Fall Camping in Pigeon Forge, TN

In early October we spent a camping weekend at River Plantation RV Resort in Pigeon Forge, TN. We booked side-by-side campsites with my parents and looked forward to a fun few days!

Tried to grab a photo when we finished setting up our site, but Jasper spotted his Nana and Papa and it was all over!

Some pre-breakfast Cheerios and apple juice are always a good way to start an early morning.

A sizzling pan of sausage, cheesy eggs, and whole wheat English muffins on the side is one of our go-to camping breakfasts.

Papa came out of their fifth wheel and Jasper spotted him from the door of our camper, so he had to go out and say hello!

We were camped next to the river and Jasper constantly wanted to walk to the edge of the water and look at it. "Go wah!" He'd say (go water).

We ate an easy picnic lunch outside of the camper.

With plenty of chocolate chip cookies for dessert, of course!

I love this sweet little guy. I also love the sweet baby girl in my belly!

It was a weekday and Matt had to put in a work day at the camper, so the rest of us took a walk in the pretty sunshine.

Later that night we had a yummy dinner outside... with more cookies, of course!

After dinner we took a walk and the sky was amazing.

When we returned to the campsites we started up a campfire. Though we are having a warm fall this year, the evening was cool enough that the fire didn't overheat us.

My dad and little Max.

Toddlers are absolutely fearless. If we didn't keep a constant hold on Jasper's arm I'm convinced he would have gone face first into the fire without thinking twice. He kept trying to sprint right towards it!

We made s'mores, because you can't have a campfire without s'mores, but Jasper preferred to nom-nom the plain graham crackers.

There's nothing like the crackling sound coming from a campfire, and we had the best outdoor seats to enjoy this a lot.

The next morning we went to the Applewood Farmhouse Grill for breakfast. The Grill is located on The Apple Barn's property and is a secondary eatery to the original Farmhouse Restaurant a little farther down the road. I've eaten at the Farmhouse many, many times, but have never been to the Grill.

It's a huge restaurant and there was a large crowd waiting to be seated, but the queue moved surprisingly fast and we only waited for 20 minutes or so.

Fall decorations on full display!

Are these flowerpot people cute or creepy? I can't decide. Help me, Internet!

I'm leaning toward creepy.

The meal started similarly to a meal at the Farmhouse Restaurant, with a basket of deep-fried apple fritters and mini apple cinnamon muffins.

The muffins were toddler-approved. He wolfed down two of them! He also loved the refreshing Applewood Julep which is a mixture of apple, pineapple, orange, and lemon juices.

Jasper got a kids' meal portion of silver dollar pancakes that came with a choice of either 2 slices of bacon or a sausage patty. This was a huge and generous portion for a kids meal! We took most of it home with us.

I ordered the ham and cheese omelet that is served with home fried potatoes and a biscuit.

Matt ordered Pappy's Farmyard Omelet that included apple cider bacon, sausage, cheese, green onion, peppers, and mushroom.

Unfortunately, I can only describe the breakfast at the Grill as "okay". The prices are fantastic and the portions are generous, but the entrees and sides were lacking anything special or stand-out. The fritters and julep were amazing, however, and those have always been a favorite of mine ever since I was a kid!

I have to peruse the cute shops whenever I go to the Apple Barn. Year round Christmas shops are prolific in the Smoky Mountains.

Last year during the holidays, Jasper learned all about snowmen. I don't know if he remembers any of that, probably not, but he sure loved this dude!

The holidays are almost here!

We are thankful that Jasper enjoys strolling through stores and looking at everything. Don't get me wrong, he gets irritable like any other toddler, but most of the time he does well!