An Evacuee on September 11th

Hi everyone! I've tried hard to keep in contact with most everyone pretty well, but if not hopefully this will reach the stragglers. :)

We decided to evacuate in the middle of the night on Wednesday because the latest projections were putting Ike in our backyard. Literally. If you look at the map of the storm, the little bay it's sweeping up into is Trinity Bay and the northern edge of that bay is Baytown. The storm surge alone could wipe us off the map. Rob and I really thought it through for about 3 hours and then decided to leave and get a head start. We thought everyone would evacuate and we'd have another Rita on our hands. I understand the many, many people are staying and my prayers are with them. Rob and I are not seasoned hurricane survivors, and the 'dirty' side of this storm will be in Baytown, we just weren't ready to deal with that. Besides that and the fact that our home is built in a former rice patty field, it's a good excuse to come to OKC and love on my aunt and uncle!

We drove all night and then spent the day with my aunt, cooking and just generally enjoying each other's company. I fell in to bed at 6:30 last night and slept until 6:30am this morning. Guess I was a little wiped out, right? The good news? My ear is feeling tremendously better. I'm wondering if all of our crazy pressure changes in the Gulf these past few weeks was the culprit. The further north we drove, the better my head felt, a dramatic difference even in Dallas! I had the best night of sleep last night that I've experienced in weeks! Pain-free!

So now the waiting begins, as we watch this tremendous storm move into our home. I have no idea what we will come home to. That was a little freaky, packing your things and not knowing what condition things will be in when we return. I'm far more concerned about our friends and church family that chose to stay behind. Maybe my little Iowa brain is over-reacting, but I just don't think this storm is something to mess with. In fact now they are saying that this is the time to get out, if you haven't yet, leave now. I'm glad we are somewhere safe and that my kids aren't having to ride this one out.

I'll be checking back in and logging on to facebbook. If you have any Baytown updates, please let us know. We are praying for everyone in that area! We love you all!