During the Flood

We had been warned that the flood would be bad, but no one had any clue just how bad it would be. The Saturday before the rain hit, my Facebook news feed was full of posts saying how the meteorologists got it wrong again. One lady even posted a video about the "torrential misting".

That night it hit, and what happened the next day was, and is still, unbelievable. Since there were reports of roads being out and streets being flooded everywhere, we were instructed not to leave our homes. EMS were busy saving people from the flood.

Of course, this is the day that our kids decided to go crazy and hurt themselves.

First, Gemma poured Jason's (warm) coffee on herself. She was more upset about being wet, than being warm, but it was still scary because I didn't know that it wasn't hot when she first did it.

Then, Kyran and Karyssa were fighting over a toy and when Karyssa let go, Kyran fell backwards and cut his head. He tried to hide it from us, until he saw that it was bleeding.

So, we washed the cut out, only to be told five minutes later that we were under a boil water advisory and not to drink the water or take showers if we had open cuts.

After consulting with my nurse sister and doctor friend, we determined that if we cleaned it out very well, he would be ok without stitches or other medical care.

In between these, Jason had put Gemma down for a nap in just her diaper. I had learned my lesson about that with Kyran and Karyssa, but Jason had not. When I went to get her up, she was covered from head to toe in poop. So, she also got a bath, but we're not sure if that was when the water was bad or not.

The kids were out of school for the next 10 days, and I did my best to keep them busy. Monday, before Jason went back to work, he and Karyssa even gave Bella a "paw"dicure!

That same day, Kyran lost his second tooth, while biting Karyssa's jeans! He said she was falling off the couch and he was trying to save her!

We read lots of books and played lots of games. When the sun came out, we went outside to play some too.

During the rainy days, the kids played on their scooters and roller-skated in the garage.

Thursday, Harmony came down to watch the kids so that Shaunna and I could volunteer, and they had a great time with her.

Friday, Shaunna and I decided to take the kids to the zoo. The zoo offered free admission for that Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, so we knew it would be crowded, but we decided to brave it anyway. We were completely overwhelmed at how many people were there and I, who usually have no problem with crowds, got anxious at a few points. The next day, we found out that it had been the highest recorded attendance in the 40 years that the zoo had been opened. No wonder!

Isabella even came over on their last day home!

By the time they finally went back to school, it was almost like we'd had a whole summer. It felt weird to drop them off, and Gemma was a little lost without her playmates!

They have now announced that we will be making up all 7 days, including adding two days to the end of the school year. Aside from holiday breaks, the kids now only have one day off all year. Our four-day weekends are gone and it's going to be a long spring!

Also during this time, we got word that Barbara McKinnon, my mom's best friend, was in the hospital with pneumonia. Mrs. McKinnon had been fighting cancer for 8 years, and had just had a lung removed, so we knew this was not good. As soon as my mom found out that her school was closed for the rest of the week, she went down there to be with the family. Mrs. McKinnon passed away on Thursday, October 8. This is the woman who shaped much of who my mother is as a person and a mother. She has six children and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren (some of whom she helped raise). She never stopped loving, giving to and praying for everyone she knew. She will be so missed.