Family Adventure Day- Belvidere, TN *GIVEAWAY*
Winners have been chosen in this giveaway, please see below and thank you!
Family Adventure Day Builds Stronger Families
Several months back we were about at our wits end with stress and work and we needed to get away. Going on an overnight trip usually wasn’t an option due to the expense and responsibilities at home and so we decided to declare the day a “Family Adventure Day” and took off for a day trip full of fun together.
That day was a huge success for all of us. We got to unwind and relax together. We sang silly songs in the car and the kids filled the time in between with talks of what was going on at school and plots for the next family adventure. Since then, we’ve gone on a family adventure most weekends, with the exception of a few weekends when I was typing feverishly away to finish up my book. I’ve been wanting to share some of our adventures with you from time to time here on Southern Plate in hopes of encouraging other families to have their own adventure days, so I’m really excited to bring you this post!
I’m also bringing you some great resources that will help you find adventures close to your home to enjoy with your family and friends.
A Family Adventure Day doesn’t have to be elaborate or expensive. The most important factor that has to be in play in order for it to be a family adventure is that all four of us have to do it together – AND we call it a “Family Adventure”.
How to find your next Family Adventure:
We do tend to gravitate toward family adventure activities away from home but I’ve found there are COUNTLESS activities available for little to no charge if you just know where to look. Some of the resources I use are:
- Roadside America – Fun website and lets you search by town and state.
- Factory Tours USA - One of our favorite things to do is tour factories but we’ve only toured two so far. I hope to get to see a lot more of them in the future and I’ll let you know when we do!
- National Register Of Historic Places -this website is a bit on the bland side but useful just the same, you just gotta dig around some to find the good places.
- Local Convention and Visitor’s Bureau - These have GREAT ideas. I like to look up cities near me and send for their information packet to keep on hand.
How to make Family Adventure Day A Success:
- Call it an “Adventure”! Having a special name for it sets the time apart as special right from the start and helps remind us that the day’s focus.
- Have A Soundtrack! I recently purchased three Veggie Tales albums from iTunes and we have a ball singing them on the road. The kids keep saying “turn this one up!” We also have a family theme song we like to listen to and sing. It’s silly, fun, and I like to play it whenever we’re together to help solidify this as “our” song. I know one of these days they’ll hear it and memories of our time together when they were younger won’t seem so far away. Sometimes I even create soundtracks to go along with our day. All of these things help to make your time together more “intentional” and memorable, adding to the experience.
- Talk it up ahead of time. One of the keys to a successful Family Adventure Day is making a *big* deal out of it! If the kids have their heart set on seeing a movie, plan in advance by putting it on the calendar and counting down the days. Talk it up! On the day of the theater trip, get up early and spend the whole morning amping up the excitement. Rather than saying “Oh hey, let’s go see a movie later today” you’ve created your own buzz and given your children ample time to really look forward to your time together.
- Unplug. I’m the world’s worst about “needing” to stay connected by constantly checking my emails on my cell phone. I try to unplug, though, as much as I can when on a Family Adventure Day. Show your kids they are a priority and put your family first. Business and friends can wait while you show your family their importance by example.
- Scrapbook your adventures or post photos on your blog – this gives the kids bragging rights about the time you spent as a family later and helps preserve the memories. It might also encourage others to start their own Family Adventure Days, creating a positive ripple effect stemming directly from your family!
Other Family Adventure Day Ideas (just to get you started!):
The following make great Family Adventure Day ideas as well. The most important thing is to set aside this time special just for your family and focus on each other.
- Movie day at home (make popcorn on the stove top together!)
- Picnic
- Feeding ducks
- Spend a morning making cookies at home and then deliver them to friends and neighbors
- Lunch and walk around at mall
- Explore your yard. See how many different types of leaves you can collect (watch out for poison ivy), and how many different species of bugs you can find. Katy Rose loves to collect roly polies and earthworms (such a little lady!).
- Ice Cream Outing!
- Grocery trip: I know this may sound a little lame but we’ve gotten groceries together as a family adventure and had a great time doing it. When Brady planned his meals for the week we all went shopping together. Each child got to have special input on what we bought and when we came home we made supper together as well. The kids favorite part was making the brownies for dessert. I usually try to get groceries on my own so the kids felt like it was a treat getting to help me shop.
