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3:00 pm

Holiday Dress from Amazon

These dresses might just be my favorite purchases off of Amazon. I was looking for a dress for family pictures and found the white one while browsing Amazon. I couldn’t decide on a color and really wanted to do white for our pictures, but then I saw the green one and couldn’t decide. I ordered both and I thought I would send one back, but omg I loved them both. The green floral one is sooooo soft, light and stretchy. It is so festive for the holidays. This brand has different colors, patterns and lengths. Such a great buy for $40. The white would be a great rehearsal dinner or wedding shower dress. They even have a leapord print if you are feeling risqué!

click here for White Amazon Dress

click here for GREEN FLORAL AMAZON DRESS

7:21 pm

admin HOME, LIFESTYLE, Uncategorized

Veteran's Day

Christmas time is usually a time when we try to teach it’s better to give than to receive. There are many things that you can do during this season to give back to others. We are living in a time when it seems everyone is so divided. I believe that one thing we can agree on, is how grateful we are to our armed service members and veterans. The holiday season is an especially hard and trying time for our service men and women who are deployed. This is also an extremely difficult time of the year for family members with loved ones who are deployed.

I can tell you just how hard the holidays are, when your loved is away. A time that should be filled with such joy is consumed by worry and sadness. My husband Scott spent our first 18 months of marriage deployed. During that time, we spent many holidays apart. It is extremely hard on the family and adds more stress to an already stressful time of the year.

We did not have children at the time he was deployed. I cannot even imagine how hard it is for those with children. My husband travels for work now and I know how hard it is with small children. My kids get incredibly sad when he’s gone, and my son asks for him at least 37 times a day. I know Scott will be back in a couple of days, but that is not the case with parents of those deployed. I remember a friend of ours had a baby in September and then her husband was deployed right after. He was gone for a year. Do you know how much you miss of a child’s first year of their life? ALOT!!!!

I literally do not even know how they do it. These men and women deserve our undying gratitude…. They made a sacrifice that will never be repaid to them.

I would love during this holiday season, instead of complaining about how others are disrespecting our veterans and armed forces. If we took the time to act on that and show some form of gratitude…actions speak louder than words.

In the spirit of random acts of kindness, we can display gratitude and support for our armed service communities and their family members. I have put a list together of things that can be done to thank a veteran.

The easiest and most obvious… actually THANK A VETERAN.

Seems easy right, but have you actually done it lately. My husband is the most observant person you will ever meet. He looks at hats, tattoos, and shirts. He can spot someone in the military like it’s a sixth sense. He always asks them if they are in the service and when they say “yes”, he then thanks them for their service. Most of the time he doesn’t even tell them he was in the military. It’s completely simple and easy.

Buy them a drink, coffee or even lunch. One thing I thought was incredibly kind was when Scott and some of his fellow army buddies were at the airport coming back from overseas, an individual bought their lunch. Now that’s a pretty expensive way to say thank you, but to those guys it was a great gesture.
A simple gesture. I remember a time when I was with my husband and my in-laws shopping at the mall at Christmas time. We came back to their car and there was a small note on their windshield. It read:

Thank you for your service. Hope you have a wonderful holiday season. Merry Christmas!

That was so touching, I literally had tears in my eyes. Apparently, they saw the Vietnam Veterans of America bumper sticker on my in-law’s car. How nice was that, such a simple gesture that honestly meant so much. Someone took the time to get a piece of paper and write a note. I can say that was a moment I think about often and know how appreciative veterans are to hear someone say thank you!

Send a care package or card at Christmas. I had a friend that was a teacher when my husband was deployed. I thought it was so very sweet that she had her class send Christmas cards to him.
Give to a charity of your choice that benefits Veterans.

There are many incredible organizations to benefit Veterans. My favorite one around this time of year is probably Toys For Tots

Maybe instead of spending five or six dollars on a very overpriced cup of coffee or paying for someone else’s coffee. Take that money and go to the Dollar Store and grab five or six presents and donate to the Toys for Tots box. I guarantee the kids of military families would appreciate it way more than the person you paid for their coffee behind you in line.

