What’s New

It’s hard to believe but we’ve been in the house for over six months already! We spent the winter months decorating inside. 

And once spring arrived we moved our efforts outdoors to the deck and yard.  We have a lot of deck space so it will take awhile to get to where I want it to be, but we’ve made a good start.

I’m  happy to see that the neighborhood has started to come back. There are several houses in various stages of construction in our immediate area and hundreds all over this mountain. 

And there’s a lot more than residential construction going on.  It’s been over 2 1/2 years since the fire and it’s amazing to see all the new restaurants and attractions that have popped up during that time.

Here’s a list.

In Pigeon Forge:

-Alcatraz East  

(www.alcatrazeast.com)

A museum about crime, crime-solving, and famous criminals

-Pigeon Forge Snow  

(pigeonforgesnow.com)

A year-round indoor snow tubing attraction

-Crave Golf Club 

(www.cravegolf.com)

Spin the wheel to determine if you have to putt with one hand, standing on one leg, with your eyes closed....or maybe you will be granted a free stroke or a hole in one. Or you can go just to visit the candy store. 

- Pirate’s Voyage Dinner & Show  

(https://piratesvoyage.com)

PF’s latest show, Pirate’s Voyage Dinner & Show invites you to join Captain Blackbeard, the most famous pirate to ever sail the seven seas, and his quartermaster Calico Jack as they lead the Crimson and Sapphire crews in an epic battle for lost treasure on land, on deck, in water and high above full-sized pirate ships in a 15 foot deep indoor hideaway lagoon. (Located near the Island, formerly Dolly’s Adventure)

-Paula Deen’s Lumberjack Feud 

( lumberjackfeudtn.com )

It’s back, bigger and better than ever! Real lumberjacks, real competition, real family fun!

-Rocky Top Mountain Coaster

( http://rockytopcoaster.com)

There’s yet another new coaster in the area. 

-Dave & Buster’s

(www.daveandbusters.com)

Eat, drink, play and watch sports at your local Dave & Buster's! Food and video arcade. 

-National Enquirer Live

(www.nationalenquirerlive.com)

They say “enquiring minds want to know” and this is a place where you can go to explore the untold story.

-The Buttonwillow Civil War Theater

(www.buttonwillowcivilwartheater.com)

An educational and entertaining show, with a light-hearted, but also serious portrayal of Civil War figures and facts.

-The Slide

Even though construction is still underway, this place just opened in time for summer fun.  There’s no website yet, but if you like giant outdoor slides down the side of a big hill this place may be for you.  It’s located on the parkway next to The Local Goat. (Just beyond the Wax Museum and across the street from the Titanic Exhibit).

At the Island:

(www.islandinpigeonforge.com)

-Spinning Parrots Coaster

A kiddy ride for all ages

- Ridemakerz

You can build your very own customized remote control car!

-Yee-Haw Breeing Company

Their motto is: “Craft Beer, great food, good times”! 

At Dollywood: 

(https://www.dollywood.com/themepark/Rides/Wildwood-Grove)

-Wildwood Grove

Dollywood has added a whole new (6 acre) section full of fun!

“Beyond an ancient hollow log and into a hidden land, Wildwood Grove beckons the explorer in all of us. Let curiosity be your guide as you journey ever deeper, past sparkling creeks, through a charming village, and under the mighty limbs of the great Wildwood Tree. This is where adventure takes root and dreams take flight.” The grove features lots of rides for kiddies and adults as well.  The large indoor play area is a great place to cool off during the summer heat.

RESTAURANTS

-Gaucho Urbano

https://www.gauchourbano.com/locations/pigeon-forge-tn/#

Pigeon Forge’s first authentic Brazilian steakhouse offers a dining experience you won’t soon forget! Don’t go unless you are a super hungry carnivore!

-Five Oaks Farm Country Kitchen

(https://fiveoaksfarmkitchen.com)

It’s almost as good as Crockett’s! Great breakfast with gigantic griddle cakes and humongous cinnamon rolls. They also serve a down home dinner. 

-Funky Buddha Sports Bar & Grill

(https://m.facebook.com/funkybudhatn)

Yes, Pigeon Forge now has a karaoke, dance bar.  Fun, food, and frolic!

In Gatlinburg:

-Anakeesta  

(anakeesta.com) 

Ride the chair lift or “chondola” to the top of a mountain for food and fun. Try the zip lines, explore the nature trails, take the rope tree walk, play on the playground, or just sit in a rocker and enjoy the view.

-Rowdy Bear Mountain 

(www.rowdybearcoaster.com)

Home to 2 amazing thrill rides:

The Gravity Coaster and the world’s first Mountain Glider, a suspended single rail coaster that combines free falling and hang gliding!  

-Sky Lift & Sky Bridge

(http://www.gatlinburgskylift.com/)

The chair lift in Gatlinburg has re-opened after the fire. This year your SkyLift experience will be better than ever with the addition of the SkyDeck, featuring an expansive viewing deck, a spectacular new restaurant and bar, gift shop, and seating areas.

And if you’re a brave soul, you can walk across the new SkyBridge which stretches 680 feet across a deep valley with a height of 140 feet at its midpoint. 

 At Ober Gatlinburg:

(www.obergatlinburg.com)

-The New Rock 

Test your climbing skills. 

- Ice Bumper Cars

Instead of skating, you can bump, spin, and zoom around the ice rink!

