Power(less)ful

Well, we've had an exciting few days around here!  On Sunday evening, a storm came through that knocked our power out.  We grabbed some flashlights, blankets, an iPad and watched a movie with the girls before sending them to bed.  When the power still wasn't back on at 2:00 a.m., I looked online and saw reports that a Microburst came through our community and power may not be restored for days.  Being the person in our family in charge of food, I woke Mate and told him I had to go get ice from the neighboring city.  The streets were eerily dark, but the damage didn't look too bad. When I returned, Mate helped me get all our refrigerated items in a cooler and we went back to bed.  

We were so lucky we didn't have to throw much food out and that I have an aversion to overly filled refrigerators.

I couldn't fall back asleep because I'm the logistics person in our family.  I had to plan our next move without any idea of what we were actually up against.  Who can sleep at a time like that?

  Morning came, Mate headed off to work, but school was cancelled for the girls, so we spent a few hours playing games.  

Breakfast by candlelight

Countless friends reached out to offer their help throughout this experience, which was very much appreciated.  We headed to a friend's house for lunch and a playdate (and heat and lights).

Sweet friends

On our way there and back, we really got to see just how much damage had been done during the storm.  Trees and power lines were down all over the place.  Debris littered the roads and yards were covered in downed branches.  With no power in sight, we decided to head to my in-laws for the night.  We're so lucky we had access to a warm home, hot showers and home-cooked meals.

Soric Sleepover

In the morning, Mate dropped us back off at home and headed to work.  We turned on the fireplace, made use of the gas stove and spent hours reading and building puzzles.

After lunch, we headed to the movies and were pleasantly surprised to return home to power.

The girls are lucky I'll sit through just about anything as long as popcorn is involved 

Maybe it was the kindness of friends and strangers.  Maybe it was access to a fireplace and gas stove. Maybe it was having family nearby to take care of us.  Maybe it was being overwhelmed with gratitude when we realized there were trucks from across the country here to help restore power. Maybe it was perspective.  Probably, it was all of those things: friendship and kindness and family and generosity and community and choosing positivity. The storm may have taken power to light homes and charge electronics, but it left us with an opportunity to create our own and that was pretty amazing to see.