Mother Goose and Charlotte's Web...

Happy Friday, friends!

It is, in fact, here! And Saturday and Sunday promise pretty weather, Tiger Football, and birthday parties. So *cheers* to the weekend.

I'm feeling some better... morning and mid-day seem to be easing up a tiny bit, leaving my afternoon and nights the worst part of my day. Good news? The Hotness is home from work by then, so if I need to hide behind a rock... or in the bed, for that matter, I can. *Which leads me to make this point. Marcus is the yin to my yang, the sweet in my tea, the cream cheese to my salsa, the purple to my gold, the cranberries to my turkey, the Simon to my Garfunkel, the mango to my chutney--- and so on. Honestly, he's picked up so much slack around here lately. Cooks, cleans, raises the young son... and never grumbles when I ask for more ice water (which needs refilling on the quarter hour). I can't imagine someone more generous than this guy... He's just what I need.

Yesterday the green waves broke for a few hours mid-day, without thinking twice, I grabbed my bebe.boy and headed off to the LSU lakes for a picnic lunch and to feed the ducks. The weather is too pretty to stay in yet another day- so I grabbed my puke bag for the road, my saltine crackers and ice water and we headed out.

On our way to the car, we encountered this beautiful creature.

Spectacular isn't she? She's an immature Black Widow Spider. Totally freaked us out! She had spun her haphazard web on James' tricycle over night. I walked through the edge of her web before really seeing her. But all is well. Generally speaking, I wouldn't have hurt her- bc she had no real intentions of hurting me... I'm not a preemptive.strike kinda chic- however, the fact that she made her death web on Beaux Jack's tricycle, and the thought that she could have bitten my little duckling, made me go ahead and take her out.

So, that's that. Where there is one, there will be more- so I suppose I need to de-clutter the garage from the extra moving stuff, and spray for spiders. I dread it- cause there are more good spiders out there than bad... but I've got to keep James' toys killer.spider free.

So, after the execution, we headed out to Cane's to grab us some chicken.finger goodness for the lakes. I needed this outing so bad... well, we both did. James' is suffering from my recent state, too. He's lonely, less stimulated, and has been left to his own devises as of late--- so this was a perfect time for us to reconnect and fall back in love. And fall, we did. It was splendid. Here are a few pics of out little outing...








That's all for now! Oh, totally stoked about tonight's debate. Can't flipping wait, actually. So, set your tivos and DVRs if you plan on missing it.

Oh, what did yall think about Earl, The Office, and Grey's premiers last night??? I'm curious to hear what you thought. Maybe that can be another post. Oh, and have you caught any of the new shows??? Tell me if you found something you are excited about. I totally dig the Worst Week show... and The Mentalist. Can't wait for Pushing Daisies again... and am still mourning that Cane won't be back this season. Who's gonna fill my Jimmy Smits size whole in my heart??? Who! oh, wait! Maybe
Yang's thigh.staplin.journeyman.army.dude.red.headed.hunka.hunka.burnin love last night on Greys!!! Holy cow. Oh, how Grey's needs him... ;)

So, Peace my brothas and sistas!
xo.
lmkw

*Firsts*

Sorry for the delay in blogging...

I've experienced a lot of 'firsts' the past few days. I like that. Something new and exciting to mix things up.

On Saturday, I cheer my Fighting Tigers of LSU to victory over Auburn. Their FIRST victory over Auburn AT AUBURN in a decade... that was also our first time to watch our Tigers on Hotness' new tv*love in the new house.

Sunday, I headed over to a dear friends house to snap some maternity shots of her, the bebe*belly, and the bun maker- i.e. the hubby. Forever ago when she told me she was preggers, I practically BEGGED her to let me spend some time taking some pics... She was sweet enough to invite me over for a couple of hours to shoot until my heart was content. And I did... and my heart does feel content. I'm processing the shots now, and I think I got a few special ones. *Thanks Carla* I can't wait til bebe.Miracle gets here so I can get some girl*bebe shots!

It's important to say that I feel like I had a pregnancy.turn.for.the.better on Sunday--- I actually felt like it was my best day in weeks... I'm still struggling with nausea, but hey, a break in the green.waves is always a welcomed respite.

