Easter!!!

Easter Weekend was a beautiful one in T-town - our last "normal" weekend as we know it!!!!  We enjoyed an Easter egg hunt with our church at a local park downtown - they had different areas for all the different ages of children, so they each filled their baskets!!!  Inflatables made everyone happy :)  Later that afternoon, we celebrated Henderson's 3rd birthday at our house with some families.  His birthday was not until May 2nd, but I decided to go ahead and celebrate since everyone was in town for Easter!!!  Boy am I glad we did, otherwise his birthday party would have been canceled along with everything else for the 2 weeks after that tragic day of April 27th!  We are just beginning to get back to normal - school, programs rescheduled, softball games starting back, some normalcy in our not so normal town!!!!

This hair - it just makes me laugh.  Neither Will nor I have curly hair, so it is so fun to see and play with Henderson's!!!  Just last night as I was taking him up to bed, he was pulling on one of his curls saying "I a girl!!!"  I assured him that MANY boys have curly hair, it's just one of those things that make him "him"!!!

 We got a picture of the 7 cousins - kind of rare these days with how active and busy they all are - and since we didn't make it to Disney World like we had planned, this will have to do!!!  We are so blessed to have cousins so close in age and living close by too!  Chandler is the oldest, then Patton and Emma Claire are 5 weeks apart, Mills and Wilson are 6 weeks apart and Stanton and Henderson are 2 weeks apart!!!!  Emma Claire has grown really close to Chandler over the last year which makes my heart so happy, they're like sisters!!!

 Emma Claire and her friend Marion - she lives down the street from us, they moved in just a couple months after we did, and her family has been such a blessing to ours!!!

 Here are the rest of Marion's siblings - Marion and Emma Claire are 5 months apart, Ellen and Wilson are 2 weeks apart and Mark and Henderson are 1 month apart - how's that for great friendship just down the street!!???

 On Sunday evening we had dinner and an Easter egg hunt at Will's parents house with extended family and neighbors!!!!  Here are the little ones getting a head start to hunt eggs!!!

 Then the middle ones, (Mills is missing)

 Then the BIG kids to finish it off!!!! (Patton was sick, poor thing)

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Where Do I Even Begin?

Who would have thought as we were celebrating Easter on April 24th, on a beautiful sunny day, that just 3 days later our city and surrounding areas would be turned upside down, literally.  As we huddled in the basement, we had no idea what torment was raining down just 2 miles away.  The power was out, cable and Internet were down, cell phone coverage was sketchy at best.  And then we began to get pieces of information.  I sent my husband out to our house in The Downs that we bought about 8 months ago, to bring back to life and sell (it's what we like to do).  I was able to see on Facebook that a tree had fallen on a friends house in The Downs, so I knew it had been hit somewhat.  No words or pictures can describe the devastation.  Oh I'm sure you have seen them and read them and poured over them like the rest of us, but seeing it firsthand, just brings tears to your eyes and makes you just say, "Why"?  "How can this happen?"  "What are we going to do now?"

Well, I'll tell you what our great state is doing.  People are coming together, working together, loving each other - not just loving families and friends and those that are easy to love - people are helping strangers and those with nothing and those with much who are now BROKEN.  A gentleman in our church gave a testimony yesterday.  Samaritan's Purse is headquartered at our church, First Baptist Tuscaloosa, and they send teams out everyday at 8:00 and 1:00 (1:00 on Sundays) to help people, in any and everyway they need it.  This man has been volunteering with Samaritan's Purse this week, along with 3300 others of us!!!!  He is a structural engineer and he was hoping to see some roofs and analyze and build some roofs and houses.  Little did he know that God had greater plans for him.  People have noticed what we're doing.  Walking through neighborhoods, doing whatever needs to be done.  This man sat and listened and prayed and talked and listened some more.  His quote, "Brokeness brings Openess".  He picked up some limbs here and there, but what many people need is an ear, a loving word, a hug.  Yes there are many physical needs, and those are being met, believe me.  But there are also many spiritual and emotional needs as well.  As this man was leaving a house (or rubble) a power company man from Detroit, Michigan was sitting in his big bucket truck and he motioned for this man to come to him.  He called him to come sit in his truck.  He began to point to his bright orange shirt and ask him, "what are you doing?  What's this all about?"  He had seen all these bright orange (and now Crimson, Yay) shirts walking around with smiles on their faces, helping people in many ways, day in and day out.  He told the man, I want what you've got.  He had just gotten off the phone with his wife in Detroit and told her when he gets back he's putting their house on the market and they're moving down here.  He wants what we have.  POWERFUL. TESTIMONY. GOD'S LOVE.  THE HANDS AND FEET OF CHRIST.  God CAN work all things out for good for those who love Him.  God CAN turn ashes to beauty.  He's doing it - He's working in our city.  We CAN Praise Him in the storm.

