I really had no idea that when I sat down the other day to record my Katrina story that it would end up being so obnoxiously long. I guess I have a lot more memories than I anticipated. They just keep on coming. Hope you don't mind, but I would like to keep recording because every day more and more of my mind goes to mush! HAHA
We were in Jackson for a total of three and half weeks. The first several days after Katrina, we were without power and worked very hard to get the trees off of the Bradshaws' house, clean out the refrigerator and freezers that were no longer keeping the food cold, and clearing debris from all around the property. We were flooded with phone calls from friends and family who just wanted us to know they were thinking of us, offering to help in whatever ways they could. It was so comforting. We were constantly reminded of how blessed we were.
My dad ended up finding a home to rent for my family in Baton Rouge. My aunt already lived in the area, so arrangements were made for my grandmother to stay with her. Jonathan spent much time on the phone trying to find out what was happening with LSU Dental school. It appeared that we, too, would be heading to Baton Rouge, but the details hadn't been fully arranged to relocate an ENTIRE dental school, clinic and all. The all girl Catholic school where I was a teacher had been completely flooded by the levee breaches. There was no way that the school would be resuming at the same location for months. I was unsure of my job status, but as time went on, arrangements were under way to open a "satellite school" in the Baton Rouge area. Although people evacuated all over the country to avoid Katrina, Baton Rouge was only sixty miles outside of the New Orleans metropolitan area, so many without homes to return to ended up relocating there. Lots of my school's students were there without a place to continue their education. The satellite school was going to help with that problem.
Once it became certain that Baton Rouge was going to be our new home, we had to figure out where we were going to reside. Like I mentioned earlier, apartments weren't easy to come by or to afford. The home my parents were renting was small, but we could have stayed there if necessary. Jonathan's parents graciously offered us their motor home to live in, if we could find a place to park it. We searched campsites as potential residences, but there weren't many in the area that had spaces available. In the end, some family friends owned a business in an industrial park in Baton Rouge. They offered to let us park the motor home in the parking lot next to their building. There was a sewage hook-up, and they allowed us to use their electricity to run the motor home free of charge. What a blessing! We ended up living in the motor home for seven months. Needless to say, we made LOTS of memories during those seven months and grew even closer as a married couple than ever before.
My parent's house was only about five minutes away from where we were "parked." Once Jonathan started back to school and I began teaching, we spent most of our time outside of work and school with them. We ate supper together nearly every night. My sisters and I would gather around the dining room table: the two of them doing homework, me making lesson plans and grading papers. I have always considered myself to be close to my family, but the months following Katrina drew us together. All of the trivial things that my sisters and I used to argue over weren't issues any longer. They were having to do some major maturing. Emily was a senior in high school and had been completely uprooted from her classmates. She was in a new school with complete strangers and was only a few months from graduation. Hillary was in 8th grade and struggling with her own woes as a young adolescent whose whole life had been turned upside down. They handled the situation with such grace. I was so proud of them! We all took care of each other. Jonathan and I were so blessed to have my family there during such a transitional season.
I see that I am getting a little ahead of myself, so let me backtrack to the day we moved from Jackson to Baton Rouge. We loaded all of our remaining possessions--everything we took with us when we evacuated plus some clothes we had purchased to get us through. We caravanned down with Jonathan's parents: the motor home, Jonathan's car, and Jonathan's grandmother's car (for me). We parked everything, and then headed down to New Orleans, an hour's drive, to see what we had been dying to see for nearly a month. Home. Due to the levee breaches, there was standing water in Orleans parish for nearly three full weeks. As the water slowly subsided, there was no way for homeowners to return to the area as the streets were flooded and only accessible by boat. Technically, we were all forbidden to enter the area because things were so hazardous. Flooded homes, shifted from their foundations, floating cars, furniture, trees, etc. There was debris, refuse, and God only knows what else in that water, so it truly wasn't safe to return until the water receded. This didn't stop people, however. We knew of lots of folks who journeyed in via boat or canoe to assess the damage to their properties. We hadn't had the heart to do that until this point.
As we approached the city limits of New Orleans, we began to see the effects of Katrina on the surrounding areas. Trees were down everywhere. Sides of buildings had been torn off. Roofs were missing, tarps futilely trying to serve as replacements. There was a noticeable absence of traffic and pedestrians. And this was just in Jefferson Parish--Kenner, Metairie, Jefferson. We hadn't hit Orleans Parish yet. We drove as close as we could before the roads were blocked to prevent people from driving in. We parked our cars in a nearby parking lot and walked to the 17th Street Canal bridge, where the levee had buckled less than a month before. It was Jonathan's parents, Jonathan, me, and my dad. I had worn flipflops, so upon recommendation I put on tennis shoes. We were going in, and there was no telling what we would be walking through.
The first thing I noticed was the smell. It was awful. And, I don't think I will ever forget it. The air radiated with the aroma of destruction and death. What was that, I wondered? We walked about a block until we reached the bridge. It was like crossing into another world. The difference between the side we stood on and the side we were about to walk into was like night and day. Everything was gray. It looked as though bombs had gone off and the soot and ash had settled across everything. The ground was covered with a sludge, thicker than mud, slick like ice, and inches deep. We were about two miles or so from our house, but we trudged through to make our way. There were several times when a few of us nearly took a spill from losing our footing in the muck. My shoes got stuck on several occasions, and I'll just say that I threw them away after this adventure because they were NOT fixable afterward.
We made it to Fleur De Lis Avenue, a beautiful street lined with hundreds of Live Oak trees, homes on both sides of the parkway. Every house in the area had been searched by the National Guard or other officials. They were looking for survivors, those who had refused to evacuate and as a result were left stranded in the rising waters. On every house in bright orange spray paint was the marking they left. The date they searched the property. The number of people found in the house. Their division's number. There was also the occasional hole cut out of a roof where people had been forced to break out of their homes to sit on the rooftop until help came for them. I had seen that on television, but here I saw the remnants of it with my eyes.