RESTAURANTS

-Ole Red

(https://olered.com/gatlinburg/)

Gatlinburg’s newest restaurant, based on Blake Shelton’s hit Ol’ Red.  Stop by for a frosty beverage, a bite to eat (like an Ober Gatlinburger), or listen to some live music from the latest upcoming country talent. 

Well, there you have it!  As you can see, if you haven’t been to the Smokies in a while, there’s a ton of new stuff to see and do! 

And there’s still more in the works:

-Chesapeake’s 

Another restaurant from the Copper Cellar family, Chesapeake’s offers seafood fresh from the sea to your table! Set to open in Gatlinburg by late summer.

-The Mountain Mile

(http://mountainmilepigeonforge.com/)

-The August Moon Drive-In

(https://augustmoondrivein.com/)

Looks like we will have plenty of new adventures to explore.  Stay tuned!

Smoky Mountain Christmas

There’s nothing quite like a Smoky Mountain Christmas and this one was wonderful.  As soon as Thanksgiving was over I started decorating.

In between shopping, cooking, and cleaning I worked in a little trip to Dollywood.

The music and the lights certainly got me in the Christmas mood!

The kids were able to join us several days before Christmas so we had plenty of time for fun and games.

And then it snowed!

We enjoyed lots of hot tasty beverages.

I enjoyed cooking in the new kitchen (and I think they enjoyed eating there, too)!

On Christmas Eve we went to the movies to see Aqua Man. 

Then we headed back up the mountain to wait for Santa. 

On Christmas morning we donned our crazy hats and cooked our traditional omelet breakfast.

Then we gathered around the tree to open all the goodies. 

Then we checked out the stockings which were hung UNDER the mantle since the mantle just arrived and hasn’t been stained yet. 

All in all we had a beautifully blessed Christmas and look forward to many more special times on the mountain.

It’s Good To Be Home!

Well, after 16 long months of building, we are finally back at the Mountain House! 

It’s only fitting that we got the final inspection certificate on the Monday after Thanksgiving. That’s the day the fire came 2 years ago. We fudged a little.  We “squatted” with an air mattress for a few days until the furniture came on November 12. (I was determined to have Thanksgiving on the mountain!) The kids were a great help with opening boxes and helping me get everything situated. 

I had pretty much everything you need to set up housekeeping since I had over 16 months to buy stuff! I learned all about apps like Ebates and Shopular that kept me informed about sales at all my favorite stores. I had been gathering goodies for so long that finally opening the boxes was like going on a Treasure Hunt!

One of the biggest tasks is setting up the kitchen, but as you can see, I had good help and we got everything washed and stored. The architect and I put a lot of thought into planning the kitchen and I love, love, love the results!  It’s a pleasure to cook in this kitchen. (Did I really just say that??) It’s huge! There’s plenty of room for everything. In fact I have cabinets and drawers that are still empty. 

Dishes are located right beside the dish washer. 

Trays, bakeware, and cutting boards are all neatly stacked over the oven.

On top of that, I have a huge pantry for food storage.

There’s much more in the kitchen, but it’s time to move on. There’s more to see. 

This is a MOUNTAIN house so Black Forest Decor quickly became one of my favorite websites. That’s where I got my bedding.

The Master Suite

We really like our great big walk-in showers. During the build, when I wanted to find a quiet spot, I would go sit on the bench in the shower. I called it “my office”. 

Upstairs Bedroom Suites

I must say those king sized beds sleep a lot better than the air mattress!

Of course, our favorite spot is in the Great Room where we gather as a family to watch a movie, work a puzzle,  check out the latest football/basketball/soccer/hockey game on the tv or just sit by the fire.

That covers the top two floors. There’s a basement, but we’ll finish that later. (Someday) It will have a game room, a 4th bedroom suite/office, a wet bar, a fitness room, and a media center. 

And then there’s the deck space........

(Keith’s favorite spot)

Needless to say, we are enjoying our new home. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving here and look forward to our first Christmas at the new and improved Smoky Pointe. 

Mountain House Update

It's been months since I've blogged.  That's because things have been moving very slowly. But they are moving.  After many meetings with architects, builders, and engineers, we are finally getting underway.  So mark it, July 10, construction has begun! Today, they cut dead trees away from the site and started digging for footers.

And so it begins.  Hopefully, the weather will cooperate and they can get the block work done soon. 

In the meantime, we have spent a couple of weekends in rental cabins (our insurance company pays for "loss of use") and we've even had a few adventures.

The guys have done some hiking. Jeff just got his 500 mile pin!

We spent some time at some of our favorite restaurants!

We had some family time doing fun stuff at the cabin.

And we had our annual 4th of July cookout, complete with red, white, and blue Fruit Pizza! I must say it's a nightmare trying to cook in an unfamiliar, under supplied kitchen, but we managed!

During the holiday weekend we did have a new "first time" adventure in Pigeon Forge. We went to Jayell Farms to drive/ride some UTV's. It was fun, but every part of my body hurt by the time we finished our trail.

Jayell Farm is located right next to the Dreammore Resort, back off the road.  It's a neat place.  They have horseback riding

Zip lines

And lots of muddy, bumpy trails for ATV's and UTV's.

A good (muddy) time was had by all!

Meanwhile, back home I've been picking out tile, cabinets, faucets, commodes, sinks, mirrors, light fixtures.....and that's just the bathroom! There's a lot to decide.  There's a lot to be done. But we'll get there, one day at a time, one step at a time. Stay tuned!