Howdeeeeee!

I was able to fulfill a lifelong dream this weekend of going to Nashville. Okay, I know to most of you that sounds pretty lame...but, I've wanted to go my whole life and have never been until now. Going to UT, I thought I'd make several weekend trips to Nashville, but that never happened. Marrying a fanatical UGA fan, I thought, surely, we'd make a trip to Nashville to see them play Vandy one weekend (especially with Brett, an old YL kid, playing there), but that never happened. So, after a crazy summer and about 3 years of being pregnant/nursing, I decided to reward myself. I figured that dipping into savings to go on a fun, relaxing trip with my husband was more of an investment. There is a definite need to give some shout-outs to all the people that helped make this happen: First of all, my Dad helped us in a huge way by getting us a hotel room at the Opryland Hotel and getting us tickets to the Grand Ole Opry. Next, a huge, huge thanks to Joel's parents and my mom that took excellent care of our babies while we were gone. It's comforting to know that they were in the best of hands.

Here are the highlights from the trip...

• Getting uninterrupted time with my amazing husband.
• Sleeping late.
• Surprises from Joel throughout the weekend like roses, sparkling cider and tiramisu in the hotel room, and a fancy dinner.
• Seeing a show at the Ryman Auditorium. This is where the Grand Ole Opry was before where it is now. The Ryman is where my favorites sang, like Patsy Cline and Johnny Cash.


• Hearing Mandy Barnett (she played Patsy Cline in Always...Patsy Cline) sing "I Fall to Pieces" and "Crazy". Ever since I saw Sweet Dreams as a little girl, I've loved Patsy Cline. That's as close as I can get to hearing Patsy sing at the Opry. Gina, don't you miss me singing Patsy in the car (She used to hide the CDs so that she didn't have to hear me sing. The funny thing is that she gave those CDs to me).



• Sleeping late.
• Going to the Grand Ole Opry and hearing Josh Turner sing with his deep voice.

Seeing how short Little Jimmy Dickens really is.

• Staying at the Opryland Hotel. It was amazing. It was filled with waterfalls, gardens, restaurants, shops, country music memorabilia, and more.
  

• Eating dinner with one of my best friends from college, Mary Caradine, and getting to finally meet her husband, Greg. She's expecting a baby in January, so it was so fun to see tiny MC with a baby bump. (I love, love, love her house).

Eating breakfast at the Pancake Pantry...yummy!

Sleeping late.

Going to the Country Music Hall of Fame. They had an awesome Williams Family Tradition exhibit, as in Hank Sr, Jr. and III, but it was quite depressing to learn about their family.

Walking through the honkytonks.

Going on a tour of the celebrities homes with Tommy's Tours (he's great if you're ever looking for a tour of Nashville).

Eating dinner at Margo's.

Sleeping in.

Coming home to our precious babies.

Hearing MK say "Howdeeee!" just like Minnie Pearl.

(Note: Tennessee beating Georgia was not listed as a highlight of the weekend for me!)