The Blue Ridge Parkway

When trying to decide what to do for a family vacation this year, Doug and I knew we wanted to stay closer to home than what we have done on previous trips when it was just the two of us. Packing up our back packs and hiking through one of the National Parks in the west with miles and miles of driving between destinations didn't seem too feasible with a toddler who still needs to be carried after about a 1/4 mile of hiking, and who doesn't like to ride in his car seat much more than an hour at a time. We are also unsure how well Callen would sleep in a new place, so we didn't want to be in a hotel where he could wake up everyone in adjacent rooms. Hiking and camping along the Blue Ridge Parkway seemed like the best option for us. We figured we wouldn't be too far away if Cal wasn't doing well and needed to shoot home quickly, and Cal wouldn't need to be in his car seat for hours at a time driving from place to place. Turns out this was the perfect getaway!!

We originally planned to start in the north around Doughton Park and travel south towards Pisgah. Because of the weather forecast and the rain being called for in the north during the first few days of our trip, we opted to start in the south and drive north. We really had no plan as to what all we were going to do. I had written down some landmarks and hikes that we could try and see/do depending on Cal's schedule. We knew the campgrounds we wanted to stay in, but that was about it! 

We arrived in Pisgah on Saturday and found a camping spot and set up camp. Cal 'helped' with all the unpacking and setting up the tent. He quickly found the stream running behind our campsite, and often times you would find him walking towards the water so he could throw rocks in the stream. This was a great spot with room in the woods to set up a hammock and relax in the cool temps.We got out that evening and explored some of the areas around Pisgah with plans to hike the next day.

Hanging out in the hammock

Cal always seems to smile when we take selfies. I guess he likes to see himself!

Staying busy at the campsite

Running free around the campsite

The next day was Mother's Day! No better way to celebrate the day than spending time with my two favorite boys. We hiked a short hike to Craggy Mountain Pinnacle. After enjoying the beautiful views and hanging out on the trail for a while, we headed to Mount Mitchell for a lunch break. We stopped at the picnic area and enjoyed more wonderful views before walking (the paved trail) to the top for 360 degree views. We made it to the top and back down just in town for the rain storm that moved in. We ended up hanging out in our car while the rain poured down. Cal had a blast climbing all over the car and looking at pictures on the phone and camera from the last few days.

So happy!

I'm on top of the world!

This was the point where Doug realized he left his sunglasses at the top...and I got to go for a good trail run!

Enjoying our picnic spot

Look mom, I'm right here at Mount Mitchell!

Carting this little load down the trail!

There was bad weather expected for Monday as well, so we planned to set up camp at Julian Price Campground (which is awesome! We had a spot right on Price Lake with beautiful woods all around us) and then drive into Blowing Rock and Boone to explore. We spent the afternoon wandering around the towns, visiting the ASU campus, and avoiding the hail storm by hanging out in a local coffee shop for quite a while! We ended up eating dinner in Boone and then going to a Chick-fil-A to allow Cal to play in the playground since our campground was WET. We had more rain that evening and I'm sure we were one of about 3 campsites taken that evening (the other two were in some sort of camper or RV).

Helping Doug hammer in the stakes to the tent

Blowing up the Thermarest

Tuesday was much better weather...sunshine all day! We opted for a hike along the Boone Fork Trail which allowed us to veer away from the BRP and hike along a more secluded trail. Cal took a little snooze on the way in, but did some serious (1/4 mi or so!) hiking on the way out. He thinks he has to have a hiking stick whenever he is hiking, so we always have to find one that is slightly taller than him. He is doing really well hiking and is able to traverse over many different surfaces without losing his balance. He used to want us to hold his hand, but now he pushes you away whenever you offer assistance. He is too grown! After our hike, we headed to the Julian Price Picnic Area. This place doesn't look like much from the road, but as you drive farther back in there, it is beautiful! Picnic tables and benches scattered throughout with pretty much everywhere shaded from the sun. We opted to eat along the creek, and Cal quickly found his way to it! He had the best time playing in the water and throwing rocks upstream. This was a good place for him to get a little cleaned off too since we had not had a bath/shower since we left Greenville.

Throwing rocks in the creek

Everyone asks how Cal did. How did he sleep? How did he do hiking? 

He did AWESOME! The first night sleeping was a little rough, but we realized his mattress was not very comfy for him, so we changed things up and he did great the remaining nights. He is used to hiking, so that was nothing new to him. He actually enjoys climbing into his pack on his own and gets excited when you ask if he wants to go hiking. I will say that riding in the car was probably the worst part. He was trapped in his car seat often and wasn't very happy about it. We would try and get to the hiking spot or next camp spot during a time he would be napping to avoid having him travel while awake. That worked well, but there is just a lot of driving along the BRP so it was inevitable that he would be stuck in his seat for a while at a time. I think we spent more time driving than I had originally thought we would, but we also didn't want to get him out at every overlook and hiking trail along the way. We would have never gotten him back in his carseat! He was a trooper!

We cut our trip short by a day because we didn't know what things there were to do between Julian Price Campground and Doughton Park. We knew Greenville was going to have great weather on Thursday, and we wanted to take advantage of it in case it rained all weekend like was previously forecasted. So, we headed home to continue our family vacation with a bike ride to Travelers Rest along the Swamp Rabbit Trail and lunch at our favorite, Tandem Creperie. We spent the next few days hanging out and relaxing and ended up doing a little hiking around Furman. What a great week...I'm looking forward to another week of fun and camping!

