Say Cheese!

A teacher in my building is retiring this year, and I thought it would be nice to make her a little memory book with handwritten cards and photos of her students and the staff.  I thought it would be easy.  No big deal.   I had no idea that taking pictures of 3rd graders would be so difficult!  So many kids would not smile or even look at the camera!  (See Exhibit A above)  I'm so used to 5 year olds.  If you even walk by a kindergartner with a camera, they strike a pose instantly.  I thought all kids were like that.

So, then I went around to all the teachers and you would not believe how hard I had to work to get them to let me take their picture. I had to beg and deal with:    "I might break your camera." "Do you have
to??!"  "My hair looks awful today!"   Please.  Get over it.  It's just one picture and it's not going on the cover of Vogue.  By the end of the day, I was so emotionally drained and annoyed.

Then...I got home and asked Billy to take a picture of me for the memory book.  Of course, it took about 20 shots and some reapplying of blush and lip gloss for me to settle on one.  (sigh)

Loads of Hope

Tide Loads of Hope set up camp down the street from my school last Wednesday.  Already, they have washed over 1,000 loads of laundry for flood victims...for free.  Anyone who stops by, can drop off 2 loads of laundry per day and they wash, dry, and fold it for you within 24 hours.  The whole city is trying to conserve water, so they also truck in their own water.  Very impressive.  

I personally don't use Tide anymore because I'm a hippie and don't use things with phosphates, sulfates, phalates, dyes, fragrance, etc.  HOWEVER, this is so cool!  What an awesome way for a huge company to give back.  Little things like clean laundry can really mean a lot.  Way to go, Tide!  Click here to view the Loads of Hope Website if you're curious (like I was) about other ways they are giving back.

Mas Tacos Por Favor!

In our neighborhood, 12 South, there is this really cool boutique called Imogene and Willie.  The cute little turquoise Winnebago parked out front is one of my new favorite things in Nashville...Mas Tacos!  Mas Tacos parks at a few different places in the city and luckily for us, frequents Imogene and Willie.  I walked down there a few nights ago to see Michelle Branch, Holly Williams and Matt Wertz do a little impromptu flood relief concert in the backyard of the store.  Super fun....and the BEST tacos.

Nashville Rising

This has been a really crazy week!  As you've probably seen on the news, Nashville had one of the biggest...if not the biggest, floods of its history.  I've never seen rain come down so hard for so many hours.  

My current situation:  School was cancelled for the last 5 days.  Cardboard boxes and rubbermaid tubs fill my entire house.  I just removed several rugs, sleeping bags, blankets and Halloween costumes from drying out on my backyard fence.  My basement has fans, a dehumidifier running...but it still reeks!  I'm scared to turn on my washer because I'm not sure what happens to a washer when it has been in 2 feet of water.  Our hot water heater isn't working.  We are under a mandatory order to conserve water....so I haven't showered in 3 days...which isn't really too hard when you don't have hot water!  We are flushing our toilet every 4-5 "#1's".  My ferns and flowers on my front porch have shriveled up.  My husband is sporting an awesome "flood beard".  

Ha, ha!  That's Nashville life right now for everyone!  Only, we're some of the very lucky ones. I'm definitely not complaining.  We feel so fortunate that we actually still have a house to live in!  Many people have lost everything they own and over 20 people have lost their lives.  

Here are a few pics of the city taken last Sunday.  

Downtown Nashville

The Grand Ole Opry Stage

Opryland Hotel Lobby (See previous post for "before" pics)

We were very lucky to only have a flooded basement.  The water rose very quickly and was up to my knees, but I was able to save or salvage most of our valuable things and keepsakes.  Billy was on tour in Portland, so I had to put on my rain boots and work like crazy to get everything upstairs.  The power was out and so it was really dark, smelly and scary down there!

Here are my  awesome neighbors came to the rescue!  They came over to check on me and helped me so much! Of course, I asked them to pose for the blog!

Nashville has really pulled together as a community during this hard week.  There has been a tremendous outpouring of donations and volunteers helping all over the city.  It really shows the character of the people here and I'm really proud to be a Nashvillian!  Please keep praying for this city as we continue to clean and rebuild!