Good News New Orleans

Destrehan Plantation

2009-01-28T11:59:00.000-08:00

Barataria National Preserve

2009-01-12T18:45:00.000-08:00

Parasols Bar

2009-01-09T07:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we enjoyed some local cuisine and visited Parasols Bar, an Irish pub of sorts which was featured on Guy Fieri's Diners, Dives, and Drive-Ins. This one classifies as a dive; it was pretty rough looking. But Guy said they had killer po boys and muffalattas so we had to try it out! Our friend, Dustin, tagged along and we all enjoyed ourselves. Dustin and Jackie got roast beef po boys and I got half a muffalatta. Jackie and I split some cheesy fries with gravy. It was all very delicious! Just ignore those bullet-shaped holes in the door as you walk in.

Later last night Dustin and his wife, Rachel, came over and we watch the National Championship game together and enjoyed my first ever king cake! It was delicious, as well.

So New Orleans definitely has it's downsides what with the crime running amuck and all but wowee, the food!

Christmas

2008-12-25T07:53:00.000-08:00

Snow Day!

2008-12-11T12:36:00.000-08:00

Halloween

2008-11-01T09:54:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we completed our necessary end-of-week tests in Spelling, Reading, and Math and then we spent the rest of school time crafting and doing Halloween activities.

Here Keeleigh is making a glue ghost. You just put down some wax paper and squirt glue into a ghost shape. We used hot glue so that it would dry quickly. If you use white glue you need to let it dry at least over night. After the glue went down, we added black paper from the hole puncher for the eyes and boo-mouth. Once the glue is all dry you just peel your ghost up!

We also made a spider bracelet with wiggle eyes and a whole patch of paper jack-o-lanterns for our door. here Jathan and I are cutting out pumpkins...

Isn't he so cute? This is how he has to sit if he's awake during school or craft time--right in my lap at the table amongst all the action.

Keeleigh got to do some more crafts at the Trunk-r-Treat we went to.

Our neighbor, Melissa, decorated her mom and dad's trunk as a country home. On the left is Jessica (1st floor neighbor), Stuti (Keeleigh's best friend from the 2nd floor) and Melissa who live directly beside us to the right. And then there's Keeleigh carrying her candy bag which, believe it or not, was FULL of candy before the night was over!

Jathan was absolutely amazed at all of the decorations and people dressed up. He wandered from car to car making people laugh. The cutest thing all night was when he saw the gold coins on the ground around the pirate's treasure chest which was full of candy. He gasped and pointed in amazement and bypassed the candy to grab a coin!

There were several blow-up bounce houses and slides. This one was Keeleigh's favorite and I let her slide down with Jathan once.

They made it! But I don't think Jathan saw a thing...his hat was over his eyes the whole time!

Daddy spent most of the night socializing; he is the biggest talker I've ever seen and never seems to meet a stranger! He did finally sit down and cuddle with his little spider eventually, though.

And here's Keeleigh getting wild going down the slide!

When we got home they dumped out all the candy and there were 207 pieces in all! They divided it all up, kindly bestowing all the M&Ms on Jathan.

Jathan ate lots and lots of M&Ms and one orange sucker and then gratefully headed to bed!

Keeleigh spent the night with Stuti (and hopefully didn't drive her parents up the wall on a sugar high!) and Jackie and I stayed up as late as we could watching Ghost Hunters Live. Sadly we were tuckered out as well and barely saw 10 p.m.! Oh, we're getting old!
It was a very nice, safe and sugar-filled Halloween full of crafts and friends. Just the way I like it!

Trunk-r-Treat and Vote for Cookies!

2008-10-30T13:38:00.000-07:00

Last night I took the kids to Trunk-r-Treat at First Baptist New Orleans. Keeleigh dressed up as a cheetah girl, literally...

And Jathan was a spider.

They really enjoyed themselves playing on the bounce houses and getting candy!

Last night Jackie and I did our patriotic duty...in our pajamas! We received our absentee ballots in the mail and got right to filling them out so that we could send them back today. Keeleigh was totally impressed with the teeny tiny pencils they send you to fill the ballot out with. She had to use it for school today. Until she got tired of trying to hold a teeny tiny pencil, that is!

Today has been an as-usual day. School went well this morning and thankfully Jathan finally decided to take his morning nap about an hour late. Tomorrow is Halloween so we are just going to do our necessary end of week tests (math, spelling, reading) and I have fun and games planned for the rest of school time.

This afternoon I took the time to make some cookies from scratch! They are officially called Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk cookies but I just call them awesome.

Here's the recipe if you'd like to give them a try.

Ingredients:
2/3 coup butter or margarine, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salk
1 6 oz. package Craisins Sweetened Dried Cranberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chunks or chips

Directions:
Preheat over to 375 degrees F. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar together in a medium mising bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs, mixing well. Combine oats, flour, baking soda, and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Add to butter mixture in several additions, mixing well after each addition. Stir in Craisins and white chocolate chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. Make approximately 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

Saturday: A Day in the Life

2008-10-25T18:30:00.000-07:00

Today our family went to Red Bluff Farm's Pumpkin Patch. We had so much fun! The farmer did a tour of the farm and the kids got to see him shear a sheep and milk a cow. Plus everyone got a chance to bottle-feed a calf and fish with a cane pole in the pond. We also went on a hay ride and saw the horses, cows, and chickens. Keeleigh's friend, Stuti, went with us so she enjoyed herself all the more.

After leaving the farm we ate and went to Fountainebleau State Park. It was awesome. The park has a nature trail that leads you into the marshland at the edge of Lake Ponchatrain where we actually saw an alligator sunbathing on the grassy bank.

The park also had a beach where we got our feet wet and searched for seashells. People were fishing off the boardwalk and we got to see a lady catch a fish and learn about crab fishing. (You could see the crabs underwater in the marsh!)

