Answer Me This (Vol. 2)

Last year, I joined the Answer Me This bandwagon just once, late in the game.  It appears I'm making that a tradition, as this is the last of the 2015 summer series.  Ah well.  Here's to cheering Kendra on and as Baby #8 makes its big debut during this week's roundup! 

1. What's your favorite grocery store splurge?
Hmm... that's a tough one.  Food hasn't been super appealing to me lately so all the typical cravings went out the window.  I used to occasionally splurge on chocolate soymilk but I heard bad things about soy so I dropped that habit.  I guess I'll go with hummus, or sometimes packaged cookies.  When new flavors of Extra's Dessert Delight gum come out, I always buy those (thanks, Kara)!

2. How's your penmanship?
Pretty good, I think.  I typically write in print, but I can do cursive if necessary.  For the record, I still think cursive should be taught in school - even if it isn't used regularly. 

3. Do you have a "Summer Bucket List?"
No...nope.  Definitely not this year.  Too much busy-ness at work in this job to enjoy summers.  Ever since I joined the workforce, summers are not nearly as exciting as they used to be.  I'm one of those people that think everyone should be off all summer, no matter what.  Blame my mom who has worked for the school system all my life - it's all her fault. 

4. What's the best thing on the radio right now?
Uhhhhhhh... wow I feel super lame to not have an answer for this.  I think music this summer has been pretty lackluster.  So, how about we go with the WORST thing on the radio right now.  Easily, hands down, Girl Crush by Little Big Town.  I couldn't stand LBT before this song and now, well...nuff said. 

5. Ice cream or frozen yogurt?
Either really, but those fryo shops are kind of awesome (except for the price, that is).  On the other hand, 1/2 price shakes after 8 at Sonic are totally my jam.  Basically, I don't discriminate here. 

6. Have you had that baby NOW? 
Mmmm...nope.

Enjoyed this little random assortment?  Link up at Catholic All Year to join in before the party's over for the summer!

8-)
-Lauren

Shake What Ya Mama Gave Ya

If you've been hanging around here for very long, you've probably figured out by now that I am super passionate about my Cajun heritage and really enjoy sharing it with others.  While it's fun to remember those weekends out on "The Island" with my family and friends growing up, some of my fondest memories are of the opportunities I've had to share my culture with friends from far away.

Benjamin from Ohio was the first person to get the full Cajun experience, and then Lendy from North Carolina followed suit a few years later.  One of these days, I'm going to get around to sharing the story of Alex's first visit to Cajun country, when we wrangled an alligator and everyone thought Swamp People was fa-real because of it.  But in all seriousness, people were so hospitable to me when I lived out-of-state, that I have always wanted to return the favor.  And even my local friends, enjoy getting in on the fun.

So, while you might be bored of reading about all our visits to the marsh, I can't resist sharing the latest one in which Alex invited his coworker from Michigan to see what Cajunland is all about!

Cam is a fisherman at heart, so when we decided to spend July 4th weekend at home, I knew it was the perfect time to invite him along. He jumped at the chance, and enthusiastically joined us on the 3.5 hour trip south.  The guys spent all of Friday out on the water - first fishing, then running crab cages for our "big" Independence Day meal.

Cam thought he was in a real life episode of Swamp People when he caught this TREE SHAKA!

Except it was really just a tree.

But he did get to see real-life Liz and Justin's foot truck (trailer?) down in Pecan Island, even if they weren't open at the time.

Friday night, our awesome friends, Victoria and Seth, hosted us for Seth's famous homemade wings, complete with real BWW wing sauce and home-brewed beer.  Tori and I spent the evening taking all things babies (their 2.5 year old was born 19 days before our wedding, and they're expecting #2 in September), while they boys drank beer and watched YouTube videos.  Shenanigans I tell you.

On Saturday, the boys cooked up their loot and my friends/former-coworker from Arkansas came over to help us enjoy it.  The neighbors even contributed their own performance of evening fireworks to top off the night.

