Lest you think all we have is devastation...

Memorial Day--I love hanging the flag! Our ward had a breakfast at Black Hawk Park, with a "retirement of the flag" ceremony (old, ragged flags are burned by the Boy Scouts). The flag always brings a lump in my throat. We took care of Yuki over the long weekend, and Lily loved having a play companion.
My window boxes are coming along!
As are the pansies on the front porch,
and the "volunteer" columbines. Some are pure white now.
I'm doing most of my flower colors in the primary palette--red, yellow and blue. Every once in awhile, there are some pinks, just to keep things from getting monotonous.

More pictures...

Picking through the debris... Brick walls just aren't what they used to be...
In the lower center is a kitchen cabinet with glass doors, filled with pyrex baking dishes--and nothing is broken!

Unbelievable!

We got a call yesterday from a ward member who needed help packing up and moving. The Tory's live in Parkersburg, but their home was not damaged. They were VERY lucky, since they didn't have a basement to seek shelter in. Damage began just one block away from them. They were already planning on moving as soon as school was out, since Brother Tory was already working in Des Moines and has a home there. Well. School is out--about 2 weeks early. With no power and no water, they decided to just go now.

We drove out, taking the girls and the sister missionaries with us. Although we had seen video on TV, and pictures in the newspaper, we were still not prepared for what we saw.

The above picture is the major highway that goes through town--the debris was plowed off so traffic could resume.

The trees were snapped, and their bark polished off.
And this semi did not make it. We saw, in front of one bare foundation, a pair of chairs, a pair of geraniums in pots, and a pair of crosses. We hardly needed the reminder that this was so deadly!
Some homes stayed standing, some didn't. As we drove by, there was one home with an upstairs' bedroom closet still standing--with a coat still hanging in it!

A few weeks ago, when I drove through Parkersburg, the leaves were just coming out on the trees and the spring flowers blooming in the yards that lined the highway. Now they look like a landfill. Or a war-zone.

We saw some homes on the edge of the pathway that had minor damage. The side of the house exposed to the winds looked like a pin cushion, with all kinds of things sticking straight out of the vinyl siding.

And it wasn't until a map was published in the paper, showing the pathway that I realized that the tornado passed by just about 2 miles to the north of our home. Afterall, Parkersburg is about 15 miles west of us; New Hartford is 10 miles west of us. That made it seem like it was a LONG way away. But the sky to the north of us sure looked ugly.

Our sky had bits of sunshine poking through!

It has been designated an F-5, with winds greater than 200 mph. It stayed on the ground for 43 miles. It passed just north of the Waterloo airport. They recorded winds of 93 mph.

The Aftermath

We've been getting calls from family members around the country--the national news makes it look like half of Iowa was blown away. (I'll have to remember that perspective when watching news stories about other areas.) Three towns were hit, and they were small towns. So small that they have to share a high school. Still, 220 houses were flattened, and 400 were damaged. Kevin went out yesterday with a small group of ward members to help at the Godfrey's home. He took these pictures.

The Godfrey's two vehicles, where WERE inside an attached garage. Notice the guitar underneath the car's tire. Those vehicles were airborne. The interiors of the cars were packed in with old cornstalks, and other debris. (Last night, Bro. Godfrey joked that he couldn't tell the difference from how they normally looked.)
At least the hardwood floor survived! If it can be salvaged...
The family escaped with just the clothes on their backs and no shoes. So the men's first job was to find clothing and important papers. Like their wallets. And they found them! And their wedding rings. And shoes filled with the insulation, just packed firmly into the toes. Fortunately, the insulation was the cellulose type, not the fiberglass type. The men loaded up eight large bags of clothing and most has now been washed up and returned to the Godfrey's at their hotel room.

All this took the tornado 30 seconds to accomplish. The family said that once they were in their safe room, their eardrums and sinuses began to hurt immensely! Then everything rumbled and dust and insulation started to come down on them. They huddled in a corner with a blanket over them. It took a few minutes to realize it was over, as things were still settling and shifting. As they opened the door, they just couldn't believe what they were seeing.

There have been many miracles--like a clear, sunny day to salvage things when it was forecast to be a rainy day. Like finding a kitchen cabinet with glass doors, on the back lawn, and none of the glass was broken (nor were the glass dishes inside). Like someone coming by with a page from a scrapbook--found in their yard--and looking for its owner. Like finding most of the personal journals, in decent shape. Like surviving in the first place.

Seven people did not.

We had a barbecue last with the family and others who had been out working. It is amazing how they could joke and smile about all this.

Like the "For Sale" sign in the front yard still in perfect condition.

Like counting it as "missionary work" because all their FHE packets about the gospel were gone and likely scattered all over northeast Iowa.

