The Tale of Keb'Mo, a 26 Hour Travel Day, and The Road Trip Home...

Keb'Mo and I.

Keb'Mo and I.

Nashville, Tennessee was absolutely beautiful! I ended up with a good mix of work and play… I had a couple meetings, and even went to song write with dad, Gabe and the amazing Keb’Mo! He is such an incredible talent. And driving to his house was a gorgeous drive toward the country. I was falling in love with the houses and open land on the way there!

I got to stop by Larry’s studio to record a couple background vocals for some songs the band is currently working on. That was a lot of fun too! Larry has an amazing studio in Nashville; it is in an old house and has an awesome vibe!

The whole gang in front of Larry's Studio.

I also took some time to do a little shopping! I figured this would be a great place to check out some great country wear; but I actually didn’t find too much. I found about a million pairs of cowboy boots I would have loved to buy, but I held myself back. It was nice to have a little time to relax and catch up on all the things that had been set aside while I was on the bus.

Nashville was truly an inspiring place, beautiful and artistic.

February 18, 2011

My alarm blared at me come 6:30am. I rolled out of bed to finish packing my things, then dad and I headed downstairs by just after 7am. I went to the valet to get the car while Dad stopped to check out of the rooms and get some coffee. Soon the bags were in the car and I was turning on the navigation to the airport. The drive went smooth- no traffic! (Which surprised me since it was around 7am. Growing up in California, you know that would never happen!)

We arrived at the airport, and the nice navigation lady directed us straight to the Budget car rental drop off spot. Someone greeted us and got everything squared away with the car in no time. Then we walked into the airport and up the tall escalators to the ticket desks.

We walked to American Airlines and up to a ticket kiosk. I got myself checked in first, then helped my dad get checked in as well, (he is not so great with electronics…). My big suitcase was overweight, but there was nothing I could do about it at that point, so I conceded and paid the price.

Dad getting searched.

Tim, Bob and Gabe were waiting for us right in front of security. We got into the three lines. Dad and Bob got in the left line, Gabe and I in the middle line, and Tim in the right line. Gabe and I decided it was a race; however, we were losing. But then, a change of luck! They opened up a new security line right in front of us! Tim still beat us, but we were done soon after him; somehow Larry managed to get through after us (he must know tricks since Nashville is his airport, because we got into the security lines while he was still parking his car!), then Bob came wandering through with my dad’s stuff in hand. He pointed to the “pat down” cubicle that was a clear cube a few feet away that the selected people got to go into so they could be searched. Sure enough, my Dad was standing in there with a big burley TSA agent. He had his arms out and legs spread. We all started busting up- and you know Gabe and I got our cameras out! (Not going to miss a Kodak moment like that!) Dad was held there for about five minutes. He even turned around to see us all waiting for him and watching everything unfold. He did a little tap dance for us, then the TSA agent got back to business.

Once our venture with security had wound down, we walked toward our gate which was only two away. My Dad accidentally ran into someone, and then when he looked up to see who it was, it turned out it was Tyrell Owens. All the boys were very entertained by that!

We had about an hour to waste, so we stopped at the first restaurant- (a Nashville favorite that the actual location is on Broadway) called Tootsies. The service was extremely slow. It took the whole hour to get our food. There was a very interesting and strange younger man delivering food to the place, and at one point he stopped at our table and said, “I just have to say that you look so much like Kate Hudson. Really.” We all just sort of said okay. (I don’t normally hear Kate Hudson as a look alike for me, but I would take that comparison any day!) About five or ten minutes later he stopped back at our table, this time he said, “Imagine; Ashton Kutcher with a Tom Selleck mustache and playing Magnum PI. Just imagine…” We all just froze for a minute, then I started cracking up. So random!

View from the plane.

By the time we were done, the plane was just starting to board. I ran to the bathroom first- which was in the wrong direction, but I made it back and got in line to get on the plane. I was soon in my seat and getting comfortable. We took off on time at 9:30am. Once we were in the air, I spent the flight songwriting and working on some to-do lists. The flight went by pretty quick, and we were on the ground in Dallas around 11am.

As I exited the plane, I stopped to ask the agent what gate the flight to Reno was going out of. She said, “Oh yeah, Reno… That flight has been canceled.” I asked if there was any other flights; she said there was maybe one other flight later, but our flight had been canceled due to weather. So I waited for everyone to get off the plane. I informed our fearless leader Tim of the situation.

