I've been gone for awhile! I started this blog as an experiment, half-heartedly, but when I found out I was pregnant in April 2009, I completely lost interest in it! There is no way I'll be able to fill in all the blanks for the past 5 years, so I'll stick with a brief update. George Matthew was born on January 6, 2010, and turned our lives completely upside down. The past three years have been eye openning, wonderful, exhiliarating, exhausting. And they have been such a blessing! The next 10-20 years are sure to be an adventure, and I'm looking forward to the journey! I'll post some pictures soon!
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Landscaping and Football
We're still working on it, but the patio is a little closer to complete! We spent Saturday through Monday in the yard hauling bricks, digging, and leveling to complete the retaining wall. The remainder has been partially complete for over two years.
Above: checking the leveling of the bricks?
The next step will be to finish the patio bricks next to the retaining wall, and then we'll worry about building stairs down to patio level. Next weekend, we're off to Mississippi State for the Auburn game, and the weekend after that, we'll be headed to Auburn for LSU! War Eagle!
I think I promised some photos from Grace's 80th Birthday Party, so here are a few:
Above: Shirley, Grace, Lamar, & Gloria, Below: me, Melanie, Shirley, Grace, Lamar, Gloria, Stacey, Angela (an attempt to get all the cousins in, but we were missing several in the end)
Below: Orville, Grace, Doris, Jackie, Catherine
Above: Emily and Jessica, Below: the men's table
Above: Goofing off.
We attempted to go to the condo for Labor day weekend and relax, but Hurricane Gustav cut us short. Sunday morning, the storm had gotten too close for comfort, so TK decided he needed to go back to Fowl River to secure the Bobbin' Along (the big boat) and anything else in the yard. At that point, all of Mobile Bay was projected to surge 6-9 feet. The house is built about 18 ft above sea level if I remember correctly, and we decided to drive back to the river and help out. We ended up staying Sunday night (and I worried about traffic Monday morning. What if the storm took an unexpected swing northward?) But Sunday was relatively relaxing, considering the circumstances. We flew a kite, in an unorthodox way (TK showed us a "new" trick). Nick helped out with the yard. And several of the neighbors ended up coming over around 7pm to visit. Strange, but it was nice to have company.
Monday morning turned out to be a breeze for the parent's area on Fowl River. The surge turned out to be less than 4 ft, I believe. I took some before and "after" photos of the dock. The wind gusts weren't that bad either, so Nick and I packed up and left by 10am that morning.
Above: Water level before the storm
Above: Surge level as of 10am Monday. Water level was at the same height as the planks on the deck. Notice a few trees are submerged at the base of the trunk.
Above: Shirley, Grace, Lamar, & Gloria, Below: me, Melanie, Shirley, Grace, Lamar, Gloria, Stacey, Angela (an attempt to get all the cousins in, but we were missing several in the end)
Below: Orville, Grace, Doris, Jackie, Catherine
Above: Emily and Jessica, Below: the men's table
Above: Goofing off.
We attempted to go to the condo for Labor day weekend and relax, but Hurricane Gustav cut us short. Sunday morning, the storm had gotten too close for comfort, so TK decided he needed to go back to Fowl River to secure the Bobbin' Along (the big boat) and anything else in the yard. At that point, all of Mobile Bay was projected to surge 6-9 feet. The house is built about 18 ft above sea level if I remember correctly, and we decided to drive back to the river and help out. We ended up staying Sunday night (and I worried about traffic Monday morning. What if the storm took an unexpected swing northward?) But Sunday was relatively relaxing, considering the circumstances. We flew a kite, in an unorthodox way (TK showed us a "new" trick). Nick helped out with the yard. And several of the neighbors ended up coming over around 7pm to visit. Strange, but it was nice to have company.
Monday morning turned out to be a breeze for the parent's area on Fowl River. The surge turned out to be less than 4 ft, I believe. I took some before and "after" photos of the dock. The wind gusts weren't that bad either, so Nick and I packed up and left by 10am that morning.
Above: Water level before the storm
Above: Surge level as of 10am Monday. Water level was at the same height as the planks on the deck. Notice a few trees are submerged at the base of the trunk. The trip home on I-65 was eerie. I've never, ever, seen I-65 that empty on a weekend. It made for a peaceful trip!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Summer in Southport, NC
I'm not really here for long, but the few days I've been in Southport have been hot and humid. Average 97 degrees and ~100% humidity. Okay, I really don't know what the humidity actually is right now, but it's certainly not comfortable. Luckily, I've been inside an air conditioned room for the majority of the week, poring over program documents for 10 hours a day, scouring them for inacuracies and recommending improvements. That's the work side. I was asked by one of Southern Nuclear's utility counterparts to help out as an industry peer during one of their assessments this week, and I have to say, the Brunswick Plant is a nice place. The atmosphere is beautiful here, and the people are typical Carolinians; they go out of their way to make you feel at home.
