Our beginning

Getting Back To Normal with a Twist

After the storm let up most of the way, we started letting animals out to explore with us and make sure the damage wasn't to bad out there. My gardens fencing was ripped out but didn't look to be to bad, it was definitely fixable. I had plans drawn up already as to how we could fix everything so this didn't happen again. I was collecting pumpkins and squash that had been damaged or removed from the vine when a dog I had never seen before came up and licked the back of my leg, which made me jump with surprise. I dropped most of what I picked up and dropped the rest when I saw the condition of the dog and almost threw up. The poor dog had a huge gash in its abdominal area and I wasn't sure if I'd be able to help it but I was going to try. Handing it a sausage from the baggy I had in my pocket, I caressed the gorgeous dogs head as I shouted for assistance.

"Alex, Mark!!! Hurry!! I need your help!! This dog is hurt and needs brought in the house right now so I can clean it up and see what all is damaged!!" They rushed to my side and we got the dog inside, he was dirty and looked like he had been hit by something as it fell. I had to clean him up first or.. I thought it was a male anyways, very good looking dog but it looked like his stomach had been slashed open. "Let's get him to the grooming table downstairs it'll be easier for me to work with him there."

"Brian! Get me Bella!! I'm going to need her help with this one!!" I shouted as we made our way into the basement.

In the grooming room, I had a large table with a sprayer so after we got him comfortable I started by spraying him off a bit and trimming some hair so I could stitch him up. I examined him the best I could and came to the conclusion that the only thing hurt on him was the gash in his stomach, one lucky pup. Bella was a confident and goofy girl that bounced as she walked and smiled through anything, she was out going and hungry for real love. After a bad break up she put her mind into helping animals and just kind of stuck with it.

As Bella comforted the pretty boy I worked to get him stitched up into one piece again. This wasn't what I typically did on anyone regularly so I wanted to take my time and do it right. I was amazed how well the dog did with it all and glad when we were done.

"Boys can you set him up in the extra kennel over there, please?"

"I wonder how this happened?" Bella asked as if to herself.

"Make sure he has water, I'm going out to scout the damage around town."

Mark and I got on the Shadow after I gave everyone hugs, kisses and told them my see you soons.

As we rode through town, I was glad we took the bike because not even my little Camry would have fit through what was open on the roads today. Trees were ripped from the ground and covering roads all over town. You could hear cries from those seeing the devastation of their homes and finding out who had been hurt. Electrical poles were ripped from the ground and with puddles of water here and there even more dangerous. We saw cars flipped on top of other cars and vehicles smashed into homes, semi trucks flipped over and rolled over all along the highway, animals running around everywhere unsure of what to do with themselves.

It seemed like we were the only area that hadn't been hit by the storm, houses had been pulled apart and trees had fallen on top of vehicles. After crossing the bridge we went further into country land and saw that there was a huge and deep canyon dividing the highway from the city.

Mark stopped the Shadow, "Let's take a closer look...." he got off and started walking that way. The closer we got to the gaping hole the more things started to set in. There was no bottom to the hole as to what I could see, it was around 20 maybe 25 feet apart and had emptied a few ponds probably a good amount of mobile homes near by but we couldn't get that far over to see. I was wondering what else had been damaged but was pretty ready to go home since I knew we had a long trip to make soon. Land splitting wasn't something that happened here on a regular basis and the rumors of the rest of the country made me want to go get Cheyanne and Maverick even more than usual.

"Let's go home, I've seen enough." Mark and I got back on the bike and took a way home that went through downtown. It looked pretty good along the Mississippi and the bridges that I could see, I was amazed in the difference on storm damage in different areas of town but it seemed like the only area really affected massively bad was the country side off west of the main city Davenport and surrounding.

Most of the garden and yard were picked up when we got home and the dog was sleeping sound by the fire place. I hadn't heard anything from Cheyanne in a while but the letter I was waiting on was my address to pick her up at so it was just a waiting game. I baked pies and other treats with the pumpkins and squash, squash pudding was always a favorite of mine.

Knowing that I would be gone for a while and was going to be leaving Mark, Alex, Sammy and Johnie behind was the hardest part of leaving. I could only bring 2 people with me and Brian had to be one of them so that Maverick and Cheyanne had a familiar to look for. They had video chatted for a year and bonded and I had been part of it all but I knew that they would recognize each other. My second choice to come along for the trip was Luke, I would need everyone else at the house with their training and all of the children I was leaving behind. Before I went to the basement to get comfortable and bake some breads, I told Luke and Brian to make sure that they packed their skate boards. I'm not sure what's going to happen on this journey south but I know that we need to be as prepared as we can be. I was packed already, I had lived with nothing before and I could get by with a backpack of odds and ends for a week. My main concern right now is to make sure that I'm not as missed while I'm gone as I'm sure I will be so I bake breads and muffins, I prep everyone's favorite foods and get them stored in the fridge or freezer that they belong in, I write and set notes out in places that my loved ones go at times that they can't find me to talk to and then I sit and get comfortable next to the fire not sure who or what I'm waiting for at the moment but waiting none the less.

Have you ever felt like something was going to happen any moment? There was no explanation for why you felt that way or how you felt that way, you just did? and then something really did happen so you were glad you followed your instincts and stayed put. Yep, that's where I was at the moment. I sat on the warm stones surrounding the fireplace and swirled my whiskey the chunk of ice resting on the bottom of the glass as the fire whipped around the logs and devoured them falling away into embers.

I smelled my lavender, rosemary and spearmint mix I had made a couple months ago, knowing that my oldest son was heading in my direction I got another glass out, placed an ice cube in it and poured a few shots for us both. "Have you checked the mail today? I'm still waiting for that letter..." I said, hearing him walk into the room.

"No, I can go check here in a little bit. I wanted to talk to you about the trip to get Chey, I know you had said that you hadn't decided who you would be taking but I want to go." he stood there and looked at me questioningly as if trying to will the words out of me.

"I've already made my choice on who will be coming with me to Texas." I said firmly, with my back still turned to him.

"Don't keep me in suspense.... you know I came down here to make a point, you didn't let me say what I wanted to and now you aren't even going to tell me who's going!?" he sounded desperate and I almost felt bad for picking on him.

I smiled and almost laughed as I started to turn around, drinks in hand, "I love you, I was actually getting ready to come find you." Handing him a drink I continued, "I'm bringing Luke and you... I need everyone else here at home keeping life going as normally as possible."

"Yes!! Yes!!" he drinks his glass of whiskey faster than I had planned but I knew he was going to be happy when he got the news.

"Go let Luke know and check the mail, please."

"OK! I'll be back soon..." he said excitedly as he almost ran, tripping over his own feet up the stairs. At the top of the stairs, I heard him telling whoever was in the kitchen, "I knew she'd pick me to go with to Texas, where's everyone at?"

I sipped my glass and sat back down on the warm stones.

I was tempted to pack everyone up but life wouldn't be right just staying on the road, if I got the letter this will take 4 to 5 days max. I stare into the fire as I swish the cube in my drink around helping the glass stay cold as the stones around the fire kept me warm. I knew that my home was prepared for anything at this point so keeping everyone here was the best option.