I am sure most of you, or at least those of you that live in Knoxville, remember the storms from April of 2011. These storms were the ones that did this to Andy's truck...
Well, it seems at though the East TN are can't catch a break. Last Friday we had a ton of tornado warnings. I sat in my office listening to my weather radio and texting Andy to make sure that he and Lily were safe. There was no real threat during the day to our area so I was able to make it home safely.
I have always heard that once you have a child that your life changes. That you see things differently, that you feel emotions differently and you have greater fears. I found this all to be true last Friday.
Once I got home from work I played with Lily and Andy and I started dinner. I kept the TV on the news channel so that I could keep one eye on the storm. Lily was sleeping away in her swing that is in our living room under our windows. I wanted to make sure that we were safe and if I needed to move her I could. The storms looked really strong but from what I could see they were all going to miss Knoxville and go just north and just south of us.
When we finished dinner I got Lily up, fed her and she fell asleep in my arms.
she is just the cutest thing!
The news we still reporting on the storms and there was one storm cell that looked like it was going to pass over us. As I sat in my house with the lights on, my tv telling me where the storm was, and my phone nearby I didn't really have any fears. I am not usually scared by storms. I was born in Oklahoma and am used to getting into your "safe place" for tornadoes. I did text all of our nearby family members to make sure that they were home and safe. Like I said, I wasn't scared or really very nervous. That all changed in a minute.
I am not sure what time it was, maybe 8-9ish. Andy left the room for a minute and all the lights went off in our house. I sat on the couch for a minute in complete darkness. The only noise that I could hear was the wind whipping by our house. It was so loud and I panicked. I realized that we were in danger and I was not only responsible for myself but this tiny little girl that was so innocently sleeping in my arms. I realized that she was trusting me to keep her safe from harm. I immediately got up and walked down the hall. Andy was coming the other direction with a flashlight and I told him that I was going into the hall bathroom. My heart was racing. Andy stayed so calm (not a real shocker that he is the calm one an I am not) and brought me a pillow to rest Lily on, and a candle so we were not in complete darkness. When he came by to check on us, I asked him to bring me my baby sling. He asked why and I told him that you hear all of those stories of mom's having their baby's ripped from their arms and I was not going to have that happen to Lily. I wanted her strapped to me so that I could not loose her if the storm damaged our home. He calmly brought me the wrap and didn't say a word.
I sat in the bathroom for what seemed like hours. I am sure it wasn't that long. I texted me family a few streets over who didn't loose their power and they told me that the storm had passed and we were safe.
When we came out of the bathroom the wind had calmed down and I was not so scared. I put Lily to bed in her swing and slept on the couch to make sure that she was close to me. It was only later that I read about this
woman .I can't even image her fear, but she is so strong. She saved her children. Amazing.
Now that I sit here writing this story I realize that becoming a mother has changed me in all of the ways that I mentioned before. I would do anything to protect this little girl. I love her so much!
I did ask Andy later if he thought I was nuts for asking for the sling. He said he knew the worst of the storm was passed us but he also knew that I was so scared and he didn't want to upset me, but yes, he thought I was a little nuts. Haha! I love him so much!!!
love always,
