The last thing you would expect in November is a killer tornado bearing down upon you, but that is exactly what happened to us nearly a week ago (it will be a week come tomorrow).  That we even survived is nothing short of miraculous.

We were at home, watching the football game (go, Bears!), and we were well aware of the weather situation at hand: the local weather forecasters had been talking about it for days.  We were ready to take shelter in our basement at a moment's notice.  We were aware that our area was under a PDS storm watch (potentially dangerous situation), and we were armed with batteries, our trusty weather radio, blankets, and flashlights in case the power went out.

Well, the sirens started going off, so we headed towards the basement: all ten of us: eight kids and two adults.  All we could do now was hold our breath, wait, and PRAY that we would be spared.

We weren't.

The winds shrieked above and around us; it sounded like the world was ending.  The power went out (eliciting screams from the kiddos), and we were at the mercy of the Beast (the tornado).  It sounded like a thousand freight trains; the sound was altogether deafening and terrifying.

Just as quickly as it came, it soon passed; we then crept shakily out of our basement, only, to our horror, to see that our house had been totally destroyed.  There was nothing left other than our basement; being in our basement was probably what had saved our lives.  As far as we could see, there was nothing but desolation and destruction.  The tornado had done its dirty work; now a huge clean up job (and a look for shelter or another place to stay) loomed ahead of us, but even despite this, we were already feeling thankful, as we had all survived, intact.  It was nothing short of a miracle from God: there was no other explanation.

~To be continued!~