While the girls and I visited Louisiana last week my sweet aunts purchased us tickets to the local high school Cinderella play. It was held at Bolton High where my dad graduated from, I was very impressed with the aesthetics of the school. I'm kicking myself now for not pausing for a moment to capture the beauty of the place. This school was built in 1926 for a hefty price. I was in awe walking the halls and seeing the pride that still resides within.
We arrived at the event a few hours earlier and got to meet the cast and get their autographs inside our program. While there I ran into a high school friend and her little girls. The tea party had a cute little arts and craft area to make your own wand and get face paintings. We had tea and little tasty treats from the local bakery and chatted with strangers at our table. We were then escorted to the auditorium had special seating for the "VIP" tea party patrons. For someone who doesn't visit their hometown too often I got to see several familiar faces while attending the play. My mom's best friend who works for the news station was their recording the performance. Then the guest of honor was the parish's super intendent of the school board which happened to be my 8th grade basketball coach. Seeing him was awesome and I was happy to see his career in teaching take him to the position he is now in.
The performance was a little too long for the younger kids as we were getting closer to the end littler ones started to squirm and chat. The musical was well put on and I was impressed with the professionalism these high school kids had and how they carry themselves on stage. The girls loved the play and Alice sat on the edge of her seat the whole time. A bonus to our evening was the princess dresses my aunt found and was able to alter on such short noticed. I may be biased but I think our girls were the best dressed princesses and carried themselves as such. The girls stayed in their formal dresses until bedtime and then woke up and wore them again the next day. They enjoyed their short-lived day of fancy!
Usually when I visit home I stay for a month or longer, but this trip was short and sweet. It was a little stressful trying to fit everyone in. I didn't get to see some family but the ones i did see i enjoyed our time together and the girls enjoyed seeing their family as well. Time we cherish since we don't get much time with our loved ones. The girls got to try their first raw oysters and were not very big fans of its squishy salty goodness. We went down south to visit a local yarn shop where I was able to get my hands on some local goods that were Mardi Gras themed which I'm very excited to knit with. We visited a local aquarium store which is the only one around and got my dad some pretty nerites for his little aquarium.
The girls were mesmerized by all the festive decorations around town as they prepare for Mardi Gras. Not to sound like party pooper but I am thankful we got out of town before Fat Tuesday. Since COVID put a halt and this holiday for the last two years, I am afraid this year is going to be intense. The holiday already brings unwanted behavior, regardless of what city you're are in. New Orleans is already prompting locals to remain inside during the festivities due to the intense crime spike the city is anticipating.
I pray all my family in Louisiana stay safe during the Cajun holiday. I was happy to come and visit but I am eager to get back to our little trailer in south Texas town with its glorious weather and its sweet rays of sunshine. Tyler is still holding down his new position as a directional driller. His first few wells were run by computers and now he is actually steering the drill bit on these last few wells. He's getting more and more confident in his job and picking up steam. We are hoping to get a few days with him before he starts a long haul of continuous drilling of a few months which will have him working through spring and into summer.
Soon the girls and I will pick up and move the trailer over to our sweet friends in Missouri and learn/grow along side of them as we help them get their new homestead running for the summer. While there I'm hoping to find a place to call home. We are interested in the southern Missouri/Northern Arkansas area. Tyler and I are in constant prayer and hope to purchase our land by next summer!!! We really would like an area that is big on supporting local farmers and entrepreneurs. Finding a church we like is also a huge factor, we want to build a community with church family that has the ability to provide awesome opportunities for the girls through their youth program as well as give us friends we can rely on that have strong moral values.... I know this sounds like a pipe dream, but we have faith the Lord will guide us exactly where we are supposed to be.