Monday, Hotness and I had our first chunky.whitty.numero.two ultrasound! Or should I say 'Single Viable IUP.' --- Single (not twins) Viable (that's a great word) Intrauterine Pregnancy. *I love Lingo.* We got to see our growing bean. We heard it's heart beat for the first time. 158 beats per minute... nice and strong. It's surreal to hear that 'whooshing' sound and see it's little chest flicker with each beat. I still can hardly believe I'm pregnant. To be honest, I've felt so bad- the only way I can describe it (as my mother says) I feel like I'm hung over all day, day after day after day... and that's a perfect explanation. The new and more accurate due date is May 9th... which makes me 7 weeks and three days--- I was a little upset about this. By my calculations I was 8 weeks along... but the bebe's size showed to be a touch smaller. It's not a big deal. But making it through each day feeling this GREEN is a stinkin' victory- so I felt that Darlene.the.ultrasound.master stole five hard earned days from me... Yes, I've been counting down the days to get out of this first trimester. So I felt like that was a set back. But... chunky.whitty.numero.two is healthy and growing- so that's what I want most of all.

Oh, and lets not forget that Monday was our first official day of Fall!!! Oh, fall, come let me kiss you on the mouth! It even seemed/felt/smelled like fall. As I was dropping Beaux Jack over at the grandparentals, the drive to and from was so beautiful... the trees were casting the most beautiful shadows, the sun was shining, and everything just felt good. Fall couldn't get here soon enough, but now that it's here, I plan to love every day of it. If I were a season, I would be Fall...

I guess that wraps up my 'firsts'...
Once I finish processing the maternity pics, and get permission from the proud-parents-to-be, I'll post a few of my favs... you know, to show off my mad skilz and cute friends. ;)

Enjoy your Tuesday!
Peace, xo.
lmkw

My Doctors Office Visit... on Monday

This post is a *jacked* email I sent Sugarbutt after my doctors office visit on Monday. The email is perfect blog material, and since I'm still a worn.down.quease.bebe.factory I'm gonna double dip this bad boy.

Note: This was my first visit to this doctor here in LA... to confirm pregnancy and to get things going in that nine month direction. My first appt. was originally Sept. 2nd... but Gustav had other plans. So this is a bit late. But whatevs.

****
Today was a blunderbutt of a day.

I thought my appt was tomorrow at 8:45... but it was today at 8:15. I found that out when the office FINALLY rolled over their phones at 8:16.

"How quickly can you get here?"- sounds like an easy question.

"Hmmmm?" -as I calculated, totally necked, dirty face/teeth, hairy legs, feeling vomitous, haven't given anything to the pregnant belly to ward off more morning.queasies, sleeping two year old in bed, sh!t- the two year old... dr. office, stirrups, cervical pincher thingy, necked momma in gigantic paper towel dress, 30 minutes away from grandparental relief, don't know exactly where I am going/ never been to that office before...

"Umm, I can leave here in five minutes (I can't believe that THAT just came out of my mouth--- what am I thinking/NOT thinking?)

'Hotness' cell phone battery was dead... had to call his office phone, some dude answered... "Um, yes, may I please speak to Marcus Whitty?" *I freeeeekin hate doing that... the dude was caught as off guard as me. Poor us both. I'm sure he's like Mister.ExxonMobil.Will.Never.Give.Your.Hubby.A.Raise.Again.Cause.His.Wife.Called.And.Ruined.It.All.Doesnt.He.Have.A.Cell.Phone? Guy. *grrr*

Hotness came in the nick.of.time and in to the dr's office I went... barely dressed and probably dirty, in an outfit that I'd worn three days in a row... cause it was not tight on the tummy.

I can't believe that THIS was going to be my first impression!!!

They were nice. The wait in the waiting room gave me just enough time to compose myself and do some incognito meditation exercises. I thought my head would explode- so I was thankful for the few minutes to gather my composure. Momma relieved Hotness to go back to work, she grabbed Beaux Jack and headed back to Central. I liked my doctor... good reference Carla!!! AND, holy cow, the man is handsome. Like... he.made.me.blush.good.lookin. Like... giggle through the breast exam cute. And nice, too... Can't wait for Hotness to meet him on the next visit- and hope he gets a good vibe, too.

I got my blood work done... and I have an ultrasound scheduled for next Monday at noon.... THERE. It's in writing! So I won't forget again... We will be able to check the bebe's development thus far, get an accurate due date... we are thinking around May 4th. AND confirm that it is NOT twins.

*House is still a wreck.
**Still undecided about LSU party this weekend.
***Hotness has yet to come home to a wife that is dressed, in makeup, clean house... and it's Thursday, people... I'm not feeling good about pulling it off today either.

Happy Almost Friday folks!
Peace, xo.
lmkw

Full Circle...

