Thanksgiving Road Trip to Charlotte

This just didn't do it for us. I am sure it is one of the best in the nation, but the kids were bored five minutes into it. I think in our family if you have seen one science museum you have seen them all. Sorry Discovery Place! TOTALLY NOT worth the cash.

This place was so much fun! We opened up the doors to the van and let the animals walk up and eat from our hands (or the bucket if they looked like they would bite our fingers off). Never have we been so close to exotic animals or been able to touch them. The kids got a big kick out of this place. And reasonable priced, we thought.

This was a great find. The coffee is great and the food was fantastic. The kids loved the food and the funky atmosphere (Liv especially liked the table tag with the dog photo, so the waitress could id our table correctly). A little confusing though-how to order, do we just pick our own table etc. But people were really nice when you asked. We kind of laughed as we walked back to the van and saw the line around the corner at the Pancake Pantry. What the heck are those people thinking? Wished the groovy little stores in the area were open earlier on Sunday. The locals said this was the best area to shop in N-Ville for vintage etc.

A mall is a mall is a mall is a mall. This one had a few stores we wouldn't find back in KC-like Blacklion and the Gibson Music Store but you know....whatever...

The Cascades had a great menu. We were all in the mood for seafood and they certainly had that! However, we wished the waiter could have made suggestions when we asked him for recommendations instead of saying in a round about way that it all was good it just depended what you were in the mood for. The guys ordered the shellfish for two because Dak wanted crab legs, but we didn't realize that it was cold-really more of an appetizer than an entree. My Bento Box was good, and Liv enjoyed her Mac and Cheese (Kraft variety). I would bet the entrees are phenominal. Wished we had a "do-over" on this place.

This place is AMAZING during the holiday season. The lights were just unreal. I was a bit skeptical about it from the negative reviews I had seen (you pay too much for parking, it is a garden, big whoop) but we aren't country music fans and we didn't know what else to do in Nashville. We are so glad that we went here. It was quite a sight with all the trees outside and the decorations in the gardens. Surprisingly, both the kids seemed to really enjoy walking around and looking at the decorations. Note-the $10 parking charge is waived if you eat at one of the restaurants in the hotel-just get the ticket stickered on your way out.