A new first: Baby's First Evacuation!

Well, if evacuating from a hurricane makes for more seasoned New Orleanians, then count Lola and Jackson among the veterans. As did most of South East Louisiana, we recently packed our most precious belongings and set out for drier pastures in anticipation of Gustav. We initially fled to Baton Rouge to Aaron's Aunt Missy's house. She graciously housed much of the New Orleans Hood/Freedman clan. At it's height the number was 11 refugees plus 4 permanent residents (and our cat Smoky). We successfully rode out the storm and it was great to have the family together. But we got anxious once we had no power, so we packed up and headed to to my friend Simone's house in Lafayette. Aaron stayed until Wednesday morning and the twins and I set out around midnight Wednesday night. A HUGE THANKS to both Missy and family and to Simone for housing our family and all our stuff (no small task to be sure). We really appreciate it and hope we won't have to impose again this hurricane season.

In closing, just because I am so scarred by the packing process, I am sharing with you the list of baby things I packed and unpacked 3 times (at home, Baton Rouge, and in Lafayette):
8 Bottles and all their parts
5 Cans of formula
2 Sectioned travel formula containers
2 different bottles of eye drops for sick babies
Infant Tylenol for sick babies
2 different bottles of saline spray for sick babies
Bulb suction for sick babies
Baby thermometer
2 baby monitors and monitor bases
6 blankets (3 per baby)
10 burp rags
10 wash cloths for wiping sick babies' noses
6 pairs of pajamas (3 per baby)
8 outfits for Lola
8 outfits for Jackson
2 baby towels and washcloths
Aquaphor baby wash
Aquaphor baby ointment
Toy bin of baby toys
1 Baby swing
1 Bouncy Seat
2 Pack n Plays
2 pads to protect the pack n plays from sick babies' runny noses
50 Diapers (5 days worth)
1 Box baby wipes
Fully packed diaper bag

This does not include Aaron's and my necessities and things we decided we couldn't live without if the house were to flood again (a list that grew smaller as the babies' list grew longer).

And while I don't have pictures that document this rite of passage, here are a couple of cute ones taken in the days just before the evacuation: