Oh my, has it really been since January?

Wasn't there a post in February? Where did it go?

Okay, so do you want to hear my excuses? Probably not but here are just a few anyway.

1) I became the President of the Chattanooga Chapter of the American Payroll Association. The month of January was very busy as I worked to book speakers for our monthly meetings and kind of get things revved up.

2) My computer died and it's taken a while to get everything going again. My new computer has Vista. It's already been in the "shop" for repairs since then.

3) Even in the Winter I spend every possible moment outside. There is always work to be done in the yard.

Just a couple days ago I finally got my photos to download - though the videos still won't work. That's a bummer because the photos show what Abi is doing now so much better.

Speaking of Abi - she has accomplished so much in the last two months! She's fully crawling, pulling herself up onto anything vertical and walking with two finger support. Still photos just don't tell the story but that's all you're going to get for now.

Let's see, what else can I tell you about the last two months? Larry is working now. He started at the first of January and has been in training in Insurance Premium Auditing. It's a complex and difficult job. He has started doing audits of his own while studying and will gradually work up to a full load. He's happy for the work seeing as the unemployment rate continues to climb.

My job is going well. I made a trip to CT to learn more about our operations from the people who have been doing it a lot longer. Alstom continues to grow and built even through this economy. I'm loving my job.

I was invited to join the advisory board of Goodwill's new Assistance Dog Academy program. This is very exciting to see an assistance dog program come to Chattanooga!

Do you remember the greenhouse that Larry made for me last fall? It's serving it's purpose. In there right now are 9 Hosta's , 22 strawberries, a dozen Sweet Peas, and seedling trays for veggies and flowers. It's great!

Those are the highlights. Thanks for being patient.

Trip to CA

Right after Christmas I took a trip to CA to see my parents. My niece, Sarah, was there for a visit too. The four of us went to the Monterey Aquarium one day. These two photos (courtesy of Sarah) are from there.

Another day, Sarah and Dad (of course, she calls him Grandfather) went for a hike in Big Sur and another day (after I left) in Big Basin (in the Santa Cruz Mountains). My trip was 5 days but two were travel days, leaving only 3 full days in Salinas. They went by fast.

The trip was possible because my new employee was closed from Christmas Eve and until after New Years and because I had a free airline ticket with SW Airlines. Usually, in my field (payroll), there is no such thing as vacation at the end of the year so this was real treat.

Vacation is done now. Tomorrow I go back to a regular work schedule and Larry starts his new job tomorrow. He's very excited to be working again.

Merry Christmas

For an animated version of this card click the link below:
http://www.jacquielawson.com/viewcard.asp?code=1709951249578&source=jl999

Turbines

It's been almost two months since I started my new job with Alstom Power Turbomachines Group. I am enjoying it very much. The HR Director (my boss) is a great manager and he has put together a great team. We're super busy and working well together. I can't yet explain to you what this is a picture of but someday I expect I will. Right now, my best guess is this is the interior part of a turbine in the process of being built.

Part of our responsibility is to learn what our company, and specifically, our division actually does. We'll take info from wherever we can get it. One of those sources is from the National Geographic channel. Since it's available online I thought some of you might like to see a glimpse (along with me) my world at work (sort of). This episode of the "World's Toughest Fixes" (in the link below) highlights the replacement of a turbine in a nuclear facility. The new turbine they put in is one kind of turbine that we'll be making.

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/worlds-toughest-fixes/3342/Overview#tab-Videos/05748_00

I don't expect everyone to watch this... only those really interested. Here's a cut-away of a turbine. The photo below gives it perspective.

Precious Rain water!

Larry has been very busy lately.

For a long time now I've been looking at water barrels. Rain water is good for the garden. The plants like chlorine free water. Also, rain water is free! We can go weeks without rain sometimes and the garden gets very thirsty. I don't like to water because our sewer bill is based upon water usage, so if I use a bunch of water in August, I may pay all year long in higher sewer bills.

So, when I saw 250 gallon water tanks for sale on Craigs List for only $40 I showed it to Larry. To make a long story short - he purchased three of these tanks and installed them on the north side of our house - a side that has no windows and no appeal visually. It's also a side that's on a slope which elevates the tanks over the garden which will create a little water pressure for watering. All good stuff.

So... he gets them installed and that night it rains. It doesn't just rain a little... it rains over 2 1/2 inches! The tanks were full the next morning. Sadly, we got 2 inches the next night and I wasn't able to capture any of that. If it were practical I would like to install a whole bunch more! The good news is, our rain is spread out through out the year - more or less - so I'll have a good bit of water to put to use.