We had a wonderful day and will definitely return to the state park to explore more. Here's a slideshow of our day:

Detour

2008-10-20T13:06:00.000-07:00

This weekend Jackie was scheduled to preach at a church in Kentwood, LA (HOME OF BRITNEY SPEARS!); the church is seeking a pastor and had received Jackie's resume. We set out early Sunday morning since the church is about an hour and a half away from NOLA but unfortunately we never made it to the church. On our way there Jackie and I noticed a strange sound which seemed to be coming from our car. We suspected a problem with the tire but the car didn't seem to pull one way or the other so Jackie switched lanes to see if perhaps it was just the road. When he did we experienced a blow out. We did have a spare but it looked quite low on air itself and we also noticed that we'd picked up a screw (which was probably what punctured the front one, too) in one of the rear tires. So we checked the GPS for the nearest service station. It directed us 15-20 miles away! We thought we'd try the next "town" up about 5 miles away, however. Seriously this was the most podunk town ever. Ha, ha! There was one street which some shotgun houses down it leading to the fishing docks. No gas station. No stores. Only a dock. There was however a volunteer fire department where we talked an apparent "firefighter" into setting down his Budlight for a few minutes to air up our tire. Then we hobbled to the nearest Walmart where we had to buy two new tires.
After getting the new tires at Walmart we ate in La Place. Then after confirming with the church that they didn't want us to come for the evening service (we're going to try again next Sunday) we decided to go to the Oak Alley Plantation which was hosting an arts and crafts fair.

We first heard about the plantation from it's Ghosthunters episode a week or two back. (It's reported to have some supernatural activity going on inside it.) It really is beautiful there! The plantation sits just beside the Mississipi River and is surrounded by 300 year-old oak trees which Keeleigh thought made really great climbing trees. There were also beautiful flowers and shrubs along the brick pathways while sugar cane fields flanked the plantation on each side. We wandered around the grounds and visited the arts and crafts fair which featured some great local art and cute crafts as well as some mouth-watering food.

We also got a chance to tour the mansion where we learned the history of the place. The house was built by a frenchman and his young bride (or rather their numerous slaves) over the span of 2 years. The wife, Selena's, father was an architect who designed the original French Market in NOLA as well as Cafe du Monde. There was a large dining table set with extra-large silverware (to show their wealth by how much pure silver they could buy) over which hung a fan with a cord leading to one corner of the room where a young slave would have set pulling the cord to fan the people at the table. After dinner they would have retreated to the sitting room where the men enjoyed rum and the ladies ate pears (soaked in rum because it was unladylike to drink--ha ha!). We also saw the "haunted" bedroom where Selena and her husband slept and which still contained the elaborately carved wooden bassinet that one of the six children slept in. There was also a sick room for family members when they were ill and for after they died for viewing. Across from that room was the nursery decorated in the palest blue. The rooms on the second floor all led out to the 13 foot veranda where you had an incredible view of the oaks. In the first owner's time they could see the river but now the levee is built up too high.

We didn't see any ghosts but we did enjoy ourselves highly! It was a certainly a nice end to a day which started out kind of bumpy.

2008-09-22T11:05:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday! Hope you had a good weekend. Yesterday we visited Grace Baptist again where Jackie preached. We are still waiting on a word from God on where he wants Jackie to pastor (if at all for now). I also went grocery shopping at Walmart and learned that I should never ever shop at Walmart on a weekend especially when I am alone with the children. Geez Louise, it was crowded and they were out of so many things. Plus it was getting near dinner time so Jathan was getting restless and then he lost his pacifier somewhere in the store and when I went to buy a new one they didn't have his old kind. So yeah. It was fun.

Today has been better. We had school this morning and I'm thinking I'm going to integrate more arts and craft/creative time. This morning we did scribble art! You just scribble some lines on a piece of paper then swap with someone and try to make something out of their scribbles. I was totally amazed that Keeleigh saw a rhinocerous in my scribbles...I never would have got that. There were several eggs in the rhino's belly! I saw some snails and a fish in Keeleigh's scribbles. She liked doing this a lot (and I did, too!).

After school we decorated our window with some fall clings that I got at Walmart yesterday. There kind of hard to see but the ones at bottom are pictures of little scarecrow boys that reminded me so much of Jathan.

I've been inspired by the cooler weather, and by cooler I mean much less humid, and have spread autumn all around my apartment since I'm not sure if it will come outside! At least not in the same way it did in Alabama. Here are some more pictures of our fall decorations...

See the pumpkin soup tureen in the middle? Someone gave me that for my wedding which was in FEBRUARY. I thought it was an odd present at the time but now I really love it. Doesn't it look good with my $1 Walmart placemats? Yea, bargains!

And here's how my planter is looking! It did have to be moved, however, out of the walkway and in front of the storage closet b/c of apartment regulations. I understand that a rule is a rule but it made me so sad to have a big empty space under the window that looked so pretty filled with plants.

And at 12 o'clock came lunch! Jathan enjoyed his veggies so much that he needed TWO forks to eat with. Ha ha. Check out how he's been smiling when I take his picture. He squeezes his eyes shut and gives a little grin.

And now it's almost time for PE and I didn't forget today, woo hoo! Jathan's napping for now but when he wakes up we'll probably head out to let him enjoy some art time. He LOVES chalk (and now just for eating).

At some point today before supper time I also need to run to Winn Dixie ("Why don't you just drive, " Jackie would say!) and pick up a few items that Wal-mart was fresh out of. Ah, it's never dull around here! Just the way I like it. = )

Almost Over

2008-09-06T07:31:00.000-07:00

Our first hurricane experience is almost over! We've been at my mom and dad's house for the last eight days and will probably head home tomorrow. It really hasn't been as bad as I feared it might. We've had fun on our evacuation vacation (as a fellow homeschooler's child dubbed it).

