Bye Bye Midnights, Bye Bye

Looks like I am saying goodbye to a lot of things lately. One of those being Midnight shifts! WOO.FINALLY.HOO! Although they are my favorite shift because there is no "brass" around, I am sad to say that I must let them go since I AM now the said "brass"! Oh how sweet it is! :o) I will be working my last "hoot" shift on Sept. 30th and will move to day time hours. I will be filling in on the hoot shifts if someone happens to call in sick or just decide that they need to be off because they said so type of thing (ughhh.....don't ask!) but I wont be working them full time anymore!

Nil desperandum, my dear! Across the desert lies the promised land!!!! Adieu, Alf Wiedersehen,Gesundheit, Farewell....said in my best Gene Wilder voice from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.. gosh I love that movie!



Oh and I have to add a must see!!! Tina Fey ROCKS! Dead ringer, if you ask me!

Out with the old, in with the new!

Goodbye, Old door! I will miss you!

Hello, New door! Thanks for making me smile!!

This door was not the one I picked out nor is it the one I ordered and expected to be installed today. They totally messed up the entire order including the storm door but after demanding that they fill the empty hole they created by destroying the old door when taking it out, I ended up with a better door than what I originally ordered. Yay for mistakes and the good things that come from them in the end!

That was a close one!

Whew! I thought I had locked myself out of my blog..... I have been trying to log in for 2 days now and wasn't smart enough to figure out what my password was... glad there was an "idiot" button to help me reset it! So yeah, my new laptop crashed and I have spent the last 2 days reformatting since Dell support couldn't help me fix it..."you will have to reformat since the OS files are corrupt beyond repair"... ugh! How it happened, I have NO CLUE. Luckily I was able to save all my files and pictures this time! Woo hoo, I didn't lose a thing (except passwords..........LOL)

FYI

Ok...........I must say that I kinda like a little OU action since I do live in Sooner Nation but to carry it over to my blog has been a little to much for me to handle. I WILL be choosing another layout soon! lol I can't handle it much longer! (give me a day or two).

Off to watch E's first Cheerleader event of the school year. She use to be in Cheerleading in 2-4th grades and would have continued but the private school I moved her to didn't offer it. This new private school she is attending this year does and she was just overjoyed. Needless to say, I warned her this morning as she was walking out the door that the momma paparazzi would be
making her appearance this evening and I didn't want to hear one complaint about it. hee hee

Stay tuned for pics!

Storms

I'm so incredibly sad! Galveston was hit hard! The pier in my previous picture is indeed gone! The destruction is massive. Having dealt with flooding in my own home (minor compared to this) I know what water can do but to experience it at that magnitude is beyond my comprehension. Thank God we live inland. Tornado's are one thing but add water to them and it's a whole new ball game. I keep thinking of a Casting Crowns song every time is see pictures of Galveston and Houston, not to mention the other smaller communities effected. It's called Praise you in this Storm. Here are the lyrics:

I was sure by now,God,
that You would have reached down
and wiped our tears away,
stepped in and saved the day.
But once again, I say amen
and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain,
"I'm with you"and as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God
who gives and takes away.

Chorus:
And I'll praise you in this storm
I will lift my hands for You are who You are
no matter where I am and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand
You never left my side and though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm.

I remember when I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to You and raised me up again
My strength is almost gone how can I carry on
if I can't find You
And as the thunder rolls I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"and as Your mercy falls I raise my hands
and praise the God who gives and takes away

Chorus

I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth!
I lift my eyes onto the hills
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth!

Chorus

So fitting If you ask me. This song constantly reminds me how much we NEED to rely on Him during our storms of life. How we need to thank him for the storms of life even through the tears and sorrow. Even though we are going through storms, He is still there whispering "I'm with you." and drawing us to Him. Lord, Help me to continue to praise you in my own storms of life!

P.S. My friends in Bryan, TX came through Ike without much damage but my aunt, uncle and cousins were also fortunate in a way. Their homes lost portions of the roofs and my aunts garage roof was caved in. My cousin's house had quite a bit of roof damage where it caved in at certain areas of the house but no standing water. The fences are gone and outside play sets are nowhere to be found. My aunt said that their housing addition was completely flooded except for her house and a couple of houses around them. It was a miracle. All of the damage is fixable. I'm just thankful that they are all safe. Houses, roofs, play sets fences, trees are all replaceable, their lives are not!

God be with Galveston!

I am glued to the TV! Having spent some wonderful times in the Houston area this summer and the Galveston area last summer, this storm really bothers me. I wish I weren't so obsessive with storms but when it comes to weather, I am. I can't help it. My prayers are non-stop for the people in the path of Ike! Waves are already at 20 ft crashing on the the sea wall. It just breaks my heart....:o( Hearing that there was a mandatory evacuation on Galveston Island and that only 50% have evacuated, just amazes me! What are these people thinking? Are their material things more important than their lives or the lives they are keeping there with them? Come on people, are you really wanting to drown? They are saying that tonight, Galveston Island will be under water for a period of time. Jamaica Beach and San Luis Pass is already flooded. Gosh I am so sad!

Here are a few pics I took when I was in Galveston. This is a monument along the seawall depicting a man holding his wife and child as the water rises. Its was placed in memory of the 1900 hurricane, the "Great Storm", that killed an estimated 6,000 and 12,000 individuals.

Once the"Great Storm" hit, Galveston realized that they needed a seawall to help prevent this again. Here is a picture that I took of the seawall from the water side.

Here is a pic of myself standing in front of the pier in Galveston. The one that the news keeps showing on TV and the same one that they say will not be there tomorrow. I'm just so sad!!!

God be with Galveston!

P.S. Please keep my friends and family safe. My aunt, uncle and cousins have evacuated their homes and offices in the Beaumont/Port Arthur area and are further inland near Tyler, Tx. I have some friends in Houston and in Bryan, Tx. Keep them in your prayers! Shelly, Todd and kids, I am praying ya'll stay safe!

Silence

We will never forget
9/11/2001

NEED I SAY MORE?

Look at me now!

Okay, so it's not such a secret! But the wait is finally over! I GOT PROMOTED! I am so happy! The phone call came early yesterday morning (well, 08:30, early for me). I had the ringer turned off in my bedroom since I am currently on midnight shift and sleep during the day and so I missed the call from HR! Thankfully the Troop Commander was kind enough to call my cell phone... Here was the conversation: Keep in mind that the TC is a very dry-sense-of-humor type of guy. He loves to try and make you think your in trouble all the time only to get you shaking in your boots then start laughing! He uses this "mean", very stern, disciplinary voice along with "the eye". I think it was one of those "If you keep doing that, your face will freeze like that" faces that momma always warned us about...lol There are days in which I never really know if he is serious or joking until then very end when he is either standing there just staring at you or stomping his feet with his head back, hand on his belly, laughing hysterically at the dumbfounded look on your face. Needless to say, this conversation was no different. At first I was like "crap, what did i do now?" then it turned into "Shut the front door so no one can see me jumping, screaming, rolling on the floor, excited, trying to be professional and hiding it until I got off the phone" reactions. You know, the ones where your so excited you could pee your pants! Anyways, here's how it went:

TC: Kami? (in his "mean" voice)

ME: Yeah

TC: What are you doing? (stern voice)

ME: Apparently not answering my home phone! (duh)

TC: Why? (disciplinary voice and I could almost see "the eye" through the phone)

ME: Because my ringer is turned off???? (meekly...lol)

TC: Why would you want to do that? (stern voice)

ME: So I could sleep? (duh again)

TC: Well, if you are gonna be a SGT then you can't turn off your ringer. You have to be available. (stern voice)

ME: Really? (trying to tame my excitement)

TC: Go turn on your ringer! CONGRATULATIONS!!! (insert the hysterical laugh here)

ME: WOO HOO! (yes i really said that out loud..lol This is also where I am hiding the fact that I am so excited that I feel the need to pee my pants...lol))

TC: It is also retro-active to Sept. 1, 2008.

ME: Wow, great! What do I do now? (What do I do now??? Of all things to say...lol I was trying to sound professional and obviously failed miserably).

TC: (Chuckling) Nothing, I will take care of the transition on the paperwork side of things and all you will have to do is step into the position! Congratulations again, you will do a good job!

ME: Thank you!

TC: Okay, see you tomorrow!!

ME: Okay, Bye! (instantly screaming "Thank you God, Thank you God" all the while, jumping up and down, raising my hands like a crazy woman!!!) It was really a site to see! I'm just thankful no one else did...lol!

Needless to say, I got nothing else accomplished the rest of the day because I turned on the ringer and my phone rang OFF THE WALL! It was a fun, crazy day!

Shhhh!

I gotta secret!

(and a bad picture..lol)