Hurricane Irene and Daddy Update

Don't take me wrong in my presentation of this pen, I do not think that Hurricane Irene was something to laugh about, But, I couldn't resist posting a photo of this pen that I found in a drawer in the middle of Hurricane Irene as I was looking for candles and matches. I couldn't resist but laugh at the irony of such a find.

With that being said, I'm proud to say that the twins have survived their first hurricane! Steven and I woke up early on Saturday, August 27th, to the sound of rain pounding on our windows. We were thankful that we still had electricity, so we rushed to brew a pot of coffee and enjoyed a hot breakfast before even getting the twins out of bed. Amazingly, the twins slept half an hour later than usual, I think because it was so nice and dark. The lights were still on when the twins finally did get up, so they got a hot breakfast as well and right in the middle of breakfast, flash, the lights went out. I wish you could have seen how big Berkley's eyes were when those lights went out, all you could see were the whites of his eyes. We pulled out some candles and finished breakfast in the candlelight, which the twins loved immensely. I have to say, I am so proud of my kids and the way they handled the whole storm, it seems like it hardly phased them. Steven and I tried to explain everything to them in simple terms and make things like a game. They saw the candles and wanted to blow them out like birthday candles and when a big gust of wind would blow, we likened it to blowing out the candles, telling them that God was blowing the wind like they blow out candles. It was a long day inside with two toddlers, but I'm so thankful that Steven was home and that we were able to make a fun day of it in spite of the trauma going on outside. We built a tent using old sheets and the kitchen chairs, we played with a deck of cards, Meredith learned to flip and the two of them had a flipping contest, we sang "Old MacDonald" together at the kitchen table in candlelight. I can honestly say that not having a tv or internet was a blessing, we had good time together as a family.
Here are the twins playing cards with Daddy.

Our home in Jamesville did sustain some damage; we had a tree split in half and several other trees were uprooted leaning on our house and even our propane gas tank outside. We have water damage to parts of our ceiling downstairs and upstairs, but at least the entire ceiling didn't fall in, which happened to a good friend of mine. We were out of power Saturday morning through Tuesday night. Thank you to Dominion Power and all the other companies who have worked so diligently these last few days!!! Overall, we're blessed. We bounced back and forth between staying at Steven's parents and my parents throughout this ordeal and we've had great quality time with everyone. And while I'm mentioning being blessed, let me share that Steven's folks had a tree fall on their deck. Why is this noteworthy? Well, it fell between their house and their brick grilling area, damaging only a snipit of the house. Most of the damage was on the deck. Just a few feet further and that tree would've taken out their entire kitchen and utility area. God directed that tree to the perfect spot, thank you Lord!

Some of the damage from Hurricane Irene


We've been so consumed with assessing the damages in Jamesville that we almost forgot about our home in Greenville. I spoke to two neighbors on Sunday and they both said that it didn't look like there was any major damage to the house, only limbs and pinecones strewed throughout the yard. Sadly, one neighbor actually had a tree fall on her home, which is so awful. I just can't imagine how horrible this storm would've been had it remained a category 3, so thankful it downgraded to a 1 before it hit us.

Another blessing to make note of is that my dad has been moved from LifeCare Hospital in Rocky Mount to River Trace Nursing Home in Washington. He was moved on Friday before the storm hit on Saturday. River Trace is the same nursing home where my Nana resides and it has been so wonderful having them both in the same location, on the same hall for that matter! The past two days I've traveled their with my mom and the twins to visit Nana and my daddy and it's been so much easier on everyone. Berkley and Meredith love that Grandaddy is staying at "Nana's house." We stop into see Nana and have our snack as usual and then we mosey on down to Grandaddy's room. Berkley and Meredith certainly do make a lot of people smile during our visits. My dad's bedsore is showing signs of improvement, but it will take a long time to completely recover. He's losing weight and feeding him is increasingly difficult. So thankful that he's in a good facility where we can visit regularly.

