I'm 40 Y'all!

Trucks, Cowboys, & Country Music, I mean, what else can a girl ask for?  Maybe a little of this too...

Y'all I'm the big 4...0..., that could have been a real downer, except it was the BEST birthday EVER!  Just when I thought the celebration couldn't get any better, it just kept on happening.  I was spoiled rotten by the best friends a gal could ask for.  Add a little live country music and honky tonkin' and I was over the moon.  Have I ever mentioned I am country girl at heart?

I was chauffeured to Nashville, Tn in pure luxury.  I mean, who doesn't love going to their 40th in a mini van? {just for the record...I am not a huge mini fan, totally a running joke}  Can't lie it was comfy though.

We arrived to the Omni Nashville early afternoon.  Which, I must take this moment to give my hubby huge props, he took care of all our rooms, our spa day, and a few other things we racked up.  What a sweetie.  The rest was all on the girls and I'm pretty sure that's the way he wanted it.  He's good at a lot, but let's be fair,  party planning is not his thing.

Just look at what the girls did for me?  Weekend totes filled with goodies.  Not a detail was missed.  Cristina and Alison spear headed this endeavor.  It was quite a project they took on, but I couldn't be more grateful {or have done it better myself!}

You do know I love a good theme...and favor.

And this is only a snip-it of what was inside.  They had my fave snacks and drinks, personalized pool tees, personalized cups, sunscreen, lip gloss, tylenol, and more.  It was slightly AMAZ-O!

Night one was a blast.  I threw on my cowgirl boots and we headed out for a casual dinner of BBQ, but before hand we pre-celebrated in our hotel room.  

This is also when the girls gifted me with the most beautiful Hermes bracelet.  I was completely shocked and in love at the same time.  It's a beaut!  Thank you girls from the bottom of my heart!

I can't imagine a better meal to put me in the Nashville spirit.  The mac n' cheese was absolutely divine at Peg Leg Porker.  If I don't go back to listen to country tunes, I may go back just for that little taste of heaven.

Did someone say calories?  No worries, we were on our way to work them off....and then some.  Hello Nashville Pedal Tavern.

Yep, there she is.  And she wasn't budging unless we were pedaling.  The sweet reward {besides working off that mac n' cheese} were the honky tonk stops along the way.  

I'm telling you the fun we had should be illegal.  I've never laughed and sweat so hard in all my 40 years.

Of course, we had to get a pic at every stop.

We were all sure that nothing could top the first day and night of our Nash Bash, until day two rolled around.  We enjoyed an incredible spa and pool day.  And we even got to sport those cute tees and sunglasses.  Love my girls!

By evening, we were at it again.  Where's the live music?

We had pre-dinner drinks on a rooftop in the Gulch.  And even had a few star sightings {none of which were Blake Shelton sadly}.  We followed it with an amazing dinner at a lovely seafood restaurant.  And I must note, my girls know me too well...my fave food...so thoughtful.  And then we were out kickin' up our boots again.  I just can't stop when country music is around.  It's exhilarating!

We spent our final day out checking out the town.  There is so much to see beyond Broadway.  You know how fabulous that mac n'cheese was, well just wait until you try Biscuit Love.  Yum!

We couldn't make a trip to Nashville without checking out Reese Witherspoon's boutique.  Let me just tell y'all, it's nothing but southern in there.  

I finally got my star sighting that I had been waiting for.  I think it's fair to say I'm a little Blake obsessed {in a totally innocent way}.  Leave it to Gwen to ruin my chances of seeing this guy.  He was off on a birthday get away with her.  FYI...Blake and I share birthday weeks.  It's a good thing I'm Gwen obsessed too or I might be just be a little upset with her.

Come evening {and sadly our last night} we chased the sound of banjos and guitars one last time.  My boots were screaming for one more night of honky tonks.

Come morning it was time to say goodbye to our Nash Bash.  Seriously, the best birthday ever!  Can I please turn 40 one more time?  I couldn't have asked for more...love me some sweet besties and country tunes. 

Peace Out Nashville...until next time...

I'm 40 y'all!

Biltmore + Camp Drop Off

It's that time of summer again, when I send my eldest off to sleep away camp.  You would think I would be used to this by now, it is his third year after all.  Yet, he is making the jump from one week to two weeks....and I'm making a big jump backwards in letting go.  Ugh!

In anticipation of seeing Jack off, we made a big weekend of the drop off.  Every year we try to see a different part or attraction in North Carolina.  This year we opted to give the Biltmore House a whirl.

We arrived just in time for lunch and let me tell you, we were starving.  We got a quick bite in the village after checking in to our hotel.  Little did we know at the time, Cedric is quite a popular guy around these parts.  Our lunch was delish and the weather was fabulous for alfresco dining.

After lunch we meandered around.  The village was full of little shops and sights to see.  We left all the entertaining up to Lucy though.  She seems to be a pro.

