...the rest of the Tennessee story!

One of the best parts of the vacation was having a home cooked meal every night. We decided each couple would be in charge of a night. From start to finish, fixin' to cleanup....you had to do it all! Was a bit comical to see how each couple interacted together in the kitchen!

The first night chefs were Shannon and Mike. They had a Mexican theme...enchiladas, Spanish rice, and salsa. It was delicious!!! In fact, I was one of the lucky ones to get a leftover enchilada for lunch one day. Nice work guys!

Day two was Max and I....you all know how much I love the kitchen! We opted for a true American, midwest favorite: T-Bones, corn on the cob, and cinnamon applesauce. Sorry I don't have the proof, and many won't buy it, but I really did cook! The steaks were cooked to perfection and the corn couldn't have been sweeter!

As you can see, we did talk the guys into helping a little with the prep. Thanks Shane and Mike for helping clean the corn. (Sorry, Mike, you were just late for the picture, but I will back up your story if you back up mine.)

Shannon contributed dessert for this night by making a birthday cake for Max!! A late Maxmas celebration....Thanks, Shannon!

The final evening was Shane and Ashley....we were very impressed with the young chefs. They made their version of Chicken Cordon Bleu and fresh asparagus. We had a few ears of corn left so we threw those in too! It took Max and I a little getting used to seeing Shane eat something green! You're doing good, Ash! ;)

This is where I had my coffee every morning....I was up about 7 each morning, grabbed my book, coffee and blanket and headed for the porch! That's what relaxing is all about! And then Jaden always joined me.....mom and dad even got to go back to sleep a couple mornings, I think. Jaden and I would take a little walk near the woods out back....as you can see, getting dirty is taking a little getting used to!

And one of my favorite parts of the whole vacation was spending time with the kids playing games. Jaden and I had fun playing dominoes! She has the one...two...three down! But she would knock down the dominoes before i could get a string going. We had fun though....Jaden, you are such a sweetie!!!

After Jaden went to bed, we moved upstairs to the theatre room and played games until after midnight. Shannon and Mike brought "Balderdash" that was a hoot!! Had us literally rolling on the floor sometimes! And then another night Shane and Ashley taught us Mexican Train Dominoes. My new favorite game....sure hope Santa brings me a set....hint, hint, Shane-o!

Of course there was a lot of fun in between these times like.....a trip to Gatlinburg (Jaden and I only liked the ice cream shop). Way to commercialized and touristy! The kids took a trek through some trails at Smoky Mountain National Park. Max and I stayed back at the cabin and made a small trip to some outlets in Pigeon Forge. Again, the only part Jaden and I liked was the ice cream!

I am already looking forward to another trip back soon!

Thanks kids and Max for making it a super, fun, relaxing vacation!!!