Like having worked all day Saturday cleaning their home for a showing--it looked better than it had looked since they had moved in--all for a tornado to wipe it out.

Like homes just across the street losing a few shingles or some siding, while their side of the street was just a string of debris.

I was grateful to see such a positive response. But I think they are planning on moving back to Utah.

Visuals from the open house

With a variety of ward members and high school friends, the house and yard were utilized very well! The badminton is behind the apple tree.
The Young Men--always looking for a way to turn an activity into something involving a ball or a frisbee.

I'm still amazed at how well it turned out on short notice!

Well, it went well...

About a week ago, someone at church mentioned that one of our graduating seniors was not holding an open house, which is SO traditional here. We talked about it and I volunteered to host a surprise one for her at our house--it gave me a good reason to spruce things up.

We changed a regular Wednesday night Mutual activity into her open house. We sent out an email to parents. We invited others to help with treats.

And tons of people came!

We had a perfect May evening--sunshine, light breeze, almost 70 degrees.

Not too warm for those in the house and not too cold for those outside.

When the house was filled with people, they spilled out onto the deck, then into the backyard. The youth became involved in frisbee, soccer, and badminton. (And we finally had to tell them to go home--they were having too much fun to realized they were the only ones still here.)

People came and stayed. Several mentioned how fun it was to have a party and it seemed like half the ward was here. They sat and chatted as groups formed, and then

reformed with new additions. There was a lot of laughter.

And our yard was complimented many times. Of course, it is at its most beautiful right now with the apple trees in full blossom, as well as the lilacs. The strawberry patch is covered in blossoms and the veggie garden still looks neat and comely with baby peas, beets and spinach in their neat rows. The grass is full and vibrant green with no dandelions showing--

thank heavens for fertilizer!

And it was pretty stress-free for me as well. I only had to clean up the house--and this is a good time to look at things with a critical eye and make some changes and clean up woodwork and kitchen cabinets--and move the piles of papers that always accummulate near the computer; repaint the front door to cover up the stains from last year's bird nest, and get the yard looking good, which meant a lot of weeding of tree-beds and flower beds.

But I get to keep all those improvements!

Oh, and I kept the punch bowl full of lemonade.

Three and a half gallons were disposed of!

I almost had a difficult time going to sleep last night, I was so buoyed up!

It's a great feeling when an event turns out so well.

I was happy to be a part of it.

Spring Happenings at our home

When we returned from a youth activity, A&E had a surprise for us! They had found a "free" air-hockey table and carried it home. At first we weren't sure it would fit anywhere, but if the pingpong table is folded up, there is a spot for it. I have a feeling that after a few months, it will lose its allure. But it is fun! And I have to show the magnolia tree at its height in bloom. And it continues to rain--a lot.
Alice had her birthday, with a "citrus" cake (lemon cake with some orange food coloring in one layer). In stead of going to a restaurant for her birthday dinner, we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over the fire in the new fire pit. (Alice's choice!) We have plenty of wood in the little grove behind our house. And since our town now has a burn ban except for "recreational" fires, the old wood has been piling up.
Each morning, now matter how I am feeling, when I look out on this scene, my heart is uplifted and gladdened. The long, cool spring has kept the flowers blooming. We had a touch of frost yesterday morning, but nothing was hurt.
Happy Spring!

On Saturday, Elizabeth got to have her first paying gig, playing in a quartet for a University reception. They got lots of compliments, and $100 to split. For playing an hour. AND they got to eat lunch. Of course, they had to have practices together, and they have each been playing their instrument for at least 7 years. I guess if I were to count up all the $$ for lessons, this doesn't even pay for a single lesson. But a monetary return isn't why we do music in our family. We do it for the "fun" school concerts? (Probably not).
Or for the actually fun concerts in the extra-curricular junior orchestra? No, that's more of a reward than a motivation.
We do music in our family because--

1) it involves diligence and
responsibility;

2) it opens up another part of the
brain--musically-trained people tend to be smarter;

3) it brings association with other good
kids and good families;

4) it opens up opportunities for service
and to be involved in the community.

And that's a good way to raise kids!

Maybe Spring is here

Although it is 41 degrees outside and is supposed to get really cold tonight with a hard freeze, today the flowers look nice. Every time I look at the fence I am glad we put it in. (And I'm glad for the extra push from Catherine to get us going on the project!)
I've put a styrofoam rose cone over the bleeding heart bush to protect it, but the other spring flowers are just going to have to fend for themselves. If I put a tarp or blanket over them to protect from the frost, they will break off.

This cold year just doesn't want to let go.

And MORE uses for tables...

