Well, my apartment is now all back in plastic boxes, my office is cleaned out and moved to a hopefully safer area away from windows and all staff newsletters have been packed up to be mailed from Alabama.

Mandatory evacuations are beginning today in some of the river parishes and contraflow begins tomorrow at 6 a.m. That means all roads lead out of the city. I-10 is a four lane highway this is largely bridge to the west and in some places to the east. All entrance ramps will be blocked on the southbound side to allow for faster movement of traffic out of the city.

Praise God the city is getting it right this time and people are all getting on busses or Amtrak to head north. We have learned something and it seems that our neighbors are also ready with a plan. We have had on 15 people who will be going with us to Birmingham instead of the 75 from last time.

I will post updates and photos hopefully tomorrow afternoon after we get there and get settled. My friend Emily is here from Nashville and will be missing her Sunday night flight and will instead be evacuating with us, thus getting the full New Orleans experience. Thankfully it is only three hours from Birmingham to Nashville and there will be some friends to help get her home.

Thank you again for all your prayers. Continue to pray for all who are evacuating and for the city as it prepares for a potentially dangerous situation.

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Test to see if we can update the blog via phone.

Hello loyal readers. Here is the update:

We are all working today to pack up life at the office in preparation for an evacuation likely Sunday. The current plan is to take all media and financial computers out with information backed up on external hard drives. Staff has been split into a few different groups and several will begin calling our neighbors and church members today to determine if they have plans to evacuate and a way out of the city. If the storm is headed east, we'll likely be headed to Jackson, Mississippi or Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. If it heads west, it will be Birmingham, Alabama.

It is a blessing to know that there have been lessons learned with Katrina and plans seem to be flowing smoothly. I'll keep updates posted here as decisions become more solid and as we see just where Gustav is headed.

***UPDATE***

Our groundbreaking ceremony has been canceled for tomorrow in light of pending storm concerns. It will be rescheduled for a later date.

Our staff will be meeting tomorrow (Friday) morning at 9 a.m. to discuss further plans as we wait to see the storm's path. Thank you for your prayers.

This past weekend I had the joy of traveling to New Jersey for a church visit. From the minute I arrived Friday to the moment I left Monday afternoon I had a blast. I stayed with Kathy Fisher, and her family. Kathy had been to New Orleans with a team last May and when I spoke with the pastor at the church he arranged the housing.

I flew into Philadelphia and took the long way to the coast via Delaware. I wanted to swing through the nation's first state, even if it was just a brief visit.

I arrived in Ventnor, NJ about 4:30 p.m. and had a little time to relax in the evening. I was treated to a Sacko sub, what I am told is a NJ favorite, and it lived up to its reputation.

In the morning Kathy and I got up early (6:30 a.m.) and went for a ride down the boardwalk toward Atlantic City, or Frantic City, as Kathy appropriately calls is. Ventnor is right next door, but you'd never know you were so close as life there is much more calm. We saw the casinos for the boardwalk and stopped to people watch and have some coffee.

We spent most of the rest of the day at the beach. Now, when I think about New Jersey, I don't think beach, but it was beautiful. The sand was great and the water was pretty clean. The beach was full, but not unbearably crowded. I got a little sunburned, but not too bad. That evening we hung out with another of the girls who had been down on the same trip as Kathy. She is very interested in coming back and we talked about all of her options.

Sunday morning I spoke at two church services and met several people who had been down on trips with their church. Public speaking gets a little easier every time I do it and I wasn't even nervous this time. That is a praise God thing because even a few years ago I never would have believed I would be up in front of churches talking to people.

After church we had lunch with some people from the church and it was so good to be able to talk about what is going on here and meet with others who have been here or who would like to come in the future.

On our way home from church Kathy and I decided we'd see if there was any way to make a last minute overnight trip to New York City. I have wanted to go for so long and it is only two hours from where she lives. We found a decent hotel, but didn't think that we'd be able to get there and have enough time to make it worth it and still get me back to Philly by 3 p.m. Monday. So we've put off NYC plans but I promised her I wouldn't go without her. I am considering doing the 5 boro bike ride with her and her husband in next May....

Sunday night we ended up going to the southern most point in NJ and walked around in Cape May, a beautiful town full of old homes and amazing bed and breakfasts. As you can see from the map, I stayed just south of Atlantic City.

