Camryn marks first day at new school

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

PEARL RIVER, La. (Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009, 8:40 p.m.) -- Camryn enjoyed her first day at school today at St. Margaret Mary Catholic School in Slidell. I'd call it Big Girl School, but that sounds so corny. I will say it was her first time at pre-kindergarten.

Pam has a job at St. Margaret Mary teaching kindergarten, so she was nearby for support.

Anyway, I stopped by first thing this morning and snapped a few photos to document the occasion. I also threw in a few extras of Matthew, including one of him in his cast (which will be removed on Wednesday). Below is a slide show of the photos. Don't forget: Click the photos and you'll jump to a larger version.

Copyright 2009 by Terry R. Cassreino. All rights reserved.

Happy Mardi Gras

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

SLIDELL, La. (Thursday, Feb. 19, 2009) -- As we prepare to head to the Thursday night parades in New Orleans, I've included a brief slide show/photo gallery for your enjoyment. I'll post a few more before Fat Tuesday. Here goes:

Cassreinos enjoy Slidell parade on Sunday

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

MADISON, Miss. (Monday, Feb. 9, 2009, 7:57 a.m.)- Before I post a photo gallery from my family's trip to New Orleans for a weekend of Carnival events, below is a news report that appeared Sunday night, Feb. 8, 2009, on WGNO-TV ABC26 in New Orleans. It features our family. Check back later for photos.

Press play below; the video airs immediately after a brief commercial.

A weekend of Carnival parades

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

SLIDELL, La. (Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009, 6:15 p.m.) – Covered plates of steaming hot beef tenderloin, steamed green beans and roasted potatoes tumbled from the waiter's tray and fell on top of a woman sitting at my table.

The plate hit her head and hot gravy fell on her husband's arm. While their formal clothes prevented serious injury, it still cast a strange feeling over the early part of the Krewe of Endymion's Coronation Ball on Saturday in New Orleans.

The food was good; the entertainment also was good. The Nobles and the Top Cats were great, but the Bag of Donuts – a strange looking band – was unmistakably bad.

These guys were horrible. They couldn't sing. Their humor was infantile.

The night was capped by a midnight parade through the Hilton ballroom, featuring the St. Augustine Marching 100, St. Mary's band and mini floats with maskers. It was a nice touch to whet our appetite for the Feb. 21 Endymion parade.

On Sunday, our attention shifted to the Krewe of Slidellians parade. The parade allowed Pam and I a chance to try out our parade ladder for Camryn and Matthew. It was a success.

Below, you'll find a photo-gallery slide show from the weekend.

Copyright 2009 by Terry R. Cassreino. All rights reserved.

Preparing for the Endymion Coronation Ball

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

MADISON, Miss. (Friday, Jan. 30, 2009, 1:57 p.m.) – After a long week at work in Jackson, much of it tying up loose ends as I leave the Mississippi Democratic Party, I'm ready for as weekend in New Orleans celebrating the Carnival season.

And guess what?

That's exactly what my family and I plan to do. Pam, Camryn, Matthew and I will pack up our car later today and head to Slidell for the weekend. Pam and I will then attend the Krewe of Endymion Coronation Ball on Saturday.

We'll stick around for Sunday and another cheesy, cheap parade in Slidell – but, hey, Matthew should enjoy it since it's his first – catch the Super Bowl and then return home Monday morning.

Finally, I'll kick off my new business enterprise on Tuesday morning. I'm still putting together the final touches, but I'll post my news release on this blog for everyone to read.

As for now, gotta go. I'll file a blog update with photos and a story later this weekend.

Copyright 2009, Terry R. Cassreino. All rights reserved.

Enjoying a Carnival weekend in metro New Orleans

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

SLIDELL, La. (Sunday, Jan. 25, 2009, 3 p.m.) – A relaxing weekend in Slidell and New Orleans, highlighted by a trip to the Endymion den for my krewe throws, ended far too soon today.

As you may know from earlier posts, I ride in the Krewe of Endymion, the largest Carnival parading organization in New Orleans. I had to stop by the krewe den on Saturday to pick up about $500 worth of krewe-emblem throws I bought for the parade.

Among the items: Krewe cups, krewe beads, stuffed animals, Endymion footballs and Endymion Frisbees. My mom's house in Slidell is overflowing with junk for me to throw on the six-mile route Saturday, Feb. 21.

Camryn, my 3-year-old daughter, had a great time. She waited at the krewe den with me and my mom and then had a rare treat of a peek through the large doors of the den at floats still under construction.

Today, Camryn, my mother and I joined my sister and her family for the Krewe of Claude parade in Slidell. As expected, it was awful: Cheesy floats, two bands and not much else.

How bad was the parade? Well, they used rental floats from Barry Barth – floats that were small, narrow and just plain hideous. It also didn't look good when the third float was numbered 10 and the fourth was numbered 22.

But my daughter didn't care. She just wanted to see floats, see marching bands and catch beads.

Next up: A trip to Slidell on Saturday, Jan. 31, for the Krewe of Endymion coronation ball that night at the Hilton in New Orleans and another cheap Slidell parade on Sunday, Feb. 1.

The real stuff kicks in the weekend of Feb . 14.

Below is a photo gallery slide show from the weekend. If you see a photo you like, click it and you'll open a larger version. And use the button o the left corner of the slide show to toggle captions.

Copyright 2009 by Terry R. Cassreino. All rights reserved.

Ole Miss impresses in Cotton Bowl appearance

By TERRY R. CASSREINO

SLIDELL, La. (Friday, Jan. 2, 2009, 5 p.m.) – Ole Miss pulled off an impressive Cotton Bowl win over Texas Tech.

Pam, Camryn, Matthew and I arrived at my mother’s house in Slidell in time to catch the game live on Fox. The three-hour trip from our home in Madison went very smoothly.

Camryn and Matthew sat quietly in the back seat o f my Ford Fusion watching videos on our portable car DVD player (thank God for the DVD). Neither Camryn nor Matthew complained at all. Pam and I were surprised.

After the first quarter, Camryn and I headed over to Mardi Gras Imports in Slidell where I paid for my layaway order of beads for the Krewe of Endymion. Then, I spent the night packing them for my parade next month.

Our good friend Linda St. Martin visited my mother’s house to meet Matthew. And my two sisters and their children stopped by also for a visit.

Copyright 2009 by Terry R. Cassreino. All rights reserved.