Blue City Travelers, Part I

We took our first mini-vacay of the summer last week, spending a couple of days in Memphis.  I used to travel there occasionally for work, and Hubby and I spent a long weekend there a few years ago, but this was our first visit with the girls.

We'd been talking it up to them, and they were very, very excited about seeing the pandas at the zoo and the ducks at the Peabody hotel.  The trip didn't disappoint.

Following hugs in the hotel lobby as we waited for our room to be ready...

...we went to the pastry shop at the Peabody hotel for an afternoon snack.   I surprised the girls with a duck-shaped cookie, and they were thrilled!

We checked out the ducks in the fountain of the lobby...

...before we headed to the rooftop to take in the view of the Mississippi River and downtown Memphis, as well as the ducks' palatial roost.  (I wasn't freaked out over the girls perching on the ledge of the roof at the time...you can see the fencing and Daddy standing right there...but seeing this picture makes me nervous now!)
 

We took one more picture from the balcony overlooking the lobby of the Peabody...

...and then we set out to find the fountain we passed on the drive in.  This fountain, in Court Square, is very similar to the fountain in our downtown square.  You might say the girls have a "thing" for fountains.  We visited this square -- about five blocks from our hotel -- at least once a day during our trip.

We walked around downtown some more, enjoying more views of the river...

...before heading to supper.  We scored a prime table outside with a great view of Main Street.  The girls waved to every trolley and horse and carriage that passed by.

Here's Baby B, looking as cool as a cucumber, sipping her water after the girls got their first taste of calamari.  (It was a hit!)

And this is one of my favorite pictures from the trip...I just love the look on Baby A's face as she was mesmerized by the downtown sights, just feet away from our table.

We ended the evening by walking around downtown a bit more.  Here are Daddy and his daughters posing in front of the gigantic soccer ball at the FedEx Forum.  

We also took a stroll down Beale Street before we retired to our hotel.  For some reason I didn't capture any pictures...perhaps I was too busy bustin' a move with my baby girls to some of the outdoor music scene.  (They were quite the spectacle, too...at one point I think there were as many people watching them as were listening to the music.)
 
The next morning, we took the Main Street trolley to the south end of the line to the Arcade Restaurant, billed as Memphis' oldest restaurant.  Given their love of trains and all things automotive, the girls were THRILLED with the trolley.  I think they would have been entertainment for quite a while, just to ride up and down the line.

Here's the 'fam, getting off the trolley in the morning light.

And here are Daddy and B after an amazing breakfast.  (Baby A was not in much of a picture mood.)

Tune in tomorrow for Blues City Travelers, Part II, which includes the zoo, the fire museum, and the march of the Peabody ducks.

Hope you're enjoying a peek inside our travel diary.  It's only been a few days, but I'm having so much fun reliving the adventures already!