I was spared once again. The sirens sounded here, but the tornado went north, so all is well here. The residents of Joplin have been on my heart and mind the last couple days. My mom's good friend lives there, and I grew up close by and we were involved in the homeschool group in Joplin. I still drive through there all the time when I am going home to mom and dad's. The devastation there is heartbreaking. My mom's friend said several homeschoolers were killed at play practice Sunday night when the tornado went through. Please pray for the families. We may be helping with cleanup efforts this weekend.

I have been trying to keep up with the fast pace of my life right now. Nine hour work days followed by two hours of studying are killers!!! It is paying off though - I did very well on my first exam and was extremely encouraged. That earned me six credits. It was a two semester course that I was able to do in a little over a week. I celebrated by getting lunch at Sonic...and paid for it with a gift card. I know, I'm really splurging! Next exam: two weeks.

I got that mouse that had been terrorizing me for two weeks. I trapped and disposed of it ALL BY MYSELF, thank you very much.

I had my acting debut Saturday. I was an extra in some scenes they were shooting for the movie. It was a very cool experience. Maybe I will get to be in more scenes before filming ends! I can't wait to see the movie now. :)

Still working nine hour days, but am excited about seeing my family this weekend!!!! Yippee :)

the damage, part three (final)

Here are the last couple pics of the barn:

...and a toad and a frog...aren't they ugly??

They were all over down by the pond!

the damage, part two

Tin was strewn everywhere.

Notice the boards driven into the ground.

Yikes!

The Lake of Shining Waters ;)

And, oh look! What a sweet family! Awww...

This is the tree that the tank rolled through

and the barn that lost part of its roof.

Can you spy the tank by the trees in the background?

It rolled right through here!

Some creepy little guy has been busy!

My trusty rain boots...every photographer should have professional equipment like this.

More to come!

the damage, part 1

I've been wanting to post pictures of the damage from last week's storm, but I just haven't had a chance! Here are a few to start with; more will follow later in the week:

Trees were snapped off or completely uprooted.

This tank rolled (or perhaps was airborne???) through two pastures,

a fence, and a tree before coming to rest in this place.

Just to give you an idea of how big this thing is...

Notice that I am half the diameter. I'm 5'8" so...um, yeah...it's big!!!

tornado

We had a mini tornado tonight. It was storming like crazy (which I love) and I was at work finishing things up for the day. I had gone out to the shop to file some maintenance papers in the breakroom when the rain started pouring down. It was pretty loud and I walked back out into the shop to look outside. The tools on the wall were shaking and when I looked out the door (which was standing wide open) I saw the rain coming down in sheets and circulating as the wind whipped the trees around. My first thought was "it looks like a tornado is going over!!"

I stood there in the doorway with the wind drenching me with raindrops and watched as things blew across the driveway. It was incredible. Definitely looked like the hurricane coverage you see on tv. I was so in awe of God's creation and the power of the weather he designed.

I didn't know there was actual damage until my coworker called me on her way home telling me about all the trees that were down and pieces of tin that had blown off roofs. I told my grandpa and my uncle and we decided to go survey the damage. Wow.

My grandparents had several trees down, including two limbs on their house. Their above-ground swimming pool was twisted and crumpled and the swing set had been blown across the yard. My house was fine: my dumpster had been thrown around the corner of my house and smashed into the trellis, but nothing else was wrong. A flag pole down the road had been snapped off and tin was stripped back on the roof of a carport. More trees had been completely uprooted or snapped off and we also saw a door lying in the road. We drove back to my grandpa's property and discovered that one-fourth of the tin roof of the barn (that my dad and grandpa had built about 30 years ago) was completely gone. We saw the cows inspecting it in the next pasture. Probably the most unbelievable thing was the tank that had been blown almost half a mile from where it had been sitting on the hill. Apparently it rolled through a fence and a tree before coming to a stop!

I am going to try to take pictures of the damage tomorrow so you can see it. I still can't believe I was standing in the door watching this storm go over! I have never been so close to anything like that!

What an powerful God! I am so grateful that we didn't have any other damage!

I found this quote and love it because it is exactly what my mom is to me:

"A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts."
~Washington Irving


And here are more :)

Sweater, n: a garment worn by a child when its mother is feeling chilly. ~Ambrose Bierce

If you have a mom, there is nowhere you are likely to go where a prayer has not been.
~Robert Brault


And things my mom has said:

"The one who angers you controls you."
"If you can learn to get along with your siblings, you can learn to get along with anybody in life."
"No reciting movies at the [dinner] table!"

I love you, Mom!!!

Inspirational

You really should read this post from another blog. A friend wrote it about an amazing lady who passed away four years ago. I'm so glad I had the chance to know this lady, because she had such an impact on me during her battle with cancer. It took my faith and my relationship with God to a whole new level. I can't wait to meet her again some day!

Day at the Farm

Here are some pics I took of our visit with Lindsay on their farm: