Saturday, April 19, 2008
First Professional Photos
We took Colton to Sears today for his first photo session.. I am really not into professional photos, I like the candid's beter, but, I wanted at least one sitting (and we got a coupon in the mail). They turned out really sweet. We got them all enhanced (borders, edges softened, black and whites etc) but on the CD they just copied the original shots. Krista is going to work on enhancing the cd images, but until then, I thought we could share these:
Just stuff
WHEW, it is the weekend! I really enjoy having Jett and Krista home!
Cyrus (also known as C-diddy .. that is his gangsta name... he LOOOVES rap!) came to visit us on his long trip from Biloxi to Albuquerque. As usual when he is here, we ate way too much. We had a birthday bbq to celebrate, except what kind of friend am I .. I had the date wrong! OOOPS.. I am sure he will forgive me! (I HOPE). We had steak, mashed potatoes, fresh corn, bread, deviled eggs, and TWO pies! WOW.. it was great. We played the WII and of course picked on each other the whole time. I hate that he is not moving to Louisiana, but Houston is not that far.. right?
We are excited for some upcoming trips.
Hopefully the first weekend in May we will meet up with Mom and Dad Walker in Houston to give them a "Colton" fix.. maybe catch a stro's game... who knows. . so long as we get to hang out we are good with that..
We are heading to Colorado in the middle of May to spend a week with our family. The parentals bought a house there and so all the kids are going to FINALLY get together.. I don't know when the last time Brit, Aric, Krista, Jett and I (AND COLTON) were all together.. too long. While we stay in contact via email and phone, it is not the same as hanging out... Plus, Aunt Brit has not met Colton.. we need to rectify that PRONTO!!
In June, we are going to Florida for a weekend to celebrate my birthday. My dad is going to meet us there, he said this is his birthday present to me, that is nice huh!!
In July, we will be back to Corpus for the 4th... as per our tradition! Kent and Preggo Sarah are going to make it down.. so that means LOOOTS of fun for us!
Then in September, we will head BACK to Ft. Sumner for the Kenyon's 25th Consecutive Family Reunion out at the lake.
November is Thanksgiving in Corpus.
And in December.... well, no Christmas plans yet.. but I know we will be celebrating a ONE YEAR anniversary of the baby boy!! WOW!
Hopefully we can catch up with all of our buddies on our trips.. so let us know if you are free and we will plan on meeting up.
I know it seems like a lot of traveling but when you are so far from family.. you will do whatever it takes.. hopefully one day we can all be closer.. til then, we will be on the road!
Love to all!
Cyrus (also known as C-diddy .. that is his gangsta name... he LOOOVES rap!) came to visit us on his long trip from Biloxi to Albuquerque. As usual when he is here, we ate way too much. We had a birthday bbq to celebrate, except what kind of friend am I .. I had the date wrong! OOOPS.. I am sure he will forgive me! (I HOPE). We had steak, mashed potatoes, fresh corn, bread, deviled eggs, and TWO pies! WOW.. it was great. We played the WII and of course picked on each other the whole time. I hate that he is not moving to Louisiana, but Houston is not that far.. right?
We are excited for some upcoming trips.
Hopefully the first weekend in May we will meet up with Mom and Dad Walker in Houston to give them a "Colton" fix.. maybe catch a stro's game... who knows. . so long as we get to hang out we are good with that..
We are heading to Colorado in the middle of May to spend a week with our family. The parentals bought a house there and so all the kids are going to FINALLY get together.. I don't know when the last time Brit, Aric, Krista, Jett and I (AND COLTON) were all together.. too long. While we stay in contact via email and phone, it is not the same as hanging out... Plus, Aunt Brit has not met Colton.. we need to rectify that PRONTO!!
In June, we are going to Florida for a weekend to celebrate my birthday. My dad is going to meet us there, he said this is his birthday present to me, that is nice huh!!
In July, we will be back to Corpus for the 4th... as per our tradition! Kent and Preggo Sarah are going to make it down.. so that means LOOOTS of fun for us!
Then in September, we will head BACK to Ft. Sumner for the Kenyon's 25th Consecutive Family Reunion out at the lake.
November is Thanksgiving in Corpus.
And in December.... well, no Christmas plans yet.. but I know we will be celebrating a ONE YEAR anniversary of the baby boy!! WOW!
Hopefully we can catch up with all of our buddies on our trips.. so let us know if you are free and we will plan on meeting up.
I know it seems like a lot of traveling but when you are so far from family.. you will do whatever it takes.. hopefully one day we can all be closer.. til then, we will be on the road!
Love to all!
Saturday, April 12, 2008
The Ferry
Before:
after:
Before
Different angle but you can see the crane to get a general idea..
