Baby Facts and a Burning U-Haul

Cora and Magnolia went to the doctor this morning. I think I'm really going to like their new doctor. She's young, totally put together, has an 18-month-old daughter at home, and is expecting twin boys at the end of November. Oh, and her husband stays at home with the kids. I love non-traditional family dynamics. Both girls looked great.

Cora weighs 31 pounds, and is 36.9 inches long.
Magnolia weighs 10.2 and is 22 inches long. She also got three shots. Oh man, I had to choke back the tears this time.

On Saturday, we were driving back from meeting Grammy's sister, brother, and granddaughter (Hannah, Leo, and Sarah) at a McDonald's between OKC and Tulsa. Traffic came to a quick slow, and we saw shredded rubber from a tire, and broken lights strewn about the road. I looked ahead, and there was smoke. We came upon a caravan of cars pulling smaller U-Haul trailers, with the big one in the front. It was missing the front driver's side tire, and the bottom of the cab was on fire. There was a man in the door of the cab scrambling to get things out. Jake pulled over, and so did my mom in the car behind us. Jake and Don ran back to see if there was anything they could do. Semis were pulling over and running back with their fire extinguishers. One trucker had several gallons of water than Jake and Don were throwing on the fire.

My heart was pounding as I thought about our recent move, and how nothing went right, but at least what happened to that family didn't go wrong with us. It just cost us a boat load of extra money. When the tire blew, the wheel cranked hard to the right, and pulled the driver's hand with it, injuring it in the process. It crashed into the barrier between lanes of traffic, and somehow he was able to pull it over to the shoulder. We drove past just as his wife, in the car in front of him was getting out. They were moving from Michigan to Texas, and no doubt had family following in the little caravan. I can't imagine what it would be like, standing on the side of the road in the middle of Oklahoma and anticipating all of your possessions burning up right in front of your eyes. The active fire was put out while we were there, and I don't think it reached the trailer. The fire truck was on its way, and luckily it had rained a bit the day before so the grass of of the shoulder didn't burn like it could have.

I've been thinking about that family, and hoping they're settling into their home in Texas and that his hand is feeling better. And I'm feeling grateful that despite life's inconveniences, I still have all of the things that matter most.

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