Well, we made it to our destination in the Great Smokey Mountains! It was actually a pretty easy trip all in all. I attempted to eat breakfast at our hotel’s “free” breakfast…and that ended up being two bananas and black coffee…pickings were slim!

For lunch we ate at a barbecue joint in Chattanooga called Sugar’s ribs. We just saw a billboard and took a chance, but it was perfect! The entire menu is grilled and the options were awesome. I had what they call Fajita-Q which skirt steak marinated in essentially a sugar free margarita. They would not give me the recipe, but did verify there was no sugar. The meat was served with charred onions and hot peppers, and topped with radish and cilantro. I ordered a side of grilled okra that was out of this world! I felt like I was in Paleo heaven and it was by complete luck. I was planning on eating some brisket no sauce and praying for a side that was clean. They were proud that they did not fry anything (no fries on the menu!) and kept the food sugar free except in their sauces that were all on the table try. I’ll stop again on the way home if my wife will let me!

We pushed on and headed toward the Gatlinburg area, which was or final designation. It was amazing as it is around 19 miles from the interstate o Gatlinburg, and it took us like 2 HOURS o cover the distance! Talk about slow going with a 3 and a 6 year old in your car! We finally made it and found our cabin. It’s pretty nice, but the “gourmet equipped kitchen” always disappoints!

When the kids and I returned from grocery shopping, we had quite a surprise. My wife called as we were pulling up that a momma black bear and her 3 cubs were rummaging through our trash. Sure enough, here is our friend! They hung around a while, but the retreated into the woods. Something tells me they will be back

For dinner I grilled up some hamburger patties and topped them with an egg each. Kids had traditional burgers, and all were happy. Off to bed now, pretty tired. So nice o be on vacation, and I’ll try to keep everyone informed on my not only Paleo, but Whole 30 adventures! Peace

-E