Leah and the boys are in town this weekend. I realized recently that Leah hadn’t yet met some of the most important people in my life and that they had kids too… and then I combined my love of Play-Doh and parties and seemed pretty logical to me to get us all together, get a few truckloads of Play-Doh and have some fun. Cucpakes and mojitos, oh my! So glad everyone got to meet my bright, shining Leah and hope Jonah feels better soon; he was running a fever last night. We’ll have to do that again soon; next time in the new place!
Well, after about 7 years of working together, I finally got to meet my friend Celina from the Irvine, CA office. Terry and I had a great time last night. We took her out to TKs Urban Grill at Scottsdale Quarter and then had lattes at Press Coffee.
Great weekend. Yesterday, we too a totally unplanned quick trip up to Prescott, AZ. It was our first time up there. The mountain air was amazing and it was in the 70s. We brought the boys with us; only took about 2 hours to get there.
First, we stopped downtown at the ‘square’ and walked around; there was a festival going on and swarms of people out and about, having picknicks on the grass and just hanging out. So many dogs! Very dog-friendly city.
After that, we headed to Lynx Lake. Took a short walk around the lake and found a nice secluded area where Jackson and Spencer got to experience a lake swim for the first time. Non-chlorinated water! Initially, they both just stared at the water, unsure of what to do. I tossed a rock in the water and once it made the thump/splash, Spencer knew just what to do. Jack, of course, had to whine and freak out for about 30 seconds before he jumped in, too. I got my camera out and recorded some video. Clearly, Jackson got pretty comfortable quickly because one of the first things he did was attempt to retrieve a stick that was lager than he was (in the video). We found a more appropriate sized stick and had a blast wearing them out for a while.
Really loved it – it was so close and so easy to take a quick little day-trip up there. Can’t wait to go back!
This cute little place is at Kierland Commons. Love it! Simple, cheap breakfast, very good and $0.50 coffee! Patio weather is coming and it’s dog-friendly!
Brought Dani for a visit with Deana afterwards. On our way out shoe shopping.
Went to the Columns Drive Chattahoochee River Park today with Terry and the boys – it was so nice out! Afterwards, I took a quick drive around some of the old neightborhoods I grew up in and 2 of the houses we lived in. Memories!!! I used to ride my bike all over that place. Good times.
Today was bliss. The weather was amazing. The epitome of a beautiful spring day in north Georgia. Terry and I drove up to Roystson today with the boys. First, we went to his mom’s house and saw her and Laurie, along with adorable Hannah Grace. Went to a cute BBQ place for lunch and Libby made Terry a strawberry shortcake at home afterwards. Left there around 3pm and took a detour through Elberton to visit the Georgia Guidestones. They were impressive; a little smaller than I was expecting. Glad I’ve seen them for myself. After that, we went over to his dad’s place. So nice to see him and Barbara. The logs loved being out in his backyard, sniffing around at all the tractors and such. Barry was sharing a big bag of peanuts with us as we drank sweet tea on the back patio and the next thing I knew he was showing me his automatic peanut shelling gizmo. So cool! After that, we took a little walk over to his garden. Pulled a turnip right out of the ground, dusted it off with my hand, and took a bite of it. Was so good! Right out of the ground… Made me really want to start growing my own food! Seriously, today was totally awesome.
Had such an awesome afternoon! Believe it or not, after ten years, my mom met Terry’s mom for the first time. Libby and Butch drove down from Royston, and we met mom and Bob for lunch at Brookwood Grill and then came for coffee back at our place.
Aubrey, Kevin, Fisher and Drake drove up from Orlando for a week to spend some time together before Aubrey goes back to work. Food. Family. Fun. Photos. Parks. Carousels. And some Team Umizoomi.
Terry and I had a great time with LeahandMark.com last night at Mellow Mushroom in Sandy Springs for Trivia Night. Team “Heathers” didn’t exactly win any prizes, but we had a lot of fun. Plus, I got to see some #BabyRoX and honestly, I can’t get enough of that little guy. So amazing.
Went to The Cabin last night with Terry and the boys. Mom/Bob cooked us dinner in exchange for me training mom on contact management in Gmail and getting her Mac and iPhone updated and running smoothly.
One word: fabulous. Got to meet baby Drake, spend time with amazing people, great gifts, saw some friends we hadn’t seen in a long time, and ate some amazing food. Everyone loved the boys – they were so well behaved. Terry and I are very proud parents.
Had a wonderful day in Royston, GA with Terry and his family for Christmas Eve! We got to see Libby and Butch, and got to meet less-than-two-week-old baby Hannah Grace! So cute! Brought the boys along with us, who behaved themselves wonderfully and we’re loved by all. Leaving for Orlando tomorrow morning.
