Farewell Beignets

We asked ourselves...if we only had 10 day in New Orleans, what would be on the "must" list? Then, we went and did those things! We have turned the page on this chapter in our lives and are back in Tennessee with family and friends. We are buying a home and plan to enjoy the great outdoors more now that we'll have easy access to the mountains and rivers of Tennessee and Georgia. I am working on a short memoir of our time spent in New Orleans...I'm sure it will be months before it is finished. Until then, we leave you all with photos of our last trip to Cafe Du Monde and of the 10 things on our "must" list :)

1. Eat one last Po'boy (We went to New Orleans Hamburger and Seafood Co. on St. Charles)
2. Eat beignets (If it's not Cafe Du Monde, it doesn't really count)
3. Eat crawfish (Crawfish Pie, thanks to Mike!)
4. Eat some sausage (We went to our favorite, Dat Dog, for the Duck Special)
5. Eat a "New Orleans" dinner (We enjoyed steaks and amazing appetizers with friends at Doris Metropolitan in the French Quarter)
6. See some live music (We went to our favorite jazz pub, Fritzels on Bourbon) 
7. Drink a daiquiri (I had a Jazz Daiquiri on Bourbon)
8. Take a walk through the French Quarter at night 
9. Cool off at the Creole Creamery (their ice cream is the best!)
10. Stroll through City Park and around Bayou St. John

Some major contenders included one last streetcar ride, burlesque, snoballs and Swamp Pops...there just wasn't enough time for it all. We know we will visit!

'Nooga Bound!

Most of you know by now that we are turning the page to a new chapter of our adventure... can you believe it has been over 2 years since we sold our house, found new jobs and moved to New Orleans? We have had the time of our lives! We are moving back to Chattanooga to be closer to family, by a house and soak in some outdoor adventure. We are so excited. Matt starts his new job at Signal Mountain Middle High School in just a couple weeks. We are house shopping and I have been interviewing for some pretty exciting jobs. We are uhauling our belongings in a week. I will still have one week left at work after that so we'll essentially be camping out in our house for a week :)

Stay tuned for updates!

Rocky Mountain Reflection

It's been a few weeks since we came back from vacation. It's always fun to plan, pack and go but not so much fun to come back and unpack! The mountains were beautiful. We saw snow and tons of wildlife (no bears!) We hiked several days, did a little shopping and soaked in some hot springs. Most days the temperature was in the 70s. Back in New Orleans, the heat index has broke 100 just about everyday since we've been back. We are ready for fall. 

The Summer Bucket List

As most of you know, I just love a list. I can make a list of just about anything and I'll admit I've even made a list of lists once or twice before. Ya'll know know I have a bucket list or two... but today's rainy weather somehow inspired a summer bucket list. We thought we'd share. Here are some of our plans over the next couple months:

Outdoor Adventures:
-Go Stand Up Paddleboarding
-Take the Ferry to Ship Island
-Explore St. Bernard State Park
-Go to Colorado!

Food Adventures:

-Manhattan Jacks

-District Hand Pies and Coffee

-Breads on Oaks

-Toast

-P’s and Q’s

-Country Club for Brunch

-Another Broken Egg Café

-Tableau

-Brigtsen’s

-Brown Butter

-NOLA Smokehouse

-Rocky & Carlos

-Austin’s Steakhouse

Personal Adventures:
-Michelle: write a Memories of New Orleans mini-book
-Michelle: develop a yoga practice
-Matt: finish writing at least one book
-Matt: make homemade pasta sauce

Crawfish for Everyone

One thing is for sure, New Orleans knows how to throw a party! Our company picnic was a crawfish boil and there were literally 12 table tops FULL of crawfish, sausage, potatoes, corn and garlic. To top that, we even had Plum Street Snoballs there making snoballs for all of us! It was a great time :)

 

What Snoball Flavor are You?

