A Day in Chattanooga with a Baby
We decided to book a family vacation this year with my husband's sisters family and his parents. We all have young kids and it is always tricky going on vacation with children so young, because they don't really care too much about what all is going on and you want there to be enough things that will entertain us, but in a relaxing environment. We love Asheville, North Carolina and go a few times a year, but my husbands brother-in-law suggested that we go to Chattanooga, TN. I know what you are thinking. Really? But we decided to give it a chance. We booked an Airbnb in Lookout Mountain, GA which is about 20 minutes to Chattanooga. I highly recommend staying up on the mountain. The views from our house were incredible and there are so many fun activities for the kids such as Ruby Falls and Rock City. Here's a few photos from our house.
Chattanooga is a very kid-friendly city and so clean. There are a lot of activities for children such as the Aquarium and the Creative Discovery Museum which looked like they would be fun for our littles to enjoy in a year. But the city still has plenty of things to do that our son loved so much and many of them were free.
First was breakfast at a great coffee house called The Camp House. It is off the beaten path in downtown and isn't the most popular tourist spot, which is good, but is was the best meal I had there. I had the breakfast flatbread which had three different types of cheeses, the freshest pesto, bacon, a salad mix and a sunny side egg. I enjoyed it with the most delicious chai tea. Dusty got the stuffed biscuit with pesto, egg, bacon, heirloom tomatoes and a side of cheesy potatoes with fresh rosemary. He was a happy camper also.
After breakfast we headed over to Coolidge park. Coolidge park is on the river and isn't the largest park I had been to, but it has a special feel about it. The park has a whimsical fountain for the children to splash in and is full of families flying kites, throwing balls, and just lounging. It was truly magical. It was are favorite spot and where we spent the majority of our afternoon.
The park also has one of the most beautiful carousels I have ever seen. Christian rode free and our tickets were just $1 each. He really enjoyed it, however his cousins weren't the biggest fans of it. And honestly, trying to photograph on it made me quite sick, but it was all worth it for the smile on Christian's face.
Next to Coolidge park is also a walking bridge. Again another free activity that the kids loved and us parents really enjoyed. The river is very pretty and it was really cool watching all the people paddleboarding and kayaking down it. It also made for the perfect backdrop for some really cute photos of Christian.
After the walk we strolled around Frazier Avenue and shopped at all the cute stores while Christian enjoyed a nap in his stroller. Once he woke up, we enjoyed a late lunch at another great restaurant called Beast + Barrel that had the cheapest happy hour specials I have ever seen. Dusty enjoyed a pulled pork bbq sandwich and fries ($5) and I had the smoked chicken sandwich with smoke risotto ($6). It was all so delicious and Christian loved the risotto, along with a bottle made from the bar, and we loved the ambiance, food, and wine specials ($4).
After our day, we decided to head back to our rental home to catch the sunset over Lookout Mountain and get the kids tucked away in bed. The sunset was incredibly gorgeous.
I'm so glad we didn't shrug off the suggestion to go to Chattanooga, TN. Dusty and I are sold! It is a beautiful city that is kid-friendly and budget-friendly and we can't wait to return to take Christian to all the attractions that Chattanooga and Lookout Mountain have to offer next year.