We went to the closest gate agent, but they wouldn’t help us; we had to go to the ticket desk outside security. Tim, Larry, and I went out to the ticket desk after we left our bags with Bob, Gabe and dad. We began talking with the ticket agent and it was seeming completely hopeless! All the flights to Reno, Sacramento or anything else we could think of, were all oversold and even if we got on the waitlist, we would be numbers 27-32. They had already rebooked my dad’s flight for the morning, and rebooked me going through Los Angeles and getting into Reno, NV at 7pm the next day; which wasn’t even an option- we had an 8pm show in Lake Tahoe that day! I wouldn’t have even made the show. The rest of the band wasn’t even rebooked.

Tim got ahold of Denise- our travel agent. She managed to work her magic and get my dad and Tim on a 7:30pm flight from Dallas to San Francisco; then the rest of us were booked on a flight that left for San Francisco at 9:30pm. We had a long, long wait in store for us. We went back through security to figure out the rest of the details. We all met up and talked about the options. We had heard that the driving conditions were pretty horrible, so for the moment the plan was to get to San Francisco and then drive as far as Sacramento that night. (Hoping that the icy drive up the mountain to Lake Tahoe would be easier and safer in the morning light.)

In the Dallas Airport.

We found a gate agent that helped us get our new boarding passes and organize our bags so that they would hopefully make it to San Francisco; and she even put Larry, Bob, Gabe and I on standby for the earlier 7:30pm flight. It took a while to get that all done.

By 2pm, we decided to get a day-rate on a few rooms at the Grand Hyatt. (Dad thought that sounded a lot better than waiting in the airport the whole time.) I went to my dad’s room and we ordered some room service and watched a movie. Dad napped for a couple hours while I worked on some things. Then by 6pm it was time to head down to the hotel lobby to meet up with everyone.

We went back through security… (That is the third time I went through security that day!) Then we walked toward the gate; Gabe had already been rescheduled to be on the first flight at 7:30pm. Larry, Bob and I stopped at the gate to find out that we were numbers one, two, and three on the standby list. A promising sign, but still hard to have much hope!

All of us took over a long row of seats by the gate. Gabe and I began screwing around and made a little video; then he ventured to the candy store to get some gummy candy. We all sat waiting to hear the next word on our flight. Shortly, the bad news came in of a thirty minute delay. We were all discouraged. However, there was some good news; we were all able to fit on the plane! Larry, Bob and I got assigned our seats, it was a relief that we were all together on that flight.

I went to get some frozen yogurt to cheer myself up- that is always a favorite of mine! Not long after I got back to the gate and took a seat, there was an announcement about our flight. They said that our plane had to take off at 9:30pm. (None of us understood quite why we had to take off then, but we realized that if the plane didn’t depart by then, we would surely be stuck in Dallas overnight.) After a while, I decided to hit up the candy shop, everyone else already had. (Let’s just say I was trying to fit in and it wasn’t about the candy at all…)

By the time I got my bag filled up with Jelly Belly’s, Cinnamon Bears, and Pop Rocks, the plane was starting to board. I went back to our row of seats to grab my bags, and then I was off.  I was able to get on the plane right away. I found my aisle seat toward the middle/back of the plane. (I’m not a fan of aisle seats, I prefer a window, but at this point it was just good to be on the plane!) The flight was full. Bob was actually sitting in the aisle seat on the other side of my row- so there was at least one friendly face around.

At baggage claim.

After we took off, I did a little writing, then I tried to take a nap. I can’t say I got much sleep though; I just couldn’t get comfortable! It was a long flight- about three hours and forty minutes. But we did eventually land in San Francisco. We all got off the plane, and waited for the rest of the guys to come our way. As we stood there at the gate waiting, and waiting- it was a big plane with a lot of people. Finally, Gabe emerged from the jet bridge, and we all broke out in a fit of laughter. He looked like the walking dead- like he had just woken up from a seven year sleep. It was perfect!

We all walked down to the baggage claim to await our fate. I have to say that after all our delays and plane changes, we were truly awaiting a miracle to see our bags on that carousel. Low and behold, a miracle it was! Some of our bags slowly began to show up. Then the incoming bags started to slow down. We were missing one bag… One of my two bags! Fully discouraged, I walked over to the baggage desk. I spoke with the lady, and soon witnessed the next miracle of the night- she had my other bag there! Apparently it had made an earlier flight! I was so relieved, as was the rest of the band. I believe we all may have done a bit of a celebratory jig!

The limo.

After that, we all walked out to the curb to meet our car around 1am. It took a while for the car to get there- and it was rather chilly outside. But we eventually saw a long stretch SUV (Navigation) limo coming our way. The big strong boys piled the bags up in the back. I slid into the limo first, and all the way to the farthest corner. Gabe joined me next on the backward facing seats. Then Larry next to him, then Tim; both on the side facing bench. And Dad and Bob on the forward facing seats. Even though the limo was big, with all of our bags and such, we were still in pretty close quarters!

