Nashville

While Kayli was at FSY, Beau had a hockey tournament in Nashville so just him and I went (along with Erin and Bennett). We had quite the adventure trying to get into our hotel rooms the night we got there (and it was after midnight). On the flight there we found out that Beau and I did not actually have a reservation. We were able to get a room for the next few nights but not that night. The plan was that Beau and I would sleep on Erin’s couch in her room. When we got to the hotel, none of the codes were working to let us into Erin’s room. The hotel was more like an apartment so we didn’t have anyone to check in with and had to call to get help. Our night then turned into what seemed like a real-life escape room! They sent us on a hunt around the hotel floor to find lock boxes that required other codes to open to find more locks and we were so tired, angry at this point, but also laughing at the craziness we had found ourselves in. After what seemed like forever, we got in and Beau WOULD NOT sleep on the couch with me. He thought it was too dirty and stained (he has a thing with hotels and if they don’t seem clean enough to him he WILL NOT sleep.) I had to get him to lay on me and not the couch or sheets until he fell asleep (in shoes because how gross to sleep on a hotel bed in your bare feet! Haha!) all while Bennett and Erin were trying to fall asleep and not laugh at the situation! Luckily, the rest of our trip went smoothly and we had the best time!

This was only Beau’s second time flying… I love that these boys can make fun or a game out of anything! They took the instructions and made up some silly game to help pass the time.

The first morning we were there we went to Pancake Pantry which was highly recommended and delicious. We walked the street that our hotel was on that had cute murals and shops and we walked around Vanderbilt University.

Their first game was very exciting. They came back from being down by 3 to win! Beau had a lot of goals and maybe had the go-ahead or the seal-the deal goal, I can’t remember. But he played awesome and it was a fun, tough game!

After that we went to the Country Music Hall of Fame which Erin and I loved and the boys tolerated.

We went by the Nashville Predators hockey stadium and team store and the boys loved that of course!

We walked down Broadway Street during the day and it was loud and happening so I can’t even imagine what it is like at night! We didn’t go out at night since we had the boys and had heard it’s not kid-friendly at night! It was cool to experience!

These boys were so excited to make an ice sculpture. I’m telling you they get excited and make fun out of the simplest things! Beau was also very excited for our new room. He didn’t find the bed to be gross at all that’s why he’s all sprawled out on this one! And we had the best ice-cream maybe of my entire life! It was at a cute little place right by our hotel.

The next morning it was back to hockey and another win!

One of our favorite things we did was eat at Loveless Cafe since it was out by one of the rinks. It was the cutest restaurant with a very country music theme. Taylor Swift has been spotted there and the whole area is so cute with shops and fun things to do.

We went by Nissan Stadium where the Tennessee Titans play football. (We all love going by the college and professional sports stadiums!)

That night we had team dinner at Prince’s Hot Chicken at the cutest outlet mall. It was fun for the boys to hang out with the team and Erin and I enjoyed getting to know the parents better- some of whom live in other states and their kids were joining us! We loved walking around shopping, taking pictures and getting shakes and hanging out.

The team made it to the championship game with no losses and we had a great, tough, intense game but we ended up losing in the final. The boys were bummed but it was such a good tournament with great games and they came so close! They had beaten this team the first game but that also was a tough, close game so anyone could have won it! They still came home with medals! Beau also scored lots of goals over the course of the tournament.

Another favorite thing we did was eating at Biscuit Love in Franklin and then we drove around looking at all the beautiful homes and rolling hills. No wonder all the celebrities live out there- it’s one of the most beautiful places! The downtown was so cute too. The temple is also there and it’s on the tiniest piece of land!

Another favorite thing we did (so many favorites!) was watching the older team play! We know families from our ward and stake who are on that team so it was fun to go watch and cheer for them! We also ran into some old hockey friends there so it was nice to catch up with them. Beau and Bennett were so funny cheering and everyone around them was cracking up!

We also loved going to eat with those families at the Assembly Food Hall which is a huge, beautiful food court with live music. It was incredible! Everyone got their own food and then the kids had a large table to themselves and the parents had one and we listened to the music and hung out.

Also, these boys fell asleep every time we got in the car haha.

That night we went to the Grand Ole Opry which was a must-do for Erin and I and it was incredible! The boys were not enthusiastic at all when we first got there. They hated having to wear real clothes and shower and get nice for it haha. The venue is amazing and rich in history. The first performer had the boys real worried and wondering what we had brought them to. She was in her 90s and very famous but old now and definitely not the boys’ style of music. The second performer was current but a little boring and the boys slept through that. But then a comedian came on stage and started talking about football and the boys perked right up and couldn’t stop laughing! Then Charles Kelley from Lady A sang which Erin and I were so excited for. He was incredible and Beau actually loved him! By now he was pretty into the whole thing. Old Crow Medicine Show performed and while they weren’t my style, Beau was in tears laughing. Our favorite was Chris Janson, at the end. He was so much fun, his songs were catchy and Beau left saying, “well now I’m a country fan!” We especially love singing “Buy Me a Boat”. We even had to go get Bass Pro Shops hats after Chris performed in one. The Grand Ole Opry was another highlight of the trip for us!

We enjoyed sleeping in the next morning, packed up, had more yummy breakfast, went by the Bluebird Cafe which is a famous Nashville spot.

We shopped around Opry Mills where the boys got their hats…

Another favorite thing we did was the Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum. The boys didn’t know what it was and were not excited but they ended up loving it! It was mostly country music artists which was fun for Erin and I (and our newly converted country music loving boys!)

We were so tired of walking around at this point that we decided to head to the airport extra early so we could just sit down and relax. We knew their were good restaurants and we found a great one that had the best live music. We thoroughly enjoyed sitting there, resting our feet, listening to good music and eating delicious food and of course the boys had fun playing a game of tabletop football because they have so much fun with everything! And then waiting for the plane could have been boring, but they made a game out of that too!