Some homes had been leveled as their foundations couldn't hold against the raging waters. There was a car in a swimming pool. Cars in trees. Boats in trees. Trees on houses. It was wild. As we continued walking, I wondered if we would be able to get to our house. In some places the sludge was so thick that we could barely cross the street. If we did make it, how would we get back? But, we did. I recall standing across the street from our property and looking at what seemed like a shadow of our former lives. My car sat in the driveway. It had shifted some, but the waters gently laid it down to rest not far from where it had been originally parked. The big orange X from the Guard was painted on our doorway. It didn't look much different, just dark, gray, and really dirty. I wasn't really prepared to see what was inside, but this was our chance to get in.
(Alas, to be continued)
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
And So It Is... (Katrina, Part Two)
When we arrived in Jackson, things didn't seem very different than they were in New Orleans. There was talk on the news there of the pending storm, and preparations for bad weather in the Jackson area were under way. Even though a hurricane like Katrina can hit hundreds of miles away, the storm takes hours to weaken and eventually dissipate. Jackson is a good bit out of the way, but it was by no means out of danger. We kept our eyes on the news, made a trip or two to the grocery store to have plenty of food on hand, made sure all of the cars were filled with gas, and were on and off the phone with friends and family making sure everyone was doing okay. It felt wonderful to be there with Jonathan's family. We were safe. We could relax and visit some college friends while there. Our minds were easily distracted at that point. Like I mentioned earlier, we weren't really concerned of a serious threat. Anything can happen with a hurricane. They change courses so quickly. They weaken, then strengthen, then weaken again. Unpredictable.
My parents, two sisters, and grandmother eventually made it to the Bradshaws' house. It took them a great deal longer to make their way up to Jackson than it did us as they left town several hours after we did. The evacuation had been executed but wasn't mandatory just yet. However, traffic was busy as people were anxiously getting out of town. Jonathan's grandmother had passed away just a few months earlier and her home sat fully furnished, yet empty just a few miles away from where we were staying. My family got settled in over there, which was particularly comforting for my grandmother who was quite upset over the whole forced evacuation. She doesn't handle change well.
Saturday night turned to Sunday morning. I honestly don't remember much of anything about that day. I do recall that sometime late Sunday afternoon the weather got really rough and we eventually lost power. We opened the windows in the front and back of the house to have some air blowing through. It was late August, after all. Very hot. The winds were really rough and as the night went on, things got very dark and quite scary. The pine trees surrounding the house were dropping like flies. We heard them pop like firecrackers before falling to the ground, or worse, on houses. The Bradshaws' house actually took three hits from falling trees. The deck had some major damage, and even though there were two on the house, the damage was considerably minor.
We were in Jackson and were suffering from tree damage and power outages. It was a very major storm there. Can you imagine what things were like over three hundred miles further south? Because we had no electricity, we had no idea what the news was saying about things down in New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast. We had terrible cell phone reception but were miraculously able to receive text messages on our phones. We learned through this method of communication with family and friends scattered around the Southern states that Katrina had hit as a Category 3 hurricane. It did make landfall along the Louisiana coastline, but we were under the impression that although the hurricane had caused great damage to the area with the rain and strong winds, New Orleans was still standing. Whew, we had made it! Now, we just had to get through the next few days, then we could head home and clean up what was surely a great big mess.
I'll never forget how I heard about the levee breaches. I got a text message from Jonathan's sister, Amy, who was living in Knoxville at the time. She obviously had power and access to the news, so she was a major information source for us. She texted me around 2:30 a.m. on Monday, August 29th, that the levees had been breached and that major flooding was taking place in Orleans parish. I knew that didn't sound good. Our home was in Orleans parish. In fact, we were less than a mile from the 17th Street Canal levee and just a few miles from Lake Pontchartrain. We didn't really know much else and didn't really know what it meant. We were just going to have to wait and find out. A few hours later, we got confirmation that the 17th Street Canal levees had indeed been breached.
"Levees breached in over 50 different places submerging 80 percent of the city. Most levees failed due to water overtopping them but some failed when water passed underneath the levee foundations causing the levee wall to shift and resulting in catastrophic sudden breaching. The sudden breaching released highly pressured water that moved houses off their foundations and tossed cars into trees." (Via Wikipedia)
I heard about this with my ears. I tried to imagine what our home looked like. I tried to envision flooded streets and flooded homes. But, I couldn't. I was just praying that our townhouse, raised five feet off of the ground, was dry and safe. We were anxiously awaiting power so we could get news of what the situation was really like. Sometime early Monday afternoon, Jonathan's dad got an idea. They had a motor home which they kept at their farm, about 30 miles away, that had a satellite and television which would allow us to access the news. Because the motor home ran on a generator, we weren't reliant on electricity to run it. Mr. Paul (Jonathan's dad), Jonathan, and I headed to the farm to see what we could find out.
As we pulled out of their neighborhood, we were met with our first doses of reality. Trees were down everywhere. We had to navigate the streets trying to make our way to the Interstate. Power lines were down. Trees were blocking major intersections and had fallen on homes and buildings. One of the most shocking things to me was the gasoline shortages. We saw the effects of this for several weeks following Katrina, but I suddenly become aware of how serious of an emergency I was in when the lines at gasoline stations were miles long. Cars lined up for hours waiting to fill up or just top off the tank. There were gas stations already out of gas standing empty with plastic bags covering the pumps, communicating to drivers that it's pointless to stop there. I saw these things as we headed to the motor home.
After a few hours of trying to make our way, we finally arrived at the farm. We pulled the motor home out of the garage and cranked it up, praying that the satellite would cooperate. Thankfully, it did. We sat in the air conditioner for the first time in over 24 hours and watched with broken hearts. This was not what I was expecting. I finally got to see with my eyes what my mind had tried to imagine. My home was destroyed. New Orleans was completely under water. When I imagined flooding, I was thinking a bad rainstorm, flooded streets, homes with standing water. But this surpassed my wildest imaginings. You saw the footage. You remember. It was devastating. As we watched the images that helicopters captured from flying overhead, I knew our rooftop was somewhere on the television screen. It didn't matter in the least that our house was raised five feet off the ground. My car was somewhere buried under that water. The school where I taught, my classroom, was covered. It was surreal. However, as we watched, I don't recall being devastated. I know I didn't cry. I believe that part of it was because I was in shock and didn't fully understand the reality that was before me. But, looking back, even after the reality set in, we were being carried. The Lord was there with us, carrying us, caring FOR us, and giving us an indescribable peace. We knew now that this weekend trip to Jackson was going to be lasting a lot longer than we had anticipated. We wouldn't be going home for quite some time.
