T-doe's Tidbits

We got engaged!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-02-26T10:30:00.000-08:00

That's right, Brian proposed to me and I said YES!!!

It all happened the night before Valentine's Day.

He took me to dinner at Commander's Palace to celebrate Valentine's. After dinner, the waiter brought us two glasses of champagne. I asked Brian if he had ordered these for us and he said, well look at the bottom of the glass. Well there was a gorgeous radiant cut diamond ring with beggetts tied to the bottom of the glass with a red bow!! I was surprised and then Brian asked me to marry him. Of course I said yes!

We went back to my house, showed my family and then started making some phone calls. I had to stop calling people after I started waking people up.

The next day at work, Brian sent me THREE dozen red roses with a beautiful card. It was a great Valentine's...to say the least! ;)

We are extremely happy and excited. We are just trying to get our plans together for our wedding. It's a bit harder than I ever anticipated, but it'll all come together in the end.

You can view more pictures here from our engagement and I have also posted pictures from Mardi Gras here.

Christmas time again!

2006-12-08T17:16:00.000-08:00

I was thinking back to my post from last year around this time and how sad we all were around here. I remember feeling like it was so unfair for everyone to be so happy about Christmas, when we were stuck in a FEMA trailer with a one foot Christmas tree on the table.

This year, we are in so much better spirits! All three of us were so excited to go get the Christmas tree. We didn't even hesitate to put up the lights on the outside of the house, which is usually a big pain the butt! We got it all done last weekend together and it is so nice to have the smell of Christmas back in our house again!

I am still passing tons of trailers around the city, and I can't help but wonder if those families are feeling like I did last year at this time. I'm sure they are, so my heart goes out to them, along with a prayer. They will have their day in their homes again, too.

I love so many things about this time of year and I especially love getting the mail everyday and seeing whose Christmas card we have received. The photo cards are so much fun. They are already filling up our refrigerator! It's so nice to see how everyone has grown and changed over the year.

Well, I hope everyone is having a very happy holiday season! The weather sure feels like Christmas around here...we were in the 20's this morning! Burrrrrr!!! Stay warm, enjoy these days and don't take one day for granted! I know I am enjoying it this year!!!!

Anniversary and Saints

2006-10-20T07:23:00.000-07:00

Brian and I celebrated our official one-year anniversary of dating last weekend. We went out to eat Saturday night at Restaurant August. It is John Besh's restaurant. It was very nice. Then we met up with some friends and saw a show at Tipitina's.

On Sunday, we went to the Saints game again. It was an incredible game! We played the Philadelphia Eagles. We won the game with 3 seconds left on the clock. It was so exciting! We had a lot of fun. My mom and Ma'Ma' went with Uncle Malcolm and Pia, too. Their seats were near ours, so we got to hang out with them, also.

The Saints are doing really well this year. It is exactly what the doctor ordered for our city. Everyone is pumped up about the team this year. I have never seen The Saints play like this! We call them the Bizarreo Saints team. ;) I'm still kind of bummed out that Brian and I missed the big Monday Night game in the dome. Scott and all his friends went. Everyone that went is still talking about it. Here is a website that shows some pictures from it. It really was a night to remember for all of us, even those unfortunate ones who didn't go to the game.

Brian leaves on Tuesday to begin his new job. He will be in St. Louis for training for weeks. I don't know when he will be home again. I'm excited for him starting a new job, but I will miss him. I have gotten very used to him being in town since June. It has been really nice for both of us. Hopefully, this company will be a good move and will grow like he wants.

This weekend is supposed to be beautiful here. It turned cool late last night, after such a nasty, muggy, humid week we had here, so we are thrilled about that! Hopefully, we'll do something outdoors to enjoy the weather. Have a Happy Weekend!!! ;)

A Year Ago At This Time...

2006-09-04T10:58:00.000-07:00

It's been a whole year now, since our lives were turned upside down, thanks to Hurricane Katrina. This week was a time for remembering everything that we have been through this past year. We have come a long way and things are getting back to "normal" for the most part. New Orleans is still not the same, but it's coming along and in time, hopefully it'll be better than before the storm.

It was also a year since I met Brian in Walt Disney World on the evacuation trip. My life has changed so much since Katrina...and for the better in many ways, thanks to Brian. We celebrated our "Meeting Day" anniversary this past week. We went to see the IMAX movie, Hurricane on the Bayou and had a nice dinner at Brigtsen's on Saturday. Brian really made it a great weekend. Our first date was not until October 15 of last year, but I think the day we met is a significant one as well. (To the right is a picture we took on Thursday--the anniversary of our meeting day.) :)

It's so hard to believe everything that has happened in the past year. We have had some very hard times and some great times. I have learned a lot from everything, especially not to take anything for granted and that material things don't matter. The most important things in life are family, friends and our health. I think we are all stronger people now and can survive even the toughest days that come our way. Now it's time to move forward, but we will always remember how our lives were changed a year ago at this time.

Vacation to Seattle, San Diego, Catalina and Disneyland

2006-08-21T20:07:00.000-07:00

My Vacation has come to an end. I am back at work. But I had a great summer. I ended my summer with a big trip! I started in Seattle, WA for a workshop that my school sent me to. Seattle was very nice and the weather was great (cool and no rain). I went with another teacher from work and we really had a good time.

I flew out of Seattle and met Brian, Ben and Stephanie in Los Angeles. We drove that night to San Diego. We spent 2 days in San Diego. It is a great city. We went to the zoo, Coronado, La Jolla, Old Town and the Sea Port Village.

The next day, we went to Catalina Island. Wow! Was this place nice! It would be nice to go back and spend the whole weekend there one time. We rode tandem bikes around some of the island. This was a bit harder than we had bargained for. It took a lot of teamwork to balance the bike and to trust the person driving. Like I said, "If you want to get in a fight, rent a tandem bike!!" We didn't really "fight" too much; it just took some getting use to. We actually got much better as the day went on. We had drinks by the water and a nice sushi dinner. We left Catalina and drove back to LA (Anaheim) that night.

We went to Disneyland on the last day we were in California. I had never been to Disneyland. We had a great time. It is slightly different than Disneyworld. It is much smaller and much more compact; however, the weather was nice and cool and we found most of the lines were shorter. It was nice to visit the place where all the Disney magic started. We were there for a total of 14 hours! By hour 12, we were all beat! We had an awesome time!

You can view all the pictures from my trips here.

Hopefully this will be a good school year and I look forward to planning my next trip!!

The Summer is flying by!

2006-07-17T15:27:00.000-07:00

Summer has come and is soon to be over, at least for me. It has been a good summer, but it is just flying by too fast.

Brian and I went on a big vacation a couple of weeks ago. We went to Chicago, Daytona and Orlando. It was a great trip!! We did so much! It was great to get away again.

Chicago was beautiful and we had great weather! It was even a bit cool, which was so nice, compared to here in NOLA! We went to a Chicago Cubs game, and toured the city for a couple of days.

We then flew to Orlando and drove to Daytona for the NASCAR Pepsi 400 race. It was awesome! It was Brian's first NASCAR race and he loved it!

Then we drove back to Orlando and spent some days there. I got to see my niece Megan again, so that was exciting! We just took it easy while in Orlando. We didn't do the Disney theme parks, but we did do a water park there, Blizzard Beach and we ate dinner one night at the Yacht and Beach Club resort. We also got to hang out with Glenn and Tammy and go swimming at their house. It was fun and relaxing. You can view all the pictures from the trip(s) here.

I leave again the first week in August for Seattle, WA for a workshop for work. Then I am flying to meet Brian and another couple and we are going to spend a few days in San Diego and a day at Disneyland. I'm looking forward to that trip. I have never been to any of those places, so it should be fun.

I get back on Aug. 8th from all of that and I start work again on Aug. 9th!!!!! It'll be tough to go back to work, but I can't complain, it has been great to be off and to be able to travel as much as I did. I'll post pictures from the next trip when I return.

Enjoy the rest of the summer!!! It sure is a HOT one! I'm looking forward to the fall!! ;)

Back in the house, festivals, and Orlando trip

2006-05-19T20:16:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I have posted. A lot has been happening since my last post.

We are now officially in our house!! It's great! We have gotten more furniture and are now settled in. At first, it seemed very strange to live here again, but after about a week, it was like we never had left. Now, we have a brand new house! I have pictures on our website of the house from when we evacuated Metairie on Aug. 28, 2005 through now. It's amazing to see what this house and we have been through the past 8 1/2months. You can view pictures here. The most recent pictures are on page 4.

The past month was filled with festivals in New Orleans. We went to the French Quarter Festival and the Jazz and Heritage Festival. Both were really fun and the crowds were good. It was so nice to see so many people out and about the city for these two fests. Everyone seemed to enjoy them and I think we needed both of them. I have some pictures from the fests located here.

Last weekend, we traveled back to Orlando for my niece's 1st birthday! (and it wasn't an evacuation trip to Orlando this time--thank God.) I can't believe she is one year old already. My mom, Scott, Brian and I flew down there to celebrate. We even ended up going to Walt Disney World for 2 of the days and managed to go to all 4 parks. I had never been to Animal Kingdom. It was pretty good. They have a new ride there, Expedition Everest, which was awesome! We rode it two times in a row. We did a little bit in all of the parks and it was incredible weather last weekend, so it was extra nice.

