Road trip 2018

Road trip 2018 is underway!! This year we are headed to Florida! We woke up this morning and got on the road by 5:30 to get a jump on our day. The girls slept the first few hours as the miles disappeared under our tires. We had rainy skies which set the tone for a sleepy, lazy drive to Nashville. The morning was pretty quiet as we read books, did math packets (I know, homework on vacay – but it keeps them busy), and played a little car karaoke. J

Is this what your car looks like when you go on vacation?

Of course no trip south is complete without a stop in Metropolis to visit Superman. It was a great spot to stretch our legs, use the restroom and have a little fun. The girls practiced their flying and then we took our superpowers back on the road to continue to FL.

Then we hit Gilbertville and sat. And sat some more. We were stuck in traffic for nearly an hour when we saw fire trucks squeeze through and shut down I-24. Lucky for us, we had an exit ahead so we were rerouted around and about 30 minutes later we were back on i-24 and heading on our way. Not so lucky for anyone who was stuck after the exit as when we rejoined i-24 there was not.a.single.car. The interstate was still closed and they had not reopened to let a single person through. Yikes.

It was smooth sailing from there and we arrived in Nashville just in time to make Mass at the Cathedral of the Incarnation. This place was beautiful and, lucky for us, they asked if we would like to take up the gifts. It was a cool experience being in such a beautiful church and getting to participate as if it were our own parish. 

After Mass we met up with the Kearns! They relocated to Nashville in January and we haven’t seen them since, so it was great to catch up, see where they live and experience a snapshot of their new life in Nashville. Erica is always a phenomenal hostess and this time was no different. We met up in a cute, trendy little neighborhood in East Nashville for pizza at Five Points, supposedly the best pizza in Nashville! While we were waiting for a table we jumped across the street to Bongo’s café and game room for a few drinks while the girls played board games and we caught up. This place was so cute and a great place to hang out while we waited for a table. Then it was back to Five Points for dinner!

Five Points was amazing! With seating for about 40 it’s no wonder there is always a wait and a line out the door, but it is SO worth it. They started off by giving all of the kids a little pizza dough to play with and the girls (and Whitten J) had fun making sculptures, spelling out words and stretching their dough.  It was the perfect way to keep them occupied having sat in the car for 9 hours, followed by sitting through church and then a restaurant! Before we knew it, our pizza was on the table and it was NO LIE some of the best pizza I’ve ever had. Which apparently is a big compliment as Josh assured us that the pizza in Nashville is no good.

After dinner, we walked around the corner to the Pied Pieper. A cute little ice cream shop in a little bungalow. The city was alive with music and there were no bugs and it just seemed like a magical slice of Heaven in Nashville. We ate our ice cream and headed to the Kearns house to call it a night. They live in a gorgeous house in Murfreesboro and were such gracious hosts. The 4 girls had a sleepover together in the bonus room and we could hear their giggles and laughter down in the kitchen as they settled in. It was the perfect little trip to Nashville and it was so amazing to get to see Erica and her family again. You can tell the girls didn't have any fun at all! :)