Perks of the Life :)

Some days it is hard being a tugboat wife. Some days, it's hard being a wife at all, but add in the adventures of river life, and you've got a whole new ball of wax! I kow it's hard for Butch too, he is away and misses a lot of holidays, special events, birthdays, school events, etc. Living with 3 other men half the year in a small confined place isn't a piece of cake by any means, I am sure.

But some things make this life all worthwhile! Since Butch works a week, and then is home a week, we are afforded a small luxury. It's called......"vacation when you want it".

Being able to get away for a few days is wonderful, but most people have to do it on weekends. That means, you leave for vacation tired and you come home tired and then go right back to work. It also means you travel on peak days and pay higher weekend rates at hotels. Not so for us!

Lat week, Butch whisked me away to the mountains of North Georgia and North Carolina to celebrate our 17th wedding anniversary.  He knows the secret...take this Lowcountry girl to the mountains and you've scored MAJOR brownie points :)

Ah......this made it all worthwhile......definitely a BIG TIME PERKS!!!!!

Here's Butch and me, enjoying our day :)

 If you find yourself in the North Georgia Mountains, GO VISIT Crane Creek Vineyards! You will be glad you did!
http://www.cranecreekvineyards.com/

Eeeeewwwww......

Our Tug Florida needs some mechanical work and will be going to the shipyard. In other words, Butch's home away from home is experiencing some drama. (Boats and ships ARE female after all! Drama is ok here and there!)

In the days leading up to her vacation  imprisonment stay in the shipyard, some work has to be done prepping her up. While Butch usually gets quite dirty working on the deck, he's been helping out a lot in the engine room this week. To Butch this is a challenge and a change of pace. For me, it means Butch is destroying his clothes with grease, diesel fuel, oil, grime, dirt, and other such icky substances that I don't normally come in contact with. I can assure you he is happier than a pig in mud, because it seems that men, at least my kind of man, actually enjoys getting nasty, sweaty, stinky and greasy. Me? Not so much.

Let me clarify this nastiness by saying that I think normal people have two distinct sets of clothes. They have winter clothes, and they have summer clothes. But in our tugboat world, Butch has five-count 'em-FIVE sets of clothes. He has normal summer clothes, and he has normal winter clothes. But let's not be boring and ordinary and stop there...OH NO!

He also has boat clothes. Let me specify that these stay on the boat or in a sealed Rubbermaid bin in our closet because they have boat funk. Boat funk is a term I use specifically for items Butch wears or uses at work.  The boat funk is a unique fragrance scent aroma stench that emits from such items and cannot be washed out. No amount of laundry soap, fabric softner, Oxy Clean or Gain Fireworks can remove that special stench. They are clean after I wash them, but they still have that funk. Now you understand why this blog post is entitled "Ewwwwww", because that is what I say as I duck and run for cover.

Therefore:
He has Summer boat clothes, which consists of cargo shorts, muscle shirts and thin  t-shirts which can be any color except navy blue or black because he gets too hot in them. These attractive ensembles also require low cut socks but not footies, because he still has to work in heavy work boots with a 6" shaft. No flip flops or tennis shoes allowed! The accessories to complete this look include  bandanas to mop up sweat and wear under his hard hat and his fragrance of choice is Avon's Bug Guard bug spray in the green aerosol can. (The silver can doesn't provide as much protection it seems. Or maybe the bugs here just like the taste. And the "pump" bottle is just too much work)

Then he has his Fall wardrobe, which consists of the same t shirts from Summer,  along with a few darker colored ones just to mix it up. He keeps a couple pairs of cargo shorts, and adds a few pair of jeans. He keeps the short socks, to wear with cargo shorts, but adds in a few tall socks to wear with jeans. Butch will not wear short socks with long pants. Nope. Not this guy. Accessories still include the attractive bandanas, work boots and bug spray.