I still miss home. It wouldn't matter if I were home though. Nick is currently at Plant Farley for work. We've both got alot of travel on our plates the next few weeks, unfortunately. I'll get back on Thursday to Birmingham, and the next Monday I'll be picking up a rental car to drive to Greenville, SC for a different assignment. Nick spend most of last week in Chicago for an industry meeting. Lately, I just feel like I need a lot less food and a lot more sleep. I'd be satisfied if I just had a little more time with my husband.
I really wish I had my camera on me this week in Southport, because the view over the intracoastal waterway is breathtaking. There's a long stretch of marsh on the other side, and on the near side is a marina full of rather large boats. Southport is a pretty small and remote town, with an off-season population of only about 2600. Only I can't help but wonder how much property is around here right now. :)
When we're both finally home this weekend, we'll be gearing up quickly for a bowling event Saturday morning in support of Junior Achievement in birmingham. So far, I've raised $235 for the event, and Nick's raise $165. I think our combined goal is supposed to be $500, so we're a little behind the curve I guess. We do what we can though. If anyone's interested in donating, my dontation page is: http://www.firstgiving.com/delisapournaras1.
We also have a birthday party at Stephanie's and David's house to attend on Saturday. We were so happy to sell our "extra" grill to them, and wouldn't miss it's first test. It should be plenty of fun!
Oh, before I forget! Today is my grandmother Grace's 80th birthday! We had a birthday bash for her at her house in Fairhope last Sunday. Very stressful for Mom, and therefore for me too, but worth it by a long shot. Mom always goes all out for parties, and by the time she was through planning, we had a full 4 course meal planned for almost 40 people. I'm not much of a cook, but I helped out wherever I could on Saturday, helping out with the crab bisque, spinach rolls, and baked beans. That combination sounds strange together, I know. But put it with some crab dip and crackers, fried snapper, grits and hush puppies, and it's sensational! I ate myself sick and was miserable the rest of the night while traveling to Southport. Again, well worth it!
It was so nice to see the family together again. I got several pictures while there, but I don't have them with me to post right now. I thought it was more important to go ahead and post something, rather than wait another 4 months. I've been a bit blog-shy I guess. I'll have to work on that...
I still miss home. It wouldn't matter if I were home though. Nick is currently at Plant Farley for work. We've both got alot of travel on our plates the next few weeks, unfortunately. I'll get back on Thursday to Birmingham, and the next Monday I'll be picking up a rental car to drive to Greenville, SC for a different assignment. Nick spend most of last week in Chicago for an industry meeting. Lately, I just feel like I need a lot less food and a lot more sleep. I'd be satisfied if I just had a little more time with my husband.
I really wish I had my camera on me this week in Southport, because the view over the intracoastal waterway is breathtaking. There's a long stretch of marsh on the other side, and on the near side is a marina full of rather large boats. Southport is a pretty small and remote town, with an off-season population of only about 2600. Only I can't help but wonder how much property is around here right now. :)
When we're both finally home this weekend, we'll be gearing up quickly for a bowling event Saturday morning in support of Junior Achievement in birmingham. So far, I've raised $235 for the event, and Nick's raise $165. I think our combined goal is supposed to be $500, so we're a little behind the curve I guess. We do what we can though. If anyone's interested in donating, my dontation page is: http://www.firstgiving.com/delisapournaras1.
We also have a birthday party at Stephanie's and David's house to attend on Saturday. We were so happy to sell our "extra" grill to them, and wouldn't miss it's first test. It should be plenty of fun!
Oh, before I forget! Today is my grandmother Grace's 80th birthday! We had a birthday bash for her at her house in Fairhope last Sunday. Very stressful for Mom, and therefore for me too, but worth it by a long shot. Mom always goes all out for parties, and by the time she was through planning, we had a full 4 course meal planned for almost 40 people. I'm not much of a cook, but I helped out wherever I could on Saturday, helping out with the crab bisque, spinach rolls, and baked beans. That combination sounds strange together, I know. But put it with some crab dip and crackers, fried snapper, grits and hush puppies, and it's sensational! I ate myself sick and was miserable the rest of the night while traveling to Southport. Again, well worth it!
It was so nice to see the family together again. I got several pictures while there, but I don't have them with me to post right now. I thought it was more important to go ahead and post something, rather than wait another 4 months. I've been a bit blog-shy I guess. I'll have to work on that...
Monday, April 14, 2008
Adventures in the Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge
Saturday we did some community service, and got our hiking in too! We packed up early in the morning and drove out to West Blocton in Bibb Co. to be a part of the Renew Our Rivers – Cahaba River cleanup project. Renew Our Rivers is a project that Alabama Power has sponsored since 2000, along with the Friends of the Cahaba River . I had heard that the only location in the world that the Cahaba lily could be seen was on the Cahaba River, but according to http://www.cahabalily.com/, it’s also known as the shoal lily and can also be found in certain areas of South Carolina and Georgia. It is a delicate species that only flowers for a very short time in May. 
