The longest drive of my life...

...started yesterday at 3:00pm and ended today at 5:45 in the evening, amidst a tornado warning, in the central time zone. I'm blogging live to you tonight from our new (temporary) home, a studio suite in the industrial area of Wichita. As we were checking in to our new digs the television in the lobby aired live footage of a tornado touching down in Oklahoma City, storm warnings have filled the tv screen in our little room all night long. We stepped outside at one point to watch the torrential rain and listen to the tornado sirens in the distance. I've been thinking how terribly far away from home I feel, but how at home one husband and one baby have made one me feel tonight... I love you, Lui. I love you, Leo. I love you, Nonny. I love you, Mom and Steve. I love you, Dad, I love you, Collene. We drove 9 hours yesterday to Parker, Colorado, and spent the shortest night ever with my aunt (thanks, Debbie!) before resuming our drive at 8:00am this morning. We arrived 8 1/2 hours later to Wichita, literally in the middle of an incredible storm. Not even while on my mission in Illinois have I seen rain like this. We are in the heart of Tornado Alley, and I admit it's a little unnerving. The weatherman was instructing us viewers tonight on how to best protect ourselves if the high winds were to shatter our windows. We are to wrap ourselves in blankets and get into the bathtub. At this point, we are getting ready to wrap ourselves in blankets and get into the bed, hoping for a peaceful night of sleep. Luis is back on the job tomorrow, but more on that later. For now, just know that we've arrived safely and that I love, love, love you all back home. We are most certainly not in Utah anymore.