Welcome to the Midwest, enjoy the weather adventure

As previously reported, the boys and I reached my parents' house late Saturday evening, while the hubby returned home on Sunday so he could go to work on Monday while the rest of his family was enjoying a few days of vacation. The boys and I (and Avie, safely retrieved from the doggie hotel) are all home now. Here's a quick recap of the last few days:

Sunday, the hubby follows a nasty-looking thunderstorm home from Bloomington, Illinois to Indiana. It clears out just before he arrives home to find the little tree beside our driveway broken roughly in half, with the missing bit lying where my van would normally be parked. Managed to take out the lamppost just for fun. (I have pics, but they are being uncooperative in making the trip from my cell to my email inbox.)

Monday, adventures in weather, take two, with pictures. The boys and I weathered it in our hotel room, sat tight while they got the live power lines cleaned up, and picked our way through the utility crews clearing away branches and trees to check on my parents. (No damage or injuries there.) We spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon watching the news and counting our blessings. Late in the afternoon, things were cleaned up enough to go back to the hotel for a swim (Operation: Wear Out the Kids) and then head out to Happy Joe's for pizza and ice cream.

While we were gone, I left my van parked outside my parent's house. The mother of the lady next door, while attempting to turn around in the drive across the street, backed into the rear of the van. No major damage, just a cracked taillight cover and a little rub on the bumper. I'm pretty sure she felt worse about it than I did.

So, yeah. We're home, we're safe, and by and large we got off lucky all the way around--my mantra has been, "It could have been so much worse." And I'm so glad it wasn't. If you need me, however, I'll be over there talking to the insurance company.