Luckily, West Blocton holds a Cahaba Lily Festival each year to showcase the blooms, and more importantly, protect them from careless visitors.Our local chapter of NA-YGN (North American Young Generation in Nuclear) put a small group of volunteers together to help with the Cahaba River Cleanup, and we all (Jessica, Cotasha, Moanica, Nick & I) met to carpool to the river at 7:15am Saturday morning.
Nick and I did this last year with the same group, and had a great time. The officials allowed us to take the canoes and collect litter from the riverside, so it was a good time for all! This year was a little more challenging though. It had stormed heavily earlier in the morning and the river was very high, and dangerous (according to officials at least), so the canoes were out of the question.
We instead were sent a few miles up river, I think, where we had a long hike through the woods to get to the river. It was absolutely beautiful there after the rain, but we were too busy hiking or picking up trash to get many good photos. I’d say it was about a mile hike to the river.
You’d be surprised what you might find washed up on the river bank.
Sure there are fishing lures and plenty of Styrofoam pieces that were at some point either ice chests or cups, but there are a few things that make you wonder… why?
Motor oil,
Milk jugs,
Cold cream...
Bottom half of a bear?
We spent less than an hour picking up trash alongside the river, and then someone mentioned hauling the bags back.
That’s when the alarm went off. The only way to get the trash back out of there was to haul it out by foot, a mile of hiking with 10-20 lbs of trash on our backs, mostly uphill. Ugh! 
When we finally got back to headquarters, we each scarfed down a hotdog and a few drinks, and headed to our next project: roadside trash pickup. This also seemed like it would be an easy task, until Eva, our Cahaba National Wildlife Refuge official, showed us exactly what she wanted to do. She had driven us to a special roadside location that had become an unofficial dumpsite, because of a steep 20-30 foot drop next to the road that keeps trash hidden nicely. Our task was to scale down the cliff and haul bags of trash back up the cliff with no normal climbing tools, like… say… a ROPE.
That’s where we found the really interesting (and more often gross) stuff. Liquor bottles, refrigerator shelves, old rolls of linoleum flooring, batteries, many, many tires, whole bags full of every-day trash, all of which had to be pulled up a dangerously steep grade, amid a gazillion pesky gnats. The hike back from the river was much easier!
It was all very much worth it though! After another hour and a half of scaling the cliff with heavy bags and tires, we were rewarded with more food, snacks, drinks, plus t-shirts, hats, and heartfelt thank you’s from the locals.
Oh! Fox 6 News showed up to interview a few of us during our last break, and a few of us were featured on the Saturday night news! Half my face was featured throughout the segment.
Like I said before…. A fun time for all! We’ll definitely be back next year.
We spent less than an hour picking up trash alongside the river, and then someone mentioned hauling the bags back.
That’s when the alarm went off. The only way to get the trash back out of there was to haul it out by foot, a mile of hiking with 10-20 lbs of trash on our backs, mostly uphill. Ugh! 
When we finally got back to headquarters, we each scarfed down a hotdog and a few drinks, and headed to our next project: roadside trash pickup. This also seemed like it would be an easy task, until Eva, our Cahaba National Wildlife Refuge official, showed us exactly what she wanted to do. She had driven us to a special roadside location that had become an unofficial dumpsite, because of a steep 20-30 foot drop next to the road that keeps trash hidden nicely. Our task was to scale down the cliff and haul bags of trash back up the cliff with no normal climbing tools, like… say… a ROPE.
That’s where we found the really interesting (and more often gross) stuff. Liquor bottles, refrigerator shelves, old rolls of linoleum flooring, batteries, many, many tires, whole bags full of every-day trash, all of which had to be pulled up a dangerously steep grade, amid a gazillion pesky gnats. The hike back from the river was much easier!
It was all very much worth it though! After another hour and a half of scaling the cliff with heavy bags and tires, we were rewarded with more food, snacks, drinks, plus t-shirts, hats, and heartfelt thank you’s from the locals.
Oh! Fox 6 News showed up to interview a few of us during our last break, and a few of us were featured on the Saturday night news! Half my face was featured throughout the segment.
Like I said before…. A fun time for all! We’ll definitely be back next year.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Ramblings of an inexperienced blogger
This is more of a test than a real post... since it's my first. Check out the eel that my father caught off the dock at the River Easter weekend. I have no idea what kind it was, but it was seriously creepy. It may take Nick and I awhile to get accustomed to blogging, so our posts might be a little sporadic at first. Eventually, the goal is to keep this blog updated at least twice a month, so out of town family and friends can see what we're up to lately.
Here's a nicer photo to end this mini-post. This is Tilley. He's a smart Maltese that loves boating and rolling in the dirt, among other things. Here, he's enjoying a ride on Mobile Bay courtesy of Mom's new Caroline Skiff. He's usually white, but he'd had a little too much fun before this picture was taken.
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