Blessings Poured Down....

Tonight for FHE we decided to do a little spring cleanup in the yard. Greg pruned bushes, the kids played in the dirt, and I carried Rachel from one area of the yard to the next being totally ineffective until I discovered a very efficient "playpen" for Rachel. At one of Becca's soccer games we discovered that Rachel does not care for the grass at all, so I decided to put her down on a blanket tonight with a couple of toys, and after one touch of the grass, she played happily in her little comfy spot in the yard without any desire to wander.
With the baby contained I decided to go back inside to finish up the dinner dishes. After working on the dishes for less than two minutes, I heard a pop and the sound of the rushing of great waters coming from behind the fridge. When I looked over, water was pouring out from below the fridge, so I yelled for Greg, and ran downstairs to turn off the main water valve. Now, in most homes it might be a little difficult to remember the location of and/or access the water main; however, we are very fortunate. You see, the very first thing people notice when they come down to our basement is a lovely cupboard randomly placed in the middle of the wall. Curiosity has overcome many such visitors, and they, who normally would not think to open someone's cupboard at random, have opened the little door to find our water main.
For anyone who is now saying, "It can't be that bad" I have included a picture of about 1/3 of our basement wall. Can anyone find the 'secret' cupboard?



However, I have to take back any disparaging remarks I might have made about the rather odd placement and "camoflauge" of the water main because thanks to its easy access I had the water turned off in a matter of seconds and only a few gallons of water poured out on my kitchen floor.

I honestly can't imagine the consequences that might have befallen us had I not been in the kitchen right as it happened. I feel so blessed that we were able to avoid any water damage (although after showing pictures of my basement perhaps a call to my home-owner's insurance wouldn't have been such a bad thing--not to mention the fact that I could really go for a kitchen remodel) but truly I couldn't imagine trying to go through that much cleanup, and trust me, it could have been extensive!