Megan's party was really fun. Glenn and Tammy did a great job! They had lots of food, drinks, and great company. Megan seemed to have a good time, too! She was really cute with her presents and eating her cake. It was awesome to spend time with her. She is just beautiful and so much fun. You can see all the pictures from the weekend here. I wish I was there again this weekend!!

School is almost finished for the year--thank God! And what a year it's been! The month of May is always so hectic with the paper work and tying all the loose ends up that I'm beginning to feel the heat. I'm just ready to be out for the summer. I can't wait to go swimming and hang out at the club and not have too much to worry about! In two weeks, I'll be done with work. Then, I'm going to the beach with my girlfriends as soon as I get out of work on that last day. I have been "craving" a beach trip with the girls, so I hope its fun.

Well, that's about all that's going on around here. Continue to pray for all of the New Orleanians. There is still so much more that has to be done around here and hurricane season starts in two weeks again. I just pray that we are spared, especially, this year. I don't think we can handle another hurricane this soon after all we have been through.

Alone In My Own Bed

2006-03-27T07:36:00.000-08:00

For the past SEVEN MONTHS, we have not been able to live in our own house, thanks to that bitch, Katrina. We have lived in Florida, at my aunt and uncle's house, at my friend's cousin's house, and most recently in a FEMA trailer. In those seven months, I have shared a bed with either Ma'Ma' or my mom every single night. It's been tough, as you can imagine.

Last night, for the first time in exactly seven months, my mom, Scott and I all slept in our OWN rooms, in our new beds, in our own house by ourselves!!!! Amazing, I know.

I never thought I'd be so excited, but it really was incredible. Our beds came over the weekend and we got our new linens, so even though the house is not completely finished, we are going to move in gradually.

My bed is really nice...pillow top on the top and bottom of the mattress, we all got 600 thread count sheets and a new comforter. The bed is so high; I almost need a ladder to get into it! It is comfortable and I can spread out as much as I want! I have my old TV on a chair in the room, so I was able to feel as close to normal as possible back in my room. There is absolutely nothing else in there right now, but my chest of drawers and nightstand are being delivered next week.

I just had to share the good news of us sleeping in our own beds last night. It's the little victories in life that put a smile on your face. :)

Mardi Gras 2006

2006-03-03T13:19:00.000-08:00

Mardi Gras this year was amazing! I spent most of my time at Brian's on St. Charles Ave. and had a blast! The crowds were great and everything was very safe. We had so much media coverage this year, so we are all relieved that things went well. Some of us appeared on MSNBC! Here is the link to the footage. Someone sent it to Glenn. Megan even made the camera! Scott also managed to get his face shown on CNN's Anderson Cooper's 360! We talked with him for a bit, while his Endymion float was stopped in front of us. He was very nice and was having a great time. Brian also had a fabulous time riding in Endymion this year and I'm sure he hopes to ride again next year, if he has the chance!

Glenn, Tammy and Megan are in town this week. Megan is such a cutie pie! She really has grown so much since we last saw her in September. She is doing so much more now. It was great to have them home, but it has gone by way too fast. They leave tomorrow already. We "toured" the city to show Glenn all the devastated areas on Wednesday. He was truly amazed, I think.

I have posted pictures from some Mardi Gras events on my website. You can view them here. And Glenn has posted most of his pictures from the week on his website and you can view those here. He has the pictures from our "tour" of Lakeview, Gentily, the Ninth Ward and Chalmette on his site. Although, as I have said before, pictures and video do the devastation no justice, but it is some indication of what is still going on here...6 months later.

Mardi Gras was a great stress reliever for the whole city. I'm glad we were able to still have it. Can't wait for next year!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

2006-02-14T11:08:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day has been a nice one this year! I received a dozen long stem red roses from Brian. They are simply gorgeous!! He had to work today, so we will have to wait to go to dinner until this weekend when he comes back in town, but that's ok.

Things have been going well around here lately. The house is nearly finished. The marble in the bathroom came this past weekend, the floors were cleaned and shined last week, the appliances were delivered, but not installed yet, the hard wood floors went down yesterday, and the cabinets were delivered last night, but not installed yet either. So a lot of progress has taken place!! We are really excited to get back in. It's going to be weird, though, since it's been almost SIX months since we lived in our house and now it's all new and different! But that's ok, we can't wait!!! It's going to be wonderful and so refreshing to get back to normal again!

Everyone is gearing up for Mardi Gras around here. I think we need something fun to brighten people's spirits. I hope it's a good one. Brian lives on the Uptown parade route, so they are busy preparing the house and bought tons of stuff last weekend. We went to view the Endymion floats on Saturday, since he found out two weeks ago that there was a place for him to ride on Chris' float. He is really excited! We also went to the Endymion coronation Ball two Saturday's ago. That was so much fun!! There was a nice dinner and a bunch of bands playing, along with a mini parade through the ballroom! We had a great time!

We are also looking forward to seeing Glenn, Tammy and Megan for Mardi Gras week! It's been SIX months since we have seen them, too. I can't wait to see Megan!! I know she has gotten so big. It's going to be so much fun to play with her again!!! I know Glenn and Tammy will be glad to get back to NOLA just to see for themselves what has taken place here the past six months.

Until next post...Happy V-Day!!!

Hello 2006!!

2006-01-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

It's a new year--thank God! It was good to say good bye to 2005, if I might say so myself!

We are still living in the FEMA trailer. Ma'Ma' moved into hers in front of her house and Scott has moved in here. We are a bit tight, and we are accumulating more crap everyday in here. Who knows when we will be back in our house? When we first got back to Metairie, I thought we would be in the house by Thanksgiving for sure. When that didn't happen, we thought we'd be in by Christmas. Now we are just hoping to be in by Mardi Gras (Feb. 28). But we'll see about that! Everything is just taking triple the time to come in. It's ridiculous.

Brian and I had a great time in New York! I have posted pictures on my website. (You can view them here.) It was so good to get away from all of this mess, but coming home was a little depressing. I just kept thinking that it was so unfair that my family was still living in a FEMA trailer! However, we are the lucky ones that actually have a FEMA trailer! How ironic. When you go away from here, it is very easy to forget about the crap here. The rest of the world is living normal and have no clue of what we all are still going through. I know I have been guilty of this in the past with other catastrophes around the world.

Anyway, I'm going on a retreat this weekend. I am really looking forward to it! I need it tremendously. Brian is skiing with the guys this week. We both return on Sunday. I have to admit, I miss him this week. He's always away during the week, but knowing he's on vacation and will be gone for so long, it's hard this week.

Well, I'm on Scott's laptop and I'm not too good at using it, so I'm going to sign off for now.

Christmas cheer??? I don't think so...

2005-12-15T12:48:00.000-08:00

Things have still been rough around here, especially lately with the holidays approaching.

We are have been living in the FEMA trailer in our driveway for the past 5 weeks now.

It has been ok, but it gets smaller by the day and harder on everyone.

I will never take lots of things for granted again, especially a a bed of my own with a door to close and watch TV, talk on the phone or whatever I wish, but most importantly a shower. It's the pits getting out of bed in 30 degree rainy weather, in my flip flops to got down the street to shower at Ma'Ma's (her bathrooms are still in tact and beats the trailer shower).

The holidays can really put people on edge. Sometimes I think that it is so unfair that we could not put up a tree or decorations like we have in the past. It's hard to see everyone else in the world going about their normal lives and we are living like this! We are not even sending out Christmas cards...we are not in the mood at all.

Our friend did bring us a very miniature tree that we have sitting on our table in the FEMA trailer, but your miss hanging your traditional ornaments and decorations. I did hang up lights on the outside of the FEMA trailer, just to be funny. All of this has really taken a toll on my 80 year old Ma'Ma'. She has good days and bad days. It's so sad. She and my mom wanted to cancel Christmas Eve! I told them that we will be more depressed sitting in the FEMA trailer looking at each other instead of taking part in a family party, so my Uncle Ken is having a party this year. It'll be good for everyone to be together again.

On a better note, our house is coming along well. Everything is painted and the crown molding and baseboards are up. It looks GREAT!!!! We are just waiting on the marble for the showers to be put in. That'll be another FOUR weeks! But then, we should be able to move back in. We will get our cabinets in about six weeks (we can live without cabinets for a while). So much for being in the house for Christmas. :( Now we have to get furniture to put in the house!! That should be a task and a half. Pictures of the updates are can be seen here. (I need to take more pictures of the crown molding.)

Life is different and will never be the same again. Hopefully, it will be better eventually, but we are going through hell to get there, that's for sure!

And on an even happier note, things are going well with Brian. I am going to New York the day after Christmas with him for a few days. I'm really excited. We have tickets to Wicked and the Rockettes. It's going to be so much fun!!! I hope it's not too cold, though. I'm sure it will be, but that's ok! I'm really looking forward to it and it's so nice to have something to look forward to!!! I'll post pictures when I return. Today is his 30th birthday! I hope he likes his gifts. But, I really hope he makes it home from work today, since the weather is not great around the US today. He was worried about the ice storms. I hope to hear from him soon.

Hope your holidays are happy.

Update from Metairie

2005-11-03T10:25:00.000-08:00

I'm still kicking over here in Metairie. It's been a LONG two months! It feels like forever that we have lived in our house. Somedays, I can't even remember living there and I have been there my whole life.

