If you didn’t know their backstory, it would seem life at the Brockman house is normal.

Sounds of classic rock songs bellow from one of the bedrooms as the two young boys are engaged in a game of Guitar Hero.

The oldest daughter, Amanda, just rolled her eyes as her brothers leave the game to wrestle each other on the living room floor of their home on Wornall Street in Neosho.

Mom is home from work, and sat at the kitchen table sipping a drink as she took a break from another hectic day as a working mother.

But, life is anything but normal for the Brockmans.

Nearly two months ago, their lives were turned upside down when an EF3-4 tornado destroyed their home they had to already rebuild once.

All that is left of their home on Jute Road is the floor and two toilets. The basement is intact, but it leaks. That forced the family to build a shop next to the home’s foundation to provide dry storage for what belonging were salvageable.

Debris is still scattered all over the family’s 16-acre property. They found five basketball goals on their land — one actually being their own — and Kendall and Diana Brockman have no idea how, and when, they will be able to clean-up everything from the disaster and move their family of five back to their home sweet home.

Right now, they are just trying to clean up their lives.

The family — Kendall and Diana, and their children, Amanda, Basil and Carter — is living in a rental home just a block from the bustling Neosho Boulevard. It’s a fine home, but it’s a far cry from the custom-built abode they called their own out in the country.

“We are still getting used to the trains,” Diana joked.

“And, boy, do I miss my kitchen,” added Kendall.

The family is getting used to a lot of new aspects of life since May 10. Kendall and Diana are in the process of interviewing bidders to rebuild their home on Jute Road. This is the second time they are rebuilding their home after their first house on the same property was completely destroyed in a fire in 1999.

“We have been through all of this before, and I think that helps us,” Diana said.
Their children are also getting used to a new house, with neighbors just a few feet away, and are becoming what Diana called “city kids.”

“At first, Amanda had a hard time sleeping because the neighbors were just so close,” Diana said. “This is the first time the kids have really lived in town. You will notice the curtains are all closed, and the blinds are closed. The kids are freaked out because there are so many people close by.”

There are some advantages. Amanda will walk to high school this year, and the boys are able to ride their bikes up and down the hills of Neosho to visit friends.

“They have been all over the place,” said Diana, shaking her head.

While the children play and explore, Kendall and Diana are busy going through what they were able to salvage from the storm.

“We just found two dressers full of stuff downstairs,” Diana said. For us, it is those little things, as we go, that mean a lot. We cooked a full meal in the kitchen. Usually, we put some hot dogs on, or it is a bag of chips, and we go buy a thing of potato salad to go with it. We just haven’t had the time. And, this doesn’t seem like our kitchen. This isn’t our house. We haven’t really wanted to cook. It is a struggle to force ourselves to do something routine, and then when you do it feels so good.”

Most of Kendall and Diana’s free time is spent at their property on Jute Road, cleaning up debris and getting workers to come in and work on the land and view the damage to start the rebuilding process. They have quickly realized rebuilding their home is going to cost more than it did eight years ago with the construction material costs going up by the day.

“We look at the prices tags, and say, ‘yikes,’” Diana said. “We are looking at trying to get in the new home within a year.”

The biggest struggle, Diana said, was remembering what they owned, how much they paid for it or how much it was worth when dealing with their insurance company.

“Our insurance has been great,” Diana said. “I have been looking online and trying to figure out how much things are, and what we had. We still have Kendall’s tools to get through and catalog. There are so many things you know you need to do. You know you have to start the rebuild process, but it is hard to focus on just that one thing. If we can get a builder lined up, and get the house going, we can focus on getting finished with our insurance.”

Building the house and cataloging their belongings for the insurance company may be simple compared to cleaning up their property.

“I have 16 acres of debris,” Diana said. “The cleanup will be an ongoing process, but we will get through it.”