Tennessee Travels

Here’s my travel journal from Upstate New York & Tennessee over the past couple of weeks. It was truly an amazing time, and truth be told, I’m trying to head back for the rest of the summer to live in Tennessee. Before I went back, I had only been back 10 days in the 2 years I’d been gone, and it just wasn’t enough. I never realized that Tennessee goes at such a slower, relaxed pace than Utah. It was green, green, green everywhere. I was able to try some good ol barbecue, hang with my best friends and have a whole lot of fun with my family.

palmyra-new-york-smith-farm-sacred-grove

This is in upstate New York, in a town called Palmyra. It’s filled with history of where the LDS church began. It was awesome to take it all in with my family.

Me and my bubba. I love him so so much. This is Harrison, my nephew. He’s 9 months old and knows how to smile for the camera and is starting to walk! I loved hanging with him every second!

This is me (and the fam) hanging out at a BBQ joint before we headed to Niagara Falls. The barbecue was TO DIE for. There was also BBQ deviled eggs. The most yummy deviled eggs ever.

I’d been to Niagara before when I was little, but it was nice to experience it for a few minutes with more mature eyes.

Now onto Nashville…

I had the opportunity to go to Nashville Shores (water park) with Matthew & his family which was so much fun. We also got to take a ride on that snazzy boat behind us!

I don’t even know what kind of flowers these are but I find them so beautiful! This was at the park by my childhood house at sunset. I always love going there to hang out.

I love this picture. Me and my two oldest brothers after eating some scrumptious BBQ on Memorial Day. It’s our old joint. Our mom would always get takeout and bring it home to us.

This is from the 3 Little Pigs. Fudge Pie. So yummy.

A little Tennessee cotton candy sunset.

A little outfit you’ll be seeing more of soon! 🙂

Me and my best friend, Lily, trying out a selfie stick for the first time. I used to think that they were jokes, but now everyone’s got one..maybe I need one.

My friend, Lily (see above), wrote this in like 5 minutes! She’s super talented and I love this awesome reminder.

Selfie in my dad’s Mercedes that I took for the two weeks while I was there. It’s not everyday you’re driving a Mercedes, so I took advantage of the luxe leather seats. 😉

Excuse my sick face. The last few days I was there, I got a sinus infection.

This was the funnest game! It’s called Escape Nashville where you’re put in a room for 60 minutes and you have to find clues to unlock the door. We got out with 2 minutes to spare! Such a blast to celebrate my brother, Ben’s (in the middle, next to me) birthday.

My cute new tankini & high-waisted bottoms from Lime Ricki. It’s like wearing a one piece, without the fuss. For me the fuss of wearing a one piece, is dealing with my long torso, so they usually fit weird or ride up. This peplum is super flattering. I might grab another one of their peplums as well.

My trip was amazing, and I didn’t stop to take pictures of every moment, because I decided to live in the moment, rather than force a perfect picture. That’s what I’ve been learning lately: It’s better to live in the moment than create one. Life will pass us by if we don’t appreciate it and pay attention to the little things. I’m so thankful to my dad for helping me get to Tennessee & for all of the love and support I felt while being there. It was just what I needed.

{now fingers crossed I can go back}