I looked out the window and saw...

the MAIL TRUCK!!! Woo-hoo! I BOUNCED down the stairs and swung open the door expecting a sack of mail...all the bills and junk that's been collecting in some warehouse high and dry somewhere. Nope! Just two measly envelopes for my daughter...AND...

A box from Lifetime Moments...stuff that I ordered two days before the hurricane! The entire household comes running so see why I'm so excited! (They think that I scared off the mailman and he'll probably never come back.)

Ahhhhhh! Glad to see that the important stuff is being delivered first! LOL!

School starts again...

For Kevin at least! I hope! Since St. Ann's was severely damaged by flooding and won't reopen until January, we signed him up at St. Rita's (which cousin Emily attends) and they reopen on Wednesday!!! Their sign-ups were supposed to begin at 8AM this morning...so of course I was there at 7:00! LOL! Two other parents were there already, but I think Kevin was the only Kindergartener. So, I'm crossing fingers that we'll get a call tomorrow! This year is so important. He should be reading soon and instead has only been to school 2 days before the storm. If he gets in, we'll keep him there the entire year. Whew...some sense of normalcy will be nice!

Going Home

Guess what we may be doing TOMORROW! We may go HOME! A friend went and checked our house and we have electricity now. Still under a boil water order and not sure about the sewerage facilities, but my dh and the kids decided that they want to go back anyway. The authorities have not said that we "can" go back but they are also not stopping anyone who does. While I was out looking for a laundromat this morning, the rest of the family decided this and is ready to "vote me off the island" if I don't agree. So...I think we're going to do it. I'm so tired of the wandering! The house we "were" going to rent here is not quite ready yet. GRRRR! This hotel thing is getting very old, and I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I can't wait to COOK a meal! Some of the groceries near our home are opening and although they still mostly have only canned goods, they will be getting fresh and frozen stuff in soon. Even tuna fish and crackers sounds good if I can eat it at my own table!

The authorities are inviting businesses back but are not saying anything to the homeowners and everyone is getting quite ticked to say the least. We're going to test the waters and try to get back in. I'm anxious to get back and tarp the roof and chimney. Good thing we haven't had any rain lately, because I don't know if we would get water damage from the missing shingles and sheared off chimney top. Then there's that tree leaning precariously against the house. I want to get moving on repairs! So that's the plan for now. Bye-bye Atlanta!

Off We Go!

We are heading out tomorrow for Atlanta. It will be easier to find housing there, and I can get the kids back in school and into some kind of routine. We're going to take it day by day.

Went to our house. Not bad at all! Our chimney top is in a neighbor's driveway, and the largest oak in our yard split and came crashing down, partly on the house...but miraculously did not appear to do any serious damage! The fence and our patio cover is history, and we'll need a new roof, but that's it! Everything just looks so weird! My mil didn't even recognize our street. then there's all those army guys with their AK47s! And choppers flying overhead every minute or two. Very eerie!

Of course, the city proper is a mess. Since Brendan and Christopher went to school in New Orleans I'm sure some of their friends and schoolmates lost their homes. It just gets worse from there, and I can't even think about what lies ahead for the city.

So off we go to Atlanta, praying to be back soon to a place that will be forever changed, but hopefully better and stronger than ever.

Seeking Housing

(LM Archives)

...in Houma, Thibodaux, Morgan City, Pontchatoula, Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Carencro, Brusly, Napoleonville, Plaquamine or etc. We are (10 of us) living with a single friend and need somewhere more permanent to land until we can live in our home again. Our situation is that our home was not destroyed, but we can't go back. Every home on the market has been sold in the entire unaffected SE LA. Please if you have any contacts, put the word out. Thanks so much!