Feeling Right at Home

It's been so long since I've felt a real keyboard beneath my fingers, I don't really know where to begin. I have so many stories and pictures to share, but I don't want to overwhelm my readers. I guess to begin I should just say that we officially moved to Jamesville at the beginning of July, with the twins spending their first night here on July 5th. I was so fearful that they would be scared by being in a new place, but they had no problems whatsoever transitioning. They love their rooms, their playroom, their big open backyard, the playground close by, and the quiet streets to take walks and ride in their wagon. Steven and I are enjoying the quiet life of Jamesville and I am especially liking living in my grandparents house. Here's a picture for those of you who'd like to imagine where we live.

And here are a few pictures of the twins enjoying the outdoors at our new home.

This tire swing has swung many a grandchild and great-grandchild on it. Glad to see my kids join in the ranks.


Time with the twins is Grandma's respite. I'm sure it must do her good to see her grandchildren enjoying the home where she grew up.


Going on evening walks has become part of our routine. Here's Steven and Berkley walking towards the school gym at sunset.


Berkley and Meredith's first car race.


And here are pictures of them enjoying the inside of our new home.

Kicking back in their playroom. Don't they look like old friends who are catching up?


Berkley is playing with a train set that his cousin Jamie gave to him. Berkley had never been introduced to trains until moving here and now he absolutely adores his Thomas the Train set! He plays with it everyday, and everyday he finds a new way to set up the track. I love to watch his little brain figure things out and how to make the track work each day.


Here are the twins goofing around at the foot of the stairs. They love sliding down the steps and they are the best steps to slide down, I should know because my sister and I used to love to do the very same thing.


Bedtime in the Manning home. The twins have really grown in their love for reading over the past month. I see them maturing in so many ways and this is just one of them. They will sit for longer periods of time and will even listen to longer stories now.


Not long after we moved in, we packed up for a beach trip with Steven's family. The trip was cut short due to my dad's hospitalization, but we had a great time while we were there. I was shocked that Meredith was my dare devil who loved the pool and the ocean and that Berkley was more stand-offish. Meredith got in the ocean and was fussing at me because I wouldn't take her out further, whereas Berkley would run from the surf saying it was going to get him. Meredith jumped in the pool three times and I had to scoop her out and Berkley preferred playing around the edges (but he actually fell in once as well). I definitely learned that I could never handle them in a pool by myself at this age. The beach was a great time together as a family, it was especially great because the twins got to spend some concentrated time with their cousins, Hutch and McKinley. Boy do they LOVE their cousins!!!

Meredith wearing McKinley's shoes. She loves them and is giving a double thumbs up for the Pirates!


This is Berkley's elation at seeing his Papa walking towards him on the pier. That boy sure does love his Papa!


This is Berkley staring in adoration at his cousin Hutch. I'm pretty sure that Berkley wants to be just like Hutch one day.


A morning with cousins.


Snack on the deck.


She's ready for a swim.


Steven's family hosted an amazing celebration cookout for him on July 24th at Morotac Park. I wish I had pictures to share, but I was just too busy visiting with dear family and friends and praising the Lord (and my husband) for Steven's completion of residency! Steven took his family medicine boards in July as well, but has to wait until September 5th to find out his scores. We're so excited about all that lies ahead for him in his new family practice. The practice is called Martin Family Medicine and he along with Dr. Elisabeth Ann Scott will be the primary physicians there. Steven has been super busy the past few weeks interviewing and hiring employees, ordering supplies, setting up the office, and all sorts of things that come along with initiating a new practice. He was even on the local morning radio program and has spoken at a couple of community events. It's so exciting to see my husband feel like he's doing what God wants him to do! The community has been so, so supportive of his arrival and we are looking forward to getting Martin Family Medicine rolling. Once the practice is completely finished, I'll be sure to post lots of pictures.

On August 1st we had some excitement in our neighborhood. The twins and I had just returned from visiting my Nana at the nursing home, which we've made a habit of doing almost everyday, and we were playing outside for a few minutes. It was a quiet, calm day until we heard someone shout. At first I dismissed it, but then they shouted a second time. Meredith put her finger to her ear, telling me that she heard something and said, "somebody need help." About that time I saw thick black smoke across the street. I ran to the front yard and saw that the Christian Church across from our house was on fire. I ran back to the twins and grabbed my phone to call 911. We were the 2nd callers and it seemed like ages before the fire trucks arrived, when in truth it was less than 5 minutes. We watched the whole ordeal, from thick black smoke and the church being completely intact to the building being completely engulfed in 40 foot flames. The fire was so intense, we could feel the heat from our front porch. It was a sad sight to see indeed, especially since my home church was lost in a fire 10 years ago. But I know that the Jamesville Christian Church will just grow stronger through this ordeal. Their fellowship hall was saved and they've been meeting there ever since the fire. I'm sure it will be so encouraging to them to see how God provides for them in the coming weeks/months/years. Here are a few pictures I captured that day of the fire.

The beginning of the flames


The beginning of the worst


The most intense flames


Do you see the vinyl siding of the house next door? The flames were so intense!


So, we haven't had a dull moment at all. On July 5th I had the privilege of flying to Phoenix, Arizona to visit my best friend and her family to attend her baby shower. My best friend, Andrea Sutton, and I met during our years at East Carolina University. I haven't seen her in two years and her baby shower was the perfect excuse to get out there. Andrea will be having a baby girl, Madalyn Kate, in September and she already has a little boy named Benjamin, who is 6 months older than the twins. You can imagine that seeing sweet Benjamin everyday made me miss my two just terribly, but it was such a sweet time of catching up with Andrea and getting to know Benjamin and Matt (Andrea's husband) better. Benjamin and I hit it off and I wish that I could remember every precious thing that he said, but one of my favorites is when he asked his mom to leave the room so that he could play with me only, he called it "Mrs. Candi time." Here's a sweet picture of me and Andrea at her baby shower.

So...as you can see, we've had a lot going on since I've last had a computer and could actually type a detailed blog post with pictures. In general twin updates, I am just amazed at how much they've developed over the last month. I'm seeing them mature so much. They are saying please, thank you, and even yes sir/no m'am more and more. Their vocabularies have increased tremendously. Meredith is a serious little talker (just like a girl) and Berkley is talking more now that we have taken his pacifier away. Yes, Steven decided to take the paci, or "pipe" as we like to call it, away yesterday, August 13th. He's done AMAZINGLY well without it. We told him he was a big boy and didn't need it anymore. He cried for 2 minutes yesterday about it, but none last night, none at nap today and didn't even ask for it at bed tonight. We had noticed that Berkley's speech just sounded so slurred when he wasn't using his pipe and we figured it was because he wasn't enunciating his words, plus it looked like his teeth might have started getting pushed out because of it, so I think it's a good thing that we're getting rid of it. I have to admit, I'm sad all at the same time. I feel like letting go of that pipe is letting go of my baby. They're not babies anymore at all and I just have to come to terms with it.

Meredith can count to 10 now, but she always skips 3...isn't that funny? They are both interested in the potty, but we haven't officially started potty training yet. It's coming soon though. They both enjoying coloring now, but Meredith mores than Berkley. Hmmm...I think that's all for now, except for a few more fun pictures to share of course.

Berkley and Steven at the Roanoke River. I sense some fishing trips in our future.


Me and Meredith grinning together. Yep, she looks just like me.


We took the twins to Deadwood in Bear Grass tonight. They have this awesome little train to ride as well as all kinds of other fun things for kids to do (including a roller coaster, yes, a roller coaster in Bear Grass)! They loved their first train rides and merry go round ride.

Overdue Daddy Update

Hi all, many folks have been asking about my dad lately. He is still at LifeCare Hospital in Rocky Mount and I believe he still has about two weeks there before transitioning down to a nursing home for more iv antibiotics. Sadly, his bedsore is not healing well at all and my mom estimates that it's about the size of a fist. His port quit working this week, we were told that the antibiotic he's on is so strong that it frequently blows veins. Now he's getting his meds through a traditional iv in his arm. I don't believe his life is in danger at this point, but I fear that his quality of life has greatly diminished and that it is going to be very difficult for my mother to provide the level of care he will need once he's able to return home. Please continue to lift my daddy and mom up in prayer.