All I can say is that the river is rising, rising, rising.. they opened up the Bonnet Carre spillway:
Local news says: NORCO, La.—The Army Corps of Engineers opened a spillway near New Orleans for the first time in 11 years on Friday in an effort to spare the city any flooding from the swollen Mississippi River.
Heavy rain in the Mississippi Valley prompted the decision to open the Bonnet Carre Spillway, about 30 miles north of New Orleans.
The corps said the spillway could be open for a month. Gov. Bobby Jindal, who gave the cue to open the spillway with a thumbs-up to workers, said corps officials assured him levees should hold and should not be topped.
In addition to helping guard against flooding, opening the spillway is meant to ease pressure on levees and make it safer for ships and barges to navigate the river. The Mississippi
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opens the Bonnet Carre Spillway north of New Orleans to relieve the high water in the Mississippi River, send the diversion into Lake Pontchartrain Friday, April 11, 2008. Heavy rains farther north, in the Mississippi Valley, prompted the decision to open the spillway for only the ninth time since 1937. The corps says the spillway could be open for up to a month. ((AP Photo/Times-Picayune Photo, Ted Jackson) )River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans is one of the world's busiest commercial waterways.
The river is typically high in spring as a combination of northern snow melt and rain in the U.S. heartland turns it into a rushing torrent of muddy water.
Despite the annual rising of the river, the corps seldom employs the spillway. Friday's opening was only the ninth since the spillway's construction in 1931.
The spillway diverts river water to Lake Pontchartrain, and from there into the Gulf of Mexico. The runoff from the river is not expected to significantly raise the level of the lake, but it is expected to affect plant and marine life as fresh river water pours into the brackish lake. The state plans to monitor its effects.
The spillway has 350 gated bays, each of which holds 20 large timbers—"needles"—that are removed by cranes to allow river water to flow through. The corps planned to open 38 bays initially, though Lt. Col. Murray Starkel said more could be opened if conditions warranted.
Corps engineers also opened some spillways Friday to release water into the already soggy White River basin from lakes swollen by recent rain in Arkansas and Missouri.
The corps began letting water out from Beaver, Table Rock and Norfork lakes, which dump water into the White River. The river rises in northwest Arkansas, flows north into Missouri, and then back south through Arkansas on its way to the Mississippi River.
Friday, April 11, 2008
More river pictures
YIKES. . . here is the river on April 10th.
And here it is this morning on April 11th. Notice that you can no longer see under the dock or whatever it is in the background.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
New Pictures of the River
Jett wanted me to post a couple new pictures so you can really see how much the river has risen.
This is Feb 9th:
This is today:
Keep checking back for more updates! It is very crazy how much it keeps going up. See my post from yesterday to read what the local paper had to say, and to get the link to the live webcam so you can check it out!
Thanks guys!
This is Feb 9th:
This is today:
Keep checking back for more updates! It is very crazy how much it keeps going up. See my post from yesterday to read what the local paper had to say, and to get the link to the live webcam so you can check it out!
Thanks guys!
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
The River
A couple of people have emailed or called to ask about the Mississippi River since they know Jett is working on it, so I thought I would give an update. Please see below the pictures for the newspaper write up on the river. As for Jett's job, here are a couple of pictures to show how much it has risen in a weeks time. If you want, you can save this website http://flatironcorp.oxblue.com/jjab/ as a favorite and you can check on the images.
On April 2nd, this is what it looked like:
And here it is today:
Here is what the Baton Rouge Newspaper published today: (Point Coupee Parish is the New Roads side of the river project that the bridge is connecting to)
"As water levels continue to rise, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has stepped up its monitoring of levees along the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers.
“We have moved up to our second phase of flood-fight activation which includes daily inspections,” said Eric Hughes, spokesman with the corps’ New Orleans District.
In other developments, some farmers in Pointe Coupee Parish lost their fight to keep their fields from flooding while state corrections officials may move prisoners from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola if conditions warrant.
As of Monday, corps staff are monitoring the levees along the Atchafalaya and Mississippi rivers in 12-hour shifts every day, Hughes said.
Areas of concern include any levee scouring on the river side or sand boils on the land side, which would indicate water pressure forcing water under the levee.
With the experience of floods in 1973, 1983, 1984 and 1997, corps staff know where these sand boils are traditionally found and where they might need to focus additional attention, said Lee Guillory, natural disaster manager for the corps, New Orleans District.
The New Orleans District is responsible for the approximately 760 miles of levees and floodwalls in the Mississippi River and Tributaries program that extend from Concordia Parish to the Gulf of Mexico, Guillory said.
