Windswept and Waterlogged

 

A little windswept and waterlogged, our area is weathering the current conditions well ....see updates below. Some other regions are experiencing tornadoes, torrential rain and flooding. We have much to be grateful for. A big thank you for all those who have prayed and expressed concern.

Driving home from church yesterday we could see the water pooling but nothing to be concerned about.

Sections of our garden this morning are enduring a bath as the light but steady rain continues. It looks like the rain will ease up later today.

Yesterday our twins returned victorious from a few days of playing cricket in Sydney, only their finals were washed out. Early this morning my husband and Master J left for the long drive (about 8 hours) to Sydney for a schooling commitment. We are hoping the roads will be flood free for their trip down today and their return also tomorrow night.

Saturday morning I thought I had finished sewing the quilt top together, however as I spread it out on the floor in daylight I could see the white I had used in the large setting triangles wasn't true white. I have spend several hours unpicking little stitches and replacing the not-quite-white with a whiter white.

Two triangles done, two to go. There is one of each white above - too hard to notice the difference until you see them in daylight. I knew it was a bother and would take hours to do but I also knew I would regret it every time I look at the finished quilt if I didn't fix it properly.

My weekend has been filled with lots of wind, water and white - but not snow! I hope your weekend has been pleasant and productive.

***Unfortunately the river is rising and rising, higher than expected. We will have to wait and see what happens. We may need to evacuate in the morning.....We have moved many things higher, especially precious items.

*****9pm We have been told (texts to our mobiles and automated call message on our landline) to "prepare to evacuate" our area of town and wait for further instructions.....it will be touch and go.

****** 11:30pm I'm heading to bed. There's been no call to evacuate yet. Hoping for good news in the morning. River predicted to peak at 9am.

******* 6:30 am. We are still here, still waiting. The river is 7.83m and still rising, very slowly now. Hopefully it will peak soon. Our section of town has some sagging areas of levee wall and old infrastructure, both of which have caused trouble in previous slightly smaller floods. I slept with windows shut so I couldn't hear the roar of the river, but I could still hear the many vehicles driving around, keeping a keen eye on potential danger zones. I deliberately didn't go to look at the river yesterday (not pretty). Today I plan go for a camera walk (when the peak passes) and post as I can.

********* The order to evacuate for our area of town came at 8:30 am. We left and spent the day at a friend's place out of town, with clothes etc packed in case we needed to stay. Thankfully the river was contained with sandbags, ramps and  boards where it rose higher than the walls - it was a record flood, the highest in over 100 years. At 4:30 pm we arrived home safely. The river is very slowly dropping. We have MUCH to be grateful for. Thank you so much for all your prayers and thoughts.
Tomorrow we will work on returning the house to normal order.....