NOLA

On Saturday, after arriving home from NYC on Wed, we picked Kaleb up from Camp of the Pines. (We left at 5:30 a.m. to do this!)Since New Orleans was only three hours or so farther, we went on.  We haven't been there, and Rick's birthday was on Father's Day this year, so we called this his celebration.

Just so we could say we've been in Mississippi (we don't count states that we just drive straight through or where we are only in the airport), we detoured to Biloxi to see the lighthouse.

We tried to put the Princess book in each state picture.

Rest stop

The welcome center had carved trees with a sign that said someone had carved the oak trees that died in the hurricane.

We'd hoped to climb to the top, but they said that in this heat you have to do it by 9:30 a.m.

So we went wadding instead. We keep flip flops and water shoes in the car. (That was free too)

Louis Armstrong park

This picture should have been before the one above, but my computer is being weird.

Then we went to the French Quarter

 One not so nice thing happened in the Quarter, but we all just shook it off. A middle aged white guy was sitting on a bench, and when we walked by him he said, "Hey," so I turned back. He said, "You got all those black kids with you, whatch you doing in the Quarter?"
I did not know what to say. Didn't know what prompted his comment, so I just stood there looking him in the eye saying nothing. Finally he said, "What? I wasn't being rude." Well, if he wasn't being rude, then why did he say it? I wanted to ask him that, but didn't want to get into it on our weekend out. I looked him in the eye another few seconds then turned and walked away. Never said one word to him during the whole thing. Would have liked to know what prompted that question from him though. Later, in the restrooms, I told an African American lady with kids about it, and she said she didn't know why he'd say it.

 The next morning we went to City Park. There is A LOT to do there.

 I'd left the princess book in the car, but Rick has it on his iPad, so we did devos by the fountain.

 There were lots of play areas.

 We discovered Storyland which is like a small version of Story Book Island in South Dakota. We lived in SD from 1991-1995 and Story Book Island was on the bike path and was free. This one cost $4, but that wasn't bad. There was a small amusement park with it, but that was another $17 each for wristbands or $4 each a ride, so we just rode the train which went all the way around City Park so we could see what else there was. (Have I mentioned that we travel CHEAP? That's the only way we can do all we do. Right now we're in Orlando and Jasmine is microwaving a mac and cheese cup for supper for each of us.) That's how we found a bigger play area, sculpture park, a boat and bike rental place and more.

Not sure what this was. Any guesses?

This  picture is French Quarter but moved itself here and if I try to move it, it deletes the rest of my photos so I think I have a html problem with this post.

Before

After

Beignets (been yays) The lady said, "Turn it upside down and spank it" about the sugar. With the accent of course.

I wanted more sugar than beignets

Kaleb had ice cream

sculpture park

We thought about renting the pedal surreys, but it was just too hot. Next time. Or maybe the paddle boats.

We plan to go again since it's really only about six hours or a little more from us. But it's going to have to wait. 

Jasmine and I had NYC from June 11-18.
Then we had NOLA June20 and 21.
And now Jasmine, Kaleb and I are in Orlando for ICRS. Ty flies in tomorrow.
We will get home on July 1 and leave for IN on July 5.

A Taste of Racism

We talk pretty openly about anything and everything in our family. That includes skin color. But we've never made a big deal about it. We kid each other about who's going to burn worse at the beach. Laugh together when people ask me why I sunblock my dark kids since they don't burn--um, yeah they do! Just not as easily. We kid about being white chocolate, milk chocolate and dark chocolate. 

My kids know what racism is, and like me, they get tired of all these cases in the news where a shooting is blamed on racism. Who's to say it wouldn't still have happened if both people were the same color? White people shoot white people all the time. And black people shoot black people all the time. It just doesn't make national news.

Unfortunately Jasmine got her first taste of racism directed at her at the Frozen sing a long at Disney. The twins too, but they didn't notice. It was one of those occasions where they are trying to get everyone to scoot in to make more room at a show. I don't scoot. But we had a lot of room in the middle of our bench, and I saw a white mom with two white girls about 4 & 7 or 8 looking for a seat. I said, "We have room for all three of you by us." I was on the end, Jasmine was next and then the twins. The mom took a look at my kids and turned her back without saying a word. She had the two girls squish together on the bench right in front of me, and she sat on a tiny bit of bench right in front of them. 

The sing a long hadn't started yet, so Jasmine started singing one of the Frozen songs, and the older girl turned around and joined in. When it was done, the girl looked at me and said, "Do you think anyone heard us?" I said, "I'm sure they did, and they were amazed at how beautiful it was." She had this big smile. 

She and Jasmine started to sing another song, and the mom looked back and saw. She told the girl to stop singing and face forward. She was pretty harsh, and it seemed way out of place for a Disney sing a long! The girl half turned around but kept singing. 

The mom pulled her up off the bench and sent her to sit somewhere toward the front. I'm assuming there was a friend or family member there. Then the little girl started singing, and the mom grabbed her and sat her on her lap.

Jasmine looked at me and said, "What's going on? We're not going to get into trouble for singing at a sing a long even if it hasn't started."

And I told her the truth. It was obvious by the looks the lady had given the twins and was still giving Jasmine. Jasmine was speechless for a couple of second. Finally she said, "Their mom doesn't want them to sing with me because of my color?"

She was a bit shocked but okay, and the show was ready to start, so I just kidded with her. "She must think it's contagious." I rubbed my arm against hers. She hugged up against me and enjoyed the show. In fact, we went a second time despite an extremely long waiting line since it was Christmas week.

We talked about it later, and she'll bring it up once in a while. But it doesn't get her down. She just thinks that mom is "crazy" to think like that. Yeah, me too, Jasmine, me too.