Garden Tour

Today at lunch, me and a few girls from my office drove to one of our Partners houses who lives near our office in Buckhead to tour his huge lavish garden which has been featured in the past in the AJC (for those of you who don't know what that is . . . The Atlanta Journal Constitution News). He lives off of West Wesley in a lovely little home (approximately a million + bucks), he drives a Porsche (there is no substitute), he's married to his former paralegal from his old firm (I'm probably divulging too much information here) - anyway, he's an awesome guy, very sweet and way too generous to invite us to his home to walk us around his yard for an hour or more grabbing plants and telling us the genus and species and where he bought them and whom from etc. - it was the coolest lunch I've had in quite some time - he's very proud of his work. Here are some pictures I took with my Blackberry (didn't have a camera). The pictures don't do ANY justice on his creation. He is bringing each of us 4 girls a "goodie bag" next week with clippings and instructions on how to grow each of what we get - he was mindful of what each of us liked while we walked through the garden and is going to tell each of us what will go in our yards and how to grow it - how cool is that!! Can't wait!! By the way . . . most of what is in his yard cannot be purchased at your local Home Depot or Pikes. Everything is exotic and comes from mostly trading with other horticulturists/friends and purchasing from the Internet. He also travels quite a bit and purchases and trades seeds from exotic growing plants. Neat-o!

This looks like a regular ole hibiscus and you can't tell from the picture but this one is as large as a frisbee. HUGE!

This is a wind chime, not really sure why I got a photo of it - I thought it was totally cool!

Alex . . . . and the Devil's Walking Stick . . . also very cool!!

This is a Papaya Plant with real Papaya growing (you can't really see then unless you look closely). There are tons of other fruit bearing trees in the yard (orange, fig, banana, coconut etc.) . . . again - cool!

Only In My Garden . . . .

YUMMY ?? Maybe not . . . .

Only in my garden would something like this grow!! Doug and Abbey Grace picked tomatoes for me on Saturday morning and found this "interesting" tomato with a NOSE? What do YOU think it looks like?

Be creative!!

New Year . . New Life !!

New Year . . . New Life

Has specific meaning to Zachary this year. It means FOOTBALL and 8th grade at Indian Creek Middle School. Zachary will find out tomorrow, Wednesday, 8/6/08 if he's made the IC Football team. He's played football all summer (practice), three days a week plus weight training - he's poured his heart out on this so hopefully he'll make the team. If he does, they finish school at 4 p.m., gather as a team in the Locker Room Area after school and break out into groups to do home work together as a team until 5:30 p.m. then hit the field until 8 p.m. in the HEAT! They are amazing boys. They do this Monday thru Friday and some Saturday's too. This past Saturday I went to the school from 9 a.m. to Noon and watched the practice and witnessed many of the young men "yacking" all over the field from the heat. New Year, New Life indeed!! Go Zack . . . enjoy your year buddy!!

First Day Of School

First Grade is pretty huge - not as huge as starting Kindergarten (because last year it was bigger for me I guess only because Abbey Grace went to public school for the first time and left the confines our our Church so it freaked me out to drop her off on a "real schedule"). This year it didn't cut like a knife so bad when I dropped her off. In fact, it didn't hurt her too bad either considering when Doug and I took her in to school, she bailed on us quickly. The three of us were holding hands all the way up the side walk and into the class room (Abbey Grace was in the middle) and then as soon as we approached her class, she dropped both of our hands, went to her cubby and put her back pack away and sat at her desk like an "old familiar routine" and started on her work. AMAZING . . . this was my kid? Her teacher, Mrs. Hudgins, already refers to her (after day two) as "Ramona Quinby" - imagine that! That's my girl.

WHAM !!

WHAM . . And no, I don't mean like "Wham-o" or anything like that. I mean "WHAM. . . Make it Big" - you know . . . the album by George Michael from the '80's? Now you're catching on! See . . . Doug and I went to his concert last night - floor seats, 11th row. It was literally the BEST concert I think I've ever been to. Seriously, I stood the entire time, danced, bounced, flung myself around like a school girl in college. I had one (singular) beer but I sweat to the bone. Philips Arena was like an open Techno-Club with lights, thumping base, perfume, cologne, fabulously hot gay men, impeccably dressed Atlanta people drinking top-shelf liquor and dancing to none other than George Michael. He is still totally HOT, he has all the moves he had back when I was in college and his posters all adorned my dorm room walls, and he can certainly sing like no other pipes I've ever heard. His voice is clean and pure. His routine last night lasted THREE (3) hours - it was utterly incredible and today I am exhausted. I would do it all over again this very second if given the chance!