Ike & 11 days without power

We are so glad to have power now! We're very grateful there was no damage to our house and property (other than part of our fence that came loose), and that everyone we know was kept safe.

Pic #1: a fence that was knocked down by the winds in our subdivision. There were rumors that winds were up at 100 mph or higher. Roofs got damaged, fences went down, several big trees along our main road fell, and two power poles went down (which was why it took so long to get power). Pic #2: Several trees fell on roofs in the older neighborhoods in our ward. Pic #3: Our neighborhood park turned into a wilderness pool.

Here are some things we were very grateful for during Ike & the aftermath:

1. Water--it wasn't safe to drink, but at least we still had water to use for the sinks, showers, and toilets.

2. Cool weather (for the most part)--the week after Ike, it was unseasonably cool, which was definitely a blessing. The last three days were pretty torturous, though...

3. Plenty of gas for our cars--after Ike there were several hour lines for gas, which we were very happy to avoid. We also had extra 5-gallon gas cans stored in our garage.

4. An adaptor for our car lighter--that's what we used to recharge our cell phones, laptop, and Tim's powerful flashlight battery.

5. Lots and lots of generous friends & neighbors--we got invited over by several friends with generators and were fed many meals. We also got to use their washers, which I was SO grateful for. One of our friends from the ward stored all our frozen food for us. Our neighbor across the street stored our milk.

6. Opportunities to help--Tim got to use his chainsaw a lot, and we had fun going to members' houses to help them cut down trees and branches.

7. Tim's 3 free days off work and Tyler's almost 2 week break from school!

Even though we did have plenty of nonperishable food and supplies, before next hurricane season we are definitely buying a generator! It needs to be strong enough to run our A/C, washer, fridge, and TV, but quiet enough it won't keep us up at night. I used to think it was an unnecessary emergency luxury, but now I've changed my mind!