We are Not from tornado country, a fact that we are particularly grateful for. Today we are traveling east to Maryland and have been about 20 or 30 min ahead of the weather. This would vary as little voices from the back seat would annouce, I NEED TO PEE!!! A pit stop would happen in short order, after which we would again have a storm on our heels.

We stopped in Springfield Mo for dinner and then decided to keep driving awhile before getting a room. We made a stop for gas, all the while listening to weather reports on the radio. That was somewhat useless to us because we had no idea of the county lines and couldn't really tell where the tornado was headed. While DH was fueling, I took a good look at the map and made a quick list of names of counties that we would be passing through.

Just as DH was getting into the vehicle, the tornado warning siren went off. Another vehichle was in a hurry to leave and nearly ran into us. We drove across the street to a motel and pulled up to the door under the overhang. By this time the wind was furious and it was raining. We grabbed kids and ran. The wind almost threw us at the building. Upon entering this well known chain motel, we couldn't find anyone. The desk was deserted. The kids were crying, and I think I wanted to. It all happened so fast. DH finally walked through the open door by the check-in desk to the back room and found the desk clerk who hadn't heard us come in !?!?!?. She was calm and quickly calmed us down, gave the kids lollipops, and checked us in. In a few minutes, the forceful wind died down, and we were able to bring in our things. We are now safely established in our room, and have gotten a handle on the situation with the weather channel. We are glad we chose to stay here, as the storms are on the same path as our route. I THINK my heart rate has returned to normal. Tomorrow's forcast is not looking so great, either. Guess this will pump up my prayer life.