I left off telling you about how we were doing in life back in the summer (even though I blogged about it in November.. oops!). So, I'll try for a quick catch-up. That will take some pressure off of me, and for those of you who already know about our last several months, you won't be dragged along waiting for new info. ;o) Edge of your seat stuff here, folks! So, bear with me for a long post, will ya?
So.. September 2014
We're still in New York City. We're living in a small, two-bedroom apartment right in the heart of Little Italy. The windows are all sound proof, but if they weren't, I would spend most of my days listening to the sounds of horns beeping, someone playing an accordion on the street while singing love songs (yes, really - think cobblestone Italy from the movies), while waiting on Damion and his work partner to come home in the afternoons. The hotel they worked on is on Broadway, right by the World Trade Center area. I'm a bit timid, and a lot of days are still pretty hot outside, so I didn't do anything alone during the days. That's okay by me - NYC is an expensive place to visit - and live! But, I'm getting ahead of myself!
After visiting with my family and friends in North Carolina, I drove back up to be with Damion in NYC. Labor Day weekend brought on a couple of days off for him! Yay! So, we got adventurous and drove out to Montauk. Are we fancy, or what?! ;o) I've heard of the Hamptons and Montauk before, of course. Barefoot Contessa, Celebrity Summer Homes, Revenge!, The "We Don't Want Them Here" Kardashian Drama, and HELLO!!... Phoebe's real mom's beach house! I tried to explain it to Damion, but he didn't care much about the hoop-la. Ha! It's a 2-3 hours drive from the city, so we headed out on Sunday morning. The drive was pretty easy, until you get into the actual Hamptons. Then it changes from interstate/highway driving to two lane roads everywhere. Traffic and people everywhere. Tiny cute shops and crazy expensive cars everywhere, too! But, where were all the celebrities?! We laughed because we saw NO ONE FAMOUS. :o( Only people we kept calling, "Probably Tom Cruise's Cousin" and "Most Likely Jennifer Aniston's Hairdresser." Oh, well.. on to Montauk we go! Maybe they're all out there on the beach!
Guess what.. the lighthouse is cool. But, traffic is bad there, too. And still.. no celebrities. What even?! Damion did his best to appease my desire for almost-paparazzi. These poor folks never knew what hit them. Hahaha! Thinking about that, all these months later, still makes me laugh. He's definitely the one for me. ;o)
The lighthouse at Montauk Point.
No celebrities on the beach, either. Hmph!
Delicious!
A week or so later, The Feast of San Gennaro began in Little Italy. Right on Mulberry Street where we lived! Literally within arms reach of our building door, there were vendors lined up and down both sides of the street, carnival games, several parades, and music from sunlight until nearly midnight, for about 10 days. We didn't mind too much except that it created some drama in trying to get a some things delivered (Amazon shipments, grocery order, mail from home). It was also a bit of a maze to meet up with my long-time friend, Stacie (who just opened up her Etsy Shop!) for dinner one night. (We forgot to take a photo together!) Fun to watch from our window, though. I got some fun photos and videos. We also got to eat some really delicious food!
This festival brings in close to a million people to Little Italy each year!
Looking Left, then Right, from our bedroom window.
Parades :)
Being in New York on September 11th was sobering. At night, we went to our rooftop and looked over the city, including the Tribute in Light. Both beautiful and heartbreaking.
Damion took this of the Century 21 Building by the World Trade Center Memorials.
Bad photo, I know - but if you look in the center of the picture, you can see the beams.
It wasn't long before it was time to leave. I was sad to leave Damion the morning I drove out of the city, but I was glad we were moving on to the next thing - going home! I headed out a few days before him because they were going to be working hard to close up the job site, and I wanted to visit my family on my way back to Louisiana (and also break up that intense drive!). My nieces both have birthdays in September, and even though the August beach trip was a celebration for that, I was happy to see them again. And my nephew, of course! Funny kiddos!
Looking back toward the city on my way south.
Cutie girls just after their 8th and 11th birthdays. :)
Reece, the family jester. :o)
Leaving our home empty for the summer provided a few.. challenges. The moist Louisiana heat is no joke! I spent a couple of days cleaning up some mold and mildew in our home and discovered we had a critter. Ack. Nicole and critters are not friend. AT. ALL. Thankfully, Damion's family is very kind to me, so I bunked up with his grandmother in her brand new home in Ragley. After Pop Norris passed away this summer, Mawmaw decided that it was time to move back to where her family was. So, she got packed up, sold her home and moved out to Conley Farms. :o) Everyone lives all together now! Thankfully, she was my champion in getting rid of the critter, too! Damion made it home, but we weren't home for long, though - Houston was next! It's not super far from our home, but definitely too far to drive each day for work. We were paired up with the same co-worker in another two-bedroom apartment. Much more space this time! And I didn't have to walk 3-4 blocks to get to and from my car. Ha! We spent October in Houston, going home on the weekends when we were able to.