6. Wreaths Across America –sponsor a wreath here

This is a touching way to remember and honor those who have served and given their lives. You can volunteer to lay the wreaths, sponsor a wreath or donate to a local fundraising group.

There is no way to replace the overwhelming worry and utter sadness one feels when their loved one is deployed. I hope this holiday season we can make a real effort to show some gratitude to our military service men and women and their families. Let’s not just say we support them. Let’s actually act on it!

To my husband Scott Andras... you are my hero and I love you! Happy Veterans Day!

3:57 pm

admin HOME, TRAVEL, Uncategorized

Sydney, Australia

We decided to go to Australia because we wanted the first out of the country experience with our kids to be an English speaking country. With Taillon’s severe food allergies, we wanted to be able to communicate to the restaurants and hotel exactly what he was allergic to easily, and allow us to eat out there. Qantas was doing some really amazing deals when we were looking for our spring break destination, so we figured Australia was the right choice. I wanted a direct flight with no stops, so it all worked out and we booked it. The flight there went great. I was so worried about the kids not sleeping but I think being that it was an overnight flight made it easy for them. They were tired and had already eaten before we got on to the plane so that helped too. They watched movies on the inflight entertainment and played the games on it too. Occasionally they asked for there iPads but mainly they loved the inflight movies and games. I always pack a couple of new toys or books from the target dollar section to give them and we always bring a ton of snacks. Since Taillon has severe food allergies he doesn’t eat anything that the plane serves. So on short flights I pack some snacks. For this flight we fed him dinner before we got on and then brought all his food and snacks with us. I packed his school lunch box with some jello, pickles, fruit and a lunchable(not the most healthy thing but it works for us). I also had brought personal size cereal for breakfast on the plane. You just peel back the plastic top and I got milk from the flight attendants. It was a super easy breakfast for the kids on the plane. I preordered our meals ahead of time but I was glad that I brought most of the stuff for us because the plane food was pretty horrible.

Our hotel , The Sydney Harbor Marriott had to be the best location ever. It was literally a half a block from the wharf. It was basically a five minute walk to get there. Your best bet is to get a ferry pass to be able to hop on and off. Taronga Zoo, Manly beach, and Luna park among other places require a ferry ride. It was walking distance from so many great spots. The breakfast buffet at the Marriott was AMAZING!!!!!! So yummy and the had tons of great choices for the kids. It also had a ton of gluten free options for me...which was great!

SYDNEY HARBOR MARRIOTT

Taronga Zoo was great, the kids loved the gondola ride going up into the park. We also loved how you got to see so many different animals that you normally don’t see in our zoo’s. We loved the kangaroos and Kuala but the platypus was really neat to see also. Toranga Zoo was definitely a full day experience and its a ferry ride from Sydney so the kids loved that.

TORONGA ZOO

The trip to Manly beach for us was not really a beach day. The weather was overcast and very cool. Let’s just say the weather on our trip wasn’t the best, but they were having surfing finals at Manly Beach and that was very fun to watch. It was a very cute little beach town.

MANLY BEACH

We loved the day we did Sydney Wildlife.It was way more smaller than the Toranga Zoo so you were much more up close and personal with the Kuala and kangaroos. The kids loved this. We did the Kuala experience and got to pet and take a photo with the Kuala. That was great! Not to far away from the wildlife was an aviator museum. We really enjoyed that. The submarine was the best! We did the Sydney Tower Eye, great views from up there, then walked around the mall.

SYDNEY WILDLIFE

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL MARITIME MUSUEM

SYDNEY TOWER EYE

One day we did the Sealife Aquarium. We try to do the aquarium where ever we visit because the kids love it. Such a fun day and the kids loved the Penguin ride exhibit. It was soooo cold! The kids thought the “yellow” snow was hilarious!