Then comes the Winter Wardrobe. Although living in Coastal Georgia it stays pretty warm compared to the rest of the country, temperatures drop down in the low twenties and teens with a wind chill on top of that. Let me also mention that my man is a little popsicle and naturally cold natured. Therefore, Butch has Winter boat clothes, which consist of flannel lined jeans, flannel lined cargo pants, thermal underwear shirts, long sleeved t-shirts, thick tall socks, flannel long sleeve shirts, hoodies and the aforementioned work boots. He also has an extensive collection of skull caps, waterproof gloves and this contraption I found him that is like a band of Polar Fleece that Velcros around his head and keeps his ears warm. It's like a girl's stretchy headband, only not stretchy but Velcro-y instead and not girly at all. It fits more snugly under the hardhat than a skull cap. Bug spray is kept on hand but rarely needed.

When Spring arrives, Butch basically edges back into the Fall wardrobe, but by then the t-shirts have usually all been replaced with new ones that are not sun bleached and paint covered. And bust out another few fresh can of the bug spray.

Now for home wear, the man has the same sets of clothes: the Fall/Spring ensembles, the Winter line and the Summer Collection. Then he has his church clothes, which are suits, dress shirts, shiny dress shoes, undershirts, ties, pocket hankies....oh wait...maybe I shouldn't say "pocket hankies" on my blog. Some other rough and tough tug boat dude might find out. Oh well. Too late :) Besides, I am a sucker for a man with a pocket hanky! He also has separate work clothes for yard work.

WAIT A COTTON PICKIN' MINUTE HERE!!!!!

That's.....EIGHT sets of clothes! And only one set is them is kept on the boat at a time! No wonder I don't have any closet space! This is totally unfair.....

I'm going shopping! ;)

Rough Seas at Home

Every notice how, when things seem to be going really well,

all of a sudden.....

something happens....

like this:

No, luckily that isn't Butch's foot.
If it were his foot, there would be lost days at work, no sicktime, no paid vacation......and oh yeah. The cast would be much bigger :)


Sadly, it is mine.
My foot.
My boo boo.
My owie.

So what happened you ask? Well, I stepped backward off my driveway. My heel went down and my toes went up and somewhere in the middle twisted. And I saw stars and nearly threw up. So glamorous is this life I lead.

The ER doc said I had broken my 5th metatarsal or my cuboid.  He was not impressed that my left side of my foot was numb and that I could not move my 3 smallest toes. He gave me Vicodin, which made me cry and sleep a lot. Butch and the Princess say I mumbled and spoke incoherently to myself. (I prefer to think of it as conversing amongst myself.) He also put me in a worthless foam Jesus sandal looking velcro shoe and gave me crutches. (Enter the Vicodin reference...I couldn't use those crutches to save my life. Who could use them, when they are asleep, nauseated, and talking amongst themself?)

I was referred to an ortho surgeon, because the ER doc said I had broken a bone in my foot and damaged some ligaments or tendons. The ortho doctor said the ER doc was crazy. My foot had no breaks anywhere. What I did, was damage a nerve somewhere in that whole "twisting my foot in the middle" part.

He gave me the stylish new Fall boot seen above, told me to stand up straight and wear a good fitting running shoe on my good foot and go home to rest, ice and elevate. WHAT???? A good fitting running shoe? I am SUCH a flip flop girl....but alas, I followed his advice.

So how does this all fit into a blog about being a Tugboat Wife? Largely because this accident occurred while Butch was home, BUT NOW HE IS GONE!!!!!!!!!!! Waaaaaaaaaaah! Who is gonna cinch up my boot for me? Who is gonna wrap my foot in the compression thing? Who is gonna pick up things I drop because I can't squat or bend without tipping over? The Princess of course! She is a HUGE help!

It's hard to be a Tugboat wife in times like this, when I am supposed to be keeping everything going smoothly at home. It's hard to be strong and say it doesn't hurt all that much when I want to scream and kick something with my good foot.  It's hard to accept that my 16 year old is runnig our household this week.

I am blessed. I have church family that have brought food, and my Mama came today and took good care of me. But for the most part, it's just me, the Princess, and the cats. I gotta heal.....and quickly!!! You can't lead a Tugboat Life as a Tugboat Wife who can't even walk!!! But we keep on...not exactly full speed ahead, but limping along the coastline, doing the best we can.

