From My Camera

Usually Jeff is the one to take the photos on his spiffy camera but once in awhile I try to "capture the moment" so to speak. Here are a few moments recently.

We had prepared the basement stairwell for flooding before Hurricane Irene arrived: sand bags, duct tape, plastic, etc and we were happy to say the basement stayed dry! But a couple of weeks...or was it just one week later?...Jeff was in Argentina and the effects of Katiya began to pour down with fury one night about 1 am. I was in bed wide awake listening to the fierce downpour. I kept arguing with myself, "Go check the basement. NO! Go check the basement! Don't want to!" Finally, it was like God said very quietly to me, "You really need to go check the basement." So I got up and went. Remember Jeff is in Argentina. It was about 1:30 am when I got down there to find the tile by the door was a puddle and when I knelt down to wipe up the water my knees were drenched on the carpet. I ran and got every towel I could find and began to mop up but as fast as I mopped more water came in. I ran and got a bucket and a mop and tried that but the puddle in the carpet grew and grew. It was WET!!! Ok, now it's 2 am and the down pour has lessened. I decided I HAD to go out and unclog the drain in the stairwell. I pulled on some clothes and shoes, found my tiny flashlight, and went out in the steamy night air. I had to dodge the fallen rose bush arbor that had gone over during Irene and slosh through the mud to the stairwell and down to ankle deep water. I was able to clear the very little amount of debris and leaves that had clogged the drain and keep clearing it till all the water drained. Back inside to mop up as much of the water drenching the carpet near the door. Fortunately, it was about a three foot square area. Every towel in the house helped me and I just kept stomping on the towels on the floor and dumped them in my bucket till I had gotten the worst of it up. I lugged the sopping wet towels to the laundry room tub and wrestled with the dehumidifier we had just stored away in the storage area back into Tim's room. Got it going and went back to flop on my bed exhausted. I texted Jeff at 3 am just because I needed to share my fun with him, "Do you know how many leaves it takes to clog the drain and have water flood into the basement? Three!" Jeff happened to be awake to he texted back, "I'm sorry"...so we texted back and forth...thank goodness for texting since we couldn't talk on the phone! I had the sympathy I needed and fell fast asleep! The next day I learned that so many people had it really bad and roads were literally washed away. My puddle was nothing! Oh, and the dehumidifier did the job! We did not have to pull up the carpet! I'm so thankful I checked the basement!

Here's the washed and dried stack of towels ready and waiting if needed again. When Jeff got home we moved the dresser to make sure all was dry underneath.

Another moment when we moved Tim a week later...

I took pictures of Tim and Jeff moving his washer and dryer. You know you are an adult when you own a washer and dryer!

And the washing machine!

The truck is loaded!

Jeff and I stayed at the Holiday Inn right on the ocean in Corpus Christi. This was our view each morning as we ate our breakfast. It was sticky and hot even with the ocean. The wind blew constantly so it keeps you "cool".

Here's Tim and one of his room mates since January, Kyle. Kyle is a Marine and he got C-130's so he'll be staying in Corpus for his next phase of training. The guys are standing in the empty lot next to their house which backs up to a canal. Kyle and Tim were great partners in crime in the kitchen we hear!

Crafting Fun!

For those of you who know me well you know how much I love Mary Engelbreit. She is the queen of cute! I have wanted to bring ME "cute" to my laundry/craft room 'cause that's the only place I could decorate with pink! I spend a lot of time in there crafting. It's my therapy! Now I LOVE walking into such a bright fun space.

I love walking in to be greeted by the fun skirt on the ugly wash tub...much better!

The back of the sewing machine desk no longer looks like the back of a desk!

Above the double doors I had fun with pink stripes. ME art with black and white polka dots...that's the common thread through out...black with white polka dots! I painted around the edge of the cupboard doors. No more 80's oak trim! Padded picture boards are attached to the doors waiting for grand kid photos for inspiration! Baskets above hold almost all of my fabric...color coordinated!

Jeff hung the shelf above the dryer for me. I think I'll put rags and work towels in the pink baskets. The curtain covers up the ugly water hoses to the washer.

Cricut and Sizzix organization...paint...and ribbon! All easy to use!

First project in my spiffy craft room: apple garland and chunky apples I've had for years...finally painted!

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Naval Air Station Corpus Christi

I wanted to quickly upload some photos of our trip to visit Tim. We leave today but thought the grandparents would enjoy these photos. Tim took us on a tour of the base which in all honesty is just ugly! The part that is important looks good...the planes! Tim showed us up close and personal the T-34 that he learned to fly. Notice no hats while out there due to the fact if they blow away it's not a good thing for airplanes! He was a part of the Boomers Squadron.

Note: after viewing the pictures I see that each set of two photos that I uploaded are backwards....second one happened first; first one happened second. But, you get the idea! No time to fix right now!

On Wednesday we loaded the truck and moved Tim to Kingsville which is an hour away from Corpus Christi. Unloaded there and drove the truck back to Corpus where Tim is still living till he goes to NAS Lemoore, Calif. next week for centrifuge training.

Tim and Alison!

Tim finished his primary flight training to be a Navy pilot at the end of August. That means he got to come home for a long Labor Day weekend! We had not seen him since Christmas and he hadn't been back to Annapolis for just under a year. New twist to this trip was that he was joined by his girlfriend, Alison Kramer! Tim arrived Wednesday evening and Alison flew in from Kansas City Thursday night. She works and lives there in the area so they have had a long distance relationship which made for a fun reunion for them in Maryland. We were pleased to meet Alison in person. She's so easy to have around and we got to know her over the time here. One of my favorite times was when she wanted to look in all the old photo albums and see Tim's earlier years! Alison is a delight! Here are some photos from their time here.

We toured USNA. Jeff and I got to tag along!

They went for a run. Tim said she had quite a kick at the end!

A nice dinner date on the Severn River!

Hanging out in watching TV!

And then it was time to say good bye. Alison said, "You should take a picture with your mom!" Sweet! They flew to Kansas City since Alison had to go back to work and Tim stayed till Thursday then flew back to Corpus Christi, Texas for the last couple of weeks attached to that base before moving to Kingsville, Texas for jet training.