hello fall:)

Fall has definitely arrived in Atlanta, and the weather has been absolutely gorgeous! High 60's to low 80's during the day, sunny, and a crisp breeze:) I can handle that (although I do miss the pool days!). Well my weekly updates are turning more to monthly updates, but I guess being busy is a good thing right?! I cannot believe it is October already...time is flying by, but always fun as it passes:)

I think I left off with Labor Day weekend, and after all my crazy travels, I was in need of a rest weekend, especially because I all of the sudden started to come down with a cold...which is no fun. I think the freezing AC at work does not really help my cause. That Saturday I was bummed to miss an outing to Lake Lanier with some friends from work, but it paid off because I was feeling SO much better by Monday. Chilling at the pool, with a good book in the sun did me well:)

One evening next week I went to "Cocktails in the Gardens" with a friend at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. It was a really neat event, and packed! I had no idea that was the place to be on a Thursday night haha. I also started up with a kickball league that plays Sunday afternoons in Piedmont park. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but it is AWESOME. Simply stated. And I love my team...they are all fantastic and so much fun...it's been a great way to meet new people and feed our competitive sides as well! We're pretty good too...I had no idea that there is strategy in Kickball...but there is. Good thing they help me out haha.

Cocktails in the Gardens

The next weekend I was a little more energized to get out on the town. It was my friend Jenni's birthday that Friday, so I met up with a group of people at Ormsby's for dinner and hanging out. This is the bar with all of the games (bocce ball, pool, air hockey, etc), so you definitely stay entertained. I played a game of Skee-ball for the first time in forever...gotta love it, but I do need some practice haha. Saturday I met up with other friends (and made new ones!) for a BBQ and football viewing...so many great games on these weekends, I love it! Sunday brought another game of kickball (tally one for the W column:), some hot yoga (which I am sooo out of practice), brunch at this great cafe called Parish's, browsing booths at the Piedmont Art Fest, a get together with some work friends and fellow MN fans to watch the Vikings game, evening mass, and some cooking for the week! Full day, but great day:)

Egg "muffins" I tried for the first time...turned out pretty good! 

Nice for a quick breakfast when I am running late:)

I usually am not too adventurous during the week, with having to get up so early for work everyday, but I made an exception this week for a concert. I got to see Foster the People at the Masquerade with a friend, Tut, and it was AMAZING! They had a huge lawn space and outdoor stage hidden behind the venue, and the band was incredible live. The song "Pumped up Kicks" on the radio hardly does them justice. To avoid the traffic rush right after the concert, we ventured to Carroll Street Cafe - a great little place hidden on a narrow neighborhood street, and got some (decaf) coffee. On the way we passed through this new park area built in Inman park that had a huge pond and fountain, all lit up, with walkways over the water and tons of greenery - it was gorgeous. All in all, well worth a late night!

 Foster the People concert

 The park

The park again (photos don't do it justice!)

The next weekend marked my first trip back to Minnesota since moving down to Atlanta! So that was exciting of course. I joined my fam, aunt and uncle, and family friend for a late dinner at Axel's on Grand, and then my tired little self just went to bed haha. Quite the party animal I know. BUT I had to get rested for the big Griak cross country meet the next day! That took up most of the day, and I got to see awesome performances by both Kev and Laura! So fun, and so proud of them:) I headed off to Wilson's home for a cross country family potluck at his barn, got to hang with Laura a little at her apartment (and warm up too! it was cold!), and caught up with Marisa after! Yay:) Sunday I was in no rush to head back to Atlanta. I got to enjoy a great 5 mile run with Mom and Dad on my favorite Summit Ave boulevard that morning (longest run since my surgery at the time!). Then mass with the fam, and coffee afterwards at our friends, the Bard's, newly opened Claddagh Coffee Cafe....it was my first time there and I loved it! Such a cute place, with exposed brick walls, an additional seating area with couches downstairs, gluten free treats (!), and of course great coffee. The whole family went on a nice walk after since it was such a great day outside, so that was fun to chat and catch up:) I left for Atlanta that evening, and had a smooth trip back by way of Chicago.

