Last night, Nelson mentioned that it was time for me to write another post because he was needing one to uplift him. "You manage to put a positive spin on negative things" he said so sweetly. It was going on day 4 of no electricity, so you can understand his pain (and mine).
Four days and 108 hours of no electricity. Makes you wonder how people in the "old days" did without it.
I could bore you with all the things you should have on hand if a hurricane ever comes your way, but I won't. The only thing I'm going to tell you is this : get a generator. If you do nothing else, buy one.
We could have had it WAAAAYYYYY worse, trust me. All around us, rivers were flooding, roads collapsing and people evacuated. My home and family were in tact, which we can only attribute to God's grace.
It would be easy to tell you all the awful things about going through this. Truthfully, there weren't that many- they were inconveniences if anything. There were so many positives that came about thanks to Irene, and I'd like to share them with you:
- Our home is situated on the top of a hill (albeit a small one), which protected it from much of the basement flooding fears we had. Our neighbors across the street had the town firetruck in on Sunday, and they spent over 7 hours pumping out their basement.
- Two large branches/trees fell in our yard. Neither hit the house or garages. Can you say LUCKY?!!
- A co-worker loaned Nelson a chainsaw to chop the tree, and all four of us bonded while stacking the wood. Charlie, ever the optimist mentions "one good thing about this hurricane- free firewood!" Love this kid.
- The same day, our neighbor loaned us a generator. <cue the Hallelujah chorus> Now the frig could be hooked up to keep our food safe, and so could the coffee maker for morning survival. The neighbors are owed big time (gift idea suggestions?).
- The kids were supposed to begin school on Monday. Two days of postponements and they finally made the call to start next Tuesday. Secretly, I was thrilled to have a bit more of summer, even though I was mentally geared for getting back to routine.
- School being cancelled meant the kids had to come with me to a Dr. appointment. It was a mere ten minutes away, but we saw the congestion on the opposite side of the road, en route, and knew we wouldn't be coming home that way. Charlie is a phenomenal map reader, and thanks to his skills, he was able to navigate us home with no less than 5 detours. Over two hours of trying to get home and we did. On a normal school day, I'd have had to navigate that treacherous experience alone- I'm so thankful I didn't have to!
- Running water. We had it. It was cold, but I'll take it.
- My tendency to save stuff, saved me. For some reason, I held onto a portable propane burner. This wonderful little contraption allowed us to have food and hot water, when needed.
- Dishes by candlelight. This is by no means something I would choose to do nightly, but in this case, it was soothing, in a weird, mindless, kind of way.
- Not having to cook. I mean really cook, as in needing a recipe. It was simply enough to look in the cupboard and try to be creative. No one complained. Now that it's over, does this mean I can't cry foul?
- All of the emails, calls and messages from friends and family, wondering how we are in this circumstance. We are so blessed to have so many praying and pulling for us.
We move on from here, forever remembering our first week in this house- what a memory!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
I love electricity
Today is Wednesday.
We lost power on Saturday night.
There's a lot of things in life I could do without. Electricity isn't one of them.
We lost power on Saturday night.
There's a lot of things in life I could do without. Electricity isn't one of them.
Friday, August 26, 2011
Say what?!
I'm a California girl. That's where I spent the first 24 years of my life. We lived with earthquakes.
Then I moved to Maine. Snowstorms became a usual occurrence, and I quite enjoyed them. A pot of soup on the stove and a good book with which to curl up, and I was set.
But hurricanes? HELLO- I don't know a thing about dealing with those!
Here we are, the first week in our house and in between unpacking boxes, I'm supposed to think about getting batteries (because of course, any I may have, are in a box somewhere!) and gallons of water and plenty of food. WHAT?!
This is me yesterday- off to Walmart to be prudent as my smart hubby suggested. Thought I was ahead of the game, but apparently hundreds of locals had the same idea. Walmart was cleared out of D batteries. The kids and I weren't leaving the store until we'd covered every corner, making sure every display of batteries was checked. Sure enough, in the toy aisle, there were a few packs of D's left- BINGO. Mills family score: 1
Today, I had to return some things to Lowes, and figured we try to get more batteries (I hear my father's voice in my head telling me to have plenty on hand). Surprise! They were all sold out of batteries and flashlights. You wouldn't believe the number of people buying generators.....Mills family score: 0
We've got an ample stash of candles, a battery operated radio (boom box anyone?) and board games to combat the boredom that will arise should we lose power. This is a head's up that I might be off the grid for a few days....
The kids are well prepared, and we're trying to keep them calm in what could otherwise be a very frightening scenario. It's better to plan for the worst, we keep telling them. That doesn't mean it will happen. There's lots of prayer happening here too; praying for those getting hit first, and prayer for us as we try to deal with a unique "adventure". The kids are supposed to start school on Monday, but that may not happen given the extenuating circumstances. That's one way to avoid making those dreaded school lunches!
I love having visitors. But I don't know any Irene and she has plans to drop in soon.....
Keep praying. Everyone along the east coast could sure use it right now.
Then I moved to Maine. Snowstorms became a usual occurrence, and I quite enjoyed them. A pot of soup on the stove and a good book with which to curl up, and I was set.
But hurricanes? HELLO- I don't know a thing about dealing with those!
Here we are, the first week in our house and in between unpacking boxes, I'm supposed to think about getting batteries (because of course, any I may have, are in a box somewhere!) and gallons of water and plenty of food. WHAT?!
This is me yesterday- off to Walmart to be prudent as my smart hubby suggested. Thought I was ahead of the game, but apparently hundreds of locals had the same idea. Walmart was cleared out of D batteries. The kids and I weren't leaving the store until we'd covered every corner, making sure every display of batteries was checked. Sure enough, in the toy aisle, there were a few packs of D's left- BINGO. Mills family score: 1
Today, I had to return some things to Lowes, and figured we try to get more batteries (I hear my father's voice in my head telling me to have plenty on hand). Surprise! They were all sold out of batteries and flashlights. You wouldn't believe the number of people buying generators.....Mills family score: 0
We've got an ample stash of candles, a battery operated radio (boom box anyone?) and board games to combat the boredom that will arise should we lose power. This is a head's up that I might be off the grid for a few days....
The kids are well prepared, and we're trying to keep them calm in what could otherwise be a very frightening scenario. It's better to plan for the worst, we keep telling them. That doesn't mean it will happen. There's lots of prayer happening here too; praying for those getting hit first, and prayer for us as we try to deal with a unique "adventure". The kids are supposed to start school on Monday, but that may not happen given the extenuating circumstances. That's one way to avoid making those dreaded school lunches!
I love having visitors. But I don't know any Irene and she has plans to drop in soon.....
Keep praying. Everyone along the east coast could sure use it right now.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Thing 14
It might be a little thing for some of you, but for me this thing is a BIGGIE.
I have windows in my laundry area. Did you catch that? Windows- plural.
Are you envisioning me doing a happy dance? Because I am! Almost fourteen years of marriage and all of that time spent doing laundry in dark, dank, depressing spaces.
That time is over. My walls are a nice bright, HAPPY color, and there's a window in front of me and behind me as I launder.
This is one super happy housewife.
Bring on the dirty clothes I say!
I have windows in my laundry area. Did you catch that? Windows- plural.
Are you envisioning me doing a happy dance? Because I am! Almost fourteen years of marriage and all of that time spent doing laundry in dark, dank, depressing spaces.
That time is over. My walls are a nice bright, HAPPY color, and there's a window in front of me and behind me as I launder.
This is one super happy housewife.
Bring on the dirty clothes I say!
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Baker's Dozen
My mind and feet need a serious break from all the unpacking. I LOVE to organize, but moving forces you to do it, and where's the fun in that? Plus, it's the ENTIRE house that needs organizing, not just one closet or cabinet. So here I am, trying to forget about what needs to be done, knowing it will all wait for me.
Since we're up to thing 12, I thought I'd give you a "twofer", a baker's dozen if you will and add in an extra thing we're loving.....
Yesterday, the moving truck announced to the neighborhood that we were here. We had 3 neighbors come by at different intervals to say welcome. It was a relief to take a break from the work and enjoy a few minutes of conversation in the sunshine. Every family that stopped by was friendly and each one stated what a great street this is. There are more kids on the block than we realized, which is wonderful news for C and A. Thing 12 is that God put us smack in the middle of another awesome neighborhood. All those little things that led us to THIS house on THIS street were not coincidence. We'd been telling the kids all along that God already knew which house would be ours, and who our friends would be, but we just had to be patient in waiting for Him to reveal it to us. I LOVE the revealing of things that he'd promised us. God is good!
