Atlanta Update-FINALLY!

We had a great time in Atlanta! So much fun, so nice to relax....aaah, the life!

We flew out of Portland, Maine on Saturday, August 23 at 6:05 am. So, the night before we decided there was no sense in going to bed since we had to leave home by 3:00. Needless to say, we were kinda tired that morning! Here we are at the airport...

And, here, boarding for our first flight together (Continental)! Yes, I'm a nerd and had someone take a picture of us. How often do you get your first flight together, right??!

Once in Atlanta, we took a cab to our hotel. We stayed at the Westin Peachtree Plaza in downtown Atlanta. We were on the 36th floor. Here is the view from our room...

It was cloudy and actually pretty cold for Atlanta. It was cloudy and rainy every day until the last 2 days due to the hurricanes.

Next stop...Rebecca & Jason were on the 45th floor. They had a non-stop flight so were waiting at the hotel for us. We decided to go get lunch-off to Maggiano's we went. It was so good! We did the family-style dining, so we got to choose two appetizers, two entrees, two sides, two desserts. TOO much food! We literally left the restaurant with 2 huge bags of leftovers. This is us before...

And after...

So, on the way out, we noticed a crowd standing around talking but didn't think a whole lot about it. The valet told us that it was Dallas Austin, Atlanta's biggest record producer. None of us had a clue who he was. Being starstruck as I am, I googled him and the valet was right! MAN-if only I had known I would have taken a picture! Here he is...

Sunday morning, we decided to try The Flying Biscuit, a recommendation I had received. Someone had told me that they have the best grits and biscuits you will ever try. Well, let me tell you-I had never had grits and had not heard of many people who like them. OMG...they were AMAZING! I found a copycat recipe so I'm planning on recreating them. We ended up going back again since they were so good! The biscuits were also awesome! They served them with this apple butter...wow.

We went to the Mall of Georgia with our full tummies.

For lunch we thought we would try Chick Fil-A since I had always wanted to, but this is what we found when we went...

Bummer! We did get to have it though later in the week. It was ok, but I won't lose any sleep that we don't have one near home.

We wandered around the Yankee candle shop and I just had to take a picture of this.

HA HA! For those of you who play Guitar Hero, you will understand! Sinister, DUDE!

Then, we wandered around some other store and saw this sign. I swear, all I think of is Guitar Hero these days!

We were all a bit tired at that point, so decided to take some rest at Pottery Barn..ha!

Then, Anand & I hung out on the rocks

Then, I found a sign that melted my heart. How true, how very true is this?! Hear me, Mom?!

For Sunday dinner, we decided to go to Benihana. We had a great, interactive chef and a really great time!

We drove by Centennial Olympic Park. That was interesting! To think the Olympics were held here!

That night, we went across the street from the hotel (no, not Hooters which also happens to be across from the hotel) to the Hard Rock Cafe for a drink. I had a Fruitapalooza..yum! I guess for $13 it had better be good! (I did get to keep the glass though)

On Monday night, we went to the Melting Pot! Fondue, fondue, and more fondue! It was so much fun-romantic, excellent service-overall, a great experience! We were there for 3 hours

Here we are drinking our Pomtinis!

Here are Rebecca & Jason-so excited!

Here is Rebecca stabbing-I mean feeding Jason...

Anand & I feeding each other...

The next day, we went to the CNN studio. Here we are in front of it...

Then, one of the highlights of our vacation. While walking around the CNN Center, we see a faux studio set up. You can go in and do a "pretend" broadcast and they will put it on DVD for you to take home. They have CNN blazers, a teleprompter, the whole deal. I knew we just had to do it! So, I talked hubby into it. It was SO MUCH FUN! My poor husband was sweating bullets! So, we are in the middle of our broadcast and the area is glassed in, so people walk by and look in at you. Well, this couple walks by and then we notice that people are having their pictures taken with them...we didn't think a whole lot about it. This man & woman keep looking in at us giving us the thumbs-up sign and laughing at us. We assume they are just walking around and watching us. So, after all is said and done, Rebecca tells us that she asked someone who they were. Come to find out, he is a CNN News Correspondent! TJ Holmes...we were being heckled by a CNN correspondent (and didn't even know it)!
Here is our heckler...

After our CNN stint, we stopped in at the Braves Clubhouse to pick up some Braves attire for the game. The manager asked if we wanted a picture-why not?!

Then, it was Aquarium time! They had a Titanic Aquatic exhibition, so we checked that out. When you go in, they hand you a "passenger ticket". At the end of the exhibit, you look at some lists to learn your fate. Rebecca, Jason, and Anand all survived. I wasn't so lucky. We were all first class and so I figured I stood a pretty good chance. Apparently, the person I was had been told by a fortune teller to beware of water. Oh boy...so that cruise Anand & I were thinking about going on-not looking so good now!

Here is a picture of my favorite fish at the aquarium...isn't he cute? He is a Grouper.

We goofed off a bit in the gift shop.

We went back to our rooms for awhile to get ready for the Braves game. They were playing against the Marlins. Here is Anand all dressed up...

We got to the field and it was literally downpouring. We ran from the car to the field in torrential rainstorms! Luckily for us, it was "Floppy Hat Night", so when we got to the entrance, they gave us hats! Of course, by that time we got there we were literally drenched. But, we had fun anyway!

Here I am doing the "Tomahawk Chop"

And, no, I hadn't had a drop of alcohol It was FUN!

Anand & Jason had fun cheering also...

And apparently all the cheering helped because the Braves won!! On the drive back to the hotel, a man started to walk out in front of us. Jason slammed on the brakes and the man waved us by. I looked at him and said "OMG-it's Deion Sanders!". Rebecca agreed. So, we almost hit Deion Sanders. Another celeb sighting...woo hoo!

We went to another game the next night. Unfortunately, our cheering didn't help that one! It was still fun though.

On Thursday, Rebecca & Jason flew back home so we were all alone. Boo Hoo! We went to the World of Coke.

Here we are at the Coke Fountain...

And here I am mixing the "secret formula"...

On our last night in Atlanta, we decided to have some authentic southern cooking. We went to Pittypat's Porch. It was decorated like "Gone with the Wind" and the food was good. Here is my fried chicken...

On Saturday, we headed to the airport and flew home! We had a great time in Atlanta!

And don't even ask about how my "weight loss" is going!