Back to School

At the end of August, it was time to head back to school. We had some more trickiness this year when we found out that Natalie had gotten into our neighborhood school but Nate hadn't yet--he was number 2 on the list.  We thought about just leaving them both at the overloaded school (they wanted to stay there anyway) but since Nate was so close to getting in we decided to have them attend the neighborhood school and hope he got in quickly.  That way, Eli would get into the neighborhood school when he starts next year and we would hopefully be done with all of this mess! 

So, we started out at 3 different schools--Elizabeth at the junior high, Natalie at the neighborhood school, and Nate at his same school as last year.  Thankfully we had friends to carpool with that made it easier.  When I had to pick up all of them, some would have to wait for quite a while for me to get them.  Nate was excited that he got his same teacher as last year since she moved up a grade.  She was a great teacher so we were happy about that.

First day of school:

Keeping track of pick-up and drop-off times on my white board:

It was complicated!

Nate eventually got into the neighborhood school a month after school started. That was hard for him.  He was sad that he wouldn't have any recesses with his neighborhood friends (who are just a few months older and in 3rd grade).  He really didn't want to leave his old school and his good buddy Pedro.  It broke my heart to see him so sad but we hoped it would all be for the best eventually. He has been adjusting slowly.  We like his new teachers (he actually has 2 that split time).  He is getting to know more kids.  He still wishes he could go back to his old school, though.

Natalie started yet another year at a new school.  That was hard for her.  She just feels really tired of doing that.  She always seems to make friends pretty quickly but she misses her good friend, Daniella, from her old school. I think she is slowly getting used to the new school, too. It makes me happy that she and Nate are at the same school again.  I like having them there together even though they don't always see each other much.

Elizabeth has adjusted well to junior high.  She was probably the most nervous to start but has been doing well.  She's still figuring out how to keep up and stay organized with her homework but her grades are great--as always--and she is in some pretty challenging advanced classes. 

Eli has started a preschool class that he loves three times a week.  His teacher is great and it's been nice for me to have some extra time to myself every week.  He is always asking to play with friends.  He's a social little guy so it's good for him.  

All in all, it's been a good year so far!

New Orleans!

In June, Joe and most of the other attorneys in his office planned to attend the annual AILA conference.  It was in New Orleans this year and I thought it would be fun to tag along.  Thankfully, Marsha was out of school and was able to come watch the kids so I could go.  We were so grateful!  It was a really fun trip.  It made me remember how much I love traveling with Joe.  He's a pretty great travel buddy. :)

We were on separate flights over but I was lucky enough to get a whole row to myself so it was an easy flight.  We got in and took a shuttle to our hotel and ventured out to find food.  We were hungry! We found a restaurant with the traditional New Orleans food and ordered it all: etoufee, gumbo, jambalaya, and even some fried alligator. Here we are trying it out:

It was good! That restaurant wasn't the greatest but I still really liked the etouffee.

It was hot! Can you tell how sweaty we are?

The next morning, Joe's conference started early and I headed out to explore on my own.  I walked quite a way to the World War II museum and stopped for some grits for breakfast.  It was my first time having them and they weren't bad!

A pretty shop on the way:

The museum was amazing! I was glad I went. I watched a really powerful movie first and then walked through the different parts of the museum.  I didn't get to see everything but still saw a lot.  I couldn't help but think of our grandparents and others who experienced it.

Where my Grandpa Allen served (mostly after the war had ended, I believe):

Loved this quote:

Then I met Joe on his lunch break at a restaurant that had been recommended called the Ruby Slipper Cafe.  It was SO good!  We got stuffed french toast and eggs benedict two different ways.  It was all incredible!

After that, I explored some more down Royal Street and by the river.

So many beautiful and interesting views!

There was a band playing just out of view in this picture that was so good!  I loved the music everywhere.

I thought Joe would appreciate this statue dedicated to immigrants.  The next night we went to a fundraising dinner and the man who made it spoke.  

We went to an Emeril restaurant with Joe's coworker, Erin, that night.

We went to Preservation Hall that night and had an amazing time!  It was so worth it.  The energy in that tiny, hot room was incredible. There's nothing like live jazz music.

Of course, we had to get some beignets at Cafe du Monde after that:

It was hard not to inhale all that sugar! 

We did some more exploring that I didn't get pictures of including Bourbon Street (not worth it--we had to shower and change our clothes just to get rid of the smoke smell, and we just passed through!), a ghost tour (also not worth it), and one of the most fun things we did--Pat O'Brien's piano bar.  Joe's friend from high school performs there and it was so fun!  She got us past the long line, gave Joe a shout out and we loved just singing along with a huge group of strangers (most of them drunk :) to a bunch of random songs.  We only got video of that.
We did go for a walk to the river together one night:

The next day, we'd planned on flying to Atlanta so see Joe's cousins but in the end, we decided to drive and I was so glad we did! It's not often that Joe and I road trip alone and it was a lot of fun. Plus, we got to see a lot more of the South that way. We drove through
Mississippi:

We drove through Alabama and then took a slight detour just so we could drive through the corner of Florida:

We stopped at a Piggly Wiggly there and bought some Bluebell ice cream, because why not?

Finally in Georgia:

We drove through some crazy downpours and then as fast as they came, they were gone.

We drove to Peachtree City to stay Saturday and Sunday night with Nate and Mandi.  They were so good to us! They fed us delicious food and took us on fun golf cart tours of where they live (they can drive to school and Target in a golf cart! There were miles of paths). We went to church with them on Sunday and then took a ride out to this lake:

We were so grateful to them and loved getting to know their awesome kids better.

We left pretty early Monday to head to the airport and fly back home to Marsha and the kids.  We sure missed our kids but it was a great trip!