From New to Old

If you read my blog post last Wednesday, you know I had a trip planned with one of my sisters to help babysit the 3-month old twin granddaughters of our youngest sister.

Needless to say, we had a ball and spent most of our time holding and playing with these little dolls.

To see them today, one would never know they were several weeks premature and weighed under 5 lbs.

 They are not identical but there is definitely a resemblance.

 Brynlee Kate is the older by one minute and is full of personality.

 Ellie Grace was the smaller of the two but is quickly catching up.  She is so alert and doesn't miss a thing around her.

 This was my close-up view of them both as I took my turn holding them.  Is there anything sweeter than a sleeping baby?  No spoiling at all with these great aunts.

Brynlee

Ellie

Aunt Gin got some good snuggles.

 Aunt Bibby couldn't get enough of these baby snuggles.

 We even let Grandmother, Mim, have a turn.

Needless to say, we had a fun day with these little miracle babies and with each other.

In our nephew's Baton Rouge neighborhood is something I would have never expected.

Set back from one of the streets and among beautiful, modern homes is this little chapel.

It was moved and placed under the over arching and protective limbs of these amazing ancient Oak Trees.

 If you look behind the church, you can see the grove of trees stretching into the distance.

The community has created a walking path interwoven through the trees.

 I loved the old aged wood and the moss growing on the roof.Inside are handcrafted benches and pulpit.

 This was truly a "Lagniappe" (French for a special, unexpected) experience.

 On Friday, Gin and I spent the day on the road.  We began by driving to the small community where our parents are buried and replaced the flowers on their graves.

We then went to Lafayette where we looked at some houses and had lunch.  Afterward, we went back north to the little village of Washington, the 3rd oldest settlement in Louisiana.  Founded in 1720 and incorporated in 1835, Washington was a french trading post.  It is said that now 80% of the village is on the National Historic Registry.

I plan to go back with my camera and will share more about this interesting little place with you another time.  I can't believe I have lived in Louisiana all but two years of my life and have never been there before.

While there, we spent our time at the Old Schoolhouse Antique Mall.

This is not the only antique store in the village but certainly the largest with over 40,000 square feet of antique shopping.  The owners have utilized every available space in this old school building and gym to showcase every imaginable old thing.  We didn't encounter a ghost, but that doesn't mean there isn't one roaming about somewhere.

I found a few things that I couldn't leave there.

One was this pair of silk, embroidered pillows.  They are perfect in the living room.

 I also found some glassware that I had been wanting for my sofa table.

 The morning sun puts a spotlight on whatever is on the table and I wanted some colored glass.  These pieces not only picked up the colors in the pillows but create interest behind the low sofa.

This morning the sun created the most beautiful array of colors, so I was not disappointed.

I think I see another trip to Washington, La and more of these pieces in my near future.

We sisters always enjoy our time together and wish we could do it more often.  In the meantime, we will treasure all the time we can spend with each other and our growing families.