Spring Break 09

For spring break last year, we went to Chattanooga and then Puerto Rico a few weeks later. This year...not so much. Sad, especially since it's our last one! But we still had some fun. We went to the King Tut Exhibit (FYI they have 1/2 price tickets if you go Monday through Thursday after noon). We thought it was really cool - crazy to think how freakin old all the artifacts were. The next day we went to meet Sonny at the Capitol. (Mark's mom is in charge of Public Affairs for the Church for the southeast. She was having the gov sign a proclamation and invited us to be in a picture. You can see some more info - and the picture again - here.)
Mark and I also watched Gone With the Wind (his first time) and then went to check out the Margaret Mitchell House. I had it on my list of "Things to Do in Atlanta" and figured we should get it over with - it wasn't really that cool. I wouldn't recommend it unless you totally love GWTW. Or unless you can do it for free, like we did.Me and ScarlettIn front of the entrance to Tara

That pretty much wraps up the week we had. Oh yeah...and if you were still wondering which show was better (see post below) the answer is LARRY BY FAR! A Chorus Line was so lame and Larry turned out to be freaking hilarious. Yes, it was a surprise to us too!

The Fabulous Fox

So far, we're really enjoying volunteer ushering at the Fox Theatre. The senior citizens we work with are all super nice, and seeing shows for free can't be beat. This month we worked two shows...one that was fantastic and one that was barely worth the parking fee. Can you guess which was which?

Fun Things We Did in January

January was fun. Want me to prove it? Here's what we did:

1. Dialog in the Dark - Amy scored some free tickets and invited me to "see" the exhibit with her. It was really cool. I'd definitely recommend it. Go ahead and purchase the combo tix and see Bodies too.

2. Celebrated Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday by visiting his childhood home and the King Center. Welcome to Atlanta.

3. Checked out the boat show just like we do every year, but with free tickets. Visited JOA. Was happy to be remembered as last year's Wakeboard for Life winner. Picked out my new ride. Let's just hope I can get the new boots on a little easier.

4. Watched some Diners, Drive-ins and Dives on the Food Network. Paid closer attention when they said they were visiting a restaurant in the Atlanta area. Decided to check out they hype. Waited over 45 minutes to be seated (at a diner, remember). Was not overly impressed.

5. Enjoyed Stomp with the elderly (aka our fellow Fox Ushers).

Resolutions 2-4

I think one reason I've done so well on my New Year's Resolution #1 is that I've had accountability here on my blog. Since I never got around to blogging about the rest of my goals in January, I'll just list them quickly. It can't hurt, right?
2. Work out at least 3 times a week
3. Visit at least 2 foreign countries
4. Find a new job
Of course I have many others I could add, but these are the ones I REALLY want to achieve. I was doing really well with #2, until I lost my job. Then I was in "depression mode" for a week and did pretty much no physical activity (similiar to the activity I did in 2008 - no excuses, I'm just lazy). But I'm bouncing back this week and am trying to make up for lost time.
#3 was going to happen in August. I spent so much time over the last few months planning our 3 week trip to Europe to celebrate Mark graduating. Then I got laid off. But I can still dream, right?
#4 is the most pressing. As you've gathered by this point, I was laid off just over a week ago. I'm really not sad about losing my job, since I completely hated it. Just sad about the income. And the insurance. And the vacation that now can't happen. But I'm hoping something better is going to be found in the future. Hopefully, the very near future (or we may be moving into your basement).

Resolution #1 - Read 75 Books in 2009

Since I already read a lot, I could have made the goal to read more classics this year, or read more challenging books, or something like that. But let's be honest - I read for fun. Chick lit books are fun. So my goal is 75 books by the end of the year. I was gonna aim for 100, but then I realized that would be 8-9 books a month which might be a tad unrealistic. So I'll try for 75.
This morning, I was reading Natalie's blog and love her idea of keeping track of the books she's read on her blog sidebar. So I'm copying her, of course. Check out my sidebar list...don't judge, but feel free to recommend any of your favorites. And if you want to be my friend on Goodreads let me know.

Playing Catch Up

I've decided that, although I love reading other people's blogs, I'm not the best at updating mine. Oh well...you'll just have to settle for this. Of course December was crazy and busy for us, so here is a quick update of what we've been up to:
-December 12 - My birthday was great! We celebrated at Agave with a few friends and had a great time. I still can't believe I'm 29!
-December 16 - Had a Fraxel laser treatment to (hopefully!) help with the scars on my face. Spent the next week swollen and shiny. At least I'll know what I look like if I ever gain 100 pounds (the answer is NOT cute!)
-December 20 - Mark and I worked our first event at The Fox - The Nutcracker. We had a great time with all the retirees. Meanwhile, in Florida, my brother Matt and his fiancée Ashliegh welcomed their little man Mason to the world. (You can check out my sister's blog if you want the height/weight, etc.)
-December 23 (morning) - We got to visit with Emily and Ben. I can't wait until you guys move here!
-December 23 (afternoon) until the 26th - We spent a few days in Florida for Christmas. We pretty much did this......and hung out with these cuties...-December 30 - Mark's birthday was was pretty low-key. We celebrated with his family a few days after, with some sushi and fun.
-December 31 - I got my hair cut. Was asked by the stylist "How do you like being a redhead" and then 30 minutes later he launched into a 15 minute discussion about how (according to my roots) I am a natural blond. I like the haircut, but that guy was seriously a loon!
-January 3 - Had a fabulous time at Cirque du Soleil with Mark's family. And that brings us pretty much up to date. Mark is back in school. I'm working as always. Next post...resolutions?

Let the Celebration Begin!

Some people like to celebrate a birthDAY. I'm not one of those people. I like to celebrate for at least a week! So to start this week off right, we went to The High with Mark's family. If you haven't been to see the Terracotta Army yet, I would definitely recommend it. It is seriously fascinating learning about China's First Emperor and seeing statues from 200 BC! After the exhibit, we had a great lunch at Tap followed by some chocolate pie (Thanks Karla!). So far, 29 isn't looking that bad...