- Local events and festivals: We mostly have these in the fall all clustered together. The month of October is absolutely bursting at the seams with things to do in Alabama!
- Visit a local doughnut shop and watch them make doughnuts – then sample the wares! (If y’all don’t have a Krispy Kreme near you, I actually think this one is worth the move!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our First Family Adventure Day to Falls Mill in Belvidere, TN
September 2009
I’ve never lived more than ten minutes from the Tennessee state line and so I’ve always said that I claim dual citizenship between Tennessee and Alabama. Therefore, I’m gonna claim a little bit of bias when I tell you that Tennessee is by far one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. Rolling mountains, rock bottom creeks, and green as far as the eyes can see. A day trip in the outdoors in Tennessee just can’t be beat.
And if you don’t believe me, check this out. Falls Mill is about an hour and a half from my home in Belvidere, Tennessee.
It’s still working mill that you can tour and then enjoy the grounds, having a picnic and taking family photos that will be cherished for a lifetime.
The dog in this photo is named “Timber” and the kids took to him immediately. We’ve promised them we’ll take them back to see him as soon as it gets a little warmer outside.
But this adventure started before that, when we drove through Huntsville on the way and stopped over at Mullin’s Drive-In to eat. My mother ate at Mullin’s when she was a girl and I remember sitting in their booths with my two pony tails ordering a hamburger. If you’re a Huntsvillian, nothing beats Mullins! I also love that I can order a hamburger with a side of grits…
And now back to Falls Mill…
For a very small donation you can get bread to feed the fish, or in our case, Timber.
We sure did love you, Timber. Hope to see you soon (I’m almost out of grits…)
There are all sorts of other critters in the crystal clear water, though.
and others on the rocks!
This is Brady, Katy, and Katy’s doll which she named “Clumsy”.
Me and my babies:)
(and Clumsy)
We had such a relaxing and wonderful day. We’ve had many family adventures since this one (which I’ll bring you in the future) but our trip to Belvidere is still our favorite.
The inside of the mill is fascinating and the coolest part is that they still stone grind their own grits and meal here. Do you see the belts and wheels in the ceiling over Brady’s head? Those are constantly moving as a result of the water wheel, its really a fascinating system to watch as everything works together to grind the corn.
This is the ONLY place I use grits from if I can help it. I haven’t found anything on the grocery store shelves that even comes close.
Katy does like to pose, as she demonstrates here inside the mill.
We usually try to get the kids a small souvenir of our adventure.
Sometimes we get post cards, brochures, or a unique bit of candy, but on this trip I was the one who got the special treats!
Every family adventure trip for me is B.Y.O.D.D.P.
(bring your own Diet Dr Pepper)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Notes about Belvidere, Tennessee
You can learn more about Falls mill by visiting the Falls Mill Website.
When you leave Falls Mill, be sure to drive the few miles to go to The Swiss Pantry, a Mennonite owned grocery and bakery. This is one of the highlights of our trip as well. Their bread and cheeses are delicious and the kids like to pick out homemade cookies or whoopie pies. They will also sell you some of their own sourdough bread starter if you ask, and happily give you the recipe!
To help you get started with your Family Adventure Day,
I’m offering the following giveaways!
One person who comments below will win a $25.00 iTunes gift card
to help you get started on your Family Soundtrack!
THREE others will receive one of my personal FAVORITE DVDs,
Veggie Tales Ultimate Silly Song Countdown.
Every single member of my family loves this DVD (including Ricky!).
Whoever wins this one can sing in their kitchen just like I do here at Bountiful. My classic favorites are “His Cheeseburger”, “Love My Lips”, “Yodeling Veterinarian Of The Alps”, “Dance Of The Cucumber”, “Endangered Love”, and “The Hairbrush Song”, among others!
*This giveaway isn’t sponsored by any company, it’s just from me to you.
To enter, tell me what you think you’ll do on your next Family
Adventure Day in the comments below.
Did you get any ideas from this post? I’d love to hear them!
Don’t have children? That doesn’t mean you don’t have a family!