Things are progressing, as far as the house goes. We actually have a few walls up and insulation! Yippee!!! We got our FEMA trailer on Monday (we will officially be trailer lawn trash soon!) However, there was another problem...When they turned on the water for the trailer, it flooded our house again!! That's right! We had removed everything from our house, and the hole where the toilet was, was not blocked up and as a result, flooded the house once again. So, we can't move in the trailer until that problem is fixed! We take 2 steps forward and 5 backwards, but that's ok. We will survive.

We have been living in my friend Stephanie's, cousin's house, while he works out of town. We have been there for a month now and it has been great! We are truly thankful that God has provided us with places to live during this trying time. Thank God for people being so gracious to us, otherwise, we really would have lost our marbles by now!

On another note, some good has come out of this whole mess...I started dating a very nice guy. I actually met him on our evacuation trip in Orlando--of all places. We are having a great time and I am enjoying getting to know him. We have been supporting our local businesses and restaurants that are opened in the city and having a lot of fun in the mean time!

I have posted more pictures of our house and the progress that it is making. You can view them here: http://www.welchfamilynola.com/gallery/cleanup They are really sad photos, esp. for those of you who know my neighborhood and our houses. It is still surreal to me. I just hope and pray we are in our own home by Christmas. What a wonderful Christmas present that would be!!! Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We are still living the nightmare.

Pictures of cleanup

2005-09-30T08:08:00.000-07:00

Glenn has posted a few of our pictures from our cleanup on his photo website. You can view them at http://welchhome.com/gallery/katrinacleanup . Hopefully, I will have more soon.

Back to Metairie

2005-09-28T10:59:00.000-07:00

Well, what can I say...it's been a long month since our lives changed in the blink of an eye.

We remained in Orlando at Glenn and Tammy's until last Sunday (9-18-05)...we were there for about 20 days in all and in two other Florida cities 3 days. We entered Louisiana last Monday for the first time in 3 weeks since we evacuated from Hurricane Katrina. We knew we were going home to a house full of wet items and mold, but nothing could have prepared me for what it was really like when we arrived.

The first 5 minutes in the walk thru of the house, things seemed ok. But once we got started throwing things away, it was difficult. And the smell...whew! It is just unbelievable!! I can't get the smell out of my nose. Everywhere you go, you smell it. We worked all last week on getting the molded items out of the house and managing to save what we could. However, the things we wanted to save, we had no where to put them! Luckily, Scott's good friend, Colleen, has a garage that is or should I say was fairly empty, so we were able to store boxes of our belongings there. I salvaged some of my clothes that are all spread out at my friends' houses getting washed. But we had to throw away so many things that as of yesterday afternoon, it covered from the street to the front of our house on the lawn! Luckily, just a few minutes ago, the bobcat picked up the entire front yard of stuff! We watched our lives of all these years leave on a bobcat and into a dump truck!!! Who would have ever thought!?!?!?! Not me!!!!!!!!!!!!

The house was gutted and was sprayed with chemicals yesterday to get rid of the mold and we may not return for a week. We are staying at my Uncle Phil and Aunt Linda's house in Metairie (they didn't get any house damage). We are very lucky to have a place to stay. It is hard though, not going home to your own house everyday.

Oh and I am back a work and have been for a week now! We are preparing for the kids to return next Monday, October 3. We are hoping to have a lot that enroll and come back, because if we don't, we could loose our jobs.

This whole thing is just one big nightmare that I want to wake up from. I feel like I have been walking around like a zombie for the past month. I want my life back like it was, but it won't be like that for a long time.

You never know how good you have it until it's gone. I never in a million years would have thought I would be homeless, eating MRE's from the military, wearing donated clothes, getting free groceries from the local churches, going to Red Cross for help, applying for FEMA, etc, etc, etc, but I am and so is most of the city! It is just crazy!

I will post pictures soon when I figure out how to download my pictures onto my work computer. The pictures will tell more of our story, but will never capture what we have all been through as a city. Please pray for our city and all of my family and friends. So many have lost so much more than I have and I pray they will be ok, too, one day. We will survive this! New Orleans will prevail!!!!

Hurricane Katrina the Killer

2005-08-30T19:03:00.000-07:00

Well, what can I even say, besides Thank God we are alive and safe. New Orleans is completely under water from Hurricane Katrina.

My mom, grandma, Scott and I evacuated on Sunday morning around 11:30 a.m. We headed east and ended up in Panama City Beach, Florida twelve hours later. We had a condo on the beach (very nice under such horrible circumstances). We were also with some of my cousins and their families, so that was good and comforting. We stayed there for two nights and after seeing footage of New Orleans and hearing the reports, we decided that we will not be able to go back home for a month--- can you even imagine?????? So we headed to Glenn and Tammy's in Orlando, FL. We will be here for the time being, or until they get really sick of us!!! But seriously, we are so thankful that we have a place to stay. We are just going to take one day at a time right now.

This is so horrific that I haven't even stopped to really think about it all and everything that we have lost. We really won't know until we go back home. We heard from others yesterday that stayed in town that we had 5 feet of water on our street yesterday and 2 feet in our house; that's not as bad as we thought. However, the conditions have gotten worse today. We are extremely nervous and concerned.

All kinds of questions come up now: will I have a job when I go back, how am I going to get my money from a local bank, what did I forget that I should have taken with me, etc...I'm even thinking of subbing at the schools here, if they will have me.

And to top it all off, we have idiots in New Orleans who are looting stores and homes now!!! It is so infuriating!!!! They need to be shot down on the spot. Just to let everyone know, not everyone is like those idiots looting that you are seeing on TV. We really do have great people in New Orleans!!! We do, however, have our share of dip wads!!! It makes me so angry at a time like this that you have such dishonest people in the world!!!

I will try to keep everyone up to date, now that I have access to a computer and internet. Please pray for all of the New Orleanians and our Mississippi friends who will be suffering for a while. We are strong and will rebuild and come back, but it will take us time. God Bless everyone.

Back to New York

2005-08-01T18:36:00.000-07:00

I went back to New York 2 weeks ago with 2 of my friends, Nicole and Kelly. We had a great time!! We did so much in such a short amount of time.

I have posted pictures on my web...you can view them here.

It was very hot, there, though at this time of year, as it is everywhere. I had only been to NYC in the fall, which I love, so this was a big change for me. It became more bearable after the first day. It really doesn't matter what kind of weather you have in New York, it's just an amazing place to visit!

Pictures on web

2005-07-17T23:09:00.000-07:00

I have posted the pictures from Glenn, Tammy and Megan's trip to New Orleans last week on my website. You can view them here. I also have added more pictures to the Summer 2005 site.
Enjoy!

Hit counter

2005-07-12T22:17:00.000-07:00

Help!! I don't know how to install this "hit counter." I think I just screwed up by registering for it!!! Let me see if it works. If not, my "webmaster" is going to kill me!!! I am such a dork!

Web Counters

Megan's Christening

2005-07-12T21:53:00.000-07:00

I heard that you could upload pictures on the blogs a lot easier, so I wanted to try it out. (It is so much better than that Hello stuff!!)

These are from Megan's Christening.

Scott is Megan's Godfather and I am her Godmother.

We had her Christening on Sunday here in New Orleans at the same church Glenn, Scott and myself were christened. Megan wore the same Christening gown that I wore. (It's the one heirloom we have!) We went to the studio to get her portrait taken in the gown today. She did so well!! They came out cute!!

It's been a great week so far. We are babysitting tomorrow night while Glenn and Tammy go to a concert. I can't wait!!

Well, I'll let you know when Glenn posts more of the pictures from Megan's Christening on his website. But I thought I'd share a preview with you. Isn't she so cute?????? :)

Tropical Storm/Hurricane CINDY

2005-07-07T18:58:00.000-07:00

We were hit by "tropical storm" Cindy on Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. The winds got up to 70 mph, which is really considered a hurricane. Whatever you want to call it, it was WILD!!! It took us for a real beating here. There are trees down everywhere and debris all over the place. A tree even fell on our neighbor's house!

We just got back our electricity after being out of it for 38 HOURS!! It was real rough. No air conditioner in 95 degree weather for 2 and a half days was not my style of fun. Not having a/c is one thing, but we could do NOTHING--couldn't wash clothes, wash dishes in the dishwasher, make coffee, heat up food in the microwave, iron, see anything, which is a big pain in the ass when you are trying to do your basic stuff--shower, put on make-up, brush your teeth, get dressed, even just walking in the house was difficult, but most of all, I personally missed the computer and television! We are so spoiled. It makes you very thankful for the little things in life we have.

We got a big tease yesterday...the power went on at 6:00 p.m. Ok, great, we were back to normal! So, my mom and I went to the club, got daiquiris and swam after our long HOT day, so the house could cool down. We were feeling wonderful and on cloud nine. We turned the corner and we see a power line lying on the ground and the neighbors back outside! Oh crap, no! Don't tell me. Yep, the power was on for one hour and off again. Back to square one.

I took a benedryl and went to "sleep" at 9:15. No TV, computer, a/c, etc., what else do you do?!? I woke up at 2:30 a.m. so hot, I couldn't take it. I got up, stumbled to the bathroom in the dark and checked my face. I was sweating so bad, it was disgusting! I wet a washcloth and put it on my head and neck and tried to fall back asleep.

By 6:00 a.m., I was done. My mom and I headed out to Morning Call for large coffees and beignets. Then we went to Miss Phyllis and Mr. Billy's house (around the corner-who HAD power-strange, huh?) and had another cup of coffee with them, while we ironed Scott's shirt for work! Miss Connie and Mr. Tommy were over there, also, since they were out of power. We were glad to hear the news that their daughter Aimee, who lives in London, was OK with the awful bombings that happened today there.

To make a long story long, we struggled throughout the day again today, but at 2:00 p.m., I saw the Entergy truck going down the street and I was beyond excited!!! However, it took them an hour and a half to get it back on, but who’s counting when you have been out for 38 hours! So, finally, we are in our a/c house, washing clothes, eating the food we didn't loose in the freezer and everyone is in a much better mood!! It is really depressing to be in the dark and hot for long periods of time. I really hope that this Dennis the Menace spares us...we just can't take it this close to Cindy just leaving. I do not know how our friends and family in Florida did this all last year having four hurricanes hit them back to back. My hats go off to them!!!! And I wish whoever gets hit with Dennis the best of luck and you are in my prayers!!

On the brighter side, Glenn, Tammy and Megan are coming in on Saturday for Megan's christening this Sunday!! We are looking very forward to it. We have lots to do, especially, since we are 38 hours behind our schedule! (Thanks again, Cindy! Really appreciate that!!) I hope they are safe driving in town from Orlando on Saturday. I am worried that they will get in the "people evacuating from Dennis" traffic. Too bad they can't leave a little earlier. I'm sure they will keep in touch with us, but we will be worried until they arrive safe and soundly.

I have posted pictures from the summer 2005 (what I have so far) on my website. You can view them here.

Another trip to Orlando!

2005-06-17T13:24:00.000-07:00

We just got back home from visiting Glenn, Tammy and Megan in Orlando! We had a fantastic time!

Megan turned one month when we were there! She is such a cutie. We loved on her as much as we could. I started to wonder if you could kiss a baby too much! She is such a good baby...she only cries when she is hungry or needs a diaper change. She sleeps well, too. We really had some great quality time with her.

Glenn and Tammy also asked me to the Megan's Godmother while I was there!! I'm so excited and honored! Megan is my first Godchild! They also asked Scott to be her Godfather. He's excited, too. She will be christened July 10th at St. Angela Merici...the same place that Glenn, Scott and I were christened and went to grammar school. We are now looking forward to their visit here!

I have posted pictures from our vacation on my website. You can see them here.

Megan Storey Welch has entered the world!!

2005-05-18T17:56:00.000-07:00

My niece, Megan Storey Welch, entered the world on Friday, May 13, 2005 at 5:55 a.m. She weighed 8 lbs. and 3 oz. and was 21 inches long. She is just perfectly beautiful!!!!

We could not get a flight out in time to be there for the birth, but we were only about 3 hours behind her arrival.

We had a great weekend spending time with Megan and Glenn and Tammy! I held Megan as often as I could. We go back to visit them in 23 days!!! (Yes, I'm counting down!!) I can't wait to see her again!

Pictures of Megan can be viewed here. We took quite a few pictures, as one might imagine with the "picture family" we are!!

I'm sure we'll have more pictures soon, so I'll be posting them as they come to me!!

Welcome to the world, sweet Megan!!!! We all love you!!!!

Pictures from my weekend get-away

2005-04-29T18:27:00.000-07:00

I have posted pictures on my website from my weekend get-away to Orlando/Walt Disney World. You can view them here.

I had a great time spending time with Glenn and Tammy! We did a lot in my few days there.

My next trip will be only in a couple of weeks for the birth of the baby!!! Tammy is doing wonderful and looks fantastic! She had a doctor's appointment today and found out she is 2 cm dilated already, so the birth could be sooner than we thought!! I need to start packing my bags now, because I'm sure we'll be rushing to get a flight when they call. I have already left my 'lesson plans' for the days I will be away...thank God I did that this week!

We are all so excited for them and can't wait to meet the baby!! I'll be posting with any more news!

We have my cousin, Courtney's wedding tomorrow night. I am looking forward to that. We went to the rehearsal party last night...it was really nice! So another fun-filled weekend is upon us. I'm sure I'll be relaxing on Sunday while watching the NASCAR Talladega race!!

Have a good weekend!

The First of a Few Trips...

2005-04-21T21:02:00.000-07:00

I'm off to Orlando tomorrow night to visit with Glenn and Tammy! This is my first of at least 3 trips there within the next 2 months.

I'm so excited to see their new house and swim in their pool!!!! I'm looking forward to a nice visit with them before the baby arrives. The due date is in three weeks!!! How time has flown! (I guess it flies when I'm not the one expecting!) I can't wait to see the nursery, either.

I'm also looking forward to this weekend because I have not been to Walt Disney World in about 3 years! That's a while for me. The plane tickets were so inexpensive on Southwest that I couldn't pass it up. I truly would not have been able to fill up my car with gas to drive to Orlando, for as cheap as I am flying there!! As I say, you can't stay home for that price!

Well, I'm sure we'll be posting pictures from my little get away, so I'll update the blog after they are up and running. Have a good weekend...I know I will!

States Visited

2005-04-09T19:52:00.000-07:00

I found this cool site where you fill in what states you have visited. Here is a look at mine. I thought this was neat. I actually thought I had been to more states than I really have been to. I guess I need to plan another trip somewhere new! But where...Hmmm????

You can create the map for states you have visited by clicking here.

Have fun!

From Mardi Gras to Easter

2005-03-25T09:07:00.000-08:00

I know I haven’t posted in a while. I’ve been pretty busy.

Mardi Gras week was a great one. Glenn and Tammy were in town and we had something to do everyday. We had 2 baby showers for them. I think they got almost everything they will need for the new baby!! It was fun to see all the baby things! Pictures can be seen here.

After Mardi Gras vacation, I went back to work and continued preparing the students for the infamous LEAP test. It was crunch time! We worked so hard everyday and just about had the kids not knowing anything from cramming so much down their throats! They finally took the LEAP test last week. Of course, they thought it was “easy.” I, however, have different thoughts on the test this year! I just pray they did ok because if they don't pass the LEAP, they don't pass the fourth grade! It's pretty serious stuff. We won’t find out the results until early May.

I also worked on the yearbook for school again this year. It arrived last week. It came out pretty good. I call it my "labor of love." I love taking pictures, but it is a very stressful job, with no compensation, besides the kids enjoying it forever, which is good enough! I never realized how long it takes to create a yearbook, until I started doing them 4 years ago. It's a huge job!

We started Spring Break today. Thank goodness for that! We really needed a break from school. It was getting to be crazy there. On the flip side, we have no more holidays in April or May…talk about 2 LONG months! We get out June 3^rd. I can’t wait!!! This year has flown, though.

It has been beautiful weather here the past week. Today is another gorgeous day! We are going to get some boiled crawfish and work in the garden and enjoy being outside!! I have been looking forward to that all week. I have only had crawfish one time this year. Nicole and Chris had a little crawfish boil a few weeks ago and invited me over. The crawfish were really good! I don’t think we are doing much for Easter Sunday. We might just barbecue and hang out…something low key.

Well, I hope everyone has a very Happy Easter!!

Endymion photos

2005-02-07T14:49:00.000-08:00

Photos are posted on my website from Endymion. You can view them here.

Enjoy!

"It's Carnival Time!!!"

2005-02-04T21:50:00.000-08:00

The time has come upon us quite quickly this year! But yes, it is Mardi Gras season already! Mardi Gras day is actually this Tuesday.

It has been yucky weather here in NOLA the past week. However, it is suppose to be beautiful tomorrow for my favorite parade, Endymion! We are very thankful that the sun will be shining on us tomorrow. We need a sunny day.

We have our spot on the route with our port-a-lets ready to go. We have our Central Grocery Muffalettas, Randazzo's King Cake and New Orleans Original Daiquiris all ready to be packed in the morning when we head out to Orleans Ave.! Stephanie, Scott and I "camped out" tonight for our shift to save our spot. It was really, really COLD and damp! It just goes right through you. At least we know to dress appropriately for tomorrow night.

I'm looking forward to a fun-filled day and hanging out with all of our friends! It'll be a great stress reliever for us all.

Glenn and Tammy will be driving in tomorrow and will hopefully make it out to the parade when they get in town. We'll be ready to see them. It's nice that they are coming in for Mardi Gras again. It's been many years since they have been here during this time of year. I just hope the weather cooperates for them. (It's not looking too good for the rest of the week. But, who knows...the weather people all lie, in my opinion!! ;) ) Plus, we have an exciting week planned for Tammy and Glenn with two baby showers this week! That should be great!

Happy Mardi Gras to all! I'll be posting pictures of Endymion sometime soon! I'll let you know when they are on the site!

Retreat

2005-01-23T21:09:00.000-08:00

This weekend, Stephanie S., Stephanie P. K., Kelly and I went on the Woman's Charismatic Catholic retreat again in Pass Christian, MS. It was really great! We went for the Saturday session. We usually go for the whole weekend, but due to circumstances we were only able to go for one day. It is always nice to go on a retreat and relax in the presence of our Lord. It is kind of like "Cleansing the soul" again! Last year, we came home "on fire with the Holy Spirit" as our family and friends described it! This year, we are on fire, but not as "hot!" We figured out that for us, we need to go for the entire weekend to get the full effect.