Atlanta, we have arrived. Leaving Phoenix was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Let’s start with saying goodbye to the office.
Janet, Jason, Kristin, Justine, Brent, Adam and I went to lunch on Tuesday to Village Tavern where I was presented with one of the most thoughtful gifts ever. Had I not been already emotionally overloaded already, I would have started sobbing right there. Thank God I saved that for home. It was a lovely framed “Top 10 Reasons why we’ll miss having James Bradley Adamthwaite in the Scottsdale office” sign:
After wrapping up last-minute items, it was time to clear out my desk, swipe out and head down the hallway and go down the elevator for the last time (for now):
Swipe Out:
Elevator Down:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7697QC-TPKM
Packing up on Wednesday was stressful. Let’s just say we were mildly under-packed and under-prepared. We had to call 1-800-GOT-JUNK to come take some of our stuff away last-minute that wouldn’t fit in the pods.
Once we were all loaded up on Thursday and the apartment was clean, we loaded the boys up in the Element for the last time and headed out to Albuquerque, NM.
The drive was a lot easier than I expected. I’m not one for long car drives, personally, and normally Terry does most of the driving on road trips, so I wasn’t sure how I’d fare driving across the country in a car all alone. The fact that we did small, bite-sized chunks made it much easier. While we were in northern Arizona and New Mexico, the boys got to see snow for the first time!
They loved it.
The first night driving was cold and dark:
On the way out, I let Terry set the pace in the Element with the dogs and followed him. One of my favorite things was to see Jack pop his head up and stare at me from the back window. Not sure if you can see him, but he’s there!
Overall, the boys did great. They loved being in the car on an adventure.
Once we got into Oklahoma/Arkansas, the boys also got their first taste of fall oak leaves! They loved it immediately and had a blast romping around in the crunchyness.
After making the hop from Phoenix, to Albuquerque, to Oklahoma City, to Memphis, we finally landed in Atlanta!
We stayed two nights in Mountain Park with my mom at the cabin. The boys loved getting reaquainted with their Grammy.
Then on Tuesday, we got the keys and our pods delivered and moved into our new 3-story apartment at Glen Lake in Sandy Springs, a mere 1.7 miles away from Aunt Mildew, aka, Leah (andMark.com).
Leah and Mark bought us a bottle of my favorite champagne (Blank d’ Noir) and we toasted to the occasion:
I’ll make a separate post to show you all the new apartment once it’s all setup; still waiting on office furniture to arrive. The only other thing that’s missing is our new Life Time Fitness to open in Sandy Springs. That’s sill 4 months away, so until then, we’ll have to dive up to Alpharetta for Life Time. Not too bad.
Here’s our new one under construction. 3 levels. Diamond level. Hopefully lots of extra yoga studios!!!
Here’s a sneak peek at our home – we had our first fire in the fireplace last night:
All for now.
Phoenix friends: We Miss You!
Atlanta friends: Let’s Party!
Thanks to Justine, Ryan, Kristen, Bridgitte, Al, Carla and Bryan for joining Terry and I at TKs last night. Great food and awesome people. We’re going to miss you guys like crazy.
Terry and I were invited over to have Thanksgiving with Carolyn Pryde last night. We had a great time. The food was amazing, her friends from Canada were a hoot, and it was awesome/weird to be back in the old neighborhood!
Had a lovely dinner with Terry, Justine and Ryan at Carrbba’s for Restaurant week. Good food – beer was in little tiny 8oz glasses for $5! Give me a break!
Terry and I just got home from The Capital Grille. We originally had reservations at a different place, but the Yelp reviews caused me to think we were pointed in the wrong direction. It was serendipity. I called The Capital Grill and asked if they had anything open for the evening. They did. “Are you celebrating a special occasion tonight, Mr. Adamthwaite?” Yes. Our 10 Year Anniversary. When we got there, our table had a very nice hand-written card on it and the table was scattered with heart-shaped confetti and red rose petals. It. Was. Perfect. The meal was delicious: steaks, lobster, lobster mac’n'cheese, wedge salads, IPAs, and a decadent flourless espresso chocolate cake. Kelly, our waitress, was the cherry on top. She made the expeience that much better. On top of that, the dim lighting would have totally prevented me from taking a photo with my iPhone, but luckily, they have a house camera and photo printer and took and printed a photo for us. A night I’ll always remember.
It’s been a decade. Here’s to you, my other half. With you, I am complete.
