Summer Vacation

We had a super time on our vacation last week. We went to Stone Mountain Park (825 feet high granite mountain) and Atlanta, GA. I highly recommend this trip for families with young kids. It was quick and inexpensive with tons to do. We stayed in the Stone Mountain Inn and got the "Staycation" package that includes two nights, two days of hot buffet breakfasts, and two days of all-attraction passes for all four of us. PLEASE CLICK ON PHOTO COLLAGES TO MAKE THEM LARGER FOR VIEWING.

We got there Thursday afternoon and used one of our day passes. We started with the Sky Hike and the Camp Highland Outpost. They really liked the ropes course, especially the zip line.

I don't have any pictures from that day of the Sky Hike because my purse with my camera was locked up in a locker. They don't allow you to have anything lose while on the Sky Hike.

The ropes course area also included rock climbing. The girls really enjoyed that.

We went back to the hotel to cool off in the swimming pool.

After supper, we went to the the Lasershow Spectacular. It really was spectacular.

Friday we used our second day pass. We started off with a ride on the Summit Skylift to the top of Stone Mountain. It was so pretty up there.

The girls enjoyed exploring all the rocks, and Tim and Anna Kate found several geocaches up there.

Then we rode the Scenic Railroad train. The bottom right picture in the above collage shows the huge carving in the mountain. It is larger than a football field and took 50 years to complete. It's the largest relief carving in the world. The carving is of Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson.

Next we played miniature golf at the Great Locomotive Chase Adventure Golf. After that, we saw the Journey to the Center of the Earth 4D movie and played around in the Great Barn. Those were fun too! 

There was a short rain Friday afternoon, but we were happy to see a beautiful rainbow. Then we went to the Museum of Memorial Hall, and we did lots of exploring and geocaching in the park. We also saw the Carillon.

We visited the granite quarry exhibit and grist mill in the park that was neat.

We made another visit to the Sky Hike. This was our favorite thing to do at Stone Mountain. Tim and Anna Kate went on all three levels. Emma and I did the lowest and easiest level. I was so proud of her for being able to do this. They also did the rock climbing again. We finished the day with another laser show.

Saturday morning we did a little more exploring in Stone Mountain Park and took these family pictures.

Then we headed out of Stone Mountain Park to another small park where Tim and Anna Kate climbed a tree to get a geocache.

I am so proud of Anna Kate for being able to do this with her Daddy.

Next on Saturday was a trip into downtown Atlanta to the Georgia Aquarium. We really enjoyed this, especially seeing the whale shark.

Saturday evening we stayed with our former neighbors who now live in the Atlanta area, Nick and Marcia Nichols. We had a great time catching up with them. The girls loved playing with their dog Lilly. The Nichols live on a beautiful farm and have many horses, so Sunday morning the girls got to ride horses. I think this was a highlight of their trip. Thanks to the Nichols!

We had a wonderful trip. I couldn't have asked for anything better. This was a perfect vacation for a family who loves outdoor exploring and adventure. Now, we are on to more softball with Anna Kate's first tournament of the summer this weekend.