We're back in Houston after having a little "hurrication" in Dallas for five days. My parents so graciously took us all in! Edwin and I were both under the weather which stunk and were stressed about our house! I've learned some do's and don'ts from my first hurricane experience and here are some things in review...
1. On Thursday morning, September 11th; Galveston was issued a mandatory evacuation. At this point we were unaware and unsure of what we were going to do. Edwin left his phone at work so we were communicating through email that morning. We knew we couldn't decide to evacuate until he got home from work, so I decided to go about my day as usual. Keira and I decided to head SOUTH to the mall area and look in a few stores, which turned out to be completely idiotic. As I drove further south on 45 (TOWARDS GALVESTON), I noticed the stopped traffic of people evacuating the area. We arrived at Target and quickly decided to drive back home. People were filling their baskets with storage bins, water, flashlights, and other hurricane paraphernalia. I thought I would take some back roads home to avoid the stopped traffic on the freeway. The gas stations were already piling up with cars and I was stuck in traffic despite my attempts not to be. Jessica, Edwin's sister, called me to relay a message that Edwin wanted me to get home, and start packing bags. At this point, my anxiety began to settle in as I heard cries from the backseat. Keira needed to go to the restroom so badly that she was in tears, and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. I did my best to keep her calm and have her hold it, and prayed all the darn cars would get out of my way! We made it to a gas station for a quick pee break, then made it home 1 hour later. I can't believe I thought it would be a good idea to drive south, and I can't believe Edwin said "have fun shopping"!
2. We left Houston at 4:30pm on Thursday and arrived in Dallas about 8 hours later. Nothing is more fun; catch the sarcasm, than sitting in a car that long NOT moving for hours. It's a good thing I pack a mean snack bag and bin full of toys, games, and movies.
3. We arrived back in Houston monday around 4pm (about 5 1/2 hours to get back). The drive back seriously felt like a quick drive around the block, compared to our drive to dallas!
4. We drove up to a front tree down, many shingles off, our gate and fence knocked down, our air duct in the front yard (yeah; that's supposed to be on the roof), our entire chimney in the back yard, a family room sky light busted out, a foul musty smell throughout the house, and some water damage on the ceiling and walls (thankfully no flooding inside the house!).
We're very thankful that our damage isn't more extensive and looking forward to a new roof and fence! The kids are excited that their backyard just grew! First thing tomorrow, Edwin's going to home depot to get some tarps for the three holes in our roof! That's our temporary fix until our insurance sends some little helpers to our home.
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