Tin Man Flynn

There isn't much I can say about this family that the video doesn't say itself.  I went to high school with Trey and Nicole and have been able to follow Holden's story since they named him Tin Man.  Trey and Nicole are fantastic, caring people and have such a large support system around them.  Holden is a lucky baby.  

Holden's story is one of hope and they are a great example of how to make the most out of a very scary situation.

(the video is MUCH more than his surgery, this is a bad picture to start with... not sure how to change that!)

Check out the video.  Give your kids a kiss.

Souper Jenny Grilled Cheese Night: Restaurant Review

If anyone has asked me my favorite lunch place in Atlanta I have answered Souper Jenny.

I was first introduced to Souper Jenny my first year in Atlanta and I've been obsessed for the past 8 years.  I love the daily menu, the cozy atmosphere inside the restaurant and the food.  OMG the food.  I haven't had a single thing there, in 8 years, that I didn't absolutely love.  Jenny (because I assume she's there every day, I like to think that at least) serves a variety of soups every day along with 2 or 3 sandwich options and one or two salad options.  For lunch you can do the lunch special and make your own combo.  I love it.  CASH only people!  On a cold day nothing is better than the Everything Veggie soup which is my all-time favorite.

While I've been going to Souper Jenny for years for lunch I've never been for Grilled Cheese Night.  Thursday nights are the only night that the restaurant is open when they serve grilled cheese sandwiches with their soups.  I've been dying to get there on a Thursday night and last night we FINALLY made it.

Of course I got the Everything Veggie soup and added their fancy grilled cheese sandwich for the night, two cheeses with slices of pepperoni with a bit of marinara for dipping.  Stephen got the chili soup and our other friend got the tomato soup.  Every single one was delicious.  I could have sat there and dined for years.  Stephen even made the comment, "well, we don't have to worry about what to cook for dinner on Thursday nights anymore, we're always coming to Souper Jenny."  I couldn't agree more.  Another great thing about Souper Jenny, most of the soups are guilt free!  She even notes Weight Watchers points if you need to track those.  The cooler is also filled with plenty of gluten free desserts to take home.

On a regular day, during lunch, there is normally a line out the building and it's difficult to find a table.  (TIP: get there early or after 1:00 if you don't have time to wait in line.)  Thursday night it wasn't crowded and we didn't have to wait in line behind more than 2 other guests.  The staff, as always, was cheerful and very helpful.  Without the line out the door we had a chance to talk to the two behind the counter and they were FANTASTIC.  They are there every Thursday and I can't wait until next week to go back.

The biggest surprise for Grilled Cheese Night was the all you can eat Smores!!  For $10 look at what you can get:

This was plenty to feed the 3 of us (when the pictures was taken, we'd already make a few smores - we couldn't resist!).   It was the perfect dessert for the perfect meal.  Why don't more restaurants do this?  Screw fondue, this was SO much better.  We cleaned each plate that was in front of us - all the soups, each sandwich and then all of the smores.  We were offered a refill on some of the smore items, but we definitely didn't need more so we declined.

Souper Jenny's owner, Jenny Levison, has recently opened a second restaurant in Buckhead - Cafe Jonah and the Magical Attic.  I can't wait to get there,  I hear it's amazing.  It was even mentioned in this month's Southern Living Magazine!

HeyTell App Review

If you don't already have this App, you're crazy.  That's right, I just called you crazy.  I've been using this app for over a year now and I can't tell you how useful it is.  It is available for iphones and droids so most smart phone users can download.

HeyTell is like a walkie-talkie, but better.  You talk into you phone after you've selected who you want to message and the app sends the file to the recipient.  Then it acts like a text message program.  The app will notify you when you have a new message and all messages are saved if you want to go back to them later.

Have I mentioned that it's free?

Here is how it works.  You download because you're crazy if you don't.  Then you create a profile for your specific device.  I have an iphone and an ipad and I have it on both devices, my name makes it clear which is which to my friends.  Once downloaded, you invite your friends to join HeyTell and then you're connected to one another through the app.

HeyTell has come in handy so many times when making plans or even while driving.  Texting and driving is SO bad and distracting, using HeyTell makes it so much easier when you can just talk into your phone.  It's also a VOICE message so it feels more personal than a text.

No longer are you stuck typing out a long message with directions to your house or a restaurant or running the risk of something coming across wrong in a text - use HeyTell!

