Quick Fire Update

We've had so many calls and emails from people concerned about us, I cannot thank you all enough for your kind words! We are fine, the damage to our house didn't look nearly as bad in the daylight. Our insurance adjuster will be here today to to a survey and send out a professional inspector. There is some water damage, my main concern is mold/mildew down the road so we want to get it taken care of as soon as possible.

The neighbors are doing very well despite the circumstances, they are in good spirits and trying to maintain a positive outlook. We have had hundreds of phone calls and emails from people willing to donate anything and everything, it's been great. I was very, very happy to hear that the family is going to rebuild here as long as they can change the floorplan of the house (which really shouldn't be a problem considering everything will need to be demolished).

Things are going to be crazy busy around here. I am the only one on our street that doesn't work outside the home so I have volunteered to be a point of contact, our house is donation central and the boys will be getting of the school bus here every afternoon. The parents both work full time, transportation was a huge issue and I am glad I can be here for them!

I know several people have been asking if we know the cause of the fire and if we have pictures as well. Out of respect for the family we are not publishing any photos or releasing any information related to the fire. We were required to take pictures by our insurance company but they are going to stay private. Thank you for understanding, we are really trying to put ourselves in their shoes and I don't know that I would want pictures floating around everywhere of such a tragic event.

Again, thank you so much for your concern. We are working on setting up a donation account at a local bank, I will publish the information as it becomes available. In the meantime, if anyone is interested in helping this family please contact me via email at morganj99@yahoo.com for detailed information.

A Tragic Night

I don't even know where to start. I was hunkered down on the sofa tonight feeling ick (a migraine I now know) waiting for One Tree Hill when the doorbell starts ringing off the hook and then someone started pounding, hard. Matt and I jump up and run over thinking it's a neighbor, ready to freak if Ari wakes up. It's a fire man, yelling at us to get out now. I mean really yelling, saying get out now, the house is on fire. I seriously thought it was a joke until I saw his shirt, then the flames.

I ran upstairs and snatched Ari out of his crib, I could see the yellow and orange at his window, I was terrified. Matt was trying to find Mika but the fire guy was screaming at us to get out, we didn't have time to get her. She was hiding under the bed and it's a big bed, he couldn't reach her. We ran across the street, the neighbors house next door had flames shooting out the front window, the whole front porch was burning. Thankfully the wind was blowing away from our house keeping most of the flames away, the fire guys were spraying our house first. I couldn't figure out why they weren't putting out their house but then I realized there wasn't much hope.

It took forever for the fire trucks to get here, at least 10-15 minutes. We were all huddled in the yard crying, watching their house disappear. They had two dogs, we could hear them but the flames were so huge, we couldn't get them out. I still feel nauseous thinking about it. The only thing left of their house is the garage, everything else is a pile of wood and ash. Apparently there were two other fires in our town, there weren't any trucks to get here. It was horrible, waiting for our house to catch fire, watching theirs melt before our eyes.

The family was out to dinner when the fire started, we still don't know where or how. By the looks of it I think it started in or near the kitchen, we'll know more tomorrow. The fire marshall will be back tomorrow to inspect our house and asses our damage, we'll find out more.

I am completely in shock, I just stopped shaking. I'm really pretty numb now, I just keep thinking if I'd gotten up to check at what the explosions were, I mean I looked out the window but it was the other side of their house that burned more. I thought kids were playing with fireworks outside, they do it all the time. Then I thought maybe it was car doors slamming, I feel so helpless.

The other neighbors on our street and I are getting together tomorrow to start organizing a donation drive. Matt and I are going shopping tomorrow for some fire safes, we're making an emergency and evacuation plan. We had no time to grab anyhting, it was the scariest moment of my life. We have the chance to change that, we've been given a wakeup call, I'm not wasting it.

It's raining now, the wind has died down and the last of eight fire trucks just pulled away, four hours later. I'm going to try to sleep, try being the operative word. Sit down with your family, make a plan. You can never be too prepared...

My Little Man

I had SO much fun today! The pictures above are of our walk this evening. Michelle and Ella came over to play today. Michelle and I scrapped and the babies, er, toddlers played. After they left it was still pretty nice so we ventured down the street. This is the first time Ari has really walked on his own, we usually push him in the stroller or the wagon. He was so distracted by the big kids playing football in the cul-de-sac, thus the pictures of him staring off in the distance. I really like them though, it shows his true personality... such the little observer! He was actually pretty cranky today, he still has a stuffed up nose and by boycotting his morning nap his whole day was thrown off. He went to bed at 6:20 tonight, I could NOT keep him up any longer. He was so tired, about every two steps he completely crashed to the floor and burst into tears. He finally walked to his crib, put out his arms and said, "UP"! I took that to mean he was done for the day and sure enough he went down without a peep!