So far, the corps hasn’t found any areas of concern along the levees, he said.
“Just the routine seepage areas and sand boils that we routinely see when the river gets high,” Guillory said.
A decision on whether to open the Bonnet Carré Spillway north of New Orleans to relieve high water pressure downriver is still under consideration, Hughes said.
In Pointe Coupee Parish, some farmers lost their battle to keep the rising water out of their fields.
From March 20 until Sunday, these farmers — with help from the community, businesses and the Louisiana National Guard — raised the levee with 4-foot square bags of dirt.
This 2.2-mile stretch of small levee is designed to let water into a holding area bordered by two large guide levees if the river reaches a certain height.
Marty Graham, one the farmers who use the property to plant wheat, soybeans and other crops, said they worked until Sunday evening but needed to pull equipment and people out of the area because of the danger.
“The river was coming up too fast,” Graham said.
Minor overtopping of the large dirt bags started Sunday, but by Monday there was major overtopping, he said.
On Tuesday, Gov. Bobby Jindal requested assistance for farmers in the spillway and asked the U.S. secretary of agriculture to declare Pointe Coupee Parish a disaster area and for USDA benefits to be made available.
In Baton Rouge, levees continue to be monitored daily by the city-parish, which has jurisdiction over about 2 miles of levee from downtown to just north of LSU, and the Pontchartrain Levee District, which has jurisdiction along the east bank of the river from north of LSU through St. Charles Parish.
The river is forecast to crest in Baton Rouge at 41 feet April 16. During the last major high water event, in 1997, the river crested at 43.8 feet, according to the National Weather Service.
Since March 24, Pontchartrain Levee District staff have submitted daily inspection reports to the corps, said Monica Salins, executive director of the levee district.
They haven’t found any problems, she said.
The district also has maintenance crews, levee district police and people who live along River Road keeping an eye on possible levee problems, she said.
River traffic on the swollen river is being monitored and directed in part through a traffic control center in downtown Baton Rouge, said Chief Matthew Valenti, public affairs officer with the U.S. Coast Guard Baton Rouge.
There are some restrictions on river traffic on things like necessary engine horsepower and how many barges can be moved by a vessel, but so far things are going smoothly, he said.
Karen St. Cyr, a spokeswoman for the Port of Greater Baton Rouge, said the high water has not affected any of the port’s facilities.
The state Department of Public Safety and Corrections and the Louisiana Sheriffs Association are working on a plan to move prisoners from Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola to other prisons if the river threatens their safety.
After the river’s 1997 record crest of 61.3 feet at Red River Landing near Angola nearly blew out the prison’s levees, the state and the Corps of Engineers strengthened and raised the flood protection structures.
Angola spokeswoman Cathy Fontenot said the levees are 66 feet high, but since they have not been seriously tested by a major flood, officials have decided to move inmates if the river reaches 63 feet at Red River Landing.
The river is forecast to crest in the area at 58.5 feet April 16, but Fontenot said prison officials are waiting to see if the forecast is revised upward.
West Feliciana Parish Sheriff J. Austin Daniel said the public should understand that Angola inmates will not be evacuated to parish jails.
Only state prisoners who pose less of a security risk will be moved to parish jails to make room for Angola prisoners in other state prisons, he said."
On April 2nd, this is what it looked like:
And here it is today:
Here is what the Baton Rouge Newspaper published today: (Point Coupee Parish is the New Roads side of the river project that the bridge is connecting to)
"As water levels continue to rise, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has stepped up its monitoring of levees along the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers.
“We have moved up to our second phase of flood-fight activation which includes daily inspections,” said Eric Hughes, spokesman with the corps’ New Orleans District.
In other developments, some farmers in Pointe Coupee Parish lost their fight to keep their fields from flooding while state corrections officials may move prisoners from the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola if conditions warrant.
As of Monday, corps staff are monitoring the levees along the Atchafalaya and Mississippi rivers in 12-hour shifts every day, Hughes said.
Areas of concern include any levee scouring on the river side or sand boils on the land side, which would indicate water pressure forcing water under the levee.
With the experience of floods in 1973, 1983, 1984 and 1997, corps staff know where these sand boils are traditionally found and where they might need to focus additional attention, said Lee Guillory, natural disaster manager for the corps, New Orleans District.
The New Orleans District is responsible for the approximately 760 miles of levees and floodwalls in the Mississippi River and Tributaries program that extend from Concordia Parish to the Gulf of Mexico, Guillory said.
So far, the corps hasn’t found any areas of concern along the levees, he said.
“Just the routine seepage areas and sand boils that we routinely see when the river gets high,” Guillory said.