The Hunger Games: Movie Review

I've been a fan of The Hunger Games for almost a year now.  I was reading the trilogy when I was in DC last March.  I was hooked instantly and I've been waiting for the movie for a while.

When they announced the cast for the movie I was a bit disappointed, but now that I've seen the movie I've had a change of heart... with some of the cast.  Jennifer Lawrence was spot in.  She was the perfect Katniss.  I loved how she could look like a normal girl and then glamorous.  It's easy to see why the Capitol fell in love with her, as well as Peeta and Gale.  Those two guys are still hard for me.  Liam Hemsworth as Gale is okay, I guess.  He wasn't really in the movie too much, but I pictured him darker in my head while reading.  Josh Hutcherson as Peeta is where I get caught up.  I can't decide if I like him as Peeta.  When they talk about how strong Peeta is, I don't really see that from Josh.  Sure, they show that in the film, but it feels like they're also justifying their casting selection.  Some people want the actors to be switched, and maybe that would have done it for me.  Josh with his natural dark hair seems more of a Gale to me than Liam.  Regardless, the acting by the entire cast was fabulous.  I loved Woody Harrelson as Haymitch - so great!  Lenny Kravitz was such a great addition to the cast.  He was soft and caring as Cinna and his scenes with Jennifer Lawrence were some of my favorite.

The movie stayed pretty true to the book.  Having read it a year ago, and only once, I had to look up websites that called out differences between the movie and the book.  However, I did notice the end was a little different.  In the book, Katniss and Peeta are separated before they go on stage for their interview and Katniss is extremely upset by this.  I wish that had been shown in the movie.  I picked up on Katniss' hesitation to pretend to love Peeta, and that it was an act to get them out alive.  I'm not sure it was pushed hard enough in the movie, or her distrust of him from the start.

The first half of the movie is setting up the Hunger Games and they don't actually get into the arena until the second half of the film.  Once the tributes are fighting for their lives, the movie takes on an entirely new feeling.  You start to hate President Snow and see what he's capable of, you pity the young, small tributes and understand why Katniss volunteered for Prim who never would have stood a chance.  There is a lot of death in the book and the movie did a good job of capturing it without going to an R rating.

My one complaint with the movie is the cinematography.  The Blair Witch shaky camera is just annoying.  There were so many scenes that would have been better if we could have actually focused on what was actually going on.  I know this is the new, cool thing to do to show you're great with a camera - but enough.

I loved the movie and left the theater 100% satisfied with the adaptation.  Would I recommend the movie to someone who hasn't read the book - absolutely.  I think you still get a feeling for the world that the characters live in and for the games.  Sure there are some details that are left out, but far less than they would leave out in the Harry Potter films.

Spring weather is here!

It's finally the great time in Atlanta the comes around each year - Spring.  The temperature isn't too hot and the flowers are starting to bloom.  The sidewalks in parks are filling up with runners and dogs.  Grills are uncovered and put to work.  I love Spring.

Mabel loves Spring weather too!  Look at that smile!!

Now that it's Spring, my desire for crafting has taken a nose dive.  It wasn't planned, but I'm ready to be outside!  If I have a free 2 hours, I want to be soaking up some sun.  Hibernation is over.  I have a feeling posts for the next few months won't be about new crafts, but more about what we're doing outdoors.

HOWEVER - Saturday night we finally caught up to the season finale of The Walking Dead, Season 2.  I struggled through most of the season, even skipping two episodes.  The plot was so worn out and the characters were making horrible decisions.  I'm looking at you Lori.  Season 1 was spent on the edge of my seat, I couldn't wait for parts for Season 2 episodes to end.  I heard for a full week how great the season finale was for Season 2, we had to watch.

Yes, the zombies made a comeback in a big way.  The way we had been thinking it would happen!  They spend months at this farm, long enough for Carl to heal and a million other things to happen, but they never decided to build a big wall around the property.  I thought it was pretty realistic that eventually the horde of zombies would reach the farm.  What else do they have to do besides walk around and look for food?  That the characters in the show didn't think about that... who knows.  Yes, they had scouts, but what was their plan if more than one walker came to the farm?  They didn't have one.

Shane's death - totally justified.  If Rick was trying to save his life, and Shane was definitely going to try to kill him, Rick was just doing what any rational person would have done.  Why in the Hell was Lori so pissed?  Didn't she say that something had to be done about Shane?  Didn't she talk to Rick about how worried she was?  Then he does something, saving his own life, and she can't look at him.  Lori - get a life.  Or let a zombie eat you.  You're not helping any situation.  First, you get pregnant during a zombie apocalypse, you leave the farm, alone, without knowing where you're going and you crash a perfectly good car and THEN you fuel the fire between Rick and Shane and you're pissed when it blows up.  I'd stop watching just so I don't have to see her again.

