I awoke from my nap with August this afternoon to the sound of a tornado siren. Not quite the alarm I had in mind to rouse me from my deep slumber. I quickly dashed downstairs and saw Kyle pulling the 4Runner under the house for protection from potential hail. Where did this storm even come from?

No idea, but it was right on top of us according to the weather station, and while it didn't appear to be literally right on top of us, I could see a very dark wall of clouds just in the distance and the rumbling of thunder was very distinct. I dragged my very asleep children out of their beds and hauled them downstairs with me and Kyle to our very safe basement. (Lots of "verys" in there).

So, how do you spend 30 minutes in your basement while waiting for a storm to pass? With a golden retriever leaning very comfortingly against your leg. Chatting with your kids about thunder and storms and playing games on Kyle's Iphone. Realizing that, if in fact, there is a tornado and it wipes out your house, you have nothing but the clothes on your back which are not at all your favorites or even most practical (grungy shorts and a grungy tank top). Plus, you're barefoot. Fortunately, the blankie August and I share was with us, as was our trusty dog. So, I guess we had all we needed.

Needless to say, it passed us by without harm and even blessed us with a little rain for our parched ground. And the rest of our afternoon passed blissfully with the temps about 20 degrees cooler.

And the evening unfolded with a variety of comforting scenes. August peacefully playing by himself.