One special thing did happen while we were there...as we started to say the Rosary, the entire room smelled of roses!! Apparently, and I didn't know this, but that means that our Blessed Mother, Mary, is in the presence of you! It was incredible! It was distinctly the smell of roses and no other flower. I thought this was really an extraordinary thing. The funny part is, is that we don't know if everyone smelled it! I'm working on finding that out.

Well, I hope everyone had a restful and relaxing weekend. Just wanted to share my experience with everyone!

G.U.M. :)

A sad week

2005-01-08T09:12:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday when I came home for lunch, I was told by my mom that one of our good friends had passed away suddenly of a massive stroke. This was the mother of my friend Stephanie P. I was in shock, as I still am. Steph and her mom were so very close. I just feel so badly for her. Yesterday were the services. It was a tough day for all. I know Miss Marilyn is in a better place, but it doesn't help those who are left behind. Miss Marilyn was so nice to everyone she came in contact with. Even if you didn't know her well, she would make you feel comfortable. My heart goes out to Steph and her family at this time. I know how hard it's going to be for them, even down the road to come.

Happy 2005

2005-01-01T09:05:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy New Year!!! I hope everyone's dreams come true this year! I can't believe another year has past us by.

I didn't do much last night...I actually cleaned my room, which needed to be done and it kept me very occupied! I'm trying to start 2005 off on the right foot! We'll see how long it lasts.

We are having a little dinner here today with the typical new year's day food...cabbage, black eyed peas, pork roast, macaroni and cheese, etc. It should be nice.

Happy 2005!!!

A White Christmas in New Orleans!!!

2004-12-25T19:03:00.000-08:00

Well, it really did happen!!! It snowed today!!!! It was so much fun! We had some pretty big flurries (big to us!). None of it really stuck to the ground, though, since it was wet from the rain. However, we all enjoyed playing in it and taking pictures.

Some of us even braved it and walked to the levee. It was SOOOOOO COLD up there and it just so happened that when we got up there, it started snowing harder and it was pelting us. It actually hurt our faces!

It was a really wonderful Christmas Day! The snow just added to the excitement. I can't even imagine living in a place where it snows all the time! Since New Orleans only gets snow on an average of about every 13 years (that's what we figured out today!), I suspect that the next time will be in the year 2017! I'll let you know if it happens again before then!

Ma'Ma' had a fantastic dinner today and Aunt Elaine had a great party last night.

Pictures can be seen here. Sorry there are no captions yet, but I am just too exhausted after making a photo parade and everything that has been going on the past 3 days. Hopefully, I'll get to that soon!

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas.

A White Christmas in New Orleans?? It's Possible!!

2004-12-23T20:13:00.000-08:00

That's right, snow flurries are predicted in New Orleans for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day! We have not had snow since Christmas in 1989 and boy, was that fun!

I remember lots of things from that year...I remember going to the levee with Stephanie and my brothers and sliding down it and making snow angels! I remember Mr. Philip, who was like the grandpa we never had, calling my dad to tell us to take us out to the lake since it was frozen. I remember going to the lake on Christmas Day with everyone and "walking on water, just like Jesus," since it was frozen. I know my cousins remember that well, too, when my dad said that to us all! It made us laugh! We had never seen anything like this here in NOLA. It was so cool.

As far as this year for snow, only time will tell. If it does snow, just know that there will be plenty of pictures taken!!

I hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas season!! I finally finished my Christmas shopping at 8:45 p.m. tonight!! I didn’t think I had that much to do, but I ended up getting most of my cousins, Aunts and Uncles a little “thought” present, that consumed a lot of my time for a few days. I hope they like what I got them. We pick Kris Kringle names between the cousins, which is great! I have had my K.K.’s present for weeks now, but I just decided to do this “thought” this past weekend and it has turned into quite a project! Oh well, it’s all about giving!!!

Have a very Merry Christmas!

Make-Up Days Are Here!!!

2004-12-21T12:01:00.000-08:00

Our "Hurricane Ivan" make up days are here as I type. Yesterday, today and tomorrow are 3 of the 4 days that we have to make up from our days off in September. It has been real tough getting up this week for work. And it's an even tougher job to keep these children on task, when they are so excited about Christmas coming.

Today, in the other fourth grade class, they had "Christmas Around the World." We are a very diverse school, and all the children in that homeroom brought in food from their country. It was so nice! I ate things that I had never heard of! We had food from Pakistan, Russia, China, Honduras, Italy, France, Greece, and of course good old Creole food from right here in New Orleans! The newspaper even came out to report on it and it should be featured in Sunday's edition. We ate like kings and queens today! Mrs. Dowty did a fantastic job organizing it. All of the children really enjoyed themselves. They actually ate everything and wrote comments on how each item tasted to them. This was a great way to introduce new food items and different cultures to all of us! You don't realize how differently every family eats until you experience something like this. I commend Mrs. Dowty's homeroom for a wonderful luncheon!!

Happy Holidays to everyone!

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!"

2004-12-04T17:16:00.000-08:00

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!" (That was our favorite song, growing up around Christmas time!) Well, we bought our tree last week and decorated last night. It looks pretty good. It's always fun to put up all of the ornaments! I, of course, like to reminisce about different trips we've taken and that we bought ornaments from and to reminisce about memories from our younger days. We have had some ornaments forever!! I also had on the Christmas music all day today, which really puts you in the Christmas spirit!

I still have some Christmas shopping to do, but I have done a little bit on-line, which has really been nice. You gotta love it being delivered right to the front door, with no hassle of the dreaded malls!!

This is probably the last weekend with not much planned. Next week, some of my friends and I are going to see musical "Hairspray." It should be good, I hope! And I have a birthday party for one of my friends little girls. The following weekend, I have William's Christening and one of our family's Christmas parties. And then Christmas will be here before we know it!! This year has flown!!!

Happy Holidays!!

By the way, I have our Thanksgiving pictures posted on our website in case anyone is interested!!

Jenni and George's baby is here!!!!

2004-11-07T11:18:00.000-08:00

Jenni called me Friday, (Nov. 5, 2004) morning around 10:15 and said her water had broken and they were on the way to the hospital. She was 3 cm dilated for most of the day. But 10:00 p.m., she had not progressed, so they did a C-section on her.

She delivered a beautiful little boy, Henry Allen Cutrer, at 11:38 p.m. at Wesley Hospital in Hattiesburg, MS. He weighed 7 lbs and 5 oz. and was 20 ½ inches long.

Jenni’s cousin, Libby, and I went up to Hattiesburg to see the Cutrer family on Saturday. Henry is so adorable! He has a big dimple in his chin, like I have never seen before!! It’s just like his daddy’s and his Uncle Doug’s! He also has Jenni’s fingers to the tee!! It is so incredible!

I’m so happy for Jenni and George! They are going to be amazing parents to Henry!

I have posted pictures on my website. They can be seen here.

Back from NYC and I'm officially going to be "Aunt T!!"

2004-11-03T21:22:00.000-08:00

We are back from our New York trip!!!! It was just fantastic! We did everything that we could in the days we were there. Some of us went to see the Broadway Play "Wonderful Town." It was the best play I have ever seen! I thoroughly enjoyed it! I even managed to get a picture with Brooke Shields!

We did so much, there is not enough time to post it all, but there are pictures posted on Glenn and Tammy's website. You can view them here.

We also were surprised with the news that Glenn and Tammy are expecting a baby in May!!!!!!! We are just thrilled and couldn't be happier! I'll now be an official "Aunt T!"

Well, I'm off to bed to rejuvenate this tired body of mine. Those New Yorkers really move fast and we had to move fast, as well, in order for us not to be walked or run over!! Now, it's back to the slow-paced world of New Orleans!

Two days until New York!!!!

2004-10-26T21:27:00.000-07:00

We leave on Friday for New York City!! I’m so excited!!! I know we are going to have a blast.

Glenn and Tammy got tickets to The David Letterman Show for Monday night!! He had to answer a trivia question today about the show. They asked him where Rupert Jee works…Hello Deli!!! We all applied, but the rest of us haven’t gotten a call yet. I’m just glad they are getting to go to the show. Some of us will probably go to The Today Show on Monday morning, so keep your eyes peeled for us!

We have our days planned with plenty to do while we are there. It’s always fun to go with people who haven’t been there before and Glenn, Tammy, and Scott have never been, so we’ll be touring the Big Apple together seeing all the big sites! Hopefully, the weather will be very pleasant! I’m looking VERY forward to COOL weather!!! It’s been sooooooo HOT here…I can’t take much more of it!

I’ll post pictures when we return on Tuesday!!

Stephanie and Scott's baby arrives!!!

2004-10-14T20:07:00.000-07:00

William Scott Sterling II arrived on Tuesday, October 12, 2004 at 11:13 p.m. at Woman’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, LA. He weighed 7 pounds and was 20 inches long. He’s gorgeous!!

Lauren and I traveled up to Baton Rouge on Tuesday afternoon around 1:00 p.m. for the birth. But William had different plans. He waited until later that night to enter the world! Lauren and I had to head back to New Orleans around 9:00 p.m., so we were not there for the birth!! I was bummed out, but my mom and I went back up last night to see William! I couldn’t wait. He is just perfect. He looks like a little angel! Mom (Stephanie) is doing very well and her and Dad (Scott) are thrilled to have their son here!

I have posted pictures on my website. You can view them here.

I can’t wait to see William again soon!!!

Oodles going on...

2004-10-03T20:47:00.000-07:00

It has been another busy weekend. Friday night was our girls’ dinner. We went to Vaquero's on Metairie Road. It was good and we had a nice group that went to dinner. We got a chance to catch up and visit. We missed some of the girls this month. Not everyone can make it every month with everything that is going on, but we try! Nicole had to miss it this month because her son, Alex had surgery on Friday. He is doing well and everything went OK, thank God. I ran into my Uncle Malcolm and Pia at the restaurant, so that was an unexpected pleasant surprise.

On Saturday, was our neighbor, Jaime and Todd's wedding at 11:00 a.m. It was at St. Rita's Church and the reception was at Chateau Country Club. We all had a lot of fun! We continued the party once we got home, too. Lauren came over with her three girls and they played with our neighbor's kids for a while. Lauren said she needed "therapy" after coming to that "therapy!" She'll need to come again without the kids one time! I'm sure she'll have more fun!!

Today, I recuperated from the long day we had yesterday and watched the NASCAR race from Talladega!!!! It was awesome!!!!!!!!! Dale Ehrhardt Jr. won again for his fifth time at this track! Aunt Cheryl got in her car yesterday and went to race by herself! I think she brought Jr. some good luck in the race!!! I'm glad she went, because I know she really wanted to go!

Today is Lauren's birthday. We were supposed to go to St. Angela's fair to hear the Bucktown All-stars play, but that didn't work out. She had other obligations. But Happy Birthday, Lauren!!!

(Just an update: My make-up days for work are on November 1st, which is one of the days I'll be in NYC and the other three days are the week of Christmas! But I have a wonderful substitute lined up for the days. Election Day is still a holiday.)

Make - Up Days!!

2004-09-21T21:51:00.000-07:00

I am back, again, at work after being off almost all last week for the Hurricane Ivan threat. (Yesterday felt like the first day all over again!!)

Now, we have FOUR make-up days that we have to fit in before the end of the semester.

We already have two emergency make-up days "scheduled" at the beginning of our Christmas break. Ok, that's fine...I can deal with that. The other "scheduled" one is at Easter...fine, I can deal with that, too.

However, since we need to make them up before the end of THIS semester, the Easter one won't work.

So, guess when they might have us make the other two up...Nov. 1 and 2. I would be fine with that, however, I have had a trip planned to New York with my whole family since June for that weekend, since I was suppose to be off of work!!!

These are not designated "make-up" days. Nov. 1 is a "holiday" and Nov. 2 is "election day" on the official school board calendar. I don't think I would have scheduled a trip and bought plane tickets with even the threat of having to work those days! You think anyone will listen as I plead my pathetic case?!? (I doubt it, too! That's why I am venting in this 'blog' of mine!!) I haven't found out the final decision, but it's not looking good. I will just have to use my sick days and make up lesson plans for a sub. Fun, fun. Thanks Ivan.

Anyway, 37 days until I get back to New York!!!! I can't wait. I hope the weather is wonderfully cool and the leaves are changing in Central Park!! It'll be a blast!!!

Hurricane Ivan a "dud" in New Orleans

2004-09-16T10:15:00.000-07:00

We have survived Hurricane Ivan! The news isn't so good for our friends in Gulf Shores, Alabama, though.

We had lots of powerful winds yesterday and last night, but we didn't get more than a few drops of rain, if that. God was on our side this time.

People are just on their way back in town from evacuating to other cities. I'm sure the traffic is going to be pretty bad, considering all the people that left. We had made our decision not to evacuate early on and luckily it paid off for us this time.

I have posted pictures on my website that I went out and shot yesterday on the levee of Lake Pontchartrain, which is located a half a block away from our house. You can view them here.

Thank God again that we were spared of getting hit by this monstrous storm.

A Character name Ivan

2004-09-14T09:15:00.000-07:00

There is this vicious character named Ivan about to be knocking on our door here in New Orleans. As Glenn said, all of those people's prayers in Southern/Central Florida must be being answered. They couldn't take another one and I wouldn't wish it on them in a million years!

But here in NOLA, the weathermen are making everyone crazy! They get you so nervous! There is one, Bob Breck, who would have you evacuating to Alaska, as my friend Lauren said! We can't even watch him!!! I am just waiting for Nash Roberts to come out with his magic marker in his garage and tell us where this thing is really going to land. He is the only one I trust. He's an expert on hurricanes and he's old school, which I like better than these 'doppler' people!

For hundreds of years, we have been avoiding "The Big One." See, if and when we do get hit by the big one, New Orleans will be completed gone. We are below sea level and we are the shape of a soup bowl, so we would be destroyed. I guess that's why the weathermen feel the need to scare us, but I just don't think that Ivan is the big one...I hope I'm right about my feeling! Only time will tell. As of now, we are riding this sucker out, but if that changes, I hope we come home to everything we left. I'll be in touch soon.

Labor Day

2004-09-06T17:20:00.000-07:00

Today is Labor Day! We had off of work...yippee!!! (I know, I haven't even been back long enough to really be ready for a holiday, but it was so nice to be off!)

This weekend was a good one. Friday, I went out to eat with Lauren at DeAngelo's. It was really good.

On Saturday, we were worried about Glenn and Tammy with hurricane Frances, but we talked with them and they seemed to be ok.

Later, my mom and I went shopping to get her something for her birthday, since she wouldn't tell me what she wanted. We succeeded and I got her a new pair of jeans for the winter and our New York trip.

Then on Sunday, we celebrated her birthday. We had a great day...we went to Mass, then we went to the club. Uncle Ken, Aunt Liz, Kenny, Ryan, Scott, Ma'Ma', my mom and I went. Ryan, my mom and I were the only ones to go swimming, though. Ma'Ma' cooked chili and hot dogs that were good. Later that night, we had our traditional Sunday night "therapy" with Miss Phyllis and Mr. Billy. It was a very nice day and I think my mom really enjoyed her birthday. Pictures are posted on our website and can be seen here.

Today, I slept late (which I love doing) and woke up to check my email, only to find that I was not able to receive any emails. It seemed as though I could send, but nothing was coming in to me...So, all day I had been restarting the computer, calling Cox, reading the online help site for Microsoft outlook, and racking my brain as to why we couldn’t receive emails…

Well…I went away from it for a while and came back and all of a sudden the light bulb went off in my dead brain of mine…

I didn’t have SpamPal running!!!!!!!!!!!!!! UGGGGGG!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had been reading Glenn's post-it note all day that is on the monitor reminding me to run SpamPal before opening outlook, but didn’t even realize that it wasn't running and I didn't think that had anything to do with it, but of course it did!! So, I guess we only can learn from our mistakes! I had no idea that SpamPal would prevent ALL emails from coming in, I just thought it might not catch some spam. Funny little thing, huh? Sometimes I just hate technology!! You can't live with it and you can't live without it for sure!!! I'm just glad I got it working again!

Back at work!!!

2004-08-29T10:43:00.000-07:00

Hi! I'm back at work, after such a nice and relaxing summer. I had forgotten how exhausting my job is the first few weeks of school. I felt like I had been hit by a Mack truck everyday at 4:30. It's so hard getting back into the swing of the procedures for the students (and us teachers)!! ;) I know it will get better as the weeks go on. I had my duty week last week, so at least that is over until October! My days won't be as long now, as they were last week. That extra time just makes the day so much harder. My class seems to be a good group of children. We have many new kids to our school, which is another obstacle. And I sure wish I knew some Spanish...Seems like I have a lot of non-English speaking children this year! Boy, is that hard on them and me right now. However, I know it won't be long until they learn English. Kids pick it up so fast! Thank goodness!!

I have had 2 showers in the past 2 weeks. One was for Stephanie's baby and the other was for our neighbor, Jaime's wedding. They were both very nice. Jenni's baby shower will be coming up soon, too, so that will be fun, as well.

I did enjoy the Bristol NASCAR race last night!!!! My 'man' Dale Jr. WON!!! That race is always such an exciting race, no matter who wins. But how sweet it was last night!!

Not much more going on here...I'm just trying to recuperate this weekend and get myself back together from a long week at school.

Jam Packed Week and Weekend!

2004-08-15T21:37:00.000-07:00

This week and weekend were jam packed with functions for our family. Glenn and Tammy were in town from Orlando for Marc’s wedding. That turned out to be a blessing in disguise, considering that Hurricane Charley hit Orlando! Their home is ok, but he said they have lots of trees uprooted and it’s a mess.

Marc’s rehearsal for the wedding was Thursday night. The dinner was at Ralph’s on the Park. The dinner was delicious and everyone who made speeches did a wonderful job.

I did have some of my “Jeep Bad Luck” happen that night, however. My car got broken into at the restaurant. I had valet parked it, thank goodness, but four kids broke the glass and were trying to steal ‘whatever.’ They didn’t take anything, thank God! The valet guy caught them and they were detained by the police, but were released shortly after. Fingerprints were suppose to be taken by the police, but since the car had been moved from the crime scene, they couldn’t take them or something like that! So, I had to get the window fixed on Friday! It’s always something!

On Saturday, it was my cousin, Marc and Bridget’s wedding. We had a fantastic time! The ceremony was at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church and the reception was at The Riverview Room. It was awesome weather for a wedding! (Our temperature dropped last week and we couldn’t be happier down here!!) We danced a lot at the wedding to the band Stormy and hung out with family and friends. Some of our cousin’s went out after the wedding, too. We are all suffering today! ;)

I have posted pictures from the wedding on our website. You can check them out here. I have to get a CD made from pictures that I took with my uncle’s camera. I took a bunch for him at the church, so there will be more to come!

