New Orleans & All That Jazz...the Bacchus Ball

So, about a month before the Bacchus Ball I researched dresses on Rent the Runway. I went back and forth, back and forth about what to rent or if I should even rent a dress. I decided to go for it and bring a back up dress just in case the Rent the Runway dress didn't work out. I had scheduled the rental to be delivered directly to the hotel in New Orleans the day I arrived. After many calls to the front desk, the delivery was no where to be found. I was having a mini panic attack. What if I can't find the dress? Do I have to pay full price for that sucker?!... Luckily the bellman was able to track it down the next day. It had been mixed in with a delivery for the maid service. We almost had a little 'Maid in Manhattan' moment!

This is the dress I ordered. Gorgeous, right?! Typically Rent the Runway sends you two sizes of the same dress, just in case, but they didn't have a backup available so I just went for it. I am so glad i brought a backup dress! That screen siren gown didn't zip 1/2 way up my back...boo. I was disappointed, but wasn't going to let it ruin my evening. The simple black dress was perfect. {Thanks Katie for letting me borrow it!}

{Russell and Tison were my dates for the evening. We dined on the largest seafood platter you can imagine and RAN in stilletos to convention center so we wouldn't get locked out before parade began! Don't all of the ladies look gorgeous in their dresses! Will Ferrell was THE BEST King. Love him!}

{This video is kind of long, but I just wanted you to see how cool he was. Can you believe his dad performed! Adorbs.}

{A huge heavy bag of beads nailed me on the head. I literally started crying instantly. I am such a baby. See the ice pack above for confirmation.}

{Richard and Philip joined us after they finished riding on the mardi gras float. We were dancing and having a good time by then!}

{Doesn't Ty look handsome in his James Bond tux?! -socute- Laissez le bon temps rouler.}

New Orleans & All That Jazz...take 2

{On Saturday evening Emily and the girls finally made it in to New Orleans. They had a hell of a time maneuvering through the rain all day from Houston. I was super excited to see them. The concierge at the W Hotel suggested Capdeville for dinner, so we put on our lipstick and walked a few blocks over.}

{Starting from left to right we have fried red beans and rice with green onion aioli and hot sauce. On the top right are jalepeno, sweet corn & cheddar fritters. We also tried the smoked salmon deviled eggs, but I guess we ate them so quickly I forgot to catch a picture first. Also photographed here are the steak frites with red wine butter and bleu cheese. I ordered the Truffle Mac and Cheese. It blew me away. The waitress suggested ordering the smaller portion and add grilled chicken. I could kiss her- it was perfecto! Dinner was followed by a few drinks at the W Hotel bar and a walk down Bourbon. It was shoulder to shoulder jam packed with people. Richard and I eventually lost the group. I have completely no sense of direction and only knew how to get back to the hotel! Needless to say, it was an early night.}

{Sunday began by hopping in a local record shop on Decatur in search of new music for my valentines gift - a record player. We picked up LCD Soundsystem and Fleet Foxes. Eeek! I am so excited about it.}

{I am sure everyone has their favorite oyster spot in the Big Easy, but this one is mine. I tried Felix's with my friend Rachael on Mardi Gras weekend a few years back. Their oysters are so fresh, the hot sauce is so spicy, the crackers- well, the crackers are the same everywhere. It's a killer combo though. And even though I prefer a speared fried pickle, those little pickle chips were pretty damn good.}

{I ran into my sister Leslie and her friend Mary at Felix's. She also found a new puppy! ;D}

{A little jaunt down North St. Peters led us to Urban Outfitters and straight into the French Market where Russell and I ordered the Dirty Banana, a nice blend of organic banana, amaretto, coffee liqueur, and vanilla bean. You must wonder if I ever stop snacking? The answer is no. No, I don't.}

*For some reason the blogger server is rejecting my Bacchus Ball photos - the WHOLE reason we went down there! Ah, well. I guess I will have to drag this on for another day. See y'all tomorrow?

New Orleans & All That Jazz...

Hey dreamers. It's been awhile. When my sister Les and my bf Lauren reminded me that I needed to blog, I knew it had been a long time. Not that I need to make excuses for not blogging because I do this for fun, but I will let you know what I've been up to. I went to New Orleans with friends for Mardi Gras last weekend and came back with strep throat. I haven't had it since I was in college! I thought those sick days were over when I got my tonsils out, but I guess I partied too much in the dirty south. My dad gave me a shot last Wednesday and I am finally feeling more like myself.  It is amazing how immobilizing strep throat can be. It's not the same as when you are a kid and you miss a day of school. I stressed out and felt guilty about calling in sick to work. I worried about the things that would pile up for me while I was out or the burden I would cause my coworkers by not being there. Isn't it interesting how we feel guilty about slowing down and actually take care of ourselves? Even asking for or accepting help can be hard. It was a nice humbling week of realizing how I need to take better care of myself, that pulling the covers over my head to sleep off a 101 degree tempature isn't being lazy, and when I do feel terrible it's ok to accept help from others. Thanks Tison and Mom for doting on me.

