Tales of The Traveling Totes Goes to the Park

Hi All,

This post is late. 

It should have been put up yesterday, but that didn't happen and for that I apologize. 

The moral of this story is, grad school takes over your life whether you want it to or not.

Ominous notions aside, I did get to travel with my wonderful Mackenzie-Childs tote, Christabel, recently.

Specifically, I went to a park in Louisiana.

Lakeview, the neighborhood of New Orleans by the lakefront, is a place where some people's front yards line a beautiful park that looks like this:

I would live there. 

This is one of my favorite areas of the city, not only because it's beautiful, but because it's just so safe and quiet. 

Why was I in New Orleans, you ask? I visited four independent bookstores, and am in talks for Punished to be sold on their shelves. 

 How cute is Maple Street Books?

The pictures above and below are of a relatively new spot, St. Roch's Market. Apparently my great-grandfather, who this pen name honors, Samuel Stone, had a part in designing the open-air building.

Christabel and I are smiling, but we're really debating whether to buy an oversized cupcake.

St. Joe's Bar, where they sell the best mojitos in the city

I love the chandelier at St. Joe's

Of course, I had to have a couple of pictures from Café du Monde. For once, I didn't get their hot chocolate (it was August) but I did eat my body weight in beignets! 

The very next weekend, I brought Christabel to Nashville, where I was headed for my friend's 21st birthday. Thanks to her family in the city, and someone who gave me some great recommendations for where to go, the trip was a success! 

At the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. 

At the art museum, there was a exhibition on Italian fashion throughout the past century. So fascinating!

It took a while to find this mural.

I just liked the name of the coffee shop...

Christabel photobombed a Snapchat!

My cute photographer and I, on the roof of Tootsie's

That's all of my tote's traveling for now. Next time, my post will be punctual!

Happy travels!

XO,
Sammie Stone

Visit my other Tote friends:

Debbie with Miss Aurora @ Mountain Breaths 

Linda with Miss Rosie @ More Fun Less Laundry

Patti with Miss Kenzie and Taylor @ Pandora's BoxRita with Miss Luna C @ Panoply 

Sarah with Miss Merri Mac @ Hyacinths for the Soul

Samantha with Christabel @ Samantha Stone

and our non-blogger friends:

 Colleen with Miss MacKenzie Joy

Tami with Miss MC la Mer

Musical Monday, and MY COVER REVEAL!

Hello All,

Today is my favorite Musical Monday ever, because I get to reveal the book cover for Punished.

Here it is:

I think it's stunning, just like Raphael's abs. *swoon*

Sometimes, things work out perfectly. This is the case with my book cover--I couldn't be happier with it. I seriously think the very talented artist who created this cover, Dar Albert, read the book... or has ESP.

Either one.

So today, along with the cover for the book, I'm going to share my playlist for Punished. 

                                                                
 

This playlist is the book, in music form. 

Each and every song on this playlist pertains to Punished, whether to the book as a whole or to certain parts of it. Also, I happen to like all of this music. I'm not going to post something I don't want to listen to!

I hope these songs give you a taste of what Punished will be like! Once November 23 rolls around, you'll be able to see why these songs are so applicable.

That's right-- Punished is being released on November 23. Mark your calendars! :)

I've picked out a song I think represents Punished best-- you'll notice it's the first on the playlist.
When I heard The Wolf on the radio, I freaked out because it's scary how accurate the song as a whole is as a representation of the story I've told.

                                       

I'm a sucker for Mumford and Sons.

What do you think about the cover? How about the playlist? Please leave a comment--I'm dying to see what you all think!

XO,

Sammie Stone