Yes!!!! It is snoball time again- the only good thing about summer in New Orleans in my opinion! We made it over to Plum Street on Sunday- the Nectar Cream and Blackberry Cream were delicious as always! The best use of $2 I can think of!!

New Orleans is Margaritaville

On May 6 we headed to the French Quarter to enjoy some time outside and to hear some live music. With all the "local" options, somehow we ended up at Margaritaville....but you know, New Orleans is Margaritaville. It's like the motto of the whole city is "it's 5 o'clock somewhere". I'm sure the honky tonk country tunes of "Bicycle Jones" lured us in. Somewhere between Alan Jackson and George Straight covers it just felt like Tennessee to me. It didn't hurt that Happy Hour Hurricanes were only $4 either! Here's a photo of us on our way to dinner.

Canoeing on the Bayou

The first weekend in May was a big one: Tulane baseball game on Friday along with the best root beer on the planet at Ted's Frost Top, a delicious brunch at Canal Street Bistro, a convertible drive and a moonlight canoe trip through Cane Bayou on Saturday, followed with jazz brunch at Palmetto's on the Bayou and a beach day in Biloxi on Sunday! Living it up :)

A Month Later...

I can't believe it has been a month since our last post! How did that happen??? I guess we have just been busy with trips to Tennessee and work. Not our typical New Orleans month. We are looking forward to festival season. This weekend is French Quarter Fest and Jazz Fest will be here in a couple weeks. Of course, it is also snoball season AND crawfish season. Fall and all the Halloween festivities are my favorite but it's hard to compete with springtime in the Big Easy. I have a few photos to share. These are from the neighborhood...I just love the cute shotgun styles.

 

 
 

Date Night at Barcadia

Each week we have "date night". We take turns planning unique or fun dates for each other and many times they are even surprises. We've had themed dinners at home (think Harry Potter feast) to Brazilian Steakhouse dinners in Baton Rouge. We've gone to comedy shows, played games, went hiking, and on and on. We do lots of thing together throughout the week, but date night is set aside as an opportunity to "treat" each other and really plan out something fun with the other one in mind. This week Matt and I went to "Barcadia"- a trendy arcade bar in the Central Business District. The cheese curds alone were worth the trip, but the burgers and praline bacon were a close second. We spent the evening playing skiball, air hockey and vintage arcade games. It was a fun night :)

Barcadia Bar & Arcade

Cheese Curds!!!

Carnival Doesn't Have to End (A Reflection)

On Ash Wednesday, there is a calm in New Orleans- a quietness. It could be because everyone is hung over or sleeping in. It could also simply be a sign of exhaustion. I look at is as a telling sign that "the party's over" for another year. I haven't met anyone yet that doesn't love something about Carnival season. Many locals say that you can "feel" Carnival coming the weeks leading up to January 6. Compared to most cities, New Orleans is in celebration mode all year long, whether we're celebrating po'boys, crawfish, music, a random tradition or a unique culture. However, Mardi Gras is like nothing you can imagine. The level of intensity, excitement, playfulness, carefree attitudes and indulgence feels like a detour from reality. So, when the lull comes the day after Fat Tuesday, it's time to rest and recover, put away the costumes, toss leftover king cake, go back to work and be productive again. 

This year, I had an interesting thought. While Ash Wednesday marks the start of an important time of reverence and spiritual reflection for many religious groups, "the party" doesn't have to be over. Of course, there are not going to be parades every weekend or opportunities to costume 3 nights a week, but the spirit of Carnival doesn't have to be put in a Rubbermaid tote until next year. 

Our Mardi Gras wreath is still on our front door. Our living room is overly decorated in Mardi Gras "stuff" (beads, masks, throws, etc). The things we caught from all the parades has taken over our guest space too. While we will honor the tradition of only eating king cake during Carnival, we keep our costumes handy all year round for any excuse to throw on a wig or dress as a superhero! There are many reminders in our home of Mardi Gras all year long. But, it's not just about the decorations or costumes, it's about an attitude, a perspective on life.