My house is a mess. The first time since we moved in, and it's a mess. How did it get that way? Wells... I taught class on Saturday and today I spent my day at my friend's bebe shower. All of that amounts to a 'boys weekend.' My boys are the studly.est men on the block- however, they sure do know how to relax. So my Monday is booked with chores.
*****

So back to today, my friend had her bebe shower. I had the greatest time. I haven't been around my high school friends in nearly 6ish years... I never had an overwhelming desire to keep up with people from high school. It wasn't so much them- I was just hungry for new experiences. For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be grown. So that played some part, I'm sure. But today, I saw a few of my closer high school friends and really enjoyed the reunion. We've grown up a lot... we are all married now with children or children on the way. And best of all, we all are HAPPY. I love that. Life is hard, and lots of things can happen- but my friends stuck to their guns, made big decisions, and have become beautiful women in the process. I hope to keep in touch and start developing those relationships again... I can't wait for the day when I find myself surrounded by like.minded.women/mothers again... sitting on the floor in a living room somewhere... talking about our day, our children, and our dreams. It rejuvenates me and keeps me centered. I miss my houston.lovelies... but soon, I create new friends here.
****

I cried tonight. I sick to my stomach all the time. I can't stand it.
I made Marcus go to the store and buy lots of fruit.
Because I'm a fruititarian, now.
He got home, I took one look at the slimy strawberries and sent him back to the store to return them.
$8 bucks of disgusting posing as sweet berries.
Do people actually return produce at the grocery store?
Well Hotness does.
As of today.
Hotness wants an LSU/Auburn party this weekend.
All I want to do is eat strawberries and vomit.
Should I be so bold to commit and start planning and inviting folks?
Or should I just resign myself to no friends, no meat, no parties, no happy.Hotness?
****

It's a new week, my friends!

Peace, xo.
lmkw

Take a Hike IKE!

Ugh, just typing that title makes my tummy turn- then again, lots of things do these days... a recent revelation to this pregnancy. But here is the update on my darlings in Texas. My friends who evacuated are not yet home, I don't think... so no word there. But my Moonbeam and her boys are doing well. They think there may have been some minor roof damage with lost shingles and such- but no other apparent damage, thank goodness. They lost power around midnight as the storm was moving towards land... My in laws seem to be fine. They evacuated to downtown Houston inside one of the buildings there for the storm- and haven't been able to get to their home to check things out yet. But from the sounds of it, they sustained some fence damage and maybe that's it. The rest of my friends are without power and phone- and are having to boil their drinking water... this could go on for days, maybe even weeks. I'm sending prayers and cool thoughts their way. I know how hard the transition is after a storm like that. The pictures coming in from Houston and Galveston are devastating. So many of the people remained in the area that a widespread Search.and.Rescue operation is still in progress. Not sure is my Sis-In-Law's house flooded... I sure hope not. They are in Dubai on business, so until the in laws get down to check it out, we won't really know for sure. *fingers crossed*

****
In other news, it seems that what they say is true. Every pregnancy is different. With James Neal, I didn't experience any morning sickness or any real queasiness at all... however, the last handful of days have left me feeling green nearly all day. Food grosses me out... which is really tough bc when my tummy is empty, everything is worse. All I want is fruit, yogurt, hummus, and ice water... and an occasional mug of cereal. I hope this passes soon... but I still have 5 good weeks before the first trimester is up. *gulp* I think I'm officially showing. Which would make it three weeks sooner than I showed for Beaux Jack- and from what they say, that's about right. I am definitely in the grips of first trimester fatigue... I need a nap almost daily. But I'm grateful that I have the opportunity to take those naps when I need to...

****
With everything being so wacky lately, I almost forgot to post pics from Beaux Jack's first Tiger Football Game in Death Valley. The game had to be bumped up to early that Saturday morning in order to give us all time to evacuate safely for Gustav- or hunker down, depending on where we were. So it wasn't your 'typical' game day experience on campus- however, it was special to us, nonetheless. Here are a few of my fav pics so far... I'm still working on the last few.



This one is best enlarged...

My beautiful sister.in.law and her hubs (her first game, too)



last but not least...


I'll post more soon. Thanks for the continued well wished and support from friends and my new virtual blog friends... yall are so kind. What a gift!

***If you have any sure.fire way to keep the pregnancy queasies at bay, please (!!!PLEASE!!!) comment and let me know what worked for you. At this point, I'll try anything, and will most prolly name my kid after you if your trick works! ;)

Wishing yall a restful Sunday,
Peace and love,
xo
lmkw

It's just a difference in opinion...

