I will praise You in this storm

Last night Mya and I had a camp out in our living room/den. Sounds fun right? Well, Michael was working his 24 hr shift for EMS and we were under severe tornado warnings, so it was out of necessity to be on the lower level. I gather supplies for baby girl and myself: food, water, candles, flashlight/batteries, etc. I slept on the couch and I pulled Mya's pack n play away from the french doors for her to sleep in. I wasn't too nervous, just trying to be proactive...just in case.
Michael texted me at 5 something this morning letting me know he was out in Camp Creek doing search and rescue for the tornado that hit there last night about 10pm. What??? That is only 20 mins away from our house. I had no idea! I had went to sleep peacefully (except for the most uncomfortable couch ever, so I ended up on the floor) and had no clue of the devastation around me. He said they had found 9 bodies and 105 were still unaccounted for. He was cold and wet, had been working all night in pitch dark to find survivors.
I laid there in the floor in disbelief and concern, then I started thanking Him. I thanked Him for keeping us safe, our home he has provided, and all the many other blessing in my life. I thanked Him for my husband to have the passion and ability to do the kind of selfless work that he does everyday.
I was taken back by how many friends of ours checked on us that heard about it. I never want to take what He has blessed me with for granted. My heart aches for those who lost loved ones and their homes. We will continue to pray for them and the community. I realize when I get down and think of how unsure things are in our lives that many have it much worse than us. I missed the birds singing today, the quietness seems eerie.
Thank you to all the emergency workers and volunteers that are in the rubble right now helping.

I choose to praise Him in this storm.

A Work in Progress

As I have been spring cleaning lately, it seems I make a bigger mess at times. I have tried to consolidate and organize all my projects and materials along the way, but it is a work in progress. I have ventured up into the attic to survey all my treasures that my dear husband (dh) doesn't appreciate the same way I do. What I call Shabby Chic, he calls old and dilapidated. It has been fun to rediscover things I had forgotten about once life got more complicated.
I have been mindful of childproofing during this time and it makes me sad to retire (temporarily) some of my favorite pieces of decor. Safety is far more important of coarse, as Mya learns to walk. Her clothes are hard enough to keep up with since babies grow so fast that first year. I think we have done a good job of not going overboard with toys, stuffed animals and movies for the kids...yet! lol
I have been filing recipes, with good intentions of making most of them in my lifetime. It is amazing all the napkins and small scraps of paper I have found that I documented my important ideas on. Pieced together, all the notes to self are like a mosaic of my life that I could journal. From the trail of paper, one can see that my mind is always actively dreaming up ideas to try or songs to download, etc.  I hope that once I do get organized I can stay on top of it, it seems that being organized will always be something I strive for.