Well, Rita didn't cause as much damage as we were expecting. In fact, all we had was some strong winds and a wee little bit of rain. Thanks to all of you dear friends who kept our family in your prayers!

Most of the family and the Townsend family watched Master and Commander on Friday night. Since I've seen it several times, I decided to get some sewing done instead. Around midnight, I retired since there was really no excitement going on outside. The rest of the family came up at a quarter to one. I woke up at 2:00 am, and then again at 2:30, but the activitiy going on outside my bedroom window wasn't too enticing. :)

I woke up at 6:45 on Saturday and when I looked out my window, it looked like winter! It was very gray outside, wet looking and cold. So, I jumped out of bed, donned some clothing, opened my favorite drawer full of winter things, and put on a jacket, my rabbit fur hat, soft black scarf and leather gloves with fur trim. I headed downstairs, turned the alarm off and opened the door to go for a nice walk...and to my complete and utter surprise, I was greeted with nasty hot and humid weather. Imagine my disappointment...I had planned on taking the first cool walk of the year, and then coming home to make our delicious Pumpkin muffins, the ones we wait to eat 'till the first cold day of the year! :( So, I headed back upstairs, changed my outfit, and decided that smoothies would be more fitting.

If you want to see some photos, see my Dad's blog. He beat me to it. :)

There is an erie feeling through the streets in Katy. The south side of Katy is almost deserted, there is no laughter from the children playing in the parking lot next door, no cars or school buses driving by, no air soft wars from the boys in the neighborhood..it is almost complete silence...and it is so strange.

The dear family, who evacuated New Orleans during Katrina, have been staying with us, and were going to head out to San Antonio to stay with some relatives to get out of the path of Rita. But in a few hours, they had only made it 15 miles from our home and had been on Hwy 90 for an hour and had only gone one mile! The traffic is backed up going either east or west. It is over 120 degrees on the freeways and the cars are getting nowhere. A few families in our neighborhood came back after being in their cars for several hours and not making any progress.

We have buckets and pitchers of water filled up. We also have a huge garbage can (the Brute) filled to the top with water for utility purposes. We are still filling buckets for our supply. We are going to keep an overnight bag packed for the "just in case." We are gathering all of our shoes and putting them into a crate by the door for any glass breakage. We emptied all of the things in our attic and put them into the school room, baked lots of bread, cookies, etc. We have nothing on our back porch, and will be starting to tape our windows.

I don't think that I've experienced anything like this before. It is so unusual to just be sitting here, not being able to do anything because all the stores are closed, and there is nobody around. As I write this, I can hear ticking sound of the clock sitting on my desk beside me, listening to the time pass away...just waiting. It is such a queer feeling. I can't describe it. We all know it is coming and about when it will come, but what it will do and what it will be like are the thoughts filling our heads. And we still have a the rest of today and all of tomorrow to think about it. I suppose that is what hurricane parties are for...distraction.

I think that the older I get, the faster time seems to slip away from me, the slow relaxing days seem to be quickly vanishing from sight and the more sleep I seem to need! I don't think my life has ever been such a whirwind of constant activity.

In just a few short weeks, some friends of mine have moved from the Houston area and relocated, yes only a few hours away...but that is still a few hours away. I passed a test, my bedroom has been designated the "Second Nursery," our store has been extremely busy... and so many other things have happened that my brain is too frazzled to remember.

I went to a conference on Saturday, and to my delight, the Brown gentlemen were there! In between sessions, we spent some time visiting. When David wasn't snapping photos or talking with older people, he was talking to William and keeping him happy, which I am extremely grateful for! Jonathan Erber and one of his brothers were there, I believe taping the conference. Caleb was so excited when he saw Jonathan and spent most of his time talking to him. We tried to get them to come out to our house, but their short visit to Houston didn't allow for it. :( Maybe next time!

We also had a hurricane Katrina victim family move in with us yesterday. They will be staying with us until they make decisions on where to stay. In the meantime, they have been a tremendous help here at the store! The oldest daughter also plays the harp and has promised lessons to those interested. :)

During the past week, I had so many accidents in the kitchen, that our employees have started calling all bloopers or accidents, "Tiffanys." I even made a "Top 10 Stupid Things I've Done Today" list, but by the time I got home from the store the night I made it, I was too tired to post it. So instead of the top ten "Tiffanys" I committed in one day, I've done what is below. I didn't put it in order of how stupid the crime was...I'll let you decide.

The top 10 stupid things I've done this week:

1. Cut my fingernail in half instead of cutting basil
2. Hit my head on the soap dispenser above the sink in our store kitchen
3. Hit my head on the car door.
4. Dropped the milk gallon on the floor and while attempting to rescue my skirt, I let the milk get away from me.
5. Thinking I had an oven mitt on, I tried to get something out of the oven and burnt my hand.
6. Overflowed the sink at the store.
7. Dropped butter on the floor and then stepping on it when I was trying to clean it up.
8. Cut my finger instead of the food that needed chopping.
9. Spilled coffee down the front of me.
10. Dumped the custard filling for the quiche all over the counter and the floor.

My Mother

September 3rd is a very special day in the McDonald household. Upon that day, my Mother was born. The love and gratitude that we have for her, she will most likely never know. The time she sets aside for us to do the things we want, the way she goes out of her way to make sure everybody is comfortable, the example that she gives us each day is very appreciated. And though we fail to mention our love and thankfulness as often as we should, her love never diminishes, but grows stronger and deeper as the years go by. (As we were out of town for her birthday and without internet connection, this post is just now being published.)

My heart overflows with joy,

And many things beside

Whenever thoughts of Mother

Enter into my mind.

I am extremely thankful,

For the Mother God did give

To train me for His kingdom

And for His glory live.

She taught me how to cook,

And help with little ones,

Read to them from Scripture

Lay them down with the setting sun.

I honor and respect her,

My heroine she is,

I want to follow in her footsteps

As she follows after His.

I love you, Mother.

I am so sorry that I've not given you an update! Please don't give up on me, Caleb! I really do have a good excuse...

Right after I arrived home from Virginia, my family left for New Mexico to attend a family conference that my parents were speaking at. After the two day trip up there, we spent several days at a camping site...With no internet connection (See Caleb...isn't that a good one?). It was on a beautiful campus, with lakes, mountains and hiking areas. James, Christa, Jessica and Caleb went horse-back riding a couple of times, and we had games of putt-putt, volley-ball, soft-ball and dodge ball. Dad and I went boating with some of the little girls, we celebrated the graduation of a good friend of ours, and also celebrated my Mother's birthday while we were there.

After the evening sessions, some of the young people decided to do some historic ball room dances. Word crept out that we were doing this, and before we knew it, there were a bunch of people ready to learn. We stayed up until 11:00, and if we didn't have to get up early to make it to breakfast, we probably would have done more. We had a great time and are eagerly looking forward to next year.

Unfortunately, my camera died early the first day, so I don't have any photos to share with you. :( A friend of mine took some though, so I might try to see what I can get from him. If I don't have any success, I'll give you the link that the coordinators are putting up...as soon as they get it up. :)