We're back from the storm

Sorry for the delay in posts. Last week a major storm blew through the area and knocked out power to over 1,000,000 customers. We were without power for 4-1/2 days, but thankfully it came back on yesterday! Many are still without power.

In the midst of the cold and craziness, lack of light, heat, or refrigeration for perishable foods, (we lost all our food - and had just gone to Costco the day before!), we couldn't help but remember all those who endured hurricane Katrina last year (and the many other storms like her) and the fact that they suffered (if ours could be counted as suffering) for much longer. And many still endure... without homes, electricity, proper sanitation, jobs, and the list goes on and on... We continue to hold them in our prayers and to be so thankful for the many who have sacrificed to help those in need.

Mark worked in Seattle the day after the storm, and they ran all day non-stop from call to call with down power lines, trees over roads, medical emergencies from the cold (and sometimes people's poor choices on how to deal with the cold - i.e. - bring the charcoal BBQ inside to keep warm), fire calls, and other fun stuff. He came home more than ready for a nap after 24 hours of excitement.

Julie and the girls braved out the cold with our gas fireplace and hot water heater (both still worked) and with our friend Brandy and her son Toby, who chose an unfortunate week to come visit!

Here are some pictures of the chaos our little storm delivered to our yard. The playhouse you'll see in the pictures weighs over 50 pounds... and yet the wind blew it across our yard and flipped it upside down! Thankfully, besides the lack of power, that was the worst of our damage.