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YOUR HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Life is demanding. It’s so easy to get weighed down by obligations and forget about family time. You don’t want to miss creating valuable memories, but vacations quickly become expensive. Besides, being crammed together in a hotel room sounds more stressful. You need something different.

You deserve amazing family memories.

As both parents and business owners, we know the stress. In 2016, we found our solution in the Smoky Mountains. While renovating our first cabin and enjoying our home away from home, we realized this reviving experience should be shared.

We want to share it with you!

So, Book Now. Find your Home Away From Home, the simple way to a memorable stay. Your mountain top awaits…

OUR STORY

Wendell and I (Kathryn) grew up in Slidell, Louisiana, but we didn’t meet until our lives overlapped multiple times. We had mutual friends, went to the same places, and even both lived in Guam at the same time for 6 months! We didn’t meet until I moved back to the States after living in Guam and Indonesia.

Between us, we have 5 children and live between Slidell and Tennessee. I was a teacher for many years while Wendell worked at a local power company. A few years after we got married, we started a construction company (in addition to our other jobs) which soon became our main focus.

After renovating several houses, we decided to buy a cabin in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. LONG story short, we bought our first cabin across from Dollywood, a true gift from God, and named it Tanner Manor Lodge. We renovated it and had it for 6 years. It will always be our favorite.

We bought six cabins over the next few years, and each one was a fixer-upper. We loved gutting and renovating each one. They each had their own personalities, and we enjoyed naming every bedroom and decorating it based on that theme. Eventually, we sold each one, except Tanner Manor Lodge, using the sale towards the next purchase.

In October 2021, we found a property for sale that needed to be completely restored. That seemed right up our alley. After visiting, praying about it, and seeing the sunset view on the gravel road leading up to the gazebo, we knew this was our next big project.

And boy is it big! This has been the biggest project we’ve ever undertaken, with 8 cabins on 12 acres. All but one of the cabins was a fixer-upper and the main lodging, a 6-bedroom, 5-bathroom structure, still had to be fully furnished and decorated. Named after a famous area in New Orleans – The Vieux Carre’ – The Vieux (view) is now an eclectic cabin with old-style, New Orleans décor.

Our Vision

We envision this entire property to be used in a variety of ways:

This is a beautiful location for your Destination Wedding and wedding parties can use the gazebo and outside chapel wedding venue area (for free if conditions are met).
There’s enough room for larger family reunions to spread out over the cabins, with The Vieux being used as the central location.
It’s also a wonderful location for retreats for: Youth Groups, Pastors, etc.
Couples to get together over a weekend, or even for a full week.
Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Agriculture Groups, and more can come and camp out, hike the 12 acres, and explore the area as part of their trip.
and more!