My Hometown (Part 1)

I am a Chattanoogan, born and raised. There are many reasons why I love being in Chattanooga: my family, friends, memories, and the best place, hands down, to have a BBQ in the back yard. There are days you forget why you love your hometown, and there are others you simply never forget. This is a list of all my favorites and the reasons why I love my hometown. Chattanooga is very much a one of a kind city. I'm happy to call it mine.

The Knitting Mill

Piece A Cake

The Chattanooga Choo Choo

The Daily Flower

The Lookouts

River Street Deli

Movies in the Park

Tony's Pasta

Boutique Couture

Riverbend

Coolidge Park

Roof Top

The Art District

Us101

The Tennessee Aquarium and Imax

The Comedy Catch

The Barkmore

Little Debbie

Aretha Frankenstein's

The Shops on Frasier

Big River x 2

Night Fall

Chattanooga is my place for stored memories, it is my keepsake box. I can be driving down the road, hear a song on the radio and be at a certain place that takes me back 10 years. It is a magical thing, it is a gift. Chattanooga helped build me and mold me into who I am today.

We all have something that makes our hometown special to us, all places hold different memories. What makes your hometown so great? Where ever you live, leave some love for your hometown.

The Hunter Art Museum

Me and Daniel at The Lookouts game

The Daily Flower

Piece A Cake

Petals and Blooms

Lately, I have become obsessed with flowers. I cannot get enough, I always want them around me and I want to wear them. As I am sitting at work, it makes the day much brighter to know that I have a beautiful light lavender stock looking back at me. It is so hard being an adult....you don't get a spring break anymore, summer break, and you realize the little things that help you get through the day...for me, it's flowers!

In downtown Chattanooga, we have this little market-like flower shop called The Daily Flower. The idea is nothing short of perfect: Walk in, pick out your beautiful steams, and make what you love yours. Nothing is ever the same, generic, or over done. It's become a new love for me. I go on my lunch break quite a bit. The staff is so friendly and helpful, they get excited about what you are getting too! I can't stop filling up my home and my desk with flowers. I also love being at the park and seeing their wagon go by with beautiful bouquets of flowers. It is uplifting, always brings a smile to my face, and is so festively seasonal!

I have recently decided that the mix of a bloom and a branch makes for a beautiful center piece as well as making a room that much more welcoming and cozy. I must say the red bud (which is actually lavender) has become my favorite! Daniels parents have them all over their property and now having the idea to put them in a vase sets me over the moon!

There is nothing better than being able to go around your yard and put arrangements together. I threw a couples shower for some dear friends and since I had no time to run to the market, my sweet dad went around the yard and put these together. He told me to never tell anyone or he would kill me...but they are too beautiful not to share!

A Chilly Steeplechase

Saturday, May 8 was the fun day of Steeplechase! DJM and I had just gotten back from our cruise, when we hopped right back in the car and heading to Nashville. After a day of preparing food, drinks, packing bags, and driving to Nashville, we were once again ready to spend the day outside with lots of cold beverages....now our livers are on strike! We began the day with breakfast cocktails, yummy bagels, sausage balls, and fruit. The wind was so cold that we could barely move. Every girl was covered with chill bumps, our hats weren't cooperating, and we all had on sweaters. Once day broke, it warmed up but never got hot....it was such a nice day! With all the flooding in Nashville, we were sure the grounds would be covered with mud like last year but surprisingly it looked as if it hadn't rained. My heart goes out to Nashville, I hope it recovers very quickly.

I must say, our little spots were pretty loaded with food, and well let's be honest...and a pretty good drink selection. I had a little nap around 11, but then I was right back to it! Minus the corn hole, the races, and sitting in the sun, it is meant to be a day of drinking. It seems like a pretty good idea until the end of the day when you are so tired. However, once getting back to The Kidd's, we changed into warm clothes and loaded up for some pizza and hockey!

I am already looking forward to Steeplechase 2011! It will be packed with much more fun!

Bahamas Cruise

Feeling the breeze, sliding down big water slides, dressing up for dinners, exploring new places, tropical drinks, towel animals, shot trains, comedy shows, meeting new friends, sunscreen and sunglasses, big hats, fins and masks.....This will explain the week we had on board!

This was mine and Daniel's first cruise ever. It was a new experience for the both of us and all in all, we had a great time. However, we are not the cruise couple we had hoped to be. We don't like being on schedules while on vacation. We are so laid back, whatever goes, lazy kind of people. We would rather fly in somewhere and have a week to chill out and explore when we want too. Really, I could just have a week on the beach and never get up and be just fine. That being said, we would go on another cruise, it is just not our favorite way to vacation. But we did have a really good time!