So today we were headed back on our nine hour journey to get.the.hell.outta Houston. Hurricane Ike has his eye set on my former *home.* I've begged, pleaded, and been just down.right ugly to my friends about evacuating. Houston hasn't had a storm like this in three decades--- and lets be honest, 'you people' don't know how to 'hurricane'... *unless you are an LA transplant like me, or Carmen, etc- NOT you Erica. See? I'm still frustrated that I'm back in my new house with crankin' AC and I have NO Kingwood evacuees to care for. *pfft*

*minor rant over... now back to the topic at hand*

So we were officially on the road for 11ish am, and didn't role in until 8ish pm tonight. On our journey James sang nearly the entire time... right around Port Allen, the little songbird fell quiet. I turned my head to see him sound asleep with his eyes half shut and his NuNu hanging half out of his mouth. MarcusHotness turned to witness first hand the miracle of silence- and reacted in a totally unsuspected way:

MarcusHotness: "That NUNU! I tell you what!!!..."

me: shocked at his tone

*at this time it's important to fill you in on Hotness' rage against the NuNu machine. James only uses his pacifier when he is going asleep or is riding for some time in the car. BUT Marcus is adamant about having him break the habit soon. I, on the other hand, could care less. I've yet to see a guy get married with a NuNu in his mouth... so I'm not for fretting about it. Heck. In the last two months, James has undergone some major transitions in his short little two.year.old.life. So take a chill.pill dude.

*This is when things turned for the worse*

Hotness: "I tell you what!" all angry and forceful... "James is going to help me dig a pit in the backyard this weekend." *emphasis on the word PIT

Me: turning my head slowly, looking at his profile a bit concerned, as he races 70 mph down the interstate... I would claim to have been perplexed.

Hotness: "Then, I'm gonna take James around to gather up all his NuNus." still in that elevated angry tone... "We're gonna throw them in that pit, then I'm gonna let him squirt lighter fluid all over those suckers. Then, I'm gonna make him throw a match in on them to watch them buuuuuuurrrn. And we're gonna stand there and watch every single one of those things burn to a crisp." ending his tirade with a cynical nod and grin, visibly victorious... almost like he had just planned McCain's surge to take over the world.

Me: still staring at his profile, silent, eyes widened with the 'shock and awe' of the planned NuNu attack... Quietly I replied, "Oh. I was just thinking about tying them on the end of balloons and letting him release them to the angels in Heaven."

That's when I think Hotness threw up a little in his mouth.

***************

What can I say? It's just a difference in opinion.

Take care my forest.friends... I love my dears.
Peace and Godspeed,
xo
lmkw

Ah, Kingwood... How I've missed you!

So we are back *home* in Kingwood. Marcus has a week long training sesh for work, and with things being so dicey back in BR, we decided to tag along. This week long hurricane saga really took it out of me--- and I'll admit that I didn't want to be far from Marcus. He's my rock. I'm generally not that clingy... but I'm tired, a bit hormonal, and heck- he's my favorite person in the world, with James his close second. So here we are.

Since we tagged along, he changed his hotel to one here in Kingwood so I could be *home* again in my favorite forest. The hotel is on the outskirts of kingwood so I can still get my Starbucks, browse the Natural Kitchen to score my homeopathic goodies... now that I'm preggers again, I'll have to stock up on some nifty lotions and potions. Plus James is out of his fish oil... *crickets* Anywho, I plan on getting me some fresh produce at my ole trusty Heb. Living off of canned food and boxed macaroni is for the birds!!!!!!!! I can't stand packaged food... so you can imagine how ready I am for some fresh goodness.

We met Erica, Chris, and Tater.gater for dinner tonight at Chipotle. Yes, carnitas tacos for me, please. OOOOOOOOOH, how I miss Texas. Yes, I said the same things about LA when we were here in Texas. I have two homes to love... some people are only lucky enough to have one- so I'll take it as a good thing. After dinner, we went back to E's house to let the boys play... Chris and MarcusHotness totally missed each other--- they were like women catching up. It was sweet. And of course, the boys were cuteness.overload. Just how I like it.

To be honest, this week I plan to relax and spend as much time with my friends as possible. I'm dying to go to the museum and spend some time with Claire... aka 'Granna.' She suprised me with a visit tonight. I miss her calming presence in my life... Erica gives me the same 'calming' thing--- but Claire's is different in a way.


