Somebody Turned 5...

Emma turned 5 on Wednesday and she was so excited about this day, October 22nd.

She has been wanting a "car" for several years now and we decided that since turning 5 was such a big deal, we would do something really special for her, so we got her a car. Isn't that just the prettiest Barbie car you've seen? This picture was Thursday morning, after her, birthday. The car had to charge for 18 hours so she did not get to drive it until the next day. When she went to bed the Wednesday evening, you would have thought Christmas was the next day. She was so excited because she knew when she woke up the next day, she'd get to ride it. So, at 4 a.m. she woke up and asked if it was morning yet!

Here's the family on the afternoon of her birthday. She had preschool this day, so we did cake and presents when she got home. There was suppose to be soccer practice, but it got canceled because of rain, thunder, and lightning, so we went to Valley Ranch, with some friends, for dinner.

Singing "Happy Birthday" to the 5 year old. She's my kid because she likes butter cream frosting!

We let her open one gift in the morning, since she had school. A new Ariel lunch bag to match her backpack, so she took it to school with her that morning.

Her birthday keeps on going...she got presents from 2 of her classmates on Friday and then tomorrow, Sunday, we're having her birthday party. I was so worried that there would not be a lot of kids coming since we just moved, etc. but we have 12. WOW. Barry's in charge of the entertainment and I know the kids will have a lot of fun. It has been very fun watching Emma be so excited about turning 5 and having a party. I just can't believe how fast she's growing up and all the things she's learning in school, it really is amazing.

Goodbye to the Baxters...

If any of you have read the Baxter family series, by Karen Kingsbury, then you know what I'm talking about. I think there's something like 14 books (total) and Karen just released the last book about the Baxter's. Sigh. I love, let me say it again, LOVED these books and it's with great sadness that I will no longer get to read about this family. I think Karen Kingsbury is a great writer and incorporates the Christian faith into everyday life. My sister is reading the book now and I can't wait until she's done so we can talk about it (I've already finished it).

I have gone out and gotten one of her other books, Waiting for Morning, and I'm loving this one too. So, if you're looking for a great read, check out her website and peruse her book list, I'm sure you'll find one...however, my fist recommendation would be Redemption. Sigh. Just love it.

What's shiny and white all over?

No, not Barry's bald head (hee, hee). It's our new refrigerator. Since it's a different style from what we're use to, it's taken a few days to figure out where to put everything. But we've got it all squared away now and loving it!

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.