Packed couple of weeks

The last couple of weeks have flown by in the Gill house!  Where do I start?

Mardi Gras came and went in a blur.  We didn't go to nearly as many parades this year as we typically do.  We were busy with work then headed out of town for the final weekend.  But we did get a little Mardi Gras fix to tide us over until next year.  The first parade we went to was over in Daphne.  Our friends Steve & Leslie invited us to go with them (she grew up across the bay).  We had a good time, but it's definitely a little more low-key than the Mobile parades.

We went to the La'She's parade and ball and of course, had a blast!  Both my cousin & Leslie are in this organization and they have been hitting me up to join.  So who knows, maybe next year I'll be a member.  This one is on a Tuesday night so it's tough to stay out all night and get up for work the next morning these days, but hey, Mardi Gras only comes once a year!  We caught the parade on front end, walked down to Steve's hotel to hang out for a bit, then caught the end of the parade.  Rather than sit through callouts, we went to dinner downtown, then headed in for the party.

classic throw at Mobile Mardi Gras

with Leslie & Darla

me and Sean showing off our Auburn bling

selfie

with the hubs in the main ballroom

Later that week, we flew out to Austin for my niece, Zoe's first birthday.  It's always fun to spend time with them.  Saturday, we had her birthday party at the house.

of course Nana is always happy to stand and hold Zoe's snacks for her

my brother, Chris, and Zoe

she was really not too sure about the whole cake thing - so much for a "smash cake!"

I showed Elijah how to take pictures on my phone and he was obsessed.  Took some pretty cool pictures though.  Through the eyes of a child...

That night the grandparents kept the kids, for Chris, Emily, Cameron & I to go out together.  We chose a trendy restaurant near UT, the Salty Sow.  While waiting for our table, we walked down to a coffee shop/bar and all laughed that we were too old/not cool enough to be there.  Oh well!  :)  We had a good time kid-free and enjoyed the restaurant.

my new fav - the old fashioned

Most of our trip was spent hanging around the house and lots of eating out.

amazing bbq - a must visit in Austin

this has to be one of my most favorite pictures ever.  Can't wait to show her this one when she gets older!

that's an aquarium - in an old tv

I did do a little shopping while I was out there, partly out of necessity.  When I picked up my suitcase at the Austin airport, it had a huge hole in it.  So lucky my clothes didn't fall out!!  I've been looking for a new one, but now I had to find one within a few days.  FYI most of the large suitcases sold at TJMaxx and Marshalls are oversized.  Finally, found one at the outlets.  I also picked up a few things at the Banana Republic Outlet and found a new Mardi Gras dress on the clearance rack at Dillards.

I introduced Elijah to the world of selfies.  Not sure he fully gets it at 5 but he does love to see himself on the camera!

We flew back on Fat Tuesday.  I was little nervous about making it home because the weather had been so nuts.  It was 80 degrees on Saturday then 35 the next day.  Some of the roads in Austin were frozen and school was delayed the morning we flew out, and Nashville, our connection, had some snow.  Thankfully, we got home without a single delay.  We did have a several hour layover in Nashville, where we camped out at a bar so Cameron could get his beer fix.  This year for Lent, Cameron has decided to give up beer and I have given up pasta.  Cameron actually suggested this one for me and I didn't think it would be THAT hard.  Let me tell you, I eat a lot of pasta and never realized it.  Like every single Lean Cuisine I take to work!  It has definitely been a challenge.

my last meal at an Italian Restaurant Monday night

We had a short work week then geared up for another busy weekend last week - chili cookoff, hosting a baby shower, and friends from Nashville in town.  Yep.  My good friend from college, Holly, was coming down from Nashville with her boyfriend Thomas to go to a wedding.  They arrived Saturday morning and we went straight to the cookoff.  The American Cancer Society puts on a chili cookoff each spring in Mobile.  Cameron's company participates and he loves helping cook.  It's a pretty big event.

We hung out for a while, tasted chili, and listened to music, then had to head out - Holly to the wedding, me to a baby shower.  Darla and I were helping a few other girls co-host a baby shower for our friend, Sara.  The shower was a success, but I failed to take any pictures!

Since Holly & Thomas  weren't  leaving until Monday morning, we had all day Sunday to hang out.  We headed out to the causeway for lunch on the back deck of the Blue Gill.  It was a gorgeous day!  We spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on our porch while Cameron smoked ribs for our dinner.  It really was a great day, perfect intro to Spring!

This week has been a busy work week with the perfect lazy weekend that I needed to unwind from the last couple weeks.  It's been rainy so Cameron and I have just laid around the house, but sometimes you really need a weekend like that!