Idahoan Visit to Cajun Land
It's been a whole month? You have got to be kidding me?!?!? Seriously, after writing my last entry, I planned on waiting only a few days or so before taking time to tell the "Idahoan Visit to Cajun Land" story. Dangit. Why am I so bad at this? Here goes it...
Kim and I were super excited for the months, and especially the weeks, and even more-specially (ha) the days and hours leading up to our "Hoes'" visit. We spent hours talking and making plans of what we'd do while they were here. We made multiple trips to the grocery store to buy goodies--food we so badly hoped they'd like. We even went so far as to buy gifts ("I <3 Cajun Girls" t-shirts) and decorate for their arrival. Goobers, yes? But, we didn't care in the least.
Finally, when August 23rd arrived, we were about ready to jump out of our skins with excitement! Not long before we left for the airport, we got a text saying that Derek (Lethal) had missed his plane. My immediate instinct was to freak out and insist that he keep trying to get another flight or something. I figured he could at least pull some strings or something. On or way to the airport, Kim and I talked about how we so badly hoped Derek would be able to make it in that night. Then...we got this crazy idea--what if the boys were messing with our heads? What if Derek really didn't miss his flight, but instead they wanted to get us all worked up and then surprise us when they arrived? (That's definitely something these stooges are capable of.) After going back and forth about it for the hour-long drive to the airport in NOLA, we decided that they must be joking...and that we would totally give them hell about it when they arrived.
Jeff was the first to arrive; he and Derek were supposed to be on the same plane. As it turned out, Jeff really did arrive alone...but we still held out hope--perhaps Derek had somehow met up with Joey's connecting flight and they would arrive together. It wasn't until Joey arrived alone that it began to sink in--Derek wasn't coming. I tried calling him a million times, but...to make a long story short, I never did get to talk to him until days later. In any case, we headed back to Thibodaux and settled in for the night, as Kim and I had to wake up early the following morning for school.
Bright and early Friday morning, our dearest Dawn Jason arrived to drive the boys out of their slumber. (Hey--Jeff tourtured her plenty of times while she was attempting to sleep!) Joey was super stubborn; he slept all morning while Dawn and Jeff explored Colonel Country. They walked me to class, took pictures with "Caution: Area Floods" signs that are oh-so-appropriate, and trespassed into a sugarcane field (and lost Jeff's shoes along the way).
That evening, we went to Donaldsonville to see Kim's family. Her daddy went out and bought all kinds of Cajun seafood stuff (fish, crawfish, and alligator--plus some jambalaya), and her sister's family came to visit too. The food was delicious, of course, and we had a great time hanging out with her family. Olivia, her niece, is just so precious, and I really think the boys had a good time. Our night concluded with a nice game of Boxers or Briefs and some ice cold yogurt. ;0)
Saturday, decided to head over to Baton Rouge. I knew of a really awesome swamp tour in the area, and the boys wanted to see LSU. So, that's what we did...sort of. Just after arriving at LSU, we got a phone call to say that the swamp tour was cancelled. Because we didn't know of any other swamp tours nearby, we had to nix that idea, unfortunately. We did, however, visit some (fake) "swamp" in the middle of Baton Rouge ... which really should have been a clue to its lack of authenticity. Ah well. Next time? [Thanks for the local navigational help, though, Dawn & Allie. We really appreciated it.]
Joey confiscated my keys because I'm a horrible navigator, and thus the remainder of our day evolved into yet another exploration adventure (as always occurs in the hoes' presence). We found a really cool, deserted dock or something on the river. It was extremely run-down, and probably not safe, but fun, nonetheless. The boys happily got a chance to touch the Mississippi River, which may very well have made their day. Because we were so close, we decided to crash the party (or not) at Dawn's house. It was cool to see her again, especially since it would probably be the last time for a while. (She rarely comes home from LA Tech.)