So my list of things I'd love to do while here at *home*:

*trip to the Houston Museum of Natural Science
*fresh fruit and yogurt from Heb
*Natural Kitchen
*Hike with the Dugs
*Lupe Tortilla
*Pei Wei
*playdate with the Blues
*maybe some time at Discovery Green with the boys

Whew! That's a lot... as long as I'm with my girl, I'll be happy doing everything or nothing.

I'll take lots of pics!

Peace, xo.
lmkw

Gustav +4

Hi friends,

Sorry there was no update for Gustav +3... i did have a better day. I was able to stand in line at the Central Walmart and grab some diapers for Beaux. Marcus reported back at work that day, and he stayed til noon. Some of his collegues suffered major damage to their homes... A reminder of how blessed we are to not be still suffering from the damage of trees and flooding. Besides the loss of phone, water, and power... we came through fine, thank God.

Day +4 brought us POWER! That's right, as we speak, I'm in a/c typing on my actual laptop! We got a call from my uncle, aka JohnnyHack, letting us know that he had a hunch that maybe we, too, had power. WE DID! WE DO!!! The first thing I did was start to clean... oh, it felt good. The house was clean before the storm, but I had an urge to scrub and wipe everything down. Maybe it was from all the wreckage I've seen in our city...

The stores are still half functioning... no meats... no dairy... 'cept Kleinpeter milk... We will be accompanying MarcusHotness on his business trip to Houston. It's better to be with him in a fully functional city, than here... by ourselves with limited gas and groceries. Plus, I can see Erica, the boys... and Granna. All things I need right now.

********Oh, I'm dying to talk about something OTHER than Gustav***********

I've rescheduled my preggers confirmation appt for next Monday... I wish i could have kept my appt- but that's behind us now. Now, lets hope that I keep going with this pregnancy growing a healthy bebe. This first trimester is so crucial... I know how important it is to keep this bebe through the next few weeks. I'm only 6 weeks along which is only half.way through the first trimester. At first I had thought I'd keep it quiet until week 12... but with Gustav putting things in perspective and having a history of MC, I figure each day is a gift of life--- so why hide it? I'm certain that God has been faithful in his promise to make me a mother... James is that promise fulfilled. So, one day at a time for me.

I'm feeling fine. No morning.queasies to report! Victory. Fatigue is settling in some... but this storm has given me plenty opportunity to nap. My body is changing and I can tell... They say you start to show earlier with your second pregnancy. I wonder when that week will be for me. I started to show in my tenth week last time... My waste line got tight and I switched to maternity pants. Hmmm... I wonder.

We are so excited about this new chubby.whitty. James is sooo ready to flex his big.brother.muscles! By late April- early May... he or she will be here. How *exciting*.

Okay, enough! Keep our state in your hearts... we still have a long way to go. There are still parts in Baton Rouge that could take 20 days longer for power... and that's not including the other devastated parishes.

***OH, and thank you all for your sweet words of encouragement this past week... I really want you to know how much you impacted my mood and my outlook on things. Thanks for taking the time to share your words with me... you could have done other things- and you didn't. You made my day and I'm grateful for that.***

Love and Peace to my peeps!
xo, lmkw.

Gustav +2

wells... Still no power. Things are bad... And I've had a low day. There is no gas to be found, and cars are lined out in the streets three miles long trying to get into the stations for gas... Only select few have generators to pump the little gas they have. Only a few stores are open for food and water. They still have limited power, so they only let a few people in at a time. The stores have not been replenished since before the storm... Which means much of the supplies we need now are unavailable. James only has a few diapers
Left... No stores are open to get more... Or else I have to wait outside in line for six hours or so to get a turn to shop. Black hawk helicopters are flying in the air and MREs are being distributed to the people. It's like nothing I've ever seen. If it takes a month to get power back on, I'm afraid for the people here. How will they go that long without food and water? How long can they go living in 90+ degree heat with humidity levels near 80+percent? What about the elderly... The sick? The LSU game this weekend has been postponed... Did I mention the flooding that started today? My parents are flooded out of their house- no water IN their house... Just the roads surrounding their house.

It's nuts...and I'm blue... No more from me tonight... I'm just too low. Maybe we'll drive out to Texas tomorrow and recoup there. We'll have to decide soon before we run out of the gas needed to get there.

I'll update with good news tomorrow... Yes. Good news tomorrow.

