Fun in Nashville

It's a lot of work trying to take advantage of all Nashville has to offer. Who knew there was so much to do!? 

I wanted to take Ty to Monster Jam last summer but backed out, so I jumped on board this year. I thought Tim could take Ty for Father's Day, but he ended up talking me in to taking Ty and Tim had a blast on a "date" with Lucy. It was a lot of fun for all of us.

Once we made it to our seats (the stadium was horribly laid out, disorganized, and strict on rules-no umbrellas or purses caused 1.5 trips back to the car), the show was fun! Ty and I especially liked when the cars flipped over!

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Last Sunday we got to celebrate this amazing dad!

It was cute seeing Ty so excited to celebrate!

Lucy got Tim his favorite "kids" book called Jamberry, and Ty/I made this race-track shirt that is supposed to be a "back-scratch" shirt!

 

Wednesday we got a babysitter and headed to The Factory at Franklin for the Music City Roots show. It is a live radio/tv broadcast with several performers each show. It's fun because they interview the bands and announce commercials all throughout the show, but our show was special because it was the annual Dance Show! 

The bands were called the Lil Smokies (new-grass/bluegrass), 50 Shades of Hay (classic country), Music City Dough Boys (country swing), and Uncle Shuffalo and his Haint Hollow Hootenanny (square dance). Tim and I danced just one song, but it was a blast! I'm so glad we went! 

It's been HOT and HUMID! We finally headed to the Maryland Farms YMCA to check out their outdoor pool area. We were there about 5 minutes before the cool kids pool closed due to some kids poopy in the water. :(

Last night we headed to Centennial Park downtown for Big Band Dance where they teach you how to do certain dances for the first 30 minutes, then play music. What a fun idea! We danced with the kids for a song or two, then just listened and played outside. 

The kids have been busy at home, too. Ty has been building with Legos and doing lots of crafts (the picture below is when he went to a Michael's Craft Camp), and Lucy loves eating, playing, and  getting attention. They are both great at smiles! Yay for fun in Nashville!

A Mammoth Day Trip

We had heard Mammoth Caves in Kentucky were worth seeing, so we put it on the bucket list and headed up. 

We stopped for a few pictures once inside the park. It's hard to believe there are caves under most of this!

 

The original plan was to go on a Saturday, but as I looked information up the Friday night before, I realized that if you want to get into the "cool looking" part of the caves, you need advance tickets. We went on the Frozen Niagara tour yesterday (a Tuesday afternoon).

 We choose this specific tour because it was shorter and easier for the kids. It was a hit. Ty loved exploring the caves and our tour guide even turned the lights off and lit a batman signal on the wall.

The pictures turned out ...pretty much how you would expect pictures taken in a dark cave to turn out. I didn't even save the ones of a  mini waterfall that is only there when it rains. (It was pouring just before the tour.)

 

The ride isn't too bad from Nashville. Just under two hours. On our way home, we stopped at the Corvette Factory to take a look at the "racecars" out front. Unfortunately, you have to be 12 or something to do the factory tour. :(

Summer Adventures

My first week of working toward the Nashville Bucket List didn't go so well. We pretty much didn't do anything. I may have over compensated this past week by planning outings every day. Either way, we've started knocking things off the list!

Sunday: Explore the West Meade Waterfall. This is an area right on the edge of a neighborhood in the middle of town! Ty and I climbed the huge hill behind the waterfall up to an old rock wall which used to mark an old farm. Apparently, the city owns the land and has plans to connect a greenway through here. Ty made a map to help us get here and everything (note the pictures below).

 

Our friend Meredith and her cute little boy Owen had an opportunity to come out to Nashville to visit her brother's family, so we met up at the Cheekwood Playhouse Exhibit.

  This is my favorite playhouse-it represents India. There were even swings inside and the top was covered in bright colored umbrellas!

 The Edenburough Castle Playhouse had a dungeon!

 Next up was Touch a Truck! We drove up to Goodlettsville to get in on this action. It wasn't Louisville's awesome event, but it was still worth the drive!

 

 Ty and Lucy's friend Elise met us there for a few minutes. As you can see, they weren't too keen on posing for pictures. Oh well! 

These two are print-worthy!  Cute cute!  

Tim gave me a break on Saturday, so I headed downtown with friend Marcy to check out the CMA Fest. If it weren't so hot, I could have stayed all day.

We were there just over an hour and heard songs from Lorrie Morgan, Mo Pittney, and Emerson Drive. ...like, real singers!

 Below is the band Emerson Drive. I couldn't believe so many of these stages were FREE! I was so close!

 It was the first time I'd seen the Music City Walk of Fame.

And we finished the week with a lazy Sunday. This cutie got to wear for the first time a dress she had been given by Great Grandma and Grandpa Larsen when she was born. It is special because Great Grandpa Gordon passed away last year. She sure looks cute in it. Also, can we talk about that pose? You'd think she came to the CMA Fest with me!