We visited our old church on Sunday and low and behold they were having music and lunch. Someone accused us of coming back just for the food but I reminded them that, hey, it was an act of God. Monday was Labor Day of course and a nearby town has a *fabulous* festival called MULE DAY! Yep, how much more redneck can you get?! We stayed about an hour and a half during which I somehow got an ugly sunburn. Then we ate at the Cabbage Bowl with some friends, visited Jackie's brother, and went to another friend's house for a cookout! Now I remember why I love Alabama...all the food!

Later on in the week my mom and dad kept Keeleigh and Jathan and Jackie and I went on a date! It was the first time we'd been out alone in a long time.

Last night Keeleigh went with my mom and dad to another festival (they work at them b/c my dad is an airbrusher for a living) and I talked Jackie into staying home from the highschool football game to eat spaghetti and watch Fool's Gold with me.

We're just going to hang out today I guess. The Auburn game comes on at 11 a.m. and we can't miss that, of course. We are probably going to head home tomorrow. Power is finally up and running in our apartment and we've gotten the okay to come back provided we arrive between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. since there is still a curfew. We were told to fill up with gas and buy groceries before we get into New Orleans. Reportedly the Winn Dixie was only letting 7 people at a time come in. Not sure why...maybe not enough employees? Maybe afraid of thiefs?

Anyway, it's been an okay week but I do hope we don't get any more hurricanes soon. Hope all is well with you guys!

Evacuating!

2008-08-29T12:06:00.000-07:00

We were supposed to have a field trip today at Longue Vue Gardens instead we are evacuating. This morning the seminary announced that campus will close at 3 p.m. today and that all campus families should leave by 12 noon tomorrow. Mandatory evacuation. We decided to get a leg up on traffic (we hope) and pack up and head out today. So we've packed up as much as we can stuff into our suitcases. I've tried to pack all of Jathan and Keeleigh's clothes and our irreplacable pictures. I'm still holding out hope that absolutely nothing will happen...no flooding, no destruction and it very well may not. At this point no one knows where exactly Gustaf is going to hit or how strong it will be but in the back of my mind I wonder. I wonder why God wanted us to come here if we're going to leave 2 months later? I wonder if the hurricane does hit here, if the levies don't hold what condition will our home be when we return?

It's just weird to leave and not know.

But leave we shall! Just as soon as Jackie gets out of the shower. How is it that I'm always waiting on him? = )

Here's the view from around my apartment....I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who decided to pack A LOT.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10

Bread, Painting, Boo Boos, Telephones, and Gustav

2008-08-27T18:11:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures from our bread-making adventures yesterday...

Baby, I knead you. = )

The bread TOTALLY did not rise like it was supposed to. My friend, Sommer, said that wheat bread is hard to get to rise. Plus I noticed the flour was out of date; I'm guessing that makes a difference. Flat as it was, it was good and was eaten up in no time!

While we were waiting on the bread to bake we gathered up some paint brushes and some friends and "painted" with water on the front balcony.

It was fun until they started pouring the water over the balcony. I was afraid they were going to give someone an unexpected shower!

In this next picture that's a cell phone Jathan's holding to (er...behind) his ear and if I had to put a caption with the picture it'd say, "Hello, Doctor?" Can you see the huge knot on his forehead? He was running and fell smack into my baker's rack. I got him to stop crying by letting him play in the fridge then he got interested in my cell phone and stuck it up to his ear for the first time! So cute. He started babbling like he was really talking. I swear Jathan sounds just like an angry little Chinese man when he babbles! He had a heated conversation with an umbrella yesterday and most of his "words" end in strong, harsh sounds like -ong so it's so funny.

Keeleigh and I have also spent some time on the phone. We made a tin can telephone for science class today. We're learning about our sense organs and this week we're all ears.

Check out our cool designs complete with rainbow cord--because in Traci's classroom science is pretty, too:

So the big news today is Gustav and whether or not it's going to hit NOLA or not. There's talk of mandatory evacuations but I get the feeling this is a little like when Alabama meterologists forecast flurries and everyone rushes out to buy milk and bread. I'm going to take the storm seriously; I know it could be disasterous but it's not even in the gulf yet and I'm going to hold off on worrying for now.

How's your week going?

My New Planter

2008-08-25T15:12:00.000-07:00

Here's my fabulous new planter! I think it brightens our doorway plus I love having a place for my little gnomes. See the gnome on the right? My neighbor says he's black...I think it's the nose. So now I'm boasting that I have the only culturally diverse planterbox on the whole seminary. All gnomes are welcome regardless of race, color, ethnicity or country of origin. = )

Busy Week

2008-08-22T18:30:00.000-07:00

This week has been very busy! On Monday morning my mom called and said that she had talked my dad into traveling to New Orleans for her birthday and that they'd be here that evening. Monday was also our first day of homeschooling! Everything went well and I think we are really going to enjoy this experience. Of course we are fine tuning our schedule and routine and adjusting some attitudes along the way but overall I'm very excited to get to do this. Here are a few pictures from our first day of school...

Jathan liked stickers!

Mom, Dad, and Jeremy arrived on campus at around 6 p.m. just as Jackie was getting home from his first day of work at a local school supply store called the Educator. That night we all went to eat at New Orleans Hamburger and Seafood.

Tuesday Jackie started classes and Mom, Dad, Jeremy, Keeleigh, Jathan, and I all went exploring around town. I attempted to find the 9th ward for them so that they could see the hurricane/levy damage that is still there but I'd only been there once and "9th ward" isn't exactly an option on the GPS guide = ). We ended up driving around a while then heading to the french quarter where we looked in the shops and walked through the St. Louis Cathedral. It was beautiful in there! Since my family is full of the pickiest eaters imaginable, we had pizza at a mall food court. After lunch we went to the new Audubon Insectarium. It was pretty cool...lots of crazy bugs. Plus there was a little movie that you watch and it feels like the things happening on the screen are really happening in the theatre. One of the first things that happened was a feeling like things were crawling in your seat under you and of course everyone gasped/screamed. Jathan was totally shocked and started crying. I don't think he enjoyed the movie too much!

