Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Places I Would Rather Be

*First off, I can't figure out how to add pics with blogger. I added them, but they go to the top and I can't get them to imbed in my post! Bear with me. I'll have it figured out by next week*

(I'm only listing places I've been, as I'll do a TTT for places I want to visit at a later installment)

1. Captiva Island, Florida
-This is my family's vacation destination of choice. We have been going to Sanibel since I was a little girl. Sanibel/Captiva is a real treasure. It's never packed full of people, it has quaint little restaurants and shops, and you can find thousands of beautiful shells while you're there. We're going this summer with my parents and my brother's family is flying out from New Mexico too. We can't wait!

2. Albuquerque, New Mexico
-Speaking of New Mexico, that's another place I'd rather be. We drove, yes drove, from Georgia to New Mexico in December '07 for my brother's wedding. We had so much fun- the road trip was even great. Unfortunately it was bitter cold (18 F) and we didn't get to do as many outdoor things as we would have liked.

3. On a cruise
-My favorite thing- going on a cruise. I've been on two. The first one was with my Sisterchicks for our joint 30th birthday celebration. We went on a 3 day Carnival cruise to the Bahamas and had the time of our lives. Last September, I took Dave on a cruise for his 30th birthday! We went on a Carnival cruise too, but ours was 7 days (I think). It was a tad bit too much time at sea, but other than that, it was great! Next, I'd love to try a Disney Cruise- they're just too expensive!

4. Disney World
-Speaking of Disney, I'd love to be at Disney World. I just posted about the great deal for Aug-Oct- free dining plan. Oh how I want to book that trip- but Dave Ramsey won't let me since we already have a big trip planned to Captiva in June. There is nothing better than Disney.

5. New York City
-My mom grew up in Staten Island and moved to the city after high school. I haven't been since I was 12 and I desperately want to go. It's in my blood, what can I say?

6. The Pocanos-
My dear uncles live in the Pocanos and I grew up visiting them. I want my kids to do the same, but we've never had a chance.
Here's a pic of me hiding from their goose.


7. West Palm Beach
-My bff Lesley lives there. What more can I say? Bailey and I plan a little girls trip down there again this summer. I can't wait to see my little Giovanni!



8. California
-This is where Dave is from and although I've been out a handful of times, I'd like to really explore California- not just the Sacramento area. I'd love to go further south, especially since one of my best work friends moved there last year!

9. Blue Ridge Mountains
-I love spending a romantic weekend in Helen, Ga and the Blue Ridge Mountains in a little cabin in the woods. Good stuff.

10. Anywhere with my Sisterchicks

The Sisterchick Blog

The sisterchicks (me + Amanda, Staci, Mandi, Kristen & Mandy) have our own blog! We plan on blogging about our get togethers- which are usually at events or restaurants. Our goal for the blog is to give the different perspectives of 6 different people reviewing different events, locales and restaurants. Who knows how big it will get! Go check out the first post, made by Mandi (who designed the blog!)

Money Saving Mondays

In the first installment of Money Saving Mondays, I'm going to give you a massive money saving discount for Disney World! We went to Disney two years ago in September using a free dining plan deal. That very deal is available again! From now until June 21st you can book a 5 night, 6 day Magic Your Way hotel and theme park package and get the Dining Plan for free! For a family of four, if you stay at the cheapest resort, the cost starts at $1,390 and the most expensive resorts start at $2,586. We stayed at a moderate resort and paid $1,800, but don't forget the food is free! The dining plan includes one sit down meal, one counter meal (think fast food) and one snack per day. Each meal includes an appetizer, a meal, a non-alcoholic drink and a dessert- way more than we could usually eat. A box of doughnuts at the resort counts as a snack, so we usually did something like that for breakfast. We also brought pop-tarts and cereal along with us. At the end of our 6 days, we had "spent" $1,200 in food (we saved the reciepts). Disney food is expensive! Not only did we never have to worry about food or spending money, the parks are literally empty. Once September 2nd hits, the parks are empty, which is why Disney has offered this deal for the past few years. If we didn't already have a large vacation planned for this summer, we'd be booking this in a heartbeat. Let me know if you decide to go!
I'd love to see some other money saving tips, so if you want to particpate in Money Saving Mondays, sign my Mr. Linky!

He's Our You

I loved finally seeing flashbacks of Sayid's life.  It's about darn time we learn about him- even if it was only a little bit. 