Last time I saw you We had just split in two. You were looking at me. I was looking at you. You had a way so familiar, But I could not recognize, Cause you had blood on your face; I had blood in my eyes. But I could swear by your expression That the pain down in your soul Was the same as the one down in mine. That’s the pain, Cuts a straight line Down through the heart; We called it love.
So we wrapped our arms around each other, Trying to shove ourselves back together. We were making love, Making love. It was a cold dark evening, Such a long time ago, When by the mighty hand of Jove, It was the sad story How we became Lonely two-legged creatures, It’s the story of The origin of love. That’s the origin of love.
Thanks for 10 years of support. 10 years of laughter. 10 years of friendship. 10 years of fun.
Happy Memorial Day! Just enjoyed a great little hike with Terry and the boys. Two people made comments about how beautiful they thought the boys were. Proud moments. First time to this trail. Very nice views and great trails. They boys are pooped. We are thinking about going to Tempe today to play some tennis and maybe go see a movie.
I meant to post this forever ago! Terry and I went to Indian Wells last March for his birthday to attend the BNP Paribas Indian Wells Tennis Tournament.
Well, I have to say, Aubrey’s wedding couldn’t have gone more fabulously. The whole trip to Orlando/DeLand for her wedding was great and the trip to Eleuthera, Bahamas was absolutely amazing. We got some really great photos and video throughout the trip. As Terry and I went along, we’d open his laptop almost every night and jot down as much from the day as we could remember, bullet-point style. Rather than detail the whole event in every single detail, here’s the journal I kept along the way:
Thursday:
Got on the flight early Good Flight Mom and Aubrey were delayed getting set up because it was raining in Deland. Chris picked up me, Terry, Bob and his sister Sam, who I met for the first time. Went straight to Aunt Michelle’s house to stay. Had dinner and crashed.
Friday:
Kevin picked up Terry, Bob and I and set out to get ready for the wedding in Deland. We grabbed some McDonalds breakfast and placed “Kevin and Aubrey” signs along the way for others to come. We got there and sorted out the tables, tents, audio equipment and place settings for the majority of the morning and early afternoon. The caterers arrived and got set up and it was just a few hours away. We all took turns taking showers and getting ready. We all came out as the guests were arriving and enjoyed a drink. Nice music was going and it was great to see my cousins like TJ, Cameron and Teron whom I haven’t seen in years and years! Just before pictures, I went up into the living room and saw my sister for the frist time in her wedding dress and I just couldn’t help myself and lost it. We got the cue the vows were about to start, turned on the new playlist and rushed back up to see Aubrey and Kevin exchange vows. After that, it was just chill.. eat whenever, hang out with folks and mingle. Kevin jumped in the pool with his clothes on and everyone cheered for Aubrey to get in, too, so off came the wedding dress and in Went a naked Aubrey. Perfect end to the night. Spent the night at MacKenzie’s parent’s gorgeous home. Stayed up until 3am with Kiersten on the patio. Crashed.
Saturday:
Left Mackenzie’s and went to Aubrey’s to go to Ft. Lauderdale Drove and had a nice time Got to the airport Kevin got mad at the attendant We were taking off late Ate Sabarro Dunkin Donut iced coffees Small Plane Nice view Landed Small room for stamp and customs No real inspection which was surprising Got our rental and some vague directions Drove on the left side of the road for the first time
Went to Grocery Store as a group in Governors Harbor Got to Bhton Hill Very dirty Shocked but not prepared for ‘roughing it’ Called Aubrey and went to her place Went to sleep with her that night Alltogether happy to be in Eleuthera
Sunday:
Woke up and talked to Judy about issues with house Met Jon and Bernice at Brighton Hill and had them clean the problem areas Went driving around for some groceries Went to Ronnie’s for some beer and found Lord Nelson Went snorkeling at the beach behind our house
Picked up Gavin and Mackenzie Brought them back Found Kiersten, Austin, Sam and Charlie waiting on us for over an hour Brought them home Had some PBnJs Went to Aubrey’s for the first night’s party and met everyone Slept at Brighton Hill for the first time
Monday:
Ate breakfast Met up with Jay and Sarah and went to Rock Sound for a larger grocery store Went to Grocery Store and Liquor Store Kiersten tried to bring in a stinky conch shell from the dock we stopped at – smelled so bad Came back and unloaded groceries Took a nap Went over to Jay and Sarah’s house Hung out on the patio I swam in my underwear because I didn’t bring a bathing suit
Left and drove home as a group for the first time Put the boys down to bed and stayed up on the patio talking for a while – talked about religion Went to bed