The deciding factor for both of us was the day in Nassau. We were so excited, couldn't wait to get the day started! We had big plans...notice I said had. We wake up, eat breakfast, and it's time for our excursion: snorkeling. We went by catamaran and it was like a tour of the city on the water. We head back to the boat to take showers and head back out on the town. Sadly, the whole town shuts down at 5:00. There was nothing to do, no where local to eat, no Kalick beer, no straw market. So after walking around in an empty town, we had 2 options: go eat dinner on the ship or go to Senior Frogs. We went to Senior Frogs. This was also another high point of the trip. It was so much fun, they had the best DJ, he was a local Bahama man and full of fun! He grabbed me and we made a train to get 5 shots around the bar....followed by the cupid shuffle. This may be the reason for such a wonderful time!

My favorite part of the trip was snorkeling! I felt as though I was one with the fish. I totally loved it. I didn't want to get out of the water. The fish and the reef was nothing like seeing it on TV. It was much more beautiful.

Half Moon Cay was so relaxing. The water is unbelievably clear...and was a tad bit on the cold side for me, but Daniel just went right on in. There was nothing we wanted to do during our stay on the beach but to stay on the beach. We did just that. We were the last people on the beach, very typical of us! The only thing we bought throughout the trip was a coconut! It was filled with a Miami Vice to begin with, then we took a little trip to our bar.

The food was just ok to me compared to everyone telling us how fantastic it would be. We had our hopes up and were a little shot down! Daniel loved the dinners at night, he always had seafood. The best thing I had was a strawberry bisque soup, chilled. Daniel's was the lobster of course! We loved our wait staff. You cannot find better service anywhere. Hands Down. They even entertained us!

We were smart in taking our own alcohol on board with us. We would just go to the room when need be and fill up another glass! But there were some days that just called for a frozen, tropical drink...like just getting on board, laying in the hot sun, or after dinner. My favorite was a drink called Kiss on the Lips....mango puree, grenadine, and rum. Daniel's drink of choice when not getting it from our bar was a bucket of beer!

The ship was full of night life: comedy shows, casino, dance clubs, and BINGO! We went to the comedy shows, the casino, and walked into the dance club and turned right around. We never played bingo but we did watch our new friends play for a buy in of $20 to win $5,000. Funny, no one won.

This was our last day on ship. We were returning home. We did have a wonderful time, I think the best thing for me was just getting to spend time with Daniel and shut the rest of the world out....

Top Gun Party

I have never been to a more fun couples shower! We went to Nashville to celebrate the engagement of some very dear friends. Top Gun everything. I have never seen so many flight suits in all my life, heard all the greatest quotes from the movie, and laughed at the scenes of the movie that were being played out live in action! I know everyone enjoyed the night, we would like another one to happen!

The Happy Couple!

Blowing Out The Candles

I had a birthday a few weeks ago and even though 26 is nothing too big to celebrate, it sure didn't feel that way. It began with a cake at work, 2 deliveries of flowers....one from my sweet DJM and an afternoon surprise from my mom and brother. I am lucky enough to have a best friend who's birthday is just 2 days before mine so the celebration becomes a bit epic, out of control, and well....unforgettable! So that celebration begin at Tony's Pasta Friday night with gifts of wine and girly stuff from our wonderful group of friends. Jayme was on a midnight count down so I could be old with her....shots all around anyone??? The story continues but is maybe to much to put down into words.

Me and Jayme above. Joined below with Nick and Tyson...we also felt the need to celebrate Nicks upcoming birthday the following Thursday.

Saturday was the stormiest day of the year, and so far of the season to come. But I ventured out for lunch with my family. We went for hot dogs at Good Dog, ice cream at Clumpies, and with both came really fun stories of my childhood and making memories for when I am even older to talk about. I can see it now...they will all talk about the storm, and how we braved it anyways!

The army was kind enough to let us out for a night! We totally didn't know we were dressed alike until it was too late to change!

Daniel surprised me with a gift before we went to lunch. I thought our cruise was my birthday gift, that's what it was supposed to be. However, he handed me a card, I was thinking he didn't want me to be empty handed on my birthday, and then all of a sudden a small box appears. My eyes light up very surprised at what he has done. I open it and my eyes REALLY light up! He surprised me with emerald earrings! They are absolutely beautiful, I LOVE them!!! SO flowers, a cruise, emerald earrings....I have the best bf hands down!

Saturday night it was out to dinner with my best friend Beth and her husband. She had me a yummy cake that was beach themed in honor of our cruise. She also surprised me with tickets to a summer concert featuring Colbie Colette! Cannot wait for August to get here! And then to top that off, she hands me a gift card to buy myself something for our cruise! I mean, who has the best friends of anyone!?!?!?!

So 26 can be a happy age....it has been very happy for me thus far!