Well the weekend was just what we needed! Despite dropping way too much money in Shreveport, my DH was not too upset with my lack of luck on Friday night and Saturday morning. After a great "free" buffet at Sam's Town, we hopped in the car and headed to Natchitoches, LA and our favorite B&B (okay, it's the only B&B we've ever stayed in but it is still our favorite!). We even stopped for a couple of daquiries for the drive (you've got to a love a state where they can sell you an alcoholic beverage from a stand on the side of the road). We dropped off our bags and promptly hit the streets with camera in hand (pics to come later). I just love the sites and smells of this small but wonderful Louisiana town. The shops in downtown are just fabulous and we quickly bought our fair share of nick knacks for the house, kids, my mom, etc. I even scored a wonderful new red purse!! Then half way down the road, we stopped into our favorite little oyster bar for a cold beverage. Imagine our surprise when half way thru the first drink, DH looks up and sees his 2nd cousin, Neil, walking towards the door. See, Neil lives in Natchitoches and every time we visit we really do intend to call him up but it never happens. Neil's a cool guy so he took it with a grain of salt (and a couple glasses of scotch). We had a nice visit with him but was disappointed that our longer than intended stay at the bar meant the rest of the little stores had closed for the day. Oh well! We headed back to our room at the Rusca House, showered and headed to dinner on the lake. On our way out, we heard the beginnings of a band playing at a wedding reception at the B&B right behind ours. After a great dinner at Mariners, we came back and sat on the back porch and listened to the band play til 10p. Then we watched the bride and groom drive by in a horse drawn carriage - so romantic. We were going to watch "Rear Window" after we settled in for the evening but were both so tired, we barely saw the opening credits.

Sunday morning was an early one as the B&B serves breakfast at 8:30. We met 3 nice couples that morning and said our good-byes after a great meal. We drove around town after packing the truck to look at houses in the area. Long term dream but we'd love to settle down in this little town when the kids are grown. Eventually, we said goodbye and headed back to Shreveport where I managed to lose more money in the span on one hour. Not my lucky weekend in the casino for sure. DH won a whopping $5 so we called it quits and headed back to Dallas. Stopped in Terrell for some shoe shopping and then picked up the kiddos from my parents. My dad had kept them pretty busy with two movies (UP and Night at the Museum 2) and pool time. They seemed to miss us and were pretty happy with their gifts. Then it was laundry time and the end of a fabulous weekend.