Walking through the house....

Well, I got my wish today, not that it's a wish I've ever wanted. Mom, Dad, Nikki, Nate and I all went to the house this afternoon to walk through it for the first time after the flood water has receded. Actually, it hasn't fully receded quite yet. The water is gone from the house (other than the basement of course!), but the driveway and the rest of the farm still has a few inches to a couple feet of water around it. You still aren't able to drive to it with a car because there's still water over the road. Dad hooked up the tractor to the boat (on the trailer) and we rode to the house that way. Once there, we were able to get out and walk around a bit.

We already knew what the house looked like, so it wasn't a complete shock, although very surreal. The walls are gone, but the floor is still intact, so we walked around the house just like we normally would. Only this time, we had to watch where we stepped and looked at everything. It was a complete mess. The new kitchen cabinets were gone or in different places, the countertop was on the floor and sinks were in rooms other than where they're supposed to be. The old couch that was in the living room somehow made it to the kitchen, as did the piano, which is now smashed. Everything that was familiar was unfamiliar. Everything about it was my house. But everything about it was not my house.

Something that made us chuckle....we were in the garage looking around and Dad went up the back steps to open the door. It was locked!! We had to laugh because when they left the house before the levee broke, they intentionally left the garage door up to let the water in. But out of habit, someone locked the door! So Dad pulled out his keys and had to unlock it. I guess it was nice to use that key one more time!

Dad went out to look at the grain bins. All four of them are either down or leaning, which is crippling to a farming operation. He was hoping his newest and biggest bin was salvageable. He went check and it looks like it's just been moved off the foundation a few feet. He's hoping he can lift it with a crane, repair the bottom and restore it. Pray that works!!

Here's a couple of pictures, but there's 70 of them on my shutterfly site. Feel free to look through them. I'm so glad I was able to go out there today. While it's something I wish I didn't have to see, I'm glad I got the chance to before I leave. Only four and a half days left in Iowa! Crazy!

The Den:


Kitchen Sink:


Living Room: