Six In The City - Part 2

On Sunday we headed to the Georgia Renaissance Festival. We really expected a big, open field with tents but were surprised to find a mini-theme park. The buildings are permanent structures and it's actually kind of impressive. We were some of the only people who were not dressed up, which was really surprising considering it was 90 degrees outside. It was a REALLY hot day.

Trying to decide which direction to head:

We acted silly, saw lots of shows, ate some good food and drank LOTS of water. The bottled water and soft drinks were MORE expensive than Disney World. Just thought that was funny! :)

The guys tested their strength

Scott became part of "The Ded Bob Show" and he had a GREAT time! ;)We stayed until the park was about to close and climbed our sweaty selves back into the car for a LONG drive back to Madison. We had a great time in Atlanta and enjoyed our time with great friends. Can't wait for our next road trip! :)

Six In The City - Day 1

Saturday morning Rob and I, along with our friends Scott and Meredith and Matt and Stephanie, headed to Atlanta for two days of lots of fun, lots of sun, and TONS of laughs!! We set out early Saturday morning and our first stop in Atlanta was The Varsity. This was Matt and Stephanie's first trip to Atlanta so of course this was a MUST! (Since Matt is from Arizona and Stephanie is from Louisanna they have LOTS to experience) After lunch we drove around downtown and ended up at Centennial Park.
We walked through Centennial Park and headed over to the Coca-Cola Museum.

After Coca-Cola we headed to Buckhead where we stayed at the W Hotel. (This pic is courtesy of whotels.com) After checking in and freshening up, we set out to find dinner. The rules were that we absolutely could not eat at a chain restaurant. We wanted local fare that only Atlanta could offer. Rob and Scott and our friend Maggie (also known as Magellan, the GPS) decided to scout out a local brewery in Buckhead. After driving for about 30 minutes towards our destination, when we arrived to the address it was a Japanese steakhouse. After laughing hysterically (because I have learned that the hungrier that people are, the funnier things become) we set out to find something else. We had seen another brewery on our way in so after about an hour we found Gordon Biersch, a place no one had ever eaten, or so we thought. Once we got inside and got drinks, Matt realized that he had eaten at one of these restaurants before in Arizona. This is an established chain with LOTS of locations. It was hysterical that it took us HOURS to find dinner and ended up eating at a chain restaurant....but it was good food and we had a great time. I had the BEST pineapple mojito EVER, so I was a happy girl! :)

After dinner we headed back to the hotel's rooftop bar, Whiskey Blue, where Rob showed off his dance moves. As I begged him to stop, Scott begged him to keep dancing. You can imagine who won! (I'm really sorry I have no pictures....NO I'm really not sorry about that, I'm actually quite grateful)

On our way back to our rooms we got "stuck" on the elevator with two VERY drunk women and their male sidekick "Seersucker Scott." We entered the elevator first and then their crew got on. Since the elevators were secure, everyone had to swipe their card to select a floor. We couldn't get to the buttons because this crew was in the way. One of the girls kept going in and out of consciousness and they tried to "kidnap" Meredith. It was absolutely hilarious. We rode up and down on that elevator to every floor except the two that we needed. People on the floors would just look at us when the doors opened but nobody would dare get on. It was SO funny! Again, no pictures. I was just focused on getting out of the elvator and away from the drunk clan. :)

Stay tuned for Day 2 - The Georgia Renaissance Festival! :)

Adoption Bands - Everyone Needs One

***UPDATE: Erin updated the sidebar so now it defaults to Akins. One less thing for you guys to worry with! :) Thanks Erin!

On Thursday I came across another company that helps families during their adoption process. Can I just say how amazing it is to come across these giving people who are willing to give up proceeds on their products to help "regular" people like us on our adoption journey??

I've been talking to Erin from Worthy of the Prize and she makes the CUTEST key chains and lanyards! She has set up an account for Rob and me and will donate 50% of her proceeds towards our adoption. ISN'T THAT AWESOME! She has helped me set up the ordering on the sidebar to make it even easier for you guys to order one of these adorable key chains or lanyards. You can also visit her at worthyoftheprize.com to see her other products (but the adoption key chains and lanyards are the ones that get us a percentage).

Just remember when ordering that Erin has set it up so that you pick the family that you want the proceeds to go to so make sure you choose "The Akins." (or split the proceeds between all the families which is another option)

We are SO excited to have found Erin and Worthy of the Prize. We hope you ALL order one of these adorable key chains or lanyards. We appreciate ALL of the help!!!