Ah yes...a familiar scene on the river. These tugs are pushing the giant ship to the dock to be unloaded. It is still amazing to me, after all these years, that these tiny tugs and push those giant ships into place with seemingly little effort. Butch says it's all about the twin screw blah blah prop blah blah blah propulsion blah blah things. I just nod and smile like I understand, and he seems satisfied that he has properly educated me :)

Ask me a question!

What would you like to know about our life? What can I share that you would be interested in?

The life that God chose for us...

I get asked a lot "Why did Butch choose this job?". The answer to that is quite simple. He didn't choose this job for our family. God chose it for him.

Eight years ago Butch was working at a local grocery store as a butcher (hence the nickname). The
grocery store used to fill all of the grocery orders for the tug company once a week. When Butch inquired about the orders, he was intrigued.

When it came for the groceries to be picked up, Butch found himself chatting with a really nice guy who enjoyed telling Butch all about the company and what they did. Butch was really interested!

There are several things I should probably point out about Butch, and here they are, in no particular order:

• Butch served in US Navy right out of highschool.
• Butch is hyperactive very active and could never sit still at any type of desk job
• Butch will talk to a post. (Hence chatting up the man with the groceries)
• Butch has had several careers since we married, but each job move has been a move UP!
• I don't know a man who works harder than Butch. He will tackle any job, and if you tell him he can't do something then you had better just sit back and watch while he does it.

The company that Butch works for now has two types of employees....full-time and relief list. The relief list guys are the guys waiting for a full-time spot to open up. They work on a call-out basis when a deckhand is needed due to sickness, injury, or the need for a personal day off. At this point there are about 6 guys on this list and some of them have been waiting for full-time work for 6 years.

When Butch was chatting up the man with the grocery order, he didn't realize he wasn't just talking to anyone. He was talking to a member of management in the office. Mr. Manager guy told Butch if he was interested to come talk to him. He liked that Butch had prior maritime experience with the Navy and probably also noticed that under the white meat coat there were some fairly nice guns produced by cutting meat, which would come in handy for a deckhand!

We discussed  the job  that evening when Butch came home. He went and talked to the company that week.  He put in his two week notice at the grocery store and began training on the boat on his off days.

SO......how do we know this was a God ordained thing???
Because Butch was hired immediately. In a full-time capacity.
Because in the Navy, Butch was certified in shipboard firefighting. (Did you know tugboats fight fires? That's another blog post!)
Because the job paid several times more than his current job.
Because it gives him JOY.
Because it gave us PEACE.
And because we know that God has a plan for us.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future".  Jeremiah 29:11

Tag Team!

Butch has decided to join the bloggy world with his own blog! Find him here at http://dabutchersworld.blogspot.com/

This is one of Butch's Instagram pics....this is overlooking the stern of the tugboat as it sails downriver.  That's the Talmadge Memorial Bridge in the background and the Westin Harbor Resort on your right.

Just wanted to share a pretty picture with you....one of the many reasons I love the river life!!!

Another Potential River Hazard?? And who knew you had a lymph nodein your ELBOW???

Butch began complaining of a lump under his arm about 2 weeks ago. He was on the boat, so I told him I would make an appointment for him for Friday when he got home. His typical caveman response was "Let's wait...it will probably go away...let's see how I feel when I get home." (insert caveman grunt here) Later that week, he said that his elbow was swollen and hurting. I again said that I could make him an appointment and again he told me "Let's wait and see how I feel."(grunt grunt)

When I picked Butch up Thursday night close to midnight, he couldn't move his left arm from beside his body. The lymph node under his arm was the size of a golf ball and his elbow was swollen, red and warm to the touch. We got home, and part of our church homegroup was still here at our house so they prayed over him and claimed that healing would manifest quickly in his body. By one o'clock AM Butch had pain shooting into his hand and numbness in his fingers.

I entered Mama bear mode.  I called our 24/7 nurse hotline and the nurse who triaged him said that he needed to be seen within 4 hours so we headed off to ye olde ER.

When the DR  saw Butch's hand, he ordered a CBC and blood cultures. They gave him Clindamycin in an IV and a shot of Toradol for pain and a shot of Phenergen for nausea. Dr said that because Butch chews his nails, he had contracted an infection that had traveled up his arm into the lymph nodes.  Did you know you have a lymph node in your elbow? Yes you sure do! Here is a photo to explain it!

