Are you from Tennessee? Cause you're the only ten I see...

After literally years of planning Nick and I finally took our trip to Tennessee. Nick gave me a notebook before we left so I could record my thoughts, memories, etc. Well, I filled page after page after page. I've decided to just copy it into this blog post so I can recap the whole thing, photos and all! 

Thursday, September 29

We are off! Tennessee here we come! We left at around 5am so we should get to Memphis at 3 or so. More later!

11:15 am

It feels like we've been driving forever! Right now Nick is forcing me to listen to Glenn Beck. Talk radio=blah. Really though, its not so bad. Dad's GPS, who we named Gretchen, is getting us there! I'm pretty sure we're still in KY, but almost to TN. Nick says, "I'm hungry!" Lunch soon! 

We ate at this Arby's for lunch. It was pretty much right
after we crossed the TN border.  Nicest workers ever!

1:30pm

AHH! We are in Arkansas! I'm freaking out and Nick thinks I am crazy. If he was a blogger he would understand. We also drove through Missouri. Two states neither of us have been in before. This is seriously fun! Only 68 miles til MEMPHIS! 

This sight got pretty old.

Ahh! Memphis is close!

Friday, September 30

Its day 2 in Memphis! Yesterday was amazing! Our hotel is super nice and only one block away from Beale Street. 

Beale during the day.

So, yesterday we got to the hotel, took a nap (we were exhausted!!!) then got ready to go out. 

Our first stop was Beale Street. It is smaller than we both expected, but amazing! Bright lights, tons of activity!  There are beer vendors along the street so we got a "big ass beer" from the Tap Room. We just walked around and into shops (with beers, crazy!). 

For dinner we went to Rendezvous! 

Holy deliciousness! I was so excited to go because Mom and Dad went and Adam from from Man V. Food. Super famous ribs and they did not disappoint! Even the beans and coleslaw were the best.  

Walking back to Beale Street, Nick gave $$ to a guy and I said 'hi' to a homeless looking man who was getting chased by 3 cops....I didn't realize the cop part until they ran by, haha.

One really cool thing on Beale Street was a group of guys who would literally flip their way down the street. I've never seen anything like it!

So far I LOVE Tennessee! Everyone is so nice here, even the bums!

Today we are going to Graceland and Sun Studio! Cannot wait!


6:00 pm

To recap...our day started with breakfast at Cockadoo's. It was so my style and so cute.

I drank my orange juice out of a mason jar! I ordered strawberry pancakes and Nick ordered a "Memphis BBQ omelet." Tasted like the south for sure.

While we were walking around this morning Nick said, "I love how the whole city always smells like barbecue."

I'll write about Graceland later!

12:03 am

[Here I wrote about how Nick just proposed!!! Not gonna copy it in here though. Don't worry...it's not overly mushy, but still personal]

Saturday, October 1

We just left Memphis :(

The last 2 days were just about the best ever. Here's a recap...

After breakfast yesterday we waited outside the Rock n' Soul museum for a shuttle to take us to GRACELAND! It only took about 15 minutes. The bus had a flatscreen playing Elvis videos over and over. Definitely got me pumped up!

Once we got there it was crazy. We bought our tickets, we got in line, they took our picture, gave us a headset thing (Nick was kind enough to trade me because his looked cleaner), then got on another shuttle which took us to the mansion. It is beautiful.

So crazy to think Elvis actually lived there. He walked through that door. His feet stood in the same places, he ate in that kitchen, played that piano the day he died. It was hard to wrap my mind around it all.

The actual tour was pretty neat. It was all audio guided through the headsets we were wearing, so we could go at our own pace. The upstairs was closed out of respect, which is obviously understandable, but I really wanted to see his room. Haha.

My favorite part was the stairs because I guess he would always run down them to greet his guests. He spent most of his time upstairs.

He redecorated most everything in 1974 and the 70s were definitely alive in there. Bright colors, carpet on the ceiling, the works. Nick favorite part was just seeing where he hung out. That he had go-carts and a racquetball room.

We both loved the horses! I think I want to move it!

