The Moncurs: Chattanooga, TN

Mike had the week off so I decided to plan a little day/night vaca surprise for just the two of us. Luckily we have such wonderful friends whom we felt comfortable leaving the kiddos with (the Anderson's). I decided to fulfill something that has been on Mike and my bucket list for many years: SKYDIVING! I bought the Groupon a few weeks prior to our vacation (without telling Mike) and as the days were getting closer for this HUGE event to finally come to pass I started to get cold feet. I started thinking about the kids being left parentless, which instantaneously made me reconsider my decision. But, I felt like things would be okay and so I stuck to the plan.

The skydiving adventure was in Chattanooga, TN (about a two hour drive), so I decided to we'd make a day/night of it, see the sites, and eat some wonderful local food. I knew Mike was going to be so happy about this vacation for two reasons: since he was a little boy he'd always wanted to know what it felt like to fly, and there is nothing more he loves than good food.

Once we said our goodbyes to the kiddos we were on our way. This was such a nice, much needed vacation for us, giving us time to reflect and re-kindle the love in our relationship. We had great discussions on the drive out, shared some wonderful laughs and saw some beautiful scenery.

1st stop was lunch at a little hole in the wall authentic Mexican restaurant. It was there that I told Mike what the big surprise was. Of course I had to first lead him to believe that we were going to a Civil War reenactment site where we got to participate, in full armor, as soldiers. I led him to believe this for about 5minutes. He tried so hard to look excited but the look of disappointment was clearly evident. I couldn't stand it any longer . . . I told him in about 30 minutes he would be in the sky, jumping out of an airplane. At first he didn't believe me but when I went over all of the details his face went a little pale and I could see the reality of the fearful situation setting in. He was excited and a little terrified all at the same time :). It was a wonderful surprise.

The drive out to the small airport took about 30 minutes and we chatted the entire way about how much we couldn't believe we were actually doing this; something both of us had wanted to do for so long.

Seeing the facility (all of the jumpers putting their chutes and bag packs together made it 10x more real). Unfortunately it took a lot longer than we anticipated to be airborne, but once we were it was unlike any situation I have ever experienced. As you are flying up in the airplane, door wide open, facing backwards and seeing ground below you become more and more distant, your survival instincts kick in and your mind literally tells you "this is wrong, what are you doing. You are not supposed to jump out of an airplane." It is a trip! I just kept thinking "what if I just flew out of the plane without my instructor. It was terrifying but exciting all at the same time. Next thing I knew (everything went so quickly) Mike was seated on his instructors lap, outside the airplane. I shouted I loved him and the next thing I knew he was out the door. A few minutes later I was in the same position and the next thing I knew I was falling 10,000 feet from an airplane. It was CRAZY! You don't really remember much about the free fall because your brain is trying to process what you are doing, but once that shoot opens you can really take it all in. The view of Chattanooga and the TN river were BREATHTAKING!!! I am so glad we chose to skydive here. The instructor let me take control of the chute and take off my glasses so I could see the valley better. We did some spins in the sky, which made my stomach do major flips. You look down and see nothing under your feet and it is the most insane feeling ever. You really do feel like you are flying. As I am getting ready to land I can see Mike on the ground watching me come in. I am happy he is okay! :) We skid in on our bums and make a beautiful, easy landing. I feel a little disoriented and a bit loopy, trying to remember how to walk and then I soak up everything I just did. What an amazing experience we shared together!!!

The rest of our trip was just as amazing. We were so pleasantly surprised, walking around Chattanooga, at how awesome of a city Chattanooga turned out to be—modern, hip, eclectic, historic, yummy, and fun. We ate at some of the best restaurants, we walked across the longest pedestrian bridge in the US, we walked along the River Walk. We got dessert at this adorable french Cafe. . . it was a place we could actually see ourselves calling home one day. Every time I have travelled in TN I have fallen in love with it, and this experience produced no less of a feeling.

The following morning we picked up some yummy donuts at Julie Darlings (you could smell the donuts cooking from the street), and ate some yummy breakfast at Bluegrass Grill (kaebob meat on top of roasted potatoes with a fried egg, and cornbeef and hash). Then off we went on another adventure to Ruby Falls (the largest indoor waterfall in the US). It was fun to tour a cave people discovered in the 20's a top a historic landmark where civil war battles took place. Coming out of the cave you can see the Chattanooga valley atop Lookout Mountain—absolutely breathtaking. This city truly has so much to offer; we have fallen in love!

What a wonderful, exciting, rejuvenating vacation this was for us!! Hopefully our kids always remember to never give up on their dreams, to keep on living their lives, and to take time for their spouse when they have children of their own.