five days and counting....

Well, I am typing this post from Searcy where we have been blessed with heat and lights for the past four days. For the last five days our house in Springfield has been without electricity. The ice storm hit MO Friday around 6pm and lasted until Sunday night. We lost power for the first time around 2 am Friday night/Saturday morning. We were up watching a movie and when it went out it made a strange noise. So, we went to check it out. There were lights flickering outside and it looked like something was on fire. So, I called 911 while Jeremy went to get shoes on and a coat. It ended up being a power line that had snapped in two and was sparking everywhere in our neighbors yard. Thankfully, the ground was good and saturated and so we didn't have a real fire. Just a lot of sparks and smoke. The power went out for good a little after 3 am. Jeremy and I sat in the living room after that and we could hear branches and limbs snapping off of trees and crashing to the ground. It was scary. About 3:45 we watched two tree limbs fall right in front of our living room window. It was time to head to the basement with all three kids and go to sleep. We have not had any power since 3 am Saturday morning. Thankfully, after 13 hours without heat and wondering how to entertain children for that long, we came to Searcy to hang out with friends since we knew it was just going to get worse. The streets were fine since it had been warm the past week or two and so we knew we better get out before it got worse again. So I packed while Jeremy used a hand saw to cut a path through the driveway from the fallen branches (another broke off at 2 Sat afternoon) for the car to back out of the garage. Jeremy went back to Springfield on Tuesday morning since he needed to go back to work and help others without power. The kids and I are staying with friends here in Searcy until the heat/electricity comes back on in our house. (The low Tuesday night was 1--yes that was ONE degrees!! Not somewhere I wanted to be my children and no heat!)

We were very blessed in that none of the trees in our yard fell on the house. Jeremy and another guy from church do say that the front yard is completely torn up from all the tree branches falling. I took a few pictures of the yard before we left of the fallen branches. Jeremy took more when he went home. I will post them when we have power and I am home.

I am just so thankful to our Lord for keeping my family and home safe during the storm and for friends who let us crash in times of need!!!