Serene (and Not-So-Serene) Scenery Sunday

Woo, everypup and everycat.  It's me, Dave.  I've got some serene pictures to show you today ... and some that really aren't too serene, but Mom went outside to take them anyway.  Let's start with the pleasant ones!

Our rose bush is blooming!

Also in bloom is our Yorktown Snowflower Tree:

Here's a close-up of the "snow":

It is whiter than that today, but we have 45 mph wind gusts and Mom can't get a good picture of it right now. Oh... and see how it's sort of overcast in the picture of the whole tree? As you may have heard, we had lots of dangerous storms in our area yesterday. Things started getting exciting for us around sunset. Let's take a look at the skies at around seven thirty:

That was a huge, tornado-bearing storm that had just left Salina and was skirting west of us. Here it is, closer, but going past us:

It was a wild, dangerous, crazy storm. Look at what it started doing about half an hour later:

Mom had never seen a cloud formation quite like that, and was out there on the deck a long time studying it! (At least that's what I heard; Zim and I were napping guarding the living room.) Here's a close-up:

Don't worry - Mom and Dad were following the storms very closely on radar, and were tuned in to the local meteorology teams' reports.  Mom would not have gone out if a tornado was heading our way.  Safety first!

There were about 100 tornadoes reported across the Midwest yesterday and overnight, with lots of hail and high winds.  While we are very thankful that we were spared the brunt of the storms, our prayers go out to those who were hit and mourn the loss of lives in Oklahoma.

Things are back to normal for us today - just a mighty brisk wind out there.

"Good day for a short walk, huh, Zim?!!?"

Have a serene Sunday, everyone!  And please know that we appreciate all the good thoughts and prayers for us during the stormy weather!

Luv,

Dave