We humans use the table as a work surface, but the dog LOVES to clean up any fallen crumbs underneath. And when there are little children around, there are lots of crumbs!Nothing beats the food Great-grandma Bailey serves up around her table. And she usually doesn't even sit down with us!
Actually, there isn't a table here, but every chair from around the table was used for the blanket tent.
And tables are great for leaning on as the extended family solves the problems of the world!

Uses for Tables, Part II

As I combed through family photos, I was struck with how many family activities center around the table. Sometimes those activities are a little out-of-the-ordinary, like...

...snacking between mealtimes.

( What is it about a wooden table that makes the girls in our family feel voracious???)

Or part of a yearly tradition like dying Easter Eggs.
Or visiting with new friends.
Where would we be without a table?

Uses for tables

Tables can be used in such a variety of ways...

...to play under (at Christmas, at Great-grandma Bailey's house.)

...to keep adult eyes from seeing how much Easter candy is being eaten.
..to hold laptops as dads work at their business, even though both were on vacation.
And this is only the beginning!

Music, music, music

To our surprise, since it is still cool outside (and actually snowing this morning), it is the season for the All-City musical events. For three Mondays in a row, we get to go to the high school gym, with the All-City Orchestra being the first. All-City Chorus is next, followed by All-City Band. Alice, bless her heart, is in all three this year.

Why were we surprised? Because it is usually stifling hot at these events, so we just thought it was still sometime in the future.

Then on Thursday evening, our family, along with 3 other families from the ward, went to the nearby rest home and provided some entertainment. Alice played "I've Got No Strings" (from Pinocchio). Lots of the residents tapped their toes--they recognized it.

Then it was Elly's turn. Right after Kevin took this picture, there was a bright flash of light outside and an loud peal of thunder, and the lights blinked off! Elly was playing "Orange Blossom Special" and kept right on playing. The lights flickered back on (along with several alarms from patients' rooms) and the show went on!

It was a fun service project, and the stake presidency had asked us to do some service as a family before stake conference. Along with turning off the TV (no problem there!)

I was glad one of the other moms suggested this activity.

One Set of Missionaries Down...

Yesterday was transfer day. We're getting in the rhythm of missionary life. This is Sister Norton (from Show Low, AZ) and Sister Howell (from Gilbert, AZ). Sister Norton is going home, and we assumed Sis. Howell would stay here (she has one month left), but she was also transferred, to a Spanish branch (she is actually Hermana Howell).
We were all sad to see them go.

They had been very kind and integrated well into our home.

They kept all the mission rules.

At 9 AM sharp--the beginning of companion study time--the sounds of a hymn sung in harmony would come floating up the stairs. (They had nice voices, too).

Alice particularly is missing them.

For her, it was like having a couple of older sisters in the bedroom across from hers.

The rest of us appreciated all the desserts that ward members showered them with, and which the missionaries freely shared with us. Ymmm!

Now we have a new set of sisters, and we can't wait to get acquainted!

Experimenting with paper-whites

A few weeks ago, a friend gave me several bulbs of paperwhites, ready to plant and bloom indoors. I've never done that before--a new project for grandma flowers!

We had enough for a glass vase, a dirt-filled pot, and another pot that went to Catherine's house at Easter.

Watching the roots grow down and fresh green grow upwards was exciting. Especially since it was still winter outside.

Then the first blooms appeared.

Their smell isn't delicious. But they do smell like other spring flowers.

The only downside--literally--is a funny trait these have. One moment they are standing up straight and tall, and ten minutes later they look like this:
So we patiently stand them up again and prop them against the wall, and after a few hours they are straight and tall again, on their own. Until it happens again.

This morning, we came out to find that it had flopped over the wrong way

and landed on the floor! Dirt and broken blossoms everywhere!

So we cut several blooms for vases and

moved the plant to a floor spot .

Next time, I won't put so many bulbs in one pot.

At the museum, I found a long lost friend--I think he's related to the traveling gnome. The adults put together a couple of puzzles, and Brenna did hers. She even put in some pieces in our 750-piece puzzle. It was in the sky section, and I was stumped. She came over and within a minute had put in two. Pretty good for a 3-year-old. And it's fun to see clothes on her that Elizabeth and Alice wore, like this French sweater.
Kevin and Aaron traded jabs, hits, strikes, birdies and aces as they played with the Wii. Alice and Connor spent a lot of time with the Legos--building land speeders, x-wing fighters, etc. Some of this was spurred on by playing Legos Star Wars on Aaron's PS3.

We found that Elly and Alice have a difficult time working together. It took them 2 hours to go through the first episode.
And although it was just before Easter, the snow was actually quite beautiful. Perfect for a December or January day!