This is Congress Hall in Cape May, a beautiful old hotel that was restored not too long ago. It would be amazing to stay here.

This is Lucy the Elephant. She is a must see in Margate, the town just south of Ventnor.

We spent plenty of time at or near the beach. Kathy's family lives only four blocks from the beach. Even so, the neighborhood is very quiet and you'd never know there were so many touristy things so close.

This, I am quite sure, is where I will live someday. I absolutely loved this house in Longport. It is easily in the millions, so clearly, it will remain a dream, but it's still worth dreaming.

My last morning we had bagels on the beach. What a perfect way to start the day! I have definitely fallen in love with New Jersey and will surely be back there at some point, hopefully soon. I have always wanted to explore the east coast and this weekend was a great start to that dream. Kathy was a phenomenal tour guide and hostess and not only was I able to talk to people about what God is doing in New Orleans, I made a lifelong friend.

Tomorrow morning I'm headed to New Jersey, by way of Atlanta and Philadelphia. I will be speaking at a church near Atlantic City about our new community center and asking for their prayers for the month of September. We are asking individuals and churches across the nation to be in prayer each Sunday in September as we move forward with our project. The huge news today is that we have been APPROVED for our loan! It has been a long process but God has been at work and we are now able to move forward with the project.

Please pray for the trip to New Jersey to be fruitful and relaxing. We have had a crazy week here and with our ground breaking next week the fast pace is going to continue. I will have some time on Monday to tour Philadelphia, and while I won't be able to get to NYC, I am looking forward to enjoying my first visit to the east coast outside of Washington, D.C. I'll post photos as soon as I am able.

Mouse hunting is a terrible business. Just awful. So as I put out some sticky traps, on which I placed peanut butter, under my stove I wondered if this time it would work. I found more mouse droppings around my bed (are you kidding me!!!!) and that was it. No more being nice. So as I proceeded to move everthing from my bedroom and hand wash the floor, I caught one. He got greedy and went after more peanut butter. As I sat there and looked at him, with his face stuck to the glue, I thought, wouldn't it be good if when I got too greedy or ate too much, my face got stuck to the plate......


Anyhow, so then I had to deal with getting rid of him. He was so cute and tiny, and I felt bad. But I decided to do the most humane thing possible. I put some fingernail polish on a Kleenex and put that in a plastic bag and then in went the mouse and the trap. I took it out and placed it in the garbage can. Half an hour later, I repeated the whole process.

That meant I was out of traps and had to go to Wal-mart to get more. So I bought two rat-sized traps and a pack of four mouse-sized traps, just in case. I loaded them all with peanut butter and placed all six under my stove.

I've decided I'm really ready for my home to be my own! All evening passed and there was nothing. I went in my room to watch a movie and ended up not even finishing it. Not more than two seconds after I shut off the light I heard a soft "thump" followed by a "squeak, squeak." Seriously.

So I ventured out to see what we had. It was very small. No longer than my little finger, if that. He was the cutest of them all and I felt so bad. I also realized that at 11 p.m. I wasn't venturing out to the garbage can. So I had to put him in the bag and leave him outside my door. Nasty business.

Yesterday, in my infinite wisdom, I had a thought. If they were coming from under the stove, why don't you move the stove and see where they are coming from. Aha! The light bulb goes on! So I did and I found two cracks that went under the cabinets, but had no other outlet, and a crack at the edge of the flooring where the water pipes run. So I motored off to Home Depot and bought a whole bunch of steel wool and spent the evening last night filling holes. I woke this morning feeling so refreshed by seeing no mice on any traps. I have overcome....at least for now.

I have a mouse.

It's not cute. It's not friendly, and it's not going to be living much longer.

After I moved in and began to get everything in my kitchen settled and arranged I noticed on morning that one of the suckers I had left in a box on the counter was now on top of a towel on top of the stove. There were shreds of paper around it and little teeth marks.

So I cleaned vigorously. I sanitized. I disinfected and I hunted. No luck.

The next morning I woke up at 5 a.m. to the sound of moving silverware. I crept slowly out into the living room and turned on the light to no avail.

The next night I strategically placed a small wooden decoration on my cereal dispenser. Certainly if said mouse was roaming about my kitchen looking for food he was going to knock it over. And he did. And I got mad. That same night he pooped all over the counter. This is not okay.

