I. You. We. Together. . .

Not so much this holiday season.  I spent a majority of the first part home sick, having to cancel my trip to little a to pick up my mom and drive to big A for Christmas at my brother's house.  Therefore, recovery was the theme of my Christmas holiday.

Things are changing and shifting for me and have been for some time now.  I feel that this time is a time for self reflection and possible rebirth.  Things may not always turn out how we planned them, but they turn out the way they do for a reason.


I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season with their loved ones.  2011 - I'm ready for you to bring it!

AGAIN!?!

He tried hard.

 

 

 

 

 

 Kevin secretly wants to be a super champion eating competitor.  He wants his name on a plaque for some sort of food challenge.  The local Creole Creamery offers such a challenge with the Tchoupitoulas Challenge and Kevin undertook the challenge back on August 12 of this year.  He failed....
  

This girl was generous...giant mixing bowl full of 8 scoops of heavy cream chocolate and vanilla ice cream, caramel, hot fudge, nuts, Cap'n Crunch Cereal, Oreo cookies, Chocolate chip cookies, 1 can of whipped cream, and some cherries and sprinkles

The challenge does not include a time limit, just that you consume the 8 scoops of ice cream plus 8 toppings (you can double up on toppings) whipped cream, cherries and sprinkles are included and do not count as toppings..

It doesn't look that bad...except for the size of the mixing bowl

You can imagine my surprise that after only 3 1/2 months Kev wants to take the challenge again.  After he experienced the Tchoupitoulas ice cream bomb, all he could smell was ice cream.  Seriously.  And I recall many trips to the restroom ...

Kevin digging in...the first few bites.  Happy Kevin.

 Yeah, he just thinks he wants to try again.  Look at how happy he looks taking on this beast.

Y

mmmmmm.....ice cream

 Remember the anguish?  Remember the pain?

Progress...probably the first 15 minutes of eating.

However, Kevin has a new plan of attack.  Originally, he added hot fudge and caramel to the ice cream as part of his toppings, however, these toppings made the challenge too sweet, even for a sweet tooth like Kevin.  He always says he eats his grandma's size portions of ice cream, and I can believe it.  Serious love of the sweets...brownies for breakfast?  It's got eggs, and milk, and flour. 

Cleansing the palate

Kevin alternated between black coffee and water to cleanse between eating stints...

Eating...starting to really hit a wall

While I support Kevin in his efforts to have his name in lights, I am not sure if I support the side effects of such a beast.

Was this about the time you started shaking?

 Everyone had a hilariously good time watching Kevin consume this ridiculous amount of ice cream...until the shakes set it....

Looking drunk on ice cream...

 Yeah, after he almost threw up on Meghan, he knew it was time to throw in the towel.  It's simply not worth throwing up on a friend, you know?

He only had a little to go...sort of...

Not. Doing. Well.

Ice Cream Soup...Where's PeeWee when you  need him?

: ( He failed the first time....will he prevail in his next challenge???

So, in the near future Kevin will be taking on the challenge again, sans the hot fudge and caramel.  He will be keeping with the cookies, Cap'n Crunch, nuts, possibly bananas, and vanilla and chocolate ice cream.  I just hope his body can take that amount of dairy again....

Lonely Road

 

Since moving to the city, I have noticed a retreat into myself.  I believed in the beginning that moving to New Orleans would kind of be one big constant party, at least in the city's atmosphere and we would easily fall into step with the second line march about the place.  That was not the case, but I honestly don't think you fall into line anywhere completely different from where you grew up. Moving to an unknown place has always been hard for me, but for some reason the New Orleans transition feels harder.

Steeled.  I feel more steeled to the negativity.  Little country mouse moved to the big city and learned that the cats around these parts are part of the mafia.  In becoming steeled, I have retreated into the safety and comfort of my home and husband, which is fine to a degree, but somewhere I kind of let myself get completely sucked into the comfort of my home and husband.

We were chatting the other night and Kev brought to my attention that he has basically been away from me for 1/2 a year.  Meaning, over the past year, I have only spent half the year in his presence.  Wow.

I am now on a mission to go out and find myself in this city, as my own person.  Not separate from Kevin per say, just distant.  I can't continue to sit in my cave house and wait for my husband to come home.  This is not a divorce of my husband by any means, it's just a proclamation to myself to go find what I'm missing right now.  Feed my soul...

I hope you all have good ways to feed your own souls - it's important to fill your bucket regularly.

Have a fabulous week!
xoxo

Brrrrrrrr Lambert!

Brrrr!!!!!  It's cold outside! I thought I would share with you a picture of my glorious lamb slippers!  They make me happy like the feather duvet on our bed makes me happy.  Like sleeping under a cloud. . .

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!  Stay warm!

xoxo

Charmed City

 

The spirituality in this city is tangible.  You can literally reach out and touch the prayers and wishes and curses.  What's your persuasion?  Christian? Pagan? Voodoo?  Santeria?  Jewish? You won't have to look very far to find others who share your own beliefs and aren't afraid to share.

I try to describe to people how the atmosphere in New Orleans is different, but I don't think you can truly understand until you are in the thick soup of prayer.  Being one of the oldest cities in America means that New Orleans has been the birthplace of many a call out to the glorious Universe, and being one of the most spiritually diverse cities that I have come into contact makes it feel as though all these prayers and passion are fighting with each other.  It gives the city a very seductive quality, the bustle and coexistence of so many cultures. Come get lost in New Orleans. . .

Driving into the city on I-10 from Baton Rouge, the drive is spectacular.  You pass many a swamp and crazy cypress tree.  You drive in a tunnel of trees providing you with lots of shade from the Louisiana heat.  You pass the graveyard cities and somewhere along the way, the atmosphere feels different.  Lost energy, expended energy, still floating.  Being surrounded by water helps contribute to the overall heaviness of the situation.  You are physically uncomfortable with the humidity and if you open yourself up to it, you are aware that this place feels different.

Closer to heaven.  That's what I feel here. The beauty that abounds in this city is fascinating to me and my easily-distracted-by-shiny-objects self.  We are still on our journey of making this city our permanent home and I feel blessed to be surrounded by so many prayers.

xoxo

A Walk to the Bakery

Kevin had just come home from work and we decided we needed delicious croissants for breakfast.


Fortunately, we live around the corner from the most delicious French bakery. Oh my Tyrannosaurus Rex, this place is good!



Along the way we came across a red door.


A pirate skeleton and his friend Bob.


A pretty turquoise garage door. Nice to look at, not extremely functional.


A Porsche. . .


With a flat tire.


Orange tree!


The goods have been collected.


Pretty bougainvillea. . .


Le Chat. This pretty kitty reminds me of my old cat Gus.


Motorcycle madness <---Kevin has it.


And then we returned home to eat our delicious croissant! I would share a picture but we ate the evidence. By the way, can you see the face in the bump on the tree?

Au Revoir October!

Hope you all had a smashingly spooktacular Halloween weekend! I decided to stay in my house for the weekend, you know, in case the ghouls came to get me. It was safer that way...

Cheers to October and anniversary celebrations and birthdays! Cheers to Halloween and all the spookiness that is included with the festivities!

*However*

BOOOOO to the little teenage rif-raf that barreled through the neighborhood at 1:00 a.m. and smashed all the jack-o-lanterns.

BOOOO ON YOU!

Happy November, y'all! It's a new month and a time for thanks!

xoxo