We drove for a little while chatting and enjoying each others company, but then the boys requested we stop somewhere before 2am so they could get some beer for them and wine for my dad. We got out of the limo like a highly trained team attacking the snacks at Seven Eleven. We stocked up- big time! (I have to say we know how to buy some junk food!) Soon we piled back into the limo and got back on our journey.

In the limo.

Slowly, we all dropped like flies- our sleeping heads falling on whatever was close by. I woke up to find that we were near the bottom of the mountain and stopping again to use the bathrooms and such. Then quickly back into the limo and on our way into the snow storm. I was soon curled up and back to sleep- as was everyone else. But pretty quickly after that, we were stopped and forced to put chains on the limo. That took about an hour probably.

The drive... View out the windshield.

The snow outside was intense. Once we got moving again, I woke up enough to look out the front window, and it was a scary sight… I could barely see a few feet in front of the car. It was white everywhere! I passed back out soon though; basically I was asleep on and off the whole ride. By the last hour, we were all a bit more awake and giggly. Gabe was in rare form. He took a shot of the vodka that was provided in the limo- it pretty much smelled like rubbing alcohol. That got him in a fun mood; well, I think it was the mix of that and the delirium from the lack of sleep. But Larry was still passed out- as usual; and so Gabe got very close to Larry’s face and simply said, “Hi”. He repeated himself once more, which awoke Larry enough to ask if he had been snoring. Gabe responded, “No, just wanted to say hi, it has been a while since we’ve talked.” Larry swiftly replied, “I know, I’ve missed you.” Then he passed right back out. We were all loving it!

The TV's in the bathrooms at
the hotel.

My room.

Finally, we started to drive into the town of Lake Tahoe. It looked beautiful. We were all awake and chatting. Gabe somewhat proudly announced, “I got drunk and sobered up about five times today!” Seems like a lot… But it had been a 26 hour travel day! Twenty Six hours! It was pure insanity! We arrived at the Harrah’s in Lake Tahoe at 7am. I can’t explain the exhaustion!

Without too much delay, I was on the way to my room. It was a beautiful room on the thirteenth floor. Amazing view! Truly breathtaking! I had to get on the computer and rebook a flight before I went to sleep though. Luckily, it did not take too long, and soon I was passed out!

February 19, 2011

Dad at sound check.

Since I didn’t make it to bed until about 8am, you could imagine I slept most of the day. My wake up call- and multiple alarms that I set all went off at 2:30pm. I was still tired, but knew I had to start getting ready anyways. I jumped into the shower, and then did my makeup.

Sound check was moved a little later to about 4pm for me. So I wandered down there to check things out around then. It took me a minute to find the theater because I had no idea which direction to go. (It has been years since I have been at that hotel!) But I did find it! What a great room! I was loving the vibe- especially the old school booths in the back that had chandeliers and white drapes around and above them.

The view from my hotel room.

Things moved rather quickly that day, I don’t think anyone wanted to waste too much time! Afterwards, Gabe, Larry, Bob and I decided to go get some food at the coffee shop. I was intrigued by the fact that the coffee shop had a creek running through it, and a lot of lush plants. It was quite a nice environment.

By the time we were done, it was time to go up and finish getting ready. I curled my hair and threw on my stage clothes. I went down the elevator to find my dad’s room so I could walk down to the theater with him. I was lucky that I remembered the his room number and ended up knocking on the right door! He was just about ready to go.

The view from my hotel room.

Soon the escorts arrived at the door and we were on our way backstage. We went through the service elevator, and through the back way- inside the hotel. My dad recognized the trip since he had worked at this hotel a lot of times throughout his career. When we arrived at the dressing rooms. I was informed that the dressing room Dad was in was the one Jack Benny was in when Bobby Hatfield and Dad opened for Jack. He also showed me which dressing room he was in back then- which that night was the band’s room.

I roamed about backstage for a bit, snacking on the deli trays and such. Then watched as everyone got on the stage and the show started. I ran back to the dressing room at that point and put my in ears on, and hooked my pack for the in ears on the back of my top. But the pack wasn’t lighting up, or making any sound. I assumed this was not a good sign. I went to find the monitor guy. He checked it out for me, and it turns out the batteries had died! I am so lucky that I turned on my pack a few minutes early that night- that could have been a disaster!

