Every trip to New Orleans feels so profound and formative to me and this trip, with just my mom and my sister, missing my babies so much, but also feeling so grateful for some time on my own, was no exception. We had three days of wind, rain and cool weather, followed by two days sunshine and blue skies and just a desire to maybe stay three more days 😋 But that’s April in New Orleans for you. And honestly, I don’t mind because even when it’s rainy, there’s crawfish to be eaten, book shops to be visited, houses to be admired, cemeteries that feel even spookier than usual and just time to sit and chat with your family 🤍

Shrimp po boys from Domilise’s — I don’t think I can eat a po boy without hot sauce ever again! / A stroll around Audobon Park / Dinner at Pizza Domenica

Took a chance walking to District Donuts for breakfast then ran home in the rain / Found a book shop and convinced my sister to get The Secret History / Said hi to a cemetery cat / Crawfish and a beer at Port Orleans 🤤 / Maybe ate ice cream for dinner

My favorite breakfast at Surrey’s / Coffee at French Truck / A looooong walk from one end of Magazine to the other, including a stop for drinks and hummus at Shaya / Maybe left my purse at a different coffee shop and only realized once we were back home 😱 / My uncle’s red beans for dinner 🤩

Kolache for breakfast / Took the streetcar to the Quarter / Walked along the river / Ate a muffaletta at Central Grocery / Walked down Royal — all the charm of the architecture, none of the noise or smell of Bourbon Street / Ate a snowball on Plum Street / Had the best onion rings and just a laughably large open-face roast beef sandwich at Mandina’s / Looked at family photos / Had such a stomachache that night and I can’t imagine why 😅😅

Breakfast at Molly’s Rise & Shine / A walk through the Garden District with my own little tour guide 🤍 / A quick shopping trip / One last shrimp sandwich (our best one!) at Francesca’s and then some goodbye hugs with my uncle at the airport before heading home / Left a little piece of my heart there, as always, but I’ll be back soon to visit it 😚

In other news, I got the biggest hugs from my babies when I got home and I was only gone four days, but my son just gets himself ready in the morning on his own now 🥺🥺🥺