My Birthday =)

=) This is the long over-due update to the last post {my summer has been pretty busy}. 

Emily and I made my birthday cake on the 9th of June. It took pretty much the whole day.

{I can't remember the last time I had a cake this girly for my birthday. hehehe}

Later that day we closed on our new home in GA! 

Our amazing realtor, Ashley

{she's the reason we got our house... she worked really hard with the seller}

The next day, Ems and I took a break from cleaning and packing to enjoy my birthday at the Georgia Aquarium 

 

 To get there, we rode the MARTA {bus & train} so Emily could get the full city experience.

{you get into the Aquarium for free on your birthday}

One of our favorite exhibits was a tank you could walk under and view several whale sharks and other sea life through 24" of acrylic.  

{the whale sharks were quite impressive}

Emily even got her hands a little dirty.

{the piranhas were particularly photogenic}

Emily loved the lion-fish,

but my favorites were the seahorses

and the jellyfish.

 {check out the colors on this crazy fish}

We had a lot of fun at the Aquarium, but I wouldn't suggest going there without a coupon.

It was fun, but there's not enough there to justify full price.

We were finished with all exhibits in under 3 hours.

{the end}

Hiking

Today after church, Mark, Emily, and I went on a picnic and hike with some of our church family up Kennesaw Mountain.

The trail was wide, but there were sections that were fairly steep. It was a good workout. I was tired when we finished, and I think my legs are just beginning to feel the soreness =)

The day was beautiful. It threatened rain all afternoon, but not a drop fell from the sky.

The view from the top was beautiful, and we could see all the way to downtown Atlanta. On a clear day, I imagine the view is even more amazing!

 

Hiking was one of the activities on Emily's list of things she wanted to do. She raced to the top with the younger portion of the church group while Mark and I took a slower pace.

 After an afternoon of hiking, Mark and I took Ems to our favorite pizza joint in Marietta, Aurelio's. It's authentic Chicago pizza, and the flavor is amazing!