Lessons from Katrina

This picture was taken in 2011 just steps away from where our house once stood. I can’t believe it’s been 8 years since that fateful day in August of 2005.  It’s still heartbreaking to think about and August brings back a flood of memories and pain. So many lessons have…


Evacuating With a Special Needs Child

My son Charlie has a full dance card of medical issues–he had a stroke at birth resulting in cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus, and epilepsy. Charlie was born in Arkansas in 2007 and we promptly moved home to live near our families. The following year Ivan headed towards the New Orleans area…


Shelter In Place with Toddlers

Shelter in Place was the buzzword of the 2012 Hurricane season.  I’m not sure where it came from because we used to just call it “riding it out,” which is what happened for every hurricane of my childhood. My first evacuation experience wasn’t until I was a freshman in college,…


Pelicans on Parade {Free Northshore Fun}

There are always a ton of fun things to do on the Northshore and even better is how many of them are free! And right now Slidell has a great project going on–Pelicans on Parade. Pelicans on Parade is a public art project created by Leadership Northshore to benefit Children’s…


Books About Hurricanes

As we head into the heart of hurricane season, there are a lot of things to think about–do you have an evacuation plan? Do you have supplies should you choose to shelter in place? Should you give in and buy a generator? With all the worries and stress of the…


Juju the Good Voodoo

If you’re anything like me, you LOVE to buy things for your kids that have some local flavor. Being from South Louisiana is special and sharing that with our kids is so important. That’s why I got very excited when Maria, one of our contributors, hooked us up with a…


Back to School Printables

I love a good celebration. In fact, I love celebrations so much that sometimes I have them for no good reason. Or for a very small reason. That’s why I did a back to school party even though only one of my kids really knows what school is. And really,…


Five Fun Activities with Water

There’s no denying that summer in St. Tammany parish is HOT. People can argue that it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity, but either way it can make going out during daytime hours tough. Kids don’t seem to care about this, though, and they want to go outside and play…



A Year of Firsts…

Right after I found out I was pregnant, I noticed a nest on my windowsill of my second floor office. It had two little eggs in it. “Aww” I thought to myself, “that bird is having a baby too – except she’s having two babies!” A few weeks later I…