There were so many questions to ask. What about my job? Did we have insurance to cover the damage to the house? to the car? What about the Dental School? We knew that it had suffered major damage. Would Jonathan be able to continue? He was a junior; he had less than two years to go. Was his future career in jeopardy? Where would we live? New Orleans wasn't an option. What about my parents' home? My grandmother's home? We knew it was destroyed because she lived only a few miles from our house. Where would she go? How would she handle the news, the changes? Would she survive this? My two younger sisters were in school. Would their schools resume? Had they been permanently damaged? Where would my folks live? My dad's business? Was his building destroyed? Would there be any work for him to do? Our church? It, too, was less than a mile from our house. Surely it had catastrophic damage. Where would the body of Christ that we called our family resume worshipping together? Would we ever? What about New Orleans as a whole? Would it survive!?
The questions were endless. But, all we could do was wait. This was REALLY difficult. We felt really helpless and really unsure about our future. However, we were so blessed to be surrounded by our families. Jonathan's folks were right there with us dealing with difficulties of their own. There house had damage, so we had to get to work right away to get the trees off of the house so no flooding would occur. My mom, sisters, and grandmother were just a few miles away.
Almost as soon as my dad heard of the extent of the damage to our area, he headed back down to try to get some things in order. My dad is a no nonsense type of guy, and he acts very quickly when necessary. My dad knew that their home would not be livable so he would have to find a place for them. He also knew that every other family was in the same situation, so he would have to act fast to find available housing before it was all gone. It was kind of scary actually because he left town early morning on August 29th, and we didn't hear from him for about 24 hours. When we finally did get word, he was in Baton Rouge and was scrounging to find something: a house, an apartment, anything. He said he drove in to one apartment complex to see about renting a unit. The line was incredibly long, and he overheard a gentleman in front of him ask how many units were still available for rent. "Eleven," said the apartment manager. "I'll take them all," said the man. So much for that complex! It became very obvious very quickly that Baton Rouge was going to be the new home for many of the "Katrina refugees." We had already been named. Refugees. Sounds like something out of a documentary on Africa or something.
So, there we were. Tuesday, August 30th. Only time would tell us what the future held.
(To be continued)
My parents, two sisters, and grandmother eventually made it to the Bradshaws' house. It took them a great deal longer to make their way up to Jackson than it did us as they left town several hours after we did. The evacuation had been executed but wasn't mandatory just yet. However, traffic was busy as people were anxiously getting out of town. Jonathan's grandmother had passed away just a few months earlier and her home sat fully furnished, yet empty just a few miles away from where we were staying. My family got settled in over there, which was particularly comforting for my grandmother who was quite upset over the whole forced evacuation. She doesn't handle change well.
Saturday night turned to Sunday morning. I honestly don't remember much of anything about that day. I do recall that sometime late Sunday afternoon the weather got really rough and we eventually lost power. We opened the windows in the front and back of the house to have some air blowing through. It was late August, after all. Very hot. The winds were really rough and as the night went on, things got very dark and quite scary. The pine trees surrounding the house were dropping like flies. We heard them pop like firecrackers before falling to the ground, or worse, on houses. The Bradshaws' house actually took three hits from falling trees. The deck had some major damage, and even though there were two on the house, the damage was considerably minor.
We were in Jackson and were suffering from tree damage and power outages. It was a very major storm there. Can you imagine what things were like over three hundred miles further south? Because we had no electricity, we had no idea what the news was saying about things down in New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast. We had terrible cell phone reception but were miraculously able to receive text messages on our phones. We learned through this method of communication with family and friends scattered around the Southern states that Katrina had hit as a Category 3 hurricane. It did make landfall along the Louisiana coastline, but we were under the impression that although the hurricane had caused great damage to the area with the rain and strong winds, New Orleans was still standing. Whew, we had made it! Now, we just had to get through the next few days, then we could head home and clean up what was surely a great big mess.
I'll never forget how I heard about the levee breaches. I got a text message from Jonathan's sister, Amy, who was living in Knoxville at the time. She obviously had power and access to the news, so she was a major information source for us. She texted me around 2:30 a.m. on Monday, August 29th, that the levees had been breached and that major flooding was taking place in Orleans parish. I knew that didn't sound good. Our home was in Orleans parish. In fact, we were less than a mile from the 17th Street Canal levee and just a few miles from Lake Pontchartrain. We didn't really know much else and didn't really know what it meant. We were just going to have to wait and find out. A few hours later, we got confirmation that the 17th Street Canal levees had indeed been breached.
"Levees breached in over 50 different places submerging 80 percent of the city. Most levees failed due to water overtopping them but some failed when water passed underneath the levee foundations causing the levee wall to shift and resulting in catastrophic sudden breaching. The sudden breaching released highly pressured water that moved houses off their foundations and tossed cars into trees." (Via Wikipedia)
I heard about this with my ears. I tried to imagine what our home looked like. I tried to envision flooded streets and flooded homes. But, I couldn't. I was just praying that our townhouse, raised five feet off of the ground, was dry and safe. We were anxiously awaiting power so we could get news of what the situation was really like. Sometime early Monday afternoon, Jonathan's dad got an idea. They had a motor home which they kept at their farm, about 30 miles away, that had a satellite and television which would allow us to access the news. Because the motor home ran on a generator, we weren't reliant on electricity to run it. Mr. Paul (Jonathan's dad), Jonathan, and I headed to the farm to see what we could find out.
As we pulled out of their neighborhood, we were met with our first doses of reality. Trees were down everywhere. We had to navigate the streets trying to make our way to the Interstate. Power lines were down. Trees were blocking major intersections and had fallen on homes and buildings. One of the most shocking things to me was the gasoline shortages. We saw the effects of this for several weeks following Katrina, but I suddenly become aware of how serious of an emergency I was in when the lines at gasoline stations were miles long. Cars lined up for hours waiting to fill up or just top off the tank. There were gas stations already out of gas standing empty with plastic bags covering the pumps, communicating to drivers that it's pointless to stop there. I saw these things as we headed to the motor home.
After a few hours of trying to make our way, we finally arrived at the farm. We pulled the motor home out of the garage and cranked it up, praying that the satellite would cooperate. Thankfully, it did. We sat in the air conditioner for the first time in over 24 hours and watched with broken hearts. This was not what I was expecting. I finally got to see with my eyes what my mind had tried to imagine. My home was destroyed. New Orleans was completely under water. When I imagined flooding, I was thinking a bad rainstorm, flooded streets, homes with standing water. But this surpassed my wildest imaginings. You saw the footage. You remember. It was devastating. As we watched the images that helicopters captured from flying overhead, I knew our rooftop was somewhere on the television screen. It didn't matter in the least that our house was raised five feet off the ground. My car was somewhere buried under that water. The school where I taught, my classroom, was covered. It was surreal. However, as we watched, I don't recall being devastated. I know I didn't cry. I believe that part of it was because I was in shock and didn't fully understand the reality that was before me. But, looking back, even after the reality set in, we were being carried. The Lord was there with us, carrying us, caring FOR us, and giving us an indescribable peace. We knew now that this weekend trip to Jackson was going to be lasting a lot longer than we had anticipated. We wouldn't be going home for quite some time.
There were so many questions to ask. What about my job? Did we have insurance to cover the damage to the house? to the car? What about the Dental School? We knew that it had suffered major damage. Would Jonathan be able to continue? He was a junior; he had less than two years to go. Was his future career in jeopardy? Where would we live? New Orleans wasn't an option. What about my parents' home? My grandmother's home? We knew it was destroyed because she lived only a few miles from our house. Where would she go? How would she handle the news, the changes? Would she survive this? My two younger sisters were in school. Would their schools resume? Had they been permanently damaged? Where would my folks live? My dad's business? Was his building destroyed? Would there be any work for him to do? Our church? It, too, was less than a mile from our house. Surely it had catastrophic damage. Where would the body of Christ that we called our family resume worshipping together? Would we ever? What about New Orleans as a whole? Would it survive!?
The questions were endless. But, all we could do was wait. This was REALLY difficult. We felt really helpless and really unsure about our future. However, we were so blessed to be surrounded by our families. Jonathan's folks were right there with us dealing with difficulties of their own. There house had damage, so we had to get to work right away to get the trees off of the house so no flooding would occur. My mom, sisters, and grandmother were just a few miles away.
Almost as soon as my dad heard of the extent of the damage to our area, he headed back down to try to get some things in order. My dad is a no nonsense type of guy, and he acts very quickly when necessary. My dad knew that their home would not be livable so he would have to find a place for them. He also knew that every other family was in the same situation, so he would have to act fast to find available housing before it was all gone. It was kind of scary actually because he left town early morning on August 29th, and we didn't hear from him for about 24 hours. When we finally did get word, he was in Baton Rouge and was scrounging to find something: a house, an apartment, anything. He said he drove in to one apartment complex to see about renting a unit. The line was incredibly long, and he overheard a gentleman in front of him ask how many units were still available for rent. "Eleven," said the apartment manager. "I'll take them all," said the man. So much for that complex! It became very obvious very quickly that Baton Rouge was going to be the new home for many of the "Katrina refugees." We had already been named. Refugees. Sounds like something out of a documentary on Africa or something.
So, there we were. Tuesday, August 30th. Only time would tell us what the future held.
(To be continued)
Remembering Hurricane Katrina
Today is August 29, 2009...four years to the date that Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and Mississippi. Many of you know that Jonathan and I were living in New Orleans during the time that Katrina hit, but not many know our story regarding this life-changing event. I thought I would reminisce and record what happened during the days and months surrounding Hurricane Katrina as a way of remembering all that the Lord did in our lives in the midst of it.
On the night of Friday, August 26, 2005, Jonathan and I--married just over a year--were at our Covenant Group meeting. I remember after our meeting, we broke out the snacks for some fun and fellowship, and one of the guys turned on the TV to check the weather. We knew a hurricane named Katrina was headed toward the Gulf, but the weather forecasts were predicting that it would hit somewhere along the Alabama/Florida coastline. However, when the TV was turned on, all of our eyes quickly turned as we saw "the cone" had moved. "The cone" or the red area that predicts the area of impact upon land was now saying that Katrina was headed for Louisiana.
Now, let me explain something to those who aren't from the Deep South. Hurricanes come and go every year. They have been a part of my livfe from my farthest back memory. They show up in the Gulf, the news predicts it will hit our area, we debate back and forth about whether or not we should evacuate, sometimes we do, sometimes we don't. It rains, the wind causes some damage, occasionally a tornado hits, some roofs come off, but all in all, the hurricanes aren't catastrophic. Most of the times that we evacuate end up being like a vacation. Just a few days off from work, from school, and from responsibilities. Stowed up in a hotel somewhere in another city, just hanging out and enjoying the time away.
There has also always been a discussion that New Orleans is just an accident waiting to happen. If "the one" hits New Orleans just right, we're "a gonner." New Orleans is, after all, well below sea level and is completely surrounded by water. But, it just always seemed like there was a lot of hype about New Orleans being ruined by a perfect storm that just never seemed to hit.
Little did our friends and we know that night at Covenant Group that as we sat huddled around the television, we were in the same company for the last time in well over a year. Little did we know that by the next day, more than half of us would be in other states seeking refuge from the worst hurricane to hit our hometown in our lifetimes. Little did Jonathan and I know how quickly and majorly our lives were about to change.
We went home that night and slept in our bed for the last time in our house on Avenue A. I don't think I had any idea that I would never sleep under that roof again. I had no idea that I would never cook a meal in my kitchen again, relax on the sofa snuggled up by my boy as we watched a movie together, walk in our neighborhood so close to Lake Pontchartrain. We were blindsided.
On the morning of Saturday, August 27th, Jonathan woke up early to go road biking with a few friends from Dental School. I woke up, wrapped myself up in a blanket, and watched the news on our sofa. I remember Jonathan coming in from his bike ride, and I told him that Katrina was still coming our way and that the mayor was discussing the possibility of a mandatory evacuation sometime by the end of the day. Katrina was set to make landfall by sometime Sunday evening. We knew from experience that a mandatory evacuation equaled chaos. Imagine hundreds of thousands of vehicles, loaded to maximum capacity with lots of people, earthly possessions, beloved pets. Imagine hours of bumper to bumper traffic. Imagine running out of gas on the side of the interstate or having your engine overheat from trying to keep the A/C running to keep somewhat cool while sitting at a standstill for what seems like eternity. When a trip to Houston would typically take you six hours, a mandatory evacuation can easily make the same trip a 12 to 24 hour endeavor. Chaos. Nightmare. Something to avoid at all costs, if possible.
Like I said, we had experienced this before with the previous year's hurricanes that forced us to evacuate, and Jonathan and I were just not up to the chaos this year. We decided right then and there, around 10:00 am on that Saturday morning, that we were heading of town and fast. We weren't going to wait for the orders from the government. We would pack up and head to Jackson, MS, where Jonathan's parents lived. It was a three hour drive....not bad at all. If the hurricane ended up turning or hitting somewhere else, we were only out a few hours drive. Plus, we could spend some time with his family over the weekend, if nothing else.
We immediately got up and got to work! Thinking back now, God was caring for us constantly throughout the whole thing. What a miracle it was that we left town when we did. His sovereign hand was all over the details. Typically, when a hurricane hits, homeowners board up their windows to prevent the strong winds and flying debris from damaging the property and letting the rain waters flood the insides. We had in years past taken the time to board up our windows with plywood. We didn't do that this particular Saturday. I guess that shows you how seriously we thought this storm would hit. Honestly, we truly figured we would be back sometime on Monday after the rough weather had passed so we could resume our work and school schedules on Tuesday. We took our patio furniture inside and tied down a few things in the yard (just in case). I didn't want to take time to do the week's laundry, so I just threw all of our dirty clothes into the basket and decided I'd just have to do it in Jackson. What a provision THAT turned out to be! If the laundry HAD been done, Jonathan and I would have only packed enough clothes for two to three days. I grabbed my wedding photos, Jonathan grabbed our important documents, and we packed our DVDs and other miscellaneous things. We set a few other important things upstairs away from potential hazard, but for the most part, we didn't do too much to hurricane-proof our home.
Funnily enough, I remember that I grabbed a bunch of towels and placed them under a windowsill that was prone to leak. We had just recently remodeled our entire downstairs, and I didn't want the rain water leaking in and spoiling our new hardwood floors. Miraculously, Jonathan picked up the video camera and just happened to record a walk through of our entire house. This was something his dad has been telling him to do for insurance purposes in case something happened or someone broke in and stole stuff, and since Jonathan hadn't gotten around to it, he decided to do it right then. This was the LORD! We now had a documentation of everything in our home that later served us greatly.
In the midst of packing things up, I got a call from a teacher that I worked with telling me that our school had officially decided to close on Monday and Tuesday. I didn't need to worry about being back in town and at work until Wednesday at the earliest. We chatted back and forth for a few minutes and discussed each other's plans for evacuating. That was the last conversation I have ever had with that woman. She and her husband moved away permanently after the storm, and I doubt I'll ever see her again.
Because we were so lovey dovey in love, Jonathan and I couldn't bear to think about making the three hour trek in two separate cars. We decided that since we didn't think there would be much potential for damage that we would leave my car in our driveway and ride together up to Jackson in his car.
After a few phone calls to my parents and some other friends, we got in the car and got on our way. By the time we were on the road, the traffic had begun to pick up. People were obviously having the same idea we were....get on the road before things get hairy. My parents had decided to pack up as well and were going to join us in Jackson as soon as they got things in order. They were going to pack up my grandmother and her things and bring her with them as they evacuated, which is by no means an easy feat. We were off and got to Jackson in about 4-5 hours. We were oblivious to what was going to happen to our home and our city in just a matter of hours. I had no idea that my last glance at our home as we backed out of the driveway would be so important. Katrina was on her way.
To be continued....
On the night of Friday, August 26, 2005, Jonathan and I--married just over a year--were at our Covenant Group meeting. I remember after our meeting, we broke out the snacks for some fun and fellowship, and one of the guys turned on the TV to check the weather. We knew a hurricane named Katrina was headed toward the Gulf, but the weather forecasts were predicting that it would hit somewhere along the Alabama/Florida coastline. However, when the TV was turned on, all of our eyes quickly turned as we saw "the cone" had moved. "The cone" or the red area that predicts the area of impact upon land was now saying that Katrina was headed for Louisiana.
Now, let me explain something to those who aren't from the Deep South. Hurricanes come and go every year. They have been a part of my livfe from my farthest back memory. They show up in the Gulf, the news predicts it will hit our area, we debate back and forth about whether or not we should evacuate, sometimes we do, sometimes we don't. It rains, the wind causes some damage, occasionally a tornado hits, some roofs come off, but all in all, the hurricanes aren't catastrophic. Most of the times that we evacuate end up being like a vacation. Just a few days off from work, from school, and from responsibilities. Stowed up in a hotel somewhere in another city, just hanging out and enjoying the time away.
There has also always been a discussion that New Orleans is just an accident waiting to happen. If "the one" hits New Orleans just right, we're "a gonner." New Orleans is, after all, well below sea level and is completely surrounded by water. But, it just always seemed like there was a lot of hype about New Orleans being ruined by a perfect storm that just never seemed to hit.
Little did our friends and we know that night at Covenant Group that as we sat huddled around the television, we were in the same company for the last time in well over a year. Little did we know that by the next day, more than half of us would be in other states seeking refuge from the worst hurricane to hit our hometown in our lifetimes. Little did Jonathan and I know how quickly and majorly our lives were about to change.
We went home that night and slept in our bed for the last time in our house on Avenue A. I don't think I had any idea that I would never sleep under that roof again. I had no idea that I would never cook a meal in my kitchen again, relax on the sofa snuggled up by my boy as we watched a movie together, walk in our neighborhood so close to Lake Pontchartrain. We were blindsided.
On the morning of Saturday, August 27th, Jonathan woke up early to go road biking with a few friends from Dental School. I woke up, wrapped myself up in a blanket, and watched the news on our sofa. I remember Jonathan coming in from his bike ride, and I told him that Katrina was still coming our way and that the mayor was discussing the possibility of a mandatory evacuation sometime by the end of the day. Katrina was set to make landfall by sometime Sunday evening. We knew from experience that a mandatory evacuation equaled chaos. Imagine hundreds of thousands of vehicles, loaded to maximum capacity with lots of people, earthly possessions, beloved pets. Imagine hours of bumper to bumper traffic. Imagine running out of gas on the side of the interstate or having your engine overheat from trying to keep the A/C running to keep somewhat cool while sitting at a standstill for what seems like eternity. When a trip to Houston would typically take you six hours, a mandatory evacuation can easily make the same trip a 12 to 24 hour endeavor. Chaos. Nightmare. Something to avoid at all costs, if possible.
Like I said, we had experienced this before with the previous year's hurricanes that forced us to evacuate, and Jonathan and I were just not up to the chaos this year. We decided right then and there, around 10:00 am on that Saturday morning, that we were heading of town and fast. We weren't going to wait for the orders from the government. We would pack up and head to Jackson, MS, where Jonathan's parents lived. It was a three hour drive....not bad at all. If the hurricane ended up turning or hitting somewhere else, we were only out a few hours drive. Plus, we could spend some time with his family over the weekend, if nothing else.
We immediately got up and got to work! Thinking back now, God was caring for us constantly throughout the whole thing. What a miracle it was that we left town when we did. His sovereign hand was all over the details. Typically, when a hurricane hits, homeowners board up their windows to prevent the strong winds and flying debris from damaging the property and letting the rain waters flood the insides. We had in years past taken the time to board up our windows with plywood. We didn't do that this particular Saturday. I guess that shows you how seriously we thought this storm would hit. Honestly, we truly figured we would be back sometime on Monday after the rough weather had passed so we could resume our work and school schedules on Tuesday. We took our patio furniture inside and tied down a few things in the yard (just in case). I didn't want to take time to do the week's laundry, so I just threw all of our dirty clothes into the basket and decided I'd just have to do it in Jackson. What a provision THAT turned out to be! If the laundry HAD been done, Jonathan and I would have only packed enough clothes for two to three days. I grabbed my wedding photos, Jonathan grabbed our important documents, and we packed our DVDs and other miscellaneous things. We set a few other important things upstairs away from potential hazard, but for the most part, we didn't do too much to hurricane-proof our home.
Funnily enough, I remember that I grabbed a bunch of towels and placed them under a windowsill that was prone to leak. We had just recently remodeled our entire downstairs, and I didn't want the rain water leaking in and spoiling our new hardwood floors. Miraculously, Jonathan picked up the video camera and just happened to record a walk through of our entire house. This was something his dad has been telling him to do for insurance purposes in case something happened or someone broke in and stole stuff, and since Jonathan hadn't gotten around to it, he decided to do it right then. This was the LORD! We now had a documentation of everything in our home that later served us greatly.
In the midst of packing things up, I got a call from a teacher that I worked with telling me that our school had officially decided to close on Monday and Tuesday. I didn't need to worry about being back in town and at work until Wednesday at the earliest. We chatted back and forth for a few minutes and discussed each other's plans for evacuating. That was the last conversation I have ever had with that woman. She and her husband moved away permanently after the storm, and I doubt I'll ever see her again.
Because we were so lovey dovey in love, Jonathan and I couldn't bear to think about making the three hour trek in two separate cars. We decided that since we didn't think there would be much potential for damage that we would leave my car in our driveway and ride together up to Jackson in his car.
After a few phone calls to my parents and some other friends, we got in the car and got on our way. By the time we were on the road, the traffic had begun to pick up. People were obviously having the same idea we were....get on the road before things get hairy. My parents had decided to pack up as well and were going to join us in Jackson as soon as they got things in order. They were going to pack up my grandmother and her things and bring her with them as they evacuated, which is by no means an easy feat. We were off and got to Jackson in about 4-5 hours. We were oblivious to what was going to happen to our home and our city in just a matter of hours. I had no idea that my last glance at our home as we backed out of the driveway would be so important. Katrina was on her way.
To be continued....
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Birthday "Paw-dee" for Nora!
Yes, this girl says party like she's from New Orleans, even though she's only visited there a few times! Nora's "paw-dee" was this past Saturday. We scheduled it for 11:00 am until naptime, which seemed to be much easier on everyone involved. We had UNBELIEVABLE weather for late August, and had a blast! I thought for sure we would be spending most of the time inside our house, which is one reason we kept the guest list pretty small. But, we ended up spending most of the time outside in the backyard, making our "Hot Diggity Dog" lunch a picnic in the shade! Nora loves the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse show, so we had a Mickey themed party.
Here are some photos of the big day. Pardon the lack of order here!
Singing Happy Birthday. Nora got embarrased and reverted to her "happy place." Notice how she's snuggled up against me with her hand by her head?
Granddaddy & Liam
Nora got a kitchen for her birthday. Can I just say that we underestimated how much she would enjoy this gift. She LOVED it! And hasn't stopped playing with it since.
Amy, my Momma, and I decorated Mickey Mouse cupcakes the night before the party. Being that none of us is crafty, we had a contest to see who made the best mouse ears. They are in the following order: Amy, Momma, Me. Amy won! Prize: She got to decorate all of the cupcakes by herself!
My precious, growing boy. He's 3.5 months old here.
Nora just taking it all in. This is right after Jonathan finished setting up her kitchen the night of her birthday.
Nana (my Momma) & Liam
Cupcakes!
Nora and Parks
Blowing out the candle
Picnic Time
London and my Momma....they were fast friends!
All of the cooks in the kitchen
Presents! This girl was very blessed and opened her presents faster than anyone I've ever seen.
Here are some photos of the big day. Pardon the lack of order here!
Singing Happy Birthday. Nora got embarrased and reverted to her "happy place." Notice how she's snuggled up against me with her hand by her head?
Granddaddy & Liam
Nora got a kitchen for her birthday. Can I just say that we underestimated how much she would enjoy this gift. She LOVED it! And hasn't stopped playing with it since.
Amy, my Momma, and I decorated Mickey Mouse cupcakes the night before the party. Being that none of us is crafty, we had a contest to see who made the best mouse ears. They are in the following order: Amy, Momma, Me. Amy won! Prize: She got to decorate all of the cupcakes by herself!
My precious, growing boy. He's 3.5 months old here.
Nora just taking it all in. This is right after Jonathan finished setting up her kitchen the night of her birthday.
Nana (my Momma) & Liam
Cupcakes!
Nora and Parks
Blowing out the candle
Picnic Time
London and my Momma....they were fast friends!
All of the cooks in the kitchen
Presents! This girl was very blessed and opened her presents faster than anyone I've ever seen.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Happy Birthday, Nora!
Two years ago today, we welcomed Nora Kathryn into our lives!
Two years ago today, our lives changed dramatically....for the better!
Two years ago today, we fell in love with our first born, our first daughter!
Two years ago today, we were blessed with a heritage from the Lord!
We love you Nora! It has been a wonderful and amazing 2 years!
Two years ago today, our lives changed dramatically....for the better!
Two years ago today, we fell in love with our first born, our first daughter!
Two years ago today, we were blessed with a heritage from the Lord!
We love you Nora! It has been a wonderful and amazing 2 years!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
How Did We Get Here?
How did this....
get to this....
THEN this....
and this....
then THIS....
....this....
and NOW this....?
Tomorrow is TWO years! We love you NORA KATHRYN!
get to this....
THEN this....
and this....
then THIS....
....this....
and NOW this....?
Tomorrow is TWO years! We love you NORA KATHRYN!
Monday, August 17, 2009
Random Monday
I'm feeling full of randomness today, so I thought I'd share a bit of what's going on with us:
Meet Carter.
Isn't he beautiful?
Carter came into the world this morning in New Orleans, LA. Carter Edison Maltzahn is the new baby boy of one of my best, dearest, oldest friends, Stephanie. Steph and I go way back. Her daughter, Lydia Grace, is just two weeks younger than Nora. And now, her baby boy, Carter, is just three months younger than Liam. I love them so much and am so sad that I haven't been able to be there with the family as they are welcoming Carter to the world. My next visit home to NOLA can't come soon enough!
Ok, here's another one. You ready?
Meet Liam.
No, this isn't another Benjamin Button freak show. This is Liam Walter Roberts. He is the son of ANOTHER dear, best, old friend named Hope. Now, see if you can follow this craziness. Remember my friend, Steph? Hope is married to Steph's little brother, Kurt. So Liam is Steph's nephew and the cousin to little Carter. These baby boys are less than a week apart. Sweet, close cousins that will be like brothers, I'm sure! What a blessed family. Can't wait to squeeze him, too, and to introduce the two Liams to each other.
I am currently addicted to at least three things: Banana Nut Cheerios. Coconut Creme coffee creamer by CoffeeMate. Delta Blues Bluebell ice cream. Seriously, addicted. My morning starts with the deliciousness of Coconut Creme in my coffee, followed by a wonderful bowl of cereal, and somewhere throughout the day, I savor a small serving of the Delta Blues ice cream. Creamy ice cream. Blueberries. Blueberry sauce. Pie crust pieces. So good.
I am terrible with plants. I kill them without any effort. Or, with much effort, really. If I forget about them, they die. If I try to be a good steward of my plants, I tend to care too much, and they die all the more. Funny, but true story: A few months after Jonathan and I were married, we noticed that mosquitoes were becoming frequent visitors in our townhouse. I mean, New Orleans has its unfair share of mosquitoes and occasionally some will get inside, but we were having mosquitoes in the house a lot. Then, they started swarming in the house. Where were they coming from!? Come to find out, I was so overwatering our ficus trees that didn't have proper drainage in the pots, that the mosquitoes were nesting in the trees/pots! I mean, who does that!? Me, apparently. I say this because I'm feeling guilty about a plant that Jonathan is trying to save from the "Black Thumb of Casey." It's a wonderful plant my mom gave us when Liam was born, and thanks to Jonathan, I think there might be some hope.
Nora thinks life is a musical. Seriously, the girl sings all.day.long. And I love it! I love music and I love to sing, so we frequently burst into song in this house. However, I have recently come to the realization that Nora will one day realize that life, indeed, is NOT a musical. That day will make me very sad. Why can't they stay so young and innocent and unaware of things that aren't cool? I'm going to try to keep her singing as long as I possibly can.
I have recently starting recycling. I bought a laundry-type basket to keep in the garage, and I have been collecting all of the plastic, glass, aluminum things we consume and drop them off occasionally at a recycling center not far from our house. The recycling center is really cool because you can just go to one spot and they have bins for everything. Even Goodwill and paper products. You would be amazed at how much stuff is recyclable (tough word to say and type). It's pretty unbelievable how much stuff I was throwing away that can be recycled. Now, it's like an obsession I have....just ask my husband. Oh, and Nora's in on it too. She gets a thrill out of bringing stuff to the basket. Train 'em young!
Nora has suddenly started shunning milk. Within the past two weeks, she has been drinking less and less of her whole milk which I typically offer her with her meals. This is so weird to me because for the past two years, milk has been THE staple in her diet. When I think about it, it makes sense. She eats more food, so the milk isn't a necessity by any means. But, it's like she's gone cold turkey. I have a theory that the thickness of the whole milk is getting to her. It gets to me. I want to yack when I drink the stuff because it coats my throat it is so thick. She's been drinking lots more water and diluted juice, especially since it's so hot outside. We go to the doctor in a few weeks, so I'll ask then how important milk still is at this point.
Liam Piper. I must talk about my chunker boy! He is the sweetest, happiest little baby. He really only fusses when he is hungry and sleepy. Other than that, he is so content! Hard to believe that he'll be 4 months in just a few weeks. He isn't really doing too many tricks yet, but he coos and talks all the time, he laughs out loud, and he LOVES his hands and his burp cloth. I know, it's kinda funny. He is a spitter and drooler, so after feedings, if he's not being held, he's usually playing on a blanket or on his playmat or in his bouncy seat. So, I try to keep a burp cloth under his chin so he won't soak his outfit. This rarely works, by the way, because he LOVES the burp cloth. He hugs it. It's really so cute. But, I got to thinking that he could really use a lovie or something sweet and soft to cuddle, not a smelly ole burp cloth. I bought him one the other day, but he's only been able to use it about two times because his big sissy girl keeps taking it from him as her own.
Ok, enough of this nonsense.
Meet Carter.
Isn't he beautiful?
Carter came into the world this morning in New Orleans, LA. Carter Edison Maltzahn is the new baby boy of one of my best, dearest, oldest friends, Stephanie. Steph and I go way back. Her daughter, Lydia Grace, is just two weeks younger than Nora. And now, her baby boy, Carter, is just three months younger than Liam. I love them so much and am so sad that I haven't been able to be there with the family as they are welcoming Carter to the world. My next visit home to NOLA can't come soon enough!
Ok, here's another one. You ready?
Meet Liam.
No, this isn't another Benjamin Button freak show. This is Liam Walter Roberts. He is the son of ANOTHER dear, best, old friend named Hope. Now, see if you can follow this craziness. Remember my friend, Steph? Hope is married to Steph's little brother, Kurt. So Liam is Steph's nephew and the cousin to little Carter. These baby boys are less than a week apart. Sweet, close cousins that will be like brothers, I'm sure! What a blessed family. Can't wait to squeeze him, too, and to introduce the two Liams to each other.
I am currently addicted to at least three things: Banana Nut Cheerios. Coconut Creme coffee creamer by CoffeeMate. Delta Blues Bluebell ice cream. Seriously, addicted. My morning starts with the deliciousness of Coconut Creme in my coffee, followed by a wonderful bowl of cereal, and somewhere throughout the day, I savor a small serving of the Delta Blues ice cream. Creamy ice cream. Blueberries. Blueberry sauce. Pie crust pieces. So good.
I am terrible with plants. I kill them without any effort. Or, with much effort, really. If I forget about them, they die. If I try to be a good steward of my plants, I tend to care too much, and they die all the more. Funny, but true story: A few months after Jonathan and I were married, we noticed that mosquitoes were becoming frequent visitors in our townhouse. I mean, New Orleans has its unfair share of mosquitoes and occasionally some will get inside, but we were having mosquitoes in the house a lot. Then, they started swarming in the house. Where were they coming from!? Come to find out, I was so overwatering our ficus trees that didn't have proper drainage in the pots, that the mosquitoes were nesting in the trees/pots! I mean, who does that!? Me, apparently. I say this because I'm feeling guilty about a plant that Jonathan is trying to save from the "Black Thumb of Casey." It's a wonderful plant my mom gave us when Liam was born, and thanks to Jonathan, I think there might be some hope.
Nora thinks life is a musical. Seriously, the girl sings all.day.long. And I love it! I love music and I love to sing, so we frequently burst into song in this house. However, I have recently come to the realization that Nora will one day realize that life, indeed, is NOT a musical. That day will make me very sad. Why can't they stay so young and innocent and unaware of things that aren't cool? I'm going to try to keep her singing as long as I possibly can.
I have recently starting recycling. I bought a laundry-type basket to keep in the garage, and I have been collecting all of the plastic, glass, aluminum things we consume and drop them off occasionally at a recycling center not far from our house. The recycling center is really cool because you can just go to one spot and they have bins for everything. Even Goodwill and paper products. You would be amazed at how much stuff is recyclable (tough word to say and type). It's pretty unbelievable how much stuff I was throwing away that can be recycled. Now, it's like an obsession I have....just ask my husband. Oh, and Nora's in on it too. She gets a thrill out of bringing stuff to the basket. Train 'em young!
Nora has suddenly started shunning milk. Within the past two weeks, she has been drinking less and less of her whole milk which I typically offer her with her meals. This is so weird to me because for the past two years, milk has been THE staple in her diet. When I think about it, it makes sense. She eats more food, so the milk isn't a necessity by any means. But, it's like she's gone cold turkey. I have a theory that the thickness of the whole milk is getting to her. It gets to me. I want to yack when I drink the stuff because it coats my throat it is so thick. She's been drinking lots more water and diluted juice, especially since it's so hot outside. We go to the doctor in a few weeks, so I'll ask then how important milk still is at this point.
Liam Piper. I must talk about my chunker boy! He is the sweetest, happiest little baby. He really only fusses when he is hungry and sleepy. Other than that, he is so content! Hard to believe that he'll be 4 months in just a few weeks. He isn't really doing too many tricks yet, but he coos and talks all the time, he laughs out loud, and he LOVES his hands and his burp cloth. I know, it's kinda funny. He is a spitter and drooler, so after feedings, if he's not being held, he's usually playing on a blanket or on his playmat or in his bouncy seat. So, I try to keep a burp cloth under his chin so he won't soak his outfit. This rarely works, by the way, because he LOVES the burp cloth. He hugs it. It's really so cute. But, I got to thinking that he could really use a lovie or something sweet and soft to cuddle, not a smelly ole burp cloth. I bought him one the other day, but he's only been able to use it about two times because his big sissy girl keeps taking it from him as her own.
Ok, enough of this nonsense.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
NEWSFLASH: Potty Edition
Nora "peeped" in the potty tonight for the very first time! It was hysterical! I was obnoxiously excited, and she was so proud of herself. We had just come inside from a walk and I was trying to get both kiddos in the tub. I've been randomly setting Nora on the potty a few times a day for a few minutes just to get her more comfortable with sitting on the potty. I keep hoping that one day she'll just go, but I'm not really trying to train her. Well, tonight, she went! I think the bath water running may have helped, but just as I was about to get her off and stick her in the tub she inhaled loudly and says, "I peeping." And, sure enough, she was! I must have said, "I'm so proud of you" a million times because when we called Aunt Amy and the grandparents to tell them, she kept repeating "Proud of you, proud of you." I didn't have any candy or M'n'M's on hand, so I grabbed some chocolate chips as a reward for her. That made her even more excited!
I am so proud of my big girl. Too bad Daddy wasn't home to witness it firsthand, but soon enough we'll be witnessing our girl "peeping" all the time.
I am so proud of my big girl. Too bad Daddy wasn't home to witness it firsthand, but soon enough we'll be witnessing our girl "peeping" all the time.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Too Big, Too Fast
My baby boy turned 3 months old on Tuesday! It is extremely hard to believe how quickly he is growing up. We are so in love with him and are absolutely loving how his little personality is just blossoming already. Just within the past week he has become quite the chatty boy. He coos and talks so happily and is constantly smiling. We are blessed with such a content baby boy who goes with the flow, loves to eat, and just keeps us smiling with his sweet nature.
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