A couple of nights ago we had a rain wrapped EF1 tornado touchdown in Schuyler County. I can really handle most weather but tornadoes kind of undo me because they are just so stinkin uncontrollable. Give me rain, ice, etc., okay - if I don't like it I'll just stay home. But a tornado - it can get you even while you're at home. That said, I think they are fascinating and beautiful. I'm a little weird like that.
Anyhow, as I previously blogged, Natalee had her last t-ball game last night. We could see in the sky that the weather was building but all of us were hoping we were going to squeeze in the game before it let loose. No luck. The other team all batted through once and then they called it but we had no sooner collected our gear and turned to go to the van than the sky let loose. Ugh. Piercing, painful rain (hail, maybe? - or just needle rain) that was driving at us from the side so quickly that I could scarcely see. I was carrying Ameliya in the sling on my front - praise Jesus I wasn't fighting a stroller - but even with her on me and fabric protecting her head I still had to pause and stand with my back to the storm so she could catch her breath. I'm sure she wanted to cry but couldn't. It was pretty terrible. Mike had gone ahead with the big kids and gotten them into the van. When we got there we headed for the house.
Warm baths for all three of the kids followed as soon as we got home. I settled them all down and then decided the sky had cleared enough that I was good to shower. I had just washed/rinsed my hair and soaped my body and the tornado siren went off! Ahh! I can't tell you the last time I remember the town setting the siren off for a tornado. I moved like I didn't know I could move, racing down the stairs. Mike had collected the children and was moving them to the basement. I grabbed shoes for them, blankets, a snack, etc. all the while carrying my own clothes and we took shelter.
Let me tell you where you don't want to be when the tornado siren goes off. The shower! Ugh!
I got dressed and we got situated in the basement where we stayed for almost an hour.
{The siren went off after Mia was in bed for the night. Mike snatched her up and I grabbed my Didymos wrap and wrapped her in a front carry where she fell back asleep hard. She went back down to bed when we came up without a fuss. Thankful for my wrap to comfort her and leave my hands free for the other kids. [You can see how soaked we are from my hair - I really did fly out of the shower without pause to even towel dry my hair!]}
Luckily the funnels that were spotted in the town 5 miles to our south stayed in the sky but I was still grateful for our basement.
picture from a friend to our east (copyright, Jen McMinn) ^
(unedited - not a color I like to see the sky be ^ )
Mike and I have fielded lots of questions in the last 24 hours from the kids about the specifics of a tornado and what it does and what makes it and why we "hide" from them in the basement. Today I noticed Xavier sticking particularly close to my side, as is common for him after any sort of "scare."
I got paints out for the children to use on the easel on the porch today (because today's weather was too beautiful to be indoors!), and without prompting Xavier suggested they paint "tornado skies." I know, I know, that children just like to use all the colors and mix them into a jumbled mess when painting but, considering the children never actually saw the sky I found it quite interesting that they made such brooding "tornado-ish" looking works of art. Perhaps, deep inside their tiny souls, this is how the tornado made them feel.
I get that. Truly.
My niece is at church camp this week and not a huge storm fan so last night in the basement when we took time to stop and pray for protection and safety we prayed especially over Emma. Xavier's painting is about the sky at Emma's camp during the storm. He was very specific about that while working on it.
Praying safety over you all, bloggy (and real life) friends. Hoping tornado season is done for the year!
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