I really enjoy having people around.  This photo makes my heart both happy and sad, wishing we had more friends in our town.

 

Don't tell me you're not jealous you missed out on those huge, deliciously awesome boiled crabs!

And of course, we couldn't leave town without the traditional "Sunday dinner" at Nanna's house.  :)

Otherwise, that's a wrap, folks!  Hope your Fourth was just as awesome as ours!

-Lauren

What's a Girl to Do

...when she wants to write, but doesn't have anything to write about?

Well, I have something I want to write about but it's going to have to wait a little longer.  So instead, I guess I'll share a cute picture of Little Lauren since it is "Throwback Thursday" after all.

Isn't she adorable?  And that outfit!  Those shoes!  I wonder if that dress still exists in the attic somewhere... 

In other news,  we've been traveling quite a bit this summer (as usual).  The end of May/June consisted of NCAA Regionals in Baton Rouge, Dinner at the Governor's Mansion and "4-H Day at the Capitol" (also in Baton Rouge), a week at 4-H Camp, a day trip to Natchez for a fun photo shoot, a week at 4-H University (huge state competition for teens, held at LSU), and a couple of days at the NE District Horse Show.  As you can see, most of that is work travel, not the fun stuff.

In July, we took one of Alex's coworkers who is originally from Michigan down to my parents' in south Louisiana for the Fourth.  (I'll try to post about that sometime.)  This weekend, we are going to New Orleans to see GARTH BROOKS!!!  Later this month, both of us have short-ish work trips to New Orleans or Baton Rouge, and then we are going to close out July with a weeklong trip to North Carolina to visit Alex's parents.  Side note:  I am SO excited to be flying this time instead of that usual 14+ hour drive!

So, as my mom would say, "That's what's going on around here."

I'll leave you with a sneak peak from our photo shoot in Natchez a few weeks ago.  More of these beauties to come in the next few weeks or so.

Have a good one, everybody!

-Lauren

P.S. Either my computer is being wonky or my design template (background) has gone MIA.  I'll work on getting that fixed ASAP.

The "B" Word

Every once in a while (okay, sometimes more often than others), I get to dreaming about the day I can leave my "real job" to stay home and raise our (future) kids.  In order to get there though, Alex and I have to come to a place where we are financially prepared to live on just one income.  We have been "practicing" since we were married, having my paycheck deposited straight into our savings account, and his into the checking.  But if we're being honest here, there are seasons with more birthdays, holidays, or special circumstances that make that paycheck stretch a little thinner than I'd like.
 
Certainly there are some places we could really cut back on expenses - that $200 cable bill, for one (and we only have cable in 1.5 rooms of our house!).  We feel pretty comfortable with our savings account, insurance coverage, and investments, but we still aren't quite comfortable with taking the plunge and doing away with one income entirely.  So, when The Budget Mama asked for volunteers to review her latest book Real Life on a Budget, I jumped at the chance to hone in on some of those skills we might be lacking.

Here are a few interesting/useful concepts I took away from the book:

1 - A little inconvenience can go a long way in saving money over time.
I have been making my own laundry detergent for over a year now, and I love it.  The cost savings are amazing, and I kind of like feeling a little extra-domestic over that kind of project.  It isn't as much of a hassle as it sounds, I promise.  Next up - floor cleaner, reusable paper towels, world domination?!

2 - Be aware of all the extra "clutter" in your life.
Inbox clutter is a big one for me.  I get wayyy too much crap in my inbox and should really redirect it to some other address that I don't use regularly.  Dining out is also a type of clutter for us; since we don't have friends here, eating out once a week is our special treat to get out of the house and have a little fun.  Unfortunately, it usually leaves us yearning for more outings...more bad food...and more budget sucking.

3 - Spenders versus Savers?
We're both savers but we have a weakness for telling each other "no."  In other words, it's easy for us to avoid purchases on our own rights, but when we ask the other if it's okay to buy something, it's near impossible to stay firm in our hunches about it.  Moral of that story - we need to make an actual budget and stick to it!

4 - Half Payments, have you heard of them?
I'd never heard of such things until I read them in the book.  We're paid monthly so it's not quite set up for our pay schedules, but if we did have difficulty with living paycheck to paycheck, this could be a really good way to break that habit.

5 - 50/20/30 Framework.
Yeah, I know it sounds like the 20/20 insurance concept, but here we're talking about budgeting 50% of your expenses for essentials, 20% for your future, and 30% for your lifestyle.  This is one budgeting system that I could definitely get behind and it seems totally attainable too.  (I should probably put the pen to the paper before I commit to that statement, though.  Heh.)

Bonus - Debt snowball.
Alex and I have discussions on whether we should pay off his car (at 0% financing, attainable goal) or put a large chunk down on our house (3.375% interest, with a much larger total).  He thinks it's wiser to put money toward the house, whereas I would prefer to pay off something and have fewer debtors overall.  Jessi's theory on paying off the smaller debts first definitely makes my little heart happy, but I think I have a little more convincing to do on Alex's part.  ;)

I'm so grateful for the opportunity to get my hands on this book, and I really look forward to following more of The Budget Mama's tips as we work toward our long term goals for financial freedom.  And, if you want to get your hands on your very own copy of Real Life on a Budget, it's officially available for FREE on Amazon as of today (as of July 5th, the book will only be available for purchase)!

Happy Budgeting to ya'll!
-Lauren

Note:  I received an e-book version of this book in exchange for providing a review of the materials.  All opinions are my own and no additional compensation was provided.

Callin' Baton Rouge

Even though we had just spent the weekend in South Louisiana visiting my family, on a whim we decided to do it again the following one too (June 1st).  LSU was named as a host site for the first round of NCAA Baseball Championships, and Alex's alma mater, UNC-Wilmington, was selected as one of the four teams to play in the Baton Rouge regional.  Alex scrambled to snag two tickets (under covering, chair-backs, AWESOME seats!) for all UNCW games, and we peeled out of town early Friday afternoon for what shaped up to be another long weekend in the south.

As luck would have it, my brother held on to his Baton Rouge apartment for a few extra days, so Alex and I borrowed a second air mattress (ours is twin-sized) and camped out on the floor of the apartment for the weekend.  Austin had tickets to all the games through his LSU student ticketing program, which meant he spent the entire weekend at the park and we had quite a bit more wiggle room in our schedule.  Throw in monsoon-like rains, and we were primed for several nights of after-midnight baseball.  It was crazy/exciting/awesome.

Friday night, we ended up killing time with beer, food, and a visit from my friend Dawn at Walk-On's  (rated #1 Sports Bar in America - check it out!) near the stadium.  Our game didn't start until 9:15 p.m., and we were in it for the long haul!

Saturday, we met my birthday twin, Kim (college friend turned internship roommate who now lives in Boise, ID), and her husband and 18 month old daughter for lunch at Mellow Mushroom.  I hadn't seen the Peters Family since our wedding 2.5 years ago, and Alex had never really gotten to know them outside of the very first time he met them (in New Orleans exactly 1 year to the day before we were married).  I also enjoyed meeting little Eliana for the first time.

With rain on the horizon, Alex and I killed more time by walking around the Mall of Louisiana and resisting the urge to shop too hard.  We did come across these adorable Louisiana-themed tees at a little boutique.

This one is my favorite - I used to use the word "envie" in a sentence almost daily. :)

Anyway, baseball.  UNCW played very well.  They beat Tulane 10-1 at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday morning, then lost to LSU 0-2 at 2:15 a.m. the following morning.  Sunday, we were primed for third day of midnight baseball but the NCAA pulled the game an hour before it started and after 10,000 LSU fans had sat through 2 hours of the second UNCW/Tulane game (which UNCW won 8-2).  On Monday, LSU pulled out another 2-0 win against UNCW, which ended our long weekend in the "Red Stick."

No, I didn't color my hair recently...not quite sure where the "goth" look comes from.

