Category: Southern Living

  • Meeting Matters

    People who know me, know I’m not fond of meetings. In light of that, it is funny how often I find myself attending meetings. However, if you must you must and, when you must, you may as well make it as pleasant as possible, right? On a recent evening, a meeting was held in my…

  • A Random Day In New Orleans

    Sometimes, there are just things about New Orleans that make me smile. Running errands in New Orleans is unlike running errands in many places. For instance, on the way to the grocery store, this is just one of the sites you might see: Beads hang from tree like this giving them beautiful purple, green, gold…

  • What is Mardi Gras in New Orleans All About?

    If you’ve never been to New Orleans for Mardi Gras, you might find things a bit confusing. Since moving to New Orleans, I know, I have found myself explaining to friends all over the country about Mardi Gras and Carnival and Krewes and parades and well, the whole mystical, magical, crazy, fun season. The Carnival…

  • More Carnival Ball!

    As promised, here are more pics from the Nyx Myx Masquerade Ball. First, let’s talk food.   Did you notice the hot pepper jelly vinaigrette mentioned for the salad. It was incredible, so I had to find a recipe for it. I found this recipe online and it was very good. I made it with…

  • Walk in the Hood

    The weather has been gorgeous lately. The first weekend of Carnival parades was beautiful and now we are getting a brief break before the big Superbowl weekend before resuming with Carnival. Stay tuned for more posts about that. In the meantime, it was nice to just get out in the beautiful weather and enjoy. Here…

  • Deck the Halls with Carnival Color

    Carnival parades start in earnest this weekend, so I figured it was about time to decorate the house.  Purple, green and gold (especially purple) tends to clash with my décor, so the challenge is to achieve a festive look that you can live with for a couple of weeks. Here is the dining room centerpiece,…

  • Dancin’ to the Mardi Gras

    Music is the essence of Mardi Gras – you can’t have a parade, a carnival ball, or even a party without it.  Our carnival music reflects our joie de vivre spirit, our desire to let the good times roll.  The classic hits range from funk to R&B to brass band, but they have one thing…

  • Masquerade Ball

    Carnival Season in New Orleans is a wonderful time. Then entire season assaults your senses with colors and sound. One of the most sensational events, for me, is the Nyx Myx Masquarade Ball. It is invitation only and formal tux and floor length gowns and masks are required. I have lots and lots of pictures…

  • Report from the Rex Den

    The central command post for the Rex parade is housed in a nondescript industrial building.  For most of the year it just serves as a workshop for float construction, but really comes alive with activity as Mardi Gras day approaches.  I recently attended “Ladies Day at the Den”, and wanted to share some photos with…

  • Mardi Gras Centerpiece

    Some people have asked about the centerpieces that I used at the recent Epiphany brunch.   These were very easy to put together and you can use the same idea with materials that you have available for whatever holiday you are celebrating. Here is what I used: Greenery from my yard (you can use whatever…

  • Mardi Gras Pink!

      As we get closer to Mardi Gras, Krewes are busy attending their Mardi Gras balls, gathering throws and making plans for their parades and parties. I am a member of the Mystic Krewe of Nyx. We parade at night on the Wednesday before Mardi Gras. We recently had a membership meeting/party to hear the…

  • Winter Gardens

    In late December, my husband and I took a walk around a garden district neighborhood in New Orleans. We took pictures of a lot of the Christmas decorations, but I also enjoyed seeing all of the things that were in bloom here in New Orleans. The things that bloom change from month to month and…

  • Mardi Gras Gumbo

    It’s been pretty rainy around here for the past week. The perfect time for gumbo. Okay, really any time is the perfect time, but today, it chased away the gloominess from the sky and helped restore the Mardi Gras mood. Okay, so I took a few shortcuts on the gumbo. Don’t judge me for being…

  • Epiphany Brunch

    Last Sunday, January 6th, we had an Epiphany brunch here with people from our church and friends. Church members provided food and it was great fun. My contribution was a king cake and a sausage and hash brown egg casserole (see the recipe in today’s lagniappe). Here is the table: The tradition of the king…

  • Mardi Gras Time!

    It’s official – the Mardi Gras or Carnival season has begun here in New Orleans. As Cindy said in the earlier post, the Mardi Gras season officially kicks off with Twelfth Night or the Epiphany. All of the Christmas decorations are now put away and it is time to start the celebrations leading up to…