So, I'm watching and figuring that Sayid is feeling for Ben, since they had similarly angry fathers.  Yep, that's what they wanted us to think- until Sayid shot young Ben!!  Holy smokes!  I really don't think it was wise to not check the body- you'd think a trained killer would know that.  Also, there is no way he stays dead because that would change the course of history (or the future in this case) and Sayid would have vaporized.  The title is my favorite line of the show- Sawyer (La Fleur) tells Sayid who their torture guy is: "He's Our You." 

One more thing- how the heck did they get such a Ben look-alike to play young Ben.  From the googly eyes to the puckery mouth- wow!

There were not many questions left, as it was a pretty informative show. Here are the questions I'm left with:

Is young Ben dead?  If so, how will he come back to life? When he does come back- like Locke- will that show the Hostiles that he is their true leader?

Is Jin dead?

Who is Horace going to contact in Ann Arbor?

Who set the bus on fire?  Was it Ben?

Wordless Wednesday

Charlie is no longer ignoring Dexter!

Top Ten Tuesday

My top ten movies, in no particular order.

1. Best in Show- this is one of my favorite comedies ever- seen in a hundred times and it never gets old.  Plus, it's full of quotable moments, which Dave and I love.  My favorite quote is: "We could not talk or talk forever and still find things to not talk about. " Best in Show is a Christopher Guest movie that is a "mockumentary" about the dog show world.  Funny stuff, I tell ya.



2. Notting Hill- this is one of those movies that Dave and I have watched over and over and still cried at every cryable moment and laughed at every laughable moment.  Favorite Quote: "After all... I'm just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her."  BTW- this is Dave's all time favorite movie.  I have to leave you with a picture of Spike.



3. Anne of Green Gables- I have seen each series so many times, I even own them all on DVD.  Three years ago, we went to Savannah with friends for our 10 year anniversary.  Heather and I watched the entire series in the van ride down and back. Boy oh boy were the boys mad.  We had headphones, but we were still always shushing them!  When I was a kid I dreamed of having red hair and being called carrots.



4. Sweet Home Alabama- how can you go wrong with Reece Witherspoon and Patrick Dempsey?  This movie has it all- comedy, the south ( I may be a democrat, but I'm still a southerner!) and love. Plus, this was my first intro to Josh Lucas- he's a great actor!



5. The Notebook- hated the book, but loved the movie.  I have NEVER said that about a movie based on a book.  One of my favorite quotes is actually, "Don't judge a book by it's movie."  I don't know- I'm just not a Nicholas Sparks fan.  But, dang, this was a good movie.  I could and have watched this one over and over.  You really can't get more romantic than this one.



6. Harry Potter- Even though the movies don't do the books justice, I think the characters are always right on the money and except for the first movie, I think the acting is quite nice.  I'm a little bit of a Harry Potter freak, so you'll have to bear with me.  Bailey just started reading the first one- actually we're taking turns reading it to each other- with Jake listening.  He's read them all before.



7. Twilight- I just bought this today and was rather peeved that it was $17.  I always buy movies the week they come out because they're around $14, but this was more.  Grrr.  Still, I can't wait to watch it again. The movie was not nearly as good as the book, but Edward personified...or is that vampirified... is what I long to watch again.  Ah...Edward.  It was kind of a given that I'd like this one- Dave and I were huge Buffy and Angel fans, as well as Interview with a Vampire.  We just like Vampire stuff.  I can't wait for Dave to see this one!



8. Kung Fu Hustle- disclaimer- this one's in Chinese, so you have to deal with subtitles, but you'll  forget about it in the first few minutes when you are laughing so hard you pee.  If you enjoy it, move on to Shaolin Soccer next - not as good, but still a good Stephen Chow movie.  I love me some Stephen Chow. Not only is the main star, he also directed, wrote, produced and composed this movie.  Now that's what I call talent!  I can't wait until next year when Kung Fu Hustle 2 comes out. I'm a sucker for romantic comedies and I just dig Shephen Chow's hair.  He really knows how to rock an asian-style mullet.

 

 



9. The Shawshank Redemption- it seems like every few months this is on tv on some station that we happen to turn to and we watch it all over again.  Whether it's on the couch or catching a snippet while folding laundry.  I just love this movie.  If you haven't seen it, you are missing out.  Not on fun or some laughs, but on a brilliant movie with brilliant acting that will change you.



