Thankful

Day 2
As my parents are en route here to watch the boys play hockey this weekend, I am thankful that all of my kids' grandparents enjoy being around them and watching their activities, and that they make it a point to do so. So many kids aren't so lucky.

Thankful

It's that time of year again... the time when I vow to publicly say I'm thankful for something each day for an entire month. It always seems easier than it turns out to be, but here we go.

Day 1
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, I am thankful that the storm tracked further north than originally expected, sparing us from something that could've been much worse. And I am thankful that my family in NJ, NY, and PA are all okay since some of them (or their property) took a direct hit.

Frankenstorm 2012

Well, in comparison to what we were prepared for and expecting, Hurricane Sandy was kind of a non-event around these parts. At least around the parts that I frequent. Yes, it was windy. Yes, it rained. A lot. But frankly, the derecho storm this past June was much worse for us, personally.

Our power DID stay on after that 90-minute outage. (No one was more shocked than we were!) And we don't appear to have lost any siding, flashing, facia, or shingles. All good. We had a few small limbs down in yard. But that's about it.

I'll take that.

I'm still awaiting word on how my aunts' and uncles' homes at the NJ shore fared. I'm hopeful.

Frankenstorm 2012

Day 2 - October 29

7:00am
Again, just rain. I guess there's a little bit of a breeze, but I wouldn't call it wind yet.

11:00am
Still raining. Very dark. Wind is picking up. Hubby's off today, but he got an email that is office is closing at 10:30am due to worsening weather conditions. His office NEVER closes. I am "ensconced" in my second floor office with a wall of windows...  probably not the safest place to be, but we serve the government. Even though it is shut down, our proposal is still due on Wednesday...

2:30pm
Got an extension on the proposal until next Monday due to the weather conditions in the greater DC area. Heading home!

3:40-something
Power's out. Commencing our first game of Scrabble. Good thing I bought some fried chicken on the way home!

5:15pm
Hubby went out to try to set up a tarp to put the generator under while I dug out all of our candles to supplement the flashlight stockpile.

5:25-ish
POWER ON! Not sure how long it will STAY on, but we are feverishly making the planned dinner of hamburger stroganoff while we have power. Also cranked up the heat and plugged in our phones again to take advantage of power while we have it! Never did get the generator going. Hubby's plan for the tarp to cover it wasn't going to work, so we will work on a Plan B while we eat...

10pm
We still have power! I can't tell you how excited I am about this unexpected development. The boys just went to bed. I don't think I'll be far behind. Since we sleep with a fan on, I'll wake up the instant the electricity goes off if it does. I think (I hope) that if we make it another two or three hours that we'll be home free as far as the power goes. It is flickering some...

We have played more games tonight than we have in the last month! Scrabble, Blockus, Pass the Pigs... and I got some work done on the proposal when the power came back on. If there's power at the office tomorrow and it's no worse than it is out now, I'll probably head in to the office... but maybe not at 7am, like usual. :-)

Frankenstorm 2012

Day 1 - October 28

Well, our preparations have been made for this doozy of a hurricane they say is coming our way -- though it's no longer projected to be a direct hit on the DC area. Our "extensive" preparations consisted of:

• Taking down the canopy on the back deck
• Making sure there is at least one extra full tank of propane in case we need to use our grill to cook for a few days
• Making sure the gas can is full so we can run the generator
• Making sure the gas tanks are full on the car and truck (although the truck was driven to Maryland and back twice today for hockey games AFTER it was filled up, so I should probably do that again)
• Locating all of our flashlights and putting them on the kitchen counter
• Tying the deck and patio furniture down
• Bringing in all of the potted plants, which are all dead or dormant now, anyway
• Bringing in all the sporting goods stuff that normally resides in our front yard and on our front porch
• Bringing in the trash can and recycling can
• Glancing to be sure we have water, Diet Coke, and Diet Doctor Pepper
• Locating the various things that Jack is using to make up his Halloween costume--this was very high on his priority list today

Bring it, Sandy!

So far, we just have rain...

Thinking...

Maybe, just MAYBE, J-Mav is growing out of his motion sickness. He and I drove to Richmond on Sunday and he rode both ways, without his sea bands, playing on his iPad, without getting sick. We were even in stop and go traffic for 45 minutes on the way home! Fingers crossed!

And that's a wrap...

Summer 2012 is pretty much done. It went by quick, although June seems like it was eons ago. Here's a random wrap-up.

Only one kid at home for five weeks... Sweet Frog... Camping... Surgery for K-dog (again)... Camper coming unhitched from truck on our first time out... Dinner out... French door fixed... Sweet Frog... Nats baseball... Pool... VA Beach... Dinner out... Allergies (?!?)... Avalon... School supplies... Hershey Park...Newseum... Birthdays... Sweet Frog... Long drive to and from Blacksburg... Work, work, work... Derecho and 26 hours without power (over J-Mav's birthday)... Bike rides... Reading...

Keeper Boy
CHS Spring League Champions... Braces off... Five weeks in Hawaii... Changed diapers for first time... 20-page Algebra packet... Long distance relationship... Surfing... Camp at Virginia Tech... First attempt at driving... VA Beach... Hockey mini-camp... Pool... Chargin' Ahead at CHS... Off-ice conditioning with CHS hockey team... The Odyssey... Camping in Avalon... Newseum... Hershey Park...

J-Mav
Camping in Reston... Laser tag birthday party... Sweet Frog... No power on birthday... Two weeks with favorite female babysitter... Two more weeks with favorite male babysitter... Lotsa pool time... Skating lessons... Camping in Harpers Ferry... ZIP LINE!... Horse races... Only child for five weeks... Camping in Richmond... Lots of play dates with best friend... New skates... Camping in Avalon... Virginia Beach... Camp at VA Tech... A week with Grandma... Finished reading Harry Potter 3... A week with Grandma and Grandpa... SACC...The Avengers with Dad... Newseum... Hershey Park... Nats games...