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June 13, 2012

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!

10 comments:

Johanna at The Baker Twins said...

Fun! You know how I feel about Memphis - can't wait to compare notes on the zoo. Please tell me you guys are going to the children's museum!

And - I LOVE the girls' clothes. I am such a fan of coordinating but not identical matching outfits. Where do you shop for them? Aside from CWD kids and Children's Place, it seems difficult to find matching outfits with differing colors/patterns.

Trish said...

I am from Memphis, so was fun looking at your pictures! Looks like you hit the highlights! I hope they got to see at least one Elvis impersonator in the mix, and hope you saw the kids on Beale who do the gymnastics up and down the street! Your girls are so cute!

Beth said...

That looks like a fun trip! I love the Peabody hotel. I haven't been there in ages, but would love to take the kids.

I have to say I'm a bit disappointed that there are no pictures of the girls dancing along Beale St!

Love that shot of Baby A on the trolley. She looks a lot like you!

Deanna said...

Looks like a fun family trip! J and I went to Memphis last year when he had to go for work. That was the first time I had been in a very long time, and we really enjoyed it.

We didn't make it to the Peabody though...that will definitely be on the list for our next trip!

Marcia (123 blog) said...

Do you know, Mandy, that looks like JUST my kind of place?

The girls look like they're having such fun and so do you guys.

I'm actually starting to get excited now because I leave in exactly 5 weeks!

PS did you get the email I sent from hotwire about my itinerary? If not, I'll just forward the confirmation email.

Sara said...

Wow! Looks like a lovely trip! Great pictures.

Jeremi said...

fun catching up on your blog! your mini-vaca sounds and looks like a great time, and your girls are getting so big (still as pretty as ever). i really like the photo/canvas print too -- great shot!!

happy summer'ing!! : )

Just Another Mom of Twins said...

How FUN!!! Great pics Mandy...

:) Happy Thursday

Julia said...

Calamari, dancing on Beale Street, and riding on trolleys! Sounds like a perfectly delightful way to spend the weekend with your loves.

I love Memphis, and it's not that far of a drive for us. Maybe we'll have to make that a getaway sometime for us when the girls are a little bigger :)

What fun! Love all the pictures!

Unknown said...

Dancing on Beale street and riding on Trolleys? I better not let my kids see this post of they'll be demanding that we head there this weekend! So much fun!