As you guys know, I recently went to New Orleans to be a part of an unforgettable bachelorette weekend. The festitivites lasted from Friday until Sunday, but I stayed in New Orleans a few extra days just to recover and to explore! This suggestion was actually made by my husband, who said that I should just stay a few extra days just to relax and just to “be”. I was like, damn. “Why didn’t I think of that?!” I cannot even remember the last time I’ve spent time in a hotel alone. I mean, this may not be a common thing for most, but as someone who travels often, I’m typically around a lot of people whenever I’m traveling: my kids of course, Supreme, friends, family. So to actually have several days, alone, with just me and my 2-step, well, I was absolutely giddy with excitement!
Sunday, July 15th, was the last day of Brittanii’s bachelorette weekend, so after we had brunch, we headed back to the Bachelorette House, said our goodbyes, where I then took an uber to a hotel. I had my mimosa from brunch in a to-go cup (I love a good to-go cup, don’t you?), so I hopped in my uber and was ready to roll!
I arrived to my hotel, Loews, checked out the view in my room, then crashed! I took the best nap ever! The Bachelorette Weekend wore me clean out! lol! I loved my view from my room though:
After napping for several hours, I woke up and contemplated taking myself out for dinner. After a good 2 and a half minutes of thinking, I decided to just order food from a local Mediterranean restaurant and enjoy my solitude in my hotel room. As a sidenote: I am a Scorpio. If you know anything about Scorpios, (other than the stuff like we’re intense/possessive/crazy/freaky/venegeful-which, by the way, isn’t all true! haha), then you know that we also LOVE our solitude. And this is so true for me. While I absolutely love to be around people, am super outgoing, and love spending time with my family, I also love my alone time as well. (I actually shared a story about going to the movies alone for the first time HERE.) I get to experience this solitude most nights for a few hours when the kids go to bed, and Supreme is in his man cave working. But a few days of solitude?! Well shit! That hasn’t happened…ever!
So Sunday night, it was me and the Mediterranean food that I ordered, (which was a falafel wrap and grilled onions and mushrooms over hummus. I wish I took pictures! It was delicious!), in the cozy hotel room. Alone. Curtains still open to enjoy the nighttime view:
I didn’t cut the tv on or anything. I just ate my food in silence, grateful that I didn’t have to cook, get kids ready for bed, or adjust the temperature of the room. (I’m cold natured so I had the air on like 79 lol). And after that, I showered and went to bed! (Keep in mind, I was still worn the eff out from the LITTY bachelorette weekend!)
The next day, I slept in, waking up at around 10:30 am. Before coming to New Orleans, I knew that I wanted to utilize the fitness center at the hotel, so I made sure I packed workout clothes. I headed to the fitness center around 11:15 am, and had a great workout! I ran 2 miles on the treadmill and did an ab circuit:
I loved that the fitness center had fresh water and fruit. Such a nice touch!
After the late morning workout, I showered, meditated, messaged my shoe and handbag manufacturers, and was ready to find lunch and explore the city:
My first stop was Harrah’s casino, which was right across the street, because Brittanii had a leftover casino credit that she wanted me to play or cash out. I ended up playing that credit back, and then played Black Jack which is my favorite casino game to play. I had such a great time gambling in the middle of the day! Hahahahaha! I ordered champagne just because and had a ball y’all! After gambling for a little while, I then had to figure out where I was going to eat. I had already narrowed my restaurant choices down before I left my hotel room, and had decided to walk to a vegan restaurant called Seed.
Seed was about a mile away, and I figured instead of uber, I would just take in downtown and have a casual walk there. I was a tourist for the day:
After enjoying the sights and sounds of downtown New Orleans, stopping to have joint breaks along the way of course, I arrived to Seed. I chose a corner table (that happened to be close to a wall outlet so I could charge my phone.) It wasn’t very busy that late afternoon, so I was able to get my food quickly after ordering. Below I’ve included some photos of the menu, so you guys can see what kind of food they have:
I decided to get vegan crab cakes and a taco salad. And they brought me some sriracha to enjoy with my food! Yasssss!
I didn’t leave one drop y’all. AND, I also ordered a carrot cake for dessert but didn’t take a photo because my phone was on the charger lol. But that too, got devoured within minutes. I SO enjoyed the food! So much so that I ordered a burger and more crab cakes to go! After I paid my restaurant bill, I ordered my uber and headed back to my hotel for the evening.
After getting back to my hotel, I showered and put on my coziest onesie pjs. It was around 7 pm, and I got in bed. I got out my notebook and wrote out my personal and business goals for the rest of the year. I then sketched out ideas for shoes and handbags (I do this often. I get an idea in my head during the day about a shoe or handbag, and sketch out the idea at night when I have my paper and pencil). I attempted to read the book I brought with me, but quickly found myself falling asleep. So I dozed off for about an hour or so. I woke up and then I just…relaxed. I did nothing. I laid in bed. I watched an episode of Shark Tank for the first time ever and enjoyed it! I browsed the internet and social media for awhile. After some time had passed, all that extreme relaxing stirred up an appetite, so I got up and ate my leftovers from Seed. At this point, I was truly basking in the glow of having to do nothing but eat leftovers.
The last and final day of my Solo Adventures was that Tuesday. My flight was in the early evening, so I had plenty of time to do whatever I wanted. I woke up around 10:00 am. (Which, again, I typically wake up around 7:00 AM.) I decided to do another workout in the fitness center, simply because I love to start my days with a workout. Working out releases those feel good endorphins, and I mean, I love feeling good haha.
After my workout, I went back to my hotel room, showered, and packed up everything for my journey back to Arizona. I put on my newest obsession, which are these super soft and cozy “leisure suits” from one of my favorite designers, Laina Rauma:
I listen to music or to podcasts when I’m packing, cooking, drawing, or doing anything really, and oftentimes, dancing around the room comes with it:
After having a dance party with myself in my hotel room mirror, the bellman came and got my luggage as I prepared to checkout. They stored my luggage for me while I went to grab some snacks for the plane, and have a quick joint before heading to the airport:
After snacking, smoking, and shopping, I hopped in my uber and headed to the airport:
After a long five and a half days total away from home, I landed in Arizona and was so ready to see my family!
I truly enjoyed my solo time in New Orleans. I made a conscious effort to be present in every moment, knowing that being able to have that alone time to just relax and basically do nothing was truly a blessing. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in doing a million things every single day between being a mom and wife, plus trying to launch a brand new business that is Raven Collection, that I have to slow down and enjoy the simple things in life, and that begins with just enjoying myself. I am such good company! Ha! I truly enjoy spending time with myself. I enjoy the long walks where it’s just me and my thoughts. This is one of the main reasons that I have enjoyed running outdoors all these years: I enjoy the time alone, as it serves as peaceful and therapeutic. And that is exactly how I would describe those extra days in New Orleans: Peaceful and Therapeutic. I felt so much gratitude during each moment, and truly felt like I was on an adventure those few days! And the extra days spent recovering certainly did me well, because I returned back to Phoenix feeling so refreshed and recharged! I told my husband that I totally needed to do those solo adventure days at least once every few months, even if I did just a half a day staycation, and he agreed. (Even though I told him I’m not so sure I could do it for more than 2 days. I will admit I missed all of my poo poos! Ha!) However, that solitude was just what I needed, and I am beyond happy that I had the chance to take a small break from all of the demands of everyday life. 🙂
Have a fabulous weekend, Fabbies, and here’s to prioritizing self-care and enjoying our own company! Cheers!
xoxo
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