10. I'm having a hard time picking a 10th.  I've got the whole 80's movie genre with films such as Back to the Future, Trading Places, Coming to America, Can't Buy Me Love, Say Anything, Indiana Jones and then I have dramas like Memoirs of a Geisha, Schindler's List and The Pianist and then just plain good movies like Pirates of the Caribbean and Lord of the Rings.  So, I'm just going to have to group those all in together as one giant favorite 10th movie.  And I'm not giving you pics of all of them! 

If you enjoyed my Top Ten Tuesday and want to see more, stop on by OhAmanda.com.

Ew, ew, and double ew

The gross part is at the end, but you'll need to read the backstory to understand the history of... oh, just read on.

One thing you may not know about me is that I am all about healthy pet food...but it's not for the reasons you probably suspect.  When we first got Charlie from the rescue, he had no fur on his rear, well, actually just the area on his lower back right above his tail.  We didn't know what the heck that was about and after trying medicines and cremes, we finally decided to try some better dog foods.  In the process of trying different foods, I did some research (I'm now known as Google Girl to some of my friends).  Everything I read pointed to a corn or wheat allergy.  We still don't know which one he's allergic to, as the premium foods don't have either.  It took a long time to find a food he would even eat- he was sooo picky.  We tried Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul and he hated it.  I swear I did not make that up!  He finally chose Wellness, which is an excellent food, albeit expensive.  Since the dogs are around 12 lbs they only eat 1/2-3/4 cup/day each, so it's not a big stretch financially.  Wellness was hard for me to get, since the only place nearby that sells it is a pet store that sells purebred puppies puppies whose mothers and fathers are caged in puppy mills. I hated supporting the mills, so when Petsmart finally started selling some premium foods, I was thrilled, especially when this food came out.  Nature's Recipe is not only beef, corn and wheat free (the top three ingredients that dogs are allergic to), but is cheap!  Not Alpo cheap, but cheaper than Science Diet (which is crap, by the way).  So, if your dog is having problems with dry, flaky skin, dandruff, itching and even sometimes eye drainage, try a simple solution- switch to a premium food with NO CORN OR WHEAT for a month and see what happens.  You may all be happier. 

Now, on to the reason for the title to the post.  Ew, ew, and double ew. Recently we adopted a kitten from the local humane society.  Dexter came to me on Science Diet, which I have major issues with, so I weaned him onto a new food, Blue Buffalo Spa Selects for the dry and Publix brand canned food (the one that's comparable to Fancy Feast.)  So, why does the kitten need premium food when he doesn't display any sign of allergies?  Because the dog EATS THE CAT POOP!  Ew, ew, and double ew!! I can't have Charlie eating corn or wheat, so I have to buy a premium food. How's that for gross.  Silver lining?  I don't have to scoop the litter box.  I use Feline Pine for litter, by the way.  It doesn't stink like the clay or scoopable litters.  Try it when you switch over to premium food. 

P.S. I have to admit something.  I'm totally on the premium pet food wagon and I would have bought Dexter premium food even if he wasn't a poop-a-holic.

Ultimate Blog Party '09

Welcome to The Violet Fig.  My name is Becky and I'll be your tour guide today.  Ok, that's about as clever as it gets- Ha!  This is the first time I've partied with the UBP, so I guess I'm supposed to introduce you to my blog.  I'm a 31 year old kindergarten teacher, living in Georgia with my husband and two kids- ages 12 and 9. 

• I love to garden- this is something that I NEVER in my life thought I would like.  I despised it when my mom made me pull weeds.  Now, in MY garden, I just love to plan the flowers so they'll be more beautiful every year.  And the vegetable garden?  I can't get over fresh tomatoes and cukes.  Nothing compares.


• I love to read.  I always have a book in hand.  See my favorite authors at that link.


• I am a tv addict. My favorite is LOST, but I'm also addicted to these.


• As you can see, I do a little something called Top Ten Tuesday over at one of my rl bff's blog, www.ohamanda.com.


• I also enjoy a little Wordless Wednesday.


• I love have to cook. I do love to read cooking blogs...like Cakewrecks and The Pioneer Woman.


• Even with my distaste for cooking, I've started planning weekly menus in my quest to be debt free, a la Dave Ramsey.  It's been going well.  My next bloggy goal is to share about that.


• Even with my distaste for cooking, I love food, I love to watch travel shows that have to do with food (Anthony Bourdain, Andrew Zimmern) and I love to go out to eat.  Unfortunately I married a man who hates to go out to eat.  That makes for a very sad me. 

So, that's a little peek into my life.  I hope you stay a while!