I had to be back in Baton Rouge for work on Tuesday/Wednesday, so we decided to drive the hour and a half to my parents' for a night instead of spending 3.5 hours in the car going back to Monroe, and returning again the following day. My daddy and Nanna had just finished peeling 100 pounds of fresh shrimp, so we were able to indulge in a special treat of FRESH fried shrimp for dinner that evening.  It was a lovely treat to be back in Cajun Country, even if for a short time.

...And if you haven't totally fallen in love with Louisiana by now, I might be worried about you.  ;)

-Lauren

If Crabs Weren't Involved

Remember that birthday tribute video I promised you?  Yeah, it's still in the works.  (Really, it is.  We're just really busy at the moment.)  Well, anyway, one of my friends sent a video with a quote that has me dying laughing even when I think about it three months later.  Her words went a little something like this..."Lauren, Lauren.  Would I still be friends with you even if crabs weren't involved?  ...Mmmm... YES!"

Out of context, this statement could raise some eyebrows.  What Victoria is really referring to is the tradition we have of she and her husband coming over to my parents' house to eat boiled crabs (almost) every time Alex and I are in town.  This tradition started something like 10 years ago when she and her now-hubby started dating, and long before Alex as even a twinkle in my heart.

It's not like we set out to make visiting over crab boils a tradition or anything; it's just something my family does.  Lauren's coming to town (remember, I lived out of state for 5 years after college, before returning, and even now I live almost 4 hours from home)?  Oh, well...call everybody, we're having a crab boil!! Really and truly, my daddy is a real-as-it-gets Cajun man and bringing home 12 dozen, fresh beautiful blue crabs after a day in the marsh makes his heart swell with pride.  And so, we eat boiled crabs.

Every once in a while, Daddy Stu gets the chance to show off his skills by taking along a visitor to "help" bring home the proverbial bacon (aka crabs).  Several of my out of state friends have had the opportunity to accompany Daddy Stu into the marsh, and they always come back with some pretty fabulous stories.  Since Alex is a Louisiana transplant, he always jumps at the invitation to visit the marsh, especially when crabs are involved.

On the flip side, while this girl spent many a weekend catching fish and crabs next to her daddy, it's become much less frequent as I've gotten older.  Needless to say, when I decided to join the guys on their excusion a few weeks ago, my presence was long overdue.  But before we headed out, we called up all the extended family and told them to be on "crab watch," for surely a good dinner was in store.

Little did I know, Daddy Stu had lined up a little some extra for our trip that day.  His marsh neighbor friend happened to mention that he'd commissioned a friend of a friend to bring his airboat ride to their camp (think marsh-style weekend getaway home) to give rides for all the kids.    Stu knew this was the perfect opportunity to wheel and deal his way into setting up a little something special for his baby girl.

Believe it or not, in all my 28 years as a Cajun girl, I had never actually ridden in an airboat!  Needless to say, my eyes got big and my heart started pitter-pattering whenever that airboat trailer showed up and Alex leaked the secret letting me know that rides were in store for us!  Daddy Stu was beaming with pride as his special treat fell on happy faces, and he started snapping photos for days.

The ride was pretty cool.  It wasn't as fast or thrilling as it could have been since so many little ones were on board, but I was plenty excited for this first-time opportunity.  We even got the chance to ride donuts on land!!  So fun.

How about those crabs?  Well........ a storm was moving in so we rocked and rolled to get out to the cages and back before things got hairy.  Unfortunately, the water was very rough due to high winds and we had a tough time locating all the cages.  Even worse, our haul only totaled 52 crabs instead of the 144+ we usually score.

Being the Cajun he is, Daddy Stu wasn't satisfied with a measly little 4 dozen crabs.  On the way home, he pulled into a crawfish hut with plans to buy half a sack of medium sized crawfish, but left with a whole sack of large ones instead.  Ohhh Daddy Stu... And many of the extended family didn't even show!

Moral of the story - visit Cajuns and you won't ever worry about going home hungry!

-Lauren

A little hello.

Hello friends!

Even though it's been radio silence around here, many of you may have noticed that I'm still lurking in the background...reading/commenting on your blogs, and via Instagram.  I have, however, mostly given up Facebook except for logging in once a week or so, and skimming what's going on in the world that way.  (Disclaimer: I log into my work FB account more often, but there is nothing interesting to see there, so I say it doesn't count!)

Oh and for those of you who don't know or may not even be aware it exists, (thanks to Amy) I joined the Catholic Women Blogging Network (closed group) on Facebook, and that has been pretty neat over the last month or two.  It's kind of one centralized location that all of us Catholic bloggers can ask questions on technical blogging issues, share thought-provoking posts, or just say hello from time to time.  If you're not a member and are interested in joining, be sure to let me know and I'll send you an invite!

In others news, there's not much interesting to share on this end, but I do miss writing and I miss connecting with friends like you on the regular.  Hopefully, I'll be able to write more regularly soon, but life happens so no promises.  For now, I'll just share a few pictures (albeit, poor quality and all from my phone) of what we've been up to lately.

March

Birthday month!!  Early in the month, Alex did some traveling for work, so he started leaving these daily notes and this particular photo gave me permission to sit on the couch, drink wine, and watch whatever I wanted for as long as I wanted (well, while we was out of town anyway, lol).  Yes, I know I still owe you all that hilarious birthday video I promised.  It will happen!

April

Alex skipped a work trip to go with me on my work trip.  But before we went out of town, we were able to attend this fun event hosted by the ULM Alumni Association.  We went two years ago and had a blast; last year he was out of town, so I insisted we find a way to attend again this round. 

Taking a break from all the "work" on our work trip, Red Mango froyo was the perfect dinner after stuffing ourselves with a pizza buffet over lunch.  

I joined the Fitbit world!! A late birthday gift, I was thrilled to finally get my One and start tracking my steps.  Mucho disappointed by my regular step count, I get the greatest thrills out of reviewing my sleep stats.  These things are the best!

Crawfish, lots of crawfish.  I'm almost embarrassed to admit that while I like boiled crawfish, it is not my favorite.  However, my sweet daddy doesn't know that so he managed to get me some delicious mudbugs, not once, or twice, but three times this season (after Lent, of course!).  I'm holding out for those beautiful blue crabs he and the hubby are planning to catch for me tomorrow.  Boiled crabs are my jam, ya'll!

May

Yet another work trip.  But this time I got to accompany Alex to Little Rock and boy did that make my heart oh-so-happy!  (For those of you who don't know, I lived there full time for a year and a half and spent three summers before that working at a very special camp for kids with disabilities.)  First place we stopped when we got to town?  Purple cow for milkshakes of course!

And when we found ourselves with a little time to kill due to baseball rain delays...we went geocaching!  This Humpty Dumpty find is probably one of my all-time favorites.  So fun.

Also, world domination!

Okay, just kidding.  These adorable little candy packets were part of a Pinterest project for my graduating seniors.  I'm not sure they loved them as much as I did, but...better than gifts of cash or gift cards (because, awkward).  

And finally...after a 19 of 29 consecutive hours spent at the ballpark, BASEBALL IS DONEEEE!!  I love me some baseball, really, I do...but four months of NO days off for the husband (and a lot of times, myself too) really gets old.  This was not a celebratory little "blue mountain" beverage...no, it was a "SHOOT ME NOW, WE HAVE BEEN SITTING HERE FOR THREE HOURS WATCHING PAINT DRY" beverage.  We can sum this season up in one word - delay.  So.many.rain.delays. But alas, it's OVER!!  On to...summer! (Well briefly, I go into hard core work mode here in just about two weeks...blergh.)

Sooooooo...there ya go.  I know, a lot of Instagram repeats but there really just isn't very much interesting going on for us (the bane of our existence, for sure!).  So, if I spend a few more months lurking instead of writing, just know - it's not you, it's me.  ;)

Enjoy your long weekend, everyone!
-Lauren