Horse in the background

At the very end was his gravesite. He is buried right next to his grandmother, mom and dad. There is also a marker for his twin brother who died at birth.

So, afterwards we got back on a shuttle and went to Sun Studio!

Wow x 1000! The first part of the tour was just ok, but the second part was AMAZING! We went to the actual studio. It had the original floor, walls and ceiling. Our tour guide said we were walking on "sacred ground." No kidding.

The guy played Cash's Walk the Line and handed Nick a guitar to play. So, he got to play an instrument inside the original Sun Studio...pretty badass.

The guy also played us a recording of Elvis and a few other "cats." Elvis messes up the song because Carl Perkins was in the window making faces at him. I could just picture the whole scene in my mind....amazing!

Oh! I forgot to say that in our tour group was a group of mentally handicapped adults. I was so happy they were with us because it was such an awesome reminder to just love life. They didn't have a filter and danced and sang like nobody was watching. LOVED it!

Before we left I made Nick pose for some photos with a microphone Elvis used.

So after we got back Nick and I stopped in a store and bought 3 concert posters, then it was back to the hotel for a quick nap.

After getting ready we went to Alfred's for dinner.

Nick got a pulled pork platter and I got a BBQ chicken sandwich. Once again, delish! Afterwards we finally made it to Rum Boogie Cafe!

During daylight hours

The band was a house band that has been playing for 17 years! They were full of soul, blues, jazz, and awesomeness. The man kept throwing beads out and throughout the night I caught 4 or 5. So then we finally left even though I didn't really want to because I loved it so much.

So, then we walked around for awhile trying to find someone to take our picture. Finally we found a guy who looked normal enough and we were standing right in the middle of Beale Street. He took the picture but then Nick was like, "Lets get one more" and I kept saying, "Why?! That one is perfect!" But he insisted so the guy went to take another picture.

Next thing I know Nick is next to me on one knee. Everything was a blur then. I was so caught off guard, it was nuts. People were cheering...the guy kept taking pics. I'm pretty sure I said 'yes' at some point.

The whole walk back to the hotel I kept saying, "Is this real life?" haha. It was a crazy blur, but an amazing crazy blur.

I found out everyone knew. My family, his family, people at his work. That tricky SOB.

Here are the pictures...

The first picture. Nick was trying to get the ring
out of his pocket, but couldn't in time. 

Still in shock, haha 

This morning we got up, got our stuff together then went to breakfast. We were going to go to Arcade, where Elvis used to go a lot, but decided to eat at Cockadoos again because we both loved it so much.

This time Nick got biscuits and gravy and I ordered...The Shag!

A peanut butter and banana sandwich with french toast as the bread, syrup, powered sugar, blueberries, and whipped cream. No words.

We walked down Beale one last time then went back to the hotel to check out.

Now we are on the road to Nashville! Don't know how its going to beat Memphis, but I'm looking forward to it!


Random Thoughts:

• Mom would be horrified by the state of the black chippy nail polish on my fingers with this new ring.
• We saw 3 fellow Buckeyes in Memphis. I love Ohio!
• Nick + housekeeping = no good (hahahha)
• I adore Elvis even more now.
• I get to plan a wedding!
• Memphis is my favorite. 

5:55 pm

Our Buckeyes suck. The end. 

Sunday, October 2

1:35 pm

Right now we are in a park in Nashville over looking a river and the Titans stadium. It is beautiful and relaxing. Nick is actually asleep in the grass next to me.

We both have mixed feelings about Nashville. When we woke up this morning we said..."So far in Nashville the Buckeyes have lost pathetically, our hotel looks like one a married man would bring a hooker to in the middle of the day, there was a hair in our pizza, and Nick didn't get any sleep because of the terrible pillows and ridiculous trains. We miss Memphis!"

During the game...I was still smiling so it was probably
the first quarter. 

So, last night after the horrible Buckeye loss that I won't mention anymore we found our hotel. It is a little creepy but I'm trying not to think about that. We decided to lay low for the night. Driving 3 hours and calling friends and family can actually be exhausting :)

Knocked Up was on TV, then the Nebraska/Wisconsin game. We ordered pizza, picked up some beer then were good to go! Minus the hair baked into the pizza.