Then, the whole gang meets back up on the highway.  How did 3 cars get there at the EXACT same time when they had all fled in different directions in the middle of the night?

I am excited about next season, it keeps sucking me in.  Did you see that giant fortress?  What about the lady with the zombie slaves??  I'll tune in to the first episode at least.

Surprises at Victoria's Secret

For Christmas my dad and step-mom gave each of us a $25 gift card to Victoria's Secret.  I'm not a frequent shopper of the store, but I love when I get gift cards and I can go stock up on the 5 for $25 undies.

I had some time to kill last night before meeting friends for dinner and stopped in to VS - surprise, they have Atlanta Braves clothing and accessories!!  WHAT that WHAT???  T-shirts, panties, sweatpants and sweatshirts.  Basically everything I want before the start of the season in a few weeks.  I knew they had college teams (I have a UF shirt) but MLB is new to me!

Source: Victoria's Secret website

The website doesn't have everything that's available in the stores, sadly, so I can't link to a picture of what I bought.  With my gift card I got the most important thing - a Braves over the shoulder purse.  I love having accessories for the teams I love.  I've had my Gator purse since I was in college and I take it to every game and to the bars when I watch games.  I'm beyond excited to have a Braves purse now.  It's Braves blue with a shiny Braves' A on the front.  (Same colors as the shirt above.) The purse is 100% cotton.  The adjustable strap is perfect for a tall girl like me.  It hits just below my hip when it's across my body, over the shoulder - perfect.

With the amount of games I plan to attend this year it was a great purchase.  It was $29.

Source: Victoria's Secret website

I'm not so sure I need these... but with the amount of love that Stephen has for the Braves, these might be a fun surprise.

They have a deal with the MLB and have all the teams available online where you can shop by team.  Check out what they have for your team!

30 is the new... 21?

I'm now 30 years old.  When my 10 year old self thought of who I would be at 30, I never could have imagined where I'd be right now or that I wouldn't feel old at all.  Thirty used to seem ancient.  Even at 18, just after high school graduation, 30 seems decades away.

Well, I'm here now and I'm not sad.  I've had a great 30 years and I'm at a point in my life now where my debt is paid off (student loans don't count... my theory is that they're with you forever, like taxes), I make enough money to actually enjoy life and travel and I know who I am.  I'm okay if I don't do what everyone else is doing or if I'm the only one in the office who even though about going to the Kelly Clarkson concert, I don't need approval anymore.  I need to make myself happy.  When I'm happy, the people around me are happy and it's one happy circle.

To celebrate starting a new decade I boarded a plane to Chicago for what I call the best week of the year. In one week you get my birthday, the start of Spring, the start of March Madness and the best holiday, St. Patrick's Day.  (Fireworks are the only thing that could make St. Pat's better.  I'm sure they have them somewhere.)  I planned a trip to Chicago for my birthday, it's like planning Spring Break for an adult!

Here we go - it's going to be a long post.  Quick summary - it was 75 degrees or warmer each day, no rain.  Crazy for mid-March in Chicago.  It was actually warmer this trip than my one last summer in June. 

Day #1 - checked into the hotel, The Affinia Hotel, on E. Superior next to Northwestern University and Gino's East.  It is only a block away from Michigan Ave (looking right at Tiffany's) and only a few blocks from Lake Michigan.  The hotel was great, a cute boutique in the heart of downtown.  The staff was okay, not the nicest people, but I didn't need them for much.  The rooms were big, the bathrooms clean and the beds clean.  That's really all I need.  The best part of the hotel was the rooftop bar, C-Lounge.  We went up to the top for drinks before heading out to dinner.  

Dinner was at The Publican, a restaurant recommended to me by a friend who lived in the city for a year. The menu is based on farmhouse fare and DELICIOUS.  I heard that the bacon is the best in the city, and they think so, too.  Giant pictures of big, fat pigs are the only wall decor in the restaurant.  The seating is majority communal which looked neat.  Because I told them it was my birthday, they gave us a table by the front window.  We ate tons of food and drank plenty of drinks and we were satisfied.  For dessert they brought out a cupcake for me.  Perfect ending to my birthday.  Yes, I went home and passed out after dinner.  It was already a long day and it was 10:30pm.  We still had 4 days in the city!  

