T. D. V. F. D.

This is amazing. Seems like it was only a few years ago that we were taking two little boys to ride the fire trucks on the 4th of July...and this was one of them! Now he is going to be riding the fire truck as a district volunteer, hopefully readying for a career on the NOFD!

Every Independence Day, the 3rd District offers fire truck rides in the neighborhood, and every year the lines get longer. Thank goodness for the boy scouts who hand out complimentary snoballs to the melting masses!

Beachy Keen

Whew! It's exhausting playing at the beach and in the pool ALL DAY FOR A WEEK! LOL!

The kids went nonstop, savoring every minute of playtime, taking time out only to eat. Kevin takes a short break and dries off before lunch.



Then it's back out to play. Two of the "three musketeers" pose on the steps leading up to our porch.



Many of the kids learned to SURF and it looked like so much FUN!



Ahhh...I'm missing the place already.

Save Money, Live Better

Brendan got a job...at WalMart! He had us in stitches telling us about it. It's a brand new store (opening end of June) and I can just imagine the application pool in these parts, so when they saw a well-spoken graduate of an area private school, they jumped all over him. He was interviewed by one person, who called in another person, who called in the store manager, and he was offered the job as assistant grocery department manager! He has since declined the management position, but will take another position in the store while waiting for the next NOFD recruit class.

He decided on the New Orleans fire department because they will work around school schedules. He can get an associates degree in fire science at the community college. THEN, after 3 years on NOFD, they will pay 70% of his tuition to Tulane. Then who knows...maybe fire chief! LOL!

He's the real schemer in this family. Always a plan. He joined the volunteer fire department down the street for the experience and the possibility that he could land one of the paying positions as a second job sometime in the future! His mind never stops. It wears me out trying to keep up with what he's got going!

Nassau, Bahamas

Paradise! In fact, our hotel was located on Paradise Island! Palm trees, white sand beaches, and the turquoise blue Caribbean. Our room looked down on one of over a dozen pools.

The view from our balcony:



The grounds were impeccably landscaped with water features holding plants and creatures (sharks, stingrays, etc.)! The water lilies were gorgeous:



We toured the city area and I saw it all through the lens of my camera and the tinted window of a bouncing bus. It appears that there are no speed limits, simply " suggestions"! Any photos captured are considered lagniappe!

Conch fritters and conch salad are two of the island's regional specialties. See the shells on the table behind this vendor? They give us the main ingredient for those dishes. :)



A church with attached grave yard:



The original church building of St. Francis Cathedral...I think?



I spotted this derelict building on the way in from the airport and had to seek it out to photograph. Love all the tropical color and, of course, the character of its worn exterior.



Just a shuttered window on a cement building...



I'm going to miss this place!

Cool Action

Yeah! I figured out how to add and execute "actions" in Photoshop Elements and promptly gave this contemporary photo of Destrehan Plantation a vintage postcard look.

Whatever!

I couldn't resist creating an Obamicon with this photo of Kevin. His exasperated expression is too funny. The teenage years are going to be soooo much fun...NOT!



[DISCLAIMER: This image is in no way a statement of my political views, or my son's, one way or the other!]

You can create your very own 4-color poster in the style of Shepard Fairey by going to http://obamiconme.pastemagazine.com/. Upload a photo, choose a message, and be "Obamiconed"!

River Road Ramble

Today, I had to drive down River Road to pick up Chris' retainer from the ortho's Destrehan office. Since we weren't rushed on the ride home, I let Chris drive while I snapped photos through the windshield of the van. These three distinct pieces of architecture were my favorites:



Tourist destination, Destrehan Plantation, is surrounded by moss-draped oaks.



In contrast, a rundown and rusted tin-roofed shack sits alone in a field.



And finally, the old Kenner High School, has a certain charm of its own.