travels Archives - Popcorn and Pandas

NOLA {Part 2}

Here is Part 2 of our 4 Year Anniversary Trip to NOLA!

Elizabeth’s for Breakfast in the Bywater

Bananas Foster French Toast

Honey Island Swamp Tour in Slidell, LA

SNAP!

Me and my honey walking down Bourbon Street

Another tourist must – pralines!

Street music was impeccable

And the indoor concerts were just as fab – these are the Brass-aholics at Blue Nile on Frenchman Street / You’ll also want to check out the Spotted Cat, Maison, Cafe Negril, Vaso, dba, and Three Muses. You can pretty much just walk along and pop in when you hear something you like!

Fabulous dinner at Upperline with friends Uptown – everything from the adorable owner, incredible food, art on the walls and wonderful service made this experience perfect

Is it bad that I hung out with gators, and then ate gators? This and an entire menu of amazingness at Cochon in the CBD

Oh how I miss these adorable houses! I wish I had documented even more of our trip. We got a tour through the beautiful Garden District, uptown, and the area near Tulane and Loyola of New Orleans (where I went my first time to Nola). It was so nice to have such great friends to hang out with and show us around, and we also made sure to enjoy some alone time together. We walked down Royal St. checking out all of the art galleries along the way. I could have spent a week or more there just exploring…although I must admit, I was a little tired after running around for only three days! Haha.

Hanging out with my little guy today. Heading to story time and then maybe the grocery store. I have missed him!

Hope you all have a great Tuesday!

XO,

Gina

Happy New Year!

The past year has been a bit of a roller coaster. My family has suffered a lot of loss, but we have also shared in a lot of joy. There have been changes in my career, trips across the country, exciting wedding celebrations, babies born, and interesting adventures. Watching my son grow this past year has been the most amazing part. He turned one in August with a nautical birthday party, and he has been soaking up knowledge like a sponge. He amazes me every day with the way he communicates and how much he can remember. He is sweet as pie and shows so much love and affection. I feel incredibly blessed and lucky.

I also feel extremely lucky to have so much love and support from all of you. Thanks for sticking by me this past year through the good times and the bad. There were moments when it was tough to find the time or energy to continuing blogging and creating, but this is always a place I love to come back to, and I appreciate you all coming back here as well. Some of your favorite posts from this past year included the beautiful fairytale wedding of Melissa and John, some creative ideas for engagement gifts, and when I tried out these fabulous new hair extensions. I also heard from a lot of you about how I survived the first year of motherhood and the gear that got me through. As always, please let me know what types of posts you would love to see more or less of in the coming year.

I can definitely say I am excited for what 2015 has to offer. I’m going to jump into a P90X program starting TOMORROW, and I am so excited to get back into shape again. I have always been athletic having played soccer and basketball my entire life through college and beyond. After having my child, I have struggled to find the time and the energy to get into a regular workout routine. When I was working outside of the home, I quite frankly hated to spend my free time away from my son. Now that I am home most days, it’s tough to even have free time! I received the P90X DVD program a couple years ago as a Christmas gift. It was on my wish list and also on my bucket list as something I wanted to complete as a challenge to myself. Although the program is still in the shrink wrap, it’s something I have not been able to let go. I despise the feeling of not being in shape anymore, and although I have lost all of my baby weight, I do not feel like my healthy, energetic self anymore. I plan on joining an online challenge group to keep myself motivated on this journey, and I am looking forward to feeling good again and setting a good example for my son. If you are also interested in joining me in my fitness journey, please let me know and I would love to give you more information about the group.

Aside from getting fit and healthy, I am setting my sights on a family vacation to Tulum, Mexico! I have never visited, but I have heard so many amazing things. Our itinerary is completely open, so if you have any ideas or suggestions on where to stay or what to do while we are there, please share!

The photo above is from New Year’s Eve on my friend’s rooftop in Baltimore, MD. We had a blast on our trip, although we are now trying to recover from the yucky sickness we managed to catch while away. Poor lil guy has the croup plus a fever! We have finally unpacked all of our Christmas goodies from the car, took down our tree, and put away all the decorations for the season. I’m always sad when Christmas is over, but I am excited for a fresh start in 2015.

Hope you all had a wonderful year, and I am wishing you all the best for a happy, healthy new year in 2015!

XO,

Gina

Twenty Eight: A Reflection

bday — My Aunt Marie, My sister on the left, and that’s me on the right – My sister and I are two years and three days apart, and we’ve been celebrating our birthdays together our whole lives. Love you little sis!

–

twenty eight: a reflection

twenty eight

you’ve been great

so much has happened

from the past year to date

it started with

a new camera to shoot

a photography class

to give this blog a boost

went to the obx

on family vacay

relaxed on the beach

all worries kept at bay

katie’s oc bach

was a ton of fun

laughing and dancing

til up came the sun

summer days at ft. tilden

with erin and rai

summer nights in dewey

to celebrate labor day

this year brought us very

many weddings galore

most of them being

near baltimore

there was one in boston

during a crazy manhunt

another in montauk

on the gorgeous waterfront

a ten year reunion

for my high school class

can’t believe

how much time has passed

a trip to a.c.

for a bachelorette

dinner and dancing

complete with roulette

brunches and bar crawls

in the n-y-c

pollard potluck had

their 5th anniversary

nights in new york

during santa con

thanksgiving and christmas

had lots of family to bond

we went through some struggle

went through some strife

when we lost our little peanut

it cut like a knife

we tried to stay strong

and looked up above

for some courage and guidance

and we got through with love

next came a photo shoot

with blue balloons

a new baby coming

for us all to swoon

we call him little monkey

our pride and joy

we can’t wait to meet

our sweet little boy

my fav blondes came to visit

new york in the spring

we walked on the high line

and of course went shopping

arizona adventures

brought me to tucson

hung out with my pen pal

hiked in phoenix at dawn

prescott, sedona,

and the grand canyon too

are all the great places

that we got to view

after over ten years

our huge fam got together

with over one hundred kin

and some beautiful weather

a father’s day feast

with the notes clan one day

gathered instruments together

and a concert we played

the fourth of july

brought us to maine

the lake house was awesome

and the lobster insane

this year has been wonderful

twenty eight has been sweet

but this year is now over

and we cannot repeat

twenty nine is stepping in

so let’s have some cake

celebrate, cheer, and sing

for the new memories we’ll make!

–

Can’t believe another whole year has passed by, and boom I’m in my last year of my twenties. Time really does fly by. Twenty eight was awesome, and I am really looking forward to embarking on so many more of life’s adventures in year twenty nine. Thank you so much for all of the wonderful wishes I have received thus far!

I would also like to say a special early “Happy Birthday” to my little sis, Angela, who is also celebrating her birthday this weekend. We are lucky to have our birthdays so close, and we have always been able to celebrate together from either near or far. Love you Pooks!

Hope you all have a wonderful Friday and a fabulous weekend ahead!

XO,

Gina