Y’all – I know, it’s been QUITE awhile since I last posted. I apologize! But we’ve been having an amazing time in Louisiana with some family and friends! Sooo happy to be home but also a little sad because there’s nothing quite like the South.. Southern hospitality, tons of history, antiques shops everywhere and sometimes the sweetest people!
It can be pretty nerve-wracking taking a 1 year old toddler on vacation whether you’re flying, driving or BOTH. It’s pretty scary imagining how your little one will deal with not being able to be independent and active so I tried my hardest to ensure I had everything planned and covered!
I started with cleaning the entire house. SPOTLESS. So when we came home there was absolutely nothing left to stress about but getting into bed and passing out after a long 17 hour drive! Then began a ton of packing, Hudson and I were flying but my Husband was driving so we were able to leave all of the bags with him except Hudson’s diaper bag. We got the CUTEST little bag from our neighbor that I used for a diaper bag and it fit all of the goodies he would need and could fit my tablet, phone and wallet as well. It made it SO much easier only carrying a backpack so my hands were completely free for my busy bee!
We were flying into Dallas since it was cheaper than flying all the way to Louisiana so we planned for us to fly in right as Brent would be driving by so he could swing by and grab us! It worked out perfect and Hudson was so great on the plane ride there – I kept him busy with tons of treats he usually wouldn’t get, toys he hasn’t played with before, movies on my tablet for him to watch and tons more! (We flew Spirit and although it went smoothly, I’ve NEVER met a ruder flight crew in my life.. Not to me specifically but you could very clearly tell they did NOT want to be there)
After we made it and got in the car we started our 5 hour trip East towards Louisiana. Hudson was exhausted so he very quickly passed out! (It can be so incredibly difficult to eat healthy while traveling AND why would you when in cajun country?!) We stopped and got some Whataburger since we didn’t have any in Colorado (Wasn’t impressed, unfortunately) then made our way to our friend’s house who was holding us up for a week! (Bless their hearts 😉 )
We were EXHAUSTED but quickly passed out and were ready for the next day. My Husband was going to be working at this Dad’s house all week helping him renovate so I had a week full of fun stuff for Hudson and I to do!
We started with a trip to our good friend’s adorable little store found in Ruston that has a ton of vendors that sell awesome rustic/unique goodies for the home, for the kids, for yourself (Got myself a pair of shoes for $20 that look EXACTLY like Yeezy Boosts Which are $3,000!!) It’s the cutest little shop and I could spend WAY too much money in here, everyday..
After our stop here we made the trip down to see Hudson’s half-brother (His Father’s oldest) and his family. They’re such great people and we had a full day of fun down in New Orleans planned for the next day! But first.. Food! Hudson had his FIRST alligator and LOVED it at Walk Ons. Tasted just like chicken except a little chewier and he digged that 😉
The next day we made the short drive down to New Orleans and it was absolutely gorgeous. It was a whole new world it seemed. It was full of culture, music, performers, amazing food smells I couldn’t even identify and more! There was also a lot people watching ;).
I was so wrapped up in the beauty of the old French architecture and the Hurricane Drinks 😉 I didn’t get a chance to take many photos but made sure to get some shots of the gorgeous Jackson Square!
We headed back after a VERY long day in New Orleans to Baton Rouge to see Louisiana State University (Geaux Tigers!) and get some beignets. The campus was sooo gorgeous but unfortunately there was a torrential downpour the entire time we were there so I couldn’t get out to check it all out but it was amazing to see regardless and the beignets were DELICIOUS.
After heading back we said our goodbyes and left back to our friend’s house and took it easy and Hudson had a blast hanging out with their little ones! They were all best buds.. 😉 Their land was gorgeous and made me SO wanna be out there for good.
We made sure not to eat completely healthy on this trip because we couldn’t miss out on all the unique and authentic food! Hudson enjoyed it too.. We found an ADORABLE little diner RIGHT on D’Arbonne Lake.. He had shrimp bites, his new favorite thanks to Louisiana!
