Chris and I got in his car at 6:00 this morning and began the 10-hour drive to his cousin's wedding in New Orleans. We left all four children behind, in the care of my brave mother. It was our first trip to New Orleans, and my first time leaving Eli. I was pumped.
Just over an hour into our drive, we realized that somehow the bag containing Chris' suit and my dresses for the various events this weekend didn't make it into the car. We either had to turn back to go get it (costing us roughly 2 hours of driving), or find a place to stop and buy new clothes along the way (costing us roughly 2 hours of shopping time, plus the cost of new clothes).
We turned back.
It was not pretty. Luckily, my mom was willing to grab the bag and drive to meet us halfway, so we really only lost an hour and a half. Maybe two hours. I don't know; I don't want to think about it. We ended up arriving in New Orleans around 7:00 pm, instead of the 4:00 we had been hoping for. We drove through some storms along the way, and finally arrived in a gray, stormy, 65 degree New Orleans.
Mom texted these pictures:
Apparently it was cooler back home. Or Lily just jumped at the chance to wear her new winter coat. Either option is likely
Daisy's outfit cracks me up, too.
My sweet boy found a daffodil!
Meanwhile, we checked into a luxurious hotel room, right in the heart of the French Quarter. We took uninterrupted hot showers. We were crunched for time and feeling weary from the drive, so we grabbed carryout from a local restaurant, and enjoyed gumbo and blackened catfish in our room. Then we got dressed up and headed out to walk about a mile to a bar for a Welcome Reception hosted by the bride and groom.
It was raining.
Just a light sprinkle, with an occasional bolt of lightning, but it was enough to make us pause. Should we have the valet fetch the car, brave the traffic, and pay for parking? Or call a taxi? Instead, we decided to walk.
It was just the kind of thing that Chris and I used to do before we had kids. We have always loved walking in the rain without umbrellas. Now that we have four children, we are much more responsible. But tonight we were irresponsible, and our first encounter with New Orleans was a beautiful walk through the rain.
We enjoyed the party, chatted with aunts and uncles and cousins, and decided to walk back to our hotel. The rain was heavier, though, so we stopped for a little break.
Cafe du Monde just happened to be halfway between the bar and our hotel, and is open 24 hours. I can't think of much better than beignets and cafes au lait at midnight. It was perfect.
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