How We Tried to Make the Best of Hurricane Irene

I am just amazed at all the damage that Hurricane Irene caused through NC and northward into NJ and NY!! It breaks my heart at the destruction to beautiful landscapes, major roads, towns, homes and even lives :/ Even just driving through a busy city this week, we were just in awe at the damage ... so local!

And it reminds me how fortunate we were and grateful we should be... that we were soo spared! The biggest "problems" we faced was a BIG limb in the backyard

a tin carport roof ripped off it's bolts and brought down (a foot or two) on the post
and thankfully Brian's intuition made him move our van!

and loss of electricity for a few days.

Honestly, the electricity part was the hardest!! It effected our routine soo much and made simple tasks of "life" a bigger challenge! But in each challenge there was a do-able solution:) All our needs were met and we were able to be thankful in the midst of the "hard times"!

The obvious effect was keeping fresh food at the right storage temperatures and fixing meals!! Thankfully there was a cooler of ice that we were able to use and a generator at a neighbors where we could store our frozen goods. I had stocked up on a couple of simple meals... lunch meat for sandwiches, cereal and even freshly made banana bread:) And our grill.... what a life saver;)

Brian cooks up a MEAN sausage, bacon, eggs and toasted bagels on a grill!! In fact the kids asked if he'd cook breakfast on the grill again next weekend;) And neighbors brought over some delicious pork chops that they had grilled one afternoon;)

HOT showers!! That was one of my biggest hesitations on missions trips.... would I get a hot shower.... I know, so superficial!! I've lost WAY more hot showers as a mom :) Anyway, we had warm water almost 2 days... being super careful! The kids played in freezing tub water for a bath. Finally when the warm water gave out.... neighbors with a gas water tank invited me over... so nice!!

What do you with no power and kids??? first kudos to friends who are just getting their power back in these last few hours... one has 10 kids, the other has 4 and is very preggo with #5!!

Saturday with the really bad weather was the hardest day... so I broke out the books... yep, we schooled through Irene:) And then after they napped the storm had a "lull" so we let them out to play in their dress-ups... gotta love Chris in his uncle's soccer shirt and a belt... truly styling:)

Sunday and Monday we were all outside pretty early... grilling breakfast, riding bikes through the neighborhood, picking up tree limbs and just being OUTSIDE! And then Monday after being outside most of the morning we did some errands in a fully - lit town.

The hardest part with the kids was night time!!! All our kids are used to fans, a cool sleeping breeze and their nightlights!! So we all crashed in the living room... floors, couches and even a pack-n-play full... with windows open! There was still a little fussing... but we reminded them of all the things they should be thankful for versus complaining.... a solid roof, a comfortable house, no bugs/mosquitos coming into the house, full bellies, clean bedding, etc! It worked... we obviously were still warm, but definitely attempting to make it work!

And I have to say it was nice to see and be a part of neighbors coming together! Helping one another! Checking on each other! Makes me soo thankful to be a part of this community! We made it through these last few days (and many years) with them... they are soo precious to us!

Yes and one of the GREATEST things about the hurricane was keeping Brian with us!!! You all will understand more when I get to blog about it.... but we have some changes happening around here and Brian's schedule is about to change in a BIG way soon....

soooo it was very nice to have him home with us all day Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday... sure he worked on a sermon (or two), some class prep, visiting 2 different hospitals to see church members and his online class... but he was with us;)

I have already asked the kids what their favorite part of Hurricane Irene was:

Chris (5 years): Having candles and flashlights at night!
Lydia (4 years) : Sleeping in the living room :)
Anna (7 yrs) : learning to play the "cup game" with Daddy:)

Pics of peace...

during the storm...

and seeing this after... drying out!

More Wordless Wednesday at
NapTime MomTog,

5 Minutes for Mom,
Go Graham Go,
To Be Thode,
Mama to 4 Blessings,
and any other linkys I find !!!