Hey y'all I got married

We eloped, because we're the Worst(s)!

About two weeks ago, Ben and I loaded up the car, found the most intriguing season of Counter Clock (imo) to listen to and took a little (long) road trip to NOLA.

Neither one of us had been there before and neither one of us have been married before so it seemed fitting.

The event: We chose to get married in Audubon Park, under the Tree of Life, also known as Étienne de Boré Oak. The French is really lovely. It is believed to have been planted by the first Mayor of NOLA for his bride (swoon). It was a really lovely location, it's quiet away from the city and there's giraffes nearby. Our photographer Marcia Ibay, did a really lovely job; she arrived at our AirBnB, took first look pictures, drove around the French Quarter to get more pictures and then met us at the Tree of Life. We said our vows at sunset in the sunshine. 10/10 experience. Would elope again. I cried reading my vows, and honestly I'm proud of myself for setting my makeup so well. I would also recommend the order we did things in, we did pictures then the ceremony. Once we were done with the ceremony, we were ready to just enjoy us time. I think having to do pictures after would have been a different experience. Especially since it was just us and no wedding party. I was initially hesistant about doing pictures first, but in end it worked out really well.

We then spent the evening eating the best burgers in NOLA. 10/10 experience.

We walked Frenchmen street and listened to live music as well. 10/10 experience.

You get A LOT of attention when you go out walking in a wedding dress, veil, heels, suit and carrying a bouquet. Also a 10/10 experience.

We spent our first morning as a married couple... in the swamps, looking for gators.

We drove home and stopped at a DELICIOUS breakfast spot in Louisville, KY. Only to be confronted with the world's longest train.

We'd been engaged for a little over a year, and frankly. We hate planning. We found a small business that took care of EVERYTHING for us. The permitting, the flowers, the officiant, the photography. All rolled into one package. Ideal scenario. Her website make it super simple to book the package we wanted, and see her work. It was a bit nerve wracking but Marcia was so sweet. She helped us find restaurants that met our dietary restrictions and had lists of vendors, like makeup artists, if that was something we were interested in. She even brought along her daughter, who does exclusively black and white photography at no extra charge.

A few notes from the road trip:

Did you know there's like, a shit ton of stuff to do in Kentucky? We sure didn't. If we had we probably would have planned an extra day for the drive; The Corvette museum, Mammoth Cave and the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln were calling our name.

Mazda CX-5 seats: Not built for the road trip. At all. 3/10.

Buc-cee's: Did you know you can see the light pollution from 30 miles off, glowing faintly in the horizon? I do now. Who needs that many flavors of beef jerky?

Anyways y'all, over the next few weeks I'll be teaching Wednesdays at Restore in St C and working on getting ready for the Spring M.F.-er challenge! Sign ups for that should be ready... soon? I think we're gonna get started in May!

Be your own best friend!