SYDNEY SEALIFE AQUARIUM

Like I said our weather was prettty crappy some days so we had a really fun pirate cruise booked on St. Patrick’s Day but it was cancelled do to the torrential rain. The kids were super bummed, we had pirate costumes and all. We were literally dressed in them getting ready to leave and they called and canceled so we let them pick what they wanted to do that day. They picked arcade games, laser tag and Hard Rock Cafe.

ST.PATRICKS DAY IN SYDNEY

On the day that turned out to be really good weather we headed to Bondi Beach and The Bondi Iceberg Club. This was my favorite day by far. The weather was beautiful and hot! The beach was fun but it’s was a bit windy and the waves we too strong for the kids. So we headed to the Bondi Iceberg Club for the kids to swim in the pool and to get the iconic Instagram Splash pic! Lol.

BONDI BEACH

The last two days the kids wanted to go to the playground that they loved. We spent all day there and they made tons of friends. The people were so kind and we had such a great time. They had a cute little row of Restaurants and shops so we ate lunch and got coffee and hot chocolate. It’s funny, If you ask what their favorite part of Australia was, they say the playground! Lol. It really was a beautiful and nice area for the kids to play. Overall the trip was great. The kids did amazing on the very long flights and our location of hotel was perfect! We would love to go back and see more than just Sydney. My husband stayed and did a scuba diving trip on a boat for 3 days and he said that was awesome, the kids had to get back to school so we couldn't stay. We really enjoyed our first international trip with the kids! Definitely recommend Sydney!

QUANTAS

SYDNEY HARBOR MARRIOTT

4:42 pm

Walmart

I love a great bargain! Kmart used to be one of my favorite places to shop… but since they closed, I’m not going to lie Walmart has really step up their game! I can honestly say my kids have grown up wearing their brand clothes. Here are a couple of fall transitional pieces I picked up this week and different ways to wear them. So adorable and super cute!

I love these cute plaid shirts. Great for fall, you could them wear with a cardigan or jean jacket!

Sleeveless Ruffle Tank Link

I love plaid shirts for the fall! You can wear them with jeans and even leggings and boots! This is definitely a fall staple. The black and orange one screams Halloween.

Fall Plaid Long Sleeve Link

Love this pink athletic top! It is so versatile. I’ll probably stick to my tried and true black leggings, but it can be worn many ways!

Pink Hoodie link

This black vest is so great for $10. Its too good a deal to pass up!