Claddagh Coffee Cafe

During the work week, I enjoyed some nice lunches with co-workers (Cathy, Jaime, Deanna, Leann...just to name a few), as it is always great to chat and sit outside for a bit! I also got to run with with a friend, Nisha, in Piedmont Park one evening, and then had dinner after at nearby Jason's Deli...such a nice time! Another activity I recently took up thanks to a Living Social deal, is CrossFit. It's right by work, so super convenient, and a great workout! I needed some sort of motivation to help get me stronger again, after all my time off with my surgery. This leaves me sore and pretty exhausted, but I like it a lot! Plus, the people there are great.

Last weekend I got to welcome Grandpa Docherty to Atlanta! He was passing through on his way to his two ship reunions from WWII, so I took him out to dinner at the restaurant Wisteria in the Inman Park area. I had never been there before, but the food and service was wonderful! They even had a gluten free menu for Grandpa (another Celiac) and I. We enjoyed a wonderful two hour conversation before I took him to meet my Uncle Dave, who would bring him the rest of the way. I then made a quick stop at home on my way to the (surprise)....airport! I decided to take a last minute trip to Chicago to watch Danny and the Iowa Hawkeye girls race the next morning. Dad picked me up at the airport, and I stayed downtown that night with my fam. I had a nice (but windy!) walk Saturday morning with Mom along the lakefront, and great breakfast too! Then off to the race, where I got to surprise Danny, since he didn't know I was coming. He gave a great effort, and was fun to cheer on:) It was also great to catch up with some former teammates! After we chilled at a local bar/restaurant, and then I got to quick see Danny's new apartment before I had to head to the airport. I was pretty tired, so decided to head home then instead of having to get up early Sunday morning. I got in early enough to have a late dinner, watch some tv/football, and get a good night's sleep:) We continued our undefeated streak in Kickball the next day, and I also stopped by a grill out at a co-workers house right near the Park...got to enjoy some Sangria too...took me back to my Spain days!

The restaurant Wisteria

I had a few more weeknight outings this past week, when I went to see the Broadway play Wicked at the Fox theater with my friend Steph, and it was AMAZING! I want the soundtrack so bad haha. I also had a nice dinner with some Iowa MBA alums, hosted by the career services team that was in town for a big career fair. It was held at the restaurant Two Urban Licks, which is in a really neat renovated warehouse, and had great food too. Friday night I met up with some friends from work at the Irish pub Ri Ra, and from there "hopped" around a little, checking out the new club reign (unfortunately disappointing), and then to Cosmo Lava, which was fun but didn't quite fulfill our search for a good dance party. Another time I guess! I kept busy the rest of the weekend with some apartment cleaning, cooking, yoga (that kicked my butt! dang), a massage (yay! I was so tight haha), church (checked out a new one and really liked it!), a trail run (first in Atlanta!), and kickball, where we suffered our first lost in a tight 1-0 game that came down to the last inning:( Definitely intense. You seriously should witness this game.

 The inside of Two Urban Licks

 At Ri Ra with the Delta girls! (Priyanka, Diane, and Cathy)

Cosmo Lava with Pilar and Jared

Trail along the Chattahoochee River...awesome crushed gravel, wide, and lots of activity!

And now...I am hoping to finish this (long, I apologize) post so I can get to bed! Love my sleep:) And need it too!

Til next time...

xo Jennie

What a Whirlwind

Wow time has been flying! I can't believe it's September already...crazy. And for the first time in, well lets count...about 19 years...I am not starting school. But that's okay, I think 19 years of school is enough haha.

Well lots has happened in the past few weeks. I had a special visitor from the Netherlands come, so that was exciting:) We went to a concert one evening at the large amphitheater here in Atlanta and saw Parachute, Michelle Branch, and the Goo Goo Dolls all play...music was great! Visited the town of Decatur one day and I experienced my first New Orleans-style "Snow Ball" (http://www.neworleanssnoballcafe.com if you want to check it out) and it was quite tasty! Perfect for a hot summer summer afternoon.

 The Goo Goo Dolls

The next weekend brought us to Battle Creek, MI for the Amy Yeast Memorial Tennis Tournament. We had gone a couple years ago, so it was great to be back and see everyone!  There was even a mini Hawkeye tennis reunion, so it was fun to see some familiar faces. The whole Battle Creek crew is fabulous, and made the weekend fun filled with golf, tennis (of course), boat rides, dancing and drinks at the the riverfront bar, even a casino trip, and lots more.

