3 Steps of Hurricane Prep - Step 3: Find Calm in the Storm
Once you have picked out your space and prepared it for the storm, the waiting begins. In our first tropical storms we realized these are ironically great days to spend at the theme parks if you don’t mind rain and wind. I’m not able to do this much any more, so I find myself with a relaxing day at home. With the larger storms we find we often end up with more days together at home. Keeping busy and using this as constructive family time is helpful for us. Here are some ideas.
Find the calm in the storm together.
1) KEEP BUSY WHILE WAITING
Right after we moved over near Walt Disney World in 2019, Hurricane Dorian came sweeping our direction. We had very little time to prepare, but we had some groceries and plenty of water. AND if I’m super honest, the three days that this storm took to pass and that school was cancelled were a blessing. Josh and I were able to literally go through every closet in the house. We had managed the big stuff with moving day and the kitchen with some help, but the closets had boxes tossed them and we had just shut the doors. Ironically, we started with the one that was our hurricane shelter space because it needed the most help and we didn’t know if we would need it. lol. The funny part was we almost didn’t notice the storm pass because we were so busy working on things we had put off for later.
Here are some more things that can keep you busy if the power is on…
The ever-popular Hurricane Party - invite the friends and neighbors to come hang for the “hunker-down” part of the storm.
Scan in all your photos
Make photo albums for your family members
Make Hurricane Crafts with the kids (Liam’s Pick)
Bake bread or your favorite cookies
Pull out that sewing project you put in the closet
Spring Cleaning
Declutter every bookshelf
Brave the kids playroom and sort toys to rotate or remove.
Binge-watch your favorite sitcom or a whole movie series. (Stef’s Pick)
Play a video game start to finish (Josh’s Pick)
PRO-TIP: Spring Cleaning is great idea; however, this is NOT the time to clean the refrigerator, freezer (or patio. lol) Without knowing what is coming it is very important that all food remained stored at the proper temperature for the duration of the storm.
2) TAKE TIME FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION
One thing that I didn’t expect is that sometimes these storms brew up more than headaches and allergies I find that many times for me these storms stir up some sort of memory, feeling or angst that is better after I get some quiet time to think on it. But finding quiet in a busy, full, anxious house can be tricky. If you are feeling like you need some time, chances are you may not be the only one.
It’s is ok to claim some quiet time or create some in the house as a whole.
It is also ok to set healthy boundaries that may be different during these times when everyone is home together for an extended period of time.
It may be helpful to have a check-in time with each person throughout the day to see what everyone may be feeling or needing.
Stretching, yoga, journaling, or quiet reflection can help.
PRO-TIP: Seriously, include allergy meds and headache relief in your hurricane supplies and remember to check the date.
3) MAKE HUNKER-DOWN FUN
I told our 8 year old this week that I was working on this series and asked his thoughts and favorite part of hurricanes. He said, “camping in the closet”. I knew, of course, what he was referring to, but that was SOOOO NOT the way I would phrase it.
My anxious-mommy-worrying-self literally put food and toys for 7 days in the closet before the last storm. Once he figured out what I was up to, his kind 5yo soul decided to “help” and we ended up with just enough room in the giant closet for him to put a tiny sleeping mat on the floor. About midnight when the storm leveled up and we decided wake him from his bed and move to the our safe place, he happily grabbed his blankets and his bedtime friends and piled in the closet and went back to sleep. Josh and I got very little sleep, because the storm was so loud, but it finally passed; knowing that our son was safe, we just went to sleep….until he got up before 7am and wanted to play. All was fine until we went to put everything away later in the afternoon and we realized that Liam was disappointed because he slept through the whole storm and missed the “camping party”. So the three of us and our dog, Porty, sat in the closet and played toys and ate a “hurricane snack” to celebrate the occasion.
Thankfully, he doesn’t remember the anxious, headachy grump who was grumbling about moving everything into and out of the closet. He remembers that we tried to make him feel safe and he got to do something different.
Fortunately, neither Josh nor Liam seem to have storm anxiety like I do. Looking back at my childhood, I can see several reasons as to why I get super nervous around lightning, low pressure or major storms. For me, acknowledging that there is some value in preparing well for storms and hard scenarios is helpful. I’ve had to work very hard to keep my “what-if brain” from running away with thoughts, but I also try to take a fear and flip it into a positive like “how can I make storms fun for our son and help him feel prepared and safe?”
ResortTV1Homes Hot Picks
Top 5 for Hurricane Activities for Children
Magnetic Board Games (you don’t want to lose the pieces if the lights go out; also great for traveling)
Sticker Art Books, we also love the ones by Brain Game Sticker Books. We also love Elephant and Piggie Activity Books.
Paper Airplanes. I know they say Valentine’s on them, but these are seriously one of the best things we’ve gotten all year. They would be great at keeping little hands busy.
Kids Craft. We had such a blast with these!
We also have fun with this special challenge, too.
If you are new to Central Florida or to hurricane prep in general, I’d love to know what you found helpful about this article series. Make sure you check out all 3 STEPS OF HURRICANE PREP STEP 1, STEP 2, and STEP 3.
