Today is a Great Day!

In about thirty minutes our friends Ben and Margaret (from So Happily Us) will be arriving here in New Orleans!  We haven't seem them since the day we moved from Beaufort, so we could not be more excited!  We have quite a weekend planned for them.  

Ben and Margaret at Margaret's Jersey Shore party

Tonight we're going to dinner at Parkway Bakery for po-boys

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And then we're going to head down to the Quarter.  There is nothing like the St. Louis Cathedral at night.

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And, of course, it wouldn't be your first trip to the French Quarter if you didn't have a hurricane at Pat O's.  

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It's a beautiful night in New Orleans!  I can't wait to introduce our dear friends to the city we love!

Trendy Wednesday - The Maxi-Dress

It's been so long since I've posted my last Trendy Wednesday!  I've missed sharing my favorite finds with yall , but having moved and bought a new house, I needed to cut back on my frivolous spending.  So I also cut back on my internet window shopping as to not be tempted. 

Knowing I would be in NYC last weekend, I began the hunt for the perfect maxi-dress.  At first, I struggled with the idea of a maxi-dress.  It's so hot here in the summer that it's hard to imagine being draped in so much fabric, but I think they add a little elegance to my casual summer warddrobe.    Here's a few that I had my eye on...

The Shapeshifter Maxi from Anthropologie in Multi

This is actually the one I purchased in New York.  I love the colorful pattern and the neckline is very flattering.

The Shapeshifter Maxi from Anthropologie in Blue Motif

This fabric was also very pretty in person.

A-Different-Striped Dress from Anthropologie

I think this might look a little frumpy on my, but the back is amazing and on the right body type would be adorable!

Michael Stars Halter Maxi Dress

Grey and white - my favorite summer color combination!  The chevron pattern is quite slimming if you ask me.

Collective Concepts Ruffle Racerback Maxi Dress

Ruffle in front, racerback from behind.  I love this!!I wish it was slightly longer, but I think it would be perfect for a petite girl who has trouble with the length of the typical maxi dress.

Marc by Marc Jacobs Jersey Halter Dress

High fashion meets summer time fun.  This might be my very favorite of the bunch.  It gives a whole new meaning to little black dress.

Have you found yourself the perfect summer maxi-dress?

Tasty Tuesdays: Pink Elephant Cocktails Inpired by Water for Elephants

I began reading Water for Elephants about two weeks ago with a desire to finish the book in enough time to see it at the Prytania Theatre while it was still out.  Little did I know, I needed no added pressure to finish it because it was so wonderful, I could not put it down.  I thought the story, told from both the perspective of a young man and his older self, was a combination of tragedy, compassion, rage, loyalty, and love.  I have so looked forward to seeing the characters come alive on screen.  Mark and I walked to the Prytania, our neighborhood's one screen theatre, and watched the story unfold on screen.  It was lovely and moving and just exactly as I saw it in my head.

For those of you who have read the book or seen the movie, you will appreciate the elephants and lemonade reference in this recipe.  There's something whimsical and childlike and sentimental about lemonade.  My dad would always whip up a batch of Countrytime on a hot summer day.  There's nothing quite like it. 

For the child in all of us, this grown up version sounded too good not to post.  Imagine the refreshing mixture of lime, grapefruit, and cranberry juices blended with lemonade and vodka.  I think I'd add some mint for an extra special touch.  I imagine Jacob's elephant Rosie would approve of this version as well!

Pink Elephant Cocktails

Makes 5-7 servings

16 to 20 ounces vodka

4 to 5 ounces fresh lime juice

4 to 5 ounces fresh lemonade

8 to 10 ounces grapefruit juice

2 to 2/12 ounces cranberry juice

Lime slices (cut very thin) for garnish

Directions

1.Mix all but the cranberry juice in a 2 1/2-quart pitcher. Then add the cranberry juice a little at a time until drink is the color of light-pink cotton candy. Refrigerate until serving time. To serve, pour over ice into chilled 6-ounce glasses. Garnish with thin lime slices (or pink plastic elephants).

Have you read the book or seen the movie?  What did you think?

Hollygrove Market - Party in the Garden

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I have mentioned before how much I love the Hollygrove Market and Farm.  They offer a weekly local produce box filled to the brim with freshly harvested produce and other local ingredients.  You can pick your box up on Tuesdays from 12-6 or Saturdays from 10-2.  All of the produce comes to the market from farms in Louisiana and Mississippi.

The market is hosting an event called Party in the Garden on Monday May 16th from 6:00 pm until 9:00 pm.  The event is held at the market and farm among the fruit and vegetable gardens.  Their website says that "guests will have the opportunity to sample the fare of 20 New Orleans chefs and mixologists from restaurants such as Three Muses, Iris, Cure and Martinique Bistro, just to name a few, and swing to the music of live, local bands." How fun does that sound!

 The most exciting part in my opinion is what one lucky winner will take home should they win the the grand raffle prize. The winner and 3 guests will tour several North Shore farms that provide produce to the Hollygrove Market. The tour will culminate with a “field to table” dinner for 4 at the Covey Rise Farm and Lodge in Husser, north of Covington. I love the concept of farm to table dining, and I can't imagine how much more an experience like that would be enhanced with the opportunity to see the farms where the produce is cultivated!

Off to NYC in T-minus Ten Hours!

