We loaded up the truck Friday afternoon and headed east to Baton Rouge. Phillip’s dad’s birthday was this past Monday (happy bday!!), so his parents decided to make the trip south to celebrate. We met up with them at our hotel once we got in on Friday, then we jumped in the car to have “birthday dinner” at a wonderful seafood restaurant in town called Juban’s.
From the outside, Juban’s doesn’t look like anything special. It is located in a strip mall off of Perkins, but this is an instance when you definitely can not judge a book by its cover :-) We had a wonderful dinner and great conversation. Most of us started off with their famous gumbo, but Shannon strayed from the norm and ordered their homemade crab cakes. Both the gumbo and the crab cakes were unbelievable. They are famous for a dish they call “hallelujah crab.” It is soft shell crab that comes out raising its claws in the air so it looks like it’s singing its praises to the heavens :-) I got redfish that was topped with asparagus, mushrooms, fresh lump crabmeat, and some sort of creamy sauce…it melted in my mouth – delectable.
After dinner, we all headed back to his parent’s hotel room and got to enjoy Shannon’s homemade strawberry birthday cake. Y-U-M is all I have to say. It was especially good this particular night. After the clock hit 10, us old folks headed to bed (I’m referring to me and Phillip). I was starting to feel less-than-wonderful, so we hit the hay early.
I woke up the next morning feeling WAY-less-than-wonderful, so I decided it would be a good idea to head downstairs and make myself eat something (with hopes that would help…food usually does) :-). Eating just made me feel worse.
Phillip had plans to walk in Baton Rouge’s annual St. Patty’s day parade, so he got dressed and I dropped him off promising him I would feel better soon. I went back to the hotel to get ready, because I was headed to Lafayette (an hour west of town) to go to my friend Amy’s baby shower! After I got back to the hotel, my plans of going to Lafayette didn’t seem to be such a good idea…let’s just say I got worse (I’ll spare you the details). So I called Amy to tell her I wouldn’t be able to make it, then headed straight for bed and didn’t rise again until about 1pm. Sleep + the Sprite and crackers Phillip’s dad delivered to my room were just the medicine my body needed.
After I got up and ready for the day (afternoon), I went to pick up parade boy because he was ready to come home. We went and ate a late lunch at one of our favorites, The Chimes, and then Phillip’s dad went to search out some baseball tickets so we could all go see the Tigers play Florida at home!
I got to grab a quick visit with my brother Barron and his girl, Madison. It was so good to see them both. I definitely don’t get to see them enough. I can’t wait until school is behind them for the summer and we can have some time together…I bet they feel the same way.
It turns out Phillip’s dad got enough tickets for all of us to come to the game! I was so excited to get to go…believe it or not, I LOVE baseball. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t keep up with the sport or know anywhere near all there is to know about it, but I love to watch. Phillip and I had great seats right by the third baseman on the first row. The weather was unbelievable! For those of you who know Baton Rouge, it is usually quite hot and humid, but this particular night it was perfect…not too hot or cold and there was a steady breeze.
The Tigers ended up losing 1-0 to Florida (who’s ranked #1), but it was a fun night nonetheless. It turns out Barron and Madison got seats close behind us, so we met up with them afterwards and they agreed to join us for dinner. We all ate a super late dinner at a pizza joint in town called Mellow Mushroom, and then we said our goodbyes until the next morning and went to bed.
The next morning, I woke up early (as usual…feeling MUCH better I might add) and headed downstairs for a light breakfast. I came back to the hotel room to get all I needed for my walk around the lakes, then Phillip looked at me through sleepy eyes and said, “I wanna come,” music to my ears :-) He got ready quickly, then the both of us set out for one of my most favorite walks of all time. Once again, the weather was perfect, and we spent over an hour soaking in the sun and admiring all of the beautiful houses and enjoying each other's company.
After that was brunch at Sammy’s with the whole gang, then we said our goodbyes and headed west to Houston.
It was an unexpected getaway that felt more like a mini vacation. Thanks so much, Shannon and Phillip, for everything! We had the most wonderful time! It was so good to see and spend time with all of you! Barron and Madison – we cannot go that long again…I must see you SOON!!
Thanks for reading and I’ll be back soon!
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