oh mother nature...

is a bitch.

is amazing and gut-wrenching and tragic all at the same time.

anyone who watches the news knows that tornadoes touched down all over the country over the last couple of weeks...add flash flooding, hail storms, lightning and it can be insane. lucky us, we experienced all of the above. fortunately, no one was hurt by any of it.

we all know i don't share names or place names, so use your imagination if you don't know where i'm talking about. just know that it comes out of nowhere and can change your life in seconds. it happened here, in an area where kids are raised having practice tornado drills, the tornado sirens test every single month, year round. i was raised to be prepared and know what to do, but i can't imagine not knowing how to protect myself and my family. even knowing the precautions, is no guarantee to survivial or safety.

i think i already posted but i was in my hometown the last 2 weeks for B's job. when we got there, it was hot but beautiful--unfortunately the kids got sick and we didn't really get to experience any of that! then it started with isolated thunderstorms, which led to flash flooding. the tornado sirens went off a few times but nothing actually developed. until this last storm....a tornado actually touched down in the town. being huddled in the bathroom with your sleeping kids, hoping that if something were to happen they would be safe--its terrifying! hearing the wind and knowing that its already hit the other side of town and is headed your way...its something i wouldn't wish on my worse enemy. i will never be able to take tornado sirens lightly again. before it was like ''so what, like one will ever hit here.'' i will never be so naive again.

here are pics from the last few weeks of mother natures wrath:

during the flash flooding and light hail

papa and bubba looking at the flood water

(they were in no danger as the storm had stopped)

the sky afterwards

how high the water actually got (look at B's truck)

someone's front yard

the following pictures are from after the tornado stuck, the next afternoon. crews had already begun cleaning up.

this was a huge hardware store

the small recantangle in the front is a vending machine that was inside the storemore damage...look at the debris and torn powerlines

here are a few of just trees and landscaping. it snapped trees like toothpicks