The Storm.

Friday night, we went to bed without a worry.  

Around 1:15am, I JUMPED out of bed.  I thought our bedroom window was about to break.  I knew instantly this was serious.  I ran into the living room and saw my dad standing at the back windows with a flashlight since we had lost power.  Through the light from the storm, we were speechless of what damage we could see.  

I ran back into our room to wake up Aaron...somehow the storm had not woke him up.  He got out of bed, looked out our window and said "HOLY S*** KELLI!  Look at this.  KELLI!   I swear this is a freaken' hurricane.  KELLI!  LOOK."  Remind you....I woke him up......

I then noticed that the carpet was damp in some spots and there were water puddles forming on the tile.  The pressure from the storm was so strong, it caused water to come through the windows. 

We walked out into the garage and noticed water was coming in from the side of the garage.  Trees and branches had blocked all the drains in the flower beds, so the water was forced into the garage.  Luckily we went out there when we did and were able to pick up some boxes before the water got to them. (Aaron and I tend to have a few boxes here and there lately:)  

Rewind to Friday afternoon:  My Dad drove Jackson, Garrett, and I down to the boat ramp to put one of the wave runners in the water for the summer.  The boys and I rode around and had a great time.  We honestly don't really ride the wave runners that often, but after I rode it with the boys on Friday, I was looking forward to using it more often this summer.  

Now fast forward to storm later that night:  As we were standing at the back door, we noticed our neighbor shining his spot light.  He shined it down at the water and then at us several times.  We then noticed the wave runner had come of the lift and was now in the water getting beat up by the retaining wall and dock.

When things had somewhat settled down, Aaron, my dad, and neighbor went outside to tie it up.   

Dad and Aaron knew at this point that the wave runner was history.  It was in bad shape.

Here are some pictures I took the next morning.  

The white box thing near the bottom left of this picture was a cabinet with all the stereo equipment.    

If you are in the market for sturdy patio furniture, Little Tikes is the one to pick!  :)  That little picnic table does not move!  When we had the storm that destroyed our swing set, the Little Tikes picnic table didn't move.  During this storm, Mom and Dad's patio table was flipped upside down, all the dock furniture was blown in the water....but the Little Tikes picnic table.....it's not going anywhere!  

I have some more pictures to post, but that's all I can do tonight.  We had a long weekend without electricity and I cannot keep my eyes open much longer tonight.

We are blessed that were are all safe and nobody was hurt.  I am mad at myself for not taking cover.  I guess since we didn't know storms were coming, it never crossed my mind to take cover.  Then the fact that once I woke up and there was already so much damage, I assumed we were safe and the worst was behind us.....which I think it was.  

Have you heard about the Mississippi mom that protected her children?  This story breaks my heart.  Here is the link: Mississippi Mom Dies Saving Kids From Tornado