A Hurricane, Statefair, Body Rash and Cake Plate

Surviving Ike.  I use the present tense because it seems like we are still feeling the affects of the hurricane almost two weeks later.  Actually a lot has happened since the storm so for easier reading I'm breaking this post into three sections, color coded, the Hurricane, The Storm has Passed, and Hospital Close Calls.  This way you can read it in sections if one sitting is just too much for you (how thoughtful am I?)

The Hurricane:

We actually live about 70 miles north of the coast so most people I know stocked up on water for hurricane preparation and that's about all.  The closer it got the more we realized this thing is pretty big and may actually do some damage up here.  After many talks with Jen and Keith we decided it was safest to take the babies to Kevin's parents house (which is made from steel beams and oh so safe).  The traffic was crazy so we packed up the car with both dogs, their crates, ALL of Josh's stuff, a suitcase of clothes for the entire family for two days, food, and water.   Needless to say our car was pretty full.  We decided to head out around 2:00 am to avoid spending hours in traffic on what is normally a 35 minute drive.  Friday, the day before Ike, was actually a lot of fun.  We spent the entire time outside letting the boys play for as long as possible.  Josh was pretty tore up by the end of the day and after this picture was taken he bruised the other cheek and scabbed up his nose.  Poor guy!

Owen and Josh playing on Pa's tractor.

That night after the boys went to bed we played games and then all 11 people, 9 dogs, and 3 cats hunkered down for the night.  We were pretty lucky to each sleep in our own beds because most of our neighbors slept in closets through the storm.  The winds got pretty bad but it wasn't as scary as I was expecting.  Around 2:30 am we lost power.  The next morning everything was actually quite calm as the eye of the storm passed right over us.  Then the back half came through bringing more rain and wind but nothing as bad as the front.  By mid day the boys were going slightly stir crazy and Kevin was doing his best to entertain them.  Here they are in the generator box...tons of fun!

The Storm has Passed:

Later Saturday evening we decided to load up and head home to check out our home and possible damage.   It took us a while to navigate home with roads blocked because of fallen trees and flooding.  As we pulled into the neighborhood most houses fared well, but here are some pictures of other homes we saw-


It was slightly unnerving to turn the corner and look for our house and the big trees we had in both the front and back yard.  However, we were very blessed to have no damage done whatsoever.  Like my in-laws we had no electricity but we did have running water and gas.  I've learned that running water is SO much more important than electricity.  The next morning Kevin went to Home Depot to get a generator but was about 20 minutes too late.  They had sold the last one.  However, they promised more were on their way soon.  After standing in line for eight hours, Kevin brought a generator home to run our refrigerator.  

This may sound crazy but I actually thoroughly enjoyed the week following the storm.  The weather was unseasonably cool, so no air conditioning wasn't a problem.  But the best part was the way our neighborhood pulled together.  On Monday everyone got out and loaded tree limbs and twigs into trucks to take the mulcher.  Those with generators ran extension cords to their neighbors and everyone sat out front grilling and talking.  Friends shared gas with us to run the generator the first night and then we were able to do the same a few days later for different friends.  Quite a few people pulled all their meat together and had big BBQ's.  We got together every night with neighbors to play dominoes.   I can't put into words how wonderful our neighborhood really was and I've talked to many other people who've said the exact same thing.  

I know for many people the week following was very trying.  Gas lines were ridiculously long as many gas stations weren't open.  The line for ice and water stretched for miles and we were in one of the least damaged areas.  My first trip to the store was surreal.  Only one door was open and we had to wait outside in line until other shoppers came out.  With a generator running the store the lights were extremely dim.  There were very few fruits and no refrigerated items available at all.  In fact there were loaves of bread were the lunch meat normally sat.  We stocked up on canned veges and snacks for Josh (I had actually bought quite a few things before the storm came...good job me).  I never realized how much I took basic things like eggs and milk for granted.  By the following Saturday (one week exactly) we still didn't have power and our laundry was beginning to pile up, so I decided fly to Albuquerque with Josh to see my parents.  

Hospital Close Calls:

I'll post pictures from this section after mom emails them to me (hint, hint mom).  On our first day in Alb. we decided to go the State Fair.  It was a lot of fun.  Josh was more interested in the people than the animals in the petting zoo and we realized he was just a little too young and a little too short to do anything really fun, but it was still a great trip (where else can you get Chile Reano Corn Dogs and Churros?)  By Sunday afternoon Josh was not feeling too great.  He was running fever of 102.7 and the Tylenol and cool wash clothes were not helping.  Poor baby was so lethargic (which is the COMPLETE opposite from his normal character)  It is actually the first time he really snuggled with me for more than 2 minutes.  He battled fever all night and into Monday when we finally decided to take him in.  My mom has a client who is a pediatric nurse and she took such good care of us.  They diagnosed it as stomatitis (a cousin to hand, foot, mouth disease) which meant he had blisters in the back of his throat causing him to refuse to eat and drink and run high fever.  To make sure it was only viral and not bacterial they sent us to the hospital for blood work.  Poor guy had to be poked three times before they were able to get enough blood... he was not a fan.  Turns out it was viral and had run its course and by Tuesday the fever was completely gone and we were able to fly home.  

Power was restored to our neighborhood on Sunday night, but there are still many people around us without electricity.   We stopped on the way home from the airport and got BBQ and when we got home I put some noodles on the stove for Josh.  I guess Yogi was so excited to see us that he broke down the gate (literally snapped the wooden fence post in two).  As Kevin was outside trying to tie him up, I was working on Josh's dinner.  I opened the fridge and my white milkglass cake plate, which was stored on top of the fridge, came tumbling down on my head.  My first reaction was to catch the cake plate because it is an antique and I love it.  My second reaction was to sit down on the floor, cover my head with my hands and cry.  It really did hurt but I probably cried harder than I really needed to because I was hoping Kevin would come in the door at any minute and find me on the floor and take pity on me.  After two minutes of waiting, I finally decided to stop throwing my pity party and get up.  When I stood up I noticed both of my hands were completely covered in blood.  Oh my gosh...I really am hurt!  I ran outside crying probably more hysterical than I needed to.  But I just kept thinking, "I can't get stitches, they'll shave my head!"  (For those who don't know Kevin's cousin and I have been growing our hair for locks of love and are cutting it next month...there was NO way I was letting them shave me!).  Turns out the cut wasn't too bad it just bled a lot because it was on the head (according to my paramedic/fireman brother in law).  But I still blame Ike for the accident.  I think it was moving the fridge back and forth to reach the plug for the generator that shifted the cake plate to the edge.  

It's definitely been a long two weeks and to top it all off Josh's top two teeth broke through the gums today causing him A LOT of pain and making him very irritable.  We are still catching up on laundry and the stores are beginning to stock refrigerated items again!  All in all, it's been quite an adventure.