What's Going On

Pregnancy is wearing me out.  I realize that I haven't been blogging much lately, so here's what's been going on with the Losavios.

Our Elf on the Shelf arrived last Wednesday.  "Crumpet" has been moving all over the house, but hasn't caused any mischief yet.  I certainly wouldn't mind if he wanted to tidy up the house or bake cookies.  If you're wondering how we came up with the name "Crumpet," read or listen to The SantaLand Diaries by David Sedaris. 

We celebrated Thanksgiving at our home last week.  My dad and brother drove up from Daphne, Alabama, and Jim's mom Emma was with us from Michigan. 

We served:
Turkey
Rice Dressing (part of Paul's family's tradition)
Holiday Sweet Potatoes
Stuffing (my secret recipe)
Triple Corn Casserole
20 pounds of Mashed Potatoes
Bacon-wrapped Green Beans

We still have some leftovers if you're hungry. 

Last Friday was the Iron Bowl, the annual match-up between Alabama and Auburn.  It was the last regular season game and also the last home game of the year.  Unfortunately, Alabama lost to Auburn by just one point.  It was a disappointing end to the season, but perhaps next year will be better.

Paul's band, Chinese Dentist, played a gig on Friday night.  The band has been together for a looong time, but rarely practices or plays a gig these days.  Only three of the five members still live in town.  They are able to get together about twice a year to play at a local bar, usually The Booth, Egan's, or Little Willie's.  Since the bar would be smoky, and I didn't want to catch any flack for being pregnant in a bar, I opted to stay home.  Check out some of the photos taken by a local photographer.

The demolition of the old Tuscaloosa County High School, which is practically in our backyard, is nearly complete.  I blogged about the demolition here and here before I got bored with it.  I'll post some pictures of the aftermath within the next few days.

I had my 32-week prenatal check-up this week.  Baby Losavio's heart rate is good, my weight gain is "perfect," my belly is measuring normal, and my blood pressure is good.  Everything is looking great.

So there is our week in review.  I hope that you have been having a good week.

Demolition on 24th Street, Part Deux

More than a week ago, demolition on the old Tuscaloosa County High School was slated to begin.  There have been several setbacks that have prevented the crew from doing their work.

First, student records were discovered inside the buildng.  Second, the gas had not been turned off. 

Some former students decided to pay tribute to their old school:

Here is the extent of the progress:

For further reading:
Demolition on 24th Street
Old Tuscaloosa County High records left unsecured

Demolition on 24th Street

It's a Halloween miracle!

The heavy equipment has rolled in and demolition will begin very soon on the old Tuscaloosa County High School.  I believe the school was built around 1930 and was in use until about 2000, when a new school was built.  Since the school was vacated, it has not been maintained and although the building is not officially condemned, it should be.  The roof has collapsed in places and there is two feet of standing water in the basement.  Recently, we've noticed more and more broken windows, many at ground level.  Looking through the windows it's evident that people have been using the school as a place to party.  It's a dangerous place for people to squat, but it also makes me feel unsafe that this has been going on in my backyard.

For the time being, the plan is to create a practice field for the adjacent middle school.  Could that be considered a level playing field? 
 

This is the view from my kitchen window.

Here are some "before" shots.  I'll post more pictures as the demolition gets underway.