# 127 Ladies of LJA (and JAC)

Tonight I had dinner with some new friends-- several of the women from the Junior Auxiliary of Cleveland, MS. Since I've moved here, I have the option, as a "member-in-good-standing" to transfer to the Junior Auxiliary of Cleveland. So tonight, they took me to a dinner to introduce me to some of their members and talk about their projects and their particular chapter rules and such. We had a great time and I do believe I will choose to go ahead and get involved. I'm not planning on getting overly-involved in the community, like I was, say, in Laurel, but I think it is one good way to meet people.

While I had a great time with then, I couldn't help but think of my Laurel Junior Auxiliary ladies who are awesome and wonderful and many of whom I consider to be great friends of mine. I miss them dearly and I am sad to think about not seeing them anymore, but that's how life is sometimes.

Here are some pictures of my "last hurrah" with them in Memphis a couple weeks ago for the AEC conference:

Allison Travis and Erica McMahon

Caroline Ramagos and Tina Sauls

Nicole Sisk and I

Goody bag given to us by our President, Chrissy

Erica, Allison and Tina on Friday night before we went to dinner

My cool dark purple nail polish-- Tina encouraged me to try it and since I no longer have a job where I have to be boring and conservative all the time, I gave it a whirl! Love it! (Sorry Mom!)

Headed to dinner and Beale Street on the trolley

I have no idea what is going on in this picture, but I know the leg belongs to Caroline. I don't know who the money belongs to.

Chrissy Leggett and Caroline

Our "VIP" bracelets on Beale Street at Club 152-- this is how I roll, you know. Well, its at least how I roll when I hang out with a bunch of beautiful, fun women! Everyone wants them in their club!

Allison and I "in da club"

The lead singer of the "band"-- he even gave us some free cd's. Despite me having never heard of him, he was lots of fun to dance to!

The girls dancing!

My favorite picture of the night-- not just because its of me and Erica, but mostly because of the random girl who jumped in the picture-- she had been dancing beside us with her boyfriend the entire night. And you can tell how classy she is because of her excellent dental care.

When I headed back to the hotel, Beale Street was PACKED-- the Grizzlies won that evening and Musicfest was happening, so there were TONS of people there!

It wasn't all fun and games though-- we actually did some work, selling merchandise to make money for LJA. Even though it was work, it was lots of fun-- just hanging around, talking to each other, meeting other people. It was a nice way for me to get to spend some extra time with these fantastic girls!

I've truly loved being in Laurel Junior Auxiliary these past two years. Its brought me new friends, new skills, new appreciation for old skills, a new closeness with my mom, lots of new t-shirts, and some great stories. I'm sad to leave but I'm excited about new possibilities here in Cleveland. However, as Erica said when I was leaving, I won't "forget where I came from"-- Laurel is where I started and its where I learned the most about myself. It will always be home...