Friends are family we choose for ourselves, so tell me what adventure you’d like to have with them!
I’ll choose a winner this Friday, March 5th, and post it here as well as include it in an email to my subscribers.
Congratulations to the following winners!
iTunes gift card:
Amy H (email contains “weluvhmsc”)
Videos:
Nikki (email contains “Nikki320″)
Lisa in Memphis (email contains “izon”)
Christina (email contains “80″)
I’ll be sending you all an email today so you can send me your mailing address! Thank you all so much for participating and stay tuned for more family fun giveaways from my family to yours!
The car trip can draw the family together, as it was in the days before television
when parents and children actually talked to each other.
~Andrew H. Malcolm
I’d love to work together with y’all to help promote Family Adventure Day because I believe strongly that Family Adventure Day Builds Stronger Families. If you feel as I do that the key to stronger families is focused time together, please link to this post on your Facebook pages!
Posted by Christy Jordan
on Feb 27 2010. Filed under Family Adventure Day.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0.
You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
Christy,
Our last Family Adventure Day started at Krispy Kreme getting heart shaped donuts (it was Valentine’s Day). After that we went to the mall and the kids did the bungy trampoline jumping and rode the carousel. They had a blast! The next Family Adventure is this weekend…a 4 day trip to North Myrtle Beach. I have bought all kinds of great snacks and treats for them (gotta love coupons). We are very excited!! I love your blog and am looking forward to the book!!!
Cherie
previously an Alabamian
just recently moved to NC!
We like to go to Pine Mountain, which is about 2 hrs away, and hike the trails when we plan a family adventure. We hike 7-8 miles then head into Warm Springs for a Southern buffet at our favorite restaurant.
I really liked your post and it came at a perfect time. My husband and I recently started homeschooling our daughter and she has been getting bored on weekends because she spends so much time at home now. We decided to do family fun day so your links are perfect thankyou. *looks at the veggie tales dvd’s and drools*
We like to load up the dogs and just take them for a drive. They really enjoy getting out of the house.
When my stepson visits this summer we will take a trip to the beach. In the past we have visited the liberty bell and taken the duck tour on the river! Always fun things to do in the summer being in NJ between Phila. and NY.
Our past two family adventure days were hikes in the hills close to our home. There is a wonderful trail that has waterfalls throughout during the rainy months. Even our little 1 year old was fascinated by the sounds of the running water and there are a ton of lady bugs to see.
The next family adventure on our list is to introduce our littlest one to our local aquarium. He’s fascinated with fish when we go to the pet store and loves the sand at the beach. The girls are excited to show him all the animals from the smallest jellyfish, to large tuna fish and everything in between.
We now have a different type of fun as a family because the girls are old enough to teach their little brother about the things they have learned and show him what they have seen. It’s not just mom and dad doing the teaching, the girls are getting in on it too.
Our next trip is planned as a trip to the beach. I’m hoping this year to surprise my girls with a tea party right on the beach!
We are thinking of visiting the tank museum in Virginia. We did spend a few days in Tennessee a couple of years ago, and we loved it there. Lots of interesting things and places to see.
our next family adventure day will probably be up to jackson ms to see family and explore the great park they have up there!
Our boys are grown now but a couple things we enjoyed was packing a lunch and heading to the beach for the day or berry picking and riding the berry ferry! A long drive to the aquarium provided great uninterrupted talk and song time!
What a lovely idea!!
My 2 granddaughters and I started our day at the family Drive Inn restaurant where we ate and checked out mine and my husband’s roller skates. Then I took them to the roller rink where we met, to churches where our families are buried (and I showed them how to remember where the graves are). We studied tombstones, some of them with Norwegian writing, went to the town where I spent most Sat. nights as a child, to the theater I went to, explained the importance of Sat. nights where we sold eggs and cream to buy groceries. We went to the Dahlen eskers (google it) which is about 2 miles from my childhood home, to the small town where I went to school and all around there, to the little small town cafe for ice cream, to a hunting cabin that was once my dad’s granary along with the 2 room outhouse from our farm, to the pasture to find rocks to put in front of my house – We had a wonderful day and they still remember it. I can ask a question about something we did that day and you can be sure they remember it!! I did the same with my oldest grandson, and this is ths summer for the younger one. Good times!!!
