Happy Friday!! We got back Thursday evening from Great Smoky Mountain National Park and it was beautiful! I like to think that I am a pretty active girl, but I was tired after all the hikes and 8 hours in the car. I have a few favorites from the trip, but I’ll be sharing more next week.

Favorite 1: CLINGMAN’S DOME!! This was our first hike in Great Smoky Mountain National Park. It is the highest point in Tennessee and the 3rd highest point east of the Mississippi River. It was steep and chilly but totally worth it! The views were incredible the whole way up and at the top!

Favorite 2: DOLLY’S STAMPEDE!! I love Dolly Parton! So given the chance to hit up her dinner show, I jumped on it. We had a great time! The food was tasty, the show was great, and the kids had a total blast!

Favorite 3: BINGO!! I was so excited to find these bingo boards when we were walking into a shop on the Parkway in Gatlinburg. We had these growing up and they provided hours of entertainment in the car. We picked up two auto bingo boards and two license plate bingo boards. The boys had so much fun with them on the way home Thursday.

Favorite 4: FAMILY!! We spent a ton of time together on our trip. I love spending time doing new things with Jeff, Jack, and Luke. We had a blast and made some great memories!!

Favorite 5: YELLOW!! I decided to try something new on my nails and I love it! The sunshine color looks great with a little tan so summer is the perfect time for it. I am definitely going to try it on my toes soon! The color is Pippa by Zoya.

Favorite 6: BOOKS!! A car trip always means lots of time to read. I started and finished Summer of ’69 by Elin Hilderbrand on the trip. ☀️ ☀️ ☀️ ☀️ ☀️ I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!! It is definitely a little different than her other books, but I think Elin did a great job sharing what each member of the Foley Levin family was going through in 1969. I cried in the prologue when Elin describes Kate dropping her son Tiger off after he is drafted to go to Vietnam. I loved how she used Tiger’s and Jessie’s, his 13 year old sister, letters to share their true thoughts and feelings. I loved Kirby’s adventures on Martha’s Vineyard. I learned about the summer of 1969 and the three big events that happened – Neil Armstrong walking on the moon, Ted Kennedy’s accident in Chappaquiddick, and Woodstock. I knew about each of them individually but I didn’t realized they were all so close together. I also couldn’t believe how much drinking and smoking pregnant women did in the 60’s. I kept reading passages aloud to Jeff while he drove in amazement. This was a great book and I highly recommend it to everyone!!

Favorite 6: 31 DAYS OF SKIRT!! Every July, Skirt Sports creates a calendar with prompts to share how you are wearing your skirt. I love my Skirt Sports skirts and wear them to run most days. I am little behind because I saw the calendar after I’d packed for our trip, but don’t worry. I’ll be back at it tomorrow! I usually share my pictures on instagram, @sunnyscp, so head over there to check it out. Here’s the calendar if you want to join in!

Not So Favorite: TRAVELING ON THE 4TH! I planned our trip for July 1-4, but I didn’t really think about how that would affect our 4th of July celebrations. We got home around 6 pm and there was no way we were going anywhere to watch fireworks. I am a little sad about that, but our trip was worth it for sure.

That’s all for my favorites! I am planning on spending today at the pool with the kids and Jeff (another favorite). I started reading The Friends We Keep by Jane Green in the car on Thursday and I’m enjoying it. I’m heading to a New Kids on the Block concert with some girlfriends Saturday evening. It’s been 30 years since I saw them and I am pretty excited! Have a great weekend full of sunshine and books!

Linking up with Narci and the girls for Friday Favorites