Heaven on earth

Anyone, Tiger fan or orange and blue wearing maniac alike, who gets a real taste of The Promise Land, aka Athens, comes away a believer....maybe not in the football but surely in the charismatic little city 60 miles east. I got the privilege of growing up sitting on Vince Dooley's knee and learning about the Mayflower and the Varsity from even a wee age so really it was no question at all where I would spend those 4 wondrous years of higher education. I used to laugh when my dad and mom would walk down Broad street and talk about the bar they used to go to after football games or the diner they went to for breakfast on a Sunday. They really dated themselves! Of course, for me, now more than 10 years have past since I first called Athens home and, I, too, find myself reminiscing about Joes (freshman) bar and, yes, the downtown Roly Poly that has now been taken over.

Last weekend we were invited to a dear couple friend's home just outside of Athens. This would be the gathering that several college friends (many of whom I hung out with in college but admittedly it wasn't until I married "in" that I really got a taste of this neat bunch of friends.) Brad and I ate at our favorite, Five Star Day, on the way into town and then met the others to let the 11 little kids run around on North Campus. I can say I never imagined when I was there as an undergrad that I'd one day have two little boys climbing the magnolia trees and running through the beautiful grounds of North Campus - but it was so relaxing to watch them explore a place that is so dear to us. After wearing the little ones out we went back to our newly-turned Athens resident friends' house for a lazy afternoon of football and swinging on a porch swing in the perfect fall weather. The pictures below are obviously (finally) not from my iphone camera!..... And they speak for themselves. Last weekend in our favorite town was truly the most refreshing, relaxing, and rejuvenating weekend we have had in a long time! We are thankful for a group of friends all aiming to raise their families in a similar way and all in love with this perfect little city. See y'all next year!