So, it's been awhile...

I am so horrible at this blogging thing! I will bring you up to speed with my life (even though nothing exciting has really happened). Rufus: my lovely, lovely dog was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever in November. Yeah, I know what you are thinking... What the hell is that? It is a tick disease. Although we have him on preventative, we think he may have gotten it when we were still in Alabama. Ticks down there are insane. Basically, it is a disease that is treatable (thank god) but puts him in a lot of pain. He just stopped his treatment and we will be waiting a month to see if he needs any more. He has been on pain medication also. He has lost control of his back legs. Unfortunately, he is not the happy, crazy dog we have all loved. Every day with him is different; one day he will be the crazy dog we have all come to know, the next day is can't even get up to go outside. I have enjoyed the lazy Rufus, but I am also ready for the crazy Rufus to come back into my life! I have complete faith in our vet and hopefully he will get well soon.
Adam and I are really liking Manhattan. Besides all of the purple, it's a fun place to live. We have built relationships with most of our neighbors. I've said "hi" so the old lady down the street to us a few times, but she seems to be the nosey neighbor in our neighborhood... I think I will stay clear of her. ;) Adam is flying pretty frequently which is good, considering he needs some flight hours! I started a job at the Hilton Garden Inn back in August... Although late last year I was having a rough time and considering quitting, I'm glad my boss and General Manager talked me out of it. Things are looking up there. I applied for a Sales position a few days ago and hope to hear back by the weekend. I absolutely love everyone I work with, even though at times, the job is pretty stressful. You wouldn't think working at the front desk at a hotel would be hard... hahahha. It can definitely be hard. You have to learn to multi task, give the guest everything they'd like and a lot of the guests that stay there are on business and come often. One guest stays there once every week. He is just an awesome guy and is so nice, we all sit and chat with him every time he stays. Of course you get the guests that just aren't satisfied with their stay and you have to deal with that also. But, in the end, I have grown to like the job and am very happy with what I do there... I would be happier if I got the sales position. ;) Good luck to me!!
My sister, Jill, got engaged late last year and will be getting MARRIED in November! I couldn't be happier for her. I couldn't be more honored to be her maid of honor! I have been thinking of ideas for her bachelorette party and already thinking of a speech. Hahaha.
I FINALLY get to visit my other sister, Savannah, in March! I am so excited for that too!

I must say, I am extremely happy with where I am in my life right now. My pets are healthy (for the most part), and Adam and I are healthy. I don't think I could ask for more! :)

Memorial Day Getaway

   This last weekend, Adam and I planned a trip to New Orleans. I had been there before (last Labor Day) but if you all remember, Tropical Storm Lee was in effect. Ha. So, this time, I was excited to go and actually SEE everything. I had fun on our last trip but it was rainy, wet, and I was kind of mad because I couldn't do my hair or make up. Go figure. This time, it was so hot that my make up would sweat off and my hair was up in a ponytail the whole time. Oh well. I gave up trying to look good in 'Nawlins'. ;) We left on Saturday morning, checked into our extremely out of place hotel on Canal street and started our journey to Bourbon Street. Our hotel was located on Canal and was a great hotel. It was a hotel you would expect to see in New York or LA. It was very VERY modern on the inside. I thought it was pretty cool but Adam isn't really into the modern design and it really was out of place. New Orleans isn't a modern city. The reason why New Orleans is so amazing is because of the history and all of the older buildings. That is why this hotel was just out of place. Anyway, we walked towards Bourbon Street and to tell you the truth, I didn't even have to look at the street sign to know I was on Bourbon. The smell let me know. Once you get past the smell of pee, stale beer, and puke, it is a fun place. We ate dinner at a place by the Riverwalk called 'Mulates" and it was amazing. I actually tried (and liked) the seafood that Adam ate. Me, on the other hand, had some yummy blackened chicken. I'm not really into seafood but Adam SWEARS he will get me to like it. I also didn't grow up around seafood and really and truly, I can't remember a night in my house that we had seafood for dinner. After two amazing margaritas and dinner, we went to Pat O'Brians. And yes, I had a hurricane. As soon as I walked into that place, I remembered a certain family member that loves Pat O'Brians hurricanes....I will not name any names.... but apparently she had a great time there. ;) Adam and I had a good time there too. We met a couple visiting from Australia and it was really fun to get to know them and ask about their culture. For us old married people, it was 11:30pm and we decided we had to go to bed. So the next day we really just spent walking around, taking pictures, and laughing at the drunks. We literally spent 3 hours on the patio of a bar on Bourbon Street people watching. And let me tell you... New Orleans is the BEST place to people watch. Monday morning we walked to Cafe Du Monde, checked out of our hotel, and headed back to Alabama.
    My parents always told my sisters and I that we couldn't go to New Orleans until we were 30. I definitely see why... but if you look past the creepy homeless people and the women out to 'get beads', it is a wonderful place. There is so much history in New Orleans and some of the houses there are amazing. It is such a relaxing place and I can't wait to go back. Adam and I are planning on retiring there. ;) Here are some pictures I took while we were there!

Love this house! And the courtyard was gorgeous!

AMAZING food!

A picture of the cathedral in Jackson Square

My hurricane...

Adam and I at Pat O'Brians

A picture from Pat O'Brians

I thought this was a creepy picture. Look at all the ghosts! Eeeek!

Notice the ambulance and the fact that it is still light outside....

Cafe Du Monde. :)

We stopped in Mobile on the way home and went to the U.S.S Alabama. Pretty Cool!

U.S.S Alabama

 Also, a quick reminder as I leave you, I hope you all had a safe Memorial Day and even though we were all having fun on our trips or cooking out and getting drunk, don't forget those who have lost their lives for our freedom. I believe we should all give back to those that have risked their lives for freedom. Remember that Paws and Stripes is a non profit organization that trains rescue dogs to help those veterans who suffer from PTSD and TBI. Go to their website today at pawsandstripes.org and donate anything you can to help our veterans!

Photo by Paws and Stripes