Hmmm…it has to be the zoo, as we have been promising our son (and daughter). I think we will wait until the weather is a little bit warmer, though….
Hi, Christy!
We are planning a day trip into Chicago soon to spend the day at the aquarium (our 3 yr old has never been and the teenagers love it there). We are also going to an indoor water park with my husband’s whole family (parents, sisters, bils, nieces and nephews) which should be a great deal of fun!
Okay, now I am so-o-o homesick for Tennessee. I married a Californian and am transplanted here, but my heart longs for my home state. Many relatives are still there in Nashville, McMinnville and Smithville. You have motivated us to take a trip back there this year. I want to go where you have been.
We are going to visit the Guntersville Dam.
My 82 year old aunt wants to go to the zoo. She is excited about packing a picnic lunch for the two of us. Just waiting for our OHIO
snow to melt and the first nice warm day!
being a native Tennessean I will totally agree with everything you said:)
That place sounds so great I will definitely have to add it to our to do list on places to visit.
So does it count if I tell you about our already weekend getaway instead of our planed getaway. We just got back in town after a trip to Jackson, TN (well just outside Jackson) and do I get more points for taking our 2 dogs:) hubby trains our labradors and runs them in hunt tests. The kids just love going and playing with all the other kids and making new friends and see all the other dogs there and they even get to do a little junior handling and both ended up with their own trophies! it was great fun and some awesome QT with the family.
Since my two children are grown and with jobs in Arkansas, I would love to take my Angel Food friends and go to the Amish/Mennonite communities around Whiteville TN. We went there about 2 years ago and hit the outdoor markets… loved it, bought homemade noodles, stoneground grits, fresh pork skins, homegrown veggies. Need some of all that again. And, my Veggie Tales CD is worn out so need a new one to use when my grandkids are in the van with me going to Arkansas. Lots of adventures there since we have a cave on our property!
Our next big adventure will probably be to the Smokies. We love going there and spending time outdoors especially looking for wildlife.
Our family adventures take us out to my husbands family farm. We sing Old McDonald ( actually changing it to “On Papaws Farm”) & enjoy showing our baby girl ( she just turned 1) the horses, cows, deer, kitties, dogs, chickens ( you can see how long On Papaws farm is). She actually learned what a kitty is today & attempted to say it. Regardless, we have a great time & I can’t wait for more adventures with our little girl.
Wonderful idea, Christy! I’d like to claim something original for a Family Adventure Day, but honestly, your trip to Falls Mill looks fabulous! And it makes me miss my Grandma Thompson – the ONLY cornmeal she EVER cooked with was from there! And she made the best corn sticks ever. When she got to where she couldn’t make the trip up there any more, she would order her cornmeal delivered. Which reminds me, I really ought to order some…
When our kids were young we, too, tried to have family adventures often and now we have fun with the grandkids. It really doesn’t have to cost a lot to have a family fun day. Remember, you are making memories and they might not remember the big ticket items, but how can they forget the great Nature Walks in the yard when you show them the close-up of the inside of a flower or point out the differences in leaves. Our kids (and grandkids, too) loved those empty bug shells that we found on the sides of the trees. We would also collect hickory nuts and make Christmas ornaments to hang on the tree. So many things to do that don’t cost much. It’s amazing how good a pack of peanut butter crackers taste when eaten at a park picnic table!
Speaking of parks, Guntersville State Park (for those of you in North Alabama) is a great place and we often see deer and other wildlife, even eagles. There are several good picnic spots and the lodge is also very nice. Doesn’t cost anything to walk through it and go out on the balcony and admire the great view! Our grandkids had a ball there last fall!