Isn't it amazing what cool pics you can find at google.com? (Side node: Our family doctor later explained that in layman's terms, "gland" is used interchangeably with "lymph node")

They sent us home with a prescription for  Motrin  800 and Clinaomycin pills.

This is  what  Butch's  hand looked like that night: (eew)

                                          

By the  next evening, the lymph node  under the arm was baseball sized (NOT an exaggeration at all) and Butch was in excruciating pain. He still had the weird bump thing, and he was also dealing with fever and chills.

We went back to the ER, this time to a different hospital. This time the ER dr suspected a huge abscess under Butch's arm and sent him for a CT scan with contrast and had his nurse arranging for a surgical consult. He also hooked up an IV and drew more blood. When the  CT scan was normal, they began to look more closely at the hand. "What's that you say? You work on the river?  Oh my, there is no telling what type of bacterial infection you may have!"  My biggest concern was that since he handles lines that fall into the river, and lines from ships from all over the world, there truly was NO IDEA what this might be or where it came from. Add to it the recent water release from the dam upstate (see previous post) and you figure all of that stagnant, old water was flooding down our river......moving on.....

Enter more IV drugs, this time Penicillin. And more pain drugs, which I didn't get the name of  but wish I had because they KNOCKED MY MAN OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As Butch rested in a  peaceful, magical world of unicorns and rainbows,  I visited with one of the pastors from our church. We discussed hymns, and how we love contemporary praise and worship songs but they just don't take the place of the old hymns.

Finally, blood work was back and the dr was befuddled. He decided it might be fun "to lance that thing open and see what we find".  A local pain shot or 12 and off he went, lancing and digging and poking and prodding. My poor man :(

Eventually, we were sent home. This time he was prescribed Doxycycline pills and given Percoset for the pain. His finger looked like a small mummy.

The next few days were rough. The pain was bad, the swelling kept him from putting his arm by his side or finding a comfortable position to sleep in. The fever and chills did not return, thankfully, and slowly Butch began to feel some better.  The ER dr had us follow up with our regular doctor a few days later  who added Prendisone to the mix  because the wound was not healing as well as he would have liked and the swelling was still pretty bad.  He was also quite annoyed that neither emergency doc bothered to swab the bump/incision for wound cultures.

Thursday  came and it was time for Butch to go back to work. Praise God, his hand is almost back to normal and the lymph node under his arm is almost normal sized again too.  I  spoke with him about an hour ago and by the grace of God he is doing ok. He has been working but the jobs have so far been relatively easy and he has managed fairly well.   The hand and armpit are ok, but the elbow is still VERY sore. Who knew we had lymph nodes in our elbows????

So tonight,when you pray for your spouse, would you do this tugboat wife a big favor and say a prayer for my man too? Butch thanks you, and so do I!

Here are a few Scriptures  to reference for God's healing:

Psalm 41:3
The LORD sustains them on their sickbed and restores them from their bed of illness. (NIV) 

Psalm 147:3
He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (NIV) 

Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. (NIV) 

Isaiah 58:8
Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard. (NIV) 

Jeremiah 17:14
Heal me, LORD, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise. (NIV) 

  Jeremiah 30:17a For I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal, declares the Lord (NIV)

A Rear View I Don't Mind Seeing

Spanning the Savannah River is the Talmadge Memorial Bridge. It connects Georgia and South Carolina and ends up in a whole lot of tugboat pictures :)

Usually though, I am shooting upriver to catch the tugs sailing to or from  Georgie Ports. This past weekend, we rode though the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge and I was able to catch this "back view" of the bridge. This photo was taken on the refuge, facing toward the East and catching the opposite side of the bridge.

Happy Monday....Enjoy!

Gettin' All Up Close and Personal!!!!

We had family in town this week! Actually, it's Butch's family by blood, they just got stuck with me in the deal.( I can assure you I came out on the winning end of that equation!)

Anyway, since most of the crew had never been to our fair city, We spent some time down by the river. Butch was off work for most of their visit, and he was more than happy to explain river life to them as best he could. For people who don't live the life, it's a hard life to explain!