Later that night after we'd picked Jackie up from home he was able to get us to the 9th ward so that everyone could see the damage. Then we drove through a little part of the Garden District...what a difference. From very poor to very rich within just a few miles. All seven of us had crammed ourselves in Mom's 4 Runner so we were very eager to get out somewhere and since it was getting dark and we were starving we ate at the Hard Rock Cafe where I managed to drop my fork numerous times and Jathan spilled a full glass of apple juice all over the floor. Despite the mess that my son and I made, it was delicious. Dad said that was one of the best BBQ sandwiches he'd ever eaten!

Here's a slideshow of my pictures from that day:

On Wednesday my family headed back towards Alabama (to Orange Beach) and we did our second day of school On Thursday we had our first field trip with CHESS, the on-campus homeschool support group. We went to Whole Foods where we sampled lots of foods around the store and ate pizza before leaving to go back home and finish up our school work. I don't have a single picture from Whole Foods because they don't allow photography on their tours. Why, I do not know. Perhaps flash photography would damage the delicate organic fruits and veggies? Perhaps hippies don't want their secret grocery store expeditions revealed? The world may never know.

Today we had a normal day. We woke up, Jackie went to work, we did school and finished right at lunch time and then I washed what seemed like every dish that I own because we've fallen terribly behind over the last busy week.

And that's what I've been doing this week!

Audubon Zoo

2008-08-17T18:59:00.000-07:00

Today after church we visited the Audubon Zoo here in New Orleans. I totally loved it and am so glad that we have the season pass so that we can go as often as we want! We spent about four hours there and would have stayed longer but it started raining.

Keeleigh not only got to check out all of the animals but there were interactive play areas. In one she did a "archeological dig" (in the sand with little shovels) for "Mayan artifacts". In another kids could remove their shoes and splash in and climb up a little waterfall at the top of which they would find a pride of lions then walk back through a little jungle-ish pigtrail!

Keeleigh got to feed giraffes up close and personal and we also watched the alligators get fed (not so up close and personal, thank goodness).

As always, Jathan enjoyed being outside and riding in his stroller plus he is getting old enough to actually look at the animals. I know he is going to love going there in the years to come.

Here is a slideshow of our visit...

Friday Fun

2008-08-15T09:00:00.000-07:00

Did you know dump trucks make excellent cheerio holders?

Yep, they do!

This week seems like it has flown by. I've been organizing things for homeschool. Two or three books are still on their way but it's nothing we can't live the first few days/weeks without. I ordered them earlier this week and then got an email saying they'd ship within two to three weeks.

I also ordered another present for Jathan with his birthday money. If you gave Jathan money for his birthday, this is what we bought with it:

He totally loves anything he can ride and we thought this would be perfect. He fell in love with it the minute he saw it and begs to get in it whenever he sees it now. We can push him around in it while he's little and when he gets bigger the floorboard lifts out so that he can ride Flintstone style.

Last night we went to the ministry fair in the student center. I really had no purpose for it (except for the free samples of jambalaya and some sort of AWESOME cake ball)...I hate crowds and was having a hard time pushing Jathan around in his stroller through them but Keeleigh LOVED it. All the people set up there were giving away goodies and she got a bag from the Regions booth and loaded up! She got pens and magnets and so much candy. One booth was spray painting kids hair and she got hers done pink...

She's not the only wild one in our house---Jathan knows how to let it all hang out, too.

Today we are headed to Wal-mart to stock up on ingredients for this week's menu. I'm hungry just thinking about it! I'm also going to get some potting soil for the new planter outside my window...pictures of it coming soon!

Lately...

2008-08-12T12:18:00.000-07:00

We've just been enjoying ourselves around the apartment lately. Which I'm realizing that I like for various reasons...one being the built-in friends for Keeleigh and two being the way the balcony smells when everyone does their laundry. Sunshine fresh.
I'm not sure if Keeleigh's the evil genius behind organizing lots of the kids in the apartment building into forming a club or not but they have formed a Fun Club. At first they made signs saying they would meet for recreation, food, crafts and games under the oak tree. Then they tried to construct a clubhouse by putting blankets all over the monkey bars. Unfortunately the campus police nixed that idea. I wish the campus police had told them to take the blankets back to their mothers because one of Keeleigh's got left on the playground. During a torrential downpour. Along with papers and a huge box of colored pencils.

They finally set up camp underneath the stairwell on the first floor. Today Keeleigh had me make copies of a sign announcing their first fundraiser--a bake sale. I'm not real sure who's going to be baking but it's taking place Friday and lemonade will be going for 50 cents.

If I had my guess I'm betting Jathan, as much as he loves cookies, is looking forward to the bake sale.

Here he did a very good job eating his dinner and was rewarded with an oreo for dessert.

That night we all did a very good job cleaning our plates. I made hamburger hash, green beans, and fried eggplant with a fresh tomato topping. It was pretty awesome.

Another thing that I'm enjoying about our apartment is the metal front door. At the bottom I've placed some magnetic numbers for Jathan to play with. He carries them from the door to the fridge and back again several times a day. At the top of the door I've displayed a poem that I constructed after finding my Girls Speak Out poetry kit I bought in high school.

And lastly, check out my new rainshower shower head! It's so much better than the one we had when we got here. Also did you notice that I'm apparently on an orange kick when it comes to shower supplies? I didn't do it on purpose at all!

I love that shave cream if you're looking for a good one. It's apricot scented and smells so fabulous!

So that's what's going on around here this week...what's up with you guys?

Audubon Park

2008-08-10T14:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we visited Audubon Park with our friends and neighbors, Steve and Crystal and their boys, Blaine and Brent. It's a very nice park across from the zoo here in New Orleans. There was a (loooong) walking/bike trail and ducks and geese and turtles to feed. We even saw a celebrity---James Carville from Fox News. Yeah, he's no Brad Pitt but you gotta start small!

Here's a slideshow of our little excursion:

(Almost) On the Road Again.