Brunch the next morning was at Yolk, walking distance from the hotel.  Again, another recommendation from my friend.  OMG I want one in Atlanta.  Our server was the nicest young girl in the world, a great touch.  Our food was reasonably priced and delicious.  I wanted something light, yogurt and some fruit and look what they had!!!

That's right people, a pineapple bowl!  I ate the entire thing.  All of it.  Even the orange slices.  I can't wait to make one for the next visitors we have to the house.  After brunch we decided to walk to Lincoln Park along the lake and head to the zoo.

Look how pretty the sky and water are in March!!  In June when I was in town, I fell in love with the Lincoln Park Zoo and wanted to share it with Stephen.  It was a nice 45 min walk and then we spent a few hours at the zoo.  The weather was great so a lot of the animals were up and moving around.

After the zoo we met up with friends at a fun sports bar in the Wicker Park area.  Because it was so nice outside all of the windows were open, which meant all of their walls were open.  I think we need more bars like that in Atlanta.  We watched a bit of Day 1 of March Madness, ate the most amazing grilled cheese sandwich and headed back to our friend's house before dinner.  During this walk the temperature dropped at least 15 degrees.  It was freezing!!  Along this walk I had gelato for the first time ever.  OMG.  Why has it taken so long and why isn't there a good gelato place near Grant Park?  I'm not sure the name of the place we stopped, but I'm pretty sure it was Caffe Gelato Chicago (when I look at the map it makes the most sense.)  Dinner that night was at a fun bar/restaurant where I got a pizza with pureed yellow squash sauce instead of a red sauce.  Ahhh, so yummy.  After dinner, more walking and more drinking.

Friday was our boat tour day.  It was absolutely perfect on the water.  After the boat tour we watched the Gator basketball game and then went to Millennium Park to see the bean and the faces.  I did a little bit of shopping then we headed to Big Star for dinner.  Apparently they have amazing tacos.  They must have because the wait was THREE HOURS.  We waited an hour at the bar and had some drinks and then we walked to Lillie's Q for some delicious BBQ instead.  I'm so glad we made that decision.  The food was amazing (quite a theme for the trip) and they had some great beer on tap.  Isn't everything more fun in a mason jar?  The food was well priced and they fit us in right away.  It was another recommendation from my friend - way to go!

The big day was Saturday, St. Patrick's Day.  It was what the city was waiting for.  They dye the river green on the Saturday closest to St. Pat's at 10:00am.  It's not the whole river, just a 3-block section, so if you're going to make the trip, pay attention!  The shoreline was packed with people and at exactly 10am the boat took off with the dye and man, did it turn green!

That last picture is my favorite one of the entire trip.  We were being yelled at while we were taking it because we couldn't stop on the stairs.  Well worth it!  The rest of the day was spent drinking Guinness and taking shots.  We even had a man with a bag pipe in one of the bars.  After 12 hours of drinking I headed back to the hotel.

Our last day in Chicago we went to lunch at Portillo's for more Italian Beef and then to the Signature Room at the top of the John Hancock building.  It's not as tall as the old Sears Tower, but the view is even better, in my opinion.

You could see everything from up there.  Check out the weather again!  Just perfect.

Thats the Lincoln Park Zoo from the Signature Room.

Chicago is just a beautiful city.  There is so much to do in the city and each neighborhood has it's own personality.  There is a river, a beach and some of the best shopping in the country.  Not to mention housing that isn't ridiculous and great public transportation.  I'm not sure why cities like Atlanta can't get it together and be more like Chicago.  I'd jump at the chance to move to the windy city....

Skin Trauma- I finally did it

In my very first post I wrote about how this blog was going to chronicle all of the new things that I planned to do before my 30th birthday.  Well, that day is only 2 days away and this weekend I did one of the things on my list that was most terrifying - I got a bikini wax.

I'm not going to go in to great detail, but some of the story is too funny not to tell.  I promise not to get graphic.

The day started as "Katie's Beautification Day" when I got my hair done, sat for a mani/pedi and spent time outside enjoying the warm weather and sun.  Then it was time for my appointment at Sweet Samba in Midtown.

I told the lady that I was very nervous and that it was my first time, she told me I had nothing to worry about.  Since when do strangers lie to your face?!

