The whole time Chris was deployed I was always ending up with a surprises for birthdays, anniversary, Mother's Day, and somehow I never knew. Flowers would show up at my work, massage and spa gift cards would appear in the mail, Keurigs would be delivered by friends. I think he had pride in knowing he could pull these things off from the other side of the world without me knowing. It was wonderful and he really did do wonderful things for me while being deployed! But now it was my turn. When we were on vacation in Tennessee post deployement we heard on the radio... "George Strait's last tour!" What?! So immediately I got on my phone to see where he was touring. Of course all southern states and not a single show in Ohio :( Chris and I talked about how amazing it would be to see him but with the closest show over 5 hours away it didn't seem reasonable. But as he continued to talk about it and I knew his obsession yes, it's an obsession with George Strait I knew I had to get tickets. A few weeks later the tickets went on sale and quickly sold out... at least that's what Chris thought. I was on it though! This time I was going to surprise him lol so along with my friend Katie and Ali we snagged tickets and I held onto them with my mouth shut for months. Anyone who knows me knows this was awful hard. I was so excited myself but wanted to wait until our anniversary to tell Chris. So the surprise went off without a hitch and we were going to see George Strait!! But it was only November and the concert wasn't until March... crap now that is a wait. But it seems like as quickly as we got the tickets March was here and we were going to Kentucky! I had been planning this weekend for months and everything went smoothly. Sometimes going out of town for 3 days without Audrey is more work than its worth. Arranging baby sitters, finding a house and dog sitter and everything seemed overwhelming but I had a plan and a to do list and we were leaving Friday morning at 9am no matter what! Well it quickly turned into 11am but finally we were on the road!
We stopped in southern Ohio for lunch with one of Chris' friends from deployment. That was a nice break and I know they were excited to see each other. Then to finish out the drive and finally get to Kentucky!
And we were here! First night out we headed downtown for dinner and drinks. We ended up at some pub and it was awful. Well not completely awful apparently the band that night was a girl from American Idol who had been kicked off lol but she sang country music so we listened for awhile.
Saturday morning began just as I had hoped :)
We had lunch at the adorable cafe type place called Shakespeare and Co. we sat on a couch for lunch and used a coffee table to eat. The decor and atmosphere was remarkable. Definitely something different and a great start to the day.
We toured a brewery while down there was well
Apparently this stuff is 9% alcohol. I didn't know that as I enjoyed 3 glasses while at lunch... oops!
Holy hot messes! Didn't plan on going anywhere after lunch but we didn't care!
So the brewery was really cool but it was time to get back to the hotel and get ready for George Strait!
Pre concert beverages
Martina McBride opened and she was amazing!
And there he was! Cell phone pics like usual and our seats weren't front row but it didn't matter we were there!
We have been to a lot of country concerts, we have seen a lot of people live, but this was by far the best concert we have ever been to. Absolutely amazing! His band was mesmerizing and although he pretty much just sat there and sang that's all George Strait has to do. It still gives me chills thinking about it. George Strait holds a special place for me. Right around the time Chris and I started dating "How about them cowgirls" came out and when I would go to North Carolina to visit Chris while he was stationed there this song always came on. He would sneak me into the barracks and then I would have to stay there all day while he went to work and sometimes I would just listen to the radio. I will never forget that song. So when he sang that one it was a toughy but what came next at the concert I did not see coming.
So I already a sobbing mess and he announces that he is bringing a wounded veteran on stage. So out of a wheelchair and onto crutches an amputee and his wife come on stage to find out that they are getting a new house, free groceries for a year, and a new TV! Holy crap! The place goes nuts and I am hysterical! They had 4 kids and he had been wounded while serving in Afghanistan. George Strait you really did it this time. I had seen military tributes at concerts before but nothing like this. Absolutely breathtaking!
So I would say you get the gist.... an amazing weekend with amazing people! The weather could have been a little better it was cold and snowing but that was the least of our worries.
Chris and I decided to stay an extra day since we don't get out much. So Sunday afternoon we spent shopping and hanging out in Lexington.
This was on a menu at the cute little pub ;)
And the rest of the day enjoying the sunshine and hot tub (from inside of course)
And then as fast as we got to Kentucky it seemed like it was already time to head back to Ohio... but I was ready! 3 days away from Audrey is the longest I have even been away and it was time to get back to her. I don't know how Chris does it spending a year at a time away from her.
So thank you George for an amazing weekend and concert, an outstanding military tribute, and the best concert we have ever seen!
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