But the show ended up going great! Gabe had a lot of friends and family, so he had a large cheering section! There were actually a lot of friends of all of ours there that night, which made for a great audience. After the show, dad and I went out to sell like usual, and that was a bit crazy! Lots of people pushing and pulling us in every direction. But they were all very nice people, and it was a lot of fun to hear some of the stories they were sharing.

Myself backstage.

As the line was just finishing, Gabe introduced us to his crew of people. His parents, his sister, and her boyfriend were all there; as were all his best boys from high school. They were all great people, and loved the show- and were so proud of their Gabe!

Jeff and Chris.

After I finished up out there, I ran backstage to get my stuff and make a little sandwich. I went to wait for Tim to wrap up all the merchandise stuff, then I was escorted back up to my room. I set my backpack down, and got changed into something a bit more comfortable; after that, I called Gabe to see where he was at- he had insisted I go out and hang with him and his guys that night.

Myself at the Pub.

I managed to locate them at the Sports Bar. Some gambling was attempted by them, only to realize they weren’t ready to gamble yet; so the six guys and I braved the cold (the very, very cold) to go to the Pub a block away. We were not prepared to be walking outside, but that didn’t stop us. We hung out at the pub for a couple hours- which included a couple games of pool; then we braved the cold yet again to get back to the hotel.

Gabe and Chris making a funny face
on Elliot. 

They were ready to try gambling again at this point… However, it was 2am, and I had to leave the hotel at 4:45am, so I decided to call it a night. I got back up to my room and I packed a little bit- at least I got a little more organized anyway. Then I crawled into bed and let my eyes shut for a bit.

February 20, 2011

My alarm seemed very rude that morning at 4am. But I was excited to get up and get moving! I got dressed and packed everything up as quickly as possible. In no time, I was down in the lobby. I met my limo driver and he got me into the small SUV limo, then we began the drive down the mountain to Reno.

Inside the limo.

The drive was pretty easy. However, toward the bottom of the mountain there was about ten minutes where the fog was so thick, you could barely see the white lines dividing the lanes! That was a little scary- especially since he didn’t seem to slow down for that! But I did make it to Reno airport, and early at that, I was there just before 6am!

I checked in at the desk for my 7:30am flight to Denver, Colorado, then on to Colorado Springs, Colorado. Everything was appearing to be on time! So I stopped to waste a few minutes and play a little video poker on one of the machines, then I continued on through security. I wandered around for a while and waited for the flight to board. Soon I was on my way into the plane. I got comfortable in my seat and right after we took off, I took a bit of a nap. I was woken up by a little turbulence on the way into Denver. But we landed safely rather quickly.

I exited the plane and got on the tram to the other concourse. I had to go straight to my next gate and get a boarding pass since it was on a different airline. The man at the desk informed me that the plane would probably be delayed about twenty minutes. I walked over to a charging station to get my phone plugged in and charged up and I waited patiently.

The Reno Airport.

After some time passed and the flight was still not boarding; they announced that the plane had been delayed again. The flight was coming in from Montana, and the weather wasn’t great there. The plane was supposed to take off at 12:35pm. I kept updating my friend Michael- who was picking me up in Colorado Springs; but every time I informed him of a delay, there was yet another delay! Finally, I was on the plane by 1:30pm. They closed the door and were ready to go.

But then an announcement came over the loud speaker, they said that the maintenance crew found a small dent on the side of the plane and they have to make a detailed note of it. Apparently that entails very, very detailed pictures and measurements. It took a long time, and I was very antsy! We finally started moving toward the take off line at 3:30pm. However, as were turned the corner to the line of planes waiting to take off, it was just depressing! We were the 14^th plane in line to take off, (there was only two runways open at the Denver airport that day because of the wind, and they were both being used for take off and landing planes). We had about a twenty or thirty minute wait. It was obscene!

Finally we began down the runway and as we started to lift off, a strong gust of wind hit our small plane and titled the plane so much that I would swear the wing just about touched the tarmac. Not a great start! The good news was that it was only a twenty minute plane ride. The bad news was that is was the scariest twenty minutes of my life so far. I have never experienced any kind of turbulence like that. I can’t even explain it. We finally landed in Colorado Springs at 4:15pm, and I was shaken. I couldn’t believe that trip!

I walked to baggage claim and got my luggage, then headed out to the curb to wait for Michael. He showed up pretty quickly after I got there. It was so nice to see a happy and familiar face after the last few crazy travel days. I was a bit of a wreck from all of that, but I was trying my best to hold together. It is amazing how much all this traveling and such can take a toll on you!