Thing 13 is this: we enjoy listening to contemporary Christian music on the radio. In this region we are blessed to have 2 stations that provide such music, one being KLOVE (a national station). Driving in the car is a pleasure when you have great music to sing along to! My kids are accustomed to it now, and the bigger blessing is listening to Audrey sing along to the music in the car. Sometimes at home, I even catch her singing the songs to herself. Talk about a positive impact. I love that our daily time in the car includes praising our creator.
Time to head back to those boxes. Hopefully I won't be underwater for too much longer.....! :)
Since we're up to thing 12, I thought I'd give you a "twofer", a baker's dozen if you will and add in an extra thing we're loving.....
Yesterday, the moving truck announced to the neighborhood that we were here. We had 3 neighbors come by at different intervals to say welcome. It was a relief to take a break from the work and enjoy a few minutes of conversation in the sunshine. Every family that stopped by was friendly and each one stated what a great street this is. There are more kids on the block than we realized, which is wonderful news for C and A. Thing 12 is that God put us smack in the middle of another awesome neighborhood. All those little things that led us to THIS house on THIS street were not coincidence. We'd been telling the kids all along that God already knew which house would be ours, and who our friends would be, but we just had to be patient in waiting for Him to reveal it to us. I LOVE the revealing of things that he'd promised us. God is good!
Thing 13 is this: we enjoy listening to contemporary Christian music on the radio. In this region we are blessed to have 2 stations that provide such music, one being KLOVE (a national station). Driving in the car is a pleasure when you have great music to sing along to! My kids are accustomed to it now, and the bigger blessing is listening to Audrey sing along to the music in the car. Sometimes at home, I even catch her singing the songs to herself. Talk about a positive impact. I love that our daily time in the car includes praising our creator.
Time to head back to those boxes. Hopefully I won't be underwater for too much longer.....! :)
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Thing 11
We had no plans for this weekend. Nelson wanted to get the last of our belongings over to the house, but I quickly dissolved him of that notion. My rationale? If we don't get away this weekend, we won't have a chance for quite awhile. Besides, I told him, I worked my tooshie off all week to make this weekend a fun one. A little rationalizing, with a whole lot of sweet talking can work wonders!
I had a hankering for Maryland crabs and longed to sit in a crab shack with butcher paper on the tables, and hammer in hand. My fabulous hubby had the perfect locale in mind, and it was only a 4 hour drive to dinner. That's much closer than from Oakville! Cantler's Riverside Inn outside Annapolis is THE place to go when you want the atmosphere and crab eating experience. Here's an insider's tip: get there early. We figured 4:30 pm would be less busy, but we still had to wait almost an hour. It was messy, it was fun, it was DELICIOUS, and most of all, it was memorable. Both the kids tried crab, and only one walked away loving it. Still, it's more about the adventure and trying something new, which I find is easier when you're doing something out of the ordinary.
It would have been nice to stay and see more of Baltimore and Annapolis, but that will have to wait for another visit. We still have SOME work to do before the movers show up in the morning. Darn. On the work part, not the moving part. FINALLY, we'll get to sleep in our own pad tomorrow.
Thing 11 I love about this move is that Maryland crabs are much closer. Tie that in with my family going along with my crazy idea of driving to Baltimore for dinner, and we have a winning combination. We shared plenty of laughs and jokes as a result of the trip, and that wouldn't have been the case had we done boring old work all day.
Maryland crabs rock. But not as much as my family does.
Guess who wasn't loving the crab....?!
Her smile grew wider after losing a tooth that day.
I had a hankering for Maryland crabs and longed to sit in a crab shack with butcher paper on the tables, and hammer in hand. My fabulous hubby had the perfect locale in mind, and it was only a 4 hour drive to dinner. That's much closer than from Oakville! Cantler's Riverside Inn outside Annapolis is THE place to go when you want the atmosphere and crab eating experience. Here's an insider's tip: get there early. We figured 4:30 pm would be less busy, but we still had to wait almost an hour. It was messy, it was fun, it was DELICIOUS, and most of all, it was memorable. Both the kids tried crab, and only one walked away loving it. Still, it's more about the adventure and trying something new, which I find is easier when you're doing something out of the ordinary.
