Emmeline Leila Aycock: Mommy and Daddy's Trip to Nashville!

All of us Deacon fans were very surprised and excited when Wake Forest got picked to head to Nashville, TN for the Music City Bowl. (Thanks Va Tech!) We thought we'd end up in lowly Shrevport, LA, but all was right with the world and those billy goats ended up in that bowl. (How'd that turn out for y'all?)

Anyhoo, Rob and I decided that we just didn't have the funds this year to make that trip and were just as happy to watch the game from our lovely living room television. I didn't say anything to my parents about the trip until my mom brought it up and told me that my dad would like to fly Rob and I out to Nashville, put us up in a hotel, and provide our bowl tickets. Merry Christmas!! (Oh, and that my Mom would be keeping Emmeline back home while we were gone. Yes, please!)

Now, I've left Emmy with family and babysitters numerous times and it really doesn't bother me. Life must go on after you have a baby, of course. This was to be my first overnight from Emmy. That made me feel a little more anxiety. I knew she'd be fine, but I also knew I'd miss kissing her goodnight and seeing her first thing in the morning.

When we headed down to Rocky Mount for Christmas, we decided to just stay until Thursday, as my Mom wanted to keep Emmy in Rocky Mount. The day before we left I was in rare "mom mode". I made lists and typed out schedules. I labeled food and left directions to mix bottles. Heck, I even got large ziploc bags and put outfits in each one... as if my mom couldn't figure out how to dress my child. Ha! I knew that none of this really made much difference to my mom, as she did raise 3 children, but it made me feel much better about leaving Emmy if I knew every little detail was written down. (Hello, Type A!)

On Thursday morning, we kissed Emmy goodbye and headed off with Norm to Raleigh to meet Yates at RDU and fly to Nashville. I didn't shed any tears and was super excited to be on the road. For some reason, Rob and I were on a different flight out to Nashville from my Dad and Yates and got delayed a bit, but still made it to Nashville in time to get ready for the Thursday night party.

The whole trip was absolutely fantastic. Honestly, I couldn't remember the last time I had so much fun. Thursday night we went to a cocktail party and then off to Sambuca's for a private dinner with about 60 friends in a beautiful glass room looking out onto the city. Dinner was delicious and we had a wonderful time listening to stories and hearing toasts.

Saturday morning we weren't feeling too hot for some reason, so I trekked downstairs and asked for some packs of Tylenol from the concierge and then we managed to get a few more hours of sleep before our room service breakfast arrived. Once we finally pulled it together, we headed out to explore downtown Nashville and have some lunch. We walked the streets and would just pop into different bars to listen to the live music. So fun! We had a delicious lunch at the bar in Merchants and enjoyed people watching. (And getting excited when we'd see other Wake fans in the sea of burgundy Miss State Bulldogs) After lunch, we explored a little more before heading back to the hotel to get dressed for the game.

Instead of a tailgate, all of our friends decided to just head to Rippy's bar and have food/drinks and hang out before the game. We had so much fun and even were joined by Stephen and his good friend, Lee Cross, from Nashville. We told stories and relaxed before trekking it over the bridge to Titans stadium. (No one mentioned that we would be doing all that walking or I would have worn flats!)

At Rippy's...

My handsome husband and I on the foot bridge before the game.

The bowl game was fun and Wake had it's chances to win, but unfortunately lost to Miss State. Growing up a Wake fan, we are unfortunately used to losing often and just enjoy being all together. We still had a blast. (Although I think I am partially deaf from all the cowbells. Norm: What are y'all doing, calling your wives?) After the game, we walked (I hobbled) back over the bridge with the masses to downtown. By this time, it was just Rob, my Dad, and I. Norm wanted to explore a bit, so we ducked back into Merchants for a drink. We walked around a little bit more, but all the bars had long lines to get in, so we decided to cab it over towards Vandy to meet friends at the Tin Roof. We had a blast listening to the band and dancing amidst other 20 somethings.

Saturday morning we got up super early to fly home. We felt pretty good, but were tired. I was so excited to be getting back home to see my sweet girl.

I am so glad that my dad gifted us with this trip. It's one I'll remember for a long time. I think it's so important for us, as a husband and wife to take the time away from our child to just be together. Our marriage is definitely priority number 1 in this house. The best thing for a child to see is their parents be in a happy marriage, so trips away every once in a while to keep that spark alive are essential! (I highly recommend reading Kid Ceo: How to Keep Your Children from Running your Life by Ed Young if you need help on keeping your marriage a priority) I felt so renewed after the trip (although, exhausted for days) and so enjoyed just being able to be Turner, and not mom. :)

More pictures from our trip...

Yates and Dad downtown