Nashville MDW!

“I love Nashville. It seems like everywhere you walk, there's great music coming out of every wall.” – Imelda May.

For Memorial Day weekend, we loaded up the girls and went to Nashville. My mom and sister live there and we love being able to make the trek out there. The main purpose of the trip was to take my bonus dad out for his 60th birthday (his birthday was a couple of months ago). We surprised him with tickets to see Eric Church. This was planned way in advance and we had no idea that when we would be there we would also get to see my Uncle Keith and Aunt Shelia as well!

It was nice having them there because we tend to not explore as much when we are there. It’s always for a short time when we go and I am more focused on visiting with my family than going to see the sights. However, we did go over to Franklin, Tennessee and have lunch on Saturday and also walked around the city square. We went to this place called Puckett's, specifically Puckett's Grocery (they have several locations and I will be giving you the details on the other one we ate at later). This was such a charming little place filled with so many tempting options. The restaurant looked like an old grocery store on the walls and the center of the room was the dining. The one thing that we laughed at is you sorta had to go to the kitchen to get to the bathrooms, so that was different. This place has really good brisket and very mouth-watering sides. For an appetizer I ordered their fried pimento cheese balls. This cheese balls had chopped pork in them as well as some BBQ sauce mixed in. They were fried and plated on top of a spread of pepper jelly, which added a nice kick. The cheese was melted goodness and I could have had two or three plates of just these if I am being honest. Ken tried their chalkboard special, which was the brisket and I had the Brisket Taco Salad, which was so delicious and perfect for a hot and humid afternoon.

After lunch, we walked around the square. There were so many shops and boutiques to walk through as well as the theater that is considered a great place to catch a show. I’ve been told there is not a bad seat in the house. The highlight for me though was watching my girls and nephew interact. They are adorable. Ellie and Nash are about 3 months apart and look like they could be twins! All they wanted to do was walk together and hold each others hands. Abbie is so good with them. It has to be hard to not have someone your age but both Ellie and Nash adore her. She likes to hover over them like a mama hen, it is so precious.

After our walk, we went back to my mama's to get ready for our concert. Mama didn't join us because she wanted to have Maw Maw time with the girls. We took Galynn to the downtown location of Puckett's. It's a similar menu as the Franklin location but we tried different items. We had fried pickles for an appetizer, and they were yummy. Ken ordered a burger, Galynn had the Nashville Cheese steak and I had their chicken fried chicken with loaded mash potatoes and green beans. It was soooooo goooood!!!!

After dinner we walked down Broadway and could immediately see why this is now the bachelor/bachelorette get away. There are so many places and things to do in and around Broadway! Not counting the night scene, there is the Johnny Cash Museum, The Country Music Hall of Fame, and my personal favorite The Ryman. And that is just in downtown, there is so much more to explore in this wonderful city. Our show was amazing! It took a little to get in because it was confusing to know where to go but it was well worth it. Eric was amazing. We hung in til about midnight but he apparently kept going til about 12:45 am. I got to hear all my favorites and really enjoyed being there with both Ken and Galynn. It was a great night.

The next day we went to the Tennessee Renaissance Festival in Nashville. I love going to this one because it is shaded and they have a castle that is currently being built that you can tour. The own lives there and he has been building it himself over the last 30 years. So what is finished that they are willing to have guests tour is open to anyone who goes to the festival. It is your typical Renaissance Festival, which is so fun from the entertainment, crafts, rides and turkey legs! The girls and my family seemed to really enjoyed it. We ended are day at my sisters for some good food and hanging out together. We truly do love our visits to Nashville. I will be going back again this summer so stayed tune to updates on what to do in this great place!