Nashville, Memphis and Back Again



Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN (via)


9= Number of Pumpkin Spice Lattes consumed during 4 days of road tripping

279= Approximate number of mullets seen during 4 days of road tripping through AR/TN

45,690= Grams of trans-fats ingested at various southern eateries in Nashville/Memphis

Priceless= Seeing an amazing band at a world famous venue, visiting the grave of one Johnny Cash and laughing so hard every day that our stomachs hurt.

In case y'all haven't figured it out by now, I'm back from the Nashville road trip extravaganza. Oh, it was so bittersweet having to come back to work today...if only every week consisted of 3 days of actual working and 2 days of roadtripping through the deep South with my sweet guy. Le sigh.

Today, a little recap of the past 4 days:

We headed out from Northwest Arkansas around 6:30 a.m. on Thursday morning. We grabbed the first of several Pumpkin Spice Lattes, packed our stuff in the car and hit the road, iPod and appropriate playlists set and ready to go.

We got to Nashville around 3:30 Thursday afternoon and went straight to our hotel room to get ready for the NeedToBreathe show.

Before the show, we walked around downtown and took pics and ate dinner. We stumbled upon this beauteous beaver statue outside of a restaurant and an impromptu photo sesh ensued.

We got to the Ryman around 7 for NeedToBreathe, which was AMAZING. Seriously guys, if you ever get a chance to see these boys in person, please go. They truly have a God-given gift.

S and I at the Ryman...so fun!

They played several of our fav songs and a couple of new ones too! One of my fav moments of the show was when they came out on stage and played a completely acoustic/unplugged version of "Valley of Tomorrow"; no mics, no speakers, just their voices and instruments. Literally gave me goosebumps...

Artsy looking picture of S

Friday morning, we got up and went to breakfast at this little bitty diner, 417 Union in downtown Nashville. So good!

Next, we hopped in the car and drove 20 minutes away to Hendersonville, TN to visit the grave of Johnny Cash and June Carter-Cash. You see, S and I are HUGE fans of the "Man in Black", so we figured this was the perfect opportunity to pay our respects to (in our opinion) one of the greatest musicians/songwriters that ever lived.

In true Johnny Cash style, the gravesite was simple and modest; nothing flashy or crazy. Just the humble resting place of a legend and the lady he loved.

Next, we hopped back in the car and headed toward Memphis.


S and me at Sun Studio in Memphis


We started our afternoon in the Birthplace of Blues at Sun Studio, the sacred recording studio where legends like Elvis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins began their careers.

Sun Studio, Memphis, TN

Later that night, we went to dinner at our favorite restaurant in Memphis, Blues City Cafe. Listen folks, if you go to Memphis and don't eat here, then really you haven't gone to Memphis. Located right on Beale Street, it's truly in the heart of the city.

We devoured the stuffed mushrooms, fried catfish, tamales and homemade chili, french fries and buttery toast in true Memphian style.

Holy yum.

On that note, I'm going to go back to my desk and resume fantasizing about catfish and mushrooms. We're heading to Chicago for a pre-Christmas mini-vacay next month, so until then...

Peace, love and cholesterol.

Be blessed, lovelies-