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<\/a><\/p>\nThe storm system continued to get closer and I decided to move the kids to the bathroom. Taking them to the bathroom, allowed them to continue sleeping without realizing what was going on outside. The storm got closer and a tornado warning was issued for our area, I thought it was heading right toward the farm so I made sure my parents and brother\/sister-in-law were awake and aware since it was 10:00 p.m.<\/p>\n
It didn\u2019t take long for the wind to pick up and then the power went out. Thankfully, I had planned ahead. The only thing missing was my wine, so I headed to the fridge. Back in the bathroom, I poured myself a glass and then I heard it. The train. I always heard, a tornado sounds like a freight train. <\/p>\n I slammed my glass of wine and pushed my kids close together and laid over top of them. Eli continued to sleep and Ava woke up after she heard the window shatter. After calming Ava down and Eli waking up from the excitement, a tornado warning was issued for Pontiac.<\/p>\n Thirty minutes earlier, Jesse asked me if he should come home. I told him no, because the storm wasn\u2019t headed for us. Just like the forecasters, I was wrong and called Jesse and my parents.<\/p>\n They jumped in their cars and headed over. Without any electricity, I had no idea the extent of the damage. I just knew we had a broken window. Not wanting to scare the kids, we hung out in the bathroom and played with the flashlights. <\/p>\n Knowing my parents were close, we ventured out of the bathroom because Abba and Papa were coming! It wasn\u2019t until their headlight revealed they couldn\u2019t get into the driveway I knew it was bad. Mom somehow mastered the tree maze and got into the house while Dad and I tried and quickly survey the damage. We knew we had no electricity, broken windows and lots of trees down. The fire department arrived and made sure everyone was safe. I grabbed the essentials (wine included) just as Jesse got home and we headed to the farm for the night. <\/p>\n The night kept playing in my head and even one year later it seems like yesterday. I\u2019m not sure if I slept that night but the next morning, the sun came up. It was time to head home and access the damage. As we got closer, I knew it wasn\u2019t good. I broke down. Five days earlier, we had listed our home with a realtor because we had begun building our dream home. It had looked so good, now it was a mess. Neither one of us knew where to begin. I started taking pictures for insurance while Jesse cleaned up broke glass.<\/p>\n A little after 7:30 a.m. two of my co-workers arrived with their chainsaws and a plan. Then more co-workers arrived. The saying “many hands make light work” is true. By 4:00 p.m., our yard which lost twelve mature hard-wood trees was clean and the windows and roof were patched up.<\/p>\n The road to rebuilding was slow and extremely bumpy. One year later, reflecting on that night I\u2019m thankful. I am thankful for allowing us to live, work and raise our children in this community. A community that rallies behind others in a time of need and for this, we are forever grateful. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It was a Wednesday night, no different than any others. The forecasters were calling for storms, tornadoes were possible but most of the time the forecast was wrong. After picking up the kids from daycare, we transitioned to our typical nightly routine of dinner, baths and cartoons. All while I casually watched the weather. Bedtime […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2496,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":""},"categories":[554],"tags":[569,568,567],"yoast_head":"\n<\/a><\/p>\nPretty sure my exact words were, \u201cwe were hit\u201d.<\/h3>\n
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