2008-08-02T05:06:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Jackie was telling people we were going to try and leave out at around 7 a.m. I did a mental eye-roll but was still ignorantly hopeful that would actually happen. So I set my alarm for 5:30 but alas, I was the only one getting up and getting ready. Now it's about five til seven and I'm fully dressed, the bed is made, my bag is packed and Jackie just got in the shower. Ah, well. It gave me the chance to goof off online for a few minutes.

I printed out a couple of games to help keep Keeleigh entertained along the way. One was the License Plate game where you check off the states whose license plates you see along the way. I printed a list of the states on one side of paper and on the other side I printed a map of the US. I'm going to have her color in the states that we get checked off and voila! A geography lesson. = )

The other game is a scavenger hunt where we're looking for things like a yellow car and a person riding a bike, etc. Hopefully she'll enjoy them.

Getting on the road again has reminded me of our trip down here. Keeleigh, Jathan, and I rode in one car with me driving and Keeleigh operating the walkie talkie. When she wasn't snoozing (it was her dream to sleep for the 8 hours down here) she was wide awake and taking everything in. At one point, in her usual hilarious fashion, she sat straight up and said, "Mama, look! HOBOS!" Now I didn't see them but apparently there were some guys camping out under a bridge. Coming from a very small town, we don't see many hobos and Keeleigh was all excited. She even radioed Jackie to find out if he'd seen them.

Later she asked me, "What do hobos eat?"

"I guess whatever they can find," I replied.

"Do they eat DIRT?" Keeleigh asked, intrigued.

"Probably not. I meant things that people give them or things that they might find in the
garbage."

"Oh, 'cause sometimes I eat dirt," she said.

Oh, you just never know with her!

I'm hoping the games will keep her entertained but I'm sure she'll keep us entertained as well.

The Pool and an Upcoming Party!

2008-08-01T20:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the pool where Keeleigh met up with her new friend, Anne Marie. It was HOT out so the pool felt really nice. It's kind of a deep pool...starts at 4 feet and goes to 9 feet and since I'm totally short I kind of just stay in the 4 foot with Jathan. While Keeleigh splashed and swam, Jathan and I socialized meeting a nice lady and her 7 month old, Caroline.
Here are a few pictures from our swim...
Keeleigh and Anne Marie:

Jathan toddling towards the pool! Yep, he's really started getting around and was ready to jump in the pool.

And here's me with my water baby!

Keeleigh also took some time to do a little art yesterday. Check out the Welcome mat she drew for us. I couldn't get Jathan to look at the camera...he was too busy clapping for the kids on the playground which is what he's looking at.

Today it rained all day. Keeleigh went to hang out with some friends that we met at preview weekend back in March. They are actually leaving the seminary on Monday to take a position serving youth and college students in Tennessee. We are totally going to miss them...I was hoping we'd get to spend more time together.

Tomorrow we are heading back to Alabama for Jathan's birthday (which is Sunday). I really, really can't believe my tiny baby is one-year old. This time last year I was laid up in a hospital bed and had never even laid eyes on this little person who is such a huge part of my life now. I don't know how I'm going to get through Sunday without crying. My little boy is growing up!
We'll be home Monday evening so I'll be sure to post pictures of our fabulous party asap! Everyone have a great weekend and if you're in north AL come to Jathan's party!

Yesterday...

2008-07-29T08:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Jackie woke up very early feeling very bad. The very bad feeling progressed into diarrhea and vomiting and continued most of the a.m. He was feeling the need for some pepto bismol and powerade so I actually journeyed outside the seminary gates all by myself! So I only drove a mile down the street to Winn Dixie, I was proud of myself.

I also took the time to do a practice cake for Jathan's first birthday. I want to have a frog theme since that's what his room is decorated in so I searched for frog cake ideas and found the perfect one. It's pretty simple to do, too. You use a single cake mix and one 9 inch round pan, one 8 inch square pan, and two cupcakes. You just cut the square into L-shapes for the legs and use the cupcakes for the eyes. It was kind of hard for me to ice it...you're supposed to use a star-tip but I didn't have one. I tried the whole cut a whole in a sandwich bag thing but that didn't cut it for me so I just spread the icing out like normal. I think it turned out okay!

When I do the real deal I'm going to get a fruit roll up for the frog's tongue! I also would like to try and find some fake flies to put on cupcakes.

For dinner I made something different, too--a veg-all casserole from a very old cookbook. The recipe didn't even tell what temperature to cook it at or for how long but I guessed and it came out good! Of course, picky-eater Keeleigh didn't want any and sickly Jackie hesitated at coming to the dinner table but Jathan and I ate it up and we shared with our neighbors since it made so much.

After dinner Jackie was feeling up to keeping Keeleigh and Jathan while I went to my first homeschool meeting of the on-campus club, CHESS (Christian Home Educator's Support System). I always feel weird going to meetings and stuff especially for the first time but I was really glad that I went to this. It was almost all women there and everyone introduced themselves then had group prayer then broke into smaller groups for small group prayer. It was really great sharing with my group and hearing what they've got going on right now. We also got to hear about the PE and Bible classes that are being offered plus we learned what the first field trip will be--a trip to Whole Foods! Woo hoo!

Today Jackie is feeling better and has headed off to the library to start on the outline for his research paper for the Old Testament seminar he took last week. Keeleigh woke up ravenous apparently and cooked herself three eggs. She wanted me to blog about her cooking so I offered to video her and let her do a little cooking show. She couldn't really think of anything to say so I'm calling her show "The Silent Chef."

I can't seem to get the video to upload anywhere on the Internet, however. So you guys will have to live without seeing it for now.

Now I'm off to finish up today's laundry (on Tuesdays I wash mine and Jackie's clothes and today we only have one load...yea!) and we might possibly go to the pool if the weather clears up. Plus I want to research going to the Napolean exhibit at the old mint before it closes this weekend.

Hope everything is good with you guys.

Slideshow

2008-07-22T11:58:00.001-07:00

Here's a slideshow of the kagillion pictures I've taken over the last week or so!

We're Here!

2008-07-17T17:00:00.000-07:00

Moving pictures...

The U-Haul in front of our old place:

Jackie trying to get the washer and dryer out. (And me laughing at him in the background.)

Toby, a friend from Antioch, helping us load up Saturday.
Me doing some last minute packing in the bathroom.
Good-bye dishwasher. I will miss you.
We got here in about 8 hours on Sunday. The trip was really easy...it's basically 2 roads all the way here. Once we got here several guys from our apartment complex came out and jumped right in helping us unload. Everything was out of the U-Haul and in our apartment within a couple of hours. We worked hard unpacking over the last few days and now almost everything is in it's place.

Jackie has been trying to call today about getting cable/internet in our apartment so I will upload some pictures of our apartment soon. But for now it's supper time and I'm hungry!

See you soon!

2 More Days!

2008-07-11T06:04:00.000-07:00

I'm in the final stages of packing. There will be no more cooking going on in my kitchen...the dishes have been put away and labeled accordingly...

Yeah, I really hope none of them break!

I hope no one helping us move breaks either. Check out just the box-portion of our load...

" Lift with your knees!" I tell myself!

Jehovah's Witness

2008-06-29T04:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday at around 11:30 I got a knock on my door and my first thought was that it was Jackie home early from work and needed me to open the door for him. But when I opened the door a young man in a dress shirt and tie stood on my porch. He was a Jehovah's Witness and my first thought was, "Well, at least I'm not still in my pajamas like last time!" Yep, last time was over a year ago and, though I'm sure it was also near 11:30 or so, I was still in monkey-print pj's that said "princess in training" on the front. Classy. There were two ladies then, one older who did the talking and one a good bit younger who stood behind her and tried to keep from laughing.

Not this time, though! No this time I'd just showered and had on lovely skirt, I'm sure I looked quite presentable. I answered his question ("Yes, I do believe the Flood actually occurred.") and took the material he offered (which I did actually read) and bid him adieu only to turn around and see this:

His view of my nearly barren living room complete with lawn chair and walker flanked attractively by two end-tables. Ha, ha.

Now I'm sure that anyone who goes out knocking on people's door unexpectedly must be prepared for whatever lies on the other side. I'm sure Jehovah's Witnesses have seen a lot and that in all likelyhood I'll never see those people again. But it still peeves me that I'm never perfectly presented! I've come across as a lazy slob AND a bad decorator.

"That poor lost soul," I bet they walk away saying. = )

Purging and Packing

2008-06-19T10:22:00.000-07:00

The countdown is down to 24 more days! It won't be long before we'll have to start packing, but we've tried to do a little purging first. So closets have been cleaned and garbage cans filled. There have been box-laden trips to the consignment shop and ebay sales. I think I've gotten my furniture arrangement down so also been selling the furniture we don't need to take.

Our kitchen table is gone now and has been replaced by egg boxes which will soon be packed to the brim with our belongings! Thank goodness Jackie works at a grocery store...it makes finding free boxes a piece of cake. Jathan will be eating out of his walker until we move and we'll make do with tv trays! Hopefully we can buy the table I've got my eye on to have in the apartment, though.

We also sold our grill, the one we bought with all the gift cards we got for our wedding. So it was a little sad (only a chick would get sentimental over a GRILL!) but there won't be any where to use it and it's not as if we used it all that much here. We were still on our first tank of gas! Plus we know it went to a good home. = )

Earlier this week we loaded up all the junk we couldn't pawn off on our friends = ) and had a yard sale. My dad knows a guy and we got to set up in a really good spot right on the highway. We sold over $200 in four hours on a Tuesday so I think it was a real success! I'm taking another trailer full tomorrow to sell and hope I do even better since it's a Friday and there are usually more people out. If not, then oh well. Sitting out in the blazing Alabama summer sun is doing wonders for my tan.

Lasting Promises

2008-06-12T06:34:00.001-07:00

On Tuesday of this week we went to Mr. D's, furniture shopping. As usual, we found ourselves explaining a lot.

"Yes, well we're moving to a small apartment so we'd like to see your doll furniture collection, please."

"No, no. We're not moving into the new apartments they're building down the street. Actually we're moving to New Orleans next month."

And then we get, "Oh! Why?"

And then we explain about seminary and that it is very different living on campus than out in the ghettos and so on and so forth!

On Tuesday, though, after getting an "Oh!" Jackie asked, "Why does everyone say that?!" That particular man told him that it was because that just seemed an awful long way from home. Yes, furniure man, sometimes it does. Sometimes when I think about leaving my Granny's peonies that are planted at the side of my house on the street that I've lived on for 23 years NOLA does seem far from home.

Some people think I ought to settle down and build a big, fancy house and buy a nice, fancy car like other people my age are starting to do. You know, close to home. But then I think about heaven and what the Bible says about home.

"For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." 2 Corinthians 5:1

"Now therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and member of the household of God." Ephesians 2:19

I know that no matter what ties I manage to make here...however long I live in one tent, however big or small I manage to make that tent...it's still just a tent. Just a temporary dwelling to sustain me on this leg of my journey and that someday I will have a building from God, eternal in the heavens and that I don't belong here; I will forever belong to God's household no matter how comfortable I get in one place here! I think about that and I don't get so homesick for fading memories, I get happy for lasting promises. = )

The Countdown Begins!

2008-06-07T06:41:00.000-07:00

We are a mere 37 days away from our moving date! Things are really start to become "real" for us. We have put our living room suite on the market should you know someone who needs a fabulous set of furniture, I'd like to send it to a good home.

We've been furniture shopping this week though odds are I won't be able to get much on our budget. I will definitely be needing a kitchen table, however, since I kind of sold ours. I had one in mind when I sold it but apparently it was a discontinued style and the ONE that they had that I had seen was gone. = ( So now I'm on the hunt for a perfect replacement!

