Storm's a Comin'

My trip to Iowa earlier this week was not without some drama. I prefer my trips without it. The good early part was that everyone in Iowa really seemed to like me and gave me their undivided attention, even more than my family does at times, LOL.

 

Another fantastic group of sweet quilter ladies, as my daughter calls them.

 

The next day, we headed for home and decided to stop at the Amana Colonies for lunch and a quick look at a few antiques shops (of course) and the local quilt shop.  We'd been there before on another trip to Iowa last year.

 

 

 

 

 

The day was slightly overcast and I really hadn't paid much attention to the weather but noticed that the sky seemed to be getting a little dark as we were walking around shopping.

 

 

 

Such a cute little area!

 

 

 

 

 

The Painted Cupboard. I wanted to buy everything in the store!

 

 

 

Back in the car, the wind picked up and the sky became even darker. We were still hours away from home. The radio said significant storms were expected in the area we were headed into. There were no alternate routes other than the main highway going back to Chicago.

 

 

I got a text message from my son:  Storm's a Comin' he said. He was talking about the weather in Chicago but we were moving right along with it and I'm not sure if he even knew exactly where we were. Yes, I know, we're in the middle of it right now, I replied.  Stay safe. Love you.

 

 

We were on the road in the middle of nowhere and the next exit was miles away. Right about this time it started to rain - with lightning and  heavy hail. We couldn't see the road very well and my hand started shaking so I put the camera down. The weatherman on the radio then said my least favorite word during a storm - Tornadoes.

 

 

Look at those clouds!

 

The open road did not seem safe at all so we did the smart thing and decided to get off the road and hunkered down for over an hour at an oasis at the next exit until the worst part sort of passed and there was a break in the storms. At one point a storm was chasing us. My husband assured me we were driving faster than it was coming at us but it became stronger than we thought and eventually I convinced him to pull over again until it passed and we could see the road once more. We arrived home a little later than expected that evening and still  a bit shaky but you can imagine how glad we were to be safe and sound. I can't remember the last time driving was so stressful and was glad my husband came along on the trip this time. The next day I copied an emergency list of storm safety tips while on the road and stashed it in the car for the next time, just in case.