Hurricane Sandy caused devastation for many. I was incredibly grateful that, for us, the storm was much milder than last year’s Snowtober – which arrived at the exact same time! The kids don’t have nearly as many branches to play in. Last year we lost power for 113 hours, and had to throw out all the food in our fridge and freezer. This year our lights flickered and we lost internet for about 28 hours, but that was it. I think the storm last year actually helped reduce the damage for us this year – most of the weak trees were already down. Still, our carpool friends have no power, and may not get it for several days – and many other residents of our town are in the same situation.One of Mike’s coworkers had a tree fall through their roof – in four different places. Bad news, especially in a Cape-style home. Nobody is complaining, given the situation in areas that were hit harder.
I set simple October goals, and did well in terms of decluttering; less well with organizing. I did try to focus on living in the moment and focusing on things that matter most – and it was a goal that the storm made even easier! We had all been feeling a bit burnt out from running around between school, errands, and other events, so the days of being stuck at home were very welcome, particularly since our house was still warm thanks to electricity. We have leaves pressed, and will laminate them this week – I completely forgot about them!
I’m maintaining my SIMPLE goal approach for November:
- Focus on gratitude. Target Areas: gratitude and education (about the meaning of Thanksgiving)
- Organize. Target Areas: peace, health, and gratitude
How was October in your home? What are you hoping for November to look like in your house?
MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.
I am glad you are OK. My parents still don’t have power, but their house is OK. It’s crazy how much damage this storm brought, but it also helps to focus on important. November promises to be crazy for me at work, and my resolution is to try to focus on simple things that we can do together when we have time.
thank you so much for your kind comment on my blog. good luck with your own journey in gratitude this month!
xoxo
Glad you’re OK! :) I’m gonna steal your goal from last month and start living in the moment more, which I already started doing today and it’s A LOT harder than it seems. But, it felt so good to just laugh and joke with my toddler and not think about anything that has to do with work (blog).
It is hard, isn’t it! It’s a goal I have to make over and over – but so worth it!
I love how simple your goals are layed out. It just seems… so simple. :) I have a hard time organizing my thoughts like that, but I should try. Funny that I should have trouble with that… I’m a counselor resident, I help people with that ALL the time.
Thanks, Nikki!
We did okay with our goals, but going out of town for two weeks really threw me.
I need to sit down and figure out goals for this month…..
Glad you came through this storm more easily than last year’s. Slowing down is a goal of mine as well…
For some reason I thought the storm wasn’t hitting MA, but I’m glad to hear you came through it well. There were loads of downed trees in out neighborhood. Our apartment is well-protected and we didn’t lose power but so many in NYC were dramatically affected, as you know.
We weren’t in the middle of the storm – more at the outer edges. There was enough damage in our town that they had to close school for two days, and it was much worse by my sister’s home (which didn’t get hit as hard last year). I still have friends without power. I’m glad you didn’t lose power and that your apartment is okay. NYC saw so much damage – devastating.
I am so glad you all are safe and didn’t get much damage. Yikes about the tree going through their roof. That is a big fear of mine, as we back to woods with very tall trees! Every time there is a storm, I get a little worried.
So glad you weren’t impacted too seriously by Sandy, either. Scary stuff those hurricanes!
Thanks for helping me pause to consider November–I’d like to slow down and appreciate our days and also get organized for the holidays.
My husband and I have a shared goal for November – SLOW DOWN! For me, avoiding multi-tasking is a big part of that goal. We will also be focusing on gratitude as well.
Slowing down is an awesome goal. And I’m excited to read more of your gratitude posts!
That is such a cool photo! So glad you didn’t have too much damage. We are going to have some American visitors for Thanksgiving and I am going to attempt to cook my first ever Thanksgiving dinner so we will also be learning about the meaning of Thanksgiving in November.
Good luck! This is my first year cooking Thanksgiving all on my own – normally my sister helps, but she’ll be gone this year.
I am all for simple attainable goals, & although I love organizing, it seems we all get out of practice here in my home and I need to do a lot of reminding.
Glad your family is safe, Mother Nature is a force to be reckoned with for sure!
Glad that you guys are safe and that not much damage was done! Hopefully transitioning back to normalcy will be smooth.
My goals for November include getting stuff set up for the babies while I’m still relatively small and mobile.
Good luck getting ready for your babies! You’re smart to start early!
Happy to hear you all are safe. Our well wishes for a speedy recovery for your area.
So glad you guys are ok! We were supposed to fly from London to NY yesterday but of course, our flight was cancelled. The soonest we can get out is Saturday!
I hope you make it back without any further trouble on Saturday! I’m sure you’re quite busy, but drop me an email if you have time to meet up!
So glad all is well and no one was hurt in your area. I know storm damage is a mess to clean up but yes, we area always thankful for the health and safety of family first! We too are focusing on being thankful in November. In addition to gratitude, we are also discussing how to be gracious to others (being helpful without being asked, offering a kind word to a friend, etc). I do just love November!
I really want to work on graciousness as well!