I haven't started packing yet but I have started purging. I've cleaned out our closets and sent four boxes of clothing to the consignment shop. I also want to have a yard sale when I can talk someone into helping me. Hopefully we can lighten our load before it has to be loaded.

Jackie has started preparing for a class this week. The three books he has to read and write about before he will be admitted to class arrived on Tuesday so he's been reading as much as possible.

And that's what's going on this week!

Housing Assignment, again.

2008-05-30T06:47:00.000-07:00

New Orleans to Traci: Those plans we made? Scratch that.

Yep, we received a letter in the mail yesterday from the housing department saying that a 3-bedroom apartment had come available and that we could move in in July. Sigh.

Jackie has been saying for some time now, "Don't bother making plans," and I'm starting to believe he's right. But that hasn't stopped my mind from being thrown into high gear thinking about what I'll do with this apartment. The letter came with a floorplan to scale so I'll have to rework the furniture layout that I'd planned when we were hoping an apartment in the Oaks. Yes. I did plan a furniture layout. I measured and drew and even colored it all in! Everyone thought I was crazy but, hey, there is no other way I can prepare. There is nothing to be done right now (except worry, of course) so I need some outlet for my thoughts or I might very well explode.

Things to think about right now include:

-What will we do with all of our large furniture? It's not all going to fit into a 10.5' x 14.5' living room!

-Can I get a new loveseat instead of our couch? Can I get a red one? = )

-How I would love a stacked washer and dryer since space is limited; I could used the extra space for a water cooler!

-Where are we going to buy a water cooler?

-We need a bed. And a chest of drawers and dresser. I've found a black bed that I like online, so I'm imagining that one. But how will we buy a bed?!

-We need rugs for Keeleigh and Jathan's bedrooms. And for mind and Jackie's, too, I suppose.

-The plumbing below the sinks are exposed so I want to cover that up. I've found a curtain that I think would work at Walmart that is also a very cute print which would coordinate with decorative items I already have. I want to get it and some towels and a rug to go in the half-bath. (Yea! Two toilets!)

All that and a million other things. More "real" things about finances and serious subjects that I try not to think about.

Oh and a very serious subject...Will my baker's rack fit in the new apartment? Because I love displaying my Longaberger pottery so much. When I got all of that pottery I didn't even have a house; it was the first items in my "hope chest." It represented home and still does for me. Will it have a place in my new home?

It's a silly thing to think about, I'm sure. But it's not the first silly think I've thought about and I'm sure it won't be the last.

Housing Assignment

2008-05-23T19:45:00.000-07:00

The moral of the story is: If you're going to pray for something, be really specific.

The story is: Earlier this week we received a letter via email from the housing department at NOBTS and it caught me completely off guard. All this time I have been thinking there are three possibilites...the three bedroom apartment that I didn't like, the two bedroom apartment that was much better, and the four bedroom apartment that I LOVED. It was the four bedroom that I'd been praying for and it was the words "four bedroom" that stood out like a sore (really sore) thumb in the letter we received.

Apparently many people have applied to NOBTS--many more than they expected--and all of the family apartments are full. They are trying to accomodate as many as possible, however, and are offering the apartment usually inhabited by four single students to families. There are four bedrooms, two full baths, a living room, and a kitchen. There is a coin-operated laundry nearby. These apartments come fully furnished so we would not be able to bring our own furniture. This housing will only be temporary; when something opens up (in a few months or a semester?) we will be assigned to the three bedroom apartment building that I definitely did not want.

This is what the email said and when I read it I flipped out. I don't know why exactly, it's just not what I was expecting. I had waited for 3 months to find out where we were going to be living and the last thing I wanted to hear was, "We don't have room for you." Honestly, my first thoughts were so selfish! I wanted to say, "Aren't I sacrificing enough? Can't I get something that I want?" As if my sacrifice is anything compared to what Jesus gave. Even still it's what I felt along with a feeling of utter deflation.

I think a lot of how I felt had to do with the fact that this week was my last week of work. I am now officially a stay-at-home-mom. I thought that I was ready and really I am, I just wasn't fully prepared to say goodbye to everyone. I started getting kind of emotional Monday and it just spiralled down from there! Tuesday Dan, Metha, Jackie, and I (and Jathan, of course) went to Red Lobster for my going away and it was Tuesday afternoon that we got the letter so it was just a crazy, momentous day chock full of endings and beginnings. Looking back and moving forward. Sigh.

Now that it's a few days later and I've had time to think things over I realize that it's not that bad. It's not what I expected but hey, I'm always saying how people should relax and go with the flow! Today I got a chance to look over the floorplan of the temporary apartment we will be staying in (in a little over a month's time...eek!) and daydreamed about how to make it more homey. A slip-cover here, a curtain there and it'll be perfect in no time. = )

But, like I said, if you're going to pray for something, say a four-bedroom apartment, be really specific. You might even want to include an address or something, because God has a real sense of humor. Though I'm still not laughing, God.

St. Joseph's Day Parade

2008-05-01T13:41:00.000-07:00

One of the fun things, I suppose, about New Orleans is that there's something going on. When we visited in March we played tourists after visiting the seminary on Thursday and Friday. That Saturday as we were walking around the French Quarter we happened upon a parade.

Actually we weren't sure what it was at first--all of a sudden there were just tons of guys in tuxedos carrying flower arrangements!

We soon figured out that it was the St. Joseph's Day Parade, however. "It's fixin' to get wild," one man told us. "Hmmmm," we thought. But it didn't get too wild, at least not while we were there. Keeleigh did go a little crazy racing full-grown women for beads! (Don't worry, there was no nudity involved.)

Keeleigh ended up getting a balloon hat, lots of candy, several beads, and a rose! She was thrilled and would've stayed longer had I not dragged her out of the street.

Jathan enjoyed the spoils, too!

Yep, I doubt life in New Orleans ever gets too dull.