Right off the bat - if you're a shy person, the waxing process is not for you.  This new stranger is all up in your business with a giant bright light.  Then the waxing begins.  The first 10 seconds after each strip is ripped off is intense pain.  It hurt so bad I couldn't stop laughing, why was I doing this to myself??!!  My skin is SUPER sensitive so I was very worried going into the session, I was right to worry.  My skin immediately turned bright red.  I was told it was red because it was going through "skin trauma".  That's exactly right.

Then it was time for the backside.  This is when awkwardness was taken to a brand new level.  The pain is nothing to worry about in this area, and that's all I'll say about it.  But the lady doing the waxing, what ever her name was, knows more about me than even my family.

My worst fears about waxing came true and my skin is not handling the experience very well.  From what I've read on the Internet, I'm not the only one to react with such sensitivity, but I have no idea to tell if I have a severe reaction, or a typically one for sensitive skin.  I have such a great week ahead, I don't want to deal with sensitive skin any more.

Overall - if every time I get waxed my skin reacts this way, I'm never doing it again.  I hear it gets better each time you go, but I'm not willing to take a chance.  I waited almost 30 years to try waxing, I can go another 30 never doing it again.

Coast Seafood and Raw Bar: Restaurant Review

Last night I had a work dinner at Coast Seafood and Raw Bar in Buckhead at 111 W. Paces Ferry RD NW, right at the corner of W. Paces and E. Andrews.  I'd been there before a few years ago when the place was Home and I loved it.  I don't get out in Buckhead too often so the past 2 years that Coast has been open, I didn't even know it existed.

While it's been open for 2 years, it has only been in the past week that I've heard people talk about it.  Not just one or two, but quite a few people.  When I was asked where we should go for dinner, Coast it was.

Coast is a Here To Serve Restaurant (Strip, Shout, Twist, Aja, Goldfish, Prime...) so I expected it to be on par with the other restaurants.  The atmosphere is very casual, more than I thought it would be, especially on a Thursday evening in early March.  The wait staff and bar tenders were in shorts, t-shirts and tank tops.  Once inside it expected to walk out the back door and find the ocean or a lake.  It's very beach-y casual with hard wood floors, wooden stools, fish hanging from the wall and bright, light colors.  Nothing stuffy about this place.  The outdoor patio was huge and perfect for a large group or a couple of friends.

The wait staff as a little slow and that's going to be my only complaint of the evening.  The bartender inside was great, but as the night went on, the drinks came out slower and slower as the place filled up.  We ordered an appetizer at the same time we ordered our entrees and one of the gentlemen in our party ordered a side salad to start.  His salad came out way in advance of our appetizer, and it was the wrong salad the first time.

The appetizer was great, we had Mussels... have you met me?, but we didn't have napkins or silverware on the table yet.  Our food came out after we had finished the appetizer and it was cleared, perfect timing, but they didn't all come out at once.  Not a big deal, but it's always awkward waiting for one person to get their food before you can start eating.  My plate was extremely hot, which always makes me a little nervous that my food was sitting under a warmer somewhere.

Once we had our food, we didn't see our server very often and my water went empty more than once.

I'm not one to discount a restaurant based on the service (see my post on LaGrotta...), I believe that bad servers will be worked out of the system on their own.  A good restaurant can over come bad service with great food.  And the food was fantastic.

The Mussels were delicious and the broth was one of the best I've had in Atlanta.  I wanted more bread to soak it up!  For an entree I ordered the Boston Lemon Sole which came over a bed of mashed potatoes and sauteed spinach in a lemon caper butter sauce.  I would have liked more capers, but the dish was perfect.  I ate every last bit of it.  I almost ordered the Shrimp and Grits so I'll have to go back to try those, too.

The rest of the food around the table looked great and all dishes received good reviews.

I have a feeling Coast will be a hot spot once it's really spring and summer hits.  The patio will be packed all the time.  Prices aren't too bad for a Buckhead restaurant and the atmosphere was different than what you'll find in the area.

I highly recommend Coast Seafood and Raw Bar to anyone looking for a nice, reasonably priced, casual dinner.  I'll definitely be giving them a second try with the service.

Turning off iphone Apps

I've never posted anything about electronics, or how to fix them, but this was too important to share.

My iPhone battery was dying 4x faster than usual starting over the weekend.  My mind immediately went to "it's dead, 2.5 years later and it's dying." I always think the worst first.

I mentioned it to a few co-workers and one actually knew problem and the solution.  To Stephen's credit, he did know the problem, but I didn't think it was possible to fix it.