I donated a prize for the contest  (I'm number 63) and if I win here are the top three prizes I would want:

• 19 — $50 gift certificate to Target Stores
  Provided by: Shoot-Me-Now


• 21 — $50 gift certificate to Target Stores
  Provided by: Agoosa -


• 22 — $50 gift certificate to Target Stores
  Provided by: Beginner Baby Blog

Yeah, can you tell I like Target?  If I don't win those, I'd also love these: 116, INTL 1, 36, 55.

Namaste

LOST was great last night- from Hurley's reaction when he finds out they're in 1977 (the year of my birth, by the way) to Christian Shepherd!!!! telling Frank and Sun that they have a long journey ahead of them (to get to 1977).  Plus, we found out the baby is none other than Ethan...and Ben is talking to Sayid!!  Of course, I was left with lots of questions, so let's start our discussions!

• How in the world did Sun end up on the present time island while the other guys ended up in 1977.


• Where is Faraday? 


• Where the heck are Rose, Bernard and the other people that were with them.  Surely, they would have found Sawyer and friends by now.  I still think they join with the hostiles.


• What is Sawyers James' Jim's plan for Sayid?  I love how he handled Jack, by the way.  Team Sawyer, all the way.


• When Ben wakes up will he remember meeting Sayid?

Wordless Wednesday

I honestly have no words...hey, they're 9!

Top Ten Tuesday

Here are my top ten favorite authors.

1. J.K. Rowling- if you have yet to pick up the Harry Potter series, for whatever reason, get thee to a bookstore or paperbackswap.com.  If your reason is that they're kids books, I must say that this is probably some of the best writing of the 20th century.  Seriously.  If your reasons are religous, then you didn't read much of the stuff that came out after the last book was released- could be compared to C. S. Lewis- obvious Christian themes revealed at the end.

2. Stephenie Meyer- if you haven't read the Twilight series, then pick that up while you're picking up Harry Potter.  Great writing, easy read, very romantic with a lot of action.  What more could you want?  Ah, Edward. I went through serious withdrawal when I was done.

3. Brock & Bodie Thoene- absolutely brilliant historical fiction novels.  My favorites are The Zion Covenant and The Zion Chronicles, which are set in Nazi Germany.  Sooo good.  All of their stuff is great! They are Christian and the books have a definite Christian feel- they sold them in the Messianic Temple I worked in as a kid, but don't let that deter you if you're Jewish or any religion for that matter.  Brock is the historian and Bodie is the author; together they make for amazingly acurate history mixed with delicious storylines.

 

4. Rick Riordan- the Percy Jackson books are like mixing Harry Potter and the Greek gods.  Percy is a normal kid who one day finds out that he's the son of a god- the stories were all true- and now bad guys (think cyclops and minotaurs) are out to get him.  If you have any interest in Greek mythology and also enjoy teen fiction, like HP, you'll love this!'

5. Christopher Paolini- if you saw the movie, Eragon, please, please don't judge the book by the movie.  I have never seen a movie that was so poorly made from a book.  So far, the books in the series, Eragon, Eldest and Brisingr have been amazing- all this out of the mind of someone as young as Christopher Paolini- I think he was 18 when he wrote Eldest.  If you're a Lord of the Rings fan, this is a series you'd like.

6. Danielle Steel- I'm a sucker for her books- I've read them all...all 78.  Yeah, it's an understatement that I like Danielle Steel books.  They are light and fluffy- full of unsavory bits and romantic bits all piled into a novel.  I just finished her latest one last week and loved it.

7.  Patricia Cornwell- the Scarpetta series is one of my favorites- 16 books in the series so far.  Think CSI, but with Grissom being a woman.  I also loved her book about Jack the Ripper.

8. Carl Hiaasen- my bff Lesley turned me on to him a few years ago when I visited her in Florida and ran out of books to read.  I like everything, from his kids books (you may know the movie Hoot, to his adult novels).  All the books take place in Florida and have to do with some sort of controversy or crime that revolves around ecology and pollution. Plus, I love it when characters pop up from book to book even when nothing else is the same.  As an added bonus, the books are funny.  :)

 

9. Jodi Picoult- if you like fluffy novels like Danielle Steels, but want to think more, this is the author for you.  There is almost always some twist that you rarely figure out and most of her novels are gut-wrenching, having to do with suicide, murder, abandonment, etc.  They aren't all dark and twisty, yet they aren't all peaches and cream either.

