The Great Smoky Mountains- Part 1 Dolly's Homecoming!

We took another short trip at the beginning of May, this time we ventured into The Great Smoky Mountains. It just under a 9 hour drive from our house so we planned in extra stops on the way there and on the way back. 

Our way out took us down through Nashville and we stayed the night just outside in a place called Murfreesboro, I have recently just gained gold status with Hilton Honors so it was really nice to get upgraded to an executive level room and two free breakfasts!
I started to feel a little ill at the hotel, I think a cold was settling in but after a good sleep I was feeling better the next day. We carried on to our cabin in Sevierville, TN.

The Cabin was amazing, it was everything I thought it would be and more. To get to it we climbed up and up and up a spiral road and when we finally reached our cabin the view was breathtaking! I could quite happily wake up to that view everyday! The cabin was fully equipped with a kitchen, 1 bedroom and 2 bathrooms, It also had a hot tub outside. It was beautiful!

The first night we decided to take Calleigh into Pigeon Forge and on our way there we noticed that the main road was being closed off. After a bit of googling we discovered that it was for Dolly Parton's Homecoming and she would ride right down the road we were on in a parade! It was still early so we took Calleigh on the Dinosaur ride and went for something to eat. Then it was time for the parade and what an amazing parade it was- Lot's of the local shows were there and then Dolly Parton herself riding right down the street just feet in front of us. Calleigh was shouting "Dolly! Dolly! Dolly!" the whole time bless her!

After the parade we drove back to the cabin and enjoyed the night together in the comfort of the cabin. It was truly a great evening- I may have even cried a little at seeing Dolly.
We made sure to get an early night as we had big plans for the Smoky Mountains the next day!

More on our trip to come soon- I promise!

Outfit of the Month: June

Dress: Cherokee 

You may have noticed that last month we were a bit quiet on the blog scene. Well my Mum came out to visit and we spent most of our time with her and enjoying ourselves. I am very behind on some posts due to that, I still owe you our trip to the Smoky Mountains, so I will be trying to catch up over this next month! Look out for some lovely summery posts as the hot weather has finally arrived here in St Louis!! 

Outfit of the Month: April

Top, Jeans and Shoes- All Next 

She wanted to do the outfit post today because she has just had a haircut and she loves it! 

Mother's Day at Minted and Giveaway!!

Mother's Day is just around the corner now and if you are looking to get something that's as unique and special as mom is then look no further than Minted.com

Minted is a design marketplace where you can shop from a community of independent artists all in one place. They simply enter their designs and artwork, it gets judged and then the winners are available to buy on the site. As well as some great art you can also shop home decor and stationary.

Here are a few of my top picks for Mother's Day!

Top Left//Top Right//Bottom Left//Bottom Right

If none of these take your fancy you can find more lovely art in their art collection and ideas in their mother's day gift section.

When it comes to giving (and receiving) gifts I always favor ones that you can personalize. I think personalization makes it all that little bit more special and you can really let someone know how you feel about them. Minted is a great place where you can do just that. A lot of the gift-oriented art designs are personalizable- you can add your own photos and choose the color scheme and in some add your own text.

I had a play around with one of my favorite designs to show you how easy it is to make it your own.

It doesn't just stop at gifts either. You can choose to personalize your own gift wrap and gift tags too so your gift will look amazing! They also have a selection of cards for any occasion. 

They also currently have an event on where you can save 20% on all foil pressed products until the 27th April.
Be sure to get your Mother's Day orders in by the 29th to ensure delivery by Mother's Day.

Now for the giveaway.
One winner will receive $50 credit to Minted and free ground shipping (some items are excluded from free shipping)
Open worldwide (Free shiping in US only).
All entries are optional, the more you do the more chances you have to win.
All entries will be checked.
Winner will be announced on Mother's Day via social media and an email will be sent. Winner will have 48 hours to claim or a new winner will be picked.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


*I received credit for this post but all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Midweek Fishing

I love spring nights! They are not too hot and not too cold and the perfect time to go for an evening walk to the lake and do a bit of midweek fishing! 

Discover the Dinosaurs

This weekend just gone we took Calleigh to the Discover the Dinosaurs exhibit which was held in Americas Center in St Louis. I brought the tickets a while back when I saw them on Groupon and knew I had to get them as Calleigh (and myself) are so interested in Dinosaurs. She had been looking forward to it for weeks, every morning asking if we were going to the Dinosaur museum today. 

Calleigh is really good with her dinosaurs and can easily tell you a carnivore from a herbivore and which dinosaurs fall into each group. We have a ton of Dinosaur DVD's and books, in fact, for weeks her preferred bedtime story was a Dinosaur fact book haha. 

The exhibit was great and we loved walking around and looking at each set up. Calleigh did get a little scared at first, as the dinosaurs moved, but eventually she calmed down and was running about as usual! 

After the initial Dinosaur exhibits there was a area full of inflatable slides and play areas for kids. Calleigh's favorite was the Ice Age slide. And she loved getting her face painted! 

We had a great time and are hoping that more Dinosaur themed things make their way to St Louis!