It would have been nice to stay and see more of Baltimore and Annapolis, but that will have to wait for another visit. We still have SOME work to do before the movers show up in the morning. Darn. On the work part, not the moving part. FINALLY, we'll get to sleep in our own pad tomorrow.
Thing 11 I love about this move is that Maryland crabs are much closer. Tie that in with my family going along with my crazy idea of driving to Baltimore for dinner, and we have a winning combination. We shared plenty of laughs and jokes as a result of the trip, and that wouldn't have been the case had we done boring old work all day.
Maryland crabs rock. But not as much as my family does.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
The truth
Truthfully, I wanted to post another "thing I love" but I would be dismissing the fact that life isn't always a bed of roses, especially when it comes to a move.
This move has gone more smoothly than I could have planned (shout out to the Big Kahuna upstairs). We've had a beautiful apartment to live in for the past three months. Our contractor has been amazing- even finishing ahead of schedule. The "U and left turn" sign isn't leaving me cursing nearly as much.
Yet, three weeks of back and forth to the house, and not having it be our home just yet, can play with one's emotions. Something in me snapped the other day. I was grumpy, tired, and just plain fed up with having a nesting instinct, but not being in my nest. Patience anyone? I think- no - I know, God was using that moment to teach me. Driving back to the apartment alone, I broke down in tears. It dawned on me that we've invested in this house, so that we might enjoy the fruits of it. But God wants us to invest in people (using our house) so that we might bear the fruits on the other side of heaven. My prayer from day one of this move has been that we might be used to further His kingdom. If my house can exude anything good, let it be the love of Christ.
A few more tears were shed, and then KLOVE played a perfect song- what a surprise. NOT. God's got me covered. I just needed a good smack on the head and a strong reminder that there's a much bigger picture here. Losing sight of that wasn't helpful. Now with only a few days left until the movers appear, I'm confident that whatever frustrations take hold with boxes, or lost articles, or chaos, there's a perfect God who has it all under control.
That's the truth.
This move has gone more smoothly than I could have planned (shout out to the Big Kahuna upstairs). We've had a beautiful apartment to live in for the past three months. Our contractor has been amazing- even finishing ahead of schedule. The "U and left turn" sign isn't leaving me cursing nearly as much.
Yet, three weeks of back and forth to the house, and not having it be our home just yet, can play with one's emotions. Something in me snapped the other day. I was grumpy, tired, and just plain fed up with having a nesting instinct, but not being in my nest. Patience anyone? I think- no - I know, God was using that moment to teach me. Driving back to the apartment alone, I broke down in tears. It dawned on me that we've invested in this house, so that we might enjoy the fruits of it. But God wants us to invest in people (using our house) so that we might bear the fruits on the other side of heaven. My prayer from day one of this move has been that we might be used to further His kingdom. If my house can exude anything good, let it be the love of Christ.
A few more tears were shed, and then KLOVE played a perfect song- what a surprise. NOT. God's got me covered. I just needed a good smack on the head and a strong reminder that there's a much bigger picture here. Losing sight of that wasn't helpful. Now with only a few days left until the movers appear, I'm confident that whatever frustrations take hold with boxes, or lost articles, or chaos, there's a perfect God who has it all under control.
That's the truth.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Wanna peek?
We spent a week in Maine, trying to escape the "normal" here.
Turns out it was a great call. The floors were finally being done, and the painting in the kitchen, family room and mud hallway were being finished.
Surprises and me are the best of friends. I love them- it's precisely why I waited to find out my children's sex until they were born. When we left last weekend the biggest rooms weren't yet painted, and I'm so glad I had to wait a week to see it. All week, there was the anticipation of seeing what the paint looked like on the walls. Would we like it? Did it turn out as I planned? Was this a huge mistake?
Yes, yes and no to the above. WHEW. Dodged that bullet!
And can I tell you? The floors are the cat's pajamas! We made the decision to have them darkened slightly and they turned out stellar. It's all fallen into place perfectly and I couldn't be more pleased (or excited, truthfully).
The down side of this is that we now have to begin moving our belongings from the apartment to the house. Silly me, I thought we didn't have that much stuff here in this small flat. WRONG, WRONG and WRONG. It multiplied overnight, that's all I can figure. My "we don't need a minivan" minivan will come to the rescue, yet again. She's handy that way.