A decision on whether to open the Bonnet Carré Spillway north of New Orleans to relieve high water pressure downriver is still under consideration, Hughes said.
In Pointe Coupee Parish, some farmers lost their battle to keep the rising water out of their fields.
From March 20 until Sunday, these farmers — with help from the community, businesses and the Louisiana National Guard — raised the levee with 4-foot square bags of dirt.
This 2.2-mile stretch of small levee is designed to let water into a holding area bordered by two large guide levees if the river reaches a certain height.
Marty Graham, one the farmers who use the property to plant wheat, soybeans and other crops, said they worked until Sunday evening but needed to pull equipment and people out of the area because of the danger.
“The river was coming up too fast,” Graham said.
Minor overtopping of the large dirt bags started Sunday, but by Monday there was major overtopping, he said.
On Tuesday, Gov. Bobby Jindal requested assistance for farmers in the spillway and asked the U.S. secretary of agriculture to declare Pointe Coupee Parish a disaster area and for USDA benefits to be made available.
In Baton Rouge, levees continue to be monitored daily by the city-parish, which has jurisdiction over about 2 miles of levee from downtown to just north of LSU, and the Pontchartrain Levee District, which has jurisdiction along the east bank of the river from north of LSU through St. Charles Parish.
The river is forecast to crest in Baton Rouge at 41 feet April 16. During the last major high water event, in 1997, the river crested at 43.8 feet, according to the National Weather Service.
Since March 24, Pontchartrain Levee District staff have submitted daily inspection reports to the corps, said Monica Salins, executive director of the levee district.
They haven’t found any problems, she said.
The district also has maintenance crews, levee district police and people who live along River Road keeping an eye on possible levee problems, she said.
River traffic on the swollen river is being monitored and directed in part through a traffic control center in downtown Baton Rouge, said Chief Matthew Valenti, public affairs officer with the U.S. Coast Guard Baton Rouge.
There are some restrictions on river traffic on things like necessary engine horsepower and how many barges can be moved by a vessel, but so far things are going smoothly, he said.
Karen St. Cyr, a spokeswoman for the Port of Greater Baton Rouge, said the high water has not affected any of the port’s facilities.
The state Department of Public Safety and Corrections and the Louisiana Sheriffs Association are working on a plan to move prisoners from Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola to other prisons if the river threatens their safety.
After the river’s 1997 record crest of 61.3 feet at Red River Landing near Angola nearly blew out the prison’s levees, the state and the Corps of Engineers strengthened and raised the flood protection structures.
Angola spokeswoman Cathy Fontenot said the levees are 66 feet high, but since they have not been seriously tested by a major flood, officials have decided to move inmates if the river reaches 63 feet at Red River Landing.
The river is forecast to crest in the area at 58.5 feet April 16, but Fontenot said prison officials are waiting to see if the forecast is revised upward.
West Feliciana Parish Sheriff J. Austin Daniel said the public should understand that Angola inmates will not be evacuated to parish jails.
Only state prisoners who pose less of a security risk will be moved to parish jails to make room for Angola prisoners in other state prisons, he said."
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Happy Thursday
Cheese and Rice (Nick Nick always says that) I can't believe it is already APRIL!! Colton is 3 months old already, it seems like Jett just brought us home from the hospital.. YIKES.
As you can tell from my emails, we have one happy baby. Colton thinks that his mommy is the funniest person ever.. it does not matter what I am telling him, his face just lights up and he starts to giggle. Krista has been around to video it.. sometimes I try but as you can see from the drum video I emailed, it is hard to entertain and video at the same time..
Is anyone else watching Big Brother... or Survivor??? Who are ya rooting for?
Our days are getting a little more into a routine and Colton is really showing his love to me by USUALLY sleeping from about 7 30 or 8 pm til about 5 30 or 6! It is great to get that sleep. And he is all smiles when I go to get him up... I am crossing my fingers that the colic is LOOOOOOOOONG GONE!!
Krista had a spring fling at the college and since she is Ms. BRCC she had to help work it. She forgot sunscreen:
Don't worry, we certainly had a "discussion" about the importance of sunscreen and she knows she should have worn some.. hopefully she learned her lesson, and if not, she will be sporting a sexy farmers tan all summer to remind her of it HA HA
Hope all is well with you guys!
As you can tell from my emails, we have one happy baby. Colton thinks that his mommy is the funniest person ever.. it does not matter what I am telling him, his face just lights up and he starts to giggle. Krista has been around to video it.. sometimes I try but as you can see from the drum video I emailed, it is hard to entertain and video at the same time..
Is anyone else watching Big Brother... or Survivor??? Who are ya rooting for?
