Land in Hand

Downtown Chattanooga has a TON of adorable coffee shops. There are hole-in-the-wall type cafes with local art on the walls. Some with outdoor patios, fancy flavors and succulents in the window sills. I’ve been to some pretty modern ones as well with metal furnishings and quiches that cost $20, but could fit in the palm of your hand.

I grew up in a suburb of Chattanooga. My church is there, my family is there and many of our friends live in that area as well. So even though my husband and I live in the city, I spend quite a bit of time over in that area. And there were no local coffee shops for the longest time. We’d always just drive downtown.  But lo and behold one has finally arrived! “Sourdough Cuppa Jo” couldn’t have arrived at a better time.

I am a huge fan of local coffee shops. Nothing beats that cozy feel of a locally owned and decorated cafe. The baristas seem to know a little bit more about the coffee they’re pouring and I love all the personal touches.

So when a friend of mine who has been living out of town for a few years came in to visit, we rounded up the girls and had breakfast at Sourdough Cuppa Jo. I loved all of the natural light pouring in through the windows so obviously I wanted to take some pictures.

Can you tell who’s my sister?

I know this picture is fuzzy but look how cute Kristin is!!

I have had many different groups of girl friends over the years. They’ve all served tremendous purpose in the making of who I am. Each of them were the exact friends that I needed at that exact time in my life. My home base though in regards to friends has always come from my church which is how I came to be friends with the girls in this picture. One is a mommy of three, the other a missionary to Turkey, and our friend Callie is looking to move to Nashville. The tiny booger is my pregnant sister and my best friend.

We are all in different areas of life geographically, family wise and career wise. But it doesn’t matter when we’re sharing a cup of coffee together. I’ve known some of them longer than others, but I don’t think it matters much when you’ve grown in your faith together. When you’ve encouraged each other to pursue dreams. Travelled across multiple states to celebrate their wedding. Been the first one at the hospital for the arrival of their baby.

I don’t get to see them much. But I’m proud of them, and I’m proud to be their friend. They are oldies but boy are they goodies.

We nibbled on quiches and scones, chatting away about life, knowing there was no way to catch up on all we had missed. Everything from the service to the art was bright and cheerful. Our coffee came in beautiful hand-sculpted mugs. The owner had purchased them from a local potter and we unsuccessfully tried to talk him into letting us have them. I bought chocolate cordial cherry cupcakes from them a few days later and they did not disappoint.

There’s something so comforting in sipping a warm latte and hearing the laughter of good friends. It’s like a warm bath for your insides. Not like I have time for a lot of those. So I’ll stick to coffee and conversation ;).