Black Vest Link

5:20 pm

admin HOME, LIFESTYLE

I have struggled for years with chronic pain from a stomach condition that started about 14 years ago when my husband was deployed. I starting suffering with really bad stomach aches from time to time. It felt to me as an ulcer; burning, bloating, pain in my abdomen. An ulcer to me seemed right because I figured I worried so much while my husband was deployed that I probably gave my self one. Then we evacuated for hurricane Katrina (that wasn’t stressful, at all) and the symptoms never went away. They continued to get worse and I was suffering everyday with it. Since I didn’t really know what was causing it or hadn’t seen a doctor yet (since we were living in a hotel because New Orleans was under water) and I never really changed the way I was eating (because we were living in a hotel) for weeks and the stress of everything going on like the hurricane (and living in a hotel) and having a husband in Iraq, didn’t help. Did I mention living in a hotel? I’m sure the coffee, fast food, and stress was a huge factor. Once my husband got home from his deployment and we were settled back to our somewhat normal lives after the hurricane, I saw a gastroenterologist and had an endoscopy done that revealed I had a very inflamed small intestine. After taking an acid reducer aciphex, I felt so much better and it never really bothered me until my second child was born years later. Living away from family, with a traveling husband and two small kids…. I began to suffer almost EVERY SINGLE DAY! It was awful. I had tons of tests run… cat scans, blood work, endoscopy and colonoscopy. The pain was indescribable, I was pretty sure I had pancreatitis or some horrible stomach cancer. I was told I had gastritis. Seemed simple.. nothing too bad right? But the pain was awful and was worse than the years before. The medicine I had taken years before now had terrible side effect like kidney problems, dementia, and many more. I quickly weaned my self off of it, especially since it really wasn’t working this time. There was a time where I only ate yogurt and bananas, it literally was the only thing that would not hurt my stomach. Nothing seemed to help, and I began to fear eating because pretty much anything and everything would bother my stomach and stress really set it off. The problem with a disorder like gastritis is you don’t look sick.. so for me, I think most people just figured I was over exaggerating. I mean, how could I be in that much pain, I looked normal beside the extremely pregnant looking belly. For a while I just tolerated it and figured it was just my norm to be bloated and have horrible stomach pain. Most of my worse flares were after flights. My doctor said it was because of the pressure on the plane that could be causing it or the stress of travel. Either way… it was awful. I tried all the things the doctor said to do, which mainly was control my stress (haha) and cut out acidic foods such as coffee, alcohol, salsa and such( you know, all the things that bring me joy in life). I tried all that and it didn’t seem to really work. So about 2 months ago I had enough. I knew I could no longer live that way anymore. Something had to be done. I was open to trying ANYTHING! I decided to try grain free because when my son was diagnosed with severe food allergies I had bought a cook book Against all Grain, by Danielle Walker who had healed her ulcerative colitis thru going grain free. She had a very inspiring story about how changing the things she ate truly saved her life. I began to see more and more stories of people who did the same thru paleo and whole 30. These were my options. I knew I tolerated dairy fine so I decide definitely to go grain free. I also incorporated low sugar and only did small amounts of dairy in the beginning. I stopped drinking coffee and alcohol also. I literally felt like a new person the first day… I kid you not! It was crazy! Here I am 55 days later and I have not suffered one day with my stomach. It’s crazy! People ask me all the time if it’s hard… well no…. be in pain everyday is hard. Has it been challenging…yes! Eating at home is easy, it’s going out to eat and travel that is challenging. I always bring snacks such as plantains, grain free chips, almonds, and travel size almond butter. I now choose green tea with honey and lemon instead of coffee except when I was in Nola… I caved and got my fav coffee from Café du Monde a couple of time. I mean if I couldn’t have the beignet then I was going to have the coffee, but it didn’t seem to bother my stomach.

These are somethings I also do that I feel has helped.
I add two capfuls of apple cider vinegar to about 8 ounces of water before every meal, and take a digestive enzyme with the meal. I take a probiotic everyday and a supplement called L-glutamate every night for gut health.
I forgot what it was like to actually feel normal. Living in constant pain can really do a number on you so I’m so glad I found something that helps! I has truly been life changing for me!

Blogs that helped me:
Against all Grain
Living loving Paleo
Wheat Belly
Whole 30

Disclaimer: Of course I am not a doctor, these are just things that have helped me, please consult your doctor for any advice regarding your health.

6:22 pm

admin HOME, TRAVEL, Uncategorized

ICELAND

Oh Iceland… where do I begin. We have always talked about going there, my husband wanted to scuba dive silfra and I wanted to go to the blue Lagoon. Two very different experiences but both extremely amazing. That’s the interesting thing about Iceland, you can have a relaxing experience or a much more adventurous one. We went with dear friends of ours that we have traveled with before, that always adds to the fun when you travel with friends.
We flew wow airlines which was a first for us. It is a discount airline which means the fares are extremely affordable but in the back end, you end up paying for bags… carry on and checked bags. You are granted a free personal item to carry on such as a purse or backpack. For me always flying southwest … this was annoying to say the least. Plus for a flight overseas not to have WiFi or in cabin entertainment was also a negative. We made sure we downloaded movies on the iPad before, but I was a bit shocked that there wasn’t one or the other. Everything from food to drinks to bottled water was an extra charge. NOTHING was free.

We landed in Iceland extremely early in the morning.. headed to our hotel..a taxi from the international airport to Reykjavík was $200. When they say Iceland is VERY expensive, it is no joke. It has been the Most expensive place we have ever traveled to. We were warned about Tokyo, Dubai and Hawai’i but Iceland was definitely the most expensive compared to those . We arrived sooo early at our hotel, Reykjavik Lights, that our room was not ready and nothing was open being it was 7 in the morning, so we ended up sleeping on the couches in the lobby. We were so exhausted from the flight and time difference that we passed out on the couches and waited for our room to be ready.

The rooms were small and quaint but our view was amazing. The bathroom towel stand in the shower was heated so that was awesome. It reminded me of the heated toilet seats in Tokyo.

Every morning there was a complimentary breakfast for those staying in the hotel. That helped out a lot since most tours left early and there really wasn’t any time to get out and go get breakfast.

The view form our room was beautiful, when it wasn’t bad weather. You could see the mountains and snow in the distance…so beautiful!

Our first day there we went exploring the city. The weather was cold but not unbearable but I also came prepared. I wore a pair of thermals with a pair of athleta polartec pants, a thermal top and an amazing coat from spyder active wear. I was warm and felt very comfortable. Gloves and hats were a must. Plus usually two pairs of socks one being wool and snow boots by sorel. The town is quite cute, and the mounds of snow on the ground just made it even more adorable.
We ate in downtown Reykjavik for lunch at an great Italian restaurant. The lobster risotto was amazing. For dinnner we ate a pizza place next to our hotel.

Our second day was the adventure. We were headed to Silfra to snorkel and scuba dive. The drive there with the sun rising was amazingly beautiful. Silfra is where the two tectonic plates of Europe and North America come together. It’s the only place in the world that you can touch both plates. My husband is a lover of all things adventurous, I am not! Haha. We couldn’t be more different and this excursion definitely showed that. There is sooo much to talk about on this experience that this will have to be a whole other blog, but it was beautiful and amazing and COLD!

That night we ate sushi right by our hotel. I was not impressed, WAY overpriced for what we got. The rolls were $25, compared to the same rolls in the states that would be $8-$10. My husband and I ended up getting a pizza when we left! Lol.

: OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

: OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Our next day we did a tour of the south coast of Iceland thru Grayline. We visited two waterfalls, Seljalansfoss and Skogafoss, a glacier and the black sand beach in Vik. The first waterfall we stopped at had an extremely high steep set of stairs the led to the top…it was a workout to say the least and since the weather had been so bad half of the stairway leading up was snowed/ iced over… so that made for an interesting climb up. I’m afraid of heights so this was hard for me but I try to do these things because I know my husband has no fear and would want me to do it. It was beautiful at the top but very windy and cold.
Our next stop was the town Of Vik. We had lunch… fish and chips… because I figured “when in Rome.” It was great. We walked out on the black sand beach peninsula to see some great sights,and got some great photos of what the lava formations do. Then we headed not to far away to the Black Sand Beach. It was so windy at this beach that the sand ( more like pebbles) were hitting us in the face. It was extremely cool to see this beach and all the little caves and rocks around.
The glacier was next. So cool to see in person. Neat to see a huge piece of ice just sitting on land.

The next waterfall we stopped at had a cute little food stand and gift shop. This waterfall actually has a trail behind it that you can usually go behind but since it was all iced and snowed over it wasn’t allowed. I would love to go back in summer to see it. That night we ended up heading back to Reykjavik and ate at some cute little French restaurant downtown, Le Bistro. The food was amazing.

Unfortunately our tour to go to the ice caves the next day was canceled due to bad weather conditions. That was a huge bummer so we ended up going downtown to walk around all day. We tried the Icelandic hotdogs which we had heard a ton about. The one we got was great. It snowed on and off this day. It was so nice just to be sitting in a cafe drinking a latte watching the snow fall. Great memories.

The next day they had extreme weather warnings across the country. Hurricane force winds and rain. Luckily our tour didn’t get cancelled to the Blue Lagoon, because this is what I was waiting for the entire trip. The water was amazing but randomly you would hit pockets of cold water and that was not cool when the weather outside is 35 degrees. They tell you to wash your hair and put tons of conditioner in it because the water is extremely drying on your hair. The problem with that is once outside you start to have ice form on your hair bc it’s sooo cold, which then makes your head even colder. You can swim up to the mud mask bar and get a silica mud mask while you swim. No lie my face felt incredibly smooth that day and the next…kinda regretting not buying some to take home. It made my skin feel so amazing. I also loved the swim up bar…who wouldn’t right? This was by far the highlight of my trip!

