My Daughter's House--After the Tornado

Tuesday was my daughter's 27th birthday.  Lauren and her young family live in a small town.  Her husband surprised her with an overnight birthday trip to Memphis.  They took their 6 month old daughter with them on Tuesday and left the two older boys with the other grandparents in a near-by town.  While they were in Memphis, instead of their planned activities,  they had to stay in the hotel room as tornado sirens were constantly going off.  At about 3 A.M. on Wednesday morning they started receiving calls and texts inquiring as to their safety from friends and neighbors who didn't know that they were not at home.  They were told that a tornado had hit in their small community.  As the weather was still bad, they stayed put.

As the morning progressed, more and more phone calls came in and my son-in-law made some calls himself.  They were eventually told that their home had been hit.  They then left Memphis and  headed home to see how bad the damage was.   As they headed home they received more calls and texts from friends and family who were at their home trying to protect the contents.  They were told to prepare themselves for the worst.  Each time I talked with Lauren she became more emotional.  So very hard!!

Jeff and the older children then decided to make the trip down to see how they could help.  When Lauren arrived home she called me.  She said, "Mom, I can't believe what I am seeing!"  I am told she did a good job of keeping the tears in throughout the busy day.  When they arrived most of the furniture had been removed from the house.  Lauren didn't know that much of their belongs were fine and that friends had taken all they could to a warehouse where it was safe and sound.

As the day went on she found out that the laundry that she had done and left sitting in the den folded in five laundry baskets was still there and still dry.  Puzzles in the play room were still intact.  The three year old's mattress had been lifted off the frame by the tornado.  A beam was in the crib where the two year old sleeps.  The roof and ceiling of the part of the house where the children's bedrooms are was completely gone.

These are pictures that Devin took of Lauren and James' home.  How grateful to God we are that they were not at home.  If they had been at home, this would have been a day of sorrow as we most likely would have been preparing for one or more funerals.  The Lord truly was watching out for them.

Lauren and James' home

Part of the yard

Master bedroom...ceiling is sagging, but it is still there.

to the left was an enclosed garage...not enclosed any more...to the right was the laundry room

garage to the left, laundry room to the right

play fort is still standing

this is the guest room...with a view of the sky!

The boys' room

the kids bathroom

the baby's room

the office (the front entrance)

the kitchen (all the new appliances were able to be removed!)

the dining area

the den--roof and ceiling remained so their belongings in here were ok!

downed trees

more outside damage

the outside storage building where Lauren's Christmas things are stored

I am sure today they will continue cleaning and preparing the rental property they will be moving into and then going through their belongings to see what remains.  Friends took bedding and clothing to wash and fold for them and I am sure they will have many offers of help for the other work.  Please continue to pray for them as they work to put their lives back together.