If your going to do Dollywood...

...you must have the following things:

1. One Gold Season Pass per family
2. A refillable mug for each member of the family

We went to Dollywood today and it became clear to me that those two things were the best deals Dollywood is offering. The reason I say this is, the Gold Season Pass saves you from having to pay for parking, PLUS it saves you 20% on ALL purchases inside the park. We love getting a 20% discount on all of our food and drinks, plus it is nice getting that same discount in all of the shops. Did you know that Dolly's Closet has a wide selection of Vera Bradley items? With the Gold Pass they are always 20% cheaper than anywhere else. Also, did you know that The Emporium is now carrying Life Is Good merchandise? These items, which are hard to find on sale at other shops, are always discounted for Gold Pass holders, as well.

Now, as for the refillable mugs, yes, they are a little on the expensive side when you first purchase them (but again, save 20% with your Gold Pass). The good thing is you can reuse those mugs year after year. Dollywood doesn't have a policy that the mugs are only good for one season. We are still using mugs from 4 years ago. I don't know about you, but I think we have definitely gotten our moneys worth out of them. Also, you can ask that your mug be filled with water and there is no charge - at all. Today, we were thirsty and got an Icee in one mug and ice water in the other and it only cost, $1.71. Sure beats, the menu prices of $3.79 for an Icee (in a non-refillable cup) and $2.89 for a bottled water. See what I mean - what a bargain!

We also found a bargain for lunch. At Victoria's Parlor they have a family special on Sundays; you get a large pizza, 1 bowl of salad, 4 breadsticks, and 4 large drinks for $28.99. This was so much food. And honestly, I don't know of any other amusement park where you can feed a family of 4 for a little over $23 (remember, the 20% Gold Pass savings).

With the economy in the tank the way it is, I think a lot of families are opting not to go on vacation this year. They just don't feel they can afford the gas, hotel and entertainment. I know in our house, we are making some adjustments too, as a result of the rising gas prices. But it was nice to see that we could go to Dollywood today and it didn't break the bank. A good time was had by all; and we ate until we were stuffed and walked away leaving food behind that we couldn't finish (we were nice and offered our untouched 5 pieces of pizza, still in the box, to a large family sitting behind us).

We will definitely go back again before the summer is over and, of course, we will have to attend the Harvest Celebration and Smokey Mountain Christmas. Sometimes I forget how lucky we are to have Dollywood as a neighbor. Today, however, I was reminded of what a good neighbor it is.

Home Sweet Home

Yes, we made it home from the trek to the great white north. I was really looking forward to going to Wisconsin and exploring new territory. I have to be honest, though. It didn't look much different than Indiana or Illinois to me. Lots of corn fields and dairy farms, but not much more. Of course, you have to remember, I live at the foothills of the Great Smokey Mountains (which we kindly refer to as 'God's Country') so it is hard to compete with my everyday surroundings.

The trip north was excruciating. We followed ThiThi who was being guided by the misguided Magellan. I think I have figured out what "GPS" REALLY stands for, something along the lines of "Goshdarned Piece of Scheist". (Ya know I have to keep things clean around here). That stupid Magellan and its wonderful services turned a 13 1/2 hour trip into a 17 1/2 hour trip. All I can say is, at least I was in good company.

My cousin, Cizzy, and her two girls, K8 and SJ, joined Kaylea and me. We had a lot of fun, some at ThiThi's expense (sorry, sis!). There was a lot of laughing and quality time spent with them. Heck, what other choice did we have. The girls watched lots of movies and Cizzy and I listened to lots of movies. Once we reached the 14 hour mark, we all were ready for the ride to be over, but we managed to endure the remainder of the trip.

Before making the return trip, I invested in this really neat navigational device - it's called an ATLAS. Wow, imagine my surprise and joy when I was able to drive home without having to change interstates 14 times and encountering hardly any traffic. Yes, the return trip was still a long one, but it was sooooooooo much easier. Cizzy made a profound statement. She said she believes the GPS makers are in cahoots with the oil companies and getting kickbacks for the extra gas people are buying by following the GPS' directions (i.e. - going the long way). Ya know, she might be onto something. Makes ya think, don't it?

Luckily for Kaylea and me, we were able to stay at Cizzy's house Sunday night. That enabled me to rest and catch my second wind for the remaining 4 1/2 hour drive to K'town. Needless to say, we were in no big hurry to leave Indiana on Monday. If Kaylea had her way, we would still be there. I had to explain to her that we just couldn't move in with SJ. I guess we finally made it home about 7:30 Monday evening.

We are still trying to recuperate. Both of us are tired and our butts are dragging. Kaylea slept until 10:30 this morning and we're still in our PJs. I have a feeling this will just be one of those lazy days.

