So Grateful

As we watch the footage of flooded areas in Connecticut, New Jersey, lower New York, and surrounding areas -  I'm SOOOOO grateful that we only a got a minor taste of what Sandy was serving up.  We lost power yesterday starting at 11:30, and I was ready for the long haul!  We had been preparing over the weekend for the possible idea of losing power for another week, so we did everything we could to get ready for that.  Luckily, the wind gusts and rain went around us for the most part.  Our power came back on around 3:30, and has been on ever since.  Thanks to all of our family and friends who checked in on us.  Just for as a tip for those who have emergency preparedness as a goal: here are some things we did.

 - Gas in all of our vehicles, cash out of the bank
- Bought a GENERATOR! Its a small one, but it will power our fridge and a few other small appliances.  Most people here have a heavy duty generator that can power most of their home.
- Bought water bottles & batteries - these were the first things to go in the stores.
- Filled our bath tub up with water to use in case we were out for a long time.  FIlled up extra juice jugs and water coolers with water.  We also have 4- (5) gallon buckets of water filled up in the garage that we can use. Got these from Lowes - they are food grade so safe for food/water storage.
-Brought in wood to use for the fireplace so it would be dry, and bought a manual hand pump for our air mattress, in case we had to sleep near the fireplace with the kiddos.
-Finally I woke up yesterday knowing that I would have a few hours in the morning to use electricity, so I took full advantage of a hot shower, using the washer and dryer, running the dishes, etc.... in case that would be my last!

I'm so glad I didn't go into labor during any of this either, and that so far I have a home with electricity to bring a new baby home to when that time comes.