Our rig that we drove to Missouri. I love this picture... Michael fully air born!

I didn’t actually make it home to Branson until February 23. I drove with Michael the next day to Kansas City to visit some friends and help him move there. Then the following day we were on our way to Branson- with a stop over in his hometown Fair Grove, Missouri for a meeting he had, and to visit with his family for a minute. But I did make it home safe and sound; however, I was exhausted and on almost no sleep! I was not in my finest form! I apologize for that! But sometimes when you are dealing with these kinds of things, you just can’t help it.

The Tale of My 24th Birthday, Saint Valentine, and Life On The Bus With The Boys...

On the bull at Gilley's.

I guess this tour starts off with a whirlwind of a birthday celebration! My 24^th Birthday was on February 10^th. I got a major surprise when my friend Michael came to celebrate with me; it shocked me! I was sitting in a Yard House in Newport Beach, and then all of a sudden he was standing there. Blew my mind! The next morning my mom, Michael and I drove to Las Vegas to meet up with my dad. (He was there for a Super Bowl weekend.) Michael and I took to the strip that evening; we had an incredible dinner in the Eiffel Tower restaurant, and then we went and hit up Gilley’s at Treasure Island. I may have sung some karaoke, and he and I both might have ridden the mechanical bull!

At Michael's.

Backstage with Brad Garrett.

The next day, after a great visit to the gym- and an unbelievable hour or two at the spa (which was much needed!), it was time to get ready for the official birthday celebration! It all started with dinner at Michael’s at the Southpoint, (which is the best restaurant in the entire world!). Followed by a trip to the Tropicana to see Brad Garrett perform in his new comedy store. The show was hilarious, but Brad always is! We have known him forever; he actually used to be my dad’s opening act for years in Vegas! It was awesome! So great to see him again. Then back to the Southpoint to do a little gambling before bed!

February 10, 2011

My actual birthday was a travel day- that is why we celebrated the night before. I was up at 7:30am and had a birthday breakfast with Michael. By 9:15am, I was down at the valet getting into a limo with my dad so we could get to the airport for our flight. I said goodbye to Michael, and thanked him immensely for the incredible surprise of being there! Then dad and I were off.

We got to the airport by 9:30am, and we were checked in and ready to go in no time. We walked our way through security, and then to the gate. Without too much delay, we ran into Bob Gulley wandering about; he was on our flight as well. I received a text message from Tim saying that our bus wasn’t going to make it to Dallas to pick us up; he had gotten stuck in all the snow in Arkansas, so we were having other arrangements made. This seemed like a bad omen, but we all tried to dismiss it!

Shuttle bus.

Our flight was only about twenty minutes late, I was concerned that it might get delayed longer due to the weather in Dallas and all over that general area. But soon we were on board and on our way around noon.  I wrote throughout the whole plane ride, not even noticing how quickly the time flew by! We were on the ground around 4:30pm, and went to meet up with the rest of the fellas at baggage claim. We walked through the revolving doors, and out toward our welcoming committee; yes, they came prepared with signs and all!

Hotel entrance.

Lots of birthday hugs for me as we gathered our luggage and then headed to the shuttle that the casino had sent for us. We had a nice little shuttle for the hour and a half drive to Durant, Oklahoma. Gabe presented me with a birthday present when I got on the bus… One that his mom had beautifully wrapped (thank you Deborah!), it was a beautiful leather journal with music notes on it. We all know that will get used!

The bus ride went by rather quickly, and we were at the Choctaw Casino Resort by about 6pm. It was a beautiful place, and they had an amazing water display and bull or buffalo statue at the entrance to the hotel. We got checked in and settled in our rooms for a few minutes- just enough time to make a few phone calls. The rooms were great, very nice! (Which is something I want to acknowledge because the rooms we stay in are not always that nice… But these were!) Then we went down to have dinner at the Mexican restaurant in the hotel. Dad, Tim, Bob, Larry, Gabe, Jeff and myself- in honor of my birthday; it was a lot of fun!

I got back up to my room by a reasonable time though and got some work done- and admittedly I spent a lot of time on the phone with people who called to say happy birthday! But I eventually grew weary; it had been a long- but very exciting few days for me!

February 11, 2011

I was up and about at around 10am. I needed water; so I grabbed a couple bucks and walked to the vending machine, only to find that it was out of water. We were staying on the 8^th floor, so I figured I would just try going up to the 9^th floor, surely there would be some water in that one. Wrong. I went to the 10^th floor, then down to the 7^th, then the 6^th. None of them had water! At that point I gave up wandering the hotel in my pajamas and just went back to my room empty handed.

