A Storm, a Garage, and Five Gallons of Paint

So we've been painting our new house, and I needed to go to Lowe's to get more paint today after work. I swing by Grandma and Grandpa's house, pick up Anna and Will after an hour delay over this and that, and scoot on over to Lowe's. I get my five gallons of paint, look at tile and ceiling fans again, and head to the check-out. During this time, we hear some thunder which scares Anna so that she doesn't want to leave. To my relief, we exit the store and see that the storm has passed. "See the storm clouds way over there?" I say reassuringly. And they did.

It just so happened, however, that the storm clouds were heading to our new house... like us, with our five gallons of paint. On our drive to the new house Anna gets more upset at the sight of rain and clouds. It's only rain; we're fine, I say. The thunder argues against me.

We arrive at the house under a benign drizzle. I park in the driveway. I open my door and the clouds release their burden... perfect timing! So I quickly hop out, run around the van, grab Anna who is crying hysterically, carry her to the front door, and deposit her inside the house. One down, one to go. At this point it occurs to me that it is a shorter distance from the van to the garage than from the van to the front door. Ah, how clever I am! So I run to the van, hop in the driver's seat, push the garage door opener button, hop out, grab Will, and run with him into the garage. Yes, garage... two-car garage for those of you keeping track of such things. Well, I tell myself, it seems I'll have to wait for the rain to let up before I can bring in my paint cans.

I spend the next hour or so holding and comforting my two terrified children every time the thunder rumbles or lightning flashes. I even try my mom's story she used to tell me of how the thunder is just God "upstairs" bowling with the angels (of course, Anna and Will don't know what bowling is). No, nothing helps except for me to be right there with them. After the first 30 minutes or so, sitting in the empty, work-in-progress, un-air conditioned house, it occurs to me that we have a garage, and I suddenly have a revelation of how one might use a garage, like in a storm for instance. A person, such as myself, if so desired, might dare to drive their van into the garage, thus being able to exit the vehicle calmly, without unnecessary drenching of one's clothes and children. What a concept!

Anna catches on to the the idea right away, and the intrigue and novelty of it all make her forget her fears. So I scheme and eventually manage to set Will down long enough to dash out to the van and carefully drive into the garage, so I can then carry the paint cans into the house. Victory! Of course, by this time the sun is peaking through and chasing the rain and thunder away. Will tells me he's not scared anymore, we distribute the paint cans to their proper rooms, and head for home.

**Personal Disclaimer: I have never had a garage before, though it may seem obvious how one might be used. :)