Happy Halloween

The day after Superstorm Sandy, the Kerstings who did not lose power, had us over for dinner, hot showers, recharging computers and baking cupcakes for Sophie’s school Halloween party.

By candle light at home we decorated the cupcakes and watched Charlie Brown movies on the laptop.

Superstorm Sandy tried but was unable to take our Halloween from us. Our power came back on at 5:46am, 32 hours after we lost it. I know because the cable box made a clicking sound and I woke up immediately.  With it came heat, tv, internet, school, and a happy family.

My little wolf

Kitty cat in her award winning costume with her friends 

Alexander as Herobrine from Minecraft 

Helena headed to preschool in costume and the kids got on the bus.  As Sophie goes to am kindergarten and repeats class by attending pm kindergarten, she had two Halloween parties.  In the afternoon, Helena and I headed back to school for the Halloween parade which was held indoors followed by parties in the classrooms.

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We were so excited to have the Kerstings join us for trick or treating.  As Ras is from Germany, Samuel is 2, and Klara is 1, this was their first year for trick or treating.  That was a lot of fun to witness. Sophie’s hip started bothering her, so we carried her between houses but had her walk to the doors.  The kids made quite the haul. Getting out of the house and socializing with the neighbors was just what we needed.

Thank goodness our generator arrived on Friday. We will be glad to have it during the next power outage. It’s powerful enough to run the fridge, furnace, and a few other items, which is all we really need.  Here’s hoping that won’t be for a long time.  Happy Halloween!

Frankenparty The Aftermath

What a wicked ride that was.  Late last night Mark and I briefly stood outside on the porch in awe of the movement of the wind through the trees.  We have no damage and no flooding in the basement.  The neighbors to the right have a few downed tree limbs and destroyed patio furniture.  The neighbors to the left have a piece of fence down.  Not bad.  Not bad at all.

Our generator is still en route and we have been out of power since about 11:30 EST last night.  Fortunately we have a gas stove, so heating meals and making coffee in a sauce pan is possible.  We are adding bagged ice to the fridge and so far that is working well.  I had frozen dozens of ziplock freezer bags full of water in the freezer, which is also helping.  We have coolers and ice.

It is a day of bundling up, playing games, napping, and little contact with the outside world.  We have a decorative gel fireplace (picture from Overstock.com below) which uses canisters, like what you heat food in chafing dishes.  In addition to the light, it gives off a nice amount of heat.  I haven’t seen the weather reports on tv, obviously.  Though we can charge our phones with the weather radio, we’ve kept the cell phone use to a bare minimum.

This evening we are spending time at the Kerstings for dinner, recharging batteries, hot showers, and baking cupcakes for Sophie’s Halloween party tomorrow, which is how I can post this update.  School is open tomorrow but there is no word yet on the power.  They will be happier at school anyway than in the chilly dim house.  Plus, Sandy hasn’t ruined Halloween, which would have been unforgiveable.It could have been worse, so we are grateful, but it will sure be nice to have the power back on.

Frankenparty

By no stretch of the imagination am I making light of Hurricane Sandy, but I am going to make the absolute best of a bad situation.  Due to the hybrid nature of the storm baring down on us, this monstrous vortex has been nicknamed Frankenstorm.  As such, dealing with it the best way we know how is our #Frankenparty.
I first learned of the coming storm while holding Sophie’s hand in the ER on Thursday night.  We were sent home after her IV of fluids did the trick but I woke up at 4am, unable to sleep.  I decided to get the hurricane preparation shopping out of the way.  At 4:30am I drove to the all night store in record time as I hit every green light.  The shelves were freshly stocked, there were plenty of staff, and no other customers.  Unlike my shopping experience with Hurricane Irene, I had no trouble stocking up on D batteries, bottled water, bread, and milk.  The added bonus of not having kids in tow made this a breeze of a trip.  At lunch the next day, Sophie surprised me by eating mac-n-cheese, which she hasn’t eaten for a few years and is a huge deal.  Afterwards, we had a living room dance party, cuz this is how we do it.


