Irene is Not my Friend

Yesterday we ventured out for the first time after Irene ripped through on Saturday/Sunday. We weren't really sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised that we maintained power throughout the entire storm, and that our parking lot was not a lake. So, we were actually able to make it into Princeton, but the Delaware/Raritan Canal was considerably higher and there was evidence it had been all the way up to the road. Also, most of the street signals were out around our little community. The big ones were working, though.
After Princeton and a celebratory dinner at Banzai Hibachi Restaurant, we went to see what the lake looked like at Mercer County Park. Well, we were pretty surprised. This gazebo is usually full of tables and chairs. It is totally flooded. The water was all the way up to the walk/bike path.
See that line of trees? And the teeny, tiny gazebo at the end? There is a long sidewalk connecting those AND it connects the big gazebo in the pictures above. All under water. Crazy.

That 1.5 mile marker is on the walk/bike path.

A deserted parking lot at the train station. That just doesn't happen on a Monday. Ever. There are always lots of cars at the train station all week long. The train lines were down all day yesterday. Chris might have to drive to work today :/
Alexander Road blocked off for flooding.

I have to say, I am so thankful we made it through this! I am an eternal pessimist.... I was a nervous wreck getting ready for this crazy hurricane this week. It didn't help that we had an earthquake scare either. I had NO idea what to do to prepare other than what they were saying on the news....water, non-perishable food, flashlights, batteries. I was preparing for the worst. I just couldn't view it any other way. For a girl who has grown up in the deserts of West Texas, rain was a luxury, not a source of destruction. So by Friday, I felt like I had done what I could, and I just tried to pray that everything would be ok. The night of the hurricane was scary....what I didn't expect was all the tornado warnings that were popping up everywhere like popcorn. There were tornadoes sighted on the ground just a few miles from here. If there is one thing I know, it's tornadoes. I had just gotten the kids calmed down and on their way to dream land when Chris came in for the first time and said we needed to take cover. Jordan was terrified, I was terrified, we prayed and it ended up ok. We had to take cover again around 1 am and by that time I was just completely frazzled. Chris stayed up all night watching the news for us while I got the kids settled AGAIN and dozed a little. We woke up the next morning to clear skies, but still some really heavy winds. Yesterday and today have been absolutely gorgeous....sun, sun, sun. We are so, so thankful for God's protection this weekend!

So in an effort to work through the emotions that surged all week long, here are some funny things that were said during the course of this:

~as I am making a place on the floor for the kids to sleep in our room on Saturday night Chris says, "They are kids, not puppies."
~as I was considering moving a piece of furniture in front of a window Chris says, "Don't wreck our apartment before the hurricane does!"
~as the kids were sitting in our bathtub, with bike helmets on for safety, half asleep Jaron says, "I wish Jordan would stop crying on my face!!"