Our last meal of the trip was a great little Restaurant in Reykjavik called Messinn Seafood. I got the Ling, a white fish. It was sooo yummy.

All in all the trip was great! We unfortunately didn’t get to see the northern lights due to the weather each night and that was a bummer. I would definitely do things differently if we went back. I would go in the summer. The weather conditions definitely effected things we were suppose to do. We would rent a car and drive around to different destinations. Seeing the sights on a tour, you are very rushed and can’t take the time you want to spent at certain places. Our experience was great, it’s definitely different than any place I have ever been and the most snow I have ever seen.

3:29 pm

admin BEAUTY, FASHION, HOME, Uncategorized

Babe Hair Extensions By Aminda Amaya at FX Hair Studio

I had been contemplating getting hair extensions for a while. I used to wear the clip-in ones when I first started doing hair. I loved how they added length and fullness but I really wanted more permanent ones, but I never really trusted anyone up here in Texas to do them( hence the reason I still color my hair in my bathroom). Once I knew I was going to be in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, I talked with my bestie who I used to work with about her doing them. They are Babe Tape-In Hair Extentions. We matched my hair over the phone thru videos and pics…. I am not sure how we did it, but the match is dead on. It literally looks exactly like my hair. It only took about 2 hours to put in, probably a little less, but we were very chatty since we had a lot of catching up to do.
Once it was done, we trimmed about an inch or two off the bottom because I like the bottom of my hair full and blunt. I love them…. they are a bit heavy and the first couple of nights took a little bit of getting used to sleeping with them but, now they are great. It does add a bit of time to my blowdrying but it is definitely worth it!

The hair is about $100 a pack and I needed three packs. We did three different colors to match my hair. I did the 22 inch extensions. Installation can run $150 and up. That will be determined at consultation time!

So go check out my girl AMINDA AMAYA At FX Hair Studio

3:07 pm

admin FASHION, HOME

PERFECT HOLIDAY LOOK Festive Party Wear

Got a holiday party you need to attend…..whether it is for work or family, New Years Eve, or going to dinner, these are some great outfit ideas to really put the Glitz and Glam into the holiday. You can pair even a basic velvet top with some statement earring to make it holiday attire.

VELVET

JUMPER, HEELS, and CLUTCH: Nola Shoes and Accessories

Sequins

JUMPER : Nola Shoes and Accessories

DRESS: Vicidolls | HEELS: Forever 21

SEQUIN TOP: Vicidoll

Holiday Plaid

12:40 pm

admin FASHION, HOME, TRAVEL

NEW ORLEANS Laissez les bon temps rouler

I was born and raised In New Orleans. I met my husband on Bourbon Street, we had our rehearsal dinner at Muriel’s in Jackson Square, got married at The Audubon Tea room and both our children had there first birthday parties at the Audubon Zoo. It is a very special place to us and holds many amazing memories for us. We try to go back as often as possible, and Thanksgiving is usually one of those time. It’s kind of our tradition.

Prehistoric Park

This year we drove in and on the way we stopped at Prehistiric park in Henderson, Louisiana. My son loves dinosaurs so since it was his birthday the next day we stopped there for him. It is an outside trail with many dinosaur exhibits along the trail. It took us about 30 min to do. Some of the dinosaurs moved and made noises. The kids loved it.

Prehistoric Park

Ritz Carlton

We stayed at the Ritz Carlton on Canal Street. I have always loved all the New Orleans hotels at Christmas. It’s something you just need to see. They never disappoint. The Ritz is elegant, classy, and beautiful. The lobby is truly amazing.
On Tuesday morning they had a reception in the courtyard for the revealing of the life size gingerbread house.

