The Exam is Behind Me!

The photo is a tad blurry, but this is a picture of a random marching band that passed by Jim and I while we walked to dinner last night. It was great, you can definitely feel the heart and sole of New Orleans down here. When the sun goes down, the city comes alive.

My big exam was this morning, so last night needed to be a low key and early evening.

We dined at Red Fish Grill upon several recommendations from locals and the hotel concierge.

It was labeled a great restaurant for foodies on OpenTable.com so Jim thought it would be the perfect place to take me for dinner. And it was. It helped me stop worrying about the test and enjoy a nice evening away from my textbooks and flashcards.

I was thrilled to order the soup of the day, a shrimp chowder that was creamy and spicy with chunks of shrimp, corn and taso - a creole ham that has been seasoned and smoked. It was a bowl full of warm goodness!

Look at this! One of my most favorite bottles of wine on the menu for $50. Jim thought it was a misprint... I was stoked. Although I had to limit my wine to only one glass. I needed to be in bed early and able to wake up clear and refreshed for my test. You do the math...I had one glass and Jim had three - woo hoo was he a happy boy!

So let me fill you in on the test. It was long and hard... took me all four hours to complete but I felt pretty good about how I did when I left the testing room. I find out in six weeks. Man was I a bottle of nerves and I was so freaking happy to simply be done with this exam.

I walked into the hotel, completely spent... and you wouldn't believe who was sitting on the sofa waiting for me. My mom and dad flew in to surprise me! I completely lost it. It was a combination of being totally shocked and happy to see them in New Orleans and also a release of the tension and stress I had been carrying with this test. I can't tell you how good it felt to RELEASE and realize I was done (probably, I actually get my test results in six weeks).

My dad told me that Jim didn't know they were in town, and thought it would be fun to surprise him too. So I went up the room where Jim was pacing - he wanted to know all the details and how I felt about the test. I told him I was completely starving and that I would tell him all about the test while we walked to lunch.

Jim said, "you must call your dad, he's been blowing up my phone for the last two hours wondering if I've heard from you!" So we got in the elevator and I called my dad...ha ha ha... and when we got to the lobby and turned the corner, this is what happened.

Surprise... AGAIN!

Here is Jim and my mom. What a fabulous surprise!

We had lunch and walked around Jackson Square, then headed back to the hotel to rest up before going out tonight.

Jim and I will meet my folks in about 30 minutes for dinner and then the four of us will head to Pat O'Briens for a few hurricanes. Oh come on, I deserve a FEW hurricanes!!!