Vera Bradley Heaven!

Where do I begin? I took a little solo road trip last week that was so much fun! It all started with a little e-mail from Vera Bradley that Patricia Miller (VB co-founder) was going to be at the Phipps Plaza Vera Bradley store in Atlanta to introduce the new spring patterns. Immediately, I wanted to go, but was a little uncertain about going alone. The more I thought about it, the more excited I got and by the time I finally made my hotel reservation on Tuesday afternoon, I was completely pumped! I totally lucked out and got a room at the 4-star Intercontinental Hotel through Hotwire at an amazing price and was blown away by how luxurious my room was. As you can imagine, there was quite a crowd at the store, and it was such a beautiful store - so colorful and bright and happy!

I ate some delicious meals while in Hotlanta! You can't beat the fried macaroni and cheese at The Cheesecake Factory - and that Tiramisu Cheesecake was almost too good for words! The Flying Biscuit is another great restaurant that serves giant biscuits and Creamy Dreamy Grits (and they are!!), and The Horseradish Grill had scrumptious shrimp & grits and biscuits with honey/walnut butter (I think the butter was better than the biscuit!).

If you've never been to Phipps Plaza, it is a shopping wonderland! If I had had a lot of money, I could have done some serious damage - Tiffany, Saks Fifth Avenue, Nordstrom's (where I gracefully sprayed very expensive perfume in my face!), and so many other high-end stores - and a $222,000 convertible Bentley that was too gorgeous not to photograph!

I even went to the World of Coke Museum! It is one of the most fun places - what could be better than a place where you can drink all the Coke you can handle? I was literally sloshing when I left!! My favorites were Fanta Pineapple and Birch Beer. After tasting Tab, I can't believe I ever loved that drink - it is so flat! I had a great little getaway, but I'm so glad to be home with my sweet family once again!!

Spring Swing!

We had a couple of warm days over Spring Break and Bailey couldn't wait to play on her rope swing! So I took advantage of the lovely day and sat outside with her, taking pictures. It was so much fun! She loves to pose and play and just be a kid, and I love to photograph the whole thing! I took at least 50 pics of her and am now in the process of choosing the best 5-7 for her scrapbook. Our flower bed is doing well, too! We've had some very cold nights, but those little blossoms seem to be surviving. I hope we have a mass of blooms like we had a couple of years ago. All of the bulbs in that bed are from our trip to Holland several years ago, and they are a lovely reminder of a wonderful adventure! With only nine more weeks of school left, we are looking forward to many more nice days outside this summer! Have a blessed week!!

Bailey made a spectacle of herself!

For whatever reason, Bailey has recently been OBSESSED with getting glasses!! She has had a little trouble seeing her guitar music but, other than that, she hasn't had any real vision problems. But she talked about it so much that we decided it would be better to be safe than sorry so I took her to my eye doctor. She did great! It was funny to watch her try to hold on to any piece of equipment they used to check her eyes like she was on a ride. I didn't take any pictures of that because I didn't want them to think I was crazy ;) After a thorough exam, the doctor concluded that she probably didn't NEED glasses, but since she had been complaining a little about her eyesight, it wouldn't hurt her to wear them. SHE WAS ECSTATIC!!! I hope the novelty doesn't wear off too soon because, those of you who wear glasses or contacts can back me up on this, glasses get to be a pain after awhile!! She loves the purple metal ones she picked out, though, and she's been wearing them faithfully for almost a week. She swears she can tell a major difference but, when I looked through them, I couldn't tell that they were magnified at all!! I guess little eyes need less magnification to make a difference ;) Have a great day!!

Annie Sing-Along

Last Sunday afternoon, Bailey & I went to the Tennessee Theater to see the movie, "Annie." We knew that there was going to be a costume parade and since we LOVE that kind of thing :) Mom & I came up with a orphan costume for Bailey at the very last minute! Her pediatrician, Dr. Stanley, was Daddy Warbucks, and the GIANT dog was a hit! Before the movie, Dr. Bill Snyder played The Mighty Wurlitzer and then Bailey marched in the little parade. She didn't win, but she had fun just the same! We had seen the play in Knoxville last year and, while the play is a million times better than the movie, we still had a fantastic time!! And Bailey's picture was in the paper the next day with a group of other kids in costumes - we were so excited!!!

It was Grrrrrrrreat!

Sorry I'm a little late with this post. I forgot I had started it!! Two weekends ago, I took Bailey & Rivers to the Mardi Growl Parade downtown and we had the BEST time!! I have never seen so many adorable dogs! One of the dogs from "Marley and Me" was there, so we took lots of pictures, and the girl with Bailey & Rivers was in "The Parent Trap" - she played Dennis Quaid's girlfriend!! Cool, huh?! Bailey LOVED all the dressed-up chihuahuas and the sweet golden retrievers. There were more than 500 dogs in the parade, but it was very organized and surprisingly clean :) Almost makes me want a dog . . . Can't wait till next year!

Father/Daughter Valentine Dances are fabulous!

The Annual Father/Daughter Valentine Dance at our church is fabulous!! All of the little girls are dressed to the nines and look beautiful. The dads, sadly, look a bit awkward. It's hilarious!! All the couples were lovely, but none as lovely as sweet Bailey and Chris! Bailey said up-front that she didn't want to dance - she wanted to run around with her friends, of course! But she indulged her sweet mama a few times for a posed dance pic or two. I love the ones with her friends and of Chris presenting her with her corsage. Bailey & I take her dress to the florist every year when we order her corsage. A preview of proms to come and so much fun - we love our traditions!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

I had the very best birthday! We celebrated all weekend! While Bailey was at school on Friday, I went shopping for a new Vera Bradley purse, which I said I wasn't going to do, but then I saw the new Hope Garden pattern in a new style called Gabby. Very cute!! Then I hit West Town Mall and enjoyed some delicious moments at Bath & Body Works and Williams Sonoma. Very, very wonderful! Bailey spent the night at Mom & Dad's on Friday night so Chris and I could go to The Chop House (YUM!!). Chris had been sick so we brought home a couple of movies to watch, "Wanted" (I lasted about 30 minutes) and "Hancock" (only lasted 15 minutes). So we ended up watching "NCIS" which is always great!! On Sunday, I took a nap (oh, yeah!!) and then had dinner with my dear friends at Cafe 4. I had Lobster Mac & Cheese and Baklava Cheesecake!!! OMG!!! Too wonderful!! On Monday, I met a friend for lunch and then we had dinner at Mom & Dad's - two more fantastic meals!! Bailey gave me a beautiful ring and earrings that she picked out for my special day - she is so sweet! I even got another gift today from a sweet friend. All the birthday greetings from my Facebook friends also made my day. This was the best birthday!