Preparing for Irene

As many of you out there I've been spending the last few days preparing for Hurricane Irene to hit the East Coast.  I'm lucky enough not to be in New York City but I am less than 90 miles away.  I'm preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.  We're supposed to get upwards of 10 inches of rain and 50-60 miles per hour, gusting to 70.

For me that is enough to fear and prepare for.  Our house is old.  Like built in the 1800's old.  Our backyard is small but boasts an extremely old Maple Tree.  It's actually a tree with two thick trunks coming out of it's base.  It's massive.  It's old.  It's in need of trimming with wide spread and far reaching branches.  Even without the high winds, the ground is saturated from all the rain this summer.  It wouldn't take a lot of effort for it to uproot.  Also, all the neighbors have large, old maple trees.  My biggest fear is branches flying, trees uprooting and all the debris smashing into the house.  My girls bedrooms are at the back of the house.  The wind's suppose to start up after midnight.  I've already told them that they'll be spending the night in the living room.  Might be best for us all. If a tree does come down it will likely block our path to the stairs.  Scary stuff.  But, I have to think about it so I can be prepared.

Here's my list:

1.  Water-We have about 7 gallons right now and a 24 pack.  I used our filtered water and filled up 3 pitchers at our house and another 3 at my moms. I also have a supply of juice boxes, ice tea jugs, apple juice and canned soda. It will help if need be.

2.  I froze the 24 pack water. I can use it to help keep the frozen food cold if necessary.

3.  I have an ice maker so I just started bagging the ice and putting it into the freezers (I have a side by side and an ice chest). I'll pick up bags of ice tomorrow if necessary.

4.  Stocked up on extra canned goods...fruits, veggies, beans, etc. I'm not a canned goods kinda gal but in this case it works.

5.  Bread, crackers, peanut butter....great staple foods that need no refrigeration.

6.  Picked up more batteries for the flashlights. We have at least 3, plus a few battery powered lanterns for the kids.

7.  Candles, matches and butane lighter.

8.  Making sure all the laundry is washed before tomorrow afternoon. Sending my husband to work with a bag filled with necessities (clothes, blankets, pillows, food, water, etc) in case he gets stuck.

9.  Charging up the phones, ipod and DSs. Phones for emergencies and the rest to keep the kids occupied.

10.  Packed up the backyard.  Everything is in the shed or basement except for a few trash cans. They are under the deck by the basement door and I will pull them in if and when necessary.

11.  Filled up the vehicles with gas.

12.  Made sure the grill has propane. Hey, you never know.

13.  Check to make sure that the radio has batteries. Plus, my dad has a weather radio that cranks.  I have to go find it before the end of the night.


I think we're as prepared as we're going to be. My mom is home alone next door because my dad is out of town.  He won't be coming back until Monday. I'm a bit upset that he didn't come home today. I've already told her if it gets bad I really want her over here with us.

So, while we're not in direct line to be hit we are prepared.  Praying that all this hard work is for nothing.  I pray everyone out there being effected by Irene is safe and those preparing are ready.  God bless.