30 Days of Thanks: Day 3

Day 3: I am thankful for nature. Alan and I had the best time today hiking Abram's Falls which is a 5 mile hike in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. We were able to drive through Cades Cove which is beautiful this time of year and we had perfect weather for a quick hike. Every time we go up there I am just in awe of God's glory through creation. What a mighty God we serve!

Cades Cove

As Alan has been training for his marathon he has tried to run a lot of different places to keep it interesting so today we drove up to Cades Cove for him to run "the loop" which is a beautiful and scenic 11 mile trip. Katie and I drove and met up with Alan at different places to encourage and provide water. It was a gorgeous day!

We saw some horses at the very beginning on the loop :)

There are several small quaint country churches up there.

God's beauty everywhere!

Rockwell Cabin Retreat

For Christmas last year all the kids in my family got my parents a cabin weekend in the Smoky Mountains for our whole family. So last weekend was the time we made it happen. We chose to stay at Dreamcatcher Cabin which is owned by some friends of ours who are wonderful people.

We also chose to stay there because of the amazing views in every direction!

My wonderful parents :)

Dad & Christa, checking out the view after arriving

On Friday night we celebrated Maggie's birthday (which was actually that day) and my Mom's birthday (which is December 12th) It's sometimes tricky to get everyone together so this was the perfect time to do it!

It was great having everyone together!

Elizabeth & Christa were so excited the cabin was already decorated for Christmas!

Rockwell Sisters

Ben, Maggie, Rachel, and Colin

On Saturday morning, we celebrated Christmas as a family since Colin will most likely be in Japan by that point. Christa & Annie went all out with their holiday attire :)

"Christmas" morning

Having fun during the gift exchange

Later that afternoon the girls went shopping at the outlets and the guys went on a hike. 

Alan, Dad, and Patrick

Later that day most of us got back to the cabin by 4pm in order to watch the SEC football championship. It was wonderful just lounging around with family, eating good food, and catching up with one another. We did manage to get a group shot at a stopping point during the game.

So thankful we were able to do this!

Perfect weekend getaway!

Tanasi Lodge

Last night Alan and I went up to Tanasi Lodge with a big group of our friends. We had such a good time! The lodge belongs to a couple in our Sunday School class and since they didn't have anyone renting it out this weekend, we all got invited to go!

This was the view we woke up to this morning :)

the girls making breakfast

the guys chatting it up

We felt like we were on top of the world up there, it was beautiful!

Fall Break

This past weekend was Alan's Fall Break and we decided this would be a good time to go home to Knoxville. It was so great relaxing and spending time with our family and friends!

We arrived Wednesday night just in time to have dinner with my family. It was great seeing them, especially since we would miss them the rest of the weekend because they were going to Washington DC for Knox County's Fall Break. Figures...

On Thursday, we had a wonderful lunch with Jessica & Brian Strutz at the Apple Cake Tearoom. It was so much fun to catch up with old friends, I just wish our time could have been longer. Alan and I were able to get a few "Knoxville" errands done that afternoon, and then we met Nicole & David Lipsey for dinner at Aubrey's. We enjoyed celebrating their recent pregnancy and Alan passing the Bar. I was sad about forgetting my leftovers...we don't have Aubrey's in St. Louis!

Friday morning was woke up early. Our plan for the day was to go hiking in the Smokies! We decided to hike the Chimney Tops which is a beautiful trail this time of year. It was a gorgeous October day and the trees were dressed in all of their fall glory! The hike was about 4 miles which Alan and I felt every step of it by the end, but it was worth it! We even ran into a few friends on the trail, what a small world! That night, we met his family at the boat and took it to dinner at Lakeside Tavern. You don't realize how much you love the lake until you move away from it! It was fun cuddling up in blankets and cruising to dinner as the sun began to set. It was pretty cold on the way back though!

Saturday, Susan, Katie, and I went to get manicures at SoHo in Turkey Creek. You definitely need a little bit of pampering on vacation, and my nails needed it after our hike on Friday. My only request for this weekend was to go to Apple Barn in Pigeon Forge, so that's where we headed next followed by shopping at the outlets. It doesn't get much better than that! That night we celebrated Katie's birthday at the Moore's house with hamburgers, sugar-cookie cake, and presents.

Sunday morning we went to Cedar Springs and were able to connect with a few more friends there before heading back to St. Louis. I will say that it wasn't much of a "break" since we were so busy but Alan and I came back refreshed by feeling emotionally encouraged and socially caught up. Now we are back to school and back to work!