Our days are getting a little more into a routine and Colton is really showing his love to me by USUALLY sleeping from about 7 30 or 8 pm til about 5 30 or 6! It is great to get that sleep. And he is all smiles when I go to get him up... I am crossing my fingers that the colic is LOOOOOOOOONG GONE!!
Krista had a spring fling at the college and since she is Ms. BRCC she had to help work it. She forgot sunscreen:
Don't worry, we certainly had a "discussion" about the importance of sunscreen and she knows she should have worn some.. hopefully she learned her lesson, and if not, she will be sporting a sexy farmers tan all summer to remind her of it HA HA
Hope all is well with you guys!
Friday, April 4, 2008
Very Sad...
I don't use this blog to spout off my opinions, I generally just use it to update you guys on Colton and things going on in the family. Today is the exception, so please forgive me if you do not agree with what you are about to read.
First off, let me just say, I am not a HUGE Oprah fan. I will watch her shows if Colton is sleeping on me or eating at that time. I DVR it and delete many shows without watching, but occasionally I will hear Kidd Kraddick (radio DJ) talk about a show.. and I will try to watch it..
So today, I am flipping through and it is on. And this was about the saddest thing I have seen in so long...
It was all about Puppy Mills.. I really had not heard of them, or maybe I had heard but never really thought much about them. So, if you are like me, let me just give a quick explaination.
These idiot people take pure bred dogs and breed them OVER AND OVER AND OVER, in order to sell the puppies and make money off of them. Lisa Ling did an undercover investigation and the conditions that these dogs lived in was ATROCIOUS.. dogs in wire cages who had NEVER stepped foot on grass, filthy, dirty, begging for attention. Female dogs whose nipples had tumors on them from too many feedings. The fur is matted, eyes are sad, I could just go on and on and on and on.
So, after the puppies are born, the idiots take them to the morons at the petshops OR they sell them online... pure bred are extremely marketable.. especially the small little cute puppies.
Then we, hopefully ignorant (I cannot imagine that I would know anyone who knowingly would buy a puppy from these conditions) purchase the puppies which in turn encourages these breeders to continue what they are doing.
What Oprah showed on TV was horrible, was heart wrenching.. like she said, even if you are not a pet lover, if you are just a HUMANE person, you will feel. She had a man on the show who founded a shelter that tried to adopt. Did you know that you can find pretty much any breed, any age at a shelter? You just have to do your research and you can find the puppy.
I just want to really encourage you if you are in the market for a puppy, to please please PLEASE consider going to a shelter. Also, if you already own a dog (or three like us) You should have them spayed or neutered (Do I sound like Bob Barker?)..
If you go to www.OPRAH.com, you can see more info. Please check it out.
Sorry to go off, this just really upset me.
Love
Shauna
First off, let me just say, I am not a HUGE Oprah fan. I will watch her shows if Colton is sleeping on me or eating at that time. I DVR it and delete many shows without watching, but occasionally I will hear Kidd Kraddick (radio DJ) talk about a show.. and I will try to watch it..
So today, I am flipping through and it is on. And this was about the saddest thing I have seen in so long...
It was all about Puppy Mills.. I really had not heard of them, or maybe I had heard but never really thought much about them. So, if you are like me, let me just give a quick explaination.
These idiot people take pure bred dogs and breed them OVER AND OVER AND OVER, in order to sell the puppies and make money off of them. Lisa Ling did an undercover investigation and the conditions that these dogs lived in was ATROCIOUS.. dogs in wire cages who had NEVER stepped foot on grass, filthy, dirty, begging for attention. Female dogs whose nipples had tumors on them from too many feedings. The fur is matted, eyes are sad, I could just go on and on and on and on.
So, after the puppies are born, the idiots take them to the morons at the petshops OR they sell them online... pure bred are extremely marketable.. especially the small little cute puppies.
Then we, hopefully ignorant (I cannot imagine that I would know anyone who knowingly would buy a puppy from these conditions) purchase the puppies which in turn encourages these breeders to continue what they are doing.
What Oprah showed on TV was horrible, was heart wrenching.. like she said, even if you are not a pet lover, if you are just a HUMANE person, you will feel. She had a man on the show who founded a shelter that tried to adopt. Did you know that you can find pretty much any breed, any age at a shelter? You just have to do your research and you can find the puppy.
I just want to really encourage you if you are in the market for a puppy, to please please PLEASE consider going to a shelter. Also, if you already own a dog (or three like us) You should have them spayed or neutered (Do I sound like Bob Barker?)..
If you go to www.OPRAH.com, you can see more info. Please check it out.
Sorry to go off, this just really upset me.
Love
Shauna
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