While you are in the area, I recommend the Arab Historical Complex at the Arab City Park. It is free and the buildings are very interesting. Below is a link to this. The park has picnic areas, a paved walking trail, and at Christmas a fantastic light display. All free!
http://www.arab-chamber.org/images/ArabHistoricVillage.pdf
Every Friday during the summers I pack up my four kids and we have Adventure Day. Sometimes we go to a park and have a picnic or we might go to a museum or historic site in our area. When he is able to get away from work, my husband comes with us which makes the day even more fun for everyone. Over Spring Break coming up in a couple of weeks, we are planning an overnight trip to Chattanooga to go to the TN aquarium, Rock City, Ruby Falls and maybe even the Choo Choo. It’s great to get away and feel like you are off the hamster wheel of the daily grind. T can’t wait!
we will probably go to the zoo. My three year old has been wanting to go back and it has just been too cold.
Hi Christy We live in Va. and have had lots of snow this year and its calling for more by middle week. Our favorite family outings lately have been going across the mountain to a nice park which has a HUGE hill perfect for sledding. Since its calling for more snow we’re already planning another day of sledding & thermos’s of hot chocolate for the upcoming weekend. My husband and I are raising our 3 grandchildren so have to do things to stay young for them. I’ll be 63 come April and am usually first one grabbing a sled and going down the hill. I’ve really become addicted to sledding, lol.
Another of our family’s favorite adventures is going up on the mountain (Skyline Drive) for some walking/hiking, picnicing and looking for deer, bear etc. We never get bored with going there as it is so beautiful and relaxing and you never know what you’ll see. Best part is we only live about 35 minutes away from all that beauty.
We are actually going to the Marble Factory in Bonner Springs KS. We went as a Pre School field trip and it is really a step back in time. All the toys you remember from your childhood you can find them here plus you get to see how much work goes into making those little Marbles.
Family adventure day is a great idea. Thank you! We do family adventure days when the kids are off from school, and I am off of work during the week. I work weekends
! One good thing is a lot of people go and do things on the weekends, and so sometimes it is not as crowded on the weekdays.
I would love to take them on a drive. It has been a while since we went to Toronto and visited the Science Museum. I think they will enjoy it,,,,they can see different parts that they have not visited before.
I love the idea of a family adventure especially when it’s not at a huge expense. We live very close to Disneyland but that can get expensive very quickly. The beach is even closer and free. I feel blessed that a day at the beach can be a last minute decision. Growing up we planned for months and months for a beach vacation.
First of all I want to say I LOVE your post aka stories.
I pick up my best friends children occasionally from school and we go to the library or the park. It reminds me of the days when my son was small (he’s 25 now)and the things we did together. Oh how I miss that.
Keep up the good words and recipes, Christy.
Hi Christy,
We are planning a bowling day in about 3 wks. We and by we I mean myself and my 2 babies ages 2 and 6 (as the hubby is currently on shiftwork)do a pizza and movie night every Friday night, we recently started doing this just this year and it is amazing how quickly you become used to something and really look forward to it. The kids begin planning the movie early in the week and what snack they will have!
Here’s to many Family Adventures and memories!
Take care,
Jackie
PS Love your site, recipes and best of all your stories, they always make me smile and/or cry….:)
Reading this post brought tears to me eyes. A woman reaches an age of really missing having little ones running around, and as you can tell I am of that age. Your Day Trip adventures make me wish I had thought of this when our children where small. You are a true Mother and your children are blessed.
Christy we have done family adventure trips going on 25 years now.The kids always loved it, because we never knew where we were going and we would wind up at some of the best places. Our baby is 14 now , but still likes to go. we have 6 grandchildren, we hope to continue on with them. Thank for sharing. wendi
What a wonderful way to bond with your family….and “unplug” from the stresses of everyday life. Even if just for a day!
I’ll be putting together my own “Family Adventure” really soon.
We try to have Family Days or Family Movie Nights. We leave near the beach, so many times our Family Day is a beach day. We don’t get to do it often enough with all of us, because my husband works a lot, but we try to make it “especially special” when we all can do something together.
With Spring Break just around the corner for us we are planning a long weekend adventure in Gatlinburg, TN. My kids & husband love that area more than any of our other regular vacation spots! They love all the outdoor activities that the area has. Plus mom loves the shopping!
We may just try Falls Mill…it looks very interesting. Thanks for the info. P.s. I’m 45 and I still love the veggie tales
I LOVE family adventures! When I was a little girl my mom and I would take drives and intentionally get lost. Random turns and country roads, eating lunch at the most amazing roadside restaurants. I hadn’t thought of that in years, why haven’t I thought of doing that with my daughter and husband? It always felt so exciting and of course, we always ended up safely at home.
