Hurricane Party

We have six extra people staying with us for the duration. Darren's sister called earlier in the week to make "reservations" at our house in case Gustav headed their way. Darren and I started picking things up to make room for company, and the house looks better than it has in a while. My new vacuum cleaner did a wonderful job, too.

Erin, Steven, Morgan and Maggie arrived today noonish after staying up until 1:30 this morning to board up their house. It took them about five hours to get here, which was a whole lot faster than we expected. Zachary is very excited to have his cousin Maggie here, and we had fun today going to Market Street. Zach and Maggie played in the fountain while Erin, Morgan and I looked through the shops.

Mom and Dad really didn't want to evacuate, because they are leaving for San Francisco on Thursday, and they were worried about how their 19-year-old cat would react. Dad spent all of yesterday building a wall across their sunroom, and once a voluntary evacuation order was announced for Lafayette, they decided to come here, as well. They packed up all of their valuables and pets, and left home early this afternoon. It took them a little over five hours as well, and their elderly cat had no idea what happened. They picked him up, bed and all, and put him in his crate. Since they arrived, he has stayed on the couch, with his bed next to him. It helps that the couch belonged to Mom and Dad until about a week ago, I'm sure. The dog is fine, too.

We had a nice evening, grilling burgers and telling stories. Tomorrow, we may try to go and check out Houston's new outlet mall. Even though it isn't the best circumstance, it is still a holiday weekend, and we'll try to make the best of it.