Sunday, January 13, 2008

Oh the things kids say...

Sydney went to the Kids Night Out at the Y on Friday night. One of the things they got to do was swim. When she got home that night she told me: Mommy I didn't even swim with a life jacket on. All I had was a noodle around my waist and I swam all the way to the deep end. I didn't even drown! Mommy: Great job! I'm so glad you didn't drown! :)

Saturday afternoon we went to a birthday party for a friend in her class at Skate Port. This was her first invite to a party from a friend at school so it was a very exciting time. Skate Port, by the way, hasn't changed in 15 years. Same blue carpet, same white lattice separating the snack bar from everything else, same loony toons characters on the wall of the DJ area, it was like going back in time almost. This was probably only the third time Syd has been skating and bless her heart she has my coordination. She her legs spread about 3 feet wide most of the time and I watched her take a few falls, some that would have probably made her cry had it just been me and her there. When we got in the car to leave after the party, I asked if she had fun. Sydney: YES! I had a lot of fun...except when I fell down real hard.

Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Too close for comfort

What a night last night! We were hit by storm after storm - 4 all together.

Around 4:45 the sirens went off in Monett and we were all sent downstairs to the vault. It was just before 5 when they said the worst would be in Monett until 5:15 so that's when everyone heading toward Springfield asked to go ahead and leave. They said we could at our own risk. I left to get Hannah at Sandy's, she doesn't have a basement so she had already enacted her tornado plan and taken the kids to a doctor's office a couple of blocks away. I was leaving Monett at 5:08. The sky was as dark as I've ever seen it and the lightening was fierce all around. I was just praying to get home safely. When we got to Aurora, the radio stated a tornado had been spotted in Verona...not even 5 miles behind me. Driving through Marionville, then Billings, then Republic all had their tornado sirens blaring. I hate that sound. When I got to Republic around 5:45 I had 2 different vehicles flash their lights at me. I still don't know if they had seen the tornado and were trying to warn people or what. I knew I would be home at 5:55 and they were calling for the storm to be in Battlefield by 6. Luckily Battlefield missed most of the first storm but the sirens were going off when we pulled in the garage. I've never be so thankful to be home safe...next time I'll stay put. When Corey picked Sydney from school after work they were in the hall - duck and cover.

We spent most of the night in the basement watching for number 2 and then 3 to come through. My cousin Jenn and her husband Robert came by with their doggies to ride it out with us. They left around 9 and by 11:30 we had gone to bed. At 3am I awoke to the sirens again. Corey was already up watching the news. I looked at the radar and it seemed to have already pasted Battlefield at this point so I went to lay back down. Not even five minutes later everything got really calm and the windows started moving to a point that I was sure they were going to burst. I ran back out to the LR and now Battlefield was completely in red on the radar...how could it have changed so quickly. We grabbed both the girls and headed back downstairs. Luckily we had no damage and I think it was just very high straight line winds that we experienced, but that is the closest I ever want to be to a tornado, I really thought it might be the real deal last night.

Saturday, January 5, 2008

Sisterly love...



I was going through some Christmas photos from this year and came across a couple I wanted to share. I realized before Hannah was born that having another child was a wonderful blessing. What I didn't know is how much joy I would get from watching Hannah and Sydney together. Sydney is a loving and helpful big sister and Hannah just thinks the world of her big sister. I love watching them play and spend time together. Sisters are a great thing to have in your life. I know I'm lucky to have one...love you Miss.