Tennessee

Well with the companion pass burning a hole in my pocket, I booked a quick weekend trip for us.  I needed some place with a direct flight from Dallas or Austin that left on Thursday night late so we could leave after school was out . . . it was a rare four day weekend for both of our schools so wasn't going to waste it!  I finally found the best deal was from Dallas to Nashville!  I haven't been to Nashville in almost 20 years!  We lived about an hour from Nashville when Sean and I first married and spent just about every weekend hanging out in Nashville . . . sadly we never really did any of the touristy stuff.  The weather was not great but when you only have a few hours you just go for it and know that the teenager is going to complain.

Our first stop was The Hermitage which was a plantation owned by our 7th President, Andrew Jackson.  We watched the movie, browsed the museum, and walked around the grounds before a tour of the house.

The gardens were beautiful . . .

We stopped and watched this squirrel for a long time . . .

.  . . and then explored the grounds a little more before the rain started!

We were both hungry so off for a late lunch.  When I was researching places to eat, I would always see a reference to meat and 3.  So I started searching for that and realized it was a meat and three sides which is my kind of place to eat.  There are several that are popular in Nashville but Arnold's Country Kitchen seemed to be very popular.  The reviews said parking was a nightmare, the lines were long, but the food is good.  I knew the teenager would love it too . . . insert my best eye roll!  There are many times the menu does not tickle his taste buds but does mine so I always tell him I will stop and get you something else.  It works and not the best habit but it is what it is.  We circled the parking lot a lot and it became like the video game Frogger with the poor frog trying to cross the road without getting hit.  When you saw people walking to cars, I had to put my aggressive skills to work but we got a parking spot and jumped into the not very long line.  I liked the fact the menu changes daily and thankfully Colin was thrilled to order chicken and dumplings!  I on the other hand went with the meat and three plus a piece of pie too . . .

The roast beef was perfect as were the collard greens, mashed potatoes, and mac and cheese!  It was all  yummy!  We were stuffed and got back in the car for our next stop.  There were a few places in the area that I had to do a quick stop but of course about that time it started pouring rain and we had about a 2 hour drive ahead of us for our final stop of the night so we got on the road.

Since we were in Tennessee, I decided to see if one of my first friends I made when I moved to Fort Campbell was home.  Holle and I became friends while working at Northeast Middle School in Clarksville, Tennessee.  It was the toughest group of kids I have ever taught . . . not sure I taught that much but crowd control of an awfully behaved group of 7th graders seemed to be what I did most days.  I have never been in a classroom with so many disrespectful kids . . . it was the first time I had a student tell me to F*ck Off; I still remember his name and often wonder what he is up to!  I was mortified that a kid at that age would tell me that . . . the classes were large with about 30 kids per class.  It was not a great experience as far as teaching, but I had some good friends that made it better.  We would spend a lot of time together when the guys were away in the field.  We have kept in touch over the years but had not seen each other in over ten year . . . our boys had never met either so it was a nice stop to catch up!

. . . and back on the road!