The day started out a little crazy. The weather forecast was predicting rain and storms, so there was a decent amount of debate about whether we should take our planned boat ride. So, the kids had breakfast at the Grandma Rosie's, and we embarked on our boat ride. The neighbor kids came a long too, at Barrett's request. His petition to me sounded something like this. "Mom, can Logan and Finley come on the boat ride with us? It is my birthday." Who can say no to a request like that?
Just as we boarded the boat to head back to the dock, the rain started. We had the enclosure on, so it wasn't that bad. We were definitely thankful we decided to eat close to home though! Once we got docked, I took the kids up for nap time, our moms went to walk the dogs, and the guys worked on unloading the boat. As I was walking back down to the dock to grab the diaper bag, Lana's phone alert went off notifying us of a tornado warning. She turned on the local news, and as I was walking back into the house let me know that the tornado was in the town where the lake house is. I looked to the west, and the green sky confirmed what the news was telling us. Despite the obvious signs, I still hesitated (we're talking seconds here, but those seconds can mean a lot in terms of safety in these sitautions). Lana and I calmly discussed the safest place to go, and then we agreed that I'd get the kids, and she'd get the dogs.We decided to go over to the neighbors, because we dont' have a basement at our lake house. I didn't want to alarm the kids. So, I asked them to get up and get their shoes on, simply stating we were going to take our rest time at Logan and Finley's.
In hindsight, I think telling them the true reason behind the change of location would have been wise (and Audrey likes to point that out to me). They were taking their time, and Audrey decided to grab an arm full of toys to take with her. I scooped up Fletcher, grabbed the diaper bag, and we ran out the back door just as the wind started picking up and the rain started coming down. Audrey ran, but slipped on the wet grass. Billy tried to pull her along, but ended up causing her to scrape her knee and lose several of her toys onto the wet ground.
Barrett was right behind me, but as I got to the bottom of the deck stairs, I looked back to see him frozen at the top of the stairs. At that moment, I heard the creak of metal twisting in the wind. My heart sank, I knew that with Fletcher in my arms, there was no way I could pick up Barrett to carry him down the stairs and over to the neighbors house too. So, I yelled at Barrett to run as fast as he could, and I turned to do the same. My mind was racing, but I knew the best chance was for me to go drop off Fletcher first and come back for Barrett. As I started toward the neighbors, I heard Lana behind me encouraging Barrett along. My heart was still racing, but I was relieved to know that she was behind me helping Barrett.
As we entered the neighbors house, Audrey started throwing a fit because she didn't have all of her toys. Billy ran back out to grab as many as he could, but Barrett had found the one she was most worried about and brought it to her. She was upset that we'd made her run outside in the rain...again, hindsight is 20/20. It wasn't until that moment she found out about the potential tornado. So, the kids went into the safest part of the basement, and I followed. I had Fletcher, and he wouldn't let me out of his sight. I could see out the door where the other adults were gathered, and I could see that it was pouring, but that was it. The neighbors had their ipads, so the kids sat and played with those to keep them occupied. I could hear occasional metal twisting, but nothing else concerning. The power went out as well, but that's to be expected when there is a bad storm in such a rural area. Then, about 10 minutes later, we determined that the worst danger had passed. Everything and everyone was intact, except Audrey's scraped knee and one of the other neighbor's dock, and even those weren't that badly injured.
As I look back on that afternoon, I am so thankful the weather where we were wasn't worse. My hesitation and the children's slowness could have had terrible consequences if it was a tornado coming down the cove. The worst part ended up being the power outage; I was planning to make Barrett's birthday cake while the kids napped, but without power, no cake could be made that day. So, we celebrated Barrett with ice cream that was melting, leftover cake donut holes and a single Darth Vader candle. He didn't care though. And he loved opening his presents.
The next day, the power came back on around 5:30 am. So, first thing, I set off to make that cake so that I could be sure it was done. At Barrett's request, he got a Darth Vader cake, and I think it was worth the wait!
There is no doubt in my mind that Barrett's 5th birthday will stand out as one of the most memorable birthdays for my children. I also think that as well as the Darth Vader cake turned out, it could very well become a tradition.
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