He also LOVE my Zyloware sunglasses! I LOVE these too. They’re my first high end pair of sunglasses and they’re so worth it, they’re durable and classy! ❥
Before heading back to our friend’s house for some more relaxing we headed to his Papaw’s house for some lovings and to get some sillies out before naptime. He LOVED the big open space.. AGAIN.. I wanna move to the country as I believe he’s a country boy at heart 😉
Of course we had to leave and stop for some BBQ before nap time.. We went to Podnuhs and Hudson LOVED it and their sweet tea.. We had a lot of that there..
Some of the meat was a little large for Hudson so I had to use his awesome new Tiny Bites shears to cut some up for him, they worked great! ❥
We headed back to their house for the rest of the day to rest up for our very busy day the next day. We were going to Shreveport to see my Dad who lives in Texas! We don’t get to see him very often so it’s SUCH a treat to get to see him!
We woke up bright and early the next morning for our hour and a half drive West to Shreveport and once we got there were welcomed by the GORGEOUS Boardwalk on the Red River. Then by DAD! It was so so nice to see him. Hudson loves him so much and remembers him every time he seems him.. Even if it’s been awhile.
We started by walking around the Boardwalk, getting a HUGE sucker (Lucky little man), doing some shopping and riding some kiddie rides! He had a blast (Despite the stickiest of sticky humidity and heat :p)
We HAD to get out of the heat so stopped at a delicious little cajun restaurant called the Blind Tiger and it was delicious. Of COURSE Hudson had some shrimp bites ;). I swear, they make the BEST drinks down there. Everything was so sweet with a side of rum or whisky. YUM.
After lunch we wanted to continue being INDOORS. It was just too muggy.. So we found an awesome little kids museum that had the most AWESOME area for toddlers his age. There were water parks, (He splashed all the little girls and old ladies.. What a flirt.. Hahaha!) a fire-station, a construction zone, a store, and so much more! We spent FOREVER in there. It was SO awesome. I really wish we had a place that cool here.. (Maybe we do?! I should look that up! You should too!)
Hudson very quickly got grumpy (I’m sure the heat wore him out) so we just started driving around Shreveport and looked at all of the history. The gorgeous mansions and very, VERY old cemeteries.. We went through the cemetery twice, we loved it so much.
As sad as it was it was getting late and I had to get back home to get Hudson to bed as we had a long drive back to Colorado the next day. So we said our sad goodbyes (Even though we were gonna swing by and have lunch with him on our way out of state!) and headed back East to the house.
It was so, so sad to leave Louisiana as it’s a completely different feel out there than anywhere else I’ve ever been. But we had to get back home. So the next morning we headed out on our long 17 hour drive back to Colorado. I was not exactly excited to start the long journey as I wasn’t sure how Hudson would do but he was fantastic on our way to lunch with GrandDad. He had a ton of snacks and lots of toys (Again, I brought a ton of toys he hadn’t played with before to entice him)
We stopped in Denton, TX for lunch at Chilis with my Dad and he was so happy to see him again. We had great food, great conversation and Hudson flirted with our blonde waitress the whole time.. hahaha! But all of his flirting sure did tire him out because after lunch we started our drive again and he was OUT for hours! Thanks blondie 😉
Although it was sad to leave my Dad, again, we were so ready to be home so we kept trucking along and Hudson was good the WHOLE time. We played games, sang songs and just enjoyed the agonizing butt pain that came from sitting for SO long.
We finally made it home around 1:30am and couldn’t have been happier. I put Hudson down and PASSED out. It was such an absolutely amazing trip and now I’m officially obsessed with Louisiana. It’s a whole other world down there ❥
It IS doable to both fly AND drive with a 1 year old toddler – As long as you’re prepared!
xoxox
s i m p l y k a r a l i z 