The following are pictures my husband took from our house in The Downs (we do not live in this house).  They are the only personal shots we have so far of this storm, when we have gone out, we have not had camera in hand.

Right behind this house to the left is the Rosedale Housing that was completely devastated.  From what I can tell, this was just east of where the tornado really began causing mass destruction, it was not completely on the ground at this point and we got the north edge of the mile wide span. 
About 1/2 mile east of here is where Henderson's school stood and the surrounding neighborhood that was leveled.  It's so sad to see.  We lost about 5 huge trees in the backyard, but they only clipped the house and took the back roof off and broke some windows.  We were very fortunate, many houses in the neighborhood must be completely rebuilt.  It is an historic neighborhood with trees like you've never seen.  HUGE oak and magnolia trees, completely uprooted and blown over, the neighborhood WILL come back, but it will take many years for trees to grow to the height and beauty they once were.

 This picture is looking out our front door.

 Backyard

 The neighborhood from our rooftop

Please continue to pray and give.  These needs will not be met this month or the next.  Our church, along with many others have committed to this for the longhaul.  This is our mission field.  If you want it to be yours, please don't hesitate to contact me.  I will be glad to assist you in any way, from bringing volunteer/mission teams here, adopting a family in need, donations, support, etc.

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Brace Yourselves

The tordado that came through Tuscaloosa and then the rest of Central Alabama was devastating.  We are physically fine, our house we live in was not damaged.  We were about 2 miles from the tornado, it was pretty scary nonetheless, but I cannot imagine what many went through.  We did have a house that we were trying to sell in The Downs neighborhood that was hit pretty hard.  We lost some of the roof and had some windows blown out and lost most all the trees.  But all that can be repaired, we are alive and well.  Tuscaloosa will not be the same "normal" for a very long time.  Every activity imaginable, from University classes and graduation to softball games and parties and events has been canceled.  We have even canceled our family Disney World trip that we were supposed to leave for a week from today.  So many have lost everything, even loved ones.  Henderson's preschool was destroyed, but they will meet at an alternate location on Monday and they'll carry on.  Many will not.  As I was running this morning, I was literally weeping over how unfair it all is. Not for me, but for all those who lost it all.  I was listening to my ipod and the song Jesus Saves came on and the line, "Day is breaking, night is quaking, God is making all things new, Jesus Saves" really struck a chord.  I pray all those seeking shelter literally, will also seek shelter in the wings of the Almighty God, the one Who was and is and will always be.  May God soften their hearts to receive the Good News, maybe the only Good News they will hear for a while. May God break my heart and give me a willing servant heart to GO and DO. 

Clothes and houses can be bought and repaired, but the images of children being swept out of parents arms and friends being pulled up into the sky will last forever in the minds of those who experienced it. Pray for these people.  Our church delivered supplies yesterday afternoon and is making sandwiches this morning to deliver to workers and survivors.  Prayer is needed, don't let this fade in a few days....prayer and donations and service will be needed for months and months.

The following images are all from the Tuscaloosa News.  The areas hit in Tuscaloosa were not rural, wooded areas, they were VERY densely populated, with students and families and restaurants and businesses. 

This one is Forest Lake, the neighborhood that surrounds Henderson's preschool, which was destroyed, it was a beautiful old neighborhood on this little lake right in the middle of town, many students lived here as it's only 1/2 a mile from the University. 

 Big Lots was to the left of Hobby Lobby, as you see it's no longer there.

 Milo's restaurant sat to the left of those cars....again, nothing.

 You can see how close it came to the hospital and even bigger apartment coplexes full of students.

 very busy part of town

 total destruction

The community has pulled together like I've never seen, neighbors helping neighbors, strangers helping strangers.  God's love through and through.

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