We had so much fun in Nashville last week, it was our first time visiting & we loved exploring the city. Well, as much exploring as one can possibly do with three kids, and an overall party of ten. Brandon’s parents & his sister’s family met us there for a little weekend getaway, we rented a house through airbnb which ended up being such a great experience. It was a little 4 bedroom bungalow, fully furnished with everything we needed. The drive was rough, this was the whole reason we decided to postpone our Iowa trip, little girlfriends do not like their car seats. But we managed, we got there early Saturday afternoon all in one piece & kicked off the weekend with some Mexican food from Rosepepper Cantina, some of the best chips & guac I have ever had!
Sunday morning, we headed off to the Grand Ole Opry tour. We are huge country music fans so it was a must-see for us while in the city. Turns out, it was not a must-see for Eloise, she was a total disaster and Brandon had to take her outside half way through. She was running up and down the halls squealing, and throwing a tantrum any time one of us held her or tried putting her in the stroller. Guess she still needed to run off some energy after the long car ride. Lesson learned. Harper loved every bit of it & Claire snoozed the entire time in my Solly wrap.
Solly Baby Wrap // Flower Headband // Chambray Shirt // White Jeans // Tulle Skirts // Black Cat Shoes
A special thanks to Brandon’s mom for bringing matching outfits for the girls & their cousin! 🙂
We had dinner at the highly recommended Pharmacy Burger, which has the most charming outdoor patio filled with string lights & pretty trees. The burgers & beer were amazing & the kids loved eating outside. A tip in case you’re ever in the area, go early for dinner because by the time we left, the line was around the block. And with kids, that is no bueno.
The next day we were headed to Franklin for the day to see the downtown & visit Gentry’s Farm for their pumpkin patch and activities. We ate at Biscuit Love for breakfast, and again, the food was out of this world! 🙂 The “bonuts” were so good, we ordered a big plate of those first and were almost too full to eat our actual meals after that. At the farm, the kids got to ride on a tire swing, go through the corn maze & play lots of fun Fall games. And we couldn’t leave without a few pumpkins to carve later that night on the back porch of our house.
There were fun parks & playgrounds around every corner, lots of fun things for the kids to do & see. We are already planning our next trip! And we couldn’t leave without a quick stop at Jeni’s Ice Creams (even though we have one in Atlanta) because it is just that good.
The car ride home was equally painful, Eloise & Claire were dueling pianos of tears for about 35 solid minutes so we decided to stop for lunch to get the kids out of the car for a bit. While in line to order, Eloise proceeded to bite a Hazelnut coffee creamer in half, squirting it all over herself & Brandon. So the rest of the ride home, our little torture chamber on wheels smelled like a coffee shop. 😉 The adventures never end!
Until next time, Nashville!
XO
Christina @ Embracing Simple says
Hi Jessica!
So glad to hear you guys had a great time on your vacation, Nashville is awesome!! Renting a house with littles is the way to go, that's for sure! I made the rookie mistake of booking a hotel for our 2 week road trip with our 15-month-old last month and it was serious insanity. I told my hubby that next time we are going the air bnb route FOR SURE. hah! Despite your "adventures", it sounds like a fabulous trip.
Christina
embracingsimpleblog.com
Kelly Linn Feller says
Looks like you had so much fun! We visited Nashville/Franklin in August and I thought it was rough with only one toddler. You are seriously so brave taking three children!! We'll have to check out Gentry's Farm on our next visit 🙂 We had so much fun as well and can't wait to go back! XO, Kelly
Nikki @ makeupHER says
This looks like such a wonderful trip!! How adorable are those tulle skirts for the girls, may look into those for flower girl skirts :)! I've never been to Nashville, but all the food and pretty scenery is making me want to go :)!
Ashley says
Oh, girl, I feel you. My daughter screamed for our 8 hour car ride home from a trip to see our families. We keep the older two happy with our DVD player and LOTS of snacks, but nothing makes a one year old happy.
Whitney R says
Girl, your Eloise sounds like my Gage. He's our wild thing and knows how to get into trouble wherever we go! But it sounds like a great vacation!
Mamaandmister.blogspot.com
Waking Up Watkins says
You guys are crazy brave – I can't imagine a road trip with three littles. It sounds like you got to see some of the best spots in Nashville, so happy you all enjoyed it! #TeamBonuts
Morgan @ Morgan Manages Mommyhood says
Looks like an awesome time! Your girls are so, so sweet. Car rides in our family are completely hit or miss. Sometimes my son is an angel and wither sleeping or playing quietly, and other times he's a huge brat who is purposely testing our patience (asking for a toy/water/food and promptly throwing it…)
Amanda says
Oh man, I hear you about little kids and car rides! Just spent one myself in the back seat (so I could retrieve pacifiers and thrown objects while Dad drove, stupidly thinking that would prevent a meltdown), dodging kicks the entire time and trying to ignore the high-pitched screams.
Hope you had a drink when you got home!
Erica @ Whimsical September says
Jeni's is SO GOOD! We used to live just outside of Nashville, and we missed taking spontaneous trips to get their ice cream. So jealous you have one in ATL! I didn't know they had them outside of Nash!
Maddie G says
So cute!
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Carolina Menzel-Jones says
You guys are so brave! Looks like a fun time in Nashville. Beautiful pictures!
xo
http://dearbabymj.com
Aileen says
Looks like a lot of fun and I laughed at the coffee creamer incident. Traveling with kids is definitely an adventure!
