Playing catch up here! 😉
Easter at our house!
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Our Easter Crack-Off Competition...
Kate was our champ!!!...
the only egg left without a crack....
She got the BIG egg with the moola!
Easter Bunny dump for all 9 of us....
🐣🌸🐇
We sent the boys on a hunt to find
their boiled egg....
😂
They love eggs more than anything!!!!
*************
In other family news....
The National School Board Convention was
in New Orleans this year.
I got to tag along with my man...
HAD a fetching good time!!!!
We spent some time sightseeing
in the French Quarter....
St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square
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A glimpse of Bourbon Street during
the day...
For our first New Orlean's meal we ate at Oceana.
Crab cakes, shrimp and creamy spinach
artichoke dip
topped with blackened crawfish
and Kentucky bourbon pecan pie!
Oh my...so delicious!!!
Also in the French Quarter's area
is this famous coffee and doughnut shop...
{since 1862!}
they are known for their beignets...
which I swear are covered with
half a bag of powdered sugar...
😜
Warning....Do not breathe in as you bite.
Granted I only had about 3 bites...
but to be honest....they were not my fav!
The cafe and the surrounding area
is splattered with powdered sugar!
Here are our friends trying them
for the first time....
One of my VERY favorite eats
of the entire trip was a collard green melt
from Turkey and the Wolf.
Phil, from the food/travel show
"Somebody Feed Phil,"
recommended this eating establishment.
Oh, so glad he did!
Seriously, one of the best sandwiches
I've ever had!
Jaw dropp'in good!
It was like a Reuben,
just without the pastrami.
{I'm still thinking about this sandwich! lol}
Jaren and I were able to tour the
National WW2 Museum.
Incredible!!!
We both LOVE the history from this time so it
was a fascinating place for us to explore.
This restaurant in the city
was recommended to us....
It was a dive, but certainly served some
fabulous home-cooked style food...
The shrimp creole I had was fantastic!
We walked Frenchman Street...
{supposedly to be less dingy
and dirty than Bourbon St...lol}
browsed an art show
and came across this band....
Quite entertaining!
One afternoon we rode an old-fashioned trolley
and went sightseeing
in the Garden District...
The trees in this park
were soooo so beautiful!...
We were able to go
on a swamp tour
in the Louisiana Bayou!
Seriously one of the most fun & unique things
I've done in my life...
Our awesome guide, Rocky
took us out searching for alligators!
He calls the alligators his co workers. lol
He feeds them marshmallows!
His rapport with them
was incredible to watch...
We had a 9 foot alligator named George on
the boat with us...
😳😅
I was taken back by the beauty...
and of course all the alligators...lol
In wide open areas we were cruis'in...
felt like 100 miles per hour.
I was laughing my head off!
I even got to hold a baby alligator.
So cool!
Here we are walking the streets
of New Orleans on several different nights...Some streets are a little quieter than others. lol
The city has a restaurant
on almost every corner it seems....
on almost every corner it seems....
We found an awesome pizza joint where
I had shrimp pizza...{on gf crust even}
So dang good!
I was able to attend some of the Conference...
The keynote speaker was Ruby Bridges...
Here she is as a kindergartner in 1960...
The first African American
child to attend a whites-only
elementary school.
The hubs and I snuck away to the
French Market
for lunch...
Where we found po boy sandwiches
and gluten free crepes...
....bless!
We went on a cemetery tour that was
super fascinating!
All the tombs are above ground due
to the city being below sea level...
Here is the tomb of Marie Laveau,
the "Queen of Voodoo."
It is the 3rd most visited grave
It is the 3rd most visited grave
in the United States...
whooooo knew?
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On our last night, the swankiest bowling alley
I've ever seen was rented out for the use
of several school boards...
I kinda hate bowling lol
but the food they provided,
especially the jambalaya,
was YUMMY!
It was fun watching the hubs bowl
against his fellow board members...
I was the official cheerleader
and picture taker..
cuz like I said, I don't bowl. lol
I was even taking pics of the bathroom...
it was pretty darn cool
in there.
We went from swank to ick real fast as
we decided to check out Bourbon St. "at night"
for those in our group who hadn't been
there yet.
This place is CrAzzzzzz-y!
What I found so interesting about this
city is you'd see filth and garbage
and run-down buildings on
one street... then a block away you would see
a hotel and shops that look like this...
👀
Our last meal was here....
The gumbo was ?????
....my least favorite thing
I had on the trip for sure...
BUT this SHRIMP....😍
I've had plenty of shrimp in my life and
this was hands down some of the best
I've ever had.
Messy as heck to eat...
we even had to wear bibs....
I topped the evening off
with a yummy praline here at the
oldest candy shop in the city...
It was so nice to spend time with the hubs
and all these lovely people...
AND.... one of the best things
about the trip was.... I hardly
had any flying anxiety.
Yay!!!
ALSO....the ear pain I get when flying
was minimized by these earplugs
{Even tho I didn't have a cold!}
I still had ear issues
{I've got Eustachian tube dysfunction}
but it was
manageable.
😓
😓
***************
In other family news....
The hubs and I celebrated our
31 wedding anniversary!
We celebrated here!
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The girls gave us such a sweet gift!
Speaking of temples....
The new Taylorsville Temple
is gonna be OUR temple.
I had the opportunity to be an usher
there the Saturday before Easter...
the day the contractors
went through to admire their work!
IT IS GORGEOUS.
The sealing room is one of the
prettiest I've seen.
😭
Hannah had a little trip to Colorado with
some girlfriends...
They rode the train in Durango.
Kate's General Conference puzzle!
I got to help throw a bridal shower
for this cute girl in our ward...
Fun time reminiscing at the shower!
****************
In food news...
Here are some keepers from this past month...
Aroon Thai Kitchen!
The ambiance and service were lovely...
Took the kiddos here during Spring Break...
one of our favorite spots in Provo.
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Cholo's in Sugarhouse!
The seafood enchilada IS superb!
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The gluten-free Bobo from Via!
😍
************
In Lilly Belle news....
I saw this cute thing for 133 days straight,
every day of her life, til I went out of town.
She is getting SO big....5 months old now
and sitting up!
when they were babies.
💕😌💕