Peace, xo.
Lmkw

Gustav +1

**update**
Some friends have told me that the media is portrying this storm and the distruction from this storm as "dodging a bullet" and that Louisiana and it's parishes are doing fine... Let me make myself clear- this misperception is from our states ability to prepare and plan for this storm effectively through the guidance and leadership of our kickass governor, Bobby Jindal. His abilty to ready our state for this disaster has saved us from effects even worse than katrina. Let me clarify- Kateina was devastating because of the levee breaches post storm... And the states ineffectiveness to properly prepare... However Gustav as a storm, was much stronger and caused more widespread damage through more of our state... From our barrier islands on he coast to areas as far up as northern LA. The distruction in Greater baton rouge exceeds damages done from Betsy in '65. Tiger stadium sustained extensive damage as did our LSU campus... It may be upwards of five weeks before baton rouge has power... We have a dusk til dawn curfew in affect.... We certainly don't have food and water enough for that long... If you want to see he images the media is NOT reporting, go to wafb.com or 2theadvocate.com--- or google search our news stations here. Just setting the record straight.***

hi friends!

On Lola again... So here's the latest. Still no power for us here in Zachary. 50% of people will get power within 1-8days...the other fifty will not get power for four plus weeks. Those areas substations were distroyed so the will have to be rebuilt. We have no idea which category we will fall in to.

We had a scare today when the lake behind us rose up too quickly to drain off... We've gotten upwards of ten inches here in zachary!!! But the rain stopped enough to drain off much of the scary waters. Oh, on a lighter note- the hummingbirds were starving... Seriously, if you know anything about the darlings, they require a certain amount of nectar each day or they will not make it through the night. Even when gustav was bearing down on us, they were begging at our back door. Today I was worried to death about them- so I rooted around the garage in the dark to find my feeders. I think I fed a total of 12 different birds.... Some were more skittish than others... I had my camera out trying to get there pics so I could see howany different bird I have. I named one Lucia... She was the least scared and didn't mind me being close to her. So I will rest easier tonight knowing that they drank nearly half a cup (!!!) of fresh nectar.

We got out this evening to grab some car ac and get some pics of the area--- asim sure y'all can see on tv, it's a mess here in zachary, central, and baton rouge. Much much worse than katrina... But spirits seem high and everyone is working together to get things done. We ended up driving out to Momma's and Daddy's. Their subdivision was the worst damage we had seen in our 30 minute drive. It's hard to see their place so devistated. But with a few strong backs and a few long days, and it will me back looking like Moody Gardens again. ;)

Marcus is off work again tomorrow- so we will be over their to help out.

Our phone is out... Carmen, have you heard from your parents? Let me know, I'm worried and want to check on your mom... Maybe she could use my help? I may go to one of the shelters tomorrow with James while Marcus helps at Daddy's... The Arch Diocese is housing nursing home patients and they are having a hard time in the heat... With their spirits low, they are scared for their health. And since I am pregnant (!!!) yes- I just let the cat out of the bag- I may be better use for them then raking at Momma's. Plus I believe James could lift some spirits with his silly antics. ;)

Thanks for the comments- they made my day. Keep em coming! I feel so cut off from the rest of the world. Oh, and Houston, get ready! If we don't have power by the weekend, I'm going to seek refuge!!!!!!!! ;)

Love and Peace to y'all all,
Xo
Lmkw

oh.MY!

hi friends,
I'm envious of your ability to read this blog now... Baton rouge is having 100% power outage because of gustav. To ease your mind, we are all safe and sound- no trees on the house or other apparent damage. momma and daddy had several big trees fall- but none hit the house. I can hardly believe that. Marcus has been spending his time in the garage listening to the news in his truck... The sheriff is reporting that baton rouge sustained damage similar to that sustained during Betsy... Which means my hometown has been nearly ripped to shreds. Oh, before I forget, Sugarbutt had a tree fall, car damage, and her roof has been damaged- but they are all okay. Her parents had two trees fall on their home and their travel trailor was crushed but they, too, are okay.

We are still experiencing strong winds and some light rain but the worst of it is over. Now, a night without AC in our sweltering heat is ahead of us. A parish wide curfew is in effect... So I've been unable to get out and take a look around. Maybe tomorrow.

If anyone could comment and let me know what the news is reporting, I'd be so grateful. I'm worried about NO and the levees... As well as grand isle and the coastal parishes. Any news would be appreciated....I'm typing from Lola l, the iPhone now. Let me go and save my cell power... I hear my boys bickering now... Off to mediate!

Peace to you all,
So
Lmkw