A Royal Wedding

I have been dreaming of this day since I was a 10.  Surprisingly Prince William did not choose me as his bride as I  wished all those years ago.  We celebrated the occasion at my friend Carolyn's house early this morning (6AM not 3AM thanks to DVR) with homemade fresh scones and the most delicious fritatta.  Catherine even made a William and Catherine banner complete with British flags.  Seriously where did I find all these crafty friends?  Sadly I have no pictures to document the occasion, but I do have photos of the day I married Nick-  who side note is much more handsome than Prince William these days.  I may be biased. . .

My friend Katie from my NYC days featured the rug from my wedding on her blog today!  Katie is yet another fabulously creative friend who designs rugs and writes said blog about rug design- it has a strong following in the industry.

Here is the post!  www.rugdesignblog.com

And here is another picture of the rug, that I love. . .

Our wedding, October 4th, 2008

Thanks Katie for including me on your blog and the wonderful reminder of how much I loved my own wedding to my own prince charming.

New Orleans!

Last weekend we celebrated my sister-in-law Melissa's upcoming wedding in New Orleans.  The bachelorette party was a great success and it was fun to spend dedicated time with Melissa, her friends and my other sister-in-law, Alison before the wedding.

Friday night we enjoyed custom margaritas prepared by our resident mixologist, Alison (well she is actually a lawyer, but if that doesn't work out she is an excellent bartender).   We paired the margs with the finest prepared appetizers Whole Foods had to offer, even going the extra lazy step of serving them in plastic packaging containers.   Melissa opened a few shower gifts in our suite at the Rathbone Mansion and we were off to explore the city.  

We dined at the Red Fish Grill in the French Quarter and enjoyed a post dinner stroll down Bourbon Street.  Stroll sounds classy when in actuality we were pelted with beads from all directions.  I am not so much into plastic beads post Mardi Gras, especially when they clash with your outfit.  Ducking the beads became a serious challenge, but I managed to escape the Quarter without any metallic necklaces.  I'll bring my own jewelry thanks . . .

Jane, Melissa the bachelorette and sister in law Alison at Red Fish Grill

One of my favorite things about New Orleans is the abundance of live music.  We weren't disappointed on Frenchman Street, where we danced the night away to a fun band.  When I say "night" I mean I was in my bed my 12:45AM- my first clue this weekend that I was old.

The good news about going to bed at 12:45 is it is much easier to get up in the morning to enjoy a delicious brunch with a former NYC roommate coincidentally in town for a wedding.  The below picture of Katie and me was taken after our brunch at Cafe Amelie. I miss K. Knab terribly and this was an amazing treat to see her and her husband, Jay. 

Jane and katie, NYC roommates from 2006-2008(ish)

Speaking of treats, post brunch Alison and I decided we still needed MORE food, because well you can't visit NOLA without a trip to Cafe Du Monde.  Since I don't like to share food, I insisted we each get our own set of three beignets- we were stuffed for the rest of the day.  We did walk off some of the calories touring around the Garden District, shopping, buying matching Ray Bans and riding the street car.

Jane & a street car

In an effort to escape the French Quarter, we ate dinner/went to bars in the Warehouse district Saturday night.  Once again I was home by 12:45AM- I felt super lame when the rest of the party made their return at 7AM.  Seriously.  I was ready for breakfast. 

Melissa & Alison out and about Saturday night, Melissa was a sport and mostly sported traditional bachelorette garb.

Alison and I estimated we were a good 5 years older than the average bar patron at the Red Eye Bar and Grill.  This was confirmed when the DJ played the classic Britney anthem "Opps I Did it Again!" and we were the only ones who knew the words. 

Conclusion of the weekend:  When it comes to eating and shopping I am semi-professional, unfortunately I am now strictly an amateur party girl.  I think I am okay with this . . .

It's hard out there for a car. . .

My car has been hating life lately.  It finally quit on me last night on the side of I-45 in route to Dallas from Houston- 4 different emergency lights came on and a flat tire.  When AAA came the mechanic thought the wear on the tire was extremely unusual, he also couldn't understand why so many lights came on at once.  He suggested a tow back to Dallas.  As basic AAA members this was not included in our service plan.  Forever thrifty (Nick not me) we decided to drive the 90 miles back to Dallas at 55 MPH, taking frequent breaks to make sure the spare tire was not over heating.  Fun!

This morning I took the car to the dealer on my way to work. They called back several hours with the problem . . . RATS.  Seriously a whole family of rats built a home in my engine and enjoy afternoon snacks of my wires.  I am so grossed out and I feel kind of bad for hating on my car the last few weeks.  I mean a rat infestation is a struggle for anyone to deal with human or car.

P.S I BINGED pictures of rats' nests in cars to illustrate this story, but they made me cringe.  I saved you from the grossness. 

Welcome to Seguin!

It has been on my to do list to visit Seguin since I moved to TX.  This may seem like a little thing, but it took me 2 years to accomplish this goal! Yes this is a random thing to want to do, but my first Dallas friend Courtney is originally from Seguin and I love her stories of growing up in small town Texas.  Seguin is a place where you can barter for things like a wedding dress with the promise of professional tax preparation, where school closes when the rodeo comes to town and a high school party means gathering in a field outside of town (just like in the country songs).   Seeing the town in person gave her stories new life. 

How can you not love the home of the largest Pecan?

Main Street alive and well in Seguin

Thanks Courtney for a delightful evening, I particularly liked the trip to the Dairy Queen.  It is these little things I really missed out on growing up outside of Chicago!  And to think you have 3 Dairy Queens in Seguin. . . spoiled.

P.S Yes it was the same day as my Alamo trip, hence the same outfit.  While I do like that dress a lot, I don't like it THAT much.

Remember the Alamo

My expectations for the Alamo were very, very low.

Nick thought it was boring, my friend Courtney said it was lame, others have said it was much smaller than expected.  

Maybe it was because my expectations were so low that I LOVED it!

Whats not to love about an historical relic?  I am also a sucker for antique doors, windows and stone walls.  As a non-native Texan I have a high appreciation for Spanish mission/hacienda/ranch chic architecture.  

Inside the Alamo courtyard- I would give you the history, but I don't really know it.  You will have to ask a native Texan who took Texas history for the story.  Yes they have a class on Texas history AND a Texas state pledge of allegiance.

Beautiful flowers, it is full out Midwest summer in Texas these days.

The classic photo of the main building.

Me sporting a typical tourist pose.

LOVED this walkway with hanging lanterns and wood beams.  My picture does not do it justice.

Thanks San Antonio for showing me a great time! This is a major accomplishment considering I was traveling for work, by myself, via car and staying in a Courtyard Marriott by the highway.  I can't even imagine how much fun you are under different circumstances!  I'll be back, hopefully next time with company.