Weathering the Storm

An update from Melissa J.: We are into week two. Still some bumps or rather storms… literally. My oldest finished all her state exams and finals. I am happy to report we are now ready to enter 11th grade, and will even get a permit to drive next month. "Blink and you miss it", they say. "How can time slip that fast away", I think? This is the conversation I had a few times over her first month being born. Clearly I must have blinked, because she is being just this tiny bundle handed to me and babies can’t hold car keys. As trying as she sometimes is being a teenager, I am the lucky one. I get to be her mom. I can’t wait to see where her journey takes her with college browsing starting this fall. Awards night done, dinner finished and I thought wow I have got this!

I set my house to leave because while we are gone the property manager has set updates to be done. I think having that thought was kind of like Murphy's law. I got everything cleaned, started packing, got to work after I set the kids for bed and then a horrible storm blew in, AND the power went out after the lights flickered the magical third time. I knew we just needed to settle in because it was going to be a long time before the lights were back on. Candles lit and Uno out. Jasmine went to play games with her friends. Storm or no storm my littlest was spent and fell asleep just after touching the bed, sprawled out as if she just made a snow angel. She just finished preschool and said goodbye to friends which is hard at any age. Nicholas, who hates storm, was glued to my side (I was the same way as a kid). Uno in the candlelight and fun was found in the darkness. Two rounds and then off to bed for both of us. It's still a school night for him.



The next morning- no power and a school delay. Hopefully, it will be on soon as I do not have time for all of this. GOD clearly understood because the power came back on and by the way- it was not just a horrible Thunder/Lightning storm, it was a tornado that ripped through. This almost never happens in our area. Ignorance really can be bliss. I am so glad I knew that AFTER and not during.
 I now had to finish 2 days of work in one, all while getting 3 kids and myself ready to leave in the morning. Luke’s wings helped my family get airline tickets to visit Nathan over Father’s Day Weekend. All of us needed to be ready to leave at 4:30 am to make our flight. They now have been away from each other for 14 days and are more than excited to go. I do believe in miracles. I can do this one task- one thing handled at a time. And it was. We are off and so thankful for all the help getting there. This will help Nathan's treatment be even more successful. When your homesick and can’t go home yet, you take the next best thing... Home coming to you.