Having been through the terrible hurricanes of the 2004 - 2005 season (Katrina, Wilma, Frances - just to name a few!), my family and I felt comfortable enough with Irma to stay home and ride it out. Armed with plenty of supplies (bottled water, wine, diapers, canned food) and a generator, portable AC unit, and lots of gas to power it all up - we were ready for Irma. To top it off, we had impact windows and doors installed in our new house last year - so no need for shutters or plywood.
Having said all that, hurricanes are certainly no joke and this one was quite serious. Losing power is never fun, and surviving in South Florida with no AC is even worse. We ended up going to a local hotel for a bit, just to get out of the heat. Our generator powered some things, like both fridges, so the food didn't go bad, and our microwave, so we had to get creative in the kitchen! One memorable dinner, I cooked salmon, zucchini, and quinoa, all separately, in the microwave, and it was actually delicious! The next morning I made scrambled eggs in the microwave too.
A hurricane tradition in our new house, which began last year with Hurricane Matthew, is to prepare an elaborate cheese plate / happy hour, which we very much enjoyed this time around.
My husband made a delicious grilled shrimp and pasta dinner using our grill. Yum! We love fresh seafood.