Then I decided I wanted to go to the Walgreens a few miles away to grab a couple things. I called down to the valet and asked if they could call me a cab to take me there and back. The man on the phone paused for a bit, then he finally responded, “Well, we had a cab driver, but he died.” Yep, that is the kind of town we were in! The kind where there was only one cab driver, and once he died, no cabs period! I was holding back laughter as I asked if there was any other way to get to the Walgreens and back. He said the shuttle bus might be able to take me, but the driver said he had to talk to his manager. I called them back about ten minutes later and asked if he had gotten it okayed; he said if I was really quick about it, he could, but they weren’t supposed to wait for anyone.

So I scrambled to put my shoes on and run downstairs before they changed their mind. The shuttle bus driver recognized me; and said if he had known it was me he wouldn’t have questioned it. We were at Walgreens within five minutes. I ran inside and got my stuff and was back on the bus in a flash, then back to the hotel.

After that, I started to get showered and ready for sound check. I knocked on my dad’s door at 3:25pm. Tim had given me directions of how to get to the theater. It was a bit of a hike from our rooms. But I followed the directions and got us there without fault!

When we got to the showroom, we found all the boys out back in the tour bus. (The bus had just made it to the hotel a few hours earlier.) We walked out there to check out what was going on. The bus was very dirty on the outside; but understandably so- it had spent the last few days stuck in a snowstorm. The inside looked great- just like home for the next few days!

In the cafe- Gabe
entertaining himself... And
us!

We got into the theater and did our sound check, which went rather smoothly. Then Bob, Larry, Gabe and I went to eat at the café. It was pretty tasty! By the time we were done, I ran upstairs to get ready for the show. I walked downstairs at 7:15pm to meet Gabe and Bob; we were escorted to a shuttle bus that was to take us around the casino and to the back of the theater. When we arrived, they wouldn’t let us in the door we were supposed to enter through, so we had to go through the other one- which left us walking across the stage (and there was no curtain) in front of the audience that was already waiting in their seats. That was a little awkward!

The backstage area was pretty much nonexistent, there were a couple couches and that was about it; not even a bathroom! It wasn’t even possible to get to a bathroom without walking back across the stage in front of the audience! So we were all rather captive back there. We were informed that there was going to be a ten minute hold because of people getting seated.

Backstage.

I was actually in charge of the video that night- a first for me! So right as the man who was introducing us was finishing up, I started my dad’s pre-show video. The band started to take the stage toward the end of it; and as it finished, I pressed play on the overture video. Then I patiently waited… Once my dad started to introduce “Unchained Melody”, I got prepared to play the next video; however, it was the one night my dad screwed up what he always says, so the video ended up starting a bit behind when it should have- but it wasn’t too bad!

I was on after that, and I have to say we had a great show! Everything seemed to go pretty good! It was a good start to our tour! Oh, there was one funny thing that happened… (Well, actually two- but only one that I can mention!) When the band hit the cord for the beginning of “Time of My Life”; Gabe counted it off, and dad started singing the first line of “Lovin’ Feeling” instead. So the first line ended up sounding like, “You never have the time of my life…” It was pretty funny!

We went out to sign afterward, and I ended up breaking my merchandise record again! Amazing! Signing went good; everyone was so great, and so glad that we were there. It was a fun time! As all the people started to slow down, I saw that some old friends of my dad’s were hanging there waiting for us to finish up.

We stayed there chatting with my dad’s friends until a little after midnight. I was getting pretty exhausted by then. We took the long hike back up to our hotel rooms, and I got cozy. I spent some time on the phone and getting a little work done. But soon my eyes decided it was time to rest for a bit.

February 12, 2011

Up and moving early! We had a 7:45am call downstairs in the lobby. We all gathered on the bus, and we were able to leave on time as planned at 8am. It was about a three hour drive to Shawnee, Oklahoma. We all hung out for the first hour and a half- talking and watching some movies we found on TV. Then some of us- me included, decided to take a nap. I was in the middle bunk on the passenger side. My first venture into the bunk went rather smoothly… It isn’t the easiest feat to get into those small bunks! But at least the middle bunk is a little easier than the top or bottom bunks. I crashed for about an hour, then we were approaching our hotel- the Holiday Inn in Shawnee.

Backstage craps table...

We all got unloaded and into our rooms by about 11:30am. I hung out in my room for a little while and did some writing; then got showered and ready for business! At 2:30pm I knocked on my dad’s door, and then we went downstairs to meet our driver. He took us to the FireLake Grand Casino, which was about ten minutes away. When we got there, I realized that there was no time for me to eat after sound check, so I ran to grab a salad while the boys got started.

