Tourists in NOLA

Susan & Gerry's being here gives us a great opportunity to play tourist, too! 

After the day of travel back down South and a day of taking it easy, Wednesday brought us a ferry ride into the French Quarter. We had beignets, naturally, a little walking tour of the Quarter as set out by Lonely Planet, and a muffuletta lunch. 

Friday was a lovely day driving a little upstream to tour Oak Alley Plantation - and getting to see a few others from the road, too. The tour of the Big House was excellent, as was a self-guided tour through the slavery years on the plantation. Lunch was excellent, as well, at the restaurant on the grounds. It marked Susan & Gerry's first real cajun meal, and they didn't skimp: the "cajun medley" included seafood gumbo, red beans & rice, crawfish etouffée, and andouille. All around thumbs up.

Saturday was another full, fun day in town - we bussed, steetcarred, bussed again, and then ferried. Paul was in Heaven. There's a precious little snippet of video of his very first streetcar arriving at our stop; he sees, he points and grins, it screeches, he's a little hesitant, we get in. And he wanted "streetcar again" for the next 2 hrs. 

And now let's talk about Ada. Because she's been doing great! I think she reacts quite negatively to caffeine ... of which I had lots and lots while in Philly ... because I've been going easy (read: drinking little to none) except for a small-ish morning coffee, and she's been much easier to calm and put to sleep. She also hit her 5-month mark on the 25th, and she's (*finally* yay!) decided that nursing while sitting up isn't so bad! I may or may not have mentioned previously that I've had to side-lie, as they call it, to nurse her. Every time. At home? On the floor or bed. Out and about? On a blanket in the grass. About and around other people? Err. Massage tables of fancy hotels. A couple of days in a row now have seen the two of us doing just fine and looking normal on a bench! On a streetcar! In a bus! Way to go, girl! Oh yes - and we've teased her with food, too. She had a (teensy-weensy) bit of avocado, a (barely mentionable) bit of watermelon, and she's licked a cucumber. All of which have given us this face --->

And now it's Dylan's 31st birthday. It's Mass, coffee at the café down the street, and dinner on the Lakefront. Plus a birthday cake Susan got to make for her son.