The grounds were full of wild life.  This little guy hopped right by us and even hung out and let us chat it up with him.  Of course, this prompted Maggie to start begging for a pet bunny.  If I'm not careful, Daddy will take her to lunch and come home with one.  That's how we have two fish and a hamster to date. {not even a joke]

From there, we took the shuttle from our hotel over to the Biltmore Mansion.  There is nothing deceptive about the pictures, it's just as giant in person.

Our hotel package came with the audio tours and I'm so glad they did.  We might not have thought to purchase them otherwise and they are well worth it.  The kids got a kick out of their "cell phones".  Not to mention, Cedric, the family dog, narrates the kids version.  It makes the self-guided tour much more do-able for little ones.

To be honest, I was kind of wishing I had the Cedric version.

The tour was incredible, the house is beyond amazing, and I think it's fair to say we all really enjoyed it.  I would lying if I didn't mention, the girl's attention spans started to wither after about the 28th room.  But, over all a great experience.

Post our house tour, we made a quick visit over to the train exhibit and the farm before closing time.

The little ones were starting a steady decline so I knew it was time to take them to their HaPpY place.    It works like magic every time!

We topped our day in North Carolina with another amazing meal and ice cream in the village.  The next day was a biggie....CAMP DROP OFF!

I don't know why this still gets me every summer.  It's such a bittersweet day.  Leaving Jack for a whole two weeks is heart wrenching, but seeing his joy and excitement is exhilarating.  I imagine it will always be like that.

Fortunately, he has slew of good buddies that go every year.  This is about a third of them here.  It's amazing how this tradition has continued and new friends keep adding on.  I love this experience for him and hope my girls get to enjoy it one day too.

The camp does an incredible job of making the drop off as smooth as possible and it's plain to see I leave him in very capable hands.

After getting Jack all unpacked and settled, letting the girls enjoy the lake for a bit, and having lunch, it was time to say goodbye.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the very best part of the entire weekend before I sign off.  I said goodbye to my camper with a hug and a laundry list of things to do, like...have fun, say your prayers, be the best you can be, change your clothes, try new things....etc, etc.  He responded with a half-hearted, "okay, I love you, you can go now".

As I left his cabin and headed down the wooden stairs, I heard a clamber of thuds behind me.  When I got to the bottom this guy was right behind me, arms open and the most GIANT hug and sincere "I Love You" ever.  Seriously made my summer.

Let me just tell you, Jack is not a super touchy feely kiddo, so this was big stuff.

Now we are back to home sweet home minus one little one.  The girls will be busy with a few camps of their own and hopefully, before we know it, Jack will be back!

Coca-Cola Coaster

Yet another post that should have taken about 20 minutes has turned into over an hour due to computer issues.  If this continues, you may not be hearing a lot from me this summer.

I decided to take all my pictures on my phone {gasp} in hopes of alleviating the uploading issue.  Better, but not great.  All that aside here is another summer list knock off...World Of Coke.

I'd like to name this day the "Coca-Cola Coaster" namely because there were a lot of ups and a lot of downs, if you get my drift.  Kind of like the Sky View Ferris Wheel we rode as a culmination of our afternoon.  Irony at its best.

I refuse to name names, but one child was perfect and an absolute joy, the other two made up for it ten-fold.  Just keeping it real.

We arrived to the World of Coke after lunch.  I love not having to contend with naps {although Lucy did ask for one on the way home...eek}.

We grabbed our tickets at the gate for what turned out to be a very quiet day in the land of Coke.  That's always a nice plus in my book.

Of course, these three could not wait to get their hands on a can of Coke.  Lucy took one sip and declared it "too spicy".  Jack drank about half of his and Maggie downed hers.  Ever since last summer's visit Maggie has been a true fan.

And I suppose this would be a good time to note, that I have decided to choose my battles when it comes to Maggie's attire.  Her "style" has done a complete 180 to my demise and I'm trying my best to embrace it.  And although I say that with clinched teeth, I assure you, I seriously am.

We toured the downstairs and upstairs of the museum and hit all of our favorite stops.

I was completely enamored with my name on the wall of the "Coke Stories" exhibit.  I'm telling you that NEVER happens to me.

But, per usual the Taste Testing Room was the winner among the kiddos.

Word of warning...that Beverly might be the most gosh awful tasting drink in the world.

Before we headed home, we decided to knock one more activity of our summer bucket list.  I have been dying to do this, so I was thrilled when the "majority" of kids were on board.  The Sky View Ferris Wheel arrived to the city quite a while ago and this was our first opportunity to give it a whirl.

I imagine you can deduce who was in the minority.  I'll give you a hint, it's the only child clinging on to me for dear life.

Luckily, she survived just fine and actually enjoyed it.  My little scaredy cat turned brave.

Happily, we ended our "Coca-Cola Coaster" day on the up and up.  My little sweet rotten kids...wouldn't change having them home for the summer for anything!