and other also awesome internet ladies that are now friends! In case your not familiar with Ree, the Pioneer Woman, you can meet her here. I’ve added a few of my favorite photos from Beth & Alena & Sara! Here’s the links you to Alena’s post of the signing, while we we’re waiting for group C to be called, & group C meeting the PW. Here’s Beth Anne’s take on the event also. I so enjoyed meeting Sara, Alena, Amy, Sally & Kathleen. It was great to see Beth, Beth Anne, Jenny, Meredith (here’s her PW post), Emilee & Sarah again!
I left work Friday afternoon around 1:45p which was a little later than I wanted. I was making good time on 40/85 until I got pretty close to Concord. Then traffic went from 70 to 20 mph & I really started sweating thinking I’d be late!! I called B at her work to let her know that I might be there a little later than we had planned. After 6 miles of stop & go traffic, we passed a clearing accident (on the other side of the road!) and I made it the rest of the way to Charlotte & Beth’s work without problems. We then met up with 9 other ladies who’d been grubbing & drinking a little at California Pizza Kitchen at Southpark. It was about 515 when we headed over to Joseph Beth Booksellers to get ready to meet Ree!
Since Mom doesn’t read, I’ll tell yall that I picked up a book for her for Mother’s Day & Ree was sweet enough to inscribe it to say Happy Mother’s Day (I’ll have to take & post a photo of her signature!). But I’m getting ahead of myself… Thanks to Sara who picked up tickets weeks ago, we were Group C! 
They passed out blue cards for us to ask Ree questions: our group asked the age old question: Boxers or Briefs! (For those interested, Marlboro Man wears boxers under his tight Wranglers!) Ree then stood upstairs and answered questions (she anwered ours first!), chatted about sweating, her love of spanx, and she even sang a lil! We waited for VIP 1 & 2 as well as Groups A & B, then it was our turn! We squealed with excitement & ran upstairs. 
Alena went first & the coolest thing ever~ Ree knew her name before she could say it!! Yay for twitter! She was so sweet & pretty & so skinny! We took a ton of photos individually then of the group with her.
We left on such a high: she was awesome, so laid back & normal for someone who’s a celeb! We were all a little hungry after the signing so we walked across the mall to Cheesecake Factory. They told us that for our group of 12 (plus 2 babies), it would be close to 2 hours. We said thanks, but no thanks & headed next door to Maggiano’s which was about to seat us after a 45 min wait. Dinner was yummy & full of great conversation with such awesome women!
Beth & I said our goodbyes after dinner & headed uptown to meet up with Kevin & friends out & about. We went first to Dandelion Market which is conveintly at the base of her building. After a few beers, that place was PACKED! So loud & crazy that we escaped to Zink where we could sit at a table outside and actually chat for a bit. We made it back to her condo & we’re in bed by 2. She took me to Green’s for breakfast before we headed back to her work to pick up my car. As I mentioned below, I then said goodbye & thanks to Beth & hung out with Ma from 11-2. My aunt Martha was also in town visiting my grandparents so it was nice to see her & my Papa as well.
I experienced Charlotte’s IKEA for the first time on my way back to Raleigh. I was going through it pretty quickly ~ it’s so big! I definitely want to go back with Jason to look at some furniture. But yesterday I bought a pillow for our couch, new pillows for the guest bed ($6.99 each!), a new watering pail, a green candle, a hot mit & a few other little things.
I hadn’t had it in years~ the raspberry banana concrete is now my favorite for sure! I can’t wait to catch up with each of them soon. Katherine & Jenny, road trip back to Raleigh soon? Or is it our turn to visit NVA? Charlotte again?!