On Saturday, we had a babysitter so Mark and I could walk up to the Villanova Homecoming football game.  Rather than go out to dinner as planned, after the game we came home to continue prepping the house.  My nerves were on edge which meant that I focused this energy on cleaning until 1am.  I didn’t sleep long and was back up early to keep cleaning.  Don’t judge.  It’s how I deal with stress and frankly, the house looks great.
Sunday was a wonderful day.  Our dear friends the Kersting family came over and we had hot apple cider, baked pumpkin bread, did crafts, the kids painted little pumpkins and the adults carved the big ones (Obama’s logo, a Creeper from Minecraft, & Pato from Pocoyo).  We watched the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, and the adults enjoyed seasonal beer.  When it was time to eat, we ordered in.  When it was time to nap, the kids actually napped (holy cow)!  Mark and Ras battened down the hatches by covering the scooter, grill, garbage and recycling cans with a nailed/staked down tarp (pray it holds).
After our friends left, Mark prepped our unfinished basement, which we only use as storage.  We expect flooding, unfortunately, but as of 8pm Monday night, we are still dry (knock on wood).  Our house is made of brick and is nearly a hundred years old.  She is a solid fortress and we feel very safe here.
Mark and the girls crashed but Alexander and I couldn’t sleep so at midnight, we baked a batch of chocolate chip cookies.  He measured, I mixed, we laughed and licked the beaters.  We talked and had the best time.  You really can’t beat warm cookies and milk with your child at 1 am.  As I tucked him into bed he gave me the sweetest smile and hug and said he would never forget this.
The entire region has shut down today and Tuesday, including Mark’s work, the public schools, mass transit, roads, bridges etc.  So, we slept in, stayed in our jammies, and I sipped hot coffee today until noon.  I worked from home, Mark graded mid-term papers, and the kids played.  There were bubble baths and naps in the afternoon while the roast, carrots, onions, and garlic potatoes slowly cooked in the oven, smelling like Heaven.  The power has flickered a few times but hasn’t gone completely out for more than a few minutes.
I ventured out in the afternoon for bags of ice for the coolers, just in case.  The closest place just happened to be a beer store, (ahem).  It wasn’t bad out, just wet and windy.  The emergency weather solar/USB/hand crank powered radio/flashlight/cell phone charger that I ordered was delivered and works great but the generator I bought hasn’t made it yet.  It will be wonderful if we are able to keep the power through Sandy, but knowing that we will have a generator for future storms was well worth it. 
Halloween is Wednesday and it’s too soon to tell if there will be school (or the Halloween parade & class parties) or trick or treating.  Worst case scenario, the kids can trick or treat from room to room at home.  We are prepared for the worst and hoping for the best.  The eye of the storm is over us right now and all is calm, except for Helena, who refuses to wear pants and is demanding to wear her bicycle helmet.

Mark Reports On Hurricane Irene

MORE BREAKING NEWS:

Now it's a party. The Kersting family has arrived.
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Hurricam pt. 1

Alexander and I are blogging live from the front porch as Hurricane Irene's rolls in.
On the scene reporter Alexander explains the situation with Hurricane Irene
a few moments later...

Storm Supplies (check)

I took one last trip to our grocery store yesterday stock up before Hurricane Irene arrives. The store was packed and lines were long, but as usual the people were patient and friendly. The only fighting for supplies were my kids who all wanted to ride in the blue car cart. Many of the basic supplies were low or completely gone, but thankfully Mark had picked up those items already. Things like:

SOUP

BOTTLED WATER

MILK

Even Mark had no luck with the D batteries though. Our big flashlight takes D, but we have plenty of candles. (I just found a 4 pack in our junk drawer! woo-hoo)

See -- family and friends back in Iowa. This is just a fraction of our food supply. The van is gassed up, the outside stuff is packed away. Laundry is (almost) finished. Mark is working on raising stored stuff up in the basement. Down spouts are extended. Everything that needs charging is charged. The bath tub will be filled. We have some cash. We're set.

