Last night I took babe out for the big 40th birthday to the Fairlane Hotel and ate at Ellington’s Midway Bar and Grill. For our Nashvillian friends…Best. Food. Ever. Being from the west coast I’m always apprehensive about eating seafood in the middle of the country but their scallops were a gift from heaven. We started with the tastiest truffle fries, fried pork strips with Alabama white sauce (this is slowly becoming my favorite condiment), baked cauliflower drizzled in ponzu, then a wedge salad that could have fed Craig’s whole band, bread (there’s nothing more to say than “bread” because bread is my best friend) and ended with the sexy scallops. At the beginning of this binge feast we came in confident and ready to conquer the entire menu. By the end of the appetizers we called off an entree and dessert. Amazing food, incredible view and ambience (anyone that plays smooth jazz and Brian McKnight in Nashville is a friend of mine) and the sweetest waitress of all time named Kathryn. She was the one that really made the night. Well, her and the two Manhattan’s I drank.

Kathryn was truly the sweetest waitress of all time. She was professional, informative and all around a cool person. She is from Brooklyn so we got to chat about my knowledge of New York and Long Island being that my dad and stepmom live out there, and she also lived in California which is where I’m from. She was a big fan of The Voice and told Craig “You were probably the last season I watched because I figured after you there wasn’t much better”. Apparently the entire staff googled him and watched his blind audition on The Voice before we got there because she knew his name from the reservation. (A. I love that she told us that B. If you ever see someone you love in person go say hi and take the picture. If they get upset they shouldn’t have chose entertainment as a career) It was special that she knew who he was and was a fan because Craig’s order of loves goes GOD, Family and friends/fans… oh and the Cowboys.

Annnddd this is where my post probably should have started before I shamelessly promoted an incredible restaurant and gave a shout out to an awesome friend we made… my husband. His heart is his most attractive quality. I will never make fun of him but I will let you in on jokes I have that I’ve told him to his face so here’s one. He’s like living with a super hot Grandma. He loves fancy dishes, cooking, flower arrangements and matching BUT he also cheers on the Cowboys every Sunday (Yay Sports!!!), works on cars, loves a fine whiskey and eats steak like a caveman. So really I’ve got the best of everything.

40 is a big birthday and last night was a beautiful night of reflection. As we sat chatting with Kathryn about his career and experiences it really hit me just how incredible his life and now our life is. He went from scraping money to pay for diapers and cans of tuna (he still eats canned tuna weekly but by choice now) to playing a residency at The Hard Rock with Rascal Flatts in a years span. You can tell in his humble and soft spoken personality where he came from but when he’s on stage he becomes CWB. Guitar in hand he commands everything around him like the pro he is. And his voice…. I know I’m bias but it’s just the best.

Baby, you are a force to be reckoned with. Own 40 like you do everything else and I’m just so very proud of you. Thank you for the perfect dinner, thank you for always getting up on stage when I ask you to on our date nights, and mostly thank you for loving me and our kiddos with all your might. Oh, and NO thank you for my pounding headache today. Topshelf baby topshelf.