It has 770 pounds of gingerbread
300 pounds of royal icing
134 pounds of fondant
41 pounds of candy
40 pounds of dark chocolate

They had Papa Noel there to welcome everyone and take pictures. In the courtyard they hot chocolate and hot apple cider, pralines and gingerbread cookies. Once it was time for the unveiling, the holiday singer sang Christmas songs and Papa Noel cut the rope. It was definitely something we would do again. Thinking of making it a tradition for our family.

We always like to do some sightseeing while in, this time we did some blog shoots in Jackson Square and the French Quarter. The kids played at City Park and went to Celebration in the Oaks when we had dinner with friends one night. They loved it…of course.

I did some shopping at my favoriting store in New Orleans, Nola Shoes and Accessories. Not only is it a great trendy store for shoes, clothes and accessories, but they are great friends of ours. I got some great holiday wear, a kimono that I have probably over worn lately, and a couple pairs of booties.

We had dinner one night at the Ritz, at BISTRO M. It was very good. They were amazing with the kids. They brought them out stuffed animals, and put there order in right away. I ordered the seafood gumbo and herb saint roasted oysters. It was delicious!

Gumbo YaYa

One day we spent in the French quarter, we ended up eating at GUMBO YA YA. We had never eaten there before but I was so hungry and it was close to where we parked so we stopped in. One rule of thumb when we are in New Orleans is we usually try to eat Cajun food. It’s hard to find good Cajun here in north Texas so we try to get it as much as possible when we visit. This place was great. Our waitress was a riot…. she reminded me of the girl version of my husband. Everything thing had a tag line, a joke. She has us cracking up. All the food was great and spicy! My shrimp and grits were AMAZING! We split a seafood and okra gumbo, one thing you need to know about me is I do not like MEAT in my gumbo. No chicken, no andouille…none… my gumbo is for seafood only. The gumbo was definitely good.

Rebirth

We also had a holiday dinner with friends at REBIRTH. It is a very small restaurant in the wharehouse district. It was FABULOUS!!! Everything we had was awesome. Best meal I’ve had in New Orleans in a while. I had tried to make it a habit of seeing my friends from home while in town. During the summer we all celebrated our 40th’s at MERILS, which was a great dinner too. Who doesn’t like to hang and have good food and drinks with friends?
I wish Inwould have taken more pics of the food at REBIRTH because it was so good. The ginger gimlet cocktail was toooo good.

Rebirth

Acme Oyster House

Usually one of our more casual meals ends up being ACME OYSTER HOUSE. It’s quick and close to my parents house. The charbroiled oyster are really what we go for. All this Cajun comfort food is why my pants never fit at the end of our trip, but it’s so worth it.

Some of our favs that we try to do are Copeland’s, Drago’s, Legacy, and more quick and easy, my favs are Caffe Caffe( chicken salad salad is awesome), buds broiler, and Pacino’s.

Acme Oyster House

Black Friday

As much as I love being in New Orleans for the actual holiday of Thanksgiving Day, I really go home for Black Friday. It’s my families tradition for as long as I can remember. We meet at the mall, have coffee and beignets at Cafe du Monde. We take a big family pic with Santa and then do some shopping while the kids ride the Christmas train. It’s a super long and tiring day but fun.

Natchitoches, Louisiana

On the way home we stopped in Natchitoches, Louisiana to see the City of Lights.
It’s over 300,000 Christmas lights and 100 lighted set pieces in downtown Natchitoches. The events all take place on the banks of the Cane River Lake. My son loved the fireworks, my daughter is terrified of them, lol. It’s a very fun thing to see. They have bounce houses, live music, and food booths. Such a fun but exhausting week.

New Orleans… till next time!

Natchitoches Christmas

2:01 pm

admin FASHION, HOME, TRAVEL, Uncategorized

The Return of the Bell Bottoms Fun on Bourbon Street

I have always been a fan of the 70’s… Saturday Night Fever is a cd I had early on…and dont forget Xanadu. I loved the hairstyles, music and fashion! That’s why when I saw these on free people’s website… I literally drove the 30 minutes to the nearest mall to get them! Love this outfit …and the jeans are so highwaisted then never fall down. They are very flattering and so comfortable!