I only have 2 more days off of work!!! :( Those nine weeks sure do fly by when you are having fun!! ;) It was good that I have been so busy lately, because I didn’t even have time to think about going back to work! I’ll let you know how it all goes this week back.

Family week

2004-08-09T11:25:00.000-07:00

I know it's been a while since I made a post on here, but it's been a busy couple of weeks.

I have been getting ready for school to start back. I go back on Aug. 18th. I'm not ready for it to start, but I know once it does, it'll be ok. The anticipation is worse than actually going back! I'm looking forward to seeing the children again. I have had a good summer and spent time with friends and family and even managed to get out of town for a vacation!

Glenn and Tammy came in town on Saturday from Orlando! Glenn, Scott and I gave my mom a big surprise on Saturday night when Glenn arrived here. She was in so much shock and cried for hours! (Kind of too personal to talk about on the internet!) Our cousin, Ryan, spent time with us that night, since he was spending the night at our Ma'Ma's house! We watched a movie and hung out. He is such a great kid! It was really great to be with him. He has so many stories and is hysterical!

We went to Tammy's parent's house yesterday to celebrate her birthday. (There are pictures are posted here.) It was very nice. After her party and Mass, Miss Phyllis, Mr. Billy, Steven and Drew came over for "therapy" last night and it was fun, as usual! Then, Glenn and I stayed up playing on the computer and playing with TiVo late last night!

We will be busy throughout the week. We want to go swimming at the club one day for sure. It's been a while since Glenn has been over there! On Thursday, Tammy, my mom and I are going to pamper ourselves and go get pedicures! Saturday night is our cousin, Marc's, wedding. We have the rehearsal party on Thursday at Ralph's on the Park! It will be a fun-filled weekend! I'm looking forward to it!

Las Vegas

2004-07-26T16:29:00.000-07:00

I returned from Las Vegas late Saturday night! It was a great trip! We stayed at The Venetian. Our room was phenomenal.

We visited lots of the hotels on the strip, went on a gondola ride, went to the top of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel, went to see “O,” the Cirque du Soleil show at The Bellagio, which was great, rode the roller coaster at New York New York and we did some gambling. For some reason though, all the slot machines were broken last week! We didn’t win anything! But it was still fun.

Boy, was it HOT! Wow! The best way for me to describe it, is to say that it felt like you were standing in front of a car exhaust that didn’t move! Before I went, I thought that it couldn’t be too bad…our weather in New Orleans is so hot and disgusting, so at least Vegas is “dry.” Well, I was mistaken. The only thing that was good about the dry weather was our hair! I guess at 108 degrees, dry or humid, you’re going to feel the heat! So, we tried to stay indoors as much as possible, since the heat took a beating on you.

I’m glad that I finally got to “Sin City.” It’s always nice to travel to different places. My next destination is back to New York with my whole family at the end of October/beginning of November! I can’t wait!! That is my favorite city! I’m sure it will be a blast!

Eventful Week

2004-07-14T21:26:00.000-07:00

Last week was an eventful one.
Thursday, I went to Katherine’s to baby-sit Sophia, so she could run and get her haircut. Sophia was very good! When she woke up from her nap and was looking for her mommy and daddy, I did what any good babysitter would do; I put in the "Baby Einstein" tape for her to watch!!! ;) By the time it was over, her mommy was home! It was a pleasure to watch Sophia! I'm so glad Katherine asked me.

Nicole and Alex finally made it out to the club on Friday to go swimming with Lauren, her girls, and myself. We had a nice time just catching up with each other. Since Nicole had Alex in February, it’s been hard to sit down and chat, since she is so busy with work and taking care of a new baby! Friday gave us that chance to be with Nicole and Alex and enjoy their company.

The weekend was a good one. Stephanie came back in town on Sunday, so we went to dinner at Sid Mar’s and had dessert at Sal’s Sno-ball stand! She flew out on Monday to go back on tour.

Monday we got some news about my grandma Georgiana’s house that has been for sale for two years. A couple of people put in offers and we accepted one of them! I know my Aunts are going to be emotional about the selling of their childhood home, but I know in the end, it is the best thing.

I realized this week, that the summer is now FLYING by!! I only have about a month until school starts back. I need to make the most of my time while it lasts. Jenni is coming in this weekend from Hattiesburg and again on Tuesday, so I hope to spend some time with her. She looks so great pregnant, too! (Notice how all my friends are pregnant or have kids??? It's sometimes sureal to me!! When did we grow up so fast? I still feel like a kid most of the time!)

I leave for Las Vegas a week from today. I’m getting excited about it! I have to figure out what I need to bring…all I know is that I’m going to need cool clothes because they say the heat there is really awful! I don’t know how it could be worse than here right now, but I have a feeling it’s going to hit us, so I better pack appropriately. Until next time, have a good one! :)

Catching up

2004-07-07T20:37:00.000-07:00

My friend Stephanie came in town Monday from being on the road with her husband for golf. I picked her up Monday from the airport and we got to hang out and catch up with each other all day. She looks so cute pregnant! It had been so long since I had seen her. Her mom cooked dinner Monday night and it was delicious.

Then on Tuesday, I followed her up to her house in Baton Rouge, we had lunch and I went with her to buy a new car! I couldn't let her go by herself to buy a new car...who wants to do that??

This was a "fun-filled" day, let me tell you! Buying a car has got to be one of the most unpleasant things. Thank God we were together, so we could make each other laugh! We were at the dealership for HOURS! But we did take a break and had coffee with another friend in the middle of "negotiations," so that was good. She bought a beautiful new silver Honda Accord. We really did have a good time once the nerve racking part was all over! It was just fun to hang out together, since we don't get to see each other too often.

Then, I headed back to Metairie later that night. I stopped at the outlets on the way home and zipped thru some stores, just to make sure I didn't see some great bargain I couldn't live without! I didn't get home until about 9:30, only to realize that I had NOT TiVoed The Amazing Race! I knew for sure I had Big Brother 5 TiVoed, but I screwd up with The Amazing Race. I did get to catch the last half an hour of it. I love these 2 shows! My friend, Jeanie and I wait all summer for them to start! I then watched my TiVoed shows from the day and was up until 3:30 A.M! Not a good thing to do with a migraine headache!

Today, I went BACK to the eye doctor for the third time to make sure I could wear the contacts and I got the "go ahead" from him, so I got my six month supply and I am set!!! I finally can put them in much better than I could before, thanks to my friend Karen, who gave me some pointers!

Scott gave me my b-day present today. It's a beautiful "Clay Original" of the Roman Candy man's carriage! We love to get roman candy here in town and whenever Scott sees him, he always gets me some strawberry and vanilla sticks, so this was a great gift from him to me! I have one Clay Original already of my beloved Parkway Tavern that Ma'Ma' gave me for my 29th birthday, so now I have another one to add to my "collection!" I love all the clay originals. They are just so beautiful!
Well, that is about all that's going on at this time! Later...

Some things are meant to be or not to be

2004-07-03T22:19:00.000-07:00

Some things are meant to be or not to be. I was depressed this weekend that I was not in Daytona for the NASCAR race. I was reminiscing all week about my trips down there and how much fun they were. Yesterday I watched all the Drivers 360 shows and the Busch race on TV and I couldn't wait to watch the Daytona Pepsi 400 tonight. I brought Uncle Malcolm, Pia and Andrew to the airport with my mom and then raced home for the 400 mile race.

It was suppose to begin at 6:30 p.m. I had my Jr. hat on and was comfortable in front of the TV. Then, they had a rain delay for about 2 and a half hours. Well, this just puts a damper on the momentum that had started earlier in the day.

I started thinking right then, that maybe it was better that we were not there in the rain, being miserable. Finally, the race began around 9:00. It was a good race; as good as it could be sitting in front of the TV watching it.

And then it happened...Glenn's favorite driver, Jeff Gordon, won the race. I was happy for Glenn, but in the back of my head I knew something...Glenn will never go to another Daytona race again. He thinks for some reason that he has jinxed Gordon all the times he has gone.

See, the last time Gordon won at Daytona, Glenn wasn't there. He has gone every year since then and Gordon hasn't won. Now that he didn't go this year and Gordon won, I know Glenn all too well, he won't be going to Daytona again! I think we might have to kidnap him when we go down again! Maybe Dale Jr. will win again!! :) Scott even called after the race to tell me this about Glenn. It's funny how we all know each other so well and are so superstitious. It's not good to be this superstitious, but sometimes when things like this happen, it's only natural to feel this way!

It is pointless to say, but now I'm really going to sulk about this race! ;) Not only was I not there to enjoy all the excitement a NASCAR race entails, but Gordon won!

So maybe it was just meant to be that we did not attend this race. Between the rain and the jinxing, I think we came out better being home. Who knows, the way our luck goes...if we were there, we would probably be stuck in the infield trying to get our car or some Alamo rental car out of the wet sloppy grass right now!

Happy Fourth of July!!!! Thank God for our freedom and the troops overseas!

