Our Dear Friend Sandy

We survived our first hurricane!  It was exciting preparing and anticipating for it but when the power shut off several hours before the storm actually hit, the novelty quickly wore off.  The kids were more out of control than usual as they ran through the house with flashlights and Randy got home early from work before they closed the bridges.  We watched the towering trees in our backyard swaying precariously in the breeze as the wind roared through them.  I was nervous to turn my back to the window because I felt like a tree was about to crash through at any second.  We grilled burgers for dinner, then put the kids to bed in their forts they built in the basement (safe from their upstairs bedrooms where a tree could crash through at any second), and hoped the power would come back on.  By 9:30 pm the storm was gone and all was calm.  

We woke the next morning to beautiful blue skies and still no power.  The damage around us was minimal:  only two trees down in the back and one in front.  But it looked like a war zone as Randy drove into work and had to dodge downed power lines and swerve around trees strewn across the road.  

After another long day with no power we stocked up on ice and head lamps. Ice, batteries, and candles were hot commodities.  We discovered head lamps were the best way to endure the power outage.  We each wore one and we hung a few of them from the light fixtures to add a little more light. 

By the third day (Halloween) things were getting monotonous.  There were four power trucks working on the downed lines outside our neighborhood and still no power.  The boys watched movies on the DVD player in the van where I was also able to charge my cell phone.  Smart phones are such a blessing when you don't have power!  The internet was slow but at least I could communicate with the rest of the world.  The house was starting to get cold so I used our propane heater until Randy got home to build a fire.  The boys carved pumpkins while I made our traditional chili dinner when we heard word that trick-or-treating would be postponed until Saturday.  After dinner the whole family was gathered round the comfort of a roaring fire.  Parker was mesmerized by the orange flames and soon fell asleep.  Marcus and Ethan were on the floor playing a card game and giggling together like girls while Landon flew his Star Wars ship around them.  I sat in the corner reading a book and thought, "This isn't so bad.  All this together time is a good thing."  

Then the power turned on and the kids went crazy.  I finally got to watch the news and see the devastation Hurricane Sandy had caused and instantly felt guilt for complaining about our power outage.  But it makes for good stories and good memories.  My favorite memory was of Bean running around in his underwear with his Spiderman mask on yelling, "The power is on!  The power is on!" at the top of his lungs.  Good times.

Hours after the power shut off, the mailman delivered the mail in the middle of the storm.

our backyard before the storm

our naked trees after the storm (we took down the tramp)