Happy Sunday, friends! Here are a few quick photos from Easter weekend. I hope you all were able to spend time with family and friends and enjoy the best part of Spring, all the blooms!
New Orleans: Oak Alley Plantation
Our last day in New Orleans we took a mini road-trip to Oak Alley Plantation. The weather was perfect so most of our time was spent wandering around the property enjoying the huge oak trees. During our tour we learned that nobody knows who planted the trees, and they are thought to be around 300 years old! It was crazy to realize that these trees are older than America.
After our tour of the house we ate lunch at the restaurant just off the property, and afterwards went on a self-guided tour of the rest of the property. If you have a car when visiting New Orleans I would definitely recommend Oak Alley, if not for the history just to see the trees. We spent our last evening back on Magazine St. eating at the Israeli restaurant Shaya. It was amazing. I hope you enjoyed following along our quick trip!
New Orleans: The Garden District
After having spent our first two days mainly exploring the French Quarter, by day three we were excited to experience a different part of the city. That morning we took a guided tour of the Garden District — I highly recommend Two Chicks Walking Tours! The homes and history of the neighborhood were both fascinating, I especially loved all the details in the architecture.
After our tour we stopped for lunch at District: Donuts. Sliders. Brew. My glazed donut was delicious, and I had a great salad and green juice as well! The rest of our afternoon was spent exploring the stores along Magazine Street. We later realized that we had spent most of our time walking the wrong direction, the main shopping was a few blocks in the opposite direction, but having spent all morning walking we didn't spend too much time shopping anyway. One of our favorite finds was Century Girl Vintage.
One of the most interesting parts of our tour was visiting a historic cemetery. This particular cemetery mostly was utilized by the working class. Our guide even showed us where he will be buried someday, his family has lived in New Orleans for generations. He also spent some time "debunking" some of the ghost tour stories we had heard the night before, but I got the impression actual history was sometimes just as unbelievable.
That evening we spent a few hours relaxing back at our Airbnb before heading to The Gumbo Shop in the French Quarter for dinner. If you find yourself in New Orleans don't miss the Garden District. Just walking around could have entertained me all day, and there are so many shops it would be hard to pop into them all. Be on the lookout for one last recap from our trip later this week! (We spent our last day at Oak Alley Plantation outside the city.)
New Orleans: French Quarter
Happy Friday, friends! Last week I went on a quick spring break trip to New Orleans with my family. I have never been to Louisiana before so I was especially excited to check off visiting a new state. Just 17 to go! Our first evening and first full day were both spent exploring the French Quarter. We stayed in a lovely Airbnb outside of the main hustle and bustle, and loved having a real home to come back to each night. I haven't had the opportunity to spend very much time in the South, and I really enjoyed experiencing the food and culture!
Our first meal was at the Napoleon House. I tried my first Po' Boy there (which was delicious) and also really loved my Satsuma Pimm's Cup. Since it was St. Patrick's day we were able to see all the craziness on Bourbon Street before heading to Preservation Hall for a jazz performance. It was amazing. I definitely recommend getting tickets in advance so that you can have a seat, rather than standing in the back — it was one of the most memorable parts of our trip. (I even got a saxophone charm to add to my charm bracelet.) After that we headed back to the house to get some sleep.
The next morning we got up and headed to get beignets. We originally planned on going to Cafe Du Monde, but the line was so long we headed to New Orleans Famous Beignets & Coffee instead (which in my opinion was just as delicious!). After that we walked all around Jackson Square, did some shopping, and then ate at the Oceana Grill for lunch. After a little more sight-seeing we then headed back to the house to rest before going on a ghost tour. Although a bit silly, I had a lot of fun listening to the stories. We loved exploring the French Quarter, it was the prefect introduction to New Orleans!
STL Adventures
Happy Monday! Today I'm sharing a few photos from the last few weekends Dale and I spent in St. Louis. As the warm weather continues we have spent lots of time in Forest Park, we spent an afternoon at the St. Louis Art Museum, and we have popped by one of my favorite stores, Flowers & Weeds, a few times. I was especially excited to find a plant for my new llama planter. Enjoy!
25th Birthday Gratitude
Last Saturday I celebrated my 25th Birthday and I thought it might be fun to write down 25 things I am grateful for at this moment in time. Who knows, maybe this will become a yearly tradition!
- My husband, Dale.
- Recent and future travels and the memories I have made with family.
- Strong friendships. (Especially my college girlfriends!)
- Having family close by.
- A creative job where I can explore & create.
- My flexible work schedule.
- Working out at Fusion Fitness.
- Mentors and good friends at work.
- My health.
- Dale and I's first apartment, and the home it has become.
- Otto (our cat), and my childhood kitties Annabelle and Bonnie.
- Making time for reading.
- Listening to podcasts on my commute.
- Learning to love to cook.
- Learning outside of work. (Like signing up for the Calligraphy Summit!)
- Memories made watching KU Basketball games with Dale and friends.
- Photography.
- Generous parents.
- My choice to use more natural beauty and home products.
- The inspiration I gain from reading blogs.
- My blog, and how it allows me to document my life.
- Our friends in St. Louis.
- Meditation.
- My sisters.
- And again, Dale because we go on the most adventures together.