On the iPhone, once you open an App it stays open.  (I should note, this is all based on my 3GS and it also works for the iPhone 4.)  This drains your battery.  I don't read everything about my phone, but when I downloaded the new operating system a few months ago, I didn't hear about this.  You can see what apps are open by double tapping the home button.  You'll be able so scroll through your open apps.  Every app on my phone was active.

To turn off the apps, touch one of the app icons until it starts shaking.  Once it's shaking a little red circle with a white line will show up.  (Looks similar to how you delete an app from your phone)  To close the app, touch the red circle.  The app is now closed and it doesn't drain your battery.

It's been 2 days since I've tried this solution to my battery problem and it was the perfect fix.  I didn't even plug my phone in last night and I still have more than half of my battery life.  Over the weekend the battery was drained in just a few hours.

I also tried this on my iPad 2 and it works the same.  Great tip to prolonging battery life!

Sports Themed Baby Shower

I hosted a baby shower for one of my good, college friends with the help of the mom-to-be's sister over the weekend.  It was a sports themed baby shower for little Nolan who will arrive in the next few weeks.  Both Mom and Dad are huge sports fans and it seemed to fit the family just right.

All of the food that was served was something you'd find at a tailgate:

• Pulled Pork Sliders
• Pigs in a Blanket
• 7-layer Dip
• Buffalo Chicken Dip
• Desserts

The shower was from 2-5pm so there wasn't a great need for food.  We expected most guests to have eaten before they arrived.

Mom-to-be doesn't like a lot of frills and attention, so we aimed to keep the shower low-key and intimate, we had less than 20 people.

My favorite part of preparing for the shower was making the individual serving 7-layer dips.  How cute are these?

Please excuse the cheese all over the table!  Our 2 person assembly line was pretty fast paced and now and then we'd miss with some of the cheese.  Oops.

We made the quac the night before with fresh avocados, onion and garlic.  That was the bottom layer followed by refried beans, sour cream, mild salsa, cheese and black olives.  So technically it's only 6 layers, but we didn't need lettuce.  They were the PERFECT size.

One of our friends in California made an adorable banner for the party.

Just perfect.  She also created a little booklet of "Wishes for Nolan" for everyone to fill out 10 wishes for the new baby.  I wanted to make Mom-to-be cry and we succeeded.  It was a great guest book as well.  

Being a baby shower, of course there were games.  We each guessed how big her belly was, guessed baby foods and there was a beer chugging contest out of baby bottles.  I'm proud to say, Stephen was the winner!  To keep with our theme, prizes were koozies from a local brewery.  

Each guest left with a package of Peanuts and CrackerJacks.  Just in time for Braves Season!  

It was great having the shower at the Mom's house because there wasn't any lugging of gifts, we could decorate how we wanted and it was casual.  The downside was that Mom-to-be was pretty stressed out.  I felt bad that she wanted to be so involved. I just wanted her to be able to relax and enjoy the party.  Next time, I'll insist that the party not be at the house.  All in all, a fantastic baby shower.  The best gift of the day - Mom-to-be was given one of her baby books from when she was a baby.  She remembered it instantly and tears were flowing from the whole family.  What a great mom to have saved such an important book.

Hershey's Hugs

Source: candyaddict.com

My new, bad obsession.  Hershey's Hugs.  They're kisses with a different flavor of chocolate swirled into the mix.  My favorite have to be the Raspberry Hugs.

I got a small bag of a bunch of flavors at work for Valentine's Day and I'm making them last.  Only one a day... maybe two depending on how many crisis situations I've encountered throughout the day.  But no matter what, they're delicious.

March - the best month of the year

Today is the 1st day of March.  I'm wearing green to celebrate.  March is my favorite month of the year.

Spring begins which bring back open toed shoes, dresses without tights and tanner skin
The start of deck parties and BBQs when you can actually enjoy them because you're not sweating
Pretty flowers are starting to bloom
College basketball is at it's finest this month
Gambling on college basketball
School age kids and college students get excited about Spring Break
St. Patrick's Day
Most important to me, my birthday

It's also going to be in the low 70s today in Atlanta.  Are you serious!?  That's perfect!

I have a pretty exciting trip planned this month to Chicago, one of my favorite cities.  Not much more can happen in March to get me more excited than I already am.

I'll be 30 in less than two weeks.  I'm not dreading it as much as I thought I would.