A Wedding in the Big Easy

Sunday before last Drew and I made our way across the Pontchartrain to New Orleans to celebrate the nuptials of a very dear high school friend.  Since we had just picked up Bud the day before we were not looking forward to saying goodbye, no matter how short, so soon.  But we know he had a great time at his Aunt Erin's with Mimi and Rigby.  And we did too, once we were in the Big Easy with good friends on such a momentous occasion in their lives.

Beau and Angela said their "I dos" at the St. Louis Hotel in the French Quarter.  Our room wasn't quite ready so Drew and I took a stroll around the corner to Dickie Brennan's Bourbon House.

 (I took this for you Dad!)

 Don't forget the mint julep! ;)

We we got back to the hotel the wedding decor was out, so I took a few pictures before heading up the get ready.

 Only in New Orleans!

The court yard was beautiful as was Beau's bride!

JJ & Hilary

Mr. & Mrs. Day

"Ridiculously good looking" I know, I know.

On thing you definitely don't have to worry about if you have a NO wedding is good food, it's guaranteed to be delicious.  

Look Mom & Dad, all those lessons paid off.  Just don't ask me what I played.

Chop Sticks, anyone? :)

Oh dear...

My husband sure can make me smile!

We sang our hearts out at Pat O's that night with the entire wedding party, it was so much fun!!  But the next morning we were on the road before the hotel shift change to get back to our little boy. 

FISH!

It's what's for dinner.

My boys went fishing with Poppy today.  And apparently they had some pretty good luck.  Since my Bud called every time he caught a fish, I know he caught 5 just by himself! :)  On my way home I called to see what my fishermen wanted for dinner, when Drew asked Andrew I heard him say, "Well fish of course Daddy, doncha know!"  So I was put in charge of buying new blades for the fillet knife and prepping for a fish fry...all of which is done complete with homemade french fries (Andrew's favorite at our house), so now I have a few minutes to blog before they get home.

Can't wait!  Y. U. M.!

And this weekend we'll all be fishin' and boiling crawfish at Poppy's fishin' camp in Bay St. Louis.

Cousins!
While we were all home on Monday Aunt Syd & Uncle Bryan brought baby Carrie Addis by so Andrew could meet her.

 Baby Carrie

He was so funny:  he cooed, held her feet, smoothed her hair down

He's my sweet, sweet baby.

Two precious souls.

(He definitely got his Daddy's eyelashes and he's soaked from our dance in the rain.)

He's going to make a terrific big brother.  :)

Legos!

Legos were my favorite toy when I was a kid and I was a freak about them.  I didn't want anyone messing up my cities, cars, or house so I would hide them under my bed when my nephews came over.  :)  I LOVE buying Legos for Andrew, I get so giddy when I walk down the Lego aisle at any store and don't get me started on Lego Shops! 

 Some serious building going on here.

Poppy joins in the fun.

I will admit today's Legos are pretty cool, but I like my old school sets much better.

Welp, my boys just walked through the door and Andrew is already showing me his fishing tan...gotta go! XOXO

Dancin' in the Rain

Monday I took the day off to spend it with my favorites two boys.  I couldn't have asked for a better day!  We are a very productive threesome.  My boys love projects.  So when we decided the day's project was planting a garden, Andrew couldn't wait to pick out his plants. 

It's so wonderful to have a husband who can build just about anything.

Andrew was pretty proud of his strawberry plants and Mammoth sunflowers!

Once his plants were in the ground, my helper became a little distracted.

Sand tends to do that to little boys. :)

As soon as I had the tomatoes, squash, zucchini, jalapenos, serranos, and bell-peppers planted the rain set in.

And Ben 10 challenged it face to face.  And then....

.... we danced in it!!

I sure do love this little boy.

Once the rain let up, guess where I found him once again...

 The sand of course...it's all over my house!

 He wrote, "Ben hearts Dad & Do-Dah."

 I'll put up with a little sand inside for love notes like this. :)

The Adventures of Ben 10

When we picked up Andrew he wasn't feeling so hot.  Drew & I think he's starting to get car sick on his long trips.  So we decided to go to the park in Meridian for a little while and let our little man get some fresh air before heading home.

On our way to the park, he informed us, "My name is Ben 10 now, and my nickname is Andrew."  For those of you who don't know Ben 10 is a boy super hero who can turn into 10 different aliens and harness their powers for the greater good of our universe.  I know it's quite a serious undertaking, but Drew & I are very proud of Andrew and we are behind him 100%.  

Thus begins the adventures of Ben 10!

As you can see here, Ben 10 is wearing his trusty Omnitrix.  

This allows Andrew to turn into different species of aliens and warns him when serious danger is lurking nearby.

Here he is as the agile Spidermonkey.

Escaping the DNAliens!  

Who knew the park would be crawling with villains!  Daddy had to become a sidekick so he could join in the fight, Kevin Levin to the rescue!  Another note for you Ben 10 non-enthusiast, Kevin can absorb energy and matter to become whatever he is touching.  Such as concrete, water, fire...you get the picture.

Ben 10, as he crosses a not so sturdy bridge over some unseen terribleness below.

Half way over the bridge, Ben 10 had a momentary lapse in super heroism and needed a little assistance.

Hey, all super heroes need a little help from time to time.

Ben 10 lives to see another day!

Ben 10 seems to have a few weaknesses:  Heights and Hershey's Chocolate.  You have been trusted with this sensitive information, please keep it on the down low from any alien bad guys you may cross.

I played the damsel in distress, Vilgax had me trapped on top of a tower.  Ben 10 saved me!

And I got a kiss!  (Sigh)

Ben 10, you're my hero!!

Tune in tomorrow for more adventures from Andrew, uh Ben 10....

Simply Beautiful

My first camellia bloom!

Thanks Willie, for all of the many smiles my tree will bring not only to me but also to so many others!

Notice my bud vase:  It's the handle of an antique knife and the stand is an antique spoon.  One of my folks' many finds at Canton.

Bradford pear tree blooms & buds

No matter what the season, no matter what the weather conditions nature can always bring a smile to my face.  God is always showing me his love in so many ways. <3

Wet & Wild Mardi Gras!

80 Gallons of Mardi Gras Beads

Only in South Louisiana will true Mardi Gras enthusiast face tornado warnings, stinging rain, and blustery winds to catch plastic beads and trinkets.  And only in South Louisiana will people like us and our friends ride on a float in said weather conditions throwing said plastic beads and trinkets to said hard-core enthusiast.  If you're not from here I don't expect you to understand and you probably shouldn't try, it's too much to wrap your little head around. ;) We had a blast!  We were soaked to the bone and none of us could stop laughing at how ridiculous the whole affair would look to an outsider.  I talked Kate, one of the engineers I work with, and her fiance into riding with us.  They are from Pennsylvania, by the end of the parade they were still laughing.  They couldn't believe what had just went down and that no matter how they explained it no one would ever understand why, but it was something they would never forget.  It's fun times like this that make our traditions last generation after generation!  

We are looking forward to taking Andrew this coming weekend!

Happy Mardi Gras!