I've thought about doing a new entry for a while now. I certainly haven't been very good about keeping up with this. 2010 ended with a bang that changed things around here for a while and we continue to see changes as the year unfolds.
The day after Christmas as we were eating lunch we heard fire trucks noisily leaving town. Then as I was preparing to clean up in the kitchen the phone rang. It was the fire chief and our daughter's home was on fire -- he wanted to know about animals in the house. I quickly called Jenny's phone. Got no answer. So I called Rick's phone. He did answer and luckily there were just a short distance away. We met them out there. What we saw was disasterous.
The firemen were able to find two of the dogs. The pup was not in good shape, but they were able to give her some oxygen and revive her. The third dog wasn't so lucky. He had gone into the bedroom and never made it out. The fire started in the kitchen behind the stove. At first they thought it was electrical, but on looking closer they don't believe that was the problem. The fire chief said they would probably never know the cause, nothing seems to make any sense.
This is what changed things around our house for a while. The five of them moved in along with the two dogs that survived. We wouldn't have had it any other way, but there were adjustments to be made. And they were made; things went very smoothly in spite of it all. Amazingly the dogs got along with our dog, we were most worried about that. We only have one extra bed, so the three kids slept on the floor or in recliners or on the couch for a week. Jenny and Rick took the week off to sort through things. The kids were still on Christmas break and I think they got pretty bored with life at Grandma & Grandpa's.
Living in a small community was a blessing. People from town, people from their work, people from their church, friends & family were very supportive. The Red Cross lady (a friend & neighbor) was there before the firemen were finished. Their immediate needs were supplied quickly. If any of them might gander at this post, I thank them all from the bottom of my heart!
They are now settling into a small furnished home just a few blocks from where Jenny works. It's quite adequate for their needs for the time being. The restoration company has many of their belongings and have assured them that they will be able to salvage a lot of things that I never would have imagined would be possible. The kitchen was pretty much the worst of it all. The living room ceilings dropped insulation everywhere and the smoke and water damage in there was great. But that can all be replaced.
There were a few rather amazing things that weren't so bad -- see the photos above. The posterboard angels that were Grandma's were hanging on the wall and they don't look like the soot got to them. And then there was the cross that Dave made them out of the old countertops from his father's store; it was charred, but behind it there was the imprint of the cross on the wall. Awesome! God was so good; none of them were home. Other than the emotional scars this will leave, they are healthy and they will only grow from the experience.