10. Jen Lancaster- I've only read her first book, but I do follow her blog and Amanda recently met her and bought her other books for me...SIGNED!  Woot!  All I have to tell you is the title of her first book and there are no other explanations needed- what you see is what you get. Bitter is the New Black : Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass,Or, Why You Should Never Carry A Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office

So, where do I get all my books?  Goodwill or Paperback Swap.  And no, I don't think it's a problem that half of my favorite books are kids/teen books!  Good writing is just that- good writing!

Go see more Top Ten Tuesdays at ohamanda.com.

Wordless Wednesday

Kindergarten Teachers doing book characters.  I'm on the bottom right.

Track

My 9 year old, Bailey has joined the track team and had her first practice last night.  The night before, we spent five hours...yes, FIVE hours searching for running shoes.  Nothing felt right and we got home at 8:45 pm with me in tears.  So yesterday, I drove to a Rack Room shoes we never made it to, picked up a pair of Nikes and told her to enjoy them because those were her running shoes.  She tried them on and proclaimed them great.  WHAT??  The day before she was trying on shoe after shoe and none felt good.  We went to Famous Footwear, Rack Room, Target, Hobbit Sports, Dick's Sporting Goods, Sports Authority, Marshalls and Kohls (who, by the way only carry full sizes and she's a 2 1/2.  What's that about?).  We got to all of those places, try on dozens of shoes to no avail.  I pick up one pair and they're great?  Sigh.  From now on, I buy her shoes.

Here she is finishing a practice run around the track.  (in her new shoes, of course!)



Here she is when the practice is over, being a typical goof.



Don't forget to leave me a comment!

Ultimate Blog Party '09

Are you looking for new readers or want to find some of your own?  Head on over to 5 Minutes for Mom's Ultimate Blog Party '09 between March 20-27. "The UBP ‘09 is all about meeting people and getting your blog noticed. " I'll be posting a party post that week introducing myself as a blogger.  You can get there by clicking the Party link over on the right or in this post!  Plus, you can win prizes.  Everyone loves prizes!  I may even give one away!

Top Ten Tuesday

My top ten favorite things to eat.

1. Sushi- and I mean good sushi, not the kind you buy at Publix.  My favorite?  Uni (sea urchin) or tuna.

2. A good burger- meaning, not fast food.  My favorite?  Five Guys Burgers and Fries.

3. Lettuce Wraps- preferably from P.F. Chang's.  Yummy little morsels of chicken and veggies, finely diced, wrapped up in cool, crisp lettuce leaves, with dipping sauce?  Heaven.

4. Pastitsio, which is the greek version of lasagna.  I make my own and it is goooood.

5. Crab legs- king or snow, I don't care.  I just love me some crab legs.  This is our traditional New Year's Eve dinner.

6. Creme brulee- it doesn't matter what flavor or where it's from...the combination of the crunchy, carmelized top to the creamy inside...I could eat this all day.

7. Chicken salad sandwich- it must have grapes and pecans in it to be my kind of chicken salad.  I used to prefer to have it on a croissant, but now I prefer a heartier bread, like 5 grain or at least honey wheat.

8. Hashbrowns a la Waffle House- scattered, smothered, covered and chunked please.  (cheese, onions and ham) with a homemade vanilla coke on the side.

 

9. Asian food- I can't narrow it down- from chinese to thai to vietnamese, it's all good.  Pho is one of my favorites, from Saigon Cafe.  And I could eat their spring rolls all day long.

.

10. Calamari- no nasty rubbery stuff here, and hold the weird octopus looking ones.  They must be tender and fried, but I'd prefer a sauce other than boring marinara.  I used to love the ones from Bahama Breeze, they were topped with a sofrito, but alas, they removed them from their menu, along with all my other favorites.  My new favorites are from a local tapas restaurant.  Here is a photo of the ones I ate on Friday, along with the delicious (read expensive) homemade sangria.  The floaty things are yummy little diced apples.

 

If you enjoyed my Top Ten Tuesday, check out the others at Amanda's place.

Keeping it up

I'm officially keeping this blog, for the time being. I made just enough to cover the cost of the blog. :)

LOST

This episode has got to be one of my favorites.  I loved how they fast forwarded and rewound back and forth 3 years.  We finally have the answer to how they ended up in Dharma suits! Plus, it was nice to see a clean version of Sawyer for a change.

Of course, I was left with questions.  It wouldn't be LOST if I wasn't.

-We never saw Daniel Farraday in the Dharma suit- days.  Is he still crazy?  Does he stalk Charlotte?  I know from her comment right before she died, he was a scary man... is that just because of how he told her that she'd die or is it because he's looney toons?