The projected sustained winds are 58+mph for our area during the worst part of the storm. It will be a gnarly, but we're safe. We'll keep you posted as we can.

Stay safe East Coasters!

Hunker Down

So, we had an earthquake on Tuesday and Hurricane Irene is expected this weekend. Not a typical week for this crew from the Midwest.

When Mark went out late last night to buy our supplies for the weekend, he kept me updated via text messages. Messages such as, "The guy at Home Depot was irritated with me for asking about portable generators. He said there are none available in the immediate vicinity. Apparently he's been getting this question a lot. They have a bajillion sump pumps, though. Home Depot is out of 6Volt batteries. At a quarter to 10 at night and Wally's is packed like it's Christmas Eve! No 6V and no D batteries here either. This is surreal. Can't imagine what it'll be like tomorrow or Saturday. They only have whole milk and 1% left! No batteries or milk at CVS or the grocery store either."

So, we have water, food, no extra D or 6Volt batteries but plenty of candles and plans to just stay home while the wind and rain do their dance. Our main concerns are basement flooding and downed power lines. Other than that we have a solid house and are far enough inland that we'll be fine. I pray for the parts of the country in her direct path. This could be really bad folks.

As long as we keep the power, I'll try and update this weekend. We are expected to have the most intense wind and rain late Saturday night through Sunday. Local friends, if you haven't stocked up on supplies (especially batteries), be aware that it is fully nuts out there.

And now, a little hurricane humor

Waiting for Aftershock

Most of us know that a 5.9 earthquake occurred today around 1:53 EST with an epicenter in Virginia that was felt all over the East Coast. I'm blogging from my office in center city Philadelphia. Mark is home with the kids. Everyone is fine, but holy cow, what a ride.

My organization has the corner office on the 6th floor and I am working alone. When the shaking got really bad I ran out of there afraid that the windows would break or that the office would fall off of the building. Yes, it was that startling. Very near to this building, office windows did shatter, but no reports of other damages have been made. I joined the others in the organization on my building's same floor and we evacuated down the stairwell and tried (often in vain) to get through to loved ones on the phone.

There is something particularly shocking to the system when things like this occur, at least for me. It hit with no warning (as they do) but no one knew for sure if it was an earthquake or terrorist attack. At first I was startled, then scared, then really wishing I wasn't so far from home.

Our phones have been very spotty but texting and on-line services like fb are working.

Mark checked out our house for damage and reports some cracks in the paint around the windows. I don't know if they were already there or are new. He also reports that Alexander's old timey alarm clock that was broken is now working again, but that's it. I just remembered that my nephew Austin predicted the earthquake in Illinois in 2008 and I just got a text from my little sister that she recently had just had a nightmare about an earthquake and Sophie was in it. Come to think of it, I didn't sleep well last night due to nightmares. Weirdness. I guess we're all a little wacky.

As there may be aftershocks I will attempt to get home soon. It's an early rush hour as many buildings have been evacuated. Should be an interesting ride home on the train today.

On Sunday hurricane Irene is expected to march up our way.

I think I'll stop by my favorite wine store on the way home.

Be safe out there friends!

local story HERE

Billy the Snow Punk

Today we are house bound with an excessive heat warning and a real temperature of 96°with a heat index of 106° In an attempt to stay cool, here's a look back at the construction of Billy, our snowman from this past winter at our old house.

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5AM, Before the Plow

Hurricane Game

If you are a Phillies fan, you may have heard about this game last week. They are calling it the hurricane game. As midwesterners, we are used to big thunderstorms. This storm was technically a thunderstorm but it was definitely not like what we are used to.