Anyway, Michelle and Ella were here all day. We had SO much fun, I really needed a day like this. So much so that we decided to do it again tomorrow! She even left all her stuff here so we can pick up right where we left off. Ella was too cute today, she wanted to play with Ari SO bad, every time he wasn't in the play cage she cried until he came back. It was adorable! They had to leave so Ella could visit with her grandparents but we have mega scrap plans tomorrow. I did one and a half layouts today, pretty good considering how sssllloooowww of a scrapper I am. Here's the one I finished today:

And here's one that I did yesterday. It's hanging on our garage door (the one in the house, not the one the car uses), compared to the layout I did today I think it's pretty boring. I may have to spice it up a little tomorrow:

I'm working on another one right now, I ran out of letters so I need to make a pit stop at Hobby Lobby before I can be truly finished. It seems my mojo found it's way back, I'm soaking it all up! Not to shabby of a day, especially considering I stayed up until... uhh... 4 am! I got completely sucked into the book I'm reading, it's SOOO good. I'll post a full review when I'm finished (probably tomorrow)! I'm headed back to my scrap table, gotta take advantage of this scrap energy before it's gone! Night all ;)

Not as Bleh!

Today is a better day. I did go to the mall yesterday evening and browse Barnes & Noble, it felt good to get out by myself. I figured out what's bothering me, now I just have to figure out how to deal with it! Matt left early this morning, around 4 I think, I was SO asleep! Ari woke up with a horrible stuffy nose and a bit of a cough so we're hanging out at home today hoping he doesn't get too sick. We were supposed to go to Chuck E. Cheese's with Michelle and Ella but I'd hate for Ari to get Ella sick. We'll go early next week for sure. I've been on the computer all day wrapping up some design work, I'm going to grab a bite and veg on the sofa for a while (Ari's napping!). Here's a vidoe of his new dance grooves, this kid's got style! Hehe...

bleh...

I'm having one of those days. You know, the one where you feel icky and sad and don't really know why. Nothing has gone wrong, the day actually started out great. Matt leaves super early tomorrow morning, I don't feel like we had any quality time this week, but that's my fault. I'm in a total creative slump, I have all these great new things and no idea how to use them. I'm feeling conflicted about the rekindling (is that a word?) of a friendship and it's totally dragging me down. I think I'm going to go to Barnes & Noble, have a coffee and sit in a corner to ponder my thoughts. I'll be back later...

Whew, I'm in trouble...

This came in the mail today, It's so absolutely gorgeous, shimmery and fun, I can't wait to dig in! I even found this cute little dish in my kitchen that has tiny hearts cut out (you can't see because they're buried under all the fun goodies), it looks so pretty sitting on my table. OK, so it's sitting on the floor right now because I have to clear a spot on my table for it, but I can see it in my head and it looks good!

There's really not much to report, Ari mashed his face yesterday, his little tooth went right through his lip! It's his first major boo since, well, ever. I need to go to Babies'R'Us and get him a BooBoo Bunny, it's a little terry cloth bunny with an ice pack inside. We tried the whole cold washcloth but he refused to touch it and didn't want it anywhere near his face. Luckily his bleeding stopped quick and his tooth isn't loose. Sure made my heart race though and Matt played with him close for the rest of the night! We're so protective...

Today was Gymboree and brunch with Michelle and Ella. Michelle's mom, Connie, came too! It was great fun, sorry I forgot the camera again... it's too early in the morning to remember all that stuff. Anyway, I'm off to scrap... I have all these ideas and so little time... later dudes!

Some Scrappy Goodies!

I know it's been a while since I've posted any of my creations... sorry about that! I had good reason though; 1. I can't show you my design team stuff until it's loaded at Crop Addict and 2. The other big thing I've been working on was for a gift so I couldn't show you that either. Good news though, the February Gallery is up at Crop Addict and Ella's birthday was today so I can show you her project too! Here we go...



Everything from this point on was made with supplies from the Crop Addict February Kit! There are tons of things still left even, these kits are incredible! I'll give more details when the kits go up for sale, be sure to head over there because they sell out super quick!