 Sunset over the lake

 Hawkeyes!

Kathy Sue and Sara Dunn! Love them:)

New York City was calling the next weekend, but we barely made it because of bad weather all up the East coast. We were almost ready to go home and give up when we were able to get on to a delayed flight at the last minute...oh the joys of standby travel haha. But we did make it and had a great time visiting Bart's old roommate. Saturday featured a great ferry ride to a beach on the Jersey Shore (not quite like the tv show haha), and dinner at an amazing restaurant called Megu, thanks in part to its Restaurant Week prix fix menu;) Sunday was relaxing, although a bit competitive when it came to our intense game of mini golf at one of the Hudson River piers haha.

 The Jersey Shore...you know it!

 The ferry ride was like a mini boat tour of NYC!

 Mini Golf

 View of Manhattan from the apartment

 Dinner at Megu

I got a few major crises out of the way when it came to getting locked out of my apartment one night and not being able to get back in until after midnight, and also having my car breakdown in my work parking lot...but no major damage done, just temporary frustration haha. I'm hoping I'll be in the clear for a little while now. Other new adventures included seeing the show "Guys and Dolls" at the historic Fox Theater...it was a lot of fun and what a beautiful building! Another night we got great 2nd row seats in the outfield for a Braves game, and otherwise enjoyed making some good dinners, touring Piedmont Park, and just relaxing:) If only I didn't have to work...so sad that I will never get another summer vacation! But welcome to the real world right;)

My next weekend was a joyful reunion of friends for miss Katy Schumacher's (now Heggen!) wedding to Danny. I was a little late getting in on Thursday, but was able to make the second half of the bachelorette festivities in downtown Des Moines. Friday we had a nail party (thanks Katy!), got the reception venue set up, and had the rehearsal and dinner, followed by drinks on a bar patio with the whole wedding party...I was amazed by how many neat little bars and restaurants there actually are in Des Moines! Super cute. Saturday was the big day, with big fun and celebration:) Katy looked beautiful and the whole wedding was so simple yet elegant...well done you two!! They got married at a small, old barn, with the reception at Zart, that had amazing food (lots of gluten-free too! They are so thoughtful:), and of course...quite the dance party! All in all it was a great weekend and I am so happy for the new couple:) Love you guys! And SO SO great to see everyone again, with Claire coming from Australia, Emma from New York, Shelby from California, Mar from Minnesota, Leah from Ohio, and me from Atlanta...yay yay yay...I miss you all already.

Getting ready

 After the rehearsal in the Sculpture Park

 

 Cocktail hour at Zart - reception venue

 A toast!

 Group pics in Waterworks Park

 Wedding party at Simpson Barn - ceremony site

 Danny and the girls! haha

 Waiting for the couple outside:)

John, Emma, and Dad!

Now it is Labor Day weekend and I finally have some time to catch up a little. We got off of work early on Friday, so that just made my day...and landed me at the pool:) Can't complain about that! I met up with a few friends, and also fellow Hawkeye alums - Reed and Steph - to watch the Iowa football game on Saturday at the Brewhouse Cafe. They won by the way haha (but granted it was Tennessee Tech, so I would hope that would be the case!). I wandered around the neighborhood of Little Five Points a bit afterwards (where the Iowa bar was)...it has more of an eclectic vibe and was packed with people walking about, so fun to check out. Saturday night was more football with friends...it's definitely big here in the south! I also learned that Friday's during football season are official "wear your team colors to work" days haha. I guess I'll have to break out some black and gold! The rest of my weekend was spent being productive (yay!) around my apartment, so that I also had time to relax! I watched an entire movie for the first time since moving, with a friend from work - Cathy, and got to test out my new couch in the process...verdict = COMFY:) And if anyone hasn't seen it yet, "Just Go With It" is actually a really funny movie! Much better than I expected. Well that's it for now I guess! Til next time:)

 Steph - newly moved to Atlanta!

Go Hawks!