By the end of the day, I will be heading to the airport to catch a direct flight to NYC.  I have been to New York many times, but there never fails to be a moment when I land there that it hits me that I am in a special place.  It's usually in the cab right as you get into the city and life feels larger and like it moves at a faster pace.  There is no place in the world that draws me to it the way New York does.  Each time we visit, I feel like I see a new place. 

This trip will be spent with some of my very closest friends and my fabulous family.  Tomorrow I am in for a real treat as my friend Kat wander around the city on our own food tour.  We're going for breakfast at Pastis then lunch at The Meatball Shop and a midday snack at Momofuku Milk Bar where I will have to get the crack pie.

We're having an all girls dinner tomorrow night at The Mark Restaurant by Jean Georges and I just can't wait!  I heart NY!

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Crisis on the Coast - One Year Later

A year ago today eleven men lost their lives in the tragic explosion on the Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico.  What followed, was months of waiting for a solution to a problem whose effects are still unknown.  Down here on the coast, we hope and pray for a day where oil will not pollute the sacred waters that surround our shores.  We need barrier islands to protect us from the storms and we need oysters and shrimp to nourish our souls.  That is how we live.  We can live with one as long as we have the other. 

Today I reminded of our dear friend Lisa.  There is no one whose voice cried out louder than hers to do something.  To act.  To speak out.  She embodied what it is to be someone who loves life along the coast.  she made this crisis real for all of us who could not get close enough to understand.  I wish she was here now to provide us with her perspective as we look back on the events that occurred one year ago today. 

 

Imagine a world without blue herrings

And brown pelicans

And pink spoonbills

An green gators

Imagine a world without fisherman and shrimpers

selling Louisana's finest export

I really can't. 

Tasty Tuesdays: Carrot Cake Pancakes with Cream Cheese Spread

Recipe Courtesy of the Food Network

I LOVE Easter.  For many reasons...  I have fond memories of family vacations in Biloxi.  I remember waking up to the warm sunshine that sprung through the drapes of our condo or hotel room to find an Easter basket filled with goodies.  I specifically remember how much I loved getting thin plastic headbands in every color of the rainbow. 

I love seersucker suits and Easter bonnets.  I have mentioned that I am a hat wearer.  I wear them shamelessly.  Thank goodness for Kate Middleton.  I think the hat is making a royal comeback.  But twice a year at the derby and at Easter mass, everyone has a chance to be a Kate Middleton and sport a gem of a hat.

I love the feeling of celebration that exists after 40 days of repentance and reflection and sacrifice.  I always loved Stations of the Cross growing up.  Every Friday our entire school would gather at St. Dominic Church and watch as students acted out the stations.  I remember being little and having to kneel for what seemed like a lifetime (it was probably just an hour).  If anyone complained, the nuns would remind us that Jesus died on a cross.  We could certainly kneel without fussing.  It puts our Lenten sacrifice into perpective I suppose.

And I love Easter brunch.  I think brunch is my favorite meal.  At brunch it's never too early to have a drink.  Will it be a bloody Mary or a mimosa or a good ole fashioned brandy milk punch?  The choices are endless as is the laughter at a good brunch.  At a brunch you can start with dessert.  You can have a banana's foster stuffed french toast or a Belgian waffle topped with whipped cream and strawberries.  At brunch there are no rules.  I like to believe that it was at a jazz brunch where someone first remarked, "Eat, drink, and be merry!"

This Easter Sunday, I will be having brunch at Cookshop in NYC with my dear friends Jen and Tommy and my brother and sister-in-law Barn and Alissa.  I have been dying to try Cookshop for some time, so I am anxiously awaiting our brunch.  But if I was at home, I think I would be making Carrot Cake Pancakes with Cream Cheese Spread.  It seems a fitting way to celebrate such a joyous day!

Ingredients

Pancakes:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons finely chopped pecans

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Dash nutmeg

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/3 cup packed brown or granulated sugar

1 cup milk

2 cups finely grated carrots

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream cheese spread:

4 ounces cream cheese

1/4 powdered sugar

2 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 dash ground cinnamon

Directions

In a bowl, combine flour, pecans, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg.

In a separate bowl, combine egg, brown sugar, milk, carrots, and vanilla; mix well.

Stir carrot mixture into dry ingredients until moistened. Pour batter by 1/4 cupful onto a greased hot griddle. Turn when bubbles form on the top of pancake; flip and cook until golden brown.

For topping, blend cream cheese, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Sprinkle with cinnamon, and serve with pancakes

EAT, DRINK, and BE MERRY!!

 

How will you be celebrating Easter?

It's a Beautiful Day

The sky is bluer

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The birds chirp louder

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The intoxicating fragrance of Conferate Jasmine is sweeter

Today is the last day of tax season!  I feel like I am seeing Spring for the first time.  And it's beautiful!

Spring/Blog Break

I hope you're all planning something very exciting and relaxing for your spring break.  

In just a week, we will close the book on tax season 2011.  Then, I'll be heading to NYC for Easter weekend.  Woohooo!!!

I'm going to take a little break from the blog for a week or so.  I think that post-season I'll feel more inspired to write about all of the things I love: travel, food, fashion, life.  I'm also planning to catch up with what's been going on in all of your worlds.  For now, I'm going to catch up on some rest and prepare for the week ahead...