Storms

Ever since Addie was a baby, she has cried during storms. The other kids are not like this so I'm not sure what we did differently. We have tried every trick in the book to help her get over this.

Mississippi has had our fair share of tornados and she is at the age where she remembers. I think we have "taken shelter" four times this year and somewhere in our state has had devastating destruction. We grab the flashlights, kids, dog, tv remote, phones, chargers, batteries, shoes, sometimes helmets, and gather in the bathroom. It's the responsible thing to do. It's tough to entertain three kids and a dog while keeping track of the storm path. I kind of freak out but have to remain calm all at the same time. 

Every single storm is terrifying for her. She tries to hide it by asking a thousand questions but she's not fooling anyone.

To make matters worse, I made the mistake of showing her the tornado destruction in Louisville. I didn't make a special trip there or anything. We were there for a family reunion and I took a "shortcut." This not-so-shortcut led us to the exact spot that the tornadoes touched down. It was an accident. Of course this led to multiple questions. Why are those trees on the ground? What happened to that building? Where did the people go? And on and on.

In my normal teacher fashion I answered the questions in an honest yet careful way. I thought I did a good job but it made the storm fear worse. Now she comes in our room if she hears the faintest clap of thunder or sees a flash of lightning and asks about the tornado. I'm not sure we will ever overcome this but we are trying.