Here are some photos. They're worth a thousand words. I'll be planting something around and over them to help obscure them. Right now they stick out like sore thumbs!

Bathroom remodel update

Back in May (you can look back if you want) Larry started our master bath remodel. I am happy to say it is all done. I'm also happy to say that Larry did a wonderful job. It took a long time due to financial constraints but it is done! In the May blog entry I said I didn't have any before photos. Well... I was wrong. I remembered that I had taken photos of the house before escrow closed - back in 2006. Therefore - here are some before and afters.

The before shot, on the left, is looking through the bedroom door into the master bath "dressing area". Now - as shown in the photo on the right - the dressing area and closet are gone as is the wall that was separating this space from the bathroom. Now, there is no dressing area and the bathroom is one bigger room.

We took some square footage away from our extra large bedroom and Larry added closets with more space than we had before. I didn't take photos of that yet because they're waiting for doors and door jams. We'll save that for another entry (maybe).

The old combo tub/shower has been replaced by a whirlpool tub. See where the window is in the before and after photos? The window is above the tub, next to a wall ,because on the other side of this new wall, Larry put in a new laundry area. So - in essence, the new tub is where the toilet used to be and the washer and dryer are where the old tub had been.


The vanity used to be on the same wall as the tub/shower. Now, in that place is our toilet. See the cabinet above it? That passes through to the laundry area so I can wash & dry the towels, then fold them and put them on the shelf (from the laundry side) and wa-lah!, there are towels ready to go in the bathroom.

And finally, here's the dining room difference.

Before.., just a wall. Now, a laundry area. Sorry; I took the photo from a different vantage point. The fireplace hearth which you see in the before photo is just out of sight to my left in the after photo. Where the towels go is a can of paint so it's not 100% functional yet but that's a small thing. There are bi-fold doors there that are hard to see so the washer and dryer can be hidden from sight.

One more really great thing is a laundry "chute" from the bedroom to the laundry hamper. Isn't Larry clever?

Two weeks of catching up to do

The posts have been infrequent lately. Sorry about that. Now... all of a sudden I have some catching up to do.

First of all we just want to brag a bit about Chattanooga. As you know, the Tennessee River runs right through town. This week-end there was a big rowing competition centered at the downtown area. There is a great public gathering area right on the Riverfront.

Downtown has lots of fun things to do and great restaurants to boot. There is a walking bridge across the river which takes you to the North Chatt area with more restaurants and fun shopping. Coolidge Park is on the North shore.

There is a Merry-Go-Round there next to a kid-friendly fountain area. It's a great place to hang out. The kids love to cool off there in the summer. Bigger kids (like adults) use the big grass areas to play Frisbee or volleyball. There's also a small, steep hill just right for kids to sled down on cardboard sleds. What a great city we live in!

Two weeks ago, our friends (Carl and Karen)came for a visit. Since the fall weather is so nice we spent a good deal of time outside. We played Bocce in the back yard and then went to try our hand at Disc Golf.

Larry and I had recently discovered a course not far from home that is free!! Yes, we did spent a couple bucks on four discs but that's all it took to get us started. If you've never heard of Disc Golf it's a game similar to golf but instead of clubs and golf balls you toss a Frisbee type disc. Here the old guys are posing by "The Old Guys" sign by the 3 Hole (we just couldn't resist). You can see the shape of the course curving off to the left. There are distance and mid-range drivers as well as putters. This course is in the woods (as you can see from the photos). We've since visited another course and it was more in open. Either is fun. You can't quite see it (in the photo on the left) but the "hole" is an elevated basket (maybe if you click the photo it will give you a larger version and you'll be able to see the basket) with vertical chains around it to catch the disc.

Now, I can't go too long before making mention of Abi. She is 5 months old now and getting cuter every day. And we thought she was already a cutie pie!

Here's a short video as well. (When I get some photos from Laura of Abi playing in a pile of leaves I'll add that too.)




Finally (more bragging on the part of the country we live in) we visited Cloudland Canyon in GA, about 35 minutes from our house where we caught some great vistas. Enjoy.






Dogwood Tree

Shirley's new job

On Monday, I started a new job with Alstom Power as Human Resource/Payroll Coordinator. Alstom Power is a huge company, with 76,000 employees around the world. My little division is called Turbomachines Group and has 30 people in it right now. Eventually we'll have a few hundred employees who will build the largest turbo machines in the world. Can you imagine that? The construction for the manufacturing is under way and I had the priviledge to tour the grounds. They're converting a previous manufacturing facility with 4 huge bays, taking it down to the "bones" and then rebuilding from the ground up.

