The Blog

It was my intent to start a blog after our Yellowstone vacation (didn't happen) and then I decided to start one at the beginning of this school year. I had all ready decided what the first post was going to be. The big news was going to be that on Sunday the 24th (day before the first day of school) Preston was feeling sick. The kids had taken turns being sick the previous week. About 9pm Preston came upstairs complaining of a pain in his stomach. For those of you who know Preston, know he is not a complainer. He has broken bones and hardly cried. Well, he was complaining that his stomach was hurting and was laying on the floor. Christopher asked him if he could walk over to the couch. Preston did and then he got all pale and passed out!! Christopher had been holding Adam and promptly handed him to Spencer. He grabbed Preston. Meanwhile, I being a Mom, started to go into shock myself. Not bad, but enough that I could tell I wasn't normal. (-which as a side note -helped me the next day to assure people during the fire that I was indeed NOT IN SHOCK, alas back to the story) We (meaning I-) pulled it together and took him to the Emergency Room. The doctors think that he was just dehydrated and that the combination of everything caused him to pass out-much to our relief. That to me sounded like big news. The next day he was fine, but we kept him home from school as a precaution. He was feeling better enough in the evening that we decided to go out for dinner as a celebration of the first day of school. And thus the adventure began....

Sirens

So yesterday as I am talking to my insurance adjuster on the phone, I hear sirens. It is not uncommon to hear sirens, but these were pretty close. I looked at the window and what did I see, a fire truck driving right past our home. I do have to clarify that our rental home is just down the street from our -well now empty lot. I open the door to see where it is headed and immediately smell Natural Gas. I look down toward the "empty" lots and sure enough you can see a geiser coming out of the ground. One of the contractors at a neighbors lot hit a gas line. I immediately cut the call short with the adjuster and decided I should just get out of the house. Adam and I jumped in the car and went to Tara's house. We returned a few hours later to a house that had a faint hint of natural gas. In the end they hadn't evacuated anyone. It was just me and Adam who make the voluntary evacuation. A few hours later I hear sirens again. Really close. I looked out the window to see a fire truck right in front of our house beginning to back up. They had missed the turn into the cul-de-sac right by us and were backing up. This time it was a medical emergency. I stayed outside for a few minutes, enough time for me to direct the ambulance to back up because they had missed the entrance too. I guess this just adds spice into a day in the life.

Thanks

I have been avoiding updating the blog because I have no idea where to start. It was much easier when Tara updated it. The first thing we would like to say is a HUGE THANK YOU. Those really don't seem like adequate words to describe our feelings, but it is a start. Thanks to all who participated in our "Food Storage/Tool shower". I have never been so happy to see rice, tomatoes, peanut butter, scissors etc in my life. People are so thoughtful in their gifts and anticipating our every need and want. We are now in a rental house and are trying to return to some semblance of normalcy. Our kids have been so patient. Besides our normally busy life, we now get to add shopping for everything you can think of in your house and garage. Our first big purchase was Bikes, four to be exact and it was no small task. It was more time consuming than we had anticipated. I think that this is just a foreshadowing of things to come. My plan is to update the blog more often starting with the experiences of the last three weeks. It might all come across a little disjointed, but I hope that you can get the gist of our experiences. Thanks Again. Mindy

Moving Day!

Today is the big day! The Lee Family is moving into their rental that is just down the street from where they will re-build their home. I believe their phone number will be the same and if you would like the address - just email me. I had another idea for them as I was walking through Costco the other day... They could probably use Costco gift cards - I know they shop quite a bit there. They are so grateful for your generosity and feel like they have been spoiled. I only mention this because people are still asking for ideas. ~Tara

Date Set for Food Storage/Tool Shower

Please join us on Friday, September 12 from 7-9 pm at the Lindsay's home: 2981 Sweetwater Dr. We will be including the Lee's neighbors, Mike and Linda Robinson - who also lost their home, as recipients at this shower. The Lee's stored food like pasta, canned tomatoes (diced or crushed), canned beans (black, kidney), applesauce (unsweetened), juice (any kind), fruit cocktail, peaches, powdered milk, top ramen, mac'n'cheese, stove-top stuffing, canned veggies (corn, green beans, beets), Progresso soup, canned chicken noodle soup, cream of mushroom, cream of chicken, cream of tomato, and canned chicken broth, rice (white, long grain, brown, wild blend), potato pearls, granola bars... They also lost their 50 gal water storage drums (2) Christopher is still working on his list of tools. We will either post it here or get him registered somewhere. Housing update - The Lee's made a decision about a rental on Saturday but it is held up by the long weekend. They hope to have things in place by the end of the week so they can get settled. ~Tara

Housing Update

Christopher and Mindy spent part of the day looking at houses to rent and should have a decision made tomorrow. They will be staying in the Columbia Village area. They have been busy with insurance meetings and have not spent much time at Bed Bath and Beyond to get their registry completed but that is on the list for tomorrow. Christopher is planning a trip to Home Depot to make a list of tools to replace. If they can't set up some type of registry, we'll post the list on the blog. Many of you have emailed me with ideas of ways to help and wow! - you guys just think of everything! Some of you want those things kept a surprise and so it is important you let me know if you have an idea that is not posted here because it may already be covered. Thanks also to all of you who are bringing meals in - we are feeling very spoiled! ~Tara

Thanks So much for the Support

Hello Everyone and a HUGE Thanks for all the concern and support.  There are not adequate words to describe our gratitude. We have felt your thoughts and prayers.   We were hoping to be able to have pictures to post by now, but we have been a bit busy.  We have been overwhelmed with the offers of help and support that have been offered.   We watched our house burn on TV from a safe distance. Well I watched it, while the kids were outside playing on the trampoline.