Love, Jennie

Wedding Weekend - Round two - and More! (Much more haha)

Well I'm a little behind on my posts, I apologize...I guess traveling and working do that to you sometimes! I followed a Docherty family wedding with a Boddicker family (mom's side) wedding the next weekend back in good old Iowa City. Though a little delayed both ways, I made my first full "non-rev" trip, so that was a nice success! (Special thanks to my wonderful cousin Alyssa who picked me up at the airport late Friday night:) Rain turned our pre-wedding pool day into a BBQ at Dustin's house, and it turned out great! Fun to have everyone there all together for the first time.

My cousin Mike and Danie had a wonderful ceremony at the Newman Center and then headed to a huge celebration barn for the reception. They had a live band there that played lots of classics and kept everyone dancing the whole night...no surprise there with our family! haha.

What a good-lookin crew:)

Ha love Dad and Mark in this one!

The reception barn ceiling...beautiful!

Sunday was nice to relax a little since I had a late flight back to Atlanta. I got Dad out with me for my walk/run and revisited the Iowa cross country course for part of it! Then we had a group of over 20 people over at Grandma's (just the average crowd:) to watch the Women's World Cup Championship game...exciting despite the loss!

Besides wedding's I've been keeping busy during the week with lots of 10+ hour days, but trying to find a little better balance and routine, so that I am not so sleep deprived haha. It's amazing how fast time flies! But that usually means you're having fun right?! I've ventured out some more in Atlanta, going to this Taste of East Atlanta Village one Thursday evening with my friend Donna. It was pretty sweet...there were a bunch of restaurants on the two main streets that were offering "tastes" for only $1 each, so we got quite a tasty dinner! And dessert...there was an ice cream place that we had to go to of course:) Some of my favorites were places called Holy Taco and Urban Cannibals...fabulous food. We also found a fun vintage shop - Eclectic Gal - with a great owner who let us in after hours!

Holy Taco stand

Urban Cannibals Bodega and Bites

I also got to have dinner with a former Iowa Track teammate, miss Raven:), who was back visiting family in Atlanta...so fun to catch up! Another night featured a Happy Hour with several co-workers at The Sound Table in the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood, where I had this amazing "Cece Fritos" (fried chickpeas) appetizer with a mix of curry salt, sugar, lemon, and crispy capers...so unexpected but so good. Last weekend I went out with a few girls from work to a bar called Ormsby's, that was multi-level and had a ton of games to play (pool, air hockey, skee ball!, bocce ball, etc) that definitely kept people entertained! We took on another group in bocce ball and dominated haha.

The playing field

Sunday I became an official member of the Atlanta Botanical Gardens haha...it was so expensive a membership almost paid for itself in another visit, so if anyone wants to go let me know! But they were beautiful, so definitely worth it. I went with a few girls and we spent a couple hours wandering the many gardens, having lunch in the cafe, and even watching a chef food demo! Picture taking was extensive, but here is a small preview:

A small waterfall!

Great city view in the background

Stunning orchid wall

A sort of gingered bean stir fry cooking demo

Let's see...I've also had a couple Saturday slow-pitch softball games at Piedmont Park...one we got crushed:( But the other we tied an undefeated team, so that was a little better...good fun nonetheless:) And lastly, this weekend I did some major cleaning and to-do's around my apartment, so that is always good to get done...makes me feel productive haha. Saturday evening I went to a luau BBQ, where I introduced everyone to the great Midwest "Scotchie" bar (Scotcharoo's to some - the delish rice crispy bar, but with peanut butter and chocolate)...I couldn't believe NO ONE had every had one before!! They loved them of course:) After we went out to the bar/restaurant Front Page News in Midtown, which had a great patio and a live band in the upstairs! I did some cooking/baking this weekend too...yay for homemade granola:)

Outdoor patio at my friend Amanda's (far left) place 

And new friends! (Jenni and Jessica)

Band playing upstairs...some good tunes too! (even some of the classic 90's I love:)

Front Page News

Homemade Vanilla Almond Granola...yummmm

Well that is all for now...should be enough to keep you reading for a while haha. I will try not to wait so long next time! I'm still loving Atlanta, but of course love and miss you all!! xo Jennie