Family Journal

The 3 kids and I went out to the park today. My older son talked non-stop, firing questions and quizzes at me with hardly a break. Tired, I answered when I absolutely had to and let him rattle on.

Glancing in the mirror, I noticed my 4-year-old's head nodding and his eyes at half mast.

"Are you tired, honey?" I asked him.

"Nooooo," he replied in a resigned voice. "I'm just tired of you talking."

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I had told the kids we would get out of the house for a while today, so my 4-year-old was pestering me to GO NOW. I had some work to finish, so I put him off by telling him to go find his clothes and get dressed.

In a flash, he was back in the office telling me he couldn't find his pants. "OK," I said. "I'll come find them in a minute." Well, you know THAT wasn't good enough. In typical 4-year-old fashion, he started chanting, "I need my PANTS, I need my PANTS, Mommy find my PANTS."

I tuned it out for about 10 minutes while I was concentrating on something but then it was too much. "If I hear the word PANTS out of your mouth again, we're not going anywhere!" I threatened. "I mean it. You will just have to wait a minute."

I turned back to my work and he walked up quietly beside me. He touched my shoulder and said softly, "Mommy?"

"Yes?" I answered.

"Look at me," he said. So I did.

Then he said slowly and carefully, " I need you to find something to go right here!" he said, patting his knees with his hands.

(Sigh) Well, he didn't say PANTS again...

On our way back out of the park, we stopped in Chimney Rock Village, a quaint little touristy town at the base of the park, to eat at one of the restaurants along the river. We weren't impressed with the restaurant (it claimed to be "homestyle" so I guess they ate out of cans at home) and although it offered outdoor seating on the river, we weren't allowed to sit outside with the kids. Hmph.


So many apple farms to choose from! We finally selected one that allowed you to pick your own apples and followed the signs to the barn. Most of the apples were harvested, but they still had a few rows of Rome apples to be picked. We didn't take the hayride, but it looked like fun.

The kids had a ball picking apples, with the baby picking them up off the ground and my older son climbing the trees to get the "really, really red" ones. They provided baskets and a box for us to collect our apples and in no time we had a ton. We snacked on apples the whole way home and still had plenty to give to family and friends! And they were some of the best apples I've had in a long time. :-)

Tuesday, we packed up and headed over to Chimney Rock, about 25 mi south of Asheville. The drive over was beautiful with all the leaves turning. About every 10 yards along the road, there was another vendor selling apples. We were deep in apple country!

Chimney Rock Park is a very cool place. We drove in and up a long, winding road to the parking lot. At the head of the parking lot is an elevator to take you up to the top of the mountain (conveniently letting you out in the gift shop/snack bar). It's great for families with small children (like us) or retirees who can't climb all the steps to the top.

I'll admit... although I made it to the top, I couldn't look once I got there. I have a perverse habit of "challenging my fears" and heights is one of them. Although I can handle heights a lot better than I used to, standing on the edge of a sheer cliff made my knees quiver and my stomach churn. Luckily, son #1 had a similar experience so I went back down to "take care of him".

We had a great time, although we didn't even see a fraction of the park. We took the "Outcroppings" climb down which didn't take long at all but we decided to save the hike to the falls (either from the top of the ridge or through the forest to the base) for another trip.

Chimney Rock Park isn't cheap at $14 per adult and $6 per child 4-12, but well worth the money!