So a quick run down of the last couple of weeks (that is if I can remember it all).
Saturday, May 1st:
We had a new group getting started in our MHR Program that morning so I had to get up at 6:00 and drive to Franklin. I arrived in Franklin around 7:15 and the rain started. It was raining buckets all morning and after the convocation we went to brunch. I left Franklin to drive back to Smyrna around 10:30. Now this 45 min trip took me over an hour because the small two lane highway leading back to Murfreesboro was starting to flood in areas and honestly, I was nervous. I finally got home around noon and went back to sleep for a couple of hours. When I awoke, the rain was still coming down in buckets and we started watching the news. After about another hour (3pm) we got a call from our friend Anthony. He was calling to tell us that he was stuck in traffic on I-24 near Bell Road and that the water was rising pretty fast. In the couple of minutes that we were on the phone with him, the "small creek" that runs beneath the interstate was in his car and rising fast. He and two friends had to bail the car, jump the concrete barrier and start walking back towards Nashville to the nearest exit. He talked to us on the phone as we watched on the news his car get completely covered with flood waters. We felt so helpless because we couldn't get to them to come pick them up. We spent the rest of the evening watching the news in utter disbelief and trying to figure out how to get Anthony, Jonathan and Dallas back home.
We had stayed up pretty much all night the night before watching the weather reports because they were calling for tornadoes overnight and the rain kept coming. So on Sunday we decided to sleep late, I mean we couldn't go anywhere. I got up around noon and went and turned on the news. I was sitting in utter shock at what had transpired overnight. The pictures were unbelievable and it was just getting worse. I spent most of the day on Sunday in my pj's watching the news and crying. I found out that one of my coworkers had lost her home completely, one had flooding in the basement, and one had flooding in part of her home. Again I sat feeling helpless and in shock.
As the rest of the week passed, I continued to be engrossed in the news stories, even though Daniel was tired of watching it. We went back to work, and started figuring out ways to help our co-workers.
Wednesday, May 5th:
A group of my co-workers and I went to Candis' house to help clean up debris in her yard. We spent a couple of hours over there and it felt so great to be a helping hand.
Thursday, May 6th:
Daniel and I had our first dental appointment at our new dentist in Smyrna. We walked in and one of my old co-workers from Outback was sitting behind the desk! It was so neat to be able to catch up with her. We really like our new dentist, even though the appointment lasted over 3 hrs b/c they had to do the x-rays, cleaning and tell us about cavities and such. Plus they only had one hygienist working that day. We left and went home to see that the contractors had started working on our new floors in the townhouse. By Thursday night they had all our floors ripped out downstairs so we spent our evening upstairs watching Hulu and Netflix, and packing for our trip to Virginia Beach the next day.
Friday, May 7th:
We got up and left our house by 8:30 because the guys were there to work on the floors again and we didn't want to be in their way. We went and picked up Anthony and took him to where his car had been towed so he could salvage what he could from the car. The car was pretty crazy to see. We ran a few errands and got on the road around 1pm to drive to Virginia. 11 hours later we arrived in VA Beach for the weekend.
Saturday, May 8th:
Daniel wanted to show me Naval Base that he used to be stationed at, so we drove to Norfolk and took the guided tour of the base. It was really interesting and it was fun for me to get to see that part of Daniel's life. He seemed excited to show me all those things too. I was very proud of him that day. He bought me a Navy t-shirt and we spent the rest of the day hanging out with our friends, playing volleyball, and eating!
Sunday, May 9th:
We got back on the road to drive back to Nashville around 1pm. 11 hours later we arrived back in Nashville. We walk in to our townhouse, exhausted and ready to crash, and the first thing I see is our house in shambles!! The contractors that did our floors did not finish on Sunday like promised and just left our house a wreck. I was so upset and then I couldn't sleep.
Tuesday, May 11th:
I awoke to go to work, still mad about the house. I got to work and emailed my landlord and spent the day chatting back and forth with her about how to remedy the situation so we could actually use our house. Daniel started his week-long trek to help Anthony find a new car. I get home and my landlord's neighbor shows up at my front door and says "I'm here to fix your house". So part of me was really happy, part of me felt humbled, so I rolled up my sleeves and helped her put my house back together and clean. Even in the awkward situation, I made a new friendship stronger and by the time Daniel got home, the house was clean again.
Wednesday, May 12th:
I got home from work to see the contractors back at my house finishing the floors. It was a welcomed sight :) I put my stuff down and changed clothes and went to Publix to try "couponing" for the first time. It was really fun and I saved $37.50 on groceries! I was so proud when I got home and Daniel heard about my conquest for at least an hour. We also went to our first neighborhood watch meeting that night and got to meet some more of our neighbors. I felt so grown-up.
So that brings us to today. As you can see, its been an eventful, tiring, and stressful two weeks for the Perry family. But it has also brought us closer together and strengthened our friendships even more. We love our life and are so excited to see what tomorrow brings.
