Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Three {3} Things

Three {3} Things I'm currently loving:

                                          (found on www.buzzfeed.com)

{Gilmore Girls}  Seriously, where was I when this show was first on?  Oh yeah, busy being a first time mom, starting my career, and in an unhappy marriage...but I digress.  I started watching this show this summer (thank you Netflix) and I am hooked.  Like, I would love to stay up all night and watch it hooked.  Instead, I fall asleep every night while watching it and I am just about to finish season 2.  Sometimes when I start a series on Netflix, it begins to feel like homework.  Not the case with this show.  (Am I the only weirdo who has to finish a series once I start it, no matter how long it takes me?)  Gilmore Girls is entertaining, funny, and heartwarming without being cheesy.  I love the mother daughter relationships and would move to Stars Hollow if I could find it on a map.  Fun fun.

                                          (found on www.pioneerwoman.com)

{Insalata Caprese}  My lunch of choice these days is tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella cheese drizzled with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and a dash of sea salt.  Nothing says summer like Caprese Salad.  I am growing tomatoes and basil in my garden this year.  If only I could figure out how to grow mozzarella...

                                           (found on www.google.com)

{Stitch Fix}  Having a stylist pick five articles of clothing for me, mail them to my door, and give me a $25 credit when my friends try this awesomeness too?  Yes please.  Although I don't always keep everything that the stylist sends, (#counselorbudget) this service is just too fun.  I love receiving the boxes and trying everything on immediately.  I text pictures of the clothes to friends in a group message and they weigh in on their opinions of what I should keep and what I should send back.  We have a great time with this and now we look cute too ;)  If you haven't tried Stitch Fix yet, do yourself a favor and click here!  (And you are doing me a favor by being a referral.  Win win!)

I'd love to hear what you are currently loving!

Monday, July 20, 2015

Nashville, TN

Over our spring break this year, Dan and I were given an opportunity to travel to Nashville, TN, thanks to a co-worker who offered us his time share.  He didn't have to ask us twice!  We are always up for the adventure of exploring a new city.  Although both of us have driven through Nashville (on our way to Florida), we had never actually stayed there.  This was the perfect opportunity to check out Music City.

Before we do any traveling, we always ask friends for recommendations and I search blogs for them as well.  For this trip, I stumbled upon this post from a fellow blogger and it led us to having our absolute best lunch of the trip.  So fun!  Here is a rundown of our quick trip:

Day 1:  Day one of our trip fell on Easter Sunday.  We got up in the morning, went to church, ate dinner as a family and then Dan, Mason and I left around noon for the 8 hour drive Nashville.  The older boys stayed home with my parents because they did not share the same spring break as us this year.  Boo :(  We drove the 8 hours straight with only one stop at Cracker Barrel for dinner...it's a requirement, right?!  Mason is the best traveler ever and spent his time napping and reading his books.  We checked into our condo which was a Wyndam resort, and we went to sleep shortly after arriving.

Day 2:  Eager to find a great breakfast, we got an early start the next morning and we used "Yelp" to help us find our morning fuel.  I found a coffee house/restaurant, Uncommon Grounds, with rave reviews that seemed to be the kind of local "hole in the wall" that we love to discover while traveling.  After driving 30 minutes for coffee and ending up at what looked like a total dive, we were starving and very nervous about what Yelp had gotten us into.  Rather than go inside, we used the drive up option thinking we could speed away if it looked shady.  Yes, we are so cool!  We ordered the biscuits and gravy and chai lattes.  Holy sweet mother...this food was amazing and the owner who took our order could not have been nicer.  We highly recommend this place, but don't say I didn't warn you about the appearance.  The best part?  They funnel money from the restaurant back into community outreach programs.  Love this.

After breakfast, we explored the Grand Ole Opry.  There weren't any shows we were interested in during our stay, but is was amazing to be there just the same.  It's so awesome to think about all of the talented musicians who have played there and I'm so glad I got to see it.  I'm sure it would be a great place to see a show.

 For lunch, we headed to Burger Up, based on the recommendation from Cassie's blog.   It was the absolute coolest place.  The vibe is trendy but not obnoxious, the food is sooooooo good, and our waiter ended up being from a town near us in Illinois.  Such a small world.  The children's menus are posted inside Dr. Seuss books.  I ordered the Ramsey Pimento Burger and the truffle fries and Dan ordered...I don't even know what he ordered.  My food was so good that I didn't even pay attention to him after it arrived.  He seemed happy, though ;)
 Day 3:  Day 3 was all about shopping.  I am so blessed to have a husband who likes to shop.  We shopped at the Opry Mills near our condo and also at the Mall at Green Hills.  Both were fantastic, but the Mills had a Kate Spade Outlet, so....

We also spent some time exploring the shops and restaurants in the Hillsboro Village.  This is a great place to shop little boutiques and unique stores that have a great city vibe.  We had brunch at a restaurant called Fido, after our plans to eat at the Pancake Pantry were thwarted (by the ever present Pancake Pantry line running down the street).  Love that place, but I was hungry!  Fido was amazing and again, had a fun, trendy vibe. 




We also took pictures at the Bluebird Cafe.  If you don't know the history of this place, check it out here.  So cool.  They open at night and when we do come back minus our sweet toddler, this is definitely on my to do list.  I have never watched the show Nashville, but I'm told the Bluebird Cafe is where they often tape the show. 

That night, we ate Mexican food at Chuy's which is located in the Opry Mills Mall.  The food was great and we especially enjoyed the nacho bar.  Mason loves him some salsa!  The restaurant is fun but loud and busy.  Definitely not somewhere to eat if you need a relaxing vibe. 
 We ended our day by swimming at our condo and staying up past our bedtimes.

Day 4:  After a quick trip to the Dukes of Hazard museum (it was right by our hotel...we thought it'd be cool...) we settled in for the 8 hour trip home.  It was a whirlwind few days, but we were glad we got to experience this city.  I loved the food, the music history, and the shopping!  I know people who rave about Nashville's night life, but with a toddler in tow, we didn't participate in any of that ("You have a baby...in a bar!")...if you understood that "Sweet Home Alabama" reference, we are soul sisters.  We drove through Music Row, but enjoyed it from our car this trip.

I'd love to know what you love best about Nashville.  I'm always collecting recommendations for my next trip!