While we were walking from the parking lot down to the river walk, I saw one of the familiar yellow tugboats cruise by. (OK! OK! GEEZ! He isn't even here and I can hear Butch yelling at me no, more like correcting me , no........ hasseling me no, it's just "assisting me with proper terminology" that the boats are not yellow, they are BUFF! Whatever Mr. Man, they look yellow to me.

So here comes the yellow buff tugboat and of course I can't get there in time and corral the gang to identify which tug it was, but from a million yards away Butch quickly called out "It's the Florida!" which is his boat and in typical fashion, we were a day late and a dollar short. I looked upriver and low and behold, another  yellow buff tugboat was heading down river! It was Tug Bulldog! 

And because we are so veeeeeeery speical, some good fortune brought the tug very close to us, which delighted me and the two 5 year olds with us! I love tugs...truly I do. I love this life, and I love being a tugboat wife!

Time of Tides

This weekend we were preparing for extremely high tides in Coastal Georgia. Water was released from the Strom Thurmond dam, which sent water our way. That, combined with a full moon, all the rain we are getting, and an above average high tide last night left officials with the task of warning us of flooding on River Street and low lying areas.

I went down to River Street a couple days before the highest tide and took some photos. I thought you might be interested!

Storm clouds overhead. That's the Talmadge Bridge, which spans the Savannah River.

Warning signs on River Street

More warnings

Looking upriver towards Georgia Ports

The water was moving rather swiftly, although it doesn't look like it,

You can see how far the water was expected to rise to cover River Street

More water!

Luckily, Butch did not experience any hazardous conditions or have anything bad happen during the ensuing river rising! This is just another example of what people don't have to think about when they don't live a Tugboat Life as a Tugboat Wife! :) SO thankful to God for His protection!

Here is a link to the local news story on the flooding   .http://www.wtoc.com/story/22869123/us-corp-eng-warns-of-potential-savannah-river-flooding

It's been a while.......

 ..and this is why.

Tugboat life is not easy. It is also very dangerous, and that is something most people do not realize. In the 8 years Butch has been part of the tugboat world, we have had a few accidents and deaths within the company. But none have affected us so deeply or shaken us as hard as this.

Early in March, I received a call from a friend of mine who liives about an hour away. The conversation went tike this:
Me: Hello?
Friend: Hey, what are you doing?
Me: Not much, you?
Friend: Have you talked to Butch today?
Me: No, not yet. Why? (side note: this is not highly unusual. I usually let him call or text me first in case he worked overtime during the night and is asleep)
Friend: You might want to see if you can call him.
Me: Why? What's wrong?
Friend: You may want to turn on the TV. The news is reporting that a rescue operation is underway at the tugboat dock.

I'm not sure I even said thank you or goodby. I hung up. I called Butch. And praise God, Butch answered.
When I heard his voice I cried, and when he heard mine, his voice broke. He told me that his co-worker had died that morning. Seems he fell overboard. He was 20 years old.

I asked Butch if he needed me to come out there and he said no. Like a good wife, I said ok. Then I threw on a clean shirt and jeans and raced to the dock. The gates were closed, police cars were everywhere. News crews were crawling by, cameras raised, hoping to get a shot of some "breaking news".  My phone was blowing up. Names and details had not been released yet, so everyone was beginning to hear what I had heard. On the way to the dock I had called my parents, Butch's parents and Butch's brother, so they wouldn't worry  hear the news and freak out. We hugged, and Butch told me what he knew. Details were sketchy, no one knew exactly what happened. The coroner's van arrived, and we turned away while they worked, The draped body was lifted from the dock and taken away.

That weekend,  we went to the visitation. It was unlike anything I had ever seen. The line to pay respects was out the door of the funeral home, down the side of the building, looped back by the dumpster and across the parking lot. We stood in line almost an hour and had only moved up a few feet. We had to leave to go pick up the Princess at work. On our way out, we signed the guest book.

