April 2008, cont.

Reason #2: Trish attended a conference held in New Orleans by NACCP. It's always great to meet with other professionals in the early childhood education field and this conference was no exception. Part of the conference included a tour of Tulane's early childhood program.

Reason #3: To see Ben of course!!!! When Trish wasn't in class and evenings and weekends, the two were inseparable. In typical Prince Charming style, Ben had numerous surprises planned for Trish. The first was an afternoon production of Cinderella at the Baton Rouge Ballet Theater. So romantic!

Then, the couple met Ben's sisters, Rhonda, Suzette and Holly for lunch at Las Palmas. They are a lot of fun to be with and we had a great time (plus the food was very good. Louisiana has the best food, hands down!)One evening, Ben and Trish drove to Biloxi to the Imperial Palace for dinner and to Beau Rivage for a show. Dinner was at 32 (on the 32nd floor, beautiful view, excellent meal, so romantic!) and the show were Chinese Acrobats that were amazing! Another evening of making wonderful memories together.The next surprise was straight out of every woman's fantasies. It was a spa day at the Ritz Carlton for both of us. There were strawberries and champagne to greet us, a most incredible bubble bath, side-by-side massages and the day ended with pedicures for us both. What an amazing man I have!

Then, their time together was almost over so there was one last stop- to Lafreniere Park in Kenner. It was a beautiful park. There were ducks, birds, turtles and ponds with bridges, so peaceful. Having those last few hours, just the two of us, was so nice but bittersweet. We knew it was time to head to the airport...

April 2008

This posting is a little longer than the others as there were four reasons for Trish to head to Louisiana in April. We'll start with the first. Trish's youngest sister Alana had a milestone birthday April 8th so the sisters decided to get together to celebrate over a long weekend. Ben volunteered as the designated driver. Everyone arrived in New Orleans: Trish and Noelle from Portland (Noelle lives in Vancouver WA), Della from Chicago and Alana from Denham Springs.

First stop- the French Quarter for beignets. Everyone knows what they are right? If not, book the next flight to NO and head to Cafe de Monde for a treat you will never forget! The cute little guy in the picture is Flat Stanley. (Google him- it's a fun project that school children around the world are involved with. This one, dressed as a NO tourist started the project at Trish's school.) Flat Stanley went everywhere with the 4 sisters and they had so much fun taking pictures with him that he could start his own blog!

Next stop- Electric Ladyland Tattoo. No really! And we weren't even drinking! Trish is a tattoo fan with a frog (remember lifelong obsession?!) on her left shoulder blade and a band around her left ankle (another frog sitting on a band of lily pads) that also includes 2 fluer de lis and three A's (her children's initials- Allisa, Ashley and Anthony). Anyway, somehow Trish managed to take Ben from "I would never get a tattoo" to "we can talk about it" to "Me, first!" So coordinating tattoos were applied by Annette, a true artist!

The tats are each 2 Chinese characters. Ben's translates to "handsome, skillful provider" and Trish's to "pretty princess". When the four characters are listed together, they translate to "soulmate".

Next stop- Jazz Festival on the Waterfront. Great music, good food and more conversation as everyone celebrated Alana's birthday.

The next day, everyone headed to see Mom & Dad with a stop through Baton Rouge at the State Capitol. Fortunately, there weren't many other people around so we took turns rolling down the hills, walking through the grounds and reminiscing.

After stopping to see Mike the Tiger and stopping at the cemetery to pay respects to our grandparents, the group finally made it to Sulphur. Aunt Dee and her family joined us for dinner (chicken & dumplings, thanks Mom!) and the girls talked nonstop for hours.

The following day, we joined Aunt Jill and her family for lunch at a very yummy Cajun restaurant. Everything was fried and so yummy! There were even fried pickle slices! While we can't eat like that all the time, it was so good! It seemed like the time past way too fast and all too soon it was time to head to New Orleans. Which brings us to the second reason for this trip...

Fairytale Valentine

Prince Charming requests the honor of your presence for a Fairytale Valentine celebration February 2008. Must be willing to meet in New Orleans Louisiana. Must answer to the name Fairy Tale Princess to RSVP...

