Roman and I have been married for 5 years and each year, our favorite place to celebrate are the mountains. Normally, we travel around the mountains in North Carolina, but this time, we traveled around Georgia. We are thankful for family members who allowed us to use their vacation home for a memorable 5 Year Anniversary Trip.

Things looked a little different for us this year due to us being a little more diligent with our finances. We took picnics for lunch, and mostly cooked dinners at the vacation house. Personally, some of the best memories I have was when my family were frugal with their finances and I felt the same would be done during this trip.

DAY 1, Stop 1 – Sassafrass Mountain

After cooking breakfast at the house & making some iced coffee to go, we traveled to our first location – Sassafrass Mountain. This was an easy trek and our picnic spot that day. At Walmart the night before, we grabbed some chips & two large subs and cut them in half so we had two days worth of lunches.

At Sassafrass Mountain, you can stand in two places at once – South Carolina & North Carolina. You can see Collins below having a blast not realizing she was standing in two places at once but just focused on running back and forth to mama & daddy!

Picnics are one of my favorite things and Roman brought my picnic basket I got from an old thrift market long ago all because I said, “Picnic Baskets make picnicking much more romantic”. I will say this, although my latter statement is true, it actually is much more awkwardly shaped and took up a lot of space in the trunk because of how bulky it is. I may be in the market for another basket soon to replace the one I have just because of that reason. Might even go with something like this one in the future.

DAY 1, Stop 2 – Stumphouse Tunnel & Issaqueena Falls

This was a fun stop for us. Seeing the Stumphouse Tunnel was magnificent. You couldn’t see much as you walked farther & farther into the tunnel, but the sound of water dripping was present and the temperature was very cool. Also, when I was editing the photos, I noticed that you could see the rail cart right in the middle of the tunnel, something I didn’t notice while in the tunnel. You can see below (first picture on the left) Roman & Collins standing next to the rail cart.

Collins was not a fan of the dark tunnel. It was an incredible Spiritual representation of what our dark moments are metaphorically. She was fine halfway through, but then she realized that things were only getting darker and she began to whimper. I gave her my phone and turned the flashlight on and she clung to that light the rest of the walk. As soon as we turned around and saw the light at the end of the tunnel, the relief in her tone of voice was present again and she knew there was a way out.

What a beautiful thing to think. That as Jesus as our light, we have nothing to worry about anymore for He is the Way, the Truth and the Life! How comforting it is to walk in that light.

DAY 2, Stop 1 – Toccoa Falls

Prior to leaving the house, we prepped for dinner and threw potatoes & ribs in the crockpot before we left. We made a Starbucks run and I treated myself to a Creamy Pumpkin Iced Chai. It is one of my favorite fall drinks. Taccoa Falls was absolutely glorious and the easiest trek to a waterfall I’ve ever encountered.

DAY 2, Stop 2 – Tullulah Falls

These are the only photos I (I mean, Roman) took at Tullulah Falls. And I’ll tell you why. When we arrived, what we saw was beautiful, until we got to the part that said, “Be sure to bring water due the 700 stair trek which can be strenuous”. I’m paraphrasing of course, but that’s basically the warning sign. Totally mentally unprepared for this trek, we agreed to at least go to the suspension bridge which was *only* 310 steps (according to my husband).

310 shaky steps later, we arrived at the bridge which I vaguely remember, to be quite honest, as all I could focus on were my shaking knees. Soon, we began the climb of the 310 stairs as that was the only way back to where we were going. Halfway there, I began feeling quite nauseous and Collins was getting quite fussy.

Needless to say, when we got back, I was dripping in sweat, felt terrible and the last thing my mind was on was getting any pictures. Roman grabbed these photos below a little later.

DAY 2, Stop 3 – Brasstown Falls

Brasstown Falls was my kind of stop, no doubt. The perfect ending to a beautiful day! When we found these falls, there was a little path that led us to go sit on the rocks where the stream was. Roman kept careful care of Collins as I grabbed the images below. I could have sat there all day and read a book and just soaked it all in. The water was cool and Collins had a blast experiencing it with her toes.

After our adventures, we arrived home to the wonderful smell of dinner already cooked and finishing up some last minute things. It was nice not having to worry about dinner that day because honestly, I wouldn’t have wanted to go anywhere or do anything by the time we arrived back to the house.

It was a wonderful weekend adventuring with my husband and daughter immersing ourselves in God’s creative world and remembering how we’re meant to enjoy our lives on this earth.