Photo Shoot!

I scheduled a maternity photo session with the very talented Lauren Owens for the morning before the shower in Nashville. Lauren is the friend of a friend and her work has always impressed me. While I didn't see any maternity pictures in her portfolio, I knew her style was compatible with my own.

The morning of our photo session was wet and gray but the rain held off so we ventured to Percy Warner Park. Peter and I are not exactly naturals in front of the camera; frankly, we require a lot of direction! When Lauren sent me her pictures from the session, I was impressed! There were so many lovely pictures capturing this season in our lives.

          

            

Since my mom came to Nashville to attend the baby shower, we invited her to come along to the photo session. As our session was wrapping up, I asked Lauren if she would get a picture of the two of us. She willingly did! 

Dashing Through

A Very Nashville Christmas

Saturday a group of us ventured to Opryland to check out A Very Country Christmas. We were all surprised by the crowd and Opryland in general. Our initial shock came when we had to pay $18 plus tax to park. After overcoming the shock of parking, we enjoyed the lights outside of the hotel. The trees were covered in thousand of white lights making for a very classic Christmas look.  

Photo from themeetingmagazines.com 

Once we ventured inside, we decided that the place was basically a casino (without the gambling) trying to be Disney World meets Rainforest Cafe.  We wandered through the labyrinth of floors and atriums taking in the sites and sounds- which included not one, but two, weddings and receptions. 

 

We were looking forward to the Brightest Star Fountain Show which is set to Christmas music; sadly, due to the weddings the show was cancelled. Still, we enjoyed the interior decorations while we meandered through.  

  

Perhaps it goes without saying that there was no shortage of opportunities to spend money at Opryland. We made our way into the Very Country Christmas Official Store where I spotted a potential gift for Peter, unfortunately it cost $100, you know, give or take, so I opted out of the purchase.  

 

I'm glad I went to Opryland if only to say that I've been there- I don't suppose I could live in Nashville and not visit Opryland at least one time. It made for a lovely Saturday afternoon writing break and helped put us all in the holiday spirit. 

Over the Weekend

This weekend was a blur. Friday night Leslie and I, sans camera, headed to East Nashville to dine at the Family Wash. We devoured kettle chips covered in Gorgonzola cheese and bacon then shared a vegetarian Shepard's pie. Somehow we managed to save room for the homemade desserts- yes, that is plural. On Tuesdays the Family Wash has a $10 Pint & Pie night. After our fabulous comfort food experience, the plan is to get a group together for a Tuesday trip.

Peter came into town late Friday night. Early Saturday we made our way to the Vanderbilt tailgate where Peter was able to confirm his existence to some of my classmates. After the tailgate, in true Vandy style, we left. Don't judge; we had errands to run. For lunch we made our way to Hot Diggity Dog. Of course, it was awesome.

We got a New York, a Nashville, and a Texas. The homemade coleslaw at HDD is hard to beat and even Peter, a professed coleslaw hater, really like it.

Originally, I was supposed to go home this weekend but plans changed when it was decided that there would be a surprise birthday for Peter's sister L. in Nashville on Saturday night. You see, L. decided she would celebrate her birthday with a girl's weekend in Nashville. But- being a milestone birthday, we all wanted it to be special. My MIL, L.'s best friend, and I planned a party in Nashville. After L. drove up from Atlanta Friday night, the family, Baby Quinn and all, packed and drove up Saturday morning.

The look on L.'s face when she saw everyone was priceless. After all of the fretting, we really pulled off the surprise. I love, love, love this picture from the party!

Side note: I struggle with low-light indoor pictures. One day, when I'm not in graduate school, I fully intend on (1) learning more about our camera and (2) purchasing another lens.

Café Coco

Having heard good things about Cafe Coca from various friends, I recommended it as a lunch spot. J. and I try to meet up once a week for lunch, emphasis on try. When you walk into Cafe Coco you are immediately greeted with an instructional board. Of course, neither of us noticed it and had to be directed by a member of the wait staff.

After deciding that we'd take table service rather than order at the bar, we examined the menu. J. was really into it {that's her behind the menu}. We decided on sandwiches.

J. got a chicken wrap, which was a bit bland, and fries, which were great. I got an avocado garden grill sandwich which was fantastic. I don't think Coco will become our regular spot but with 24 hr. service, I'm sure I'll be back.

Saturday

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending a free Ra Ra Riot show at Grimey's with Leslie. She knew about the show and invited me to tag along. In the last few months, I've been impressed with Nashville's capacity to live up to it's nickname, Music City.

Hello Fall

Sometime in the last week Fall came to Tennessee. The temperature has finally dropped low enough for me to call it "sweater weather." With October on the horizon, Halloween decorations have begun sprouting up. In fact, the Farmers Market is currently ripe with pumpkins and gourds of all shapes and sizes.

Academic Weekend

Last weekend can only be described as academic. I was in class Friday night and Saturday then spent the better part of Sunday with my nose in an assigned book {such is the life of a graduate student}. Fortunately, I like what I'm learning and don't think it is too laborious. Being that I am an extreme extrovert, I made time to go to Red Rooster Saturday night. Sunday I did most of my reading at Bongo Java. I like Bongo Java very much. The food and drinks are excellent and the people watching is even better. Also no matter how long you stay, the staff will not kick you out which I suppose is the biggest perk.

Adventuring: East Nashville and Downtown

Adventures this past weekend, led Leslie and me to East Nashville. We had a long to-do list ripe with potential that changed mid-day due to an unexpected closure. With our plans to enjoy Mas Tacos, Por Favor put on hold, we opted to find another restaurant on our Nashville Bucket List, Rosepepper.

Not only was Rosepepper recommended by my sister-in-law and her best friend, it was listed on Design*Sponge's guide to Nashville. Known for their oversized burritos, they did not disappoint. I got a veggie burrito, stuffed full with sautéed vegetables, black beans, and Sonora rice. It was topped with a tangy tomatillo sauce. I managed to eat half. {Word is their margaritas are also pretty amazing, but I cannot verify that- yet}

After a bit more wandering through East Nashville, we ended up at Pied Piper Creamery right in the heart of the Five Points District. The dry erase menu split the cleverly named flavors into Regulars {permanent flavors} and Irregulars {temporary flavors}. After sampling Are You There God? It's Me, Margarita, The Professor, and a maybe a few other flavors, I decided on Happy Trails to You, a honey-infused vanilla with trail mix pieces. The creamery also serves as a gallery of sorts. The right side of the house- yes, Pied Pier Creamery is in a house- is set up as a place for local artists to display their work.

Everything in Pied Piper Creamery was very clever, witty. I think special note needs to be paid to the Pride Sprinkles. As far as I'm concerned, they are for all of those people that could use a bit of fairy dust in their lives.

Heading back West, Leslie and I decided to make a quick stop Downtown. We popped into the Hatch Show Print Gallery. Stepping inside felt a bit like stepping into another time.

Turns out they've been doing what the do since 1879. Impressive, don't you think?

I love, love, love this print. It's so cheesy. And maybe kind of lame. Certainly, "low" humor. But it makes me laugh. I have lots of green both my bedroom in Nashville and house in Memphis so if I can think of a good place to hang the print, I'll be heading back to the Print Shop to pick it up.

Since we still had time on our meter we opted to stop in Tootsie's before heading home. It was packed! At 4:45. People were singing right along with the frontman.

Leslie and I hung around long enough to hear some decent covers of "Friends in Low Places" by Garth Brooks, "If Heaven Ain't A Lot Like Dixie" by Hank William Jr., "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, and "John Wayne and Jesus" by Pat Green. Being new to the South and relatively unfamiliar with country music, Leslie's has been embracing the new genre well.

We're making efforts to get to know our new city neighborhood by neighborhood. Thus far, I like Hillsboro Village but I prefer 12 South. The Gulch needs to grow before I can give a fair opinion. And East Nashville reminds me of Midtown Memphis. Once I crossed the river, I kind of felt like I was home. Thats lame, right? Honestly, some of the houses in East Nashville could be picked up and dropped into Cooper-Young and the neighbors would be none the wiser.

Tennessee State Fair

Friday night, I went to the Tennessee State Fair. I cannot recall the last time I went to a fair- it had to be some time in high school. Whoa! I think in the few hours we were there my group had a very thorough fair experience. We perused the entire fairground making our way through the rides, games, agricultural buildings, and stables.

Winners

We saw the blue ribbon winners in many categories, including: hay, large produce, and cherry tomatoes- none which are as thrilling as you may think. Through a window I noticed that wollen fleece had also been judged but I didn't bother to check out the winner.

Rides

We walked through the rides but no one cared to brave the fold-away attractions.

Animals

The animals houses at the fair were a bit of an experience. I saw a few birds that I had never seen before which I suppose I had the option to buy since most of the animals were for sale.

Games

Of course there were games. Despite the group effort to monopolize the water gun race, the team came back empty handed.

Food

Fair Food is hard to describe. It's disgusting. Or maybe, delicious. One of the two. The fair offered food in every category of the pyramid. Apparently the Tennessee State Fair is known for Deep Fried Goo-Goo Clusters which are marshmallow, caramel, peanuts and chocolate deep fired and dusted {heavily} with powdered sugar. As a whole, I think we tried everything but the Hot Beef Sundae.

Pom Pom+Beak

Pop quiz: Can you identify this bird?

Image from http://puppykittybunny.blogspot.com/

Answer: It's a Silkie.

Last night, I went to the Tennessee State Fair with some friends and saw two Silkie Hens. Never. Ever. Ever have I seen one of these before. They are so fancy! The Silkies blew my mind. I came home and researched them. According to MyPetChicken.com, Silkies are "the lap kitty of the chicken world, complete with hair-like plumage and an incredibly sweet temperament." I am not in the market for another pet and certainly not a pet chicken but if I were think I'd be all over the blue/black skinned, five-toed, docile Silkies- I mean, look at them!

Image from http://www.mypetchicken.com

Image from http://www.mypetchicken.com

Image from http://www.mypetchicken.com

Image from http://www.mypetchicken.com