Sidenote: I have been sitting in this park for awhile now and therefore have observed lots of people and let me just say, tourists are hilarious. Taking pictures of the water, buildings, birds, flowers. People on boats taking pictures of land, while people on land take pictures of the boat. Way funny and probably unnecessary. I myself am guilty too of course. I mean, how many pictures of Elvis on a billboard do I really need?


Today began with breakfast at the hotel where Nick ate biscuits and gravy and I had a waffle. We are way too predictable. Next was church at 9:00. It was only a 5 minute walk from our hotel. We went to St. Mary's, which is the oldest standing church in Nashville. What we didn't know was that it was a Latin mass! Very crazy...definitely an experience.

Can't read it that well, but the 'theme' of mass was marriage.
Seemed fitting.

After church we walked around the main streets, walking into stores that were open and basically just wandering around...

We stopped for lunch at Rippy's...

They had live music...a 19 year-old from Florida was playing. The music and the food was very good. Nick=pulled chicken sammy. Me=cheeseburger.

From there we came to this park and we've been here for almost 2 hours now. It's hard to believe its only 2pm.

I asked Nick why time goes so slow here but when we're at home it flies by. He said its because we don't know how to relax...we're constantly busy. It's not that Nashville is boring but just that maybe we don't know the right places to go. Also, we've been playing the part of 'tourists' for 3 days now.

As much as we (more so me) love country music it just doesn't speak to our hearts the way rocky, bluesy, Memphis music does.

I, for one, am not going to give up though. Vacation is a rarity and we need to soak it up. But, I wish I could rent a dog. Or a horse. For free.  

More pictures from Nashville...

Erin...I saw this and thought of you! Bruised enough for ya?

This overly cheesy picture is for Jackie. She'll understand.

Broadway at night

Monday, October 3

2:17 pm

Vacation is 217 miles away from being over. Bittersweet is the best word I can think of to describe it. Nick and I are both a little homesick and ready to step into our city. Oh, and to get out of this effing car!

But this little vacation was amazing and of course, full of surprises.

To pick back up where I left off yesterday...

After the park we went to Mike's for some ice cream. I got pumpkin pie in a waffle cone.

First taste of pumpkin ice cream this year and it was so good. Nick got a boring 'ole vanilla milkshake. I don't understand how his taste buds work.

Next was the hotel to regroup and plan the evening. We decided to go to the Wild Horse Saloon. The place is huge...three floors and a big stage. We sat at a table right in front, close to the dance floor where people were line dancing.

Horses on the ceiling. How could I not love it?

For dinner Nick finally ordered the steak he had been wanting. I wasn't that hungry so I just got a side salad and fried pickles.

After dinner we went up to the second floor where they had a pool table, air hockey and shuffle board, which is what we played. I am happy to say I think I found 'my' game. I beat Nick both games we played.

Overall, it was a really fun night. I learned a line dance and we got some funny pictures.

This morning consisted of packing back up, eating hotel breakfast (same as the day before), buying candy and gatorade for the road, and checking out of the worst hotel on the planet.

Before we left Nashville we drove to the Grand Ole Opry, which is indeed grand.

Now its safe to say we are over driving.

Can't wait til we pull this car into Nick's driveway!

Some other funny random memories from the trip...

• "Shelter? Did you say you wanted shelter?"
• Burm Burm Ner Ner Nurm. 
• "Getting old is mandatory, but growing up is optional." (birthday toast at Rum Boogie)
• Pepper in my tooth
• Nick loves ice buckets

That was the last I wrote in the notebook, but I wanted to keep going with this recap.

When we got to Cincinnati I called Stephanie and found out she was also there, only a couple exits away from us. We met up at a gas station.

Seeing those faces made the last leg of the drive so much better!

Finally we made it to Nick's house! We didn't stay though...we were off to his parents house for a little engagement celebration with our families.

We are so blessed to have such wonderful families. I pretty much adore them! Not to mention they are great at surprises...

Scatter Joy,