As with most new jobs, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with all there is to learn but I'm sure I'll do fine. It is very interesting as many employees have come from Europe and many others from outside Chattanooga. Instead of Southern accents I'm hearing French accents - and even French conversations! It's a big change.

Abi laughing

Is there anything more delightful than a baby's laugh? Click the play arrow to enjoy.

Abi is such a joy. I'm sorry for all her relatives who are not close enough to watch her grow. How blessed Larry and I are to have Ben, Laura and Abi here.

Videos of Abi

If pictures say a thousand words then perhaps videos say 10 thousand. Therefore, here are a couple videos of Abi. In the first video (very short) she's making little noises as her first means of communication. In the second video she's enjoy her style of a thrill ride (we think she's going to like theme parks).

August

Mind you, this is only our second August here in Chattanooga so it's hard to say, but this seems like a cooler than usual Month for an August. We've had very nice weather. For the last 10 days or so our highs have been in the upper 80's and lower 90's. Humidity has been low for the most part (not counting some days with a little storm activity).

Larry has taken this opportunity to build a greenhouse for me. We saw a show on TV where someone made a greenhouse out of used windows and I said "I like that!". That's all it took. Well, that and a window company very close to us that puts out the old windows that they remove when replacing old windows with new. Yes... he asked first if he could have them.

So, here's Larry working on the frame.

And... here's the structure with the windows and doors installed - all free. Eventually it will have a slanted roof. The two center windows at the back are hinged so they can be opened in the summer. It's about 8' x 12'. If you can, use your imagination with me and see it with greenery all around, even with a vine growing upon onto the roof. Not Ivy! Think something daintier with pretty flowers.

July - A big month for Abi

Isn't she cute?

She turned two months old on July 24th.

Ed & JoAnn were here for 3 full days last week, over the week-end. Together the 4 of us managed to spoil Abi fully. I believe she was held her every waking moment.

Last Sunday, an article about home births ran in our local paper. Abi and her parents were featured in the cover photo! Abi was quite proud of this as you can tell from the photo. :-)

She is beginning to respond to our attempts to engage her. Larry has been sticking his tongue out at her and she's gotten pretty good at sticking her tongue out in return. Here, Laura is playing the game with her.

America - Why I Love Her (Happy 4th of July)

This morning a heard this patriotic song on the radio. Apparently, it's been around for years but this is the first I've ever heard of it. Perhaps you've heard it before but just in case I looked for it and found it online and want to share with you. The lyrics are below but if you go to the link you'll hear John Wayne narrate it.

Oh how I would love to share photos from our trip to go along with the words because so much of what he touches on, we've seen. But, digital cameras are newer than our trip - at least for us - so sharing photos isn't happening this time. Besides, that would be way to many photos to fit in.

America - Why I Love Her

Words by John Mitchum

narrated by John Wayne

http://sagebrushpatriot.com/america.htm

"America, America, God shed his grace on thee..."
You ask me Why I Lover Her?

Well, give me time and I'll explain.

Have you see a Kansas sunset or an Arizona rain?

Have you drifted on a bayou down Louisiana way?

Have you watched a cold fog drifting over San Francisco Bay?

Have you heard a bobwhite calling in the Carolina pines,

Or heard the bellow of a diesel at the Appalachia mines?

Does the call of Niagara thrill you when you hear her waters roar?

Do you look with awe and wonder at her Massachusetts shore,

Where men who braved a hard new world first stepped on Plymouth's rock?

And do you think of them when you stroll along a new York City dock?

Have you seen a snowflake drifting in the Rockies, way up high?

Have you seen the sun come blazing down from a bright Nevada sky?

Do you hail to the Columbia as she rushes to the sea,

Or bow your head at Gettysburg at our struggle to be free?
Have you seen the mighty Tetons?

Have you watched an eagle soar?

Have you see the Mississippi roll along Missouri's shore?

Have you felt a chill at Michigan when on a winter's day

Her waters rage along the shore in thunderous display?

Does the word "Aloha" make you warm?

Do you stare in disbelief

When you see the surf come roaring in at Waimea Reef?
From Alaska's cold to the Everglades,

from the Rio Grande to Maine,

My heart cries out, my pulse runs fast at the might of her domain.

You ask me Why I Love Her?

I've a million reasons why:

My Beautiful America, beneath God's wide, wide sky.

Text from John Wayne (in his book by the same title as the song)

YOU ask me "Why I Love Her"? Well, I think it's pretty well explained with the words and music, but we can dwell a little more on it.

