Crazy Day in Tornado Alley

~~Yesterday started out normally enough. I dropped Sierra off at school and Savannah and I spent a quiet morning and afternoon at home. She played legos and magnet books and I finished up some drawings. It was one of those quiet, peaceful days that I enjoy. But you know that saying..."the calm before the storm?!"
~~In the afternoon the sky started getting dark and there were thunder rumbles. I'd heard that there was a chance of storms so I didn't think too much of it. At 3:00 when we left to get Sierra the sky was getting darker and it started to rain. Savannah and I hurried up to the school doors and just then, the tornado sirens went off. Suddenly it was organized chaos. The school went into lock-down mode and we all headed inside and down to the basement. Thankfully, as I rounded a hall corner I found Sierra. She was very shaken up and started to cry as soon as she saw me. I was so glad that I was there.
~~The school basement is not a very large space and is definitely not made to hold a school full of kids plus parents and teachers, but we made due. And truly we were all thankful to be there as we kept getting reports of more and more tornadoes. I think the hardest part for me was not knowing exactly what was going on and where the tornadoes were touching down. The teachers did an amazing job of keeping order and calm. Some had brought stacks of books that they passed out. Others led sing-along songs. One teacher brought stickers that she passed out to the ones who were nervous. I was so impressed. I'm thankful to know that even if I hadn't been there, my daughter was still in great hands.
~~After about an hour I decided to head home during one of the calm moments of the storm. I wanted to see the news and knew that the girls and I could take shelter in our home basement if needed. Besides, Sierra was very worried about our cat Brenden being home alone. When we stepped out of the school the girls shouted, "Snow!" Only, it wasn't snow. It was hail! The ground was literally white with it! We hurried home where I turned on the news and started gathering together a flashlight, batteries and water bottles. Thankfully we never had to go down to the basement (which we enter on the outside of our house) since the dangerous parts of the storm had finally passed. The school stayed on lock-down until about 5:30.
~~Dustin left work at about 5:00 and I was nervous for him to be driving through the rain and hail. He works about 35 miles north of our town. When he finally came in the door I was so happy and thankful that we were all home together and safe.
~~There ended up being several tornadoes and the nearby town where we go to church suffered major damage in some areas. The slide show is mainly that town and Oklahoma City which is about 30 miles south of us. I've been checking up on friends today and thankfully no-one was hurt. One town in Southwest Oklahoma didn't fare as well. Sadly, 8 people are confirmed dead and some are still trapped in their houses.
~~I've lived in Oklahoma most of my life and yet tornadoes still scare me. I've seen enough of them to have a healthy respect for the terrible power they possess. I think most Oklahomans feel the same way and I have to say that we have some of the best warning systems of any state. They're not something to take lightly.
~~Today I'm feeling extra thankful!