Michelle’s Birthday Lunch @ Gogi Korean
Ah, the last day of July and what I consider, the last day of summer break. July has been another fabulous month this summer which has been super good to me, so I will not lament that it has come to an end. I’ve enjoyed plenty of awesome experiences this month which included a Kagan Coaching Conference in Orlando, Florida. Attending this conference allowed me to bring my boys to Disney World, and we spent some time at the Disney parks. Animal Kingdom was our favorite.
I also celebrated good times with my fabulous friend Michelle who happens to be a July baby. 
We enjoyed Korean food for her birthday lunch followed by rolled ice cream from Roulé for dessert. Other highlights of July were going to the movies (The Incredibles 2, Ant-Man and the Wasp, The Equalizer 2), a museum visit, a concert, a scrapbooking evening with my BFF Shelly, and a lunch date with my friend Kelly Parker LeGrand. This was the first time Kelly and I had seen each other in over 20 years. We talked for hours. My only regret was that we didn’t take any pictures together. Hopefully, it won’t be another 20 years before we have lunch together again.
While I enjoyed much happiness this month, there was also some sadness. My extended family in Utah said good-bye to my sweet Uncle Charles. I feel blessed to have known him and grateful for plenty of fond memories of times spent with him. I can bet he is well established in heaven telling stories and jokes. Rest in peace, Uncle Charles!
Tower of Terror
I am semi-officially back at work this week meeting with teachers in my new role as an Instructional/Curriculum Coach. I had my first PLC meeting today with the lovely fourth grade teachers. I felt it was successful. Tomorrow is August 1st and Andrew’s 17th birthday, so he and I will celebrate his birth in the evening with dinner at Chili’s. We will officially celebrate him as a family later in the month of August. Until next time, dear reader, stay positive, focused on your dreams, and grateful for all of your blessings. Happiness!
“Get your dance on today…move some energy around…visualize everything as you want it to be…Fullness, Completeness…You!” ~ Sereda Aleta Dailey, The Oracle of Poetic Wisdom
Last night, my hubby and I attended the Cheap Trick concert in New Orleans at the Saenger Theatre. A few hours before the concert, we checked in at the Copeland Towers. We decided to spend the night in lieu of driving an hour back home after the concert. Dinner was at The Velvet Cactus located off of Harrison Avenue in New Orleans. Andrew and I had eaten there with friends, Jeff and Joanna and their son Jackson, before the Hall & Oates concert back in June. I really enjoyed it, so I suggested we eat an early dinner there before the concert. Barry ordered the Corona Shrimp Tacos (grilled shrimp, Creole slaw, pickled red onion, pico de gallo and topped with chipotle aioli) with a side order of refried beans. 
I ordered the Cabo Quesadilla (grilled gulf shrimp, applewood bacon, fire-roasted corn, mango, Monterey Jack and cheddar cheese) with a side order of chipotle cheese grits. YUM! (I had leftovers which we ate for lunch today.) Afterwards, we headed back to the hotel and watched a little television before getting ready for the concert.
Barry saw Cheap Trick live. I had seen them once before in August of 2009 with Son #1. They had come with Poison and Def Leppard at the New Orleans Arena. Cheap Trick was fantastic that evening, and fantastic last night. I’ve always thought Robin Zander (lead singer) was a cutie. Of course, Rick Nielsen (lead guitarist) wore his iconic cap and played on a slew of custom-made guitars, including a five-neck guitar. He even had a guitar that was a comic book version of himself. Nielsen also enjoyed showering the audience with guitar picks. The group played 18 songs with no encore. It was the first concert that I have ever attended that the band did not play an encore (observation not complaint). They performed all my favorite songs: “If You Want My Love”, “The Flame”, “
This morning, Barry and I picked up my momma and we breakfasted together at District Donuts in the Elmwood area. This was our first time eating breakfast there. I ordered a Miso Praline Bacon and Sunny Side Up Egg with a small mocha latte and a NOLA Cream donut to go. My momma ordered a Brown Butter Drop donut with coffee. My hubby ordered a Breakfast Burrito with a café au lait and a Salted Caramel donut to go. We did not intentionally leave my daddy out on our breakfast excursion. He is currently visiting my sister and her family in Atlanta. However, we did bring home a Chocolate Glazed donut for Andrew. He was sweet enough to take care of the dogs while we were in NOLA for the evening. Sweets for the sweet!
Our next stop was the Virtual Reality Laboratory where all three of us took turns putting on special headgear to experience a science theme. There were several people at this exhibit, so we only participated in the space station. Afterwards, we ventured through the Energy Unearthed (The Science of Petroleum Exploration) exhibit where there was a collection of rocks and minerals. One of the minerals on display was garnet which is my birthstone. Before leaving the geology exhibit, we passed a fossil of Megatylopus (extinct giant camel). According to the museum, it was found in Oregon and acted similarly to a giraffe. We also walked by the Geology Lab which had a gigantic prehistoric whale hanging from the ceiling. Amazing!
However, the neatest part of this section was the live insects, centipedes, and arachnids on display. My most favorite creepy-crawly was the tarantula, and my least favorite was the Madagascar hissing cockroach. And, just around the corner was Stegosaurus which happens to be my most favorite dinosaur ever. Stegosaurus is also from the Jurassic Period.
Our last activity at the museum was another virtual reality encounter. It was about the evolution of the Internet. As you can see from the picture above, there was a television screen showing you what the person (Andrew) with the headgear was experiencing.
Upon the recommendation of the receptionist at the museum, we decided to eat lunch at Dwyer’s Café which was within walking distance of the museum. Leaving the museum, we encountered a man walking his pig. Yes, a pig! And, it was adorable. After we all petted the pig, my hubby, Andrew, and I walked over to the restaurant. Our lunches were delicious and quite filling, so we walked around the downtown area for a little bit before heading back home.
Subsequently, I dragged my booty out of bed the next morning, took a selfie of myself making the commitment, and walked for an hour. After walking, I documented my starting weight at 158 pounds. I dug in a kitchen cabinet and pulled out my “pounds to go” and “pounds lost” containers. Diligently, I counted out 18 marbles, dropped them all in the “pounds to go” container, and sat both containers on my kitchen counter. This means that by 31 December 2018, I will need to weigh at least 140 pounds. There is no more “I don’t have time” because taking care of my health is important, and it is time for me to make my health a priority.
The Kat Files 