Housing

2008-04-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

After Jackie received his acceptance letter earlier this month, we immediately sent in our housing request. We had toured the three-bedroom apartment when we visited in March and were sorely disappointed. They were tiny. Teeny tiny. Smaller than our two-bedroom mobile home. I stood in that apartment wondering what in the world I was going to do with all of my furniture. Wondering how I was going to train myself to walk through the living room without stubbing my toe each day. Practically lamenting over the fact that the current residents didn't have enough counter space so they had their microwave on their clothes dryer. Also there were only 1 1/2 baths which is a whole 1/2 better than what we have now but I did so have my heart set on two people being able to take a shower at once.

Later that evening, however, we visited some newly-minted friends in their two-bedroom apartment. When we walked in the door to their apartment I felt what the Israelites must have felt when they first set eyes on the Promised Land. Except, you know, on a much smaller scale. = ) Their living room was downright roomy! Their kitchen was painted a sunny yellow and they had counter space AND a closet pantry. Plus...a whole laundry room and a walk-in closet. (Yeah, you were laughing at me about the Promised Land thing until you heard about the walk-in closet, weren't you?) There were also two FULL baths!

The fact that there were only two bedrooms was a concern, though. Keeleigh and Jathan are 8 years apart in age and I don't imagine either one of them would care to share a bedroom with the other. After talking to our friends they mentioned that they knew of people with only two children who were living in the four-bedroom apartments. Gasp! So we rushed over to the four-bedroom apartments and took an impromptu tour of one very kind family's apartment. The living space was similar to that at the two-bedroom. Roomy and with a pantry and two full baths and a walk-in closet and laundry room. AND FOUR BEDROOMS. Room for everyone and the extra bedroom could be a homeschool room/office, I dreamed.

Outside there were little pavilions for people's grills. Plus, as at each apartment complex, there was a playground outside.

"This is where I'm meant to live," I thought. Ha, ha. Though we were told that it was not likely we would be able to get a four-bedroom though since families with 3 or more children are given priority, we indicated on our housing application that that would be our number one pick and that the two-bedroom would be our number two pick. I have made sure to let God know our preferences, too. (Don't feel bad, housing officials, that I went over your head.) So we are *patiently* waiting now to hear our fate. Where will we spend hours upon hours of the next three to four years of our lives? Hopefully we will know in early June meanwhile I'll try and figure out how to fit the entire contents of my living room into a space the size of a bathroom stall, just in case.

The Graduation Song

2008-04-17T10:12:00.000-07:00

When we sold my car last month, Keeleigh inherited the CDs that had been in there since high school. I’m really thankful that I bought all the Now That’s What I Call Music CDs even though some of the songs are totally lame. You can pop them into a CD player and they take you right back. Anyway, Keeleigh was playing one of the Now CDs and a Vitamin C song entitled “Friends Forever” came on. It’s also known as the Graduation Song which is how I think of it because I listened to it a million times my senior year. The first line says, “And so we talked all night about the rest of our lives/Where we're gonna be when we turn 25.” I was in my bedroom folding clothes when I heard that line blaring from my eight-year-old’s stereo and it hit me. I am 25! That’s how I know I’m getting old, because I look back and think, “Where has the time gone!”

The truth is, nothing is like I thought it would be when I was 25! At 18 I was very certain what the future was to hold… I was going to marry Seth Harper and live in Nashville, of course. I researched jobs in Nashville and found that paralegals could make six-figure salaries and the best part was that I could earn a paralegal degree at our local community college in two years. Somehow along the way, however, plans changed. I did earn my paralegal degree but I was not meant to marry my high school sweetheart or live in Nashville. My paralegal professor set me up in an internship at the District Attorney’s office where I became friends and really looked up to the ladies who worked there. One of them, Ann, invited me to bring Keeleigh to vacation bible school at her church and we ended up joining the congregation there a few months later. Ann and another lady at the church, Greta, took it upon themselves to fix me up with Greta’s cousin, Jackie. A year later we were married, Jackie adopted Keeleigh, and last August we added Jathan to our family!

It’s just amazing to me how God can take our plans and make them so much better than anything we could have imagined for ourselves. All of this came to mind when I heard that one, mediocre song from ages ago. Then the next day Keeleigh and I were preparing supper and she said, “I can’t wait to move to Louisiana! Can you? That’s why I’ve been listening to that song so much. It makes me think.” She’d been thinking about this transitional time of our lives just as I had knowing the weight of this move, knowing that it meant things would never be the same.

And suddenly it's like we're women and men/Will the past be a shadow that will follow us round?/Will these memories fade when I leave this town/I keep, I keep thinking that it's not goodbye/Keep on thinking it's a time to fly

An Introduction

2008-04-10T05:17:00.000-07:00

Our Family

Left to right: Traci, Keeleigh, Jackie, and Jathan

Right now we reside in North Alabama where I work part-time as a paralegal and Jackie works as youth minister at our church, Antioch Baptist, and also as a stocker at a local grocery store. Keeleigh is 8 years old and is in 2nd grade at a private Christian school. She is the most beautiful, creative, and spunky 8 year old I've ever known! She loves drawing and being outside and has lately been seen with a pixie hair cut topped with blue highlights! Jathan is a very happy 8 month old mama's boy who helps me out at the office. Yes, I have the privilege of taking him with me! We are pretty much inseparable.

In late 2007 God revealed to our family His plans to send us to New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary where my husband, Jackie, will receive his masters and I will be stay-at-home mom to our children, 8-year old Keeleigh and 8-month Jathan. I will also be homeschooling Keeleigh for the first time!

I named our blog Good News New Orleans because of the reaction we got when we told our friends and family we were moving. Most people had a look as if to say, "Are you crazy?" Many acted as if we'd told them we were relocating to prison! But having visited New Orleans, we know of its historic beauty and charm. We know of the warmth and loving friendship shared at the seminary. We also know of the great need for Christ running rampant throughout the city and hope to be a light while we also have our fire kindled with knowledge at NOBTS. I hope that you will read our blog and follow us on our journey!