So last night I went to Wal-Mart and bought rat-sized sticky traps and some of the old standard traps. I put the sticky traps on either side of the stove as I assumed he was coming out from behind it. Then I loaded two of the other traps with peanut butter, removed the drawer from under my stove and placed them there. And I waited....

This morning was kind of like Christmas morning. I awoke with the great anticipation of finding a dead, nasty, but dead, mouse. On the contrary, I walked into the kitchen and it was like going to the Christmas tree as a five-year-old looking for presents left by Santa to have your older sibling hit you in the face and tell you Santa doesn't exist.

Except this "santa" is very real. You see, I left Fruity Pebbles on one side of the sticky trap as I have found that is what he likes. They were all gone and he was not stuck to the trap. This means he did not come from behind the stove. The other side of the stove still had its Fruity Pebbles. He pooped on the light that is sitting on top of my microwave, and oh the outrage! I looked under the stove and found he had snacked on the peanut butter on both traps! Ahhhhhh!

So I calmly placed some Fruity Pebbles on the sticky trap and placed it back on the counter. Then I went to take a shower. I had the idea that perhaps he was hiding behind the fridge, so I moved it. I found a lot of junk and some mouse droppings so I left the fridge out and will clean that up once I get a broom this afternoon.

Then I had a thought about the traps. I put more peanut butter on the other two traps I had not used and as I proceeded to place them with the others under the stove I saw it. Not the mouse "it" but what he had done. While I was in the shower he ate the rest of the peanut butter off one of the traps and nibbled more on the other one!

I was furious. So I made sure the new traps had hard to eat peanut butter and put the used ones in the sink. I also put the sticky traps on the floor by the front of the stove and disinfected the counter so he has nothing to find up there.

I left the house knowing that I will still likely have to sleep at lesat one more night with this menace in my house, but it is only a matter of time before his greedy little self wants just a little more. Then we'll see if that last nibble of peanut butter was really worth it.....

Well, it's been a week now since I moved and I have loved every minute of it. The first night I didn't sleep very well, although I think that was more because it was a new and unfamiliar place than anything else. I have greatly enjoyed having some room to spread out and a place to make my own. Even in Waukee I had a very small kitchen and that is perhaps the best part of my new place, a big, beautiful, spacious kitchen. If you worked on the quad as a volunteer BLESS YOU! It is such a blessing to be in such a place.


It is so nice to be able to come home to a place that is so inviting and I am working to be able to have people over either for dinner for just to hang out. Living in the camper never afforded that opportunity. Now I have a kitchen of my own as well as a front balcony and back deck.


It has rained a great deal lately so I haven't been able to work on my desk, but that project will be startd again soon. I am hoping to paint it black with silver hardware as soon as I finish the sanding which is always more work than I imagine it to be.

I am slowing whittling away at the number of boxes in my living room and once things are a little more organized I plan to look a little more seriously at getting a loveseat. I have decided that a couch would probably take up too much space so we'll just start small.

I have met a few of the neighbors and have already been invited to a fried catfish dinner with Reverend Boyd and his family who live on the street just behind the quad. I am looking forward to meeting more neighbors and getting more involved with the neighborhood now that I am actually a part of it.

Yesterday was the long anticipated moving day where I finally said good-bye to the camper and was able to move into a place with running water. It's been a long time coming and I'm so excited to get settled. I kept a log of all that happened as I knew it would be an eventful day.

7:30 a.m. - Wake up to a barking dog. So much for sleeping in on my day off.

8:15 - Check my e-mail and Facebook and try to locate my package with FedEx.

8:45 - Finally decide to get out of bed as I am not getting any more sleep today. Pack a few more things and load clothes and toiletries into the car.

9:30 - The car is packed to the gills and I've done all I can do at the house so I'm off to Wal-Mart to get some necessities and cleaning supplies.

10:15 - Standing in a really long and slow line at Wal-Mart. Well, at least this is wasting some time so I won't get to the Quad before Matt leaves.

10:30 - Finally done waiting in line and I'm off to Starbucks to spend my last half hour before I can move in!

10:45 - Run into Sandy (no surprise) at Starbucks. She is supposed to be on her way to Florida but has been delayed. Talk to mom on phone about the day and wish she was here to help.

