Tornado in Town

This day started at 4 o'clock in the morning with us waking to the sounds of the storm warning sirens going off outside (all of this the night before a full day of activity, of course). At the time, we actually discussed whether or not those were in fact the sirens or just a whistling sound from the storm. We quickly agreed it did not matter, either this was the siren going off or the steady, whistling, whirring sound of a storm!!!! We got the kids out of bed and into the tub, while Clay found flashlights and the Noah Weather Radio. We lost power soon after we were up. For a little bit, the kids were visibly shaking. Margo was always asking questions and looking as worried as her dad. At first Andrew kept saying, “Is this a dream?” Then, after getting in the tub, he just kept shouting, “Can we please PRAY?!!!” It didn’t last long, but it did make an impression.

We then had to try and get back to sleep with no power (which meant no noises)in the little time we had left before the day was to start. I had visions (or delusions) of us all cuddling in my bed and drifting back to sleep. That lasted about 10 minutes. After a couple of hugs and sweet sighs, Matthew began to stick his fingers in my ear and tickle my arms. That's it! Out of the bed and back to yours!! I slept on the bed in Matthew’s room, Andrew slept in my bed, Clay and Margo were on the couch for an hour or so until it was time for the day to begin!

Thankfully, we didn’t have any damage. Not everyone was so fortunate. Even our fence held on—surprise, surprise! Others around us were not so lucky. Our area was the hardest hit. It has been confirmed a tornado, although nothing was completely leveled or anything like that. We did have sustained, straight-line winds up to 90 miles an hour, with lots of trees down, fences blown and bits of roof around. I can’t imagine what a REAL one feels like. That was enough for me! A Bunko friend took these pictures of the area: