Knowing what matters

We live right in the middle of where the recent EF4 Tornado came through about 3 weeks ago. We were in the storm cellar, with my husband, brothers and dad pushing against the door to keep it closed. We felt it come over, heard it, felt the air sucked up from the cellar. Let me tell you, it was scary!

Once it was over, we peeked outside and saw trees down everywhere, debris was everywhere but our house, as well as my parents ( right down the road) were all safe. A few out buildings were gone, and many trees but we are VERY thankful we are all okay. We looked and could see that the path was probably less than 500 yards from us....


My thoughts immediatly turned to our family friend/ babysitter. We could tell her house was in the path of the storm. She is such a precious lady and has watched our kids for the last 5 years.

I texted her immediatly to ask how they were...

She texted me back " We are all okay! So thankful!!!""

Sigh..Relieved.

So, like all good country boys, my dad, brothers and husband go out with their chain saws and tractors/4 wheelers to check on neighbors. They got back in about 2 a.m and my husband tells me that our babysitter's home, barn, camper, and all of their other outbuilding like their sheds, goat pens etc were gone....

Gone.

I guess what struck me was that in the midst of total MATERIAL devastation, she told me " We are all okay, so thankful!!!"

I wrongly assumed, that she meant their home was safe as well. She later told me that in the sheer and utter chaos there was nothing to do but thank the good Lord that her family was okay. They were in the cellar as well.

Our community has come together. We have grieved the loss of friends and community together. We have relied, not on FEMA, not on the Red Cross, not on any other government agency to help. We have helped each other and are relying on our friends and family during this time.

So two lessons in the midst of this storm

 

1- Make sure you have a cellar

2- Know what matters

 

Saving Money on HEALTHY foods: No coupons required

 

It's difficult sometimes to find coupons for things like fresh fruits, vegetables, things that are healthy you know? Saving Star is great and I've been using it for a while now. It's great for a few reasons:

 

1. No coupons to clip: you simply log into your account and it puts the coupons you want onto your shoppers card. When you purchase certain items it goes into your account, when you get $5 you cash out. I always use it to get Amazon cards.

 

2. They offer a new fruit or vegettable EACH week. So this week you get 20% back on yellow onions. They have done bananas, sweet potatoes, asparagus, apples, all kinds of great items.

 

3. On Friday of each week they offer a FREEBIE. Some are healthier than others but I have found several items that my family likes.

 

4. So EASY. So EASY.

 

Honestly, you should really sign up. Just give it a try. Totally free . Click here to sign up!

I won! Thank you to Stone Cottage Adventures

 

I linked up with the Great Blog Train Giveaway and I won this amazing prize from Marci at Stone Cottage Adventures.

I love the handmade soaps, and look at the cute little bags they came in. She also included some wonderful tea bags. Such a fun treat and thank you so much Marci.