11:15 - Off to the Yellow House to get Windex.

11:30 - Off to the Quad!

11:35 - Get to the Quad and realize I left the keys in the camper.

11:40 - Get the keys at the camper and realize that I had a spare set in my purse. I hope this isn't an indication of how the day will go.

11:45 - Get to the Quad (with the keys) and run into Jenn, Jenn's mom, Matt and Irvin who are all headed out.

11:50 - Start the long awaited move in process!
12:05 p.m. - Set up CD player so I can have some music.

12:10 - Dance around the apartment just because I can and smile because the whole place doesn't rock back and forth when I do.

12:15 - Continue moving stuff. Run into Tyler, a boy I have met once before on a Super Friday, who stays around the corner. Start to wonder if I'm going to be moving all by myself.

12:30 - Cleaning the bathroom when Sara calls to ask if I need any help. Yay!

1:00 - Back to the Yellow House to get more stuff and meet Sara. She calls Mike to see if we can use his van.

1:10 - Mike arrives with Jonathan. Dingo, Davonte and Sara help me load stuff into Mike's van and my car.

1:15 - We all unload stuff at the Quad. Many hands make light work!

1:25 - Head back to the Yellow House to get some more stuff and drop Sara off.

1:30 - Realize there is more in the camper than I thought. Load up the car and make another trip.

2:00 - Work on cooling off and getting a few things organized. Wondering if I am going to last much longer. I don't remember the last time I was this hot or worked this hard all day long.

4:15 - Mary DeMarco and a team member stop by to say hi and see the place.

4:45 - Scavenge through boxes to find enough stuff to take a shower at the new place. I must have left my box of toiletries at the Yellow House.

5:00 - Off to the Yellow House to dry my hair and put on my make up.

5:30 - Put last big load of stuff into the car and head off to get gas and make a trip to Wal-Mart to get dinner.

7:15 - Back home and unload one more time. Wish I wasn't sweating because I've already taken a shower.

7:30 - More organizing and start dinner.

8:00 - Pizza is done.

8:05 - Anthonika (my new neighbor) arrives. I help Duane, Irvin and her unload all her stuff.

8:20 - Reheat dinner and watch most of The Devil Wears Prada. Traditional move in dinner is pizza and this time I added sparkling grape juice. I love my martini glasses.9:30 - Shut movie off and try to determine if I should go to bed or work some more. Feet hurt but I'm not really tired yet. Decide to do a few more things.

10:15 - Still not tired but lay down anyway.

11:00 - Still awake. It's going to take a while to get used to sleeping in a new place.

All in all yesterday was a great day. The clarinet I got on eBay arrived midafternoon and served as icing on the cake of a great day. Today has been spent at Target and Wal-Mart getting some new things and loading up on groceries. Tomorrow will be spent continuing to unpack and make my place look more like a home and less like something blew up all over.

This is the traditional move-in dinner. Pizza and sparkling grape juice. I'm not really sure where the idea came from, but it started when I moved into my first apartment back in Waukee.

I simply couldn't resist sharing these photos with the world. This is "Ms. Jeri." The actual person was our wonderful cook here for two seasons. This is her stunt double for a movie that Sara and James are working on to send to her of memories and events during her time in New Orleans. I heard the dogs outside and looked out to see them playing and James was sitting next to Jeri in the lawn chair. When they got ready to film Golden Girl just jumped up on her lap like it was nothing unusual. I just laughed and laughed. When they were done filming they went to take the dogs home and I knew they had left but when I came back outside, there was Ms. Jeri sitting all by herself in the backyard. Sometimes there are just no words.....

On another front, I have found out that I will be moving into the quad this Thursday and I am so excited. The ministry had Monday and Tuesday off but I swapped my days for Thursday and Friday so I can get all moved in before staff retreat which is Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. I'll post pictures of the move and the new place as soon as I have them!

This is my newest project. I found this treasure on craigslist for $10 and was so excited to find it was real wood and not pressboard. I think it will be the perfect size for my new place. I have yet to determine if I am going to paint it or restain it, but I found some great hardware at Home Depot.

I have a friend who, a few years ago, made a lamp out of a clarinet and I have thought I may paint the desk black and install silver hardware and then try and make a lamp myself. I have found several cheap ones on eBay. I guess we'll start with the desk and go from here.