Just Checking In

We are at the beach. I don't know how many posts I will be putting on my Blog this week; however, if you want to see what is going on with us on vacation just watch Kaylea's blog. I will be posting photos and giving updates over there.

Yes, I'm Still Alive

No, the flu didn't kill me, though I thought it was going to for awhile. Things have just been a little crazy around Casa Jennilu. There was the whole volunteering at Kaylea's school thing AND the whole getting ready for Easter thing AND then the whole getting the house ready for Easter company thing AND then the whole getting ready for our spring break trip thing AND so on....... I know, you get the message.

Anywho, ThiThi, Kaylea and I are in Macon at Mom's and Jim Bob's enjoying the semi-warm weather and our little break. There has been lots of shopping and I am happy to say that Kaylea will not have run the streets nakey this spring/summer. She once again has clothes THAT FIT! Boocoodles of thanks from Kaylea (and Bub and me) to Memommy and Auntie M for the wardrobe intervention! Kaylea likes to complain about the "shopping, shopping, shopping" but secretly she loves it!

Today, we are off to get our haircuts. My Beckham Bob is starting to look a little shabby and it needs a trim. After getting beautified who knows where we will end up, but I am quite certain it will involve some food and some more shopping. Yes, we are so predictable, but we don't care; we're just having fun Franklin girl style.

I hope everyone it enjoying their spring. I promise to write more regularly.

We're Back.....

Yes, we made it home from our trip without any major occurences. Of course, we all had a blast and it was nice getting to see everyone again.

I would recommend St. Simon's Island if you are wanting to vacation in a quiet and laid back ocean front community. The town is very quaint and non-commercialized. (I think we only saw one Putt Putt course on the island.) I wish we could have stayed longer so that we could wander around and see more of the island's treasures. It seems that vacations always end too soon.

Now that I am home I am gearing up for a big BUNCO game at my house this Friday. Yes, I play BUNCO. The girls I play with are a hoot and normally there is just a little bit of silliness going on. Since I am hostessing this month, I get to choose the theme. Well, I decided to have a pajama party; so, everyone is coming in their p.j.'s and I am serving them brunch. (since it's breakfast at dinner, I guess it would be brinner?) This should be another fun evening. Keep your fingers crossed that I win the big jackpot!

2008 Annual Hen and Chick Trip

Well, all of you that read ThiThi's blog know that we are getting ready to leave for our annual President's Day weekend trip. The really neat part is that only girls go on this outing. We kindly refer to the trip as our "Hen and Chick" gathering. The participants are usually the same each year, with only a few new comers and/or absences. The gang, this year, consists of:

Aunt Shashan (Mom's oldest sister)
Aunt Witch (Mom's older sister)
Dawn and Laura (Aunt Witch's daughter and grand daughter)
Mom
ThiThi, Me and Kaylea (Mom's daughters and grand daughter, duh)
Ethel (Mom's 1st cousin)
Manda, Gracie Mae and Em (Ethel's daughter and two grand daughters)
Chris (Ethel's Sister-in-law)

We range in age from 70(ish) down to 2(ish). You might wonder if we really have fun since there is such a drastic age difference in our Hens and Chicks. Well, I speak for Kaylea and myself in saying, we always have a blast. The weekend normally includes lots of shopping, eating, touring and then some more shopping, eating and touring. There are a few other traditions associated with the trip, like going on a ghost tour; visiting a lighthouse; and adding a charm to our Hen and Chick charm bracelets.

In years past we have gone to Savannah, Charleston, then back to Savannah again. Last year, the group went to St. Augustine, but Mom, ThiThi, Kaylea and I could not make the trip. You see, we had this little thing called "ThiThi's wedding" the following weekend. I think we had a good enough excuse for being absent.

The excitement is building and we can't wait for Friday; however, luckily we are hitting the road today and leaving East TN and all of its ice and flurries behind. (Thank you to Sevier County for adding 2 sick days to our 4 day winter break. Kudos to Jackie!) We are getting ready to head south to Mom's where we will be staying until Friday morning. Then Mom and all of her "girls" will mosey on over to St. Simon's Island. The warm weather will be a welcome change, but it did make packing a little challenging. It is hard to pack for warm weather when you are looking out the window and watching snowflakes the size of chicken feathers falling from the heavens. Another challenge was the fact that my child has outgrown all of her summer clothes and shoes. Oh well, hopefully she won't melt into a little puddle on the beach in her turtleneck and snow boots (just kidding). Things weren't quite that bad, but she will be wearing jeans the whole trip because that's all that fits.

I'm sure either ThiThi or I will make some sort of post over the weekend. And if Kaylea does anything "blonde and Kaylea-ish" I'm sure I will post that, also. I hope everyone has a nice holiday weekend. Stay safe and have fun.