Ben surprised Trish with the most romantic Valentine week ever. So many details- roses, the most beautiful love poems, a carriage ride through the French Quarter!

Valentine afternoon found us in a neighborhood grocery store and a story unfolded that has to be told. We were in line behind an elderly woman waiting our turn when we heard the woman tell the cashier to put back a few things. Ben leaned over and said to the cashier "add those things back in and ring up my items- I'll take care of it." He turned to the elderly woman and said "Happy Valentine's Day!" She looked at Ben and said "Thank you, thank you darlin'!" Then she turned to Trish and said "honey, this is my 12th year without my Valentine- hold onto him, he's a keeper." The lady behind us said to Trish- "that made you fall in love with him all over again didn't it?"

Valentine's dinner at Ralph's on the Park in New Orleans. The next night we met Mike & Holly and Darryl & Rhonda (Ben's sisters and their husbands) for dinner at Nash's Restaurant in Broussard. It was a beautiful setting, great food and wonderful conversation.

Then, we moved to Mike and Holly's "Chateau on the Lake" and they threw in the most decadent chocolate covered strawberries that they created just for us. Another romantic evening followed as Ben planned the next dinner at Mr. Lester's (inside Cypress Bayou Casino)? Romantic setting, private booth- can you say "I'm a lucky woman!"?

Just before the week ended, Ben and Trish joined Trish's parents, her sister and her nephew at Prejean's in Lafayette. Yummy food, shared memories and catching up helped Trish through the last few hours before she boarded a plane back to Oregon knowing that it would be several months before they would see each other again.

Christmas 1977

Remember that Greyhound bus ride? It took 3 days for Ben to get to Oregon. But it was a beautiful winter. The snow was everywhere and for kids who grew up in Louisiana, it was magical.

We learned how to put chains on the car so that we could travel through the Cascades. Making snowmen and having snowball fights on Mt. Hood, sitting in Timberline Lodge drinking hot chocolate- what fun!! (Even with three younger sisters following close behind!) And any trip through the Gorge is not complete without a stop to Multnomah Falls. This day was no exception with the added bonus of frozen falls! We just stood in awe looking at the ice and trickle of water trying to break through. God's work is magnificent, isn't it?!

30 Years Ago

The story starts like this....

One day in 1977, at Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, a boy and a girl were introduced at lunch. Even though he was a Junior and she was a Sophomore, a romance blossomed and they quickly became inseparable. He walked her to class, he drove her to school and in 1978, he asked her to Prom. Never had there been a more romantic evening! (Including the stop by Burger King on the way home!)

Then, in August 1978, he gave her a gift that would begin a lifelong obsession for her. He gave her a stuffed frog that she named Danny (after Danny Zuko in Grease). But less than 2 months later, the unthinkable happened- they were separated when her family moved 2500 miles away to Oregon. She cried and cried and cried while he made plans to take a Greyhound Bus all the way to see her. It was a wonderful Christmas as the young couple spent precious time together.

But the distance was too great and the young couple lost touch even though they both thought of the other all the time. They grew up, they married others and started families. Their lives were busy and they thought fondly of the other, always wondering where he/she ended up and what he/she was doing.

One day, she received an email addressed to a name she hadn't heard in 30 years- "Are you Patricia 'Frog' Adams?" She quickly closed the email and opened it back sure that she must have read it wrong. And her heart skipped a beat as she scanned to the end to read the signature "Your friend, Ben". For months and months, they traded polite emails, catching up on each others' lives.

A year after the first email, they met in New Orleans for Valentine's Day and the years fell away. They spent hours talking, staring at each other and beginning to understand that the love they felt as teenagers had never gone away. Over the next few months, they spent hours each evening talking on the phone. (Thank goodness AT&T lets their customers talk to each other for free!!!) They built a relationship, a friendship, a new love even though they were still separated by 2500 miles.

In May 2008, 30 years after they lost touch, Ben moved to Oregon to be with Trish. And the beginning of their happily ever after (and the next chapter of this blog) began on March 6, 2009 when they married in Sulphur, Louisiana. Stay tuned!