Tuesday:
Woke up early and Austin made eggs for everyone – Two coffee makers brewing Walked on the beach with Gavin and Austin to Aubrey and Kevin’s house to borrow two of their two-person Ocean Kayaks Went out for a nice stroll around the water – got a small blister Walked back and came back inside for some lunch – Aubrey stopped by to hang out while Kevin was fishing Went to the store: Got water at the Beverage Store in Jugs – Went to the grocery for few last items for tomorrow’s planned dinner Came back – Aubrey, Kiersten, Austin and the boys went back over to Sarah and Jay’s house for a swim. MacKenzie, Gavin, Terry and I stayed home and took a long nap Terry and I woke up, made brownies and then went and did some actual, awesome snorkeling on the reefs right out in our beach – great videos Took a shower and made the table up for our first dinner at the main table as a household for the trip: spaghetti Felt a little hot so we cleaned up and all watched DVDs in our rooms casually Went to sleep
Wednesday:
Woke up Had breakfast Sat at the beach for a while Went out on the kayaks with Terry and Austin and Gavin – I got a blister Came back to the house and chilled for a while Terry and I went snorkeling Gavin scored his first fish MacKenzie and I went out snorkeling for a little bit Thought of making plans to join folks at Big Ten However, Austin and I drove to Governor’s Harbor to see Lord Nelson… Got back in the ocean – Gavin scored three more fish and Jason snagged a huge lobster! Right in front of Brighton Hill! The house was busy working on “You’ll Remember Your Meal… at Brighton Hill” Aubrey, Kevin, Jason, Lindsay, Greg “Doo Doo” came over for dinner Hung out and had a great night – party! Tidied up with Kiersten and stayed up for a while talking and going over writing signatures
Thursday:
Woke up and had a waffle with Terry Went to Governors Harbor for gas, trash drop off, water and groceries with Terry Came home and decided to go out snorkeling Gavin was ‘chumming’ for fishing and caused Aubrey and I to encounter a 7-8 ft blacktip shark Went inside and did some laundry Back outside for a double-kayak ride with Terry around Double Bay Got ready to go over to Jason and Lindsay’s at Silent Quays for dinner Got there and Greg “Doo Doo” dropped a six-pack of glass botles on his foot causing it to gush out Aubrey got there in time to assess and Terry and I drove back to Brighton Hill quickly to get a first aid kit Had dinner Tried to connect to internet – I’m glad we coulnd’t ;) Came back home crashed pretty quickly
Friday: (last full day)
Woke up casually Aubrey called MacKenzie and invited people to go on a drive up north with them – it was the large group so Terry and I decided to go solo and check out Rock Sound Drove to Rock Sound and went to Ocean Hole – saw the fish
Came back and went back to the ocean with Austin and the kids The girls came back as the rest of the group took a ferry to Harbor Island Austin and Kiersten went off to find a hotel for Saturday night and Terry and I took Aubrey and Kevin’s Ford Explorer out to Tippy’s on the Atlantic side of the island and had a lovely meal – the one and only meal we had at a restaurant the whole trip! It was quite good, however.
Came back for a big party (Jason, Lindsay, Raj and Jay) and got pretty trahsed – stayed up probably the latest we had the entire trip MacKenzie and Gavin watched Titanic at Warp10 Volume; I slept right through it, Terry didn’t
Saturday:
Woke up and brewed 2 pots of coffee and went onto the porch and saw the carnage from the Friday night’s party
Austin made Terry and I eggs Aubrey and Kevin came over and we all went down for a last dip in the ocean Jason and Lindsay followed – and Mike, Kelly, Jay, Sarah, Madison and company joined, as well Terry and I had Austin drive us up all the way to North Eleuthera Airport to catch a flight that should have left earlier than Governor’s Harbor Lynx decided to screw around with the flight times and would have made us miss our connections Purchased new tickets to Ft. Lauderdale on Twin Air – made a stop at Governor’s Harbor and was able to sneak out and surprise-hug Aubrey Got into Ft. Lauderdale okay – Fire Alarm at Customs was going off, delaying things Had to take a cab, not to mention blow a $20 on the fare, to the main part of the airport Hopped on Conteniental to Houston and connected into Phoenix
Last night, Terry and I went across the street to Carolyn’s house for her dog’s, Gracie, first birthday party. She went all out – chocolate fountain, sushi, grill yummies – it was fun! We played a memory game, this great montage of “Pin the Nose on the Dog” and King Elephant.
In my defense: I had just finished my 2nd beer, wasn’t expecting the spinning, and my flailing laugh strongly disoriented me.
Lauren Weiniger was in town two weeks ago managing a convention. We met up on Wednesday after work, met the dogs, had some amazing Eden’s Grill and caught up while watching some American Idol. It’s crazy how fast 5 years go by. She looked amazing.
