Three's Company!: Matthew

6 Years, 23 Weeks.

We were threatened this week like we hadn't been threatened in the past 12 years: A very powerful hurricane was coming up through the Caribbean, and Florida was in it's path. And at a Category 4 with sustained winds of 140+ mph, it was something to be taken seriously, especially us in Central Florida and those all along the coast.

The 2 days before it was supposed to hit (or come close to making landfall) the state went into full blown "state of emergency" mode: mandatory evacuations, school closures, grocery stores and gas stations running out of supplies. You could sense an eeriness settling in, a hushed sense of impending doom that was on it's way.

Water shelves at Publix.

The bread aisle.

The Weather Channel was having it's heyday; the local news meteorologists and news reporters enjoying their live non-stop coverage of the storm and it's possible damage. And with all our friends on social media sharing pictures and statuses on the panic and their preparedness, we had to chime in and give some comic relief to those worried about the apocalypse.

But we also took some seriousness in the matter as well; we didn't want to regret missing something in any case should we have needed it.

Trying to make sure things don't fly away.

Do you think we have enough drinking water?

Fortunately though, we didn't need them, but better to be prepared than sorry. The wind started picking up later in the day Thursday, as the storm was predicted to hit around 4 AM. There was a mandatory curfew set for 10 PM to 7 AM Saturday morning due to the winds and dangerous conditions. We had the family sleep downstairs, with the twins sleeping with Mommy in the guest bedroom while Brae and I took the couch and floor in the living room. You could hear the howling and whipping of the wind in the darkness, I kept my ears open distinctly listening for the sound of glass breaking. Thankfully there was none.

Brae with Tux.

Kohl near the dresser.

Maddy at the foot of the bed.

The storm coming close!

Overnight the storm had jogged 5 miles to the east of the projected path, and spared a lot of lives and homes. And although it had affected so many in its wake (Haiti's death toll was over 900), we were fortunate not to sustain damage. The storm surge did affect a lot though up and down the east coast, flooding a lot of homes, businesses and towns. But it could've been a lot worse.

Early morning light.

Extended Tux's leash so he could go do his business amidst the rain and wind.

The rest of the day was kept keeping an eye on the news and watching the trees sway in the backyard. We did a follow up video to show how badly we had it from the storm overnight (satire) and played and watched movies and cleaned the house.

We did have company over that night though, as they lifted the curfew around 5 due to the storm moving quickly away and the winds dying down. We had the Petersons from Maryland (you'll remember we had supper at their house on our DC trip this past summer) and Darlene's parents from Georgia, in town taking their children to Disney World, and not able to do anything on Friday due to the mandatory curfew and Disney closing their parks. We had planned on them coming over Saturday evening, but since they lost a day in the parks they thought they could hit one on Saturday night, so we moved the dinner over on Friday, to which they happily obliged. It was nice hanging out and catching up with them for a few hours and enjoyed giving them Disney tips and advice for the remainder of their trip.

The Steele's and Petersons gather in the kitchen.

Darlene helping Georgia and Emily at the kids table.

So great to have them over!

Here was the rest of our week:

Picking up Brae and Kohl Wednesday afternoon, her class made her a get well card.
There would be no classes for the remainder of the week due to the storm.

Swung by the farm to get eggs before they closed for the storm!

One last look at the peace and calm.

Toasting some Ningxia Red for our health and safety!

More damage from the storm, our palm tree upstairs.

The Clarkes came over for brunch Sabbath. We had a great time catching up with them and sharing stories of our cruises. They just got back from theirs in Canada.

Went to the Z's for some evening festivities.

The main reason was to show some support to some friends of ours in Texas that just found out their youngest son has Leukemia. We gathered together for an art project for him and prayers.