Mess

Day 2 of no electricity.  Just imagine what the rest of our house looked like :) 

To get away from the mess and boredom, when Mike got home from the hospital late morning, we decided to take a little day trip to Franklin, TN.  We drove up I-65 and could not believe our eyes as you could clearly see the tornadoes destructive path across the interstate. . . huge billboards were just flattened.  On our way home, we drove down 53 through Harvest.  Will never forget the sight of the grocery store and neighborhood across the street that was leveled. 

We would endure two more days without electricity.  As you can imagine, my camera battery died after today and since we did not have a generator, there was no way to charge it.  All I can say is thank goodness we had a working radio throughout our 100 hour adventure because it really helped our sanity!

Family Time

Our first full day with no electricity.  Mike rounded in the morning at the hospital and we did what we could to entertain ourselves without technology.  Meanwhile, a lot of our neighbors were leaving town this morning because the prediction was we'd be without electricity for up to a week.  Since Mike would have to round on Friday morning and work all day Saturday, we decided to stick it out.   

Darkness

April 27, 2011.  5pm.  Darkness outside.  No electricity.  A weather radio sounding off every few seconds (or at least it seemed that frequently).  Finally, a calm moment when the girls were already in their pajamas playing their DS's in what little daylight we would have left. 

Although we had already taken cover in our laundry room 2-3 times, when our electricity went out around 4pm, we had no idea of the devastation around us.  Earlier in the afternoon we were glued to the TV watching the meteorologists try to cover multiple tornadoes at once. . . they would give warning that a tornado was forming and try to provide it's projected path, but seconds later, a new tornado would arise that needed their attention.  I will never forget hearing one TV meteorologist state "People are reporting that the towns of Phil Campbell and Hackleburg are completely gone."  This is the reality of the EF-5 tornado that started in Mississippi and tracked through North Alabama into Tennessee.  We were extremely fortunate and completely spared where we live, but so many close to us were not. 

Peeps

I've never been a Peeps fan myself, but the Easter Bunny left some in the girls' baskets this year.  They definitely met with Claire's approval!

Tooth fairy

A happy girl who woke up on this Easter morning with $2 in her new tooth fairy pillow and a new tooth brush in the bathroom!

Bye bye tooth

I have to bend the rules slightly and do a double post on this Easter Vigil as Grace lost her first tooth this evening.  I'm not quite sure what I was thinking when I told Mike to "just pull the tooth out" because now the Easter Bunny has some competition tonight.  But the tooth was able to be pushed 90 degrees, so it was definitely time.  And Grace was so excited!  So we cut a deal with the tooth fairy and the Easter Bunny.  The tooth fairy will come during the night and the Easter Bunny will come while we're at church tomorrow morning!

Egg hunting

While Tyler stayed at home with Grandma with a temperature of 104 (later determined to be roseola), we headed to our preschool's annual egg hunt.  Grace had a softball game this morning and made it just in time to do one craft before the egg hunt.  In year's past, I've had to listen to Grace cry over not getting many eggs.  This year, however, I think I should have been that parent that said, "Put some eggs back for others!"  It was so wonderful not to have to deal with a whining, crying child that I honestly did not realize how many eggs she had in her bucket until it was too late.

Any day

We're oh so close to the tooth fairy making a visit to our house.  Good thing the tooth fairy pillow I ordered arrived this week!

Playing

Bossy Claire with her friend Emma!

TV

Glued to Phineas and Ferb and Daddy!

Shirt

Of course, I found this shirt hanging in the closet this morning.  Knowing myself, it's amazing I found it just one day late :)

Birthday girl

Happy 4th Birthday sweet Claire!

Cake

Although Claire's birthday is not until tomorrow, we decided to celebrate today since our weekdays are so busy lately!  Claire enjoyed her birthday cake and got the gift she asked for - her own Nintendo DS!

Azaleas

When we left for our short spring break trip, our grass was still brown and there were only a few red blooms on my azaleas.  Imagine my surprise at seeing the dramatic change when we arrived home 4 days later!

Cades Cove

Before heading for home, I wanted to drive through Cades Cove in the Smokies.  Although the kids may not have been thrilled with the extra two hours we spent in the car today, I'm glad we drove through the 11 mile loop.  Halfway through Cades Cove we let the kids get out at the visitor's center to stretch their legs, and I even spotted two deer during the drive, which I think Grace was able to see.

Go Karts!

I'm not sure who is actually having more fun!

Sunset

Today was definitely a wash out.  Although it rained all day, we still managed to get some outlet shopping in this morning before relaxing at the cabin in the afternoon.  And just when it was time to wind down for the day, the sun peaked out just in time to set.

Gatlinburg shopping

We walked around Gatlinburg this morning, trying to check out as many shops as we could with the kids.  Tyler wanted no part of sitting in the stoller shopping and enjoyed looking at the creek much more.  Needlesstosay, when it was time to move on, he wasn't too happy with us.  But although our actual visit to downtown Gatlinburg was short, we managed to fit in the most important purchase. . . salt water taffy!

Gatlinburg cabin

Our home away from home for the next few days!

Snow Cones

A beautiful Saturday in the neighborhood!  Over the course of the day, I think the girls filled a bug box with ladybugs, ran around in the sprinklers, and lucked out that the ice cream truck came down our street.  Not a bad way to start spring break!

Ballfield

Just another night at the ballfield. . . chasing Tyler around while Grace is playing t-ball softball. 

K is for Kindergarten

The four kindergarten classes at Grace's school performed their program "K is for Kindergarten" at the PTA meeting tonight.  They did a fabulous job and showed just much they have grown up this year.  Grace's class is in the blue shirts (she's third from the right in the middle row) and her teacher, Mrs. Townsend, is watching on the side.  Even with our other two kids in tow, we managed to get the program on video tape.

Socks

Here's part of the reason why folding and putting away laundry is my least favorite chore - most of it usually ends up on the floor before I can even get to it :)  Today, however, Tyler actually picked Mike's sock out of the basket and then tried to put it on my foot!

Collared shirt

I love putting Tyler in collared shirts, especially for church on Sunday.  Since I'm sure hotter weather is coming soon, this cute shirt will probably have to be "retired" very shortly.

Softball

Grace had her first softball game this morning.  This is her first year playing softball and so far she is really enjoying it and learning quickly.  Her classmate, Hallie, is on the same team as well as our neighbors, Nina and Mari.  They are called Pink Power!