TORNADO!!!! On April 4th we had quite a frightful experience when a tornado appeared out of nowhere just after I picked up Hannah from ballet. We just happened to have gone in Blockbuster before going home when the siren sounded and the trees started to bend with the wind and rain. We decided to stay in the storage room of Blockbuster until it was over and the girls did not like this at all. Hannah was particularly scared and we said several prayers that we would be safe while her legs were shaking the entire time. I was able to entertain Hailey by asking her to count all of the drinks that were in the crates on the floor. When all was finally clear we emerged to find trees and power lines down everywhere. It actually took us more than 20 minutes to make what is usually a 3 minute drive home. We had to take several back roads and do some backtracking after we discovered how bad the damage was and how many trees and powerlines had the roads blocked. I became more and more nervous as we approached our house, scared of what I would find after seeing so many houses with trees on top of them. We were very blessed and fortunate that we only had a few limbs knocked down and our trampoline had been blown all the way to the back of the yard with only the fence to keep it from going farther. About 10 minutes after we got home Hannah was looking out the window and said “Mommy look at our car”. What I found totally freaked me out. The window that she had been sitting near had completely shattered. There was nothing laying on the ground or in the car that suggested it had been hit by something but instead that it had been the wind pressure. There had been several cars with the winds shattered in the parking lot of Blockbuster and I was so thankful that one of them had not been mine. After this happened I knew that our prayers had been answered and we had been kept safe. The window could have so easily shattered while we were driving home with Hannah sitting right next to it. There was glass all in her carseat and what was left in the window looked like sharp daggers. The night of the tornado while I was laying with Hannah she asked me why the tornado did not take us to Munchkin Land like it did Dorothy. I tried to explain that our tornado was not quite as big as the one that Dorothy was in. Looking back I wonder if she thought we were in the air spinning around and such while we were in Blockbuster during the tornado. We were very fortunate that we did not have more damage. Although we were without power for 5 days, we were able to go and stay with my sister which was such a relief. And of course the girls did not mind a bit. They had TV, air conditioning, and their cousins to play with. It turned out to be a very nice visit. Now, almost 2 weeks later, our cable still goes off and on and we still do not have our phone working or internet service, but with so many other people not even able to go into their homes I really can’t complain

Easter

Easter was great although Jason did have to start his week of working the 7 to 7 night shift Easter night. After church we had my sister and mother over and let the kids play outside on Easter day. The night before the girls dyed their eggs and put them in their baskets for the Easter Bunny to find. When Hannah woke up that morning it took her a few minutes to remember that the Easter Bunny was supposed to come. However, when she did she rushed out of the room and was thrilled to find that he had actually been there and left gifts as well as hidden her eggs. Hailey was surprised and could not quite understand that the Easter Bunny had brought her all this stuff. She kept saying “the Easter Bunny give it to me?” They had a great time finding all of their eggs that he had hidden in the backyard. A few weeks earlier we had breakfast with the Easter Bunny at the mall and while Hailey was a little shy at first it only took her a few minutes of watching Hannah to warm up. Now she is constantly asking about both him and Santa Claus and when they will be coming again. Hannah had an Easter party at school and we made Easter Bunny cupcakes to take. She had a great time helping and was so excited to tell her friends how we made them.

Spring Break

Spring Break was lots of fun. Well, most of it. Jason did spend a few days painting and sanding some of our house to get it ready to put on the market. We met my sister and her family at my parents’ house and the kids had a BLAST!! At Nana’s house they decided to swim in the FREEZING cold water of the pool. Jason took the kids for a ride on a little motorcycle. And they of course had an endless supply of bubble gum and sweets. At Poppy’s house they were greeted by a turtle Poppy had found for them along with a lizard in a jar. Hannah and Hailey were brave enough to pet it but Mommy was not!! They went to the “beach” near his house and again could not resist the icy cold water, played on the playground, made sandcastles and collected seashells. They went to Monkey Island (this is just the name of this particular island) and could not understand why they could not find any monkeys. Casey and I were even allowed to take a quick shopping trip while the guys and Nana watched the kids. We all had a great time.