We had a splendid time at Graceland, but then it was time to head downtown. I had done a little more research on this part of the trip and B and I were excited to see the sites. 

We checked in to the Peabody Hotel which is in the heart of downtown and absolutely stunning, although sadly not as impressive to the girls…I’m not sure we’re rising them quite right. 

We dropped off our bags and then were off for a snack on Beale Street. We hit the Rum Boogie Cafe and kept our tour of BBQ and fried pickles on parade. 

The famous ducks at Peabody Hotel

Um, I don’t know. Some dog statues. The girls asked and I like to take pictures so….

Enjoying the kid-friendly hours on Beale Street. We were told it gets a little crazy at night for kids. It’s like Bourbon Street without the flashing. It seemed cleaner so I thought that was an exaggeration. I don’t know, we were at the hotel by 10 p.m. both nights so don’t take my word for it. 

We made all Gwyneth’s dreams come true by hopping in a horse drawn carriage. Now, I’m a pretty rotten mom because I thought we had all done this before. No. I have taken Annabelle in Chicago. This was Gwyneth’s first time and and she absolutely loved every stinkin’ second of it. 

Waiving to the pedestrians

She seems happy. Just a little happy. Yeah, she’s happy. 

We toured the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel. It was perfect timing since the girls had the day off for this trip in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s honor. 

The museum was informative and heartbreaking. Annabelle was outraged. She doesn’t really get sad she gets angry. She doesn’t cry, she gets pissed. She has a tough shell and has very little tolerance for people who are mean. She read the plaques, watched the videos,  and learned so much. I understand her. I can relate to her anger. I think we are cut from the same cloth. 

Gwyneth bawled. Openly bawled through the museum. We read the plaques together and watched the videos and she cried. She has a very tender soul. She was heartbroken and devastated and so disturbed. People openly stared at her while we walked out. Maybe they thought she was just a bratty little girl? But they don’t know her and I don’t care what they think of her. I know her heart and I know this museum changed her and I know she will do very good things.

We didn’t tour the rooms. Gwyneth couldn’t. We talked about what happened there and she said that she just needed to go. I don’t want to shield her from the realities of this world, but she understands. We all understand. We paid our respects and we started walking back towards our hotel. A little quieter and a lot more respectful. 

We found ourselves back on Beale Street and since it was getting late we decided to stop for just a picture, not partying. 

We ended a very busy day back at the hotel. This lovely pianist played nearly the entire score from Sound of Music for Annabelle. We enjoyed dessert and called it a night.