Emma's first soccer game...

When the hurricane hit town a lot of things had to be postponed, and soccer was one of them. So, Emma's first game was the weekend of October 4th, and I missed it since I was in California. However, I heard she did great! (Emma's the one with the pink shin guards on).

Hurricane Damage to our property...

I forgot to add these pictures.

This is our back fence. If you look closely, you can see another fence down in the back.

What's left of the BBQ cover; it got shredded.

Back fence

Pictures after the hurricane....

Well, it's been awhile since I've blogged, but there has been a lot going on. Emma and I got back from California on the 25th of September and then a week later on October 2nd, I headed back to CA, by myself (which was a trip planned two months ago). I had such a good time relaxing, hanging with my sis, and scrap booking. It was nice to have a break from the responsibilities of parenting. I recommend all mommies do this sometime. Emma stayed with daddy and her grandparents helped fill in when she was not in school. I left my camera at home, so I have no pictures of this past weekend. Although I do have pics of Emma's first soccer game, which I missed but I've not taken them off the camera yet.

I just got back on Sunday afternoon and I've been trying to catch up. It feels like a whirlwind the past month. When the electricity came back on, our refrigerator bit the dust, and I had to throw all my food away. All that time we had the generator and I did not have to worry about my food and in the end I lost most of it. We're not sure if it's Ike related, but nonetheless we had to get a new one. So, it's being delivered tomorrow and I can't wait. I'll take pics to you can see.

The pictures below are from Saturday the 13th. Ike came through around 4 a.m. Saturday morning...

This is along Spring Cypress, which is the main street we take to get pretty much anywhere. The trees fell on the power lines and right into the street. This is just two lanes on each side, and it can get pretty busy.

We saw many trees uprooted like this along Spring Cypress and in Gleannloch Farms.

This tree flew through the roof of a home in our subdivision. Many homes still have blue tarps covering their roofs while they wait to get it repaired.

Trees snapped in half, everywhere.

Tree feel right through the fence into the backyard.

Shingles on the roof blown up like paper.

It's amazing to think huge trees like this just lifted right out of the ground, but then again we had tons of rain, it made the ground very soft.

What a week...

I can't believe it's been a week since we weathered the storm of hurricane Ike. Last Friday night we hunkered down in the master bedroom closet, downstairs, and spent the next 8 hours waiting for day light.

At 4:00 a.m. on Saturday morning, September 13th, we lost our power, and listened to the wind and rain rip across our home. Somtimes the wind was blowing so hard, you felt as if the walls were shaking. At 6:00 a.m. the back end of the hurricane came through. This can sometimes be the worst part of the storm. Around noon, it was still raining, but the winds had finally lightend.

We had no electricity, phone, cable, or even cell service. We were isolated from the rest of the world. We decided to venture over to our friends, who lived about a mile from our home. We could not believe all the debris around our subdivision. Trees were down, fences blown over, shingles blown off, and homes water-logged. Thankfully, our house made it through with only a blown down fence.

As the days wore on, the community started cleaning up, and we came together to help each other out. Thankfully, we had a generator, so we were able to run the refridgerator and offer space to friends and family who needed to "save" some of their food.

By Wednesday we still did not have power, so Barry put Emma and I on a plane and flew us back to CA to get a break from all the hurricane aftermath. Although we miss Barry, it's been nice to be away and rest.

We finally got power back Friday afternoon (9/19), and Barry put a new fence up today. So life is getting back to normal for us...school will resume next Wednesday, swim will start and soon we won't see the effects this storm left behind, except for the ones that cloud our thoughts.

When we get back to Texas I will post pictures so you can see a glimpse into our week of hurricane Ike.

Quick Hurricane Update...

just wanted to let everyone know that we are o.k. after Ike hit. We did not get to much damage, just our fence blew over. It's pretty amazing to go through this kind of experience...one which I would rather not have to go through again.

Please pray that our electricity will go on. We're going on 4 days without it, although, we do have a generator. Some parts of our subdivision are already back up and stores and gasoline are coming back to "life."

I will post more later and also add some pictures.

Can't wait to start blogging again!

Teeth Cleaning...

On Thursday Emma had her teeth cleaned for the first time! She had been to the dentist last year, but it was just a "Happy Visit." I had to do some coaxing to get her to sit back, but the hygienist was really good with her and Emma did great. She got a whole bag of fun stuff and then got to pick something out of the treasure box.

I'm also happy to report she's got great teeth and no cavities. The dentist said she could even start loosing her baby teeth. Apparently girls can start loosing them as early as 4 years old. In fact, one tooth on the bottom is ever so slightly "loose." So, now Emma walks around telling everyone she's got a loose tooth.

They give the kids sunglasses to wear so the big, bright light doesn't blind them so much. Now how thoughtful is that.

1st day of the last year...

last Wednesday, August 27th was Emma's first day of preschool , but it also marks her last year before heading off to kindergarten. In Texas you have to be 5 by September 1st to start kindergarten, so one more year. I can't believe it!

Well, I was a little nervous the first day, more for Emma than me, well maybe for me too. You see, I have a child who doesn't get very excited about many things. When she walks into an environment, even one she's familiar with, she needs to take a few minutes to warm up and observe what's going on. So, I think the first day will be a little tough. She had been asking me to pick her up early (she goes M,W,F from 9-2:30) and I told her since it was the first day there will be many fun things going on and I didn't want her to miss out.

2:30 p.m. - "Mama, thank you for not picking me up early. I had so much fun. We painted our hands and, and, and"....whew. Thank you Jesus for a good start to the school year.

Friday at 2:30 p.m. - "Mama, thank you for not picking me up early again, I had so much fun playing with my friend "B." Another yeah for Jesus, she's made a friend.

Monday - Holiday

Wednesday (today) at 9:00 a.m. - "Please pick me up early"...crying, crying, tears, more tears. "One more hug." Tugging on my shirt, death grip around my neck. Where did this come from?

Her teacher had to come over, prior her off my neck and as I turn around to run out the door, I see the line of parents waiting to get their child dropped off while they watch this moment unfold.

9:10 a.m. - Mama in tears all the way home. I struggle with having a child who does not drop off easy and wonder if it will ever change. It's really not comforting when you leave while your child is crying and screaming and then wondering what all the other mommies are thinking...

So I pull the shades over my eyes and walk quickly (no running in the halls) to the nearest door.