Christina Becker says
This is so great! We are heading to Nashville in a few weeks with our 2 girls so I've been trying to gather ideas for things to do and places to eat! 🙂
Andi of My Beautiful Adventures says
Wow you're so brave to drive so far with such three little ones!!! We are afraid to go three hours with just one, but we're dying to go to the mountains for some fresh air.
"B" says
I laugh with you about Eloise's behavior as she sound very similar to my Haddie! She is my fiesty one and keeps me on my toes. While it is painful it is equally entertaining and I love her for it! Odd how that works. Nashville is on our list of cities to tour soon!
Karra says
haha traveling with two is always interesting and our car is always SLAM packed. I can only imagine having a third babe. Nashville this time of year is beautiful!
Jen ♥ Brady says
Seems like an awesome time! I'm struggling with the idea of whether or not to add a third to our mix. I love your honesty about life but also adding lightheartedness to it. I'd much rather have a screaming child in the car than on an airplane, which seems to be what my youngest enjoys doing. 🙂
Kristin says
Despite the 'not so fun' parts of the trip it sounds like so much fun! At least some day you can remind the girls of the trouble they cause 🙂
Allison Cooley says
Looks like a fun mini vacation. I have never had Jeni's ice cream so it's on my bucket list!
'Tis Our Life Blog
Linley Noel says
Looks like you had an awesome time, and I LOVE your outfit with the chambray shirt. 🙂 I know it's not all fun and games, but you definitely make having three look easy. Gives this new mama some hope for the future! 😉
Allie Baldwin says
I'm so sorry, but I was laughing so hard at the last paragraph. But I know that'll be me someday so, so soon.
Lexie Loo, Lily, Liam, and Dylan Too! says
What a great trip!!! I think I need to plan a trip to Nashville!
Alana says
Sounds like an awesome trip!! Isn't airbnb the best? I've used it twice now and I love it!
Lindsay at Lindsay'sSweetWorld says
Ahhhh, adventures with tiny tots!! I can't imagine throwing in a third! Although, she was probably the most well-behaved of all of them. :o)
Love all of the pics and I'm glad you guys had a great time!
Jessika says
Eloise sounds just like my Kenalie! They are both little sisters to big sisters and as wild as can be! They are a couple weeks apart in age and I'm sure they would be trouble making buddies ;]
Rose O'Reilly says
Such a fun post! It was great to read about your experiences. I especially loved your pretty little girls 🙂
Lindsay Himmer says
I have two girls, about the same ages as your first two. My second one is also named Eloise and every time I read your post about your Eloise I feel like I could have written them myself about our little firecracker! Must be the age and a second sibling thing!
a winter's tale says
Your little girl Eloise sounds EXACTLY like my 14 month old baby, Winter. I swear they are the same!
Mary @ Cherry Blossom Love says
I've been following you since the beginning. I have a 3 year old and a 1 year old so it's been fun watching your family grow the same time as mine 🙂 I am not sure if you guys are into this kind of thing but I love back wearing our 3 year old during times like the tour. It's not the stroller, he can see more, and keep a little more tame. We have a toddler Tula and it has worked out great. Just wanted to throw that out there for E. My 3 year old is 42 pounds and surprisingly isn't bad wearing him. Anyway, looks like you guys had a blast which doesn't surprise me 🙂 Love the photos as usual.
cherryblossomlove.com
East Willow Grove says
I have the boy version of Eloise, 2nd child and all. Nothing she does surprises me in fact Skylor is probably squeezing the creamers from the bottom instead of biting. Clair looks HUGE in Harper's arms on the couch, soooo crazy!!
XX Chelsea | East Willow Grove
Michelle says
That first picture of Claire sleeping is so beautiful; it reminds me of my Coralie just 3 years ago–those cheeks! You could just kiss them all day! LOVED your description of your "torture chamber on wheels," haha, I can definitely relate to that. Have you ever thought of visiting Chattanooga? There is Rock City (which might be too much for the girls at these ages, but maybe when they're older), also there is the TN Aquarium, and Point Park on Lookout Mountain (a good place for running around when you're a kid!!). Well, all I can say is, at least it was yummy smelling coffee creamer you all got to smell instead of curdled milk. When she was 2, Coralie threw up in the car seat the morning we were about to start out to Florida for our annual beach vacation. I was standing there when we stopped to clean her up and I SO did not want to put my hands all in that puke, and my husband yells, "Get her the f*ck out of the carseat!" (I promise, he's not mean). Of course, my older daughter had to repeat what he said to my sister, her husband, and EEK my mom, and my mom was laughing the hardest! Then C threw up again when we were headed to Disney World later that week! We thought it was carsickness, but no, it was some type of virus because my older daughter got it as well. Worst vacation ever. So, just in case, I would advise travels with kids should have an emergency kit with trash bags, paper towels, wipes, hand sanitizer, latex gloves, and extra clothes at the ready. And never store anything of value in the floorboard under the baby/toddler carseat, because those items will get ruined as well. Learned that the hard way.
Trang says
Wow, it's such a nice trip. I love the picture of babies so much, they are so cute.
Hope you have a great time on Halloween day
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Peace in Pieces says
This is a great place organize an event; they have great staff and great events put on here! I had nothing but great times and great conversations there. The venues in Los Angeles served slider and shrimp cakes as appetizers with chicken skewers, and eggrolls that had veggies on the inside and some kind of creamy fruit sauce on top.