I was the one with the power tools this time.
Our creations!
November was pretty much the same, except that the job was finishing up. Another guy was added to the site to help, so I had to give up my space in the apartment. Bummer! But again - thankful to have my new family close by! I spent a lot of time with them! They were very hospitable and helped me not to be so lonely. I'm pretty sure I overstayed my welcome, but I was showered with grace. :o) Damion's cousin Emily turned 13! YAY! We went to eat at Olive Garden with her. Sweet girl!
Emily and three generations of women in her family!
The birthday girl is a really great big sister, too :o)
Just before the job was ending, I got to go with my Mother-In-Law and Damion's Grandmother to visit him in Houston. Damion's brother had been sent to join the force since there were now two projects happening in the city. So, we went for a couple of days to hang out with them and introduce them to Ikea! I'm pretty glad everyone loved it because I'm always up for a trip there! When Thanksgiving came, the work ended in Houston, so Damion and his brother came home. We celebrated with the Conley family - tons of food, and of course, I had to insert some of my family foods. I made my MawMaw Wilson's Broccoli Casserole, My Granny Warren's Hash Brown Casserole, Homemade Bread, and lottts of desserts. Everything was delicious!
Ikea!
Molinda found shoes that are just perfect for her! Hehe!
Thanksgiving games with daddy (AKA - Uncle Jamie)
December rushed in and it was time for another birthday! This time, it was Damion's cousin, Elaina. She turned 4; her birthday party was at the Children's Museum in Lake Charles. Several floors of fun hands on things for kids to discover and play with. I ventured out and make her a Frozen-themed cake. Damion helped me, as it ended up taking a LOT more time than I had hoped. I was very critical of my work, but I think it tasted great when all was said and done. :o)
Thank you, Pinterest! Ha!
Next up - Christmas Festivities! The church we've been visiting at home had a Christmas musical. We were able to go to the opening night, and Damion got drafted right away to help out. ;) He was a great sport! Damion was offered another job site in Houston with the same company he had been working for, so the week before Christmas, we headed back for a week. We had already made plans to visit my family in North Carolina, so they graciously agreed to let us keep those plans. We had Christmas festivities with the Conleys, then headed out the next morning for our drive to NC. On the way, we stopped and had dinner with one of my best friends, Hallie, who was working in Atlanta. It was a quick visit, but so refreshing. I love that girl!
We love to play games with our family! This was a new one we tried.
Lots of laughter ensued!
Elaina got her own Jerry the Giraffe!
Damion's parents :o)
Uncle Jamie & Aunt Michelle with their girls. Dylan had to leave for work :o(
Christmas sword fighting with Dustin. Normal, right?
We spent a few days with my family, including Christmas morning. It was nice to be husband and wife for that this year. :o) While we were visiting, I did get to run off to dinner one night with a couple of my college best friends, Marie and Matt. We met as freshmen and have remained friends all these years. Love them! We always laugh SO MUCH! It's a favorite thing of mine to hang out with them! We had to hurry back so he could get back to Houston, but we were thankful for the time we got to spend there! Once we got back to Louisiana, we napped a few hours, then headed on to Houston. Exhausted!! But, we had to do it. (Photos below... the Christmas of Selfies! LOL)
Me and my Daddy
Me with Mama
<3
Sisters :o) (Me and Stephanie)
Me with my Brother-In-Law, Eric
And SisterBrother, too (Me and Adam)
Me and my Sister-in-Law, Karen
Yay for Marie and Matt!
We wanted to get something as a keepsake for our 1st Christmas.
We ordered this from my friend, Lindsey. Check out her Etsy Shop!
All proceeds go toward their son's adoption!
Damion needed to do some catch-up work since he had been gone for a week, so he was able to bring along his childhood best friend, Jacob. He was a groomsman in our wedding, but I hadn't spent much time with him, yet. It was great to get to know him a little more! He even spent New Year's with us. :o) We aren't much for going out for a big party too often, but we clinked sparkly glasses together.. and I headed off to sleep about 30 minutes later. Ha! Happy to see you, 2015!
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