Helen

Helen, GA that is -

Last year we went tubing down the Chattahoochee River in Helen, GA. We went in July last year when the river was pretty low and we had to walk some when our tubes would ground. I thought it would be fun to go again this year and do it earlier so the river would be higher.
It was beautiful and we had a blast! But . . . . I took pictures with a disposable waterproof camera and they won't be ready until later this week. Check back later for those!

Last year, after tubing, we went hiking at the state park right outside of Helen. This year the kids opted to wander around Helen - it is set up as an Alpine village, the look and everything, with little shops all over.

SHOPS:

As the bus was taking us up to the drop in point, we drove through the town and saw the Hansel and Gretel Candy Kitchen. Continuing with solidifying classic stories for Logan, we decided stopping in was a must.

We also saw a store of wooden toys.
I had a hard time getting the kids out of that one.

With fishing poles,

rubber band slingshot guns (that they owner let them try out),

and swords and shields,

you'd be hard pressed to get any kid out of there - of any age!
The kids asked to pet the horses that pulled for carriage rides - every horse!

It was a beautiful day, but getting hotter by the minute. We had gotten to the tubing place soon after they opened - I'm not a fan of crowds and I'd rather go early to miss the bulk of the people that come later in the morning and afternoon.
Once we were done we had a picnic lunch and could spend the afternoon doing other things.
I was all for walking around Helen a bit more - there was much more to check out . . . but once it cools off! Like in November!
(Logan took the picture below of the rest of us)

GOATS ON THE ROOF:

Another sign we saw on the bus ride up to go tubing was for Goats on the Roof.
Alyssa's friend, who had come up with us, had never been and it was decided that a stop there was necessary as well!
We had been to the other Goats on the Roof location and I didn't know that there was one just outside of Helen.
We fed the goats,

and had some ice cream.

Walked around the country store that is there and Natalie and Jake decided to split the cost of a bag of dirt to check for stones.

After picking the bag, I shook it in half and each got to pick a side.

I dumped out their dirt into their boxes and they washed out the dirt, uncovering cool stones.

Jake's half ended up having the most and the largest stones (Natalie had picked first and there was really no way to tell looking at the bag of dirt).
He was kind enough to give her a couple and trade for some others.

After the girls played a game of checkers on the deck, it was time to go.
Logan had been wanting to get back in the car for some time.

He was asleep as soon as we were out of the parking lot.

T-SHIRTS & SIGNS:

We had to take pictures of some choice t-shirts and signs from our trip that day:
Does the above ever run through your mind?
The one above we almost got for Robert. We thought we'd wait until Alyssa turned 16, but when we showed the picture of the t-shirt it to Robert (he had work and couldn't join us) he said he would have worn it now and we should get it next time we go up!
Natalie thought the one below was funny, as Robert is now taking the kids out fishing more often.
The Hansel and Gretel Candy Kitchen had lots of t-shirts and aprons about chocolate. Natalie liked this one best.
These were two of the signs in the wooden toy shop.
I never thought of charging for whining before . . .
All time favorite: Below was a sign Natalie saw on the way up and we stopped on the way back to take the picture.
There was a church right next to the cemetery, but the sign was smack in the middle of the cemetery!

Jake asked me the other day why we hadn't gone hiking while we were there. I told him everyone decided to walk around the town and go to Goats on the Roof. He wants to plan another trip up to go hiking - no problem here. When do we go?!