Hurricane Ida

 Well, I experienced a first this weekend...living through a hurricane. Last week the media began stating that a major hurricane was headed toward the South. By Friday we got word that school would be cancelled Monday because it was heading straight for us. I had been looking forward to enjoying a low-key weekend by myself while the boys and Rob helped a friend at his new camp. Work has been stressful and I was really looking forward to some down time to rejuvenate. Little did I know my weekend would be anything but relax while I rushed around, prepping the house for a hurricane and then racing out of town. 

Saturday morning I went to the gym for a "Hurricane Ida workout" (man, it was rough!). Then I had to go in for a skin biopsy. Once I left there I was hoping I could go back to the house to read and relax a bit before heading to my inlaws'. Wrong! The Weather Channel kept saying to have all prep done by the evening so people could evacuate by nightfall. The hurricane was coming in earlier than expected. Rob called and said he and the boys were heading straight to his parents' after they got done helping our friend and that I should plan to meet them there ASAP. So I rushed around the house, packing up irreplaceable things while putting other things up high in case our house took on water. I grabbed important insurance paperwork to put in our portable safe and made sure other things were in secure places. I packed suitcases with as many clothes as I could cram in so if the hurricane took down our house we wouldn't have to worry about buying new clothes. 

Sunday the hurricane started making its way toward Louisiana. I felt guilty because, while our friends stressed about the hurricane and loss of power, we enjoyed a nice family day together. We got donuts for breakfast, went to church together and then went to a petting zoo (where we had to cut our time short due to the rain). Once we left the petting zoo place we went to a sweet friend's house to celebrate her birthday. Sunday night I fell asleep after seeing all my friends' posts about how scary the hurricane was, how the wind was howling and they could feel their house move. I slept like a baby Sunday night while my friends were awake, wondering if a tree would fall through their house or if their windows would shatter.

Yesterday Rob decided to go to our house to access the damage. We had had a couple neighbors call with reports about our fence being down (which we expected) and a couple branches across our driveway. But we wanted to see it for ourselves. He and I drove the 3+ hours to our house, surveying the wind damage as we drove. Once we got to our house I was pleasantly surprised that the fence, downed branches and lost food due to the power outage was all we had to deal with. Rob and I worked as a team and were able to get back on the road within a couple hours. On our way back to his parents' house we stopped by our property to access the damage. We had learned that the eye went right over the town where our property is. From what we can tell, we lost some trees (the entrance was blocked by a downed tree and powerline) but I was surprised it wasn't worse. All around our property was destruction. Trees uprooted that fell across houses. Roofs missing. Powerlines down across the roads. Buildings ripped to shreds. So heartbreaking! It made me relieved that a) the eye of the hurricane shifted 20 miles east or that would've been the damage at our house and b) we hadn't built a house on that property. I can't imagine how overwhelmed the people around there felt yesterday with all the clean up they had to tackle.

While we were making our way back to my inlaws' the boys FaceTimed us to show us their new pets....baby squirrels. A neighbor had called and said that 2 babies had fallen out of their nest during the storm. The boys spent the day feeding them with an eye dropped and trying to warm them up. As of this morning, Ulysses and Tag are still with us but I don't know for how long. I don't know how to tell if baby squirrels are thriving but Ulysses and Tag acted more spirited last night than they are acting this morning. We are using Max's heat lamp (because, yes, we brought our gecko and 2 dogs with us. We left the chickens to fend for themselves...which they did.) to try to warm them up. Pretty soon the boys and I will go out and see what supplies we can get to help aid the squirrels' recovery.

All in all, things could've been way worse. We don't have power and don't know when it will be restored. As of now, school is cancelled because the schools have damage and/or are without power. Our house is pretty much put back in order so when we are able to go back to an air conditioned house our lives will resume like a strong Cat 4 hurricane did not tear up the state of Louisiana. Thankful for God's blessings and comfort during this time!

Proud Wife

 I'll start out by asking your forgiveness. I know what I want to say but my thoughts are all over the place because it's the weekend before school and I am overwhelmed. I will try to make sense but if I don't, you know why. 

When I married a lineman over a decade ago I didn't realize all that it would entail. I didn't understand the late night calls or the missed holiday celebrations as a family or the weeks away from each other. What I did know is that I married a hard worker. When we lived in NV, he was one of just a few who would answer calls in the middle of the night. Sadly, the company he worked for didn't appreciate that as they should (and have since called him to say that they regret not moving him up into management). When he started at the power company here he knew he was at the point where he didn't enjoy being on a bucket truck anymore. He did it because it is what he signed up for as a lineman, but it hurt him physically and caused him too much time away from us. So he set his sights on the job he wanted and made quite a name for himself at the company.

He has quickly moved up the management ladder and, just this week, began his dream job with the company. He is now part of an elite group, a coveted job that so many in the company want. Not only that, but he's doing what he loves- coaching and teaching linemen. I am proud of him. I am proud of how hard he's worked, sacrifices he's made to get where he is. He could've easily said, "I only have a GED. I'm not smart enough, good enough, etc to have an elite management position." But he didn't. He showed everyone, including our boys, that hard work pays off.

While he just started the job this week, we've already talked about how weird it is that he gets home at a normal time. He also gets to sleep in a little later in the morning. His phone isn't ringing all day and night. Literally. He is present when he walks in the door. He has gone swimming with the boys a few times this week. He has been a huge help with the boys' schedules and getting our a/c repaired this week when my schedule conflicted. 

I am excited for his new job and so proud of all the hard work he put into making this dream come true. I am happy for what it means for our family- more quality time together. I am proud that he proved that, even without a college degree, you can make it to the top with the right mindset and dedication. Hard work truly does pay off!