You'll have a good time... "I ga-ron-tee" - Justin Wilson

OH HAY!

Ryan and I finally made our way over to the Crescent City for the long labor day weekend. It was Ryan's first visit so of course I made a list of things he had to see/do/eat. Here are a few of my favorite shots from the trip and I still have a few more to upload. Just so happened to be the 36th annual Southern Decadence festival and the French Quarter was buzzing at all hours. We stayed up late and woke up early so we wouldn't miss anything... and I'm not quite sure I'm fully recovered 4 days later.

Napoleon House- oldest bar in the Quarter!

Behind St. Louis Cathedral at night

Bourbon Street

Jax Brewery

Streetlamps

The Dome! (Where the Saints beat the Vikings last night! YUS!)

Where the levees broke, the source of much devastation in the city.

9th Ward. I don't even know...

Sal's snoballs in Metairie!

St. Louis Cathedral

Gift shop silliness.

Cafe du Monde!

(real pretty, me. yeesh...)

We had such an amazing trip, saw so much and walked everywhere and still have some "must-sees" on the list to save for next time. So wonderful to visit with some family, too! The weather was perfection, we ate, drank, strolled and relaxed. You can't not love this city.

Beachins

Here are a handful of shots from our beachy weekend- We had such a great time with fam and new friends and as always, can't wait for next year's trip.

Since we can't seem to stay in one place for very long, there's another trip in the works... to New Orleans! WOOO! Ryan's never been and it's been about 5+ years since I spent a weekend in the French Quarter. I've been scheming so hard, making lists of landmarks places to eat and bars to sip tasty things in. I'm so excited! More on that later.

Happy Thursday everyone!

[RE]Creation

I haven't been around much...and to be honest, lately I have't made much (nothing). I love this space and I truly miss it.

Real life can get busy and not leave much time for interweb-life...but I don't feel like anyone should ever apologize for spending time away from the computer.

I think a big part of it is my new workspace. I was moved to a new office about 2 weeks ago and am now in a cube in a very open space, i.e. no privacy. Everyone that walks by can see what I'm doing on the computer and I don't want to get reprimanded for spending time looking at crafts, pretty photos, etc when I should be updating "bills of materials" and "collecting bid acknowledgement" forms.

When I get home in the evenings, I feel so tuckered and I look at my fabric stash and say "I'll play with you soon".

Today I leave for the beach for 4 days and I plan on recharging, getting inspired, and coming home with fresh new ideas, maybe working a bit on the ol' etsy (haven't sold anything yet which can be a little disheartening, but maybe I just need a new angle..?) and starting some new projects, take more photos, cook something new, get creative again.

I guess we all fall into little ruts and I'm just gonna have to dig myself out... with a sand bucket and shovel.

[photo: weheartit]

it's beach season y'all. my lobster-tinted skin knows it.

be inspired to cover yourself in coppertone and visit this amazing flickr set.

"There is no moment of delight in any pilgrimage like the beginning of it." -- Charles Dudley Warner

The past 4 days have been such a whirlwind! Wowsa. It began Thursday with a plane ride to St. Louis and then another one to Omaha. Ryan met me at the airport and we went straight to one of our most frequented places, Upstream Brewing Company, to get a couple of pints. After whetting our appetite we got Sushi at Blue..so good. After Blue, we met up with a couple of Ryan's friends, Pat and Joe for a quick drink at Josephine's, this really tiny hole in the wall bar with 70s decor.

Friday morning started early to pick up the rental truck. After a few hours of packing, organizing and loading (and probably a pepperoni jalapeno pizza...) we hit the road.

Everything was going so well until it got dark in Kansas and it was getting difficult to see. For whatever freakish reason, we can't get the headlights to stay on, but if we hold down the lever, the brights work. We pull over and using packing tape, tape the lever to the steering wheel...
g-h-e-t-t-o. Every time we signaled left or right, the windshield wipers came on and squirted water. Very nice. We decide to get dinner and stay the night in Wichita, waking up so early on Saturday morning for the long haul (10 hours). Oklahoma was pretty and yielded the best BBQ brisket sandwich I've had in a really, really long time.

We got into Houston at about 8:30 pm on Saturday and had 0 trouble falling asleep. The next day was reserved for unpacking and getting settled. Last night we cooked dogs and veggie kabobs and called it a weekend.

Lots of thinking and decisions and plans on tap for the near future, but I'm so happy for it. My muscles are sore- but it's a good sore, like I accomplished everything I set out to, and I'm exhausted and excited at the same time. My love and my best friend is a Texan! For the first time we share a zip code and I'm anticipating having a post-workday glass of wine with him tonight.

Like an amateur, I didn't charge up the camera before the trip, but did manage to snap a few photos:

A cute bakery we passed after sushi in Old Market, Omaha. I controlled myself!

Pretty cookies!

Little bar where we met up with a few of Ryan's friends.


Bags are packed and we're ready to go!
On the road, near Nebraska City, Ne

A little roadside religion.

Pretty Oklahoma!

...and then the camera died.

Hope you're having a fantastic Monday!

OOOooo off to have an adventure!

[google images]

Jetsetter Bunny!

most. amazing. ever.

Last time Michelle was in Houston (she came in for a wedding at the end of March) I gave her a few felted springtime critters- some birds..and this blue bunny. Over the past week, Michelle and Dylan had some time off, did some exploring/travelling and they took blue bunny with them!

He went everywhere! All photos courtesy Michelle and Dylan <3[Bunny @ Notre Dame, Indiana, where he went to Easter mass]

[Bunny at Grand Central Station in New York]

[Bunny and Lady Liberty]

[ Bunny in Brooklyn!]

[Bunny in Love Park, Philadelphia]

[Bunny @ the Liberty Bell!]

[Bunny @ Niagara Falls, NY]

[ Bunny @ the Canadian border. Neat, eh?]

[Bunny's home in St. Paul, MN]

I love it. Thanks to Michelle and Dylan- it looks like it was a really great trip!