The Clydesdales Come to Spartanburg

The Budweiser Clydesdale Horses have a 'Hitch' Tour with stops all along the East Coast. Last week the horses were in Spartanburg, and the horses were open to public viewing during certain hours of the day. I had only seen the horses one other time at the St. Patrick's Day parade in Savannah a few years ago with Doug (which happened to be the highlight of that parade!), so I thought it would be fun to take Callen to see them. Cal's buddy Wyatt and his mom joined us for the morning outing to Spartanburg. (It's so much fun to get these boys together and watch them grow and change. Even a month or two ago they would 'play together' but hardly even look at each other. They are starting to interact more and do things the other is doing. I am so happy Cal has such a good buddy so close in age,)

Taking turns driving the beer cart...

Cal enjoyed looking at the horses, but because they were in the 'travel' stable the entire time, it was hard for him to really show any interest in them since they weren't moving around much. He did stop and watch a few of them eating and drinking.

A little while after we got there, one of the horses was led out of the stall for a bath. Cal stood and watched this activity for a minute, and was back to running around and playing with the dalmatians! 

I am pretty sure the highlight of the day for Cal was the dalmatians. There was a full grown dog and a puppy named Barley. Cal was following the dogs around and trying to 'play' with them. He would pick up a toy and toss it throw it at the dogs hoping they would start playing with it. He was good and went over and petted the dogs several times.

Please play with me!

This was a great activity for us...we were able to get out of the house and see and do something different, but also because Cal could run around and not mess up much of anything! One day looking back, he will appreciate that he was able to see and experience the Clydesdales.

Water Boy

We were excited for our recent trip to Charleston because this was the first chance we have had to try out his new life jacket. We had one for him as a baby but he hated it. It went up and around his neck, and he tried to pull it off anytime you put it on him. If he couldn't pull it off, he was crying that it was on. Now that he is bigger, he is able to fit in one that is a jacket. We figured he would be more likely to keep this one on since it doesn't go up and around his neck like the other. Every time I would show Callen the life jacket, I would prep him that he has to wear it on the dock at Nana and Oupa's house and at the lake. Over and over he would hear 'every time you walk on the dock, you HAVE to wear your life jacket.' Surprisingly, he did really well wearing it. He knew that if he wanted to join us on the dock, it had to go on. There were a few times he wanted to go on the dock, but didn't want to wear the life jacket, so he had to stay behind in the yard.

Because he did so well wearing the jacket, we were able to take him for a boat ride as well as spend time fishing and hanging out on the dock. We had one very interested little man during these activities. 

The boys took Cal out to the end of the dock to get the mud minnow trap ready. Each time we walked by the trap, we had to look down to see if anything was in it. We finally caught enough mud minnows to do some fishing off the dock. Ken caught a nice trout, but Callen had nothing to do with it. He did not want to see or go anywhere near the fish! He finally came around and helped me to fish. He helped hold the rod and reel in the line several times. One time a fish caught on the end of the line, but I wasn't able to hook it...Cal caught his first fish, which I am sure he was glad did not make it out of the water!

Walking with my Uncle Dave

Checking on the mud minnow trap

Look at all the fish...just don't make me touch them!

No Oupa, you put them in the bucket

Making sure the door is closed tight!

Working on my fishing technique with dad

On our boat ride, Cal just stared in amazement at the Wando terminal port happenings. He couldn't have been happier...trucks, boats, and cranes all in one place! He watched intently as to what was going on with the loading of the containers onto the ships. Any time the boat would drift and he could no longer see what was happening, he quickly let us know so the boat could be repositioned! Had bad weather not started moving in, I am sure we could have sat there for an hour or more looking at the action.

Enjoying a 'nack' on the boat

Watching the trucks move the containers

Constant pointing to the action

Cal waved to the guys on the tugboat, and they tooted their horn at him!

I have a feeling we will be going on just a few boat rides this summer. Cal was a huge fan of hanging out on the boat and enjoying the surroundings.

Touch a Truck

I've mentioned before how much Callen enjoys watching trucks and construction equipment. There are many afternoons that we walk or ride our bike around the neighborhood in search of a house project where there will be lots of trucks gathered. In the car, he is constantly pointing out any type of truck he sees. Often times I will drive around in search of large construction projects so that Callen can sit and watch the heavy pieces of equipment do their work. He is always mesmerized!

I have been looking forward to this summer when the Downtown Farmer's Market has their Touch a Truck event. I have heard the crowds are large, so get there as early as possible to avoid the masses. But, that event is at least 2 months away. I was so excited when I learned that downtown Greer was having their own Touch a Truck last week...in the evening no less, so Doug could join us. (I try and keep Cal busy during the week and take him to neat events and activities, but Doug misses pretty much everything because he is working). Doug was excited to be able to share in Callen's excitement for this event.

The event was great. There were utility trucks, city vehicles, a military tank, and several pieces of construction equipment all on display. We took Cal straight to the school bus and sat on it for a second (literally) before he had had enough and was ready to get off! He was ready to see all the big trucks! We had to stand in line for most trucks Callen wanted to sit in. Usually I would stand in line while Doug and Cal walked around. At first Cal was a little weary of touching or sitting on the trucks by himself, but he quickly got over his fear and wanted to sit on every truck he came to. Eventually he started jumping to the front of the line and try to climb up on his own.

Walking on the school bus

Wow! That's a big truck!

Not so sure about these trucks to start with

Hanging out on the tractor tire

Riding in the Bobcat

Trying out the fire truck

Finally getting the hang of riding in one on his own

Pure joy!

I hope this is the one and only time we see this scenario!

Running wild on the back of the truck!

I am so glad we were able to go (and the rainy weather held off for most of the event) and let Cal explore the trucks. He was so excited to see so many trucks all in one place. By the end of the evening, he was all smiles!