some days I ain't so nice...

"Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you — not because they are nice, but because you are." - Author Unknown

living it up in the south...

So I'm here in Georgia. It's hot! 80's during the day so we get to wear shorts and sandals. Have seen and done a lot since the trip started.

We left bright and early Sunday April 9 from my parents' house, and managed to travel to.......Illinois........yeah, we drove the whole day and were still in stupid Illinois. Who knew the state was so damn long!! My son was like, "Mom, are we OUT of Illinois YET?"

The second day we drove out of Illinois (finally), and through Kentucky and into Tennessee. We made it to Lynchburg, Tennessee by 4:00, and were able to get the last tour of the day at the Jack Daniels distillery. While I can't say that I particularly enjoy Jack Daniels whiskey, the distillery tour was very good, and the best part was the cost - free. =) http://www.jackdaniels.com/jdpics/results.asp

Tuesday we woke up and spent most of the day in Chattanooga. We visited Rock City and Ruby Falls. Both places have a spot where you can supposedly see 7 states. They are next to each other on the top of Lookout Mountain. Rock City is a grouping of natural rock formations and crevices. There's one spot called 'Fat Man's Squeeze' where even I had to turn sideways to fit comfortably through. My kids really enjoyed it. Ruby Falls is a 140 ft underground waterfall that you navigate to through 1/2 mile of cave formations. It started as just the Lookout Mountain Cave, but when workers were drilling a hole for the elevator shaft, they felt a gush of cool air and explored the cave and found the falls.

Tuesday night we made it to my brother's house. Ahhh. Finally, good sleep! Even though it was only on my queen size air mattress, it was quiet and it felt like home and I slept until 9:00 (of course they're on Eastern time, so it was really like 8:00 to me.)

Wednesday we had a lazy day. We went to the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive history (www.southernmuseum.org) The General was on display there - the General was made famous during the Civil War when a group of Union men stole the train from Kennesaw GA in an attempt to cut the Confederate communication and transportation lines. It was interesting, but being from the North, I don't think it meant quite as much as it might have if I'd grown up down here. After the museum we spent the afternoon playing at the local park.

Today we colored Easter eggs with the kids and we ate at Fuddrucker's. I liked it, too bad there isn't a location back in WI. Cracker Barrel is really good too, but it's only in the south.

God, I love vacation. I think I'll forget my passwords at work on Tuesday (I hope!)

Georgia, Georgiaaaaaaaa..........

Georgia, here we come! Me, the kids, and the parents leave bright and early Sunday morning for our trek to Kennesaw, GA. Stops will be made in Lynchburg, TN at the Jack Daniel's distillery, and in Chattanooga, TN to see Rock City and Ruby Falls/Lookout Mountain. Final destination - Kennesaw and my brother's family.

Ahhh.....vacation! 10 blissful days I DO NOT have to think about work. Of course, it also means 10 days away from my fiance. If it's possible, he'll appreciate me even more than he already does, after missing me for that long. Maybe next time he'll want to go along instead of staying home for turkey hunting!

Have a wonderful Easter everyone!

making effective decisions....ha ha ha ha

Yesterday at work I attended a class called Making Effective Decisions. (It was part of my 'Personal Development Plan' for this year. Each year, every employee, with help from their manager, must pick a few areas to work on for personal growth. Life in the corporate world, eh? lol)

Now I must admit that I don't feel I have much of a problem making decisions regarding my work. I've been in this job for two years now, and I started as a temp in this dept. eight years ago. So I pretty much know my job inside and out.

However, as you all know, I'm planning a wedding for August. AND working on buying a house/40 acres. Now here's where I could use some help with 'Effective Decisons'. Heck, ANY decision!! I mean, I still haven't bought a wedding dress. And if I wait much longer, I won't even be able to order one, I'll have to buy off the rack. So what's holding me up? Simple answer - money. I've found the dress I love, but forking over the credit card for it gives me a sick feeling in my stomach. And really, it shouldn't. True, $535 is a large sum of money, but when you're talking about wedding dresses, most times you start in the $600 range and work UP from there. My fiance has already given me the green light to go ahead and get whatever dress I like.

Like my good friend Metamorphosis said, there's just no fooling...yourself.