"From the mountains" (and we sure have them). The Adirondacks, the Catskills, the Cascades and the Great Smokies. The Grand Tetons, the Bitterroots, the Allegheny and the Blue Ridge. And let's not forget our Spanish sisters, the Sierra Madres and the Sierra Nevadas, and of course the big daddy of them all, the Rockies. No one in a lifetime could explore them all and I can't help but think of a few lines from a great song by Bob Nolan that the "Sons of the Pioneers" sing.

The desert breeze that brushed my hair,

The leaf that fell from who knows where,

The scent of wild flowers in the air,

Is just the touch of God's hand.

"To the prairie." Well, if you look westward from a Kansas prairie along about evening, you'll be amazed at what God can do with a sunset. Take a slow ride through Nebraska, stand in a field of tall Iowa corn or sample the cheeses of Wisconsin. Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Ohio--names and places that spring from some of the richest soil in our known world. Rivers like the Ohio and wide Missouri funnel their waters into the mighty Mississippi, which in turn carries much of the bountiful prairie harvest to a needy world. Rivers like the Cumberland, the Osage, the Platte.
The settlements that spring into cities because of rivers such as those are a pulsating heart of America: St. Louis, St. Paul, Natchez, Omaha, Louisville and New Orleans. Their names are a part of our heritage and they grow stronger with each passing year.

"To the oceans, white with foam." The Oregon Coast--unforgettable--awe-inspiring during a winter storm. Massachusetts, with its Marblehead and Martha's Vineyard. And how about rip-roaring, always-moving New York City? The Eastern shore with Delaware and its apple orchards making you wish you were a kid again. The pine forests of North Carolina and the southern peaches of Georgia. Seems to me they still set beauty standards all over the world.

Watch a Hawaiian island sunrise from the old Lahaina Inn or Maui. Go ahead! Dream of old whalers and island kings! In this country you're free to go any place you want to go. From the Florida Keys to Alaska, from Hawaii to Maine, Americans move freely within her border and there's no one going to stop you.

Sure you have to pay your dues--but walleyed pike are waiting for you in Minnesota; backpacking for free in Washington, and watermelon's ripe and juicy in Mississippi. Dig for oysters in Maryland or go after steelhead in Idaho. Try shooting the rapids on the Colorado or picking blueberries in Maine.

Try your country on for size. It's free and it's a big order. I've been doing it for years and I can never get enough of America.

Recent photos of Abi

Abi (short for Abigail and pronounced like Abby.) She is one month old today. The photos are mostly from the last few days.

In looking back at the announcement of Abi's birth on this blog I see I left out a great many details. You may not know that Abi was born at home; well, her grandparent's home to be exact. Laura went into recognizable labor about 9:00 Saturday morning and Abi was born at 4:25 (give or take a couple minutes) that afternoon. There was one tense moment that passed quickly (thankfully). Abi arrived healthy and well.

Now, with a home birth, things can be a little different than what you may be accustomed to. I say that to prepare you for this... The mid-wife package the placenta and suggested we plant it with a commemorative tree or shrub. We froze it until we were ready to do that. Ben & Laura purchased a small Red Japanese Maple and yesterday we planted it.

As you can see, though the tree is small, it is taller than Abi. It will be interesting to see which grows faster (we know the tree will be ultimately the tallest).

SportsBarn Bocce party

Yesterday was the big Bocce party. The new court got it's inaugural kick-off party with the gang from the Sportsbarn. Larry counted 30 people - including ourselves who came and stayed for anywhere from a hour to six hours.


The fact that anyone came... and stayed, amazes me because it was hot, hot, hot! I believe it topped out at 99 degrees and yet people came (about noon) and stayed till 6:00, playing out there in that heat for six hours! And for my Las Vegas friends, this was not a dry heat! I think the humidity hovered around 53% most of the day. Not as bad as some areas get but certainly not the 15% we were used to in the desert.




Anyway, it was fun. We grilled hot dogs and had trimmings like chili and slaw. Some wives came and brought salad or dip. All in all it was a very good day.

Stupid cold

When Abi is only 3 days old I catch a cold. The ironic part is that I haven't had a cold - or been sick for that matter - in years. What timing. I hate having the cold for the cold's sake but I must stay away from Abi which is awful. It's been nearly a week already and I'm not any where close to well. Fortunately for me (and only me) she sleeps most of the day and has her waking times at night. How familiar is that?

Ben & Laura sent some precious photos today so thought I'd share a couple.

Announcement... She's a Girl!

Abigail Bella Snell arrived 14 days early, much to Laura's delight. She was born Saturday, May 24th at 4:27 pm after less than 8 hours of labor. In this photo she's been in our world for about two hours. She weighed in at 6 lbs, 4 oz and she's 18" tall.