The Carmel Tornado & a Bit More

Photos were coming in all day yesterday of tornado damage across Indiana. There are a lot of places in the state that were hard hit, several of them in the Indianapolis area.

This is the Carmel tornado. Carmel is a northern suburb of Indianapolis and is the location of the place where Craig and I volunteer several times a month.

The Indianapolis temple of our church is just an hour's drive from us. We have been volunteering there since it opened in 2015. 

The Carmel tornado just missed the temple (red dot) and the home on the grounds where our besties, Pat and Lisa, live. (They are the directors of the temple.)

Alerted to the fact that strong storms were on the way, they closed the temple and sent everyone home. The temple was cleared of people just thirty minutes before the tornado blasted through Carmel. And its path was very, very close - it passed just a block or two south of them.

I am so grateful that Pat and Lisa were not hurt and that the buildings did not sustain any damage from the tornado.

Lisa and me in Chicago, 2010.

Lisa and I have been close friends for twenty years, and Craig and Pat since they met as students at Purdue.

She is from Arizona and grew up on a ranch so she is familiar with horses.

Feeding Abby peppermints in 2017.

When Abby unexpectedly died, she and Pat dropped everything and drove up from Indianapolis, freshly baked cinnamon rolls in hand, and came to see how I was doing and offer condolences. Aside from my family, they were the only people I was willing to see and talk to at that awful time.

A month later, Lisa gave me a lovely gift for my birthday, the Abby necklace, that she'd had specially made for me.

Such dear friends, and I am so grateful that they were not hurt in the Carmel tornado.

(I just realized that I've done the same thing I did when I wrote about my western saddle. The topic shifted to Abby at the end of that blog post and I've done it again - I'm writing about my girl even though this was supposed to be a post about our friends and the Carmel tornado.  You never know what will bring your grief to the surface.)

45th Anniversary: Time Together

 (Just another blog post from our 45th anniversary celebration. No horses, so skip if you want.)

It's not quite a photo dump, but here are some more pictures from our family gathering to celebrate our 45th anniversary this summer.

 

We love these pony pals and cowpokes so much. And when did they get so grown up??

I was a little grumpy when my kids told me that they'd gotten a wheelchair for me to use during the trip if I needed it. 

I ended up being glad that they did. (Craig, Lisa, Jessica, and Andrew.)

Emily, Craig, Sarah, and part of Jessica.

Susie, Julie, Cambria, Craig, me, Kate, Titan, Mila, and Ian.

Decorating cookies back in the family cabin while some of the adults went to the temple.

At the temple - I cannot express how it feels to go there with your loved ones. A parent's prayer and dream come true. Sarah, me, Craig, Vanessa, Jessica, Andrew, Emily, Cole, and Curt.

A trip to The Fudge Factory is obligatory - my favorites are penuche, maple and vanilla pecan. (Surprised I didn't say chocolate?)

Cambria and Titan are relatives of Edward Partridge through their dad and they were excited to find his grave in the Nauvoo pioneer cemetery.

Fireworks outside the family cabin one evening - Todd, Trinity, and Lisa.

Trinity, JC, Cambria, Titan, and Todd.

Our family loves to play games; even the smallest family members participate. (And sometimes beat their older family members, too!)

Julie, Susie, Lukie, and Cole play a family favorite - Sky-Jo.

Craig, Andrew, and I take on Susie - she won more than once! (We ended up getting this game for her for her birthday.)

Andrew, Jessica, and Vanessa sit in the family cabin behind some of the snacks.

Believe it or not, there will be one last 45th anniversary blog post, so stay 'tooned! (I'll try to post it within the week so the wait isn't so long.)

Scare at the Barn

 No one ever wants to receive a text like the one I received from Tim on his last day out of town.

My heart dropped when I read the text.

Since Kyle and his family were heading home, we'd gone down to Indy with them as they wanted to see the temple where Craig and I serve once a week. I was an hour away and not able to run out to the barn to check on things!

 His family also wanted to celebrate my birthday by singing to me. (I love little Melissa's voice chiming in with her family's voices!)

I texted Tim back and got some more information - neighbors, bless them, had seen people walking around the property that they did not recognize so they had called Tim to let him know. Clearly, though, there was nothing I could do until I got home. I knew Tim would call the sheriff if he felt the situation needed it, but I was still anxious to get home.

I zipped out to the barn as soon as were were back in West Lafayette. All seemed normal, although I walked through the new barn to check for missing items as well as looked at the horses and counted noses.

I also took a photo of a truck parked at one of the homes on the property (there are two homes; an old house with the old barn and a new house with the new barn) but I suspect that that belonged to a visiting family member. Still, I made sure I got a photo of the license plate.

So, who did the neighbors see? My guess is that the folks renting the blue barn had friends come out and help them move their horses to the south paddock. The horses were not there the previous afternoon when I did a barn check, so I suspect they had been moved that morning.

All is well, and I'll say it again, bless those neighbors who saw something unusual and reported it!

My Favorite Donkey

Every week, Craig and I drive down to Indianapolis and spend an evening serving in the Indianapolis temple. 

I enjoy our weekly service year round, but December is particularly special.

Every December, I look forward to seeing this:

 A life sized but very simple Nativity is displayed on the grounds of the temple.

The donkey looks so mild and sweet and I love seeing him year after year. 

Even when snow covered like it is this week, the Nativity is still beautiful.

I've told Craig that we need a donkey just like this one to put on our lawn for the holidays. He thinks I am joking but honestly, I really do wish I could have one (and a fork lift to lift it, too!)

School Has Started..

... and my barn time is really being squeezed!

School began for the kiddos on Tuesday, but teachers (i.e. moi) started Monday. And Monday was a twelve hour day for me since I had to stay for the open house in the evening. Needless to say, I did not make it to the barn that night.

Then we had some heavy rains Thursday evening - a blessing since we've been undergoing a drought, but it sure made for muddy pastures. Abby was waaaaaaay back in the west pasture when I got to the barn, it was pouring rain, and my barn shoes were still in the garage at home. No carrots for her that night!

The next day was Friday, and I took a personal day to go to Chicago with Craig to attend a wedding at the temple. Because of the travel time to and from the temple, it made for a long day. I was tired when we got home, plus I was not feeling well - Chicago traffic REALLY stresses me. Sometimes I get migraines, sometimes I get gastric issues, and sometimes I get both.

So, when I got home, I lay down on the bed "just for a moment." And fell asleep. When I woke up, I was in a bit of a panic - I'd offered to help decorate the church for the reception plus I needed to check the horses and fill the water trough. I shot off a text, asking if I was still needed to decorate even as late as it was, and then jumped in the car and zipped out to the barn.

I think Abby missed me. I didn't even have to call her. She was in the far west pasture again, but she saw my arrival and came charging up to the gate. I was actually in the pasture, preparing to hike down to her, when I saw her coming up through the pastures.

(She has such beautiful gaits! Her trot was floaty and she was a lovely sight as she came trotting up to where I was in the south pasture.)

I have never actually been in the pasture when she has come up at any gait other than a walk. I did not think she would run me over, but I admit I thought, "She's a rescue. I have no idea about her history and how she has been treated. It's possible she might not stop, expecting me to move out of her way instead."

But I really did not think she would hurt me. She can be sassy, but she has never been mean. Quite the opposite in fact. So, I stood my ground and as she got really close, I help my hand out in a stopping motion and quietly but firmly said, "Whoa."

She stopped. And then she walked over, greeted me, and had her carrots and a good rub. (She was a bit of a mud pie!)

I hope to settle into my fall schedule soon so Abby can have her regularly scheduled carrots!