 

By the time I got back to the theater, they were just about ready for me to start singing. Sound check went by pretty quickly- the sound was a bit easier to deal with in that room than the one the night before. We were finished by 4pm, and dad, Bob, Gabe and I went back to the hotel for a bit. I hung out in my room, and got some stuff done in the mean time. Then we all met in the lobby at 6:15pm.

We got to the theater and were escorted up the stairs to the dressing rooms and green room. They had some great snacks and sandwich stuff in our rooms that we all started to nibble on while my dad did a meet and greet. The show was set to go on time at 7pm. I walked down to the stage when everyone was about to go on, just to make sure I knew where I was going when I needed to get to the stage! We all stood there cracking jokes, then they all got into their places, and I ran back up the stairs to finish getting ready.

Kitchen on the bus.

The show went great! Not many mistakes- if any! It was a lot of fun. We were out front signing for about an hour. Great people in Shawnee! The line was insanely long, and there were some people that had left the theater room to go get a drink, and then were planning on getting in line, but the security would not let anyone back into the theater. (Sorry to anyone who might be reading this that was not allowed to come back in and say hello!) Gabe came out to bring my dad a glass of wine and (gentleman that he is) he asked if I wanted anything. I saw the casino security guards lurking close behind me, so I waved for him to get closer. I whispered to him, “steal the cookie tray!” He smiled, and said he was on it!

Dad and his gigantic sandwich.

Gabe in his bunk...

After we wrapped that up, we all went back to the hotel to grab our things. I was in my room for about an hour, then I went downstairs at 11pm to meet the bus. We all got settled in, and we were on the road shortly. We all were up for a couple hours joking around- a lot of laughs were had! I did a little “bus surfing” to make myself a sandwich. Always entertaining! We also were killing the tray of cookies we stole from the gig, and they were incredible! We were all majorly digging on the cookie situation! I have to say, it was one of  my finest ideas ever!

Me in my bunk...

After a while, everyone started to crash. I was holding my own, even though I was the only female on the bus… No worries there- luckily, I have a strong stomach! And I was actually probably one of the last people to get to sleep because I got a phone call I had been waiting for right before I was going to shut my eyes. But by the time I was done and off the phone, I was ready to curl up in my bunk!

February 13, 2011

I woke up to find that we were about an hour away from our destination- Riverside, Iowa. I crawled out of bed, and went into the living area and sat with the boys watching the beautiful scenery go by. There were big gorgeous farms everywhere, and they were all snow covered. It was truly remarkable! I loved it!

My room in Iowa.

We arrived at the Riverside Hotel and Casino at 11am, it was a full twelve hour drive. It was a big resort, and it was extremely nice! The rooms were wonderful. By the time I got to my room though, I had to hurry to jump in the shower and get ready. I walked outside my room to meet my dad and our escort down to the theater at 1:30pm. She took us through the innards of the resort, and we eventually ended up at the theater. The boys were almost ready for us. We had two sound guys on this gig- Jeff and Bill. (Since we were cutting it so close to get to this gig, we sent Bill ahead to get us set up while we were traveling there.)

Sound check went good. Dad ran like the wind to go get ready; I brought all my stuff down to the theater so I didn’t have to go back to my room. I spent some time in the dressing room, and then on the bus- which was parked right out back. Soon it was almost show time. It was a 4pm show that day. Very early for us! The show began as it was still light outside, which is always an odd feeling!

When I was getting ready to walk onstage, I faced a problem… The only entrance to the stage was climbing up a very steep metal ramp. I was in stiletto heels- I walked halfway up the ramp, and I kept sliding back with every step I took! I was starting to get a bit worried! When it became time to walk all the way up, Jeff- who luckily was running the monitor board back there, had to help me all the way up to the stage.

The show went great! The audience loved it! It was a bit of an emotional show for me for some reason, but it worked out! However, while we were finishing the last song, I couldn’t help but think about how I was going to get down that ramp and off the stage. It seemed like an impossible feat! I eventually did make it to the ramp, and Jeff helped me down, I pretty much had to run most of the way down. My dad followed soon after me, and he had to do the same thing… Apparently his cowboy boots weren’t handling the metal ramp much better than my high heels!

We went out to sign, and that was wonderful. It was a lot of fun! We even got to meet Jeff’s fiancé and their families! (Congrats to you guys! The wedding is coming up soon!) By the time we were done, we decided to go get some food. We were informed that the best restaurant in the hotel was called Ruthie’s. It was an awesome steakhouse. We all met down there for dinner- Dad, Tim, Bill, Bob, Larry, Gabe and I. The food was great! And it felt so good to eat such quality food after such random and pretty bad food for the previous few of days.