Daytona

2004-07-02T22:38:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that I am a little depressed that I am not in Daytona for the Nextel Cup NASCAR race this weekend. This is the first time in three years that I am not there. I just didn't get my act together and get a trip planned. Plus, with all my new "geeky" technology, money has been tight. But I really am feeling it, not being down there for the race. Despite all of our "mishaps" last year in the "bad luck state of Florida" with the "Crash Crew," it really was a fun time. I will be watching the race tonight from the comfort of my home, hopefully with no interruptions! I'll be wearing my new pink Dale Jr. #8 hat that Glenn and Tammy gave me for my b-day and rooting him to victory again!

Glenn has been working on a new web page for us! It looks great! He really put a lot of hard work into it. It's not completed yet, but we will finish it in August when he comes back in town. So, I'll let everyone know when it is completed. We even have an easier name for it: WelchfamilyNOLA.com. I tried that name and it wasn't taken, so we took it!

This week was nice and quiet. I went to the club 2 of the days. I didn't do much else really. My friend, Stephanie, is coming in town on Monday. I'm so excited because she is pregnant and I haven't seen her since March. The baby is due in mid-October. So, we are going to hang out next week a bit. Then she will go back on the road in her RV with her husband who plays golf on the PGA Nationwide tour. What a life! We have to play..."Where in the world is Stephanie" every week, because we never know what city she will be in! I'm so glad she is getting to travel the country all this time!! Too bad we can't all pack our bags and hop in the gorgeous RV with them for the year! I know she would just love that!! ;)

Well, I'm going to sign off for now. I need some rest before the big race tonight!!! I'll be "getting my 'roll' on!!" Hope you will be, too!

Go Driver #8!!! :)

Am I really this old?

2004-06-27T20:52:00.000-07:00

Well today was my birthday! I can't believe that I am getting so old!! I went to dinner at Shogun last night with 8 other friends. We did the 'Hibachi bar.' I had never been there before last night. It was really good! They cooked the food right in front of us on the grill and it was made to order. It was a lot of fun. After dinner, we went to the 'old' Parkway, now The Bulldog for a drink. It was nice. I could tell lastnight when I was ready to go home before midnight, that I am getting old! That used to be my starting time to GO OUT! How things change...

Today, my mom and I went to eat lunch together. Every place we picked to eat was closed for one reason or another. We tried 3 different places, until we ended up eating at Deanie's. It was very good! We had so much food, I couldn't even breathe. We got the BBQ shrimp for an appetizer and they were delicious! And we split a half of a seafood platter. Needless to say, we had dinner just from the left-overs! It was really a great lunch.

Then tonight, Miss Phyllis, Mr. Billy and Ma'Ma' came over for cake and ice cream. My mom made a strawberry cake! It was goooood! So, now I am stuffed from way too much food for one weekend and my b-day is coming to an end! It was a wonderful birthday! One more year down...I wonder what this year will bring for me??? I'll keep you updated!

I do want to thank everyone for the beautiful cards, gifts and phone calls today!! I have great friends and family!!

been busy...

2004-06-24T20:20:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy couple of days. Yesterday morning, I went back to the eye doctor, trying to get these new contacts to work out for me! I got them about a week ago, but I am having problems getting them in my eyes! Not a good thing. I am going to try for another 2 weeks. (Needless to say, I didn't manage to get them in this morning either! But I was in a rush.)

After the Dr.'s, I went to see Miss Phyllis for her birthday. I bought her the 'Rachel Ray 30 Minute Meal cookbook!' I think she liked it! Then, I went to the club with my three "little" cousins (they are not too little anymore 13, 14, and 15 years old). It was fun! Then they slept at Ma'Ma's house, so I hung out with them for a while. They also gave me a bouquet of flowers and a card for my b-day! That was so sweet of them! They are all good boys.

Today, I had to go to another funeral (the second in one week). My friend's grandmother passed away. Then I went to lunch at Cheesecake Bistro with some girls from work. That was nice. After that, I got a pedicure, which was wonderful! And finally, we went to the club tonight for 'pot luck' dinner. It was storming, so no one could go swimming, but it was nice and quiet out there! There were not too many kids. I just got home and now I am going to watch some of my shows on TV. Just thought I'd drop a line on my blog! ;)

Sex and the City

2004-06-22T23:50:00.000-07:00

I just have to say that I am so glad that Sex and the City is being replayed on TBS. I love seeing all the old episodes from years ago.

From the start of the show in 1998, I have watched every episode; however, I didn't realize how much I have forgotten. To me, this was one of the greatest shows ever created! I never bought the seasons on DVD, so I am TiVoing the episodes every night and then, I am going to put them on tapes.

They have cut out some (obvious) parts, but to tell you the truth...while I am watching these TBS episodes, I can't tell what is missing. The meat of the show is there, if you will, their relationships and that is what I loved about this show. And to my surprise, they can use lots of 'words' on TBS that I would not have thought they could!! I think they have done a great job and thank Goodness for TBS bringing back such wonderful memories of this incredible show!! I am a happy gal from 9:00-10:10 p.m.!! :)

P.S. Happy Birthday Miss Phyllis!!

Computer...

2004-06-21T22:30:00.000-07:00

I have been by this computer most of the day, since it rained today and I didn't make it to the club or anywhere else. My neck is starting to hurt. As you can see, I finally figured out how to publish a picture on this 'blog.' Frankly, I don't even know what I did to get it there, but it's there!

I was trying to update my web page earlier today, since it has been so long since it has been updated, but I hit a brick wall there. I don't know how to do it anymore. It is still using an address that I had over 2 years ago! I guess I'll just wait for Glenn to come in in August and help me with it! I'm sure he will look very forward to guiding me, yet again, on another computer project of mine!! But that's what he's here for, right?? ;)

Well, my eyes are getting a bit jumpy from being here all day. I'm going to go and watch my shows that I "TiVoed" tonight!! I'm sure I'll be up until 3 a.m., but hey, it's the summer--I can do it now!! By the way, I am liking my TiVo a whole lot!! It's been working great! I am a certifiable GEEK!!! :) Later...

2004-06-21T22:26:00.000-07:00

This is from Scott's graduation. I was just trying to see if I could publish a photo on here!

T-doe has TiVo!

2004-06-19T23:12:00.000-07:00

I finally did it...I invested in TiVo!!! :) I debated on getting TiVo for about 3 years now, but I took the leap today and bought it! Glenn has had it for almost a year and a half and spoke very highly of it. I aggrivated him enough about it, so I figured I better get it eventually!

I hooked it up all by myself, with only one call to Glenn and one call to TiVo technical support! I have everything working, so far, I think! It's a very neat device. I sure hope I get my money's worth. I'm sure I will! I am only about 2 hours into it. I haven't been able to set up all my shows that I want to record, because it needs to do some "thinking" for about 4 hours--whatever that means! But I'll keep you updated on my progress.

I was just thinking...in the past month, I have bought a new digital camera, a new computer and now TiVo! No more new technology for me for a while, until my wallet catches up with this technology that I just bought!!!!! :)

Drivers 360

2004-06-18T21:32:00.000-07:00

I watched Drivers 360 tonight as I have been for the past few weeks it's been on. I was excited because Dale Jr. was going to be on for the first time. The first couple of segments with him were good, they showed his house, his company, his sister and niece, etc.

But then they showed when he met his infamous girlfriend, whom I thought (and was hoping) was just fictional, up until now.

It was crazy the way they met. He had seen her and thought she was 'hot' and then she asked him for his autograph and he asked her for her autograph. She laughed and walked off, but then Dale got someone to go tell her he was not kidding and wanted her number!

She's cute, I guess, but I think I liked him better as a 'single' man! I do think he needs a girlfriend, though. I just had dreams it would be me!! LOL!! ;) Just kidding. Oh well, we'll see how long it will last! I'm a bit depressed now, so I am going to sign off... ;)

keeping up with the blog....

2004-06-15T11:36:00.000-07:00

I have not been keeping up with this as much as I thought I would, but I decided to get on here again. There has been little going on in Metairie.

I did go to A March of Dimes fundraiser on Friday night with some friends of mine. It was fun. It was a silent auction, but I didn't bid on anything.

The weekend was low keyed. I watched the race on Sunday...it was pretty boring until the last few laps when Harvick and Kenseth got into each other!! My man Dale Jr. came out smelling like a rose again. He has luck on his side this year, it looks like! I hope he goes all the way.

As far as our fantasy NASCAR game goes, I have decided that whomever I pick, will inevitably get screwed in the race. I have some black cloud over the racers I pick. Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that I will pick the drivers that I don't want to win and see if the bad luck continues with them! I know my brother, Glenn, feels the same way the past few weeks with his picks!

Well, I will sign off for now. Hopefully I'll be on here again sooner than before!

Summer is here!

2004-06-10T01:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I was reading Glenn and Tammy's blog and I decided to play around with this. It ended up being so easy to create that I ended up on this page and began typing!! I'm not even sure why I am doing this, but I guess it's because it's summer and I have some time on my hands to do whatever I want, now that work is over!! That is always a good thing.

I have been spending lots of time at Lakeside Country Club going swimming and laying out. I got to read some of my book today out there in between swimming. I'm reading Bombshell. It's one of the "Red Dress Ink" publishing company books that I love to read.

I'm not doing too much this summer...except I do have a trip planned to Las Vegas with some teacher friends from work. We are going in late July and staying at The Venetian Resort . We also have tickets to see the Cirque du Soleil show "O". I am very excited about that. So it should be a fun time.

Well, I'm going to sign off for now, since I really had no intention on doing this, but we'll see, it might be fun! Happy Summer!