Thank you for prompting this memory, I missed it.
Stephanie
Thanks for the ideas. I’d love to go to the mill some time, sounds great!
For our next family adventure, we plan to go to the Huntsville Space and Rocket Center. I have not been since elementary school and my husband had never been. Such a shame since we have lived our whole lives less than 3 hours away from it.
My family’s next adventure will be my son’s senior prom in Panama City Beach, FL. We are planning to stay on the beach and swim in the ocean. We are hoping this will not be our last family adventure together, since our son will be leaving the nest!!
Thanks Christy for sharing your family’s adventure!!
When I was a kid, my Mom & Dad used to take us “riding around”! Those are some of my favorite memories as a child! One of my favorites was in Lawrence County, AL – we stopped on the side of the road and talked to people who were making molasses and they gave us some fresh cut sugar cane to chew on!
Next time you’re at the Swiss Pantry, try their popcorn and bottle of buttery topping! My granddaughter LOVES the “home made” popcorn!
My family lives in South Georgia right at the mouth of the Okefenokee Swamp. I am the oldest of six kids. Moma and Daddy have five girls and one boy. We are 20(that’sme!) 17, 10, 7(that’s the little boy) and two. Our favorite thing to do for Family Adventure Day is to head out to the Okefenokee Swamp Park. I don’t know if you’ve ever been to the swamp before, but there are alligators everywhere! We love to ride the boat, the train, and to attend the nature show. Last time we were there, the Nature Show coordinator put a baby alligator on my brother’s head! Needless to say, he was thrilled to death! =) Family Adventure days are always very special to us. We hope that one day you and your family will get to come see a ‘Gator!
Hello….I follow you all the way from Utah.
Is it too late to start having a First Family Adventure with a 14 year old step-daughter? I hope not.
We are going to head to Central Utah and dig up some fossils known as Trilobites. There is a formal dig going on there and for only a few bucks you can find as many as you want.
Any other suggestions for trying to connect with a difficult teenager?
We live in Arkansas, so our next outing is that we will go camping! I love to cook while we’re camping! My favorite part of our outing will be making smores on the campfire and just visiting with my family! Yummy! I can’t wait to go! Hopefully we will get to this weekend or Spring Break!
We are going on a Family Fun Getaway this weekend to Fun City in Burlington, IA. We have a 14 year old, 8 1/2 year old and 2 1/2 year old and are determined to get away and have some fun we all have Cabin Fever!!!
Hey, Christy! Hope your day is going great! We’re heading off to Chattanooga next week to check out Temple University and the area with thoughts of moving a little further south next year! We are all excited about seeing the area and meeting the people. I know they will all be friendly. We have never been in Tennessee when we were not made to feel like “home folks”! Mary in Southwest VA
I want to go to Falls Mills!! Our kids are getting older but with a little more work we can still have a fun, cheap family day with them.
We have a Mother’s/Daughter’s Weekend every year at Falls Mills and we stay in the little cabin (Bed & Breakfast) just across the road from the Mill. We’ve been doing this for seven years now. Timber has been included in most of our photos taken on the front porch as she tends to hang with us when we are there!
Included in the trip is my Mother, who is 76 years old, my two sisters, myself and my niece. The five of us have a craft night the first night we are there (Friday nite); we explore a nearby town on Saturday. Lynchburg, Fayetteville, Sewanee, Cowan, Tracy City and South Pittsburg have been explored so far. (South Pittsburgh has the cornbread festival in the spring- April I think… you should check it out! You can buy tickets and sample corn bread made by many of the entries) On Sunday, we relax with a breakfast and then pack for home.
Since I live in California, I like taking my camera with me when my husband and I go for drives along the Pacific Coast Highway.
Love you site!
Sharon
We live with creeks all around us. And i’m ashamed to say that my kids have never meet a crawfish. So on the next warm enough day we’ll go down to the cric and find us a few. I can’t wait to see my girly-girls resonds to ankle deep mud and what I’m sure they will think are baby lobsters. Thanks for the idea.