We had a nice day downtown Pigeon Forge.
We had a pretty normal morning routine today. The girls were up early on their own and used their electronics until 8:30, then I had them off and going with school. Bia was going to have her presentation about WY today, so we left her in the spot as she was setup yesterday, so she’d be ready to go. Bella got all her school work done before noon, and Bia finished just after lunch. She felt she did a good job in her presentation and was just a little nervous at the beginning as she was looking at the class on the screen, but then figured she should look at her material instead and did well from there.
I finished my writing, did some computer work, then logged in to my first work call, which only lasted 30 minutes today. After this call I went for a run, and just went to the same path I took yesterday, running toward the Island and then around their parking lot. I ran into some geese and their babies in the parking lot today, that was a cool surprise. There was also an older couple by the campground, that had those tier drop campers, and they were getting things done and I took a picture of the back of their camper. Super nice how it is organized and has all the basics. After I got back I showered and then had another 1 hour call.
Carol did stuff on her phone today and helped the girls as needed. She also put my running clothes through the wash after I was done.
After we had lunch, and while Bia still was in class, Carol and I stayed outside chatting and having some beers. Bella was done and was in our bedroom writing in her computer. When Bia was done with school, we let her watch Netflix on her phone for a bit, and got ready to go out for the day. The plan was for Carol to leave with Bella so they could look for shoes for Bella. Bia was going with me on foot, to check out the area, and walk towards the Island, and we’d all meet there later and have dinner there. We all got ready, and left.
Carol said she ended up going to 5 stores before Bella found the shoes that fit and that she wanted. They were out for maybe just under 3 hours, but when they met with Bia and I later, Bella was super happy with some awesome white Adidas shoes. She is very happy.
Bia and I left the campground on foot, and within a few minutes were on the main road in Piegon Forge, that leads to the Island. We had a great time walking together. We went slow and took our time and enjoyed each other’s company. We talked, checked out a few places on the way, stopped for Ice Cream. Bia was happy. We walked a good 2 miles or more, and took about an hour to get to the Island.
When we got there, she had just finished her ice cream and we went to the Yee Haw Brewing Company spot, to sit down, rest and for me to have some beers. Bia was excited because I said she could watch some Netflix, she’s hooked on watching She-Ra. We got a nice spot to sit, with room for Bella and Carol, and I got a beer for me and water for Bia. I’d let her watch for 20 minutes or so, then break for 15 minutes, then do it again.
During one of her watch times, a bird flew by and pooped on Bia’s arm. hahahahahah… she just said “oh groooossss” and when I looked, her arm had a white blob, and there was a bit on the table too. hahahaha… her first time getting bird poop on her.
I was on my second beer when Carol arrived, then I got one more round, let the girls get a Fanta, Carol got an order of cheese nuggets, which were pretty awesome and we closed the tab. We hung out by the beer place for about an hour after they arrived, then left to get dinner. We had a nice time by Yee Haw while we were there, good beer, and great spot to people watch.
We went to Paula Deen’s restaurant for dinner, and it was amazing! We didn’t have reservations so when we checked in they said it’d be 25-30 minutes and took my number. With that time, I went across the street to the Ole Tennessee Moonshine company, to look for something to bring for Bob and Judy maybe. They had $5 tastings and there was a spot just as I walked in, so I got in and tried a few. They were all pretty good, and I ended up having like 5-6 shots of moonshine. Carol arrived as I was finishing the last two, and she tried the banana one and another one, and I ended up buying 6 bottles total, including a sea salt caramel whiskey which was pretty good. Just as I was wrapping up, I got the text from the restaurant that our table was ready, so Carol took the girls and went while I picked up the bottles and paid. I also got these pouring caps, and because I got 6 bottles one was free and I also got a free thermos bag.
By time I got to the restaurant, Carol and the girls were sitting already. The way the restaurant works is a per head charge, and then you choose a main dish with each main paying person (kids 10 and under don’t count, so Bia was 10 today), and a few sides. We got fried fish and chicken and dumplings as main, then creamy potato, creamy corn, Mac and Cheese and Sweet Potatoes. They also brought some biscuits before the food arrived. OMG, everything was amazing delicious. So tasty, full of flavor, and very “southern comfort food”. We all ate a lot, and had seconds of a few dishes. The sweet potato tasted like pumpkin pie, it was amazing. The creamy potato was cheesy, and so good. Everything was good. We had no room for dessert, which came with the meal, so we took it home. We were so full when we left, we were hurting. Hahahahaha. As we were leaving, we stopped by the water fountain there to check it out and enjoy it. It is a mini version of the Bellagio fountains. We walked to the truck, all feeling like we were going to explode, but having enjoyed that dinner a lot. Bia loved the chicken and dumplings and Bella had loved the cheesy potatoes too. I loved everything.
After we got home, the ladies went to shower by the campground showers, and as they were getting ready I opened one of the brownies that came for dessert and we each took some forks from it, that was quite amazing too. The brownie seemed to have a layer of brigadeiro on top, it was really good! I don’t think I should have done that though, I was feeling so full it was hurting. After all that, we all got ready for bed and called it a day. I had a hard time going to bed with being so full, hahahahah, I wish I was home in Sheboygan to be able to raise the bed, that would have helped. But, it didn’t take long for me to fall asleep.
We had a really nice day doing things downtown Pigeon Forge today.