-How the heck are the going to get back to present day?  Will they stay in the 70s forever like Farraday implies?

-What in the world was that giant statue in the early, early flashback? At least now we know what the feet are!

-What happened to make women on the island unable to carry to term in later years? 

-What the heck is the name of Amy & Horace's baby?  It drove me crazy that we didn't hear, since I'm sure it's someone we know.

-Every week I wonder- where the heck are Rose, Bernard and the other survivors?  I assume they're in the same time period.  Surely they would have found each other after 3 years... unless they joined The Others...hmm.

-Ben arrived on the island in the seventies- around the same year they arrived in that time period.  So, do they know young Ben? 

-What is the Egyptian connection?  Paul wears an ankh and the statue appears to be an Egyptian god who also carries an ankh.

-Now, we know Richard Alpert has those sexy eyes, but when Sawyer referred to him as "the man with eyeliner"...was that a clue that he is Egyptian?  Is he an Egyptian god??? Is that why he's immortal?

-Do Sawyer and Juliet have a baby?  Is that baby Annie- Ben's childhood friend?

Tune in next week for more questions!

Wordless Wednesday

Kindergarten teachers on Dr. Seuss' birthday!  I'm the one in the teal jammies with stars.

Top Ten Tuesday

Wow...it's already Tuesday again.  How the time flies! 

This week, I've decided to do a Top Ten reasons I love Georgia, in no particular order.

1.  What'll ya have!  What'll ya have! Number one HAS to be The Varsity.  It's such an iconic image in Atlanta and now there are little shoot-offs in the 'burbs.  My dinner of choice?  2 chili cheese steaks, strings (a friend who will order "ring one", so you can share) and a peach pie.  If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out The Varsity Lingo!

The Varsity fact: Two miles of hot dogs, a ton of onions, 2500 pounds of potatoes, 5000 fried pies and 300 gallons of chili are made from scratch daily. 

2. You can grow cukes and okra like there's no tomorrow. 

3.  Sweet Tea- I don't care if it's peach sweet tea or raspberry sweet tea, as long as it's brewed with real tea leaves, not powder and is sweetened with sugar syrup, not the fake stuff. Hold the lemon.

4. Stone Mountain- I just love this place.  Here's my boy on top of the mountain in December.

5.  Savannah, oh lovely Savannah.  Ok, so most of it just isn't that lovely, but the Riverfront is fun and the history is fun too.  I adore the moss covered trees and munching on the delicious pralines. 



6. Helen.  If you've never heard of Helen, Ga, it's a small (I mean microscopic) Alpine Village up in the North Georgia Mountains.  The best thing to do is rent a romantic little cabin and spend one day hiking Amicalola Falls .and one day shopping in Helen.  So much fun.

7.  We are the home of Babyland General.  Yep- the first Cabbage Patch Kids were born here and you can watch a live birth every hour!  You haven't seen anything until you've seen the nurses tend to the mother cabbage as she delivers her baby.  The premies are so cute in their incubators.  Plus, it's near Helen, so it's easy to include it into the visit.  Be careful though- this is a place where your kids can and will beg you for a REAL hand stitched kid... get ready...they range from $185-350!  Yes, that's US Dollars.  Don't worry though.  I begged my parents for years and years.  They never gave in and I turned out just fine.



8.  The Big Chicken.  I've driven by it dozens of times, but have only eaten there once.  Yep- it's a KFC and yes, it is true that people give directions based on The Big Chicken's location.



9. The University of Georgia.  I went to UGA for a year and I wish I had been able to stay there!  (I didn't get kicked out I just got knocked up!)  The campus is gorgeous, it forces you to be independant since you can't walk to every class, but have to use the mass transit and it is very diverse. I really, really hope that one of my kids will go there.  Bailey wants to go to their vet school, but she's 9 and fickle.  Jake will probably go wherever he gets a scholarship to, since he's our brainiac, but he's pushing to go to the Culinary Institute of Atlanta.  I'm pushing for a business degree first while getting experience working in a restaurant and then going to culinary school. He may be only 12, but he's wanted to be a chef since preschool. 



10. The Flying Biscuit and every other quaint little restaurant that says Georgia like no where else.  I could really go for some biscuits with their yummy cranberry apple butter- very aromatic and dark.  I'd also love a Smoked Salmon Scramble with a Side of Love! "Love" is their black bean cakes topped with tomatillo salsa, sour cream, feta cheese and spears of red onion cakes.  Can you say yum?



There's my list!  If you'd like to see others like it- head over to Amanda's place.