Hot-Lanta!

So I am still working through trying to be good about this again… I have a hard time thinking that anyone really wants to hear more than 140 characters about my life. I’m sitting on a plane right now heading back to Houston and so have a little golden time to focus and just relax. So it has been a full last two weeks! I’ll catch everyone up as quickly and as succinctly as I can.

I made it to Atlanta the next day after 13 hours in the car! I actually enjoy a little alone time in the car and road trips so it was a small blessing until the road became very dark and I realized I had not brought a flashlight with me in case I broke down. So the Lord blessed me with a handful of friends calling to check in on me, which made it seem not so scary! I had the distinct privilege while I was in Atlanta to tour and learn more about Walton Communities. If you are ever called to the Atlanta area I pray you will consider their apartment complexes. They run a legit ministry through their apartments making luxury apartments affordable to single moms and families. They not only do that but then they have an entire bottom floor of one of their buildings at many complexes turned into a after school program for kids that is run by the Atlanta Youth Project. This is not a room with some tables and computers this but an incredible learning area designed just for the kids. They get of the bus a teacher meets them leads them into their grand room and they have a devotional and then start on homework and snacks and much more. I could write an entire post on how amazing this business is they have begun. I was truly inspired by every person I met as they were not concerned with the bottom line of the business but the lives of the people they served.

Also while in Atlanta I was able to stay with one of my best friends from Washington Allison. She has been with me through so much and I laugh a lot because many of my funny or embarrassing stories of DC include her as one of the main characters. She is one of those close friends that you know so well that when you arrive at her house at 1 am in the morning from driving all day she just opens the door and walks back to bed… In a good one but I did give her a little hard time about that! I am so bummed I did not take a pic with her to share here. But most of our time was just spent doing everyday life nothing too crazy…. Except maybe bowling. Her husband had organized a work team outing for them to go bowling so Allison asked if I wanted to come along since she would be the only girl there… So I did and brought my friend Jenn as long as well. (Two things you should know before I go any further is you don’t already…. 1) I am a bit of a germaphob and 2) I have developed an incredible addiction to buffalo sauce! I put it on everything I can without looking too weird.)

So Jenn and I met up with them after having dinner at an unique restaurant called 52 Seasons. Because who likes bowling alley food. But when we get there Allie has all manner of buffalo wings on the table but the kicker is there is no sauce on them its on the side for your dipping pleasure. I tried to remain strong but to no avail, I began eating a wing and realized it was so of the best sauce I had had. Now comes the tough part we began bowling… Germaphob with her hands all over a bowling ball and some of the best buffalo sauce right in front of me… To make matters worse I had no hand sanitizer! I could’ve fallen on the floor and rocked I was in such a quandary. But I pushed through and ate some tater-tots dipped in the sauce and just prayed the Lord would protect me from the bowling alley germs! I could lose my stomach just remembering it but it was worth it!

So I wrapped up Atlanta with an impromptu lunch with someone I met at a conference there in the fall. It was one of those lunches that you look back on and half to laugh with the Lord about. Once Tara and I got to talking we realized how many folks we had as common friends and how much our life was so similar. What was to be a quick hi turned into an almost two hour hang out!

So I wrapped Atlanta up with running some more errands with Allison and then got on the road to Nashville! And I will end today there… no need to keep y’all any longer!