Some people may not be proud of what Mardi Gras turns them into. Many people drink and act foolish for several days, get kicked out of a few bars and wake up Ash Wednesday not necessarily remembering most of it. Honestly, that is much more likely to be the experience of a first time tourist that a repeat Carnival-goer or a local. For us, Carnival Season takes a load off. It temporarily suspends stresses, worries, fears and in ways, even work! (Matt's school was closed for the entire week of Mardi Gras!) Somehow, it mysteriously transforms us into playful silly people and gives us some sort of freedom that we can't quite label or explain. 

We spent the last few days of the Fat Tuesday week in Destin, FL on the beach. The weather was absolutely beautiful and the sound of the waves and the seagulls paired with our time spent staring at the tide and starry sky reminded us to remember life is what we make it. We choose our path and we choose how to react to what happens in life as well as how to interpret it. It is our choice to put the Carnival spirit in a box with our boas, beads and masks or to decide to keep it out all year long. 

Where's Waldo??? Mardi Gras, That's Where!!

We had the BEST time celebrating Fat Tuesday. From parades and funny photos to lunch on Royal Street, it was a day like no other. I don't think any photo could truly capture the experience of Mardi Gras, but here are a few... Matt costumed as Hunter S. Thompson. I hope it's obvious that I am Waldo! It was so fun!!

The Way We Celebrate Valentines Day in New Orleans

You won't see a lot of pink and red for Valentine's Day in New Orleans...it's all about the green, purple and gold! Here's to king cake and Mardi Gras flowers!!!

Parades Parades Parades

Parades are rolling every day now! We've been to 17 so far!!! Here are a few photos from the last few days:

  

  

 

  

A Parade of a Weekend

7 Parades in 3 days (Krewes of Oshun, Pontchartrain, Choctaw, Freret, Carrollton, Arthur and Alla). From the French Quarter to Uptown, we got to watch the floats roll by in a few different locations over the weekend. We hauled home a load of throws from each...hundreds of beads, a few stuffed animals, candy, doubloons (my favorite throw!) and random other stuff. Monday and Tuesday are parade-less days but after that it's floats through Fat Tuesday! Seven straight days of parades from February 11 through February 17. Whew! We are loving every minute of it!

Krewe du Vieux rolls through the French Quarter

Last year's theme was "Where the Vile Things Are". This year the theme was Krewe du Vieux "Begs for Change". Of course, this was a satirical reaction to several political hot topics, both locally and nationally. Floats highlighted themes such as gay marriage, common core, GMOs, legalizing marijuana and more. This parade is always a racy one (not really appropriate for kids, yet still there are always many kids there). It's one of the only parades that actually goes through the French Quarter, as most roll through the Garden District, Uptown and Central Business District along Magazine and St. Charles Avenue. While the floats are horse or human pulled, it is still a favorite parade among many. Not only is it usually creative and pretty funny, it gets us all in that parade spirit. Between now and Fat Tuesday, there are over 50 parades scheduled in the New Orleans area. Here are a few from last night! 

A New Year at Our House

We searched high and low for a new house for 2015...but after an exhaustive few months, we've decided to stay at our current spot for another year. It's in a great location and from what we've seen, we are actually getting a pretty good rental rate (although it doesn't always feel that way when we write the monthly check). We also have some pretty rare perks like off-street parking, included appliances, a fenced backyard (even if it is tiny), great landlords, a covered porch and central heat/air. Although it may surprise you, all of those are luxuries here for the average Joe, so to have them "all" is a real score! Since we decided to stay, we decided to give the inside a face lift: new curtains, a few new decorations, rearrangement of a few things and a good cleaning. Just thought we'd share...

Our House in New Orleans

Welcome! Our 2015 Mardi Gras Wreath.

Our Carnival Themed Living Room

Our Bedroom, with creations from our Wedding & Anniversaries

The Guest Bedroom

Our Kitchen...decorated with paintings we created together!