To Do List: #1 Floss

I went for my first dentist visit in years. I was excited about having my teeth cleaned, but worried about cavities (with good reason). I was not prepared for the news. The dental hygienist (I think that is what they are called) talked me through some concerns on x-rays. She identified about 4-5 trouble spots to further investigate. While cleaning, she found a broken filling that she was amazed it was not causing me a lot of pain. So now we are up to 5-6. The Dentist comes in and points out another trouble spot. And was sure that the broken filling was what brought me in. So, in case you haven't kept count, I have 7 cavities. Ouch! I am about to get to know the dentist fairly well.

Saturday in Atlanta, Part 1

We woke up on Saturday and attempted to prepare for a very wet day ahead. We found our starting spot for the MARTA (public train/subway thing), parked the car, bought our visitor passes and we loaded the train. We decided what station we needed to get off and starting walking through the rain. We probably walked about 6 blocks in the rain and you could definitely tell by the time we made it to the CNN building. I had on galoshes and a rain coat, but the area in between my jeans were soaking wet. Everything went smoothly in getting tickets for the CNN tour and we waited about 40 minutes for our tour to begin. The tour was very interesting and we got to see a lot of behind the scenes stuff.

Next we decided to head over to the Coca-Cola Museum. Thankfully it was only drizzling at this point, so it was smooth walking. I had sweet memories of the Coca-Cola Museum from my childhood and I was excited to see what it was like as an adult. Overall, it was very interesting, but chaotic. I did learn what 4-D theater is...3-D plus moving seats. I actually felt old in the 4-D theater because I felt sick with all that stuff occurring. I remember my mom commenting on that in IMAX theaters when I was younger. The tour ends with tasting of Coke products from around the world. Since I don't drink carbonated drinks, I left most of the tasting to Zach. He was brave and tasted Italy's Beverly. You can see his reaction below.

Next it was back to the MARTA to find The Flying Biscuit for some lunch. Once again it was only a light rain/drizzle to the diner. We enjoyed a wonderful meal, especially the biscuits and grits. As we were eating, the sky opened up and Zach and I got a little worried. We were several blocks from the MARTA and it was going to be a long walk. Thankfully it calmed back down just as we finished our meal and we had easy walk back to the MARTA.

Stay tuned to find out what happened after our 3pm lunch.

Home, Not So Sweet, Home

Zach and I had a wonderful weekend together. I have a long blog that I will be writing soon about this past weekend, but until then...Zach and I arrived home today to a cold home. I commented that it probably just felt cold because we had been in a warm hotel room and we keep our thermostat pretty low (60-65*F) at home. We unpacked and started catching up on email, etc. I went and checked out the thermostat which said that it was 59*, but that the thermostat was set to 65* (65* is our treat on the weekends). I manually turned on the heat and cold air blew out of the vents. We turned it back off and headed out to church. On our drive and probably during church, I was thinking through the options. We know that the heating unit is working because it is blowing air, so it is not power (fuse, etc) . The pilot light on the fireplace was on, so it was not the gas. I thought it must be the pilot light in the heating/cooling system. Unfortunately, we do not have any booklets on the machine, so we were left to our own devices. We figured out how to take off several panels and we began looking around. Zach correctly identified where a pilot light should be, but there were no switches, buttons, etc. I phoned a guy in our neighborhood who happens to own a heating and cooling company to see if he could help us light the pilot. Unfortunately, he was already in bed, but his son came over to see if he could help. His son informed us that our unit ignites the pilot light each time the heat turns on and turns off when the heater is not running. News to me. This means that our problem is bigger than the pilot light. We will be calling a service man tomorrow:(

One Free Donut

For several weeks, Zach and I have planned on going on a trip together this weekend. We could never decide where to go. At first we were going to West Virginia, and then to Kentucky Kingdom, and then canoeing or to the beach. As the weekend approached, we discovered that none of these would be good options because the weather forecast called for rain (thunderstorms to be exact) in every single one of these places. So, last night after work we decided we would head to Atlanta because there should be plenty of indoor activities to keep us busy. We hit the road without any idea what we were going to do, where we were going to stay, etc. We found a hotel and eventually made it to the hotel. Right before we made it to the hotel, Zach spotted a Dunkin' Donuts sign and so after checking in, we headed to the Dunkin' Donuts. Inside, Zach asked for a chocolate kreme donut and the guy told him they were all out. After pointing out the one he wanted that said chocolate kreme under it, the guy said, "oh, chocolate kreme, yes we have that one" and proceeded to pick up two donuts. I interjected to say we only wanted one, there was some short conversation tossed back and forth that I didn't really follow as he put 2 donuts in the bag. As he was turning around he asked, "Is there any other ones you want to try." I said, "no thank you" as he reached for a strawberry frosted and filled donut to put in our bag. We were charged for one donut and we headed out. Zach ate the one donut he asked for and the others are sitting in our room.

Shopping Spree

Over the past week or so, I have been on a shopping spree (well as much of one as I am capable of). I began searching for a light weight comfortable spring/summer dress and ended up with a few more pieces. I am actually really excited to have new clothes and I think that says something about how often I buy new clothes Zach and I hardly ever spend money on clothing or even go shopping at all. It has probably been over a year since I have bought anything fun for myself. Through the process, I was reminded out of style I am and how my body is not conducive to the new styles. One of the main styles that is frustrating me right now are short dresses. I don't know how many spring dresses I tried on that hit well above my knee to make them look strange on me. All this to say, if you see me in something that you haven't seen before, be sure to compliment me;

Chandelier Changes

I wish that I had a before picture of our chandelier in our entry way, but I guess I wish not to remember it. I did take a picture of one of the panes of glass with a flower etched in it so that you can get a hint of what it looked like. Let me describe to you the old chandelier that did not at all mesh with who I am. Picture a small gold chandelier that has 5 arms. Already not me right? Now add a shade of sorts that surrounded the chandelier made of glass panels (one for each arm of the chandelier) with an etched flower in it. Really, really not me. It gave me sore feeling every time I had to turn it on. I had a friend come over to brain storm how we could change this ordeal. My friend suggested spray painting the old chandelier black and then changing out the glass panels for beads, ribbon, fabric, etc. I liked this idea and spent weeks searching for something to replace the glass panels. I could never seem to find the right thing. The other night, I had finally finished spray painting the chandelier and Zach suggested adding round frosted bulbs to it and not worrying about having any kind of shade for it. So, up it went and now we have a much more Marna Jane pleasing light in our entry way.

The Old (or part of)

The New (or redone)

Photos

I believe I mentioned that our friend took pictures of Zach and I in wedding garb. She is going to begin shooting with a wedding photographer here in town and needed volunteers to help build her portfolio. I thought I would share some photos with you and if you want to see all of them you can go to www.pictage.com/630351