I thought of you when I was taking photographs there tonight. Really, I was. I'll show you a few to whet your appetite. No peeking at the kitchen, however, until later. Until then- enjoy!
Piano room before .......
The piano room after.
Family room before.....
Our soon to be American family room.
Dining room before.....
Dining Room after.
Turns out it was a great call. The floors were finally being done, and the painting in the kitchen, family room and mud hallway were being finished.
Surprises and me are the best of friends. I love them- it's precisely why I waited to find out my children's sex until they were born. When we left last weekend the biggest rooms weren't yet painted, and I'm so glad I had to wait a week to see it. All week, there was the anticipation of seeing what the paint looked like on the walls. Would we like it? Did it turn out as I planned? Was this a huge mistake?
Yes, yes and no to the above. WHEW. Dodged that bullet!
And can I tell you? The floors are the cat's pajamas! We made the decision to have them darkened slightly and they turned out stellar. It's all fallen into place perfectly and I couldn't be more pleased (or excited, truthfully).
The down side of this is that we now have to begin moving our belongings from the apartment to the house. Silly me, I thought we didn't have that much stuff here in this small flat. WRONG, WRONG and WRONG. It multiplied overnight, that's all I can figure. My "we don't need a minivan" minivan will come to the rescue, yet again. She's handy that way.
I thought of you when I was taking photographs there tonight. Really, I was. I'll show you a few to whet your appetite. No peeking at the kitchen, however, until later. Until then- enjoy!
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Thing 10
We were all set to head to the Science Center this morning....a fun activity by all accounts. One that was sorely needed since apparently all we ever do is "visit the house and run errands". Whoa....back up the bus!
In an attempt to make things more palatable, I called Nelson's co-worker's wife. We hadn't yet met, but from what he told me I knew we'd get along (plus she stays home with her two kids). I asked if she's like to meet up with the kids. She was game and suggested the Science Center.
Today was the day. Excited kids, well rested Mom, and we were good to go. Except for the car. It began making this horrible noise. I put it in park and walked around the vehicle to see if I ran over anything, or if something was hanging off the undercarriage to cause such a racket. The one thing I noticed was a half-flat tire. Lovely. Those two excited kids I mentioned? Now they weren't so excited. They understood completely that we shouldn't be driving 45 minutes on the highway, only to chance something worse happening.
Our day's drive took us to the local dealer instead. Luckily they could fit us in and fix it. Not so luckily, it wasn't cheap. (Is a trip to the dealer EVER?)
All this is to say that when I called my new friend to tell her the bad news, she was disappointed, but offered to have us over for dinner instead, so we could still meet and talk. How cool is that? I'm telling ya- people like that are instantly high on my list! Another confirmation that God's got us covered here.
Thing 10 I love? That one person was willing to be hospitable on the fly. My day easily could have been soured, but by one small act, she turned it around for us. You never know how your actions will affect someone else. Keep that in mind next time you do something kind.
In an attempt to make things more palatable, I called Nelson's co-worker's wife. We hadn't yet met, but from what he told me I knew we'd get along (plus she stays home with her two kids). I asked if she's like to meet up with the kids. She was game and suggested the Science Center.
Today was the day. Excited kids, well rested Mom, and we were good to go. Except for the car. It began making this horrible noise. I put it in park and walked around the vehicle to see if I ran over anything, or if something was hanging off the undercarriage to cause such a racket. The one thing I noticed was a half-flat tire. Lovely. Those two excited kids I mentioned? Now they weren't so excited. They understood completely that we shouldn't be driving 45 minutes on the highway, only to chance something worse happening.
Our day's drive took us to the local dealer instead. Luckily they could fit us in and fix it. Not so luckily, it wasn't cheap. (Is a trip to the dealer EVER?)
All this is to say that when I called my new friend to tell her the bad news, she was disappointed, but offered to have us over for dinner instead, so we could still meet and talk. How cool is that? I'm telling ya- people like that are instantly high on my list! Another confirmation that God's got us covered here.
Thing 10 I love? That one person was willing to be hospitable on the fly. My day easily could have been soured, but by one small act, she turned it around for us. You never know how your actions will affect someone else. Keep that in mind next time you do something kind.
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