16th Anniversary Vacation Part 1

Matt and I celebrated 16 years of marriage in May. Instead of gifts for anniversaries, we go on a vacation together each year. This year we drove to Asheville, NC to visit the Biltmore Mansion and then headed to Gatlinburg, TN for another few days of fun. 

We left early Saturday morning and made it to Asheville late that afternoon. We checked in to our hotel, changed clothes and headed to a delicious Italian restaurant for dinner. 

During dinner we each shared our top five moments of our 16th year of marriage. We went heavy on vacations this year and between May 2021-May 2022, we had four vacations! And vacations always seem to make it into our top memories for the year. 

Matt's Top Five Moments of year 16

1. Exploring Star Wars Land at Disney World

2. Beach vacation

3. Visiting Six Flags over Georgia

4. Walking along the Riverwalk in San Antonio

5. Our 15th Anniversary Staycation

Angela's Top Five Moments of year 16

1. Fireworks show at EPCOT to close out our Disney World Vacation

2. Swimming in the ocean with the dolphins at Fort Walton Beach

3. Exploring Mt. Vernon

4. Dinner at the Tower Restaurant in San Antonio with the Shondelmyers

5. Fourth of July 2021

After dinner, we had to find ice cream for dessert. We ate our ice cream and walked around the shopping area for a bit. 

Our hotel was nestled in the Smoky Mountains. That's a view we don't get in Oklahoma 

Sunday morning we drove over to the Biltmore for the day. The Biltmore Mansion has been on my list of places I wanted to visit for years. Matt was sweet to insist we were finally going to make it happen. 

It was a majestic view. 

We had a little time before our house tour, so we walked around the gardens

I enjoyed touring the house. I'm always interested in the daily lives of people in different historical periods. 

The bowling alley and swimming pool were especially fun to see. 

After our house tour, we also paid to do a backstairs door where we learned more about the lives of the servants who lived in the Biltmore. We got to see their bedrooms, including the Lady's Maid's room, their living area and some extra rooms behind the pantries and kitchen. 

After our tour, we walked around the gardens and the grounds until the heat did us in. 

The Biltmore was certainly fun to see. I learned a lot about the family and the time period in which they lived. 

We said goodbye to the Biltmore and drove over to the villages to explore some more. Of course, we found more ice cream before calling it a day and heading back to our hotel. 

Monday was a rainy day. We took our time getting ready and then played a game of Seven Wonders before leaving the hotel. 

We spent a few hours shopping at the Asheville Outlets, grabbed some lunch at Chick Fil A, and then drove over to Gatlinburg, TN for the next part of our vacation.