order to get to Gatlinburg you go through the parkway through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park which is such a nice ride.  Once in Gatlinburg we walked around and ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp.  After Bubba Gump we walked around again prior to going on a bear hunt.  We have had pretty good luck in the past of finding wild bears when driving through the parks but we could not find a bear today.  It was time to head back to Charlotte so we said goodbye to the mountains and started the trip back home.  

Road Trip to the Mountains!!!

We had decided that we were going to do a quick road trip to Cherokee, NC.  We had waited too late to get a room at Harrah's but was lucky enough to find a room across the street from the casino.  Any trip with JuJu means that you are stopping at Cracker Barrel so we decided to get that out of the way at lunch.  On our way into Cherokee we stopped at one of our favorite waterfalls right off 19, not a long hike which always makes it a little better.  Once in Cherokee, Samantha said she wanted to see a black bear and since it was sprinkling we decided to play it safe and go to the bear zoo to make sure she got to see them.  She loved feeding the bears and seeing them doing their tricks for food.  We then decided we would try our luck at gem mining and we all had a blast doing it.  Paige won biggest find with a 6 ct Sapphire.  Daddy got into it a little too much and ended up getting mud all over his jacket.  It was time to go check in and get ready for dinner.  Paige had booked reservations at Brio so we walked around checking out Harrah's prior to dinner.  After dinner it was a little more walking around and then time to head to the hotel.  Samantha and grandma put on their pajama's and turned on the tv while mommy and daddy headed to the the casino.  Such a fun day!!!