PARRUSSELL: Nashville, Tennessee

When I heard that Steve would be traveling to Nashville for business, I jumped at the opportunity to join him! With the exception of a weekend here and there, we had not been away from our kids for an extended period of time, ever. We missed them the entire time we were away, BUT we also had an excellent time during our stay in Nashville, Tennessee! A big thank you to my parents for stepping in to take care of the kids while we were gone.

The Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center is an overwhelming space akin to a Las Vegas hotel (minus the casinos). It is a destination on its own. A labyrinth of gardens, waterfalls, restaurants, shops and hotel rooms, not to mention the convention center.

To escaped a downpour on our first afternoon, we headed to the Country Music Hall of Fame. This was a fun way to acclimate to the music culture. On our way out, we discovered a large exhibit on the life of Brad Paisley, to which I naively announced, "Hey, I think that's the guy we're going to see at the Grand Ole Opry." I guess he's a big name!

Our second day was even colder, and wetter than the first. We attempted to visit the Andrew Jackson Heritage Museum. Visiting his home was fun and got us out of the rain, but we didn't get to enjoy the outdoor walk through the property and gardens.

We started off our Friday night at The Listening Room to enjoy appetizers and live music.

Our night progressed to The Row in the 21st and Broadway area of downtown. Just blocks from Vanderbilt University, I hear this place is a collegiate favorite, but since school just ended for the summer, it was easy to get into. Another little known (to me) up and coming Country Music star, Josh Gallagher, played, among others. The guy next to me was a big fan and had to explain that he was runner-up on last season's The Voice. I wouldn't have recognized him, but we did enjoy his music!

Noticing a change in the weather, we headed outdoors on Saturday to check out Centennial Park, wander through the Arts & Crafts fair and tour the Parthenon.

Built in 1897 for the Centennial Exposition, the Parthenon is a full-scale replica of the original in Athens, Greece.

While the original Grand Ole Opry is located at The Ryman Auditorium, downtown, we enjoyed a visit to the new location just a short walk from our hotel. The lineup included the old and young and offered a variety of country music sounds. The highlights for us were: Bailey Bryan, a 19 year-old rising star, from Sequim, Washington, who was performing her Grand Ole Opry debut, Charles Esten (aka Deacon Claybourne from the t.v. show, Nashville), and as we learned, Country Music Hall of Fame-er, Brad Paisley.

The sun finally came out and warmed up to a pleasant 70 degrees. We welcomed the chance to enjoy the outdoors and visited the Belle Mead Plantation. A stunning present day museum, winery and events center, this plantation was originally a thoroughbred horse farm.