It took a long time to be able to write this. No one has said exactly what happened. It was just one of those crazy accidents that happen when you are living life.  It wasn't a crime, it wasn't neglect, it was simply an accident that happened in a routine workday. That is what makes it so scary, knowing it was a routine day. It could have happened any day, to anyone, It could have been Butch,

I looked up the young man's Facebook page that weekend, and it was overwhelming how many people were writing their disbelief and goodbyes on his wall. Butch didn't want to look. Men deal in their own way I guess, and Butch dealt by taking us out of town for a couple of days. A change of scenery can do wonders.

It's been a couple of months now, and life on the boats is returning to routine. I'm sure it's still pretty fresh in everyone's mind how quickly things can change. It's a dangerous job that few can understand. It's a life full of the prayers of wives and families.

April 12 would have been the young man's birthday. He would have been 21. A beautiful life that ended far too soon.

Tug Point Clear

As I stated before, Butch is usually aboard Tug Florida. He has been on the Florida about 4 years. It's a good boat. He likes it because in addition to having a really good, cohesive crew, he has his own bunk room and it's a comfortable boat.

Due to some issues I will not elaborate on, Butch and his crew had to move to Tug Point Clear so that another crew could move to Tug Florida. This did not make for a happy hubby.

This tug has one bunkroom for the deckhands to share. It also has a small galley. It has a wench that works part time. He's not a happy Butch.....not happy at all :(

It's funny to me how each boat is different. Each wheelhouse is shaped so distinctly that he can identify a tug from a picture shot from quite a distance away. He has things he likes about each tug and things he wishes he could change about each tug.

I guess it is like most other parts of life.....you like some parts better than others. Hopefully it won't be long until he is back "at home" on Tug Florida!

Most Days....

Most days, I love being a tugboat wife and leading a tugboat life. Today is not one of those days.

Let me back up to say that years before I was a tugboat wife, I was a Navy wife. I was used to deployments and separations. I was used to holidays alone and going days (sometimes weeks or even months) not hearing from my husband. When Butch took this job, the 7 days apart didn't really bother us because of this. Besides, I can ride out to the dock most anytime they aren't busy and see him if I need to or want to. And in case of true emergencies, he can come home.

We often get asked how we manage to keep our relationship strong when we only spend half the year together.  It does provide challenges. Butch misses a lot, and I find myself either telling him the same thing multiple times because I forgot I already told him, or not telling him at all because I thought I already had.

In all honesty though, when people ask how we work to keep our marriage strong when we are apart so much, my answer usually surprises them. I tell them it is BECAUSE we are apart so much that it IS so strong. Butch and I did a little calculating...

If he worked an average 40 hour work week for 52 weeks a year, taking commute time and vacation and 8 hours a night for sleep into the calculations, we would be apart or asleep for roughly 5,213 hours per year.

On the tug, he works 26 weeks a year for 24 hour shifts. Figuring in commute time, work and sleep time, we are apart or asleep  roughly 5,306 hours a year.

Therefore, even though it seems we are apart much more than average couples we really aren't. However, it's the communication, both when he IS home and when he IS NOT home that matters. It's the everyday things that he misses, like when our cats do something funny or the Princess comes up with something. I tend to send him a lot of pictures from my phone, things like the cat in a pile of torn up toilet paper or a plate full of something I cooked. It's an effort to make him feel included in our everyday home life, even when he isn't home. And we text, all day long. Little things, like an "I love you" or "I miss you" or "Guess what the Princess just said?" that make us stay connected. He sends me pictures of what the crew is grilling for dinner or of a ship coming into the harbor. We talk off and on all day, whether through text or calls, and some days it feels like we have talked ALL DAY!

Today isn't one of those days though. In fact, it hasn't been one of those weeks. I feel very alone today, and this week has seemed long. It's been a week of a stopped up garbage disposal and tons of bills to pay. Today was a rainy cold day, and while I was running errands our truck wouldn't start when I tried to leave my first stop. I ended up getting it jumped off, and drove to the parts store. In the midst of the whole "Is it the battery/alternator/starter/connectors" issues, I felt very alone. Butch was on the tug, and seemed a million miles away. My Dad died when I was 21. Our best friend was celebrating his birthday clear across town. I don't have a brother. My closest brother in law is 3 hours away.And my other guy best friend was unpacking his moving truck having just moved back here.

