Thursday, October 25, 2012

Romantic Weekend for Two!

I couldn't post about this in my quick takes last week because it was a surprise, but I booked two nights at The Chalet Inn two months ago as a surprise for Steven. Normally we can't plan much in advance because of his schedule, so as soon as his week of vacation (that he always takes around his birthday) was set in stone, I started googling! We have a list of things we want to accomplish in our first year of marriage, and staying at a B&B was one of them. So I booked it and then had to keep it to myself for TWO MONTHS. It was really hard because I was so excited! We went to Spartanburg (where my parents live) on Friday night for a Saturday wedding. He thought we were just hanging out until Tuesday and then coming back, but the real plan was to leave Spartanburg Sunday and head for the mountains. I wasn't going to tell him until we got in the car on Sunday, but in the car Friday I realized how many ways that plan could fail and he could accidentally find out beforehand. So I decided that I would tell him right then instead, so there was no chance of the surprise getting ruined. As perfect timing would have it, we were getting ready to pass a Harrah's Cherokee billboard and I had planned to take him there during our trip since I had so much fun in Vegas last month and he has never gambled. So I cut him off mid-sentence, pointed at the billboard, and said "We're going there!". My super precious husband asked "What's Harrah's?" LOL!!! So after I explained it to him, he asked when we were going and I said we'd be visiting Tuesday... after two nights in a mountain bed and breakfast. That got him excited and I could see the wheels turn, as he realized I had planned a surprise trip, and he kept getting more and more excited!

So fast forward to Sunday. My mom took us to an AMAZING lunch at The Farmer's Table which is a restaurant that uses all local foods. We headed to the mountains from there and our first stop was at a chocolate factory... of course! We bought a half pound of fudge for us (that we still haven't touched yet... what in the world!?) and the worker gave us two pieces of fudge that weren't big enough to sell. We sat out on the double rocker and ate salted caramel fudge and maple walnut fudge.


After stopping at a local grocery store (we love those!) where we got a big ole pumpkin, we checked into the bed and breakfast. The owners are a married couple and the wife is from the Netherlands so there was a really cute European influence all through the house. She gave us a tour and showed us to our cute little room, which faced the woods in the back. The porch off of our room had a double rocker that we got a lot of use out of.

 They had our names on the sign to welcome us!

 Front of The Chalet Inn

Here is the back... our room is the upper left. 

After we checked in, we walked around the grounds. They had a double hammock (also used a lot by us), double glider, campfire and pond, horse shoes and croquet, and 22 miles of hiking trails! Our room looked over one hiking train which was a really steep path up to see Clingman's Dome. We weren't dressed for a hike, but I wanted to see the view from the top so badly, so we went for it! There was a bench at the top where we rested and took in the views. After that, we rode through Cherokee and then over to Bryson City for Mexican food for dinner.

View of Clingman's Dome from the trail at the B&B

Monday morning, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at the B&B. Both mornings, the food was EXCELLENT and you could tell nothing was just reheated or microwaved. The pastries were flaky, the juices weren't too sweet, and the jams were German. YUM! After breakfast, we went for a hike in Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Our gps got us lost on the way there (and took us on some very scary mountain roads that were not paved) and then I got us a little lost once on the trail. We had a lot of fun finding water falls (3!), and seeing the leaves as the sun hit them at different angles. After our hike, we went back to Bryson City for an amazing lunch and ice cream dessert (custom blended pumpkin pie!) but we didn't stay too long because we were beat! We headed back to the B&B for a glorious afternoon nap followed by hammock time.






 Around dinner, we got up and went to... this is so embarassing... the KFC buffet. My husband LOVES the KFC buffet and I didn't know they existed outside of his hometown, so we saw the sign and went. It was kind of grungy, and I don't like their chicken, but I did kill the sides. After that, we went to Harrah's to gamble. We were each going to spend $10, but they gave us each $5 to get started. After gambling for 2 hours, Steven had made back his $5 and I had earned back up to $1.50. So we cashed out and left Harrah's feeling really good that we got paid $6.50 for two hours of fun! We went back to the B&B and I enjoyed a glass of wine and he a seasonal beer on our double rocker with a book. It was a fantastic evening!

Gamblin' fool!

Tuesday, we headed out after breakfast. We drove towards the Blue Ridge Parkway, and stopped for a mini hike to Soco Falls. Once we hit the parkway, we stopped at most of the overlooks to see the beautiful scenery. For a month, the prediction was that it would be peak weekend. When we were there, it was very pretty, but peak was obviously the weekend before. There were lots of pretty colors, but also quite a few already bare trees. We drove on the Parkway until we got to Asheville, where we ate lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, Fatz, and then headed home. It was an amazing trip with my husband, and I'm so glad I splurged and surprised him! He said I have upped the ante for surprises :). 






6 comments:

  1. I am impressed that you were able to keep it a surprise for so long! It looks like an absolutely perfect weekend. Your pictures are making me want to go to the mountains so badly!!

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    1. I was impressed with my own self, haha! If you do go, you should check out that B&B. You two would love it... the couple who owns it is just so sweet and friendly!

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  2. That sounds like SO much fun! I've always wanted to go to the mountains because it's so freakin flat in Ohio. Maybe next time we come to NC (next year) we can stay a little longer (and I'm pretty sure we'll be married by then. so then we can go somewhere awesome!)

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  3. Wow, looks beautiful. I'm glad you had such a wonderful time!

    I can't wait to be married so we can finally go on vacations alone! We're trying to keep the lines of dating vs. marriage very clear for our younger siblings (and for us), so we only go on trips with family or friends at this point. It's my dream to go to a B&B, too!

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  4. We were camping in the Smokies with our little one this past weekend. We stayed on the Cosby TN side of the park. Horn and I actually got engaged at Newfound Gap so it is our "special" place we take a picture at every time we go to the park. Our "special" place with our son is The Chimney's picnic grounds.

    We have never done a B&B but can't wait to bring our son on the train ride.

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