The guys went to the Phillies vs. Indians game and from their seats on the 4th deck, they watched the storm move in. We were in constant contact via texting as the girls and I watched the storm from the safety of the house. Sirens went off three times and the power was flickering constantly.

We are used to powerful wind gusts, but this was different. This wasn't a gust but more like a sustained hurricane wind. From their seats at the game they kept an eye on the buildings in the distance. Slowly those buildings began to disappear as the storm marched closer.

They left their seats and took cover in a merchandise store. Dale reports that they were some of the last people that the store let in. This monster gave the stadium a whopping, breaking off parts of the building, shattering glass, tossing hot dog stands and merchandise like it was nothing. The super heavy tarp that they put down to cover the infield was whipped in the air like a flag on a pole. It even drug a small truck that was parked on it to hold it down. Garbage was flying through the air and the tv monitors were destroyed. Trees were blown over and people got hurt at the ball park. After a long rain delay, the game resumed, but they guys had come home.

That evening I picked up pizza at a neighborhood family owned place and chatted with the owners. A grocery store nearby had a collapsed roof. Neighborhoods were littered with downed trees and power was out in many places. I had been under the impression that this part of the country didn't have storms like this. Guess we brought them with us.
our footage

other videos of the hurricane game found on youtube

Midwestern Earthquake

Apparently there was an earthquake in northern Illinois very early this morning. It was initially a 4.3 but down graded to a 3.8 on the Richter scale. Unlike the quake in IL in 2008, I did not feel a thing. To keep it in perspective, this quake today was less in magnitude than an aftershock felt in Haiti today. The initial Haiti quake was 33,000 times more powerful. While the IL quake seems to be the "talk of the town," and exciting for many midwesterners who have not experienced this type of thing before (and I can relate), I can't help but think about Haiti. The news is covering it less and less, which I suppose is to be expected. So dear readers, did you feel anything this morning?

Winter's Majesty, Images of the Frozen Cedar Valley

On this day in Iowa the actual air temperature (not wind chill) had dropped to 19 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. At the time these pictures were taken, it had climbed up to 14 below. Mother Nature can be at once beautiful and brutal. I imagine you can almost feel the frigid air set against the crisp backdrop of this winter wonderland. Locals will recognize the Cedar River in Cedar Falls, IA, the Ice House Museum, the one room school house, and the train bridge.

With freezing shaky hands and a camera battery that was rapidly draining, Mark managed to capture some pretty stunning shots. You know its cold when you see water vapor like this coming off of the river. I can't help but think about the resilience of our species on days like this. I wonder about how people could survive before having warm comfortable homes to hunker down in. It's a miracle, really.

As always, you can click to enlarge the images, taken by Mark on January 2, 2010.

Ice Not Nice

Today was supposed to be Alexander's last day of preschool for 2 weeks. We got socked with an ice storm overnight and school is cancelled. He had a holiday party scheduled complete with gingerbread house decorating and spent some time last night coloring pictures to go with the little gifts for his preschool teachers. Oh well. At least we already made and decorated Christmas train cakes at home.

At 4:30 am Mark and I both heard a very loud whoosh/thump coming from outside. It reminded me of when the drunken teenager crashed the car (and without the neighbor's car to block it, would have landed in Alexander's bedroom). I was seriously freaked out that there was another accident or someone breaking in. I stood outside as Mark investigated. There were a lot of tree limbs down in the neighborhood due to the ice and we figured that's what we heard. However, this morning I discovered that a limb was down near our back deck and that it snapped a wire off of the house. I'm thinking that was what we heard as it was attached to the house off of my bedroom. Since we haven't lost any power, heat, cable, etc. I can only assume it's the phone wire. We only have cell phones right now.

As for today, we're iced and fogged in. Maybe with Mark home I can sneak away and get some presents wrapped. I hear my hometown got 8.5 inches of snow and is expecting more over the next few days. Joy. This is the back deck. You can click to enlarge and see the snapped wire draped off of the deck. And, that isn't snow out there. It's not nice ice.