In the middle of the auto parts store, sitting on a bench, as hard as I fought to stop it, I cried. I just cried. I felt very alone, and helpless. I was angry, because I couldn't fix the truck myself. I was scared, because I knew funds were limited and I didn't know what a starter/alternator/battery/connectors would cost. I felt very small and insignificant. And I felt ridiculous because I was CRYING in the auto parts store!!!!!!

I prayed. I reminded myself that God always provides and that He never leave us or forsakes us. I could hear the Scriptures in my head, reminding me that God was all of these things.....my provider of finances, my Daddy, my brother, and my friend. And that He ALWAYS KEEPS HIS PROMISES!

And just like God, it turned out that the battery was under full warranty, and that it was replaced for free. When the guy replaced my battery, he found it wasn't connecting well and filed some rust off of the connectors for me. I turned around, and my very dear friend who was in the process of moving had come to help me. Isn't it amazing how God always knows exactly what we need? A diagnosis of my truck issue, free replacement of the battery, free installation (and connection rust removal to boot) of the battery, and a big hug from a friend. Isn't that just like God?????

So Butch comes home tonight, and in just a few hours of him being here all will be right in my world again. It's just been a bad week. It happens. But you know what? The week is almost over, and the sun will rise again tomorrow. And as always...my God, my Jehovah Jireh, my Jehovah Roi, my Jehovah Shalom....will be right there with me.

Spotted on the River, while looking for our eagle....

 Just thought I'd share this little guy's profile pic!

I think that's Tug Georgia, but don't hold me to it! (I will ask Butch for clarification)

Sometimes it doesn't look like those ships will fit under the bridge!

River Views

Ok, so it's been a while! It didn't seem like this little bloggy was catching on much, so I semi-abandoned it. I stumbled across some pretty cool pics tonight so I figured I would give it another whirl.

Last October 19, Butcher and I celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary. While I personally felt that one (okay...both) of us deserved the Congressional Medal of Honor for such a feat, no one else seemed to buy into it. I drove onto the island to pick Butch up and he was so excited! I foolishly thought it might have something to do with me/our anniversary/romance and all that jazz, but it was actually over something totally not even remotely related to us. However, it was pretty cool indeed!

For a few weeks, Butch had been telling me he had noticed a Bald Eagle circling near the tug boat. This excited me, as ye olde Bald Eagle was still on our endangered species list last time I checked. Butch had told me about how they were riding along on the tug, when all of a sudden, the eagle swooped in and was soaring right along side the tugboat. He described the broadness of the wings, the majestic white head feathers, and the powerful fwoosh fwoosh of his mighty wings as he powered up to glide.  But on this particular morning, Butch was especially thrilled to report that there were TWO Bald Eagles, one male, one female, nesting nearby. We set out, on the other side of the river, to try to catch a glimpse.

Picture us walking in the bright sunlight, gingerly easing our way through some shrubbery (well, ok, I eased gingerly. Butch just crashed on through. I was more afraid of bugs and snakes and such, but Butch, being the manly man that he is, was not even remotely concerned. He was a man on a mission.) We walked as far as we could down the river walk and stopped. I was excited. Everything that flew over head, from seagull to hawk to finch, was in my mind, our prized Eagle. I am certain Butch was quite annoyed with me asking "Is that him? Is that him?" over and over.

Finally, we stopped. My eyesight is not what it used to be, but my eagle eyed man (ha) had seen.......could it be? YES! It was our eagle!!!!

I managed to snap a couple of pics from veeeeeery far away, and then, my camera died! NOOOOOO! Snacklefrazzle! It DIED! And did I have extra batteries? Yes! But they were dead too. But ah ha! Cellphone! Sigh. Ye Old Blackberry doesn't capture a bird in a tree from across a river very well, no matter how much I begged it to.

So, here they are...the ones I got. We saw the female eagle as well, but she was deep in the tree, hiding. So enjoy the pics of my big fat mac daddy American Bald Eagle!

You can sort of see the nest in this picture, if you look very closely to the left of the eagle about 3/4 the way up the left side of the "V" branch