We spent the day on Sunday in New Orleans; our first stop was the one and only Rue Burbon. Oddly enough, Kim and I had never been to this infamous street, so we were just as excited as the boys...well, almost. LoL. It was pretty nasty and rainy (a perfect day for a lesson on Louisiana humidity-ha!), so there weren't very many street vendors out. We ate at Hard Rock Cafe, visited the French Market, and just walked around a whole lot. A quick visit to Cafe du Monde for some delectible beignets was a perfect way to end the afternoon. Afterwards, it was off to the airport to say our goodbyes to Jeff...
We almost didn't make it on time, but thankfully (or maybe not? ...you'll see) his plane was delayed. As it turned out, Jeff was delayed more than an hour in leaving NOLA. Therefore, he missed his connecting flight and ended up having to spend the night in Atlanta. Jeff was supposed to start school the following morning, so I felt really bad--they should have just kept him in NOLA, and that way he could have spent another night with us! (Selfish, yes, I know.) In an attempt to make it up to him (or at least prevent him from dying of boredom), I tried to entertain him via cell phone for a while. In the mean time, Joey attended mass with us (woot. woot.) and even cooked a spaghetti supper for Kim, her roommate, and I. It was a wonderful end to a wonderful weekend...
At the airport, for Jeff:
--
In other Idahoan news...Joey stayed in LA for a few more days (working), and he and Kim became an "item" during this time. Kim then decided that she is going up to Idaho to see her beloved for Fall Break and New Years. Being the travel adict that I am, I'm going with her. (There's no way I could have managed being stuck at home while she had all the fun.) So, that's where we are now...only days away from our first trip to the Land of Hoes! Woo hooooooo. Now, if only I could accomplish some major schoolwork before the trip...I'd be super ready to relax, party, and enjoyyyyyy my time in the arctic! Heh.
Let's just hope it doesn't take a month for you to hear all about it!
Goodnight, all.
L-tastic
PS: To all those Ste. Anne'ers exploring Europe at the moment...thanks so much for keeping up with your blogs! I love them and faithfully look forward to reading them each and every day. It's so nice to live vicariously through your adventures (including the insane amounts of paperwork, thousands of ID pictures, whacko host families, and complicated educational systems)!! Do keep it up!
For ya'll:
Kim and I were super excited for the months, and especially the weeks, and even more-specially (ha) the days and hours leading up to our "Hoes'" visit. We spent hours talking and making plans of what we'd do while they were here. We made multiple trips to the grocery store to buy goodies--food we so badly hoped they'd like. We even went so far as to buy gifts ("I <3 Cajun Girls" t-shirts) and decorate for their arrival. Goobers, yes? But, we didn't care in the least.
Finally, when August 23rd arrived, we were about ready to jump out of our skins with excitement! Not long before we left for the airport, we got a text saying that Derek (Lethal) had missed his plane. My immediate instinct was to freak out and insist that he keep trying to get another flight or something. I figured he could at least pull some strings or something. On or way to the airport, Kim and I talked about how we so badly hoped Derek would be able to make it in that night. Then...we got this crazy idea--what if the boys were messing with our heads? What if Derek really didn't miss his flight, but instead they wanted to get us all worked up and then surprise us when they arrived? (That's definitely something these stooges are capable of.) After going back and forth about it for the hour-long drive to the airport in NOLA, we decided that they must be joking...and that we would totally give them hell about it when they arrived.
Jeff was the first to arrive; he and Derek were supposed to be on the same plane. As it turned out, Jeff really did arrive alone...but we still held out hope--perhaps Derek had somehow met up with Joey's connecting flight and they would arrive together. It wasn't until Joey arrived alone that it began to sink in--Derek wasn't coming. I tried calling him a million times, but...to make a long story short, I never did get to talk to him until days later. In any case, we headed back to Thibodaux and settled in for the night, as Kim and I had to wake up early the following morning for school.
Bright and early Friday morning, our dearest Dawn Jason arrived to drive the boys out of their slumber. (Hey--Jeff tourtured her plenty of times while she was attempting to sleep!) Joey was super stubborn; he slept all morning while Dawn and Jeff explored Colonel Country. They walked me to class, took pictures with "Caution: Area Floods" signs that are oh-so-appropriate, and trespassed into a sugarcane field (and lost Jeff's shoes along the way).
That evening, we went to Donaldsonville to see Kim's family. Her daddy went out and bought all kinds of Cajun seafood stuff (fish, crawfish, and alligator--plus some jambalaya), and her sister's family came to visit too. The food was delicious, of course, and we had a great time hanging out with her family. Olivia, her niece, is just so precious, and I really think the boys had a good time. Our night concluded with a nice game of Boxers or Briefs and some ice cold yogurt. ;0)
Saturday, decided to head over to Baton Rouge. I knew of a really awesome swamp tour in the area, and the boys wanted to see LSU. So, that's what we did...sort of. Just after arriving at LSU, we got a phone call to say that the swamp tour was cancelled. Because we didn't know of any other swamp tours nearby, we had to nix that idea, unfortunately. We did, however, visit some (fake) "swamp" in the middle of Baton Rouge ... which really should have been a clue to its lack of authenticity. Ah well. Next time? [Thanks for the local navigational help, though, Dawn & Allie. We really appreciated it.]
Joey confiscated my keys because I'm a horrible navigator, and thus the remainder of our day evolved into yet another exploration adventure (as always occurs in the hoes' presence). We found a really cool, deserted dock or something on the river. It was extremely run-down, and probably not safe, but fun, nonetheless. The boys happily got a chance to touch the Mississippi River, which may very well have made their day. Because we were so close, we decided to crash the party (or not) at Dawn's house. It was cool to see her again, especially since it would probably be the last time for a while. (She rarely comes home from LA Tech.)
We spent the day on Sunday in New Orleans; our first stop was the one and only Rue Burbon. Oddly enough, Kim and I had never been to this infamous street, so we were just as excited as the boys...well, almost. LoL. It was pretty nasty and rainy (a perfect day for a lesson on Louisiana humidity-ha!), so there weren't very many street vendors out. We ate at Hard Rock Cafe, visited the French Market, and just walked around a whole lot. A quick visit to Cafe du Monde for some delectible beignets was a perfect way to end the afternoon. Afterwards, it was off to the airport to say our goodbyes to Jeff...
We almost didn't make it on time, but thankfully (or maybe not? ...you'll see) his plane was delayed. As it turned out, Jeff was delayed more than an hour in leaving NOLA. Therefore, he missed his connecting flight and ended up having to spend the night in Atlanta. Jeff was supposed to start school the following morning, so I felt really bad--they should have just kept him in NOLA, and that way he could have spent another night with us! (Selfish, yes, I know.) In an attempt to make it up to him (or at least prevent him from dying of boredom), I tried to entertain him via cell phone for a while. In the mean time, Joey attended mass with us (woot. woot.) and even cooked a spaghetti supper for Kim, her roommate, and I. It was a wonderful end to a wonderful weekend...
At the airport, for Jeff:
--
In other Idahoan news...Joey stayed in LA for a few more days (working), and he and Kim became an "item" during this time. Kim then decided that she is going up to Idaho to see her beloved for Fall Break and New Years. Being the travel adict that I am, I'm going with her. (There's no way I could have managed being stuck at home while she had all the fun.) So, that's where we are now...only days away from our first trip to the Land of Hoes! Woo hooooooo. Now, if only I could accomplish some major schoolwork before the trip...I'd be super ready to relax, party, and enjoyyyyyy my time in the arctic! Heh.
Let's just hope it doesn't take a month for you to hear all about it!
Goodnight, all.
L-tastic
PS: To all those Ste. Anne'ers exploring Europe at the moment...thanks so much for keeping up with your blogs! I love them and faithfully look forward to reading them each and every day. It's so nice to live vicariously through your adventures (including the insane amounts of paperwork, thousands of ID pictures, whacko host families, and complicated educational systems)!! Do keep it up!
For ya'll: