After a long day of driving from Baton Rouge, we finally got to our cabin in Chattanooga!
Our first stop was for a late lunch at Look Out Winery which was just around the corner from us
The had wood-fired pizzas, a great start to our vacation
The next day since it was raining we decided to go to the Tennessee Aquarium
The kids loved Stingray Bay
They were allowed to reach in and touch the stingrays as they swam by
The guide even picked up a horseshoe crab for the kids to get a closer look
Ollie was a brave girl and even touched it
Ollie, Charlotte and Wendell couldn’t get enough of this stinky water, but Harper decided to just watch from a safe distance.
But of course it’s always nice to get a bird’s eye view from up on Daddy’s shoulders
Next stop was the butterfly garden
The exhibit that got the kids most excited was definitely the penguins
They were diving and swimming by like crazy
They had some pretty big sharks
And a shark cage for our bad kids
These Giant Japanese Spider Crabs were pretty crazy looking, and Amy & Ollie were able to get a good look at them
They had this cool area where you could lay down and look up into the fish tank
Next up was the rivers section of the aquarium
There was this cool bird just hanging out on this post
And they had a huge snapping turtle
This was the most bizarre turtle
The kids got an extra special treat at the “scuba man” exhibit
Lots of excitement, Ollie was wiped
But the next morning it was time to get up and get going again
We went to Ruby Falls for a cave tour, and they had this castle tower
Ollie got to look out the window like Rapunzel
We came for the stalagmites, but stayed for the stalactites
After a long 40 minute walk through the cave we finally reached the halfway point, Ruby Falls!
We walked over a mile, carrying kids, ducking and crouching a lot, the parents were pooped
After that we took a ride on the Incline Railway, it’s angled at over 70 degrees, so it’s pretty steep
Sunday morning the kids got a treat when Jason made them Mickey Mouse pancakes
This gave them some kind of crazy energy boost, and they raced up and down the porch for over half an hour
Charlotte got some good GoPro footage
There was a private dock nearby so we took the kids over to get a closer look at the Tennessee River
Wendell and Ollie having some fun on the last night, all the kids were so sad to split up the next morning and go back home, they all got along so well.