Our Bus.

On the bus.

Dinner lasted a couple hours, but I was back up in my hotel room by a little after 9pm. I sat and got some work done- and watched a little TV to pass the time. We were all to get on the bus at 11pm. We got our bags packed in the bay of the bus, and then got comfy in the living area. We took off right when we had planned to. It was just Dad, Tim, Bob, Larry, Gabe and I; all the sound guys were flying home from there. I have to admit- we thought ahead; we recorded the Grammy’s (they had aired earlier that night). We started watching them, and I have to say the commentary was pretty great! It was like the musical jury! It was hilarious!

Me chillin' on the bus.

The wind that night was really bad though. The bus was moving around a lot. At one point the door to the driver opened, and we all looked out the front window just in time to see the bus really swerving! All of us decided we were done looking out the front window! Scared us all to death! We stayed up for a couple hours watching the Grammy’s and doing some major “bus surfing”! Because of all the crazy wind, walking around took some serious skill!

The view from my bunk...

Gabe and dad on the bus.

We all ended up crawling into bed at about the same time… I’m not really sure what time that was; sometime after 1:30am I guess. Dad had the big room in the back, and the boys and I all climbed into our bunks. We were all starting to get giddy and giggly! We all could not stop laughing! We each had personal TV’s in our bunks. Larry was changing the channel, and didn’t realize that it was changing the channel on all of our TV’s, not just his… Let’s just say you can learn a lot about someone from their late night TV choices!

The bus was moving a lot. Gabe, who was in a top bunk, was a bit worried about rolling out of the bunk in the middle of the night; and it would have been a long drop down! But luckily for him, that didn’t happen! It wasn’t too much longer until we all were passed out.

February 14, 2011

Entering Nashville.

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone! I woke up at about 8am and we were about twenty minutes outside of Nashville, Tennessee. The guys and I all started to get up at the same time, and we sat in the living area watching the Nashville skyline start to emerge. The bus dropped off my dad and I at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel. Luckily, Tim arranged for early check in… So we were able to go straight to our rooms and pass out for a while! (The band was staying at a friend’s house.) I woke up and ordered a salad; I needed a snack! By early afternoon, dad and I went to go get a rental car- we knew we would need one, lots of places to go during our four day visit.

The rental car thing ended up being easy to accomplish. I called down to the concierge and they were able to arrange the Budget rental car people to come pick us up. Dad and I walked downstairs to find a small, little, old man from Budget waiting for us. He drove us about three minutes away to their office so we could fill out the paperwork. That was simple enough; we were back to the hotel within thirty minutes!

Some of the boys jamming at La Hacienda.

By 5:30pm, we left the hotel to go find La Hacienda Mexican restaurant; Larry was jamming there that night. When dad and I got into the rental car I turned on the GPS, and it took us straight there. It didn’t take too long, but there was some traffic. We got there and found Larry’s wife Susan, Larry, Tim, Bob, and Gabe all sitting at a big table with some chips and salsa. We joined them and munched down on lots of chips! I also got a very sweet Valentine’s Day text message right around then. (You have got to love Valentine’s Day!) We all ordered some food and then the band started.

Me at La Hacienda.

It was an interesting situation because the band was only allowed to do original songs that they had written. After about five songs, the band asked some of our group to get up and sit in. All of a sudden Larry, Bob, Tim and dad were up there doing one of my dad’s original songs, “This Will Be The Last Time”. After that, Gabe went and got a snare drum out of the car and took my dad’s place on the stage while Bob did one of his songs. Next, the guys tried to drag me up there. I finally agreed. Gabe took over the keyboard and we did the song I wrote called “Fall”. (It is probably my favorite song I have ever written! I have a few favorites, but that is at the top of the list!) It was a lot of fun to sit in and do an original song. Very exciting!

Dad and I left about twenty minutes later. We were exhausted from the past week, so we wanted to get back to the hotel and relax for a bit. We managed to find our way back to the hotel- after a few issues with the headlights on the rental car! I got comfortable; took my makeup off and then turned on a movie. It was Valentine’s Day, so I wanted a treat. I ordered down to room service for a sundae. So yummy! Then I got cuddled up into the fluffy white bed and was soon fast asleep.

And that is where I am going to leave you for now… I promise I will pick up where I left off around this time next week! I have a few more days in Nashville, then we are working in Lake Tahoe this coming Saturday. So there will be plenty more tour tales coming very soon!