I think spring maybe here!

Because last night we had what can only be described as a horrible, horrible spring thunderstorm. Of course the worst part of it was after 10 p.m. We were under a tornado watch until 3 a.m., but then they said we were all clear at 1. I know the winds were 60 mph + I was laying in bed praying that the huge limb that is over our house wouldn't come crashing down. We've got a call into the tree guy, they just haven't come.

Our power went out at 20 minutes to twelve. Then I went to go to the bathroom and when I went in our bathroom I found a leak. Unfortunately the entrance to our attic is Sawyer's room, so we tried to sneak in, but the creak of the attic door coming down woke him up. He was up like a flash standing in his crib. DH found the leak and we put a bucket up there so it wouldn't drip down into our bathroom.

Parents, I can not tell you how I thanked the Lord that the good people at Fisher Price designed the Ocean's Aquarium with batteries. If you know anyone having a baby, get them one of these (or something similar since they may have changed the models). This has been a God sent for us. - It doesn't go with our jungle themed nursery, but it doesn't matter.

Sawyer watches the fish every night. He can also turn it on himself and play (which is great when he wakes up at 5 a.m.). So, fortunately with the little fish still available, our little guy went back to sleep when I turned this on and had his special snuggle bunny for him.


One other thing that I was so glad we have is a weather radio. It came in handy last night so that we could tune in to the national weather service to make sure no tornados were going to hit our area. We bought our radio about 3 years ago when we went to vacation at the beach. I think we paid $10 for it. I highly recommend that everyone have one. It gave us the piece of mind we needed in a stressful situation.

Our power came on at 7:36 a.m. this morning. I cheered and immediately heated Sawyer's milk. Because he is all about heated milk, no cold stuff for him. I was worrying about the stuff in our fridge, so I'm glad the power came on when it did.

I've learned a couple things about this storm and other hurricanes we've lived through, so I'd like to pass on my checklist below since soon we will be entering spring storm and then hurricane season.

Spring Storm Check List

1. Make sure you get your dishwasher loaded and finished before the storm hits. Because you never know how long it will take the power to come on and things like your kids sippy cups or other everyday necessities need to be ready to go and clean. Your hot water heater won't do but so much for you.

2. Fill your bathtub with water. Because you may need it to help flush your toilet. Seriously. DH laughed at me for doing that a few years ago when we had a bad hurricane, but once we lost power his tune changed.

3. As mentioned above, get a weather radio if you don't have one. It will give you piece of mind to know what is going on. Along with that, figure out where you'll go in your house in case a hurricane hits.

4. Have some cash stashed in your house. When we went through a bad hurricane a few years ago, some store were open, but they could only accept cash. If you need food or gas you'll need to have some cash on hand. ATMS and credit cards won't always work. Also, don't forget about having food and supplies for your pets.

5. Have a plastic bucket ready. Since we had a roof leak last night, it was good I could find something in the garage.

6. Keep a flashlight handy. We were fortunate to have two. I bought one about two years ago that is a Black and Decker that plugs in the wall. The other is battery powered. It came in handy having 2 lights when dh had to go in the attic and I had to make my way to the garage to get a bucket.

7. Don't have your washing machine going during a storm. If you loose power, you may end up with a washing machine full of wet clothes you can't spin until your power comes back on. (I didn't do this last night, but I know someone who had this happen)

8. Have some trash bags handy because you never know if you'll have to cover an area to help keep out water damage.

9. Paper towels or regular towels might be good if you have a leak somewhere to clean up the water mess.

10. Don't leave your car on empty because if evacuate your area, you'll need gas, but also if there is no power in your area you won't be able to fill your car up.

I hope these tips help y'all out. I'd hate for any of y'all to get stuck with spring storms and hurricanes on the horizon.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to do the Aloha Chicken Kabobs recipe from Deceptively Delicious for dinner tonight. It sounds yummy with a coconut batter along with pineapple.

Wish me luck on getting a nap in today. This is one storm weary gal.