Now- on  a lighter note- who wants to see Mardi Gras pictures?! 'cause there are A LOT!!!

{Shortly after we arrived on Friday night, I met Captain Morgan and got to throw beads off the balcony.}

{We walked around looking for a place to lunch on Saturday and happened upon The Green Goddess. I was perusing my Food and Wine Magazine earlier in the month and snapped an iphone photo of this drink and thought, "I must remember to try this when we go down to New Orleans, but I'll probably never find it." But find it we did! And I ordered that there cocktail from the creator and goddess herself, Lizette. Every bit of this masterpiece was fresh-squeezed, mixed, and perfected by hand. It is called the Ninjarita. "Hawaiian black lava salt rims a tribute to the city's favorite saviors in a bled of Azunia gold tequila, Mathilde orange liqueur, fresh satsuma juice, ginger syrup, black pepper syrup, fresh lime juice, and Gekkeikan sake." I mean, wow. }

{If that drink wasn't enough reason to go in, we ordered andouille shrimp and grits that was to-die-for. I'm pretty sure I will crave this for the rest of my life. This is going to become a must stop place for me every time I go to NO.}

We were all lunched up and ready to browse through art gallerys, light shops, jewelry stores and more...ps- that diamond ring I tried on costs $20,000!!! whaa....t? and as you can see, we also saw Dick Van Dyke from Mary Poppins. aaaa-chim chiminey, chim chiminey, chim chim cher-eee...}

{Well, it started POURING outside- so what did we do? We ran into the Tropical Isle, of course! We're a couple of parrot heads. What was the most popular drink of the weekend you ask? SHARK ATTACK!!!}

Check back tomorrow. I'll be finishing up the Mardi Gras weekend pictures :) I hope everyone is well!

xo,



lately through the linz...

Here is a smorgasbord of pictures taken with my iphone. "All aboard my train of thought! choo choo!" (One of my favorite quotes from siddathornton. You should follow me on instagram or twitter, where most of these pictures have been posted. It's where I "over-share." ;) If you don't have the instagram app (boo) or you don't tweet (double boo), pics can also be found here.

'L' is for the way you look at me...

eat, drink, & be married...

My oldest friend is getting married!

(just to be clear: she's not old, I've just known her for a super long time. ha!)

I remember when my friends, Liz and Stefanie, and I bet on who would get married first. I don't, however, remember if we were in middle school, high school, or college. I have known these girls forever! It seems Bubba aka Stef won! I am so happy for you, Stefanie and Kevin! You're 'stock the bar' party was oodles of fun; I wish we lived closer to y'all so we could have this much fun all the time :) Miss you mucho.

 I love these girls! You've never met sweeter people.

quit playing games with my heart...

We had a few people over for spontaneous house party/game night a couple of days ago. I was shocked and excited at the number of responses from my friends who were up to playing Scattergories with me. I found out pretty quickly that the second the timer starts, my mind turns off. I can't handle the pressure! tick-tock-tick-tock..."Ugh, what's a type of weather that starts with a K??"

My Cole Porter Pandora station really set the mood. I hope there are more of these game nights!

What should we play next time?

mongolian stir fry anyone?...Genghis Grill

There's a new Genghis Grill restaurant on -you guessed it- Youree Drive. A little afternoon date spot for Ty and myself. Once you are seated, the server gives you a small silver bowl. Then you get in line to choose your meat, veggies, sauce, etc. You hand the bowl off to another server that asks if you want noodles or fried rice. (Imagine an assembly line.)They plop it on a hot grill and when it is steaming and smelling delicious, they bring your meal to the table ready to eat. I don't know if I can properly "review" this restaurant seeing that you are in total control of what goes in your own bowl. If it doesn't taste good, it's kinda your own fault. Remember to pile those veggies high people 'cause they cook down on the grill. It's a fun, different way to set up a restaurant, but I wouldn't call it A+ food.

I have been making a lot of "notes to self" lately, but seriously Linz- stop wearing that fuzzy vest so much, even though it is so comfortable and you can eat as much as you want and everything stays concealed!