the tuesday before thanksgiving, rylan and i left for nashville around 8am. armed with some maps, printed directions courtesy of google maps, and an awesome GPS (thanks nicki and jim!) we were almost positive we would not possibly be able to get lost. and we only made one wrong turn in the middle of atlanta! the drive was uneventful and the dog sat quietly in the backseat the whole time. we made it to nashville by 3:30. aunt jen and uncle tim took us on a beautiful hike to stretch our legs. we got to the top of the hill right at sunset, it was incredible. i now know the meaning of "purple mountains majesty." at this point, after being there for about two hours, lola had become best friends with their dog, moby (he's a poodle mixed with that bishon-frizzy kind of dog). aunt jen made a delicious london broil for dinner, and then my cousin emalie and i went to see twilight (for the second time). fantastic movie.
wednesday morning i could not sleep in, i was seriously up by 7:15. so i curled up on the couch and read a book until everyone else got up around 8. mom and dad got to nashville (from paducah, ky) around 10:30. my aunt mary jean and uncle kevin (from atlanta, ga) got there around 1:30. uncle tim went to pick up aunt kathy (from cleveland, oh) and my cousin tommy (hartford, ct) at the airport. my aunts started cooking right away and rylan and i kept getting volunteered to load and unload the dishwasher, as well as peel potatoes and onions and apples and anything else that could've been sliced or diced. that evening, all 12 of us headed to buc di beppo for a big ol' family dinner! **side note: we all got together not only for thanksgiving, but because it was my aunts 50th birthday, and she is technically the baby of the family** after dinner we headed back to the house for some birthday cake that my mom made! delicious. then we played cranium, which was hilarious.
thanksgiving day was pretty mellow. rylan and i spent the morning avoiding the kitchen, but somehow we still got volunteered for the same jobs as the previous evening. i would just like it to be stated for the record that i do not enjoy cooking. but since im a huge fan of eating, i guess i had to do my fair share. it was beautiful and warm and sunny out so we all grabbed whatever lawn chair we could find, pulled them into a semi circle in the middle of the backyard, and we all worked on our tans for a while. it was gorgeous, we dubbed it "the nashville beach." the meal was fantastic (it was all the peeling i did, i swear it was!) and i couldnt have asked for a better family than mine to spend thanksgiving with! after dinner we played apples to apples.
friday everyone slept in. we all avoided "black friday" shopping. the women of the family went to the spa for a refreshing morning of facials! i think i might have to do that more often! as we were pulling out of the parking lot, alison krauss (country singer, sings with the grand ole opry and her band "alison krauss and the union station") was pulling in. no one else in my family listens to country, so i silently flipped out from the back seat. that evening we played rock band with my cousin philip. he is 16, cutest boy alive (zac efron hair) but im pretty sure hanging out with his lame-0 cousin (that'd be me!) was not on his list of things to be doing on a friday night, but he humored me well, he even let me sing! poor child.
saturday mom, dad, rylan and i went to cracker barrel for brunch and then went to downtown nashville. i'm assuming this is common knowledge by now, but in case you don't know, i live for country music. we passed by the ryman auditorium and went to the country music hall of fame! they had an awesome exhibit about hank williams and the williams family legacy. i must admit, im not a huge hank jr fan (bocefus, who gives their child that kind of a nickname!?) but it was very interesting to read their story... i can now understand why people think country singers are so redneck. thank hank for that! then we walked down broadway, which is home to a ton of honky tonk bars and record stores. i was totally in my element (minus the bars). we went into the wild horse saloon and my dad and i shared a beer. that evening we went to the mellow mushroom for pizza with my parents, aunt jen and uncle tim, and emalie and philip.
sunday we went to paducah, kentucky for the day to visit pop. im absolutely convinced that he is the cutest old man ever. my cousin jarrod brought over his 2 year old daughter annsley. rylan was totally smitten with her, and vice versa. they flirted! it was so cute. i also got to see my uncle dave, who i hadn't seen in years. we made a trip to walmart while we were there, cause there is really nothing else to do in paducah, trust me on this. stopped over to see aunt carol and uncle gene for a few minutes. she just had major back surgery, but she looked like she was recovering very well!
monday we were supposed to head back to savannah but i just couldnt bring myself to leave yet. so we stayed an extra day in nashville. we found a jcrew (hallelujah) and then we went to the opryland hotel. it's right next to the new grand ole opry. it also snowed. i like snow about as much as i like cooking (if you've been paying attention, you know thats now a good thing). my mom made yummmmmy enchiladas for dinner and we had a nice quiet evening.
yesterday we drove home. besides the phone call from my mom telling rylan they found jack white's house, nothing exciting happened. i finished a whole book in one car ride (im a dork!).
i was so not ready to be back at work today. one week away from those old bitches was definetley not enough. they are still fighting about the same stuff... it gets old so fast. BUT i came home to clean laundry and christmas decorations!! i love when rylan is off from school :) our house looks beautiful, so here's the secret: live with an art student! it's only dec 3, so i got at least 22 more days of beautiful christmas lights!!!!!