Attention All Coffee Drinkers - We Need Your Help

Rob and I have officially begun the adoption process. The first batch of paperwork is completed and our individual interviews are done. We are now working on the second batch of paperwork and then will schedule the home study. So far, so good. Our social worker is absolutely precious and SO easy to talk to, which has been such a relief. At this point, money is the biggest concern. We are trying to save but at the same time, we are also trying to pay some things off (remember, Dave Ramsey).

We started a new class at our church last week. This class is for new members or visitors to really get to know the church. Asbury Methodist has a HUGE congregation so they offer this class to give you a better opportunity to learn about ALL that the church has to offer. This week during class, we were discussing our adoption and how our interviews went this week. One of the girls in our class reached in her purse and pulled out a business card, handed it to me and told me about a friend of hers. This friend has a coffee company and has started donating some of the proceeds to adoptive parents, both beginning the adoption process and after the child has been adopted. Money was really on my mind all day yesterday and God definitely showed me at church last night that everything is going to work out!

As soon as we got home from church, I got online and looked at the site. Rob and I are now part of their site and I'm so excited about it. For every bag of coffee or t-shirt that is sold, we will get $5, for every tumbler, hat, or bag we will get $3 and for every scoop of coffee sold we will get $1. Each month they will send us a check to add to our adoption fund.

PLEASE, PLEASE visit www.justlovecoffee.com/nakins and anything you purchase will help us on our journey to our baby! Thank you SOOOO much!!!!

Yes, Maybe I Have a Problem (or two) but I'm Breaking Free

Over the last 6 weeks I have been studying Beth Moore's Breaking Free. It's a 10-week study and I LOVE it! So, I've been working on breaking free!

First on my agenda is breaking free from clutter. By no means am I a hoarder, but I accumulate a lot of STUFF! I'm not a knick-knack sort of girl. In fact, I'm very simplistic in decor. However, my closets are a different story! :)

Last weekend I finally found time to clean out my closet. Our house has many great attributes, big yard, big bedrooms, etc. However, since it's an older house, the closets are SMALL, basically non-existent (apparently people in the early 80's didn't need big closets, HA). So, when the seasons change I have to switch wardrobes and I began this process last week. My biggest feat was shoes and bags. Let me preface this by saying that I LOVE shoes and bags!

First I went through ALL of my shoes and filled an entire garbage bag to donate. (I'm talking the big black yard garbage bags). No human needs so many shoes! So, I narrowed it down and kept ONLY the ones that I actually wear.

Winter Shoes to be put away until later this year:

Summer shoes that I put in the closet (Can I just say that my toes are so glad it's warm again....I LOVE flip-flops)
A few weeks ago while in Atlanta, Rob and I visited The Container Store. Another "problem" I have is an addiction to organizers. I LOVE the idea of being organized but really struggle with the follow-through! While there, I found this gem

That's right, a flip flop holder! I bought it and put it to great use in my closet.
I also will be donating quite a few bags and purses too. I found a basket in our garage and am using it in the bottom of my closet to hold purses.
I'm not going to lie though. This is not all of my purses or bags. The rest are in our guest room closet and I haven't decided what to do with them.

I still have to go through the rest of my spring/summer clothes and add them to my closet so this task is still a ways from being completed. BUT, this is a start! :)

This is the first of a few posts of my "breaking free" tasks!

Weekend in Atlanta

If you know me, then you know how BAD I've been wanting to experience IKEA. Well this past weekend, Rob and I spent the weekend in Atlanta and I FINALLY got to experience what IS IKEA!

I was completely overwhelmed with "stuff" but didn't go too crazy! I kept myself in check! :)

The Loews Hotel- Atlanta opened last week so they had great room rates that we were fortunate enough to get. We were the FIRST people to stay in Room 1505. ;) The Loews is absolutely beautiful and right in the heart of Midtown!

Our view of Atlanta - look closely and you may see the Georgia Dome

On Saturday we headed to Buford, Georgia to the Mall of Georgia and did some sightseeing. We also ate lunch at

We left out Sunday morning and headed to Oneonta for Easter lunch with the family. My camera had died so we have NO pics from the family time! :( It was such a great and relaxing weekend and I can't wait until we have another weekend like that! :)

Happy Birthday Stephanie!

I know, I know....I've not been the best blogger lately. Let me just say we are having MAJOR computer issues at the Akins' house these days. Rather ridiculous considering we have 2 laptops and 1 PC but hopefully our problems will be resolved SOON!!

LAST weekend we celebrated our friend Stephanie's birthday. We all had dinner at Surin with YUMMY sushi and then had scrumptious red velvet cake and ice cream afterwards.

As always we had a blast with this group! Whether we are together for five minutes or five hours, it is constant laughing!!!

Happy Birthday Steph! :)