Easter Dinner and a Flood

All the dogs got into the act  and got  all dressed up for Easter,

I had candy eggs, rabbits and chicks for the little ones.

The dining room in it's Easter finery.

This is right out side my front door. We put up a temp. flood wall. If the river rises we have to add sand bags to the top.This goes up fast and 4 people can do it in a couple of days. It is 1000 feet long.

  I hope every one out there in Blogville, had a wonderful and blessed Easter. I had the family for Easter Bunch at, My Old Historic House. Every since my Mother and Father have gone my brothers and sister and I have to take turns having the family get together. It was my turn this year to host the Easter celebration. Of course right in the middle of it, or on top of it, the Mississippi River, that is only a few 100 feet from my front porch, decided  to flood it's self right out of it's  banks. For the past few days the whole town has been busy building a temporary flood wall and filling thousands of sand bags. If viewed from the air, I am sure it would look like an ant hill.

I got out my beautiful English platter to show off.

This is out the front door of my shop. The sand bag wall will grow to about 4 foot tall.

I saved the jonquils in the ice box for weeks for the Easter brunch today.

Standing on my front porch looking toward the shops down town.

  Every year in the spring we have this problem to deal with. In 2008 we had a giant flood. I had only owned, My Old Historic House, for 2 years and that was an awful present for any one to give me. The river rose to a record height and we had to build a  sand  bag wall all the way around the house. There was no electric or plumbing because of the high water, and I had to wade water up to my waist to go to the rest room, in a porta pot. The water stayed up for over a month and was a couple of other months before we could get rid of all the sand bags. I was sure hoping that would not happen again,  for a least 20 years. Last spring we had threats and the river came up and down all summer. No problem in the end. This year there has been so much snow and bad weather up above us, that the old Mississippi is on a ramp page.We can not set and wait as all this pre-flood prep  takes time and man power. Sometime it comes up so fast there is very little warning.It's a lot to go through, but living on the river, the views and the barges and birds all year, I guess , some how make it worth it.

We have to rent big pumps like this one to pump the water that comes under the flood  wall, back into the river.

The park is completely under water.

  I took the day off  today, after I spent the morning making a few hundred sand bags and got every thing ready for my family and our wonderful feast. I figure I needed to take a break and observe the Lords very special day.I tried to make it nice, even though we were almost in the middle of a flood,I thought my family and I deserved a beautiful table.
   I am really under stress as the flood causes the whole town to close down. We get water over the roads coming into town from both directions and we become an island. No one can come and shop and I worry about the bills. This could go on and on and I might be closed for a couple of months. I hope some people shop on  in my Etsy shop, on line, and that would really help.Some how it always works out.
    I will be away from the computer a lot in the coming days. I do manage to check in at least three times a day. I wanted to get this post done and out there before tomorrow , where I will again tackle the sand bag war.Come by for a tour or to help sand bag. I will leave the lights on till they cut them off, because the water has gotten to high,  Sissy Dog will meet you with a jump and a kiss.

  www.richadsgreatstuff.etsy.come

The big old ham, the guest of honor at our Easter brunch.

Some one had to wash the dishes.

This was my bargin  shopping find. A quilted peach colored bed spread for $6.00 at Goodwill that I will use as a table cloth. Just throw it in the washer and dryer.

Angel food cake and fresh strawberries. 

Our youngest, great niece, four months old.

My Victorian glass Easter eggs made a grand appearance.