Early June Weekending.

Hello and Happy Monday! Thank you for all the great feedback on last Friday's post, especially about mixing up our workouts. I added in weights and Pilates after this morning's walk ... and it feels sore in that good sort of way 😉. Now let me tell you a little about our weekend.

Marc played in the club's Member Member tournament. I have no photos. He did share that after Saturday's round they were in 2nd place and yesterday they played the team that won.

I think my weekend was a lot more fun!

The tournament actually kicked off Friday evening (players only), so I enjoyed Friday night snacks on my own.

I got an early start Saturday morning (with a speed-limit drive!) to meet Katie and the boys back at Ponce City Market and the Beltline. We had a ball ...  coffee and donuts (for the boys), a one-mile walk to Piedmont Park to the playground, then back to the market for a picnic lunch. After lunch, we walked another mile to Krog Street Market, where the boys enjoyed Jeni's ice cream, and then back again. Charlie fell asleep on the walk back so we walked around Ponce City Market to see if Sam would nap. And he did ... finally! 

at Jeni's

Katie and I both agreed it was the kind of day our husbands would hate, but we're definitely going to try it again ... soon!

Sunday morning, Holly and I walked down to the lake. She actually walked the whole way there (it's about 1-1/2 miles); I carried her home.

Then church and that big meeting I'd been planning for weeks. We installed the new team and took a photo.

In spite of that continuing open spot, I'm feeling optimistic about this upcoming year - because this is a great group of ladies!

Marc and I watched two more episodes of The Americans (we're now well into Season 5) and then we went to bed. This last photo is time-stamped just after 8 pm... and this morning my bookmark was on page 25!

I'm glad it's Monday ... I need to rest.

Hope your week is off to a great start!

Three on Thursday | The Beltline.

My two favorite little boys didn't have school yesterday. So I had the privilege of joining them and their mom at a new-to-me place in Atlanta - Ponce City Market and the Beltline. Same as last week, today's post doesn't quite fit into Three on Thursday, but I'm going for it anyway!

1. The drive down was awful.
2. It was totally worth it.
3. I'm looking forward to our next visit (hopefully on a weekend!)

Point 1. (and the actual was even worse). 

Thankfully the trip home was much better (see point 3).

Point 2. Where do I start? The cityscape views were amazing ...

headed north before lunch - Ponce City Market is ahead of us

headed north after lunch - the market is behind us 

too cool! Charlie knew about this and made sure I saw 

here's the door more "actual size"

but the up close shots with the boys....totally priceless!

even their mom couldn't convince them to smile!

but hotdogs could!!

Marc loves hotdogs. I don't. I texted him those photos and I think he almost wished he'd been there. (almost. it wasn't raining at home either. and golf.)

Point 3. ...maybe this Saturday.

Short weeks do fly by! I hope you're almost to the end of your to-do list ... because tomorrow is TGIF!

Exploring with Charlie | Story Time.

...introducing what I hope will become a very regular feature here - tales of exploring Atlanta with Charlie. Yesterday was our first one-on-one time since he moved. I researched the local library* offerings and the Wednesday morning story time was highly recommended.

I picked him up just before 10 am and after a somewhat mad search for his glasses, he settled on his mom's. How wonderful to have him back in the back seat again!

We got to the library early enough for him to choose - and me to read - a few books before story time started. I noticed that the shelves weren't as low and the selection wasn't as broad as "my" library, but he didn't seem to mind.

Once we moved to the room for story time, he got really shy (honestly, me too - it was packed ... with strangers).

but the woman who read (and sang, and quieted, comforted, cajoled and generally kept a room full of babies, toddlers and all their caregivers happy) was a wonder. The 40 minutes passed quickly and ended with stickers. Charlie was a most happy camper.

Which bode well for taking a "good" photo outside.

We had lunch at a local diner. The waitress complimented Charlie on his good manners and that made me smile. but watching him watch all the people (and enjoy his lunch) was even better.

He fell asleep in the car on the way back to his house (just a little over a 10 minute ride) but woke up to put the leftovers into the fridge. I kissed him goodbye and headed home.

We spent a little over three hours together and it was perfect. A great beginning!

*We still all live in the same county, so we share the same library (yay! Charlie doesn't need a different card and I can checkout books there, too) and his local branch is only two miles from his house. I LOVE seeing directions that predict "less than 5 minutes" to my destination!

Holiday Lights.

The Botanical Garden's holiday light festival has been on my must-see list for several years (I was surprised this was "only" its sixth season...seems like I've been wanting to go for at least ten!) and yesterday, along with my mom and sister, I went.

We planned to get there when it opened at 5:00pm so we could see a little of the garden before it got dark (sunset here is about 5:30pm). And what with Atlanta traffic and all, we left my house at 2:45 and enjoyed a leisurely late lunch at a restaurant close to the garden entrance. All that planning paid off - we were there just before 5:00 and it was perfect.

The camellias were beautiful.

Early evening light is also flattering on faces!

I was struck by how well the garden has adapted to the changing seasons*. My favorite places are just as beautiful without all the green.

and of course the lights give them (and us!) plenty of opportunity to play!

The garden staff (some paid, some volunteer) were most obliging to take photos.

The woman who took this one commented on our mother daughter night out and how we should cherish the time; her mother passed away this fall. It's certainly not a great picture of us, but in the spirit of the evening, I'm including it!

That poinsettia tree was the centerpiece of a stunning indoor exhibit with orchids, paper whites and amaryllis

I'm not sure why I didn't take more photos (but I'm sure you get the idea)!

When we came back outside, it was full-on dark ... and the lights were definitely putting on the show.

It was a beautiful evening!

...and we woke up this morning to rain! our first since early October. So glad we visited yesterday... I have a feeling things won't look nearly as pretty today (those camellias!!!)

Off to get ready for another Tuesday with Charlie (and one last visit with my mom). Happy Tuesday!

*Here are the posts from my  May and September visits to give you an idea of late spring and summer.