cleaning up the mess....

We are having some down time, the kids put a movie in. Margaret didn't want her picture taken. Sonja, Joseph, Jonathan, and Sam.

Evelyn Joy with her new flip-flops...she hasn't wron them outside yet, so she gets to wear them in the house.
Kathryn and Suzanne

It is naptime, so it is relatively quiet. I actually stretched out on the couch for a little while....the kids do not respect that. They think of very important things to ask me, like, "Mom, can we have ice cream?"

I decided to give up on the nap when Rosie noticed me and brought her big stinky face right up on my pillow.....

It has been interesting to listen to the kids' versions of what happened last night. Jonathan was in bed, all tucked in, and he said he smelled smoke, and when everyone started yelling, he KNEW the house was going to burn down. Suzanne had been tucked in already, too, but was getting a drink of water, one of her favorite tricks, and she was one of the kids who first started yelling about the fire. Mali was in her room listening to music, and she smelled smoke, so she took out an earphone, and heard the yelling and screaming. Yes, we proceeded out the yard in a quiet orderly manner, ha. Mirielle actually sort of chastised me this morning for FREAKING OUT. Well, next time there is a fire, I will try harder to remain calm. She said that Jonathan was so upset because of the yelling and shouting. Well...sorry, Jon. I do think it could have been done a bit more serenely. But I had ONE thought, to get the kids out fast. It was in the back of my mind that the propane could blow, or the oil tank. Their bedroom is right next to the laundry room....anyway, Mirielle got Charlotte Claire, and I got Camille out of bed. I felt like I was going in slow motion, like it wasn't real, and like I couldn't possible move fast enough. So we all found ourselves in the front of the house....I had glanced into the laundry room and saw flames when Paul said to call 911, and I was sort of a wreck. As we stood in the yard, with me counting and re-counting just to make sure, my legs were shaking and I could hardly talk. Yeah, calm cool and collected, that's me. And seriously, I did not care about the house at all at that point.

So......we are waiting for: The insurance adjuster! Big surprise! I called to file my claim, the nice lady took my information, and passed on to Ryan-The-Adjuster. He will contact me at his leisure. I mean when he gets to it. I mean as soon as possible. He will then arrange to come and assess the damages. Okay, Ryan, take your sweet time. 'Cause our laundry room is NOT the most important room in the house.....And we don't miss using the washingmachine. The kids stopped wetting their beds last night, just because we can't wash the bedding today, NOT! Anyway, all kidding aside, we have these huge piles of smoky clothes that we are supposed to keep here. And we can't use the laundry room until....I guess it gets fixed up. So....

I am still very thankful that the fire happened when Paul was here, and that we all got out so quickly, and are safe. Today we sorted all the clothes and counted what we had of what....they may be able to be cleaned, but I don't know. They smell pretty strong, and some of them are all sooty, and some of them are really burned. It seems impossible to live with things out of order like this, but I am sure it will be okay....

On the plus side, Paul's mom brought us over some dinner today, which is heating up in the oven. Homemade macaroni and cheese, and chicken parmesian. It is cloudy, chilly, rainy, and so cozy with dinner in the oven....I do have much to be thankful for. And thank you everyone for the comments, and concern. It does feel really nice to have friends who care!

Oh, and Rosie loves the piles of smoky clothes! She thinks they are fun to roll in and the burned bras are nice to chew on.....