New Orleans Anniversary Trip // Day 2 // January 2015

Ah New Orleans, it was a year ago this week that we were there for the first time.

Such a great trip, such a great city, so here are some more photos from our January 2015 trip!

Breakfast: Petite Amelie Cuisine Rapide (sans banana nut muffin I came in hoping for... : / )

Lunch: Port of Call, a trek to get there, but it's tasty and legit. 100% a dive, small menu, apparently decent prices for burgers and steak (when you don't live in the heartland... ) Fun.

Out & About: A lot of walking. From the Quarter to Port of Call, Port of Call to the Mighty Mississippi, and downtown. LOTS of walking. 

Weather: Gorgeous all day!

Lots of: Laughs.

Tried: Pinkberry.

Dinner: Riganelli's Pizzeria. I think it was over-hyped when I read about it. We walked a long way to get there, and it was just alright. Not bad, but not worth the walk. 

Surprise: Got caught in a rainstorm!

Love of the day: Jackson Square still decked out from Christmas. 

Wearing: Skinnies + Black Tee + Teeny Red Crossbody. Flats + Golden Bees on my ears, Vintage Silk Scarf to keep the frizz at bay (hah!) ;) & Sparkly pants in the evening, sadly not pictured.

Tried Very Hard To: have cake at the end of the night... : / 

See Day 1 , Day 3 Part 1, and Day 3 Part 2. See our first trip to New Orleans here.

Do you tend to walk a lot on your travels?! How do you keep from wearing down?! 

All for now,

Alexandra

The Parting Glass

Wednesday night the world lost one of the sweetest women in existence, my great grandmother Rita.

She was a baker of wedding cakes, a football lover a birdhouse crafter, and worked on a military base during WWII.
She was a wife, widow, mother, grandmother, and great grandmother.
She always had a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye.

She lived an incredible 92 years.

I saved the card she mailed Kyle and I for our wedding- because it always made me smile. Inside the cover she had tacked in a poem that she had cut out. It was taped inside the card with her address stickers, above it she wrote 'Alex - Kyle "advice"':

'THE THRILL OF COOKING'

No doubt you think the man you wed
Can always live on love
You'll find that this is just as false
As stars are true above
Ask older wives, I'm sure this fact
You'll find none to dispute
When the honeymoon is over
You'll have to feed the brute
The heart throbs will be over
With the honeymoon 'tis true
But the Gnawing in his stomach
Will last his whole life through.
Sometimes you'll think as years go by
You've lost his heart, THE LUMMOX
It isn't gone, it still is there
But its moved down to his stomach
If you would keep his heart in place
You'll find it all too soon
You'll have to feed his stomach
Always MORNIN', NIGHT and NOON.
I'm sure you'll want to keep him
Handsome, hale and healthy looking
So heed my words, leave off the love
Take up THE THRILL OF COOKING
And when St. Peter gives the word
YOUR MAN'S NEXT ON THE DOCKET
Stick by him to the end, my dear
PUT A SANDWICH IN HIS POCKET.

-original poem written by Estelle Branck

What a hoot right? It is sweet, funny, and old fashioned. Just the kind of advice I love to get from a grandmother at my wedding.

This woman led such a long and joy-filled life, that's all any of us hopes for right?

I did this little drawing on Wednesday, it was inspired by this song. It's kind of triumphant, but about saying goodbye. It's a tiny tribute to such a great lady. (though my writing got a little sloppy in the end!)

While I wish I could have known her better, I am so grateful for the time we spent together. I look forward to hearing more stories about her life in the future.

Until we meet again. 

Love,

Alexandra

Heart Links

How is everyone doing?!

I'm pleased to report that Kyle's birthday week, and the catch up week after went very well. Hoping to post more about this soon. Alas, there's been no time for blogging. New creative endeavors have also kept me from this space.... but perhaps this week I can get back into the swing of things. :)

In the meantime....

Many people do a weekly 'Link Love' post. Those can be fun, but it's just never been my thing.

This week the blog world has spoken to so many thing that have been wearing on my heart, so I wanted to share those, because you never know who else might be needing to read these things too.

On how we define ourselves. Oh so relevant, especially as a blogger, and living in the social media age.

On giving back & serving others. A good reminder that service comes in all shapes and sizes. A goal I have for this year.

On the importance of girl friends, and being happy for one another. Just the cutest photo shoot you ever did see. Has me reflecting on wedding happenings, and what it's like when that's something you are searching for.

On retaining creativity and individuality in Pinterest's world. I love Pinterest so so much. But this article raises some good tips on how to keep your individuality in your creative endeavors. How to keep comparison and copycats at bay.

On the promise of spring & treating yo'self. The yummiest recipe.

On ways to love your husband (or significant other). Spending quality time with and putting your significant other first is so important in a relationship. I love this list full of small and big ideas on how to focus on that person in your life.

On lofty goals, achieving them, and an easy way to give back this year. A reminder to dream big, work hard, and help however you can.

I hope that you are all having a great start to your week!

I am happy to report that mine has been relatively productive and a little bit laid back so far!

Tell me how you are! I'm so excited to go back and read a slew of posts from the past few weeks!

XO,

Alexandra