It's hard to fathom the difference between last night and today in our weather. Today I am thinking about donning a pair of sunglasses because the sunshine streaming through the windows is almost blinding. Last night those same windows were dark but the wind howling behind them made Kris and I go outside around midnight to try to discover the sounds of bumps in the night. We had heard on the TV that there were reports of 70-mile-an-hour winds. We weren't quite prepared for what we heard. The wind nearly blew us over! Smudge's dog house (the bumps we heard) was now nestled up against my car. There were a few tarps on our logs that were threatening to take flight! We hurried in the wind and cold to gather rocks and weight them all down. The temp. dropped 30 degrees. It was hard to get to sleep after that!
On the building front Kris is still working on prep-work for installing "Goliath". That is the name for the 32.5 ft. tie-beam that will be placed on Monday. It's huge and needs the supporting walls ready to hold it up. It also required Kris to build stairs going down into the basement so Kris could actually get to materials needed to build these walls. Here are the new steps. And how often do you get to skate in your dining room? :) I had to take a shot of Isabel doing this! You can see some to the results of the wind last night from looking at the tarps. I think Katahdin Log Homes got some free flying publicity today as some of the tarps with their logo and name seemed to have flown away.
I was very surprised to find out that I was reliving all of these memories alone. Isabel had just turned 3 a few months before we move and it should be noted that she was medicated for half of her life. She remembered only a few things...her classroom, Chloe, the place her class planted a garden, and the playground. We had plenty of opportunities to make some new memories, however! First Baptist Church of Indian Rocks was having their 50Th Anniversary. There was a concert by Avalon, jumpers, fireworks, and a special service that took place during the days we were there. Isabel and I got our feet wet. It was in the high 50's and a bit chilly and overcast for the Sunshine state.
We went out for dinner with my former coworkers at Morton Plant and I got to see more people when we brought bagels in for everyone. It was so nice to see the familiar and it made me realize how much energy learning new things actually takes from you. Of course we loved being able to spend time with Wendy, Abby, Chloe, and Dominec. They only live a mile from where we used to so I was able to run around Taylor Park (my favorite running spot). Heidi hung out with us for some of these outings and it was good to see her, too.
I had about 5 loads of laundry waiting for me when I got back! After working a few days, catching up on all the cleaning, sorting, and shopping it was time to do something fun with the kids. 
Isabel surprised me once again this week with her memory. This time was a positive! :) When we went ice skating she did remarkably better. Instead of being afraid and crying, she was actually standing straight up and I could hold her by her hands near her head instead of holding her up by her waist. Not only was this easier on my back but we were able to move faster. She really enjoyed it. Wesley and Kristianna were much more comfortable on the ice and trying out some new moves. 
