To Whom it May Concern . . .

Please excuse Amy from the Blog World this week. She has NOT been sick, or traveling, or trapped under something extremely heavy. Amy has, however, been without a computer of any kind including lap, desk, and phone,  for the past week. All blog posts will be updated from September 23rd forward, allowing those who are curious to be completely up to speed on the "Life and Times" of one said Amy Avery and her family. Until then, your kindness in accepting this request is much appreciated!

Sincerely,

The Management

A Dog's Life!

The dogs of the Avery House lead a very nice existence. Nice meals, lots of love, free roam of the whole front and back yard (Although they are in for a shock if they cross the invisible fence line), and the ability to lounge all day wherever and whenever they want. We sure love our furry little family members. They lead a good life and we are happy to provide it for them.

Greek Littles

Greek Dancers

I have always been intrigued with the dancers that perform at Greek Fest.    
 I am intrigued by the dancers because they are talented. I am intrigued because their dance is so beautiful. I am intrigued because they are continuing a tradition passed down from one generation to the next.

 It is a great privelege to be able to see these dancers proudly perform their tradition in this art form.

Their dance is a part of who they are and a part of who they will always be.

Oompah!

When you attend the Greek Fest, you can't help but get into the festiveness of the event.

After stuffing yourself with traditional Greek food including the most decedent baklava, and then making your way over to the public dance floor to listen to the Greek music and watch the Greek dancers, you can't help but feel like shouting "Oompah!" a few or a hundred times.

 Sophie has always liked the dancing at Greek Fest. She takes it seriously too as if she were herself a little Greek goddess on the dance floor.

Emma-Caroline would be the one who could pass for being a true Greek with her olive complexion and dark features.

But is our little Irish looking Sophie who really gets into the dance.

The girls had a marvelous time dancing this year with all of the other little boys and girls on the dance floor. At one point a very nice lady even showed the girls a few steps.

They had a wonderful time, as always.

     We look forward to going again next year. More on the actual Greek Dancers to come!

Greek Style!

It was announced by both Emma-Caroline and Sophie while we were at Greek Fest that they intended to dance after we finished our lunch, but on one condition.

They needed to have the special Greek coin headband and coin bracelets in order to be able to dance in true Greek style.

 I indulged them since we had forgotten our Greek coin skirt at home and two little Greek Dancers were born instantly ready to show off their moves.

 More dancing to come!

Greek Fest 2011

It's no secret that the Knoxville Greek Fest held at St. George Greek Orthodox Church is one of my most favorite things to do every. single. year! This year's Fest seemed bigger and grander than ever! My mom made the trip up from Memphis and we headed on over when she arrived. The weather was perfect, the food was amazing, and the dancers were exquisite! More to come on our fabulous time at Greek Fest 2011.

 The girls and Nana getting ready to enjoy Greek Fest. St. George is in the background

The mosaic of Jesus that fills the entire dome of St. George. Take a look back at the previous picture to see the dome from the outside. This mosaic is HUGE and very awe-inspiring!

Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks!

The purpose of our Atlanta trip was ultimately to go to the Braves game to see one final baseball game in person before the season came to an end. 

 Howie would like it better if I said we went to see the Mets, and in reality, we did. It was perfect weather for a baseball game!

We sat close to the Mets dugout but we were surrounded by Braves fans. The game was quick (Less than 2 hours) which made it even better. Sometimes I think stretching into 9 plus innings is like pulling teeth. But not this time!

To Howie's dismay, the Met's lost. Maybe next year! The girls had a wonderful time cheering for both teams and eating Cotton Candy.

We truly had an all American kind of afternoon!

Have a Coke and a Smile!

So, OK, I will admit it! Going to "The World of Coca-Cola" was an extremely touristy thing to do.

We're, I guess, a little bit on the side of tourist nerds like that when our children are concerned. We look at it as taking them on a field trip, so to speak, and in general, we usually all have a good time and are happy that we took the touristy route.

I mean, if you think about it really, it sure would be a shame if I had never been to Graceland in Memphis just because it was a tourist trap and I was too cool being a native Memphian to go there.

And it would be equally a pity if Howie had never gone to the top of the Empire State Building just because he was a native New Yorker and he had seen it everyday that he was growing up.

