Keeping a Watermelon Cool In the Mountains

This is such a great tip!

 Most camping refrigerators aren't big enough to hold a full size watermelon. 

This is no problem when you are camping next to a mountain stream. We put our melon in the middle of the stream during the hot of the day and it kept nice and cool.

 You need to rotate it ever so often.

I love summer for the watermelon!
And no calories too!

Blog Stalking

Here it is again, more blog posts that I enjoyed reading this week!
 I hope they inspire you like they have me!

Marian, aka Miss Mustardseed, is so encouraging and real. I just love her. 

 I struggle with this kind of thinking all the time and it is nice to know that I am not alone!

 Paula Deen calls it "stinkin thinkin"

 I totally agree with Marian's point of view... read it, you will love it.

Miss Mustardseed

Next, just a cute, easy craft project...

This would be a great idea for mom's with little girls. Makes me wish my girls were still little.

Uncommon Design Online

I'm in love with this kitchen!!!

Buckets of Burlap

And lastly, a neat little blog about a mom and dad who bought an RV and with their two little girls in tow, hit the road. They seem to be having the time of their lives.

Winnabago Diva

ENJOY!

Jellystone Campground (our favorite) Review

This is a campground review of one of our favorite places to camp.

Four  reasons we believe this is the best campground out there!

First:  the location. This campground is located right outside the Great Smokey Mountains National Park in Cosby, Tennessee. They have done a wonderful job of keeping the grounds true to the elements of nature, yet still making it easy to set up a comfy camp. 

Most of the sites are between two beautiful mountain streams. 

This was my view everyday of vacation. 

                              

                           Secondly,  we love this campground definitely because of the Staff. 

This is Dave and his wonderful family. 

Dave is a retired Police Chief from California; he finally found his way to the southern promise land!!

The campground is family owned/operated and boy does it show!  They live on site, so they really care about cleanliness and safety. There is a fully stocked camp store with all the essentials. What I really think makes them different from the rest is the fact they greet each customer and guide them to their specific campsite. I have to be honest, we have camped a lot of different places over the few years and we have never had a campground owner or host guide us into our site.  They lead you by golf cart to your site, line you up and walk by the drivers side window to direct the driver straight into place; first shot (everytime)! Anyone who has ever tried to back a camper into a tight spot knows what a luxury this is. 

Third,  "there is so much more room for activities!"

 There is no pressure to participate, but they are available. To me, that's the best part. I don't want to feel forced to be participate on my vacation if I just want to relax. 

They just make sure it is available for campers.

They have a calendar of events posted in the center of the campground, so you always know what is happening next and don't have to ask. 

Here are a  just a few of the things they had going on while we were there...

 hayrides, candy bar bingo, nightly karaoke, a very nice playground, basketball court, a full 

arcade, ping pong, putt putt, and a covered movie theater that shows kid friendly movies nightly.

Oh , and Yogi regularly goes on the loose and roams the campground...

Lastly, but most importantly, for our kind of "Comfy Camping"... 

they have Cable, Wifi and clean, large bath houses. 

This Campground definitely deserves our "Comfy Camping" Stamp of Approval

Making The Best Of A Rainy Day On Vacation

Okay, so this year's vacation would have to be graded as a C-.

I'm not sure exactly what made it less than perfect, but I know the weather did not help.

It rained the first four days we were there.

 Now don't get me wrong, I love camping, but sunshine plays a major roll in making it fun. 

This is how the first few days looked...

Grey and gloomy.

This was taken from Clingman's Dome; 

the highest point in the Smokey Mountains.

We decided that we would make the best of it. 

Attitude is half the battle and we decided we would enjoy this time together or die trying! 

Since Gatlinburg is some place we go often, we decided to visit all the antique stores we always talked about visiting, but never found the time.

Not expecting much, since this is a tourist town, I was surprised to find this wonderful booth.

 I did take a business card, but as usual, I lost it. 

Oh well, even though I can't tell you where to find it, 

check out these really cool ideas for re-purposed stuff...

I want to do this! What a great idea for a nursery or large bathroom.

I found an old silver peculator at another store for $2 that

I am going to make it into one of these lamps! 

While we were going from store to store,

  we happened upon one of the prettiest waterfalls I've ever seen.

 Only in Tennessee would you find funnel cakes and kettle corn for sale next to this...

 By the end of the day, we looked like this....

Making the best of a rainy vacation.

 I love my family and we love kettle corn!