Today started out like a typical morning, I walked down the stairs and headed towards my coffee maker as quickly as my tired legs could go. I heard water running and grew concerned and realized rather quickly that I was walking in water, at least an inch of water. In my brand new kitchen, with the beautiful hardwood floors.
I saw the water was coming from the back of the refrigerator, I called Brian who is on a business trip in North Carolina and I pulled the refrigerator out. The water line that connects to the ice maker was no longer attached to the fridge. In fact, when I pulled the fridge away from the wall, the hose was whipping around like a wild snake, I felt like I was reenacting the scene from Mr. Mom when he fights the hose from the washing machine, the water was spraying all over my kitchen and on my face and my glasses, I was soaking wet, my floors, the cabinets, the walls, everything, was wet.
I didn't even know where or how to begin the clean up, I eventually got out the shop vac and almost filled it up two times from the water in the kitchen alone. While on the phone with Brian he said "you may want to check out the basement." No, actually I do not want to check out the basement at all, I wanted to reply, I'll just pretend we don't have a basement, m'kay?
But eventually I went downstairs to find water EVERYWHERE. The couches and carpet we had downstairs are ruined, crib mattresses and car seats and boxes of clothes are soaking wet. In the basement, however, our items weren't just wet, they were muddy and disgusting.
I got the kitchen pretty dry and put out three fans and washed about 80 towels but I could look down at the wood and see it starting to warp, the dark edges of each piece made me want to weep.
We decided two things. Number one, we need to hire a company to come and dry us out completely. Number two, call the insurance company.
After awhile, a restoration company came by and worked on the clean up, they took pictures and prepared the paperwork to be sent to our insurance company, the kids and I left the house for the evening because their massive fans and de-humidifiers were just deafening. I'm pretty annoyed that this happened because it FINANCIALLY sucks. This move has been so incredibly expensive and we really wanted to get a new, much larger dining room table, along with about 40,000 other things.
But instead, we are paying for people to dry our house out. Talked about an unplanned expense.
The funny thing is, though, I don't really care that this happened., I mean, it sucks, for sure, but it's tolerable. We may not be buying a new table anytime soon, but we do have a table, and a roof over our heads and a family to share dinners with. And although it sucks that we are having to spend thousands of dollars, that we really do not have, on this ridiculous thing that happened, we still have a beautiful home and we are so grateful.
I talked to my friend Christy this afternoon and she said "you know, (with her beautiful Texas accent) I hate to be cliche, but when it rains it pours." and she's right, I am aware. I would be lying to you if I said I never once thought "WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO US? CAN'T WE CATCH A BREAK?" Because I did think those thoughts but followed by those thoughts, in all honesty, were thoughts of gratitude and being fully aware of the good that is in my life.
My husband is out of town for two weeks, but he's not in Iraq. (my brother left today for Iraq and won't be back until March - please keep him and his family in your prayers)
My house flooded, but it's okay, the floors have to be resurfaced and soon this will all be a memory.
My boys, my sons, died inside my belly, but somehow they are so deeply engraved in my heart that I feel them with me. It's almost like I can feel their hands on my shoulders during these stressful times, hands of support and grace and love, speaking to me telling me everything is going to be okay.
Although silver linings typically drive me crazy, I was pretty proud of myself for allowing myself to listen to those words of encouragement deep inside my heart and my brain.
This experience today, is something that will be added to our catalog of memories that happened in our new house. Last night, after the kids went to bed, my girlfriends came over and we sat in the living room and laughed and ate nachos and chocolate mousse cake, and yesterday morning I sat and watched my children sleep.
I realize that tomorrow morning I may wake up with a really bad attitude about what happened today, or maybe we'll find out that the floor will have to be totally replaced, but for right now, I'm pretty grateful that all we experienced today was a flood in our kitchen and basement. Not that big of a deal at all, really.
