Dollywood 2022

Part of Georgia’s Christmas gift was Dollywood tickets from Santa! We told her we would use them once it warmed up and we were out of school for the summer. We found a free weekend, secured family to keep John and headed to the mountains for a quick trip.

Dolly or bust! We finally made it to the park Georgia has been wanting to explore since her love for Dolly began. Her and I are serious fangirls!


We had the bright idea to start the day on the river rampage water ride. Everything dried out except our socks. We kept the soggy socks souvenir all day long :)

I’ve taken a lot of pictures in my day but this one is a top five for sure. 


Cruisin’ and trying to dry out a little 


Their first big rollercoaster ever-Dollywood’s Thunderhead, “the wildest ride in the woods”. They were both brave to do this one! Georgia did scream “I don’t like it” but she has bragging rights of doing it :)

We did the height test before we started our day and they both received clearance to ride all the rides! Jack barely made it but was so excited he could do it all.

The famous Grist Mill. Absolutely gorgeous!


The cinnamon bread at Grist Mill lives up to the hype. The kids devoured it like vultures. 

Dolly’s tour bus! We were the very first people in line for this must-see.


Everything was preserved just like it was when she toured. I’m sure it was luxury on wheels back in the day!


“Please no picture taking on any of Dollywood’s rides” was the rule mama didn’t see until after I took this one :) I’m a rule breaker!


Thunderhead views of the park. Breathtaking. 

I promise the kids had fun LOL


Waiting in line for the Firechaser Express


Tiff made our matching Dolly shirts for us-they were the cutest! And I realize now after looking at this picture this was about the time I lost my favorite sunglasses :(

We went to Dolly’s theater to watch the Violet the Pilot play, Georgia and I love that book! I loved the Coat of Many Colors display.

Two beauties with hearts of gold 

After missing two train departures, third time was the charm and we finally got to ride. I can’t get over the beauty of this park nestled in the smoky mountains. No other amusement park I’ve seen to compares in aesthetics and natural beauty.

Jack rode every roller coaster we had time for. Wild Eagle was his favorite. It went upside down four times and cork screwed and went up 100 feet. This picture just shows how close he was on the height requirement! This boy lives life large. He also loved Mystery Mine. He’s the bravest seven year old I know!


Sunny grin pictures at 5 in the afternoon because we forgot to have one take it in the morning will have to do for our iconic Dollywood picture

Tell me you’re a tourist without telling me you’re a tourist. We collected everyone he could find.

We had an amazing time. The park was gorgeous and provided things for all of us to enjoy. We were dog tired by the end of the day from all the walking. It’s very spread out with lots of detail to nature and preserving the park’s beauty. 

Favorite ride/attraction:

Marcus- Wild Eagle

Mom- Thunderhead

Georgia-Dolly’s tour bus 

Jack-Wild Eagle

Back to School, First Birthday and Covid-19

A loaded post full of three very big things. Unfortunately, one event overshadowed the rest but we’re blessed to all be healthy and well again. 

One last swim before school begins. We keep swimming through September but the best swimming days are the lazy summer days of freedom!


We made a trip to Owensboro to visit our friends, the Bennett’s. Our last babies are just a month apart! John and Ford, sweet boys of summer 2020.


Ford, John and Mac playing with trucks 

And the girls I’m sure were playing with Bess’s “Butler County Barbie”!


We hooked up our projector and watched a few games and movies outside. This will come easier when attention spans are longer than a few minutes. 


This first day of school came with extra excitement and joy as it felt like a return to normalcy! It’s humbling the things we take for granted. Our big THIRD grader. Braces, crimped hair and wedge sandals-I love this age.

First day of Kindergarten 2.0 for Jack Porter! He’s excited to make new friends and be with Mrs. Cindy and Mrs. Ada again this year. I’m sure he will try to run the show at some point!


Holding Jack back means they will now be three years apart in school. They will still have one year together in high school which this mom is thankful for!

The side by sides get me every year.



Her outfit evolved this year into more of a mature look. I think this will be my last year getting by with a bow too, even if it is small and just to hold her hair back. We gave it a good run and have lots of pictures for reminiscing :)

Second day of school attitude. The new wears off quick!


It’s time to get ready for fall ball so afternoon backyard sessions are a must.


It’s also tumbling and gymnastics season with little brother in tow some weeks. What he would give to join the mats with her!


Determined to meet everyone in this place and do as some damage as possible :)


A little after school Lexia, this boy is a reader now!


August 19th, 2021-John’s first birthday and the day Marcus tested positive for covid. We would all end up testing positive as well and spend a week pretty sick and a total of 19 days quarantined (G had the longest quarantine because she was the last to test positive). It was a rough three weeks. 


Daddy was quarantined to his bedroom on John’s birthday as he was the only one sick at this point. So the kids and I threw a mini party with just the four of us thanks to deliveries from Gammy and Ma. We opted out of a big party and plan to throw a big second birthday bash! Poor guy. I’m thankful he was at a age he had no memory of how his birthday was spent but we did all we could to make him feel loved and special on his day.


Like moving a spare crib into the living room so we could all be together for bedtime.


A crazy day of quarantine and a sweet sibling moment on the steps. The big kids were a big help to me while daddy was sick and a big help to dad once I became sick. It was a team effort!


He loved all of us being home together. Lots of cuddles and spoiling.


Selfies to daddy while he was down and we were up ha! Sadly our up would not last.


It was so hot while we were quarantined. We got outside when we could but we would melt down pretty fast, especially those of us who were symptomatic.


BBW soaps were on sale so I ordered enough to get free shipping. I told the kids to hurry up and smell them before it was too late for us! Sure enough, we enjoyed them a few days before our smell was gone too.


We were blessed with an abundant of friends and family who kept us medicated, comfortable and well fed. It was a great reminder to me to pay it forward for others who were in similar circumstances.