 No, doing the tourist thing is not always a bad thing to do.

And while I am admitting it, I have also been to Rock City and Ruby Falls. So there!

 SO , yes, we went to the World of Coca-Cola and did have a good time.

 The girls especially liked tasting all the different kinds of Coca-Cola products from around the world.

It was a nice diversion to take before heading to the Braves game.

Centennial Olympic Park Atlanta

 I may have this story wrong, and if I do, I am certain my mom will set it right, but when I was a little girl of the mere age of two, the United States celebrated its bicentennial year. I remember going to a park that was somewhere in Georgia, perhaps it was in Macon, or perhaps we were visiting my Aunt Brenda in Atlanta. The city we were in doesn't really matter, what does matter though is that I remember.

 I remember it being a sunny day. I remember a vast expanse of green grass, swings and these wonderful rocking horses that would teeter me back and forth. I remember I was very happy and that I loved that park!

 The last time we were in Atlanta back in April, we stopped at Centennial Olympic Park on our way back to our hotel from the Georgia Aquarium. On this trip, Emma-Caroline and Sophie asked if they were going to get to go to that "real fun park." in " 'Lanta" as Sophie calls Atlanta.

 They remembered!

 They remembered the cool slides and  the teetering, spin chairs, and the loungy swings. They remembered how much fun they had had with their friends Katie and Davis the last time they were there. And they wanted to go back.

Childhood memories are so important to have, especially if they are of wonderful happy fun times. It makes me happy that my girls will remember Centennial Olympic Park as fondly as I remember the park that I played in somewhere in Georgia on the bicentennial of our nation.

Virginia Highlands and Murphy's

This past weekend, we made a trip down to Atlanta to go to a baseball game and to just basically have a family get-away. I forget every. single. time how close Atlanta really is to Knoxville. You know it's only a three hour drive! Same as Nashville. So it's not an exhausting little weekend drive to make. Atlanta reminds me a lot of Austin, Texas when we lived there. The parks are great, the restaurants superb, the neighborhoods quaint and hopping, and there is never a lack for anything to do. We stayed in midtown Atlanta Friday night and could see Piedmont Park from our window. On our way out Saturday morning, I snapped the photo below as they were setting up for some kind of fair. I secretly wished we could have stopped to see what that was all about.

 But we had bigger, more important plans on our agenda. It was breakfast time, and since we were all starving, heading to our planned food stop was of utmost importance. Howie and I have a friend from college who lives in Atlanta and who recommended that we try Murphy's in Virginia Highlands for breakfast. As quoted by Greg, "The Flying Biscuit is way overrated! Murphy's is much better!" Really?! Murphy's was a must stop place then if it were better than The Flying Biscuit. I still dream of those grits and biscuits we had back in April.

 So we found our way to Murphy's. I must say I was in love at first site when we entered into the neighborhood in which Murphy's resides. Bungalow/cottage style houses abound and everyone is out running and walking the dog and generally looking happy on a Saturday morning. It was the neighborhood of my dreams. I saw at least 100 houses that I knew I must have and would move into today if we were actually moving to Atlanta. But I digress.

 So with a quick I-was-actually-here photo op, the girls, Howie and I stepped into the ultimate breakfast place in Atlanta with high hopes of cheese grits, french toast, biscuits, and poached eggs.

 Our hopes were not dashed as we were served delicious french toast and cheese grits, pancakes, salmon poached eggs, fruit, and morning glory muffins and biscuits. YUMMMMMMMMM!

I think the thing that I enjoyed the most about Murphy's was just the atmosphere and being in the neighborhood of Virginia Highlands. It felt like we lived there too instead of being out-of-towners just in for the weekend. After leaving Murphy's we headed into Buckhead to make a quick stop at Trader Joe's for 159 cans of coffee beans and then we headed downtown to the baseball game. Yes, Howie sported his Mets shirt as you all know he loves his New York Mets. I on the other hand wore a classy red sailor jacket and jeans to support the Braves. I am a Georgia born girl after all, so I am a Braves fan. At least it makes the game more interesting when Howie and I are rooting for opposing teams. More to come on our quick weekend Atlanta trip soon.