Allison and Josh are from Louisiana, so they invited us all down to Allison's parents' house(s) by the Bayou in Slidell, Louisiana. The property, which has a few different houses on it, has been in the family for generations--dating all the way back to 1938. It oozes with legacy and tradition and family connectedness, which is what I love. I had many moments of hoping that one day, our family could have something similar. Here are some photos of the property:
I wish i had taken more now that we are back.....here are some of the highlights from the trip:
1. One night Josh took us out on the pontoon boat to have a nice dinner out on the water. Allison's parents listened for the kiddos on the monitor, so we got to be footloose and fancy free. Being by the water, the restaurant, the laughter....all reminded me of our days back in Dominica.
2. Josh's family comes from Cajun country in Louisiana (Breaux Bridge), so his father brought 40 lbs of crawfish and had a crawfish boil for us! It was so exciting to watch how it's all done. I felt honored to get to be a part of it and really have the "Lousiana experience".
Then came the eating part. Or rather, the "pinching, tearing, peeling, sucking" part. I was (very) squirmy at first, but after awhile I got the hang of it and really, really enjoyed myself. Being with Allison and Josh's family and participating in their culture and tradition was the best part of all.
3. on Thursday, we decided to take a girls trip into New Orleans. We didn't get very far, though....about 15 minutes of driving and we hit major traffic. There was a bad car accident not too far in front of us and the traffic was eventually stopped completely. Allison's brother-in-law texted us and said it was best if we turned around on the median--said the delays could be up to 3 hours. Allison didn't want to be in the driver's seat because it was raining, windy, and muddy. I volunteered and hopped behind the wheel.
A few minutes later, I decided to make my move. Aaaaaand then we got stuck. in the mud. on the median. So did the truck behind us. I asked some random man to help us push our car and he, with a cigarrette in his hand, said, "I 'ain't gettin' in that mud." that was awesome. Then i found this young thang in a blue shirt. He was walking up and down the median trying to get educated about the situation. Instead, I got him to help us push the car. Here he is, later on, still roaming the median.
Since we hadn't made it very far, we just slid back into our non-moving spot on the interstate. After the car was parked, i went with a few other people to push the truck behind us. Here's an action shot that Allison took.
And then, my feet after the ordeal...
We waited another hour and eventually the road opened up. The whole adventure was much more dramatic than I'm explaining it to be and it was a lot muddier than the pictures show! I just don't have the pictures to tell the story. So.....
3 hours from when we left Slidell, we arrived in New Orleans! We got some pizza, then ventured out into the pouring rain to see a few shops.
4. The last day we all went into New Orleans! French Quarter, Bourbon street, the flea market, and beignets at Cafe Du Monde.
5. Being WITH each other. We had a few rainy days, but we didn't even care. We relaxed on porches, talked with each other, and ate good food. Seeing our kids play together was priceless to me; a real gift.
ok, i've dragged this post on for too long now. can you tell I enjoyed it?
So glad you enjoyed it! These little munchkins are adorable!!
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