That's my story and I'm sticking to it...

I got this in an email from my Mom. I thought it was cute and wanted to share.

Have a GREAT day!

"Not Me!" Monday

I found MckMama about midweek (last week). As I was reading some of her posts I discovered, "Not Me!" Monday. It sounded like LOTS of fun, so I thought I'd join in today. I've been pondering what exactly I'd write about... I HOPED it'd be lighthearted and FUN! Well, we had a little episode here this morning and I decided to share it instead. (You may find humor as you discover how "batty" I truly am.. HA! Oh, and the "Not Me!" will begin towards the end of this post.. Please remember this IS my first post so if I'm doing it COMPLETELY wrong, you'll overlook me?) O:-)

Okay, so as most of know you know, we lost our oldest son Brent a little over a year and a half ago to cancer. (You can read about it on my sidebar if you haven't heard our story)

ANYWAY.. Our 10 year old NOW holds the role of "big brother." (Well, kinda.. that's sort of where today's story begins) Zach IS the older of the younger two, but today we found out he's no longer "the biggest."

Gabe (Our 7 year old) asked me to measure him to see if he'd grown any. Well, he had, and he'd grown A LOT! Zach then decided he wanted to be measured. He was NOT happy to learn that Gabe is now almost a half inch taller. (He actually cried - remember, there is a THREE year age difference)

So I texted my sister and she called me back and advised me to share the story of Samuel anointing David as king. Let me share it with you....


1 Samuel 16:1-12 (New Living Translation)

Samuel Anoints David as King

1 Now the Lord said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel, so fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.”
2 But Samuel asked, “How can I do that? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”

“Take a heifer with you,” the Lord replied, “and say that you have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you which of his sons to anoint for me.”

4 So Samuel did as the Lord instructed. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town came trembling to meet him. “What’s wrong?” they asked. “Do you come in peace?”

5 “Yes,” Samuel replied. “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then Samuel performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice, too.

6 When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!”

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

8 Then Jesse told his son Abinadab to step forward and walk in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “This is not the one the Lord has chosen.” 9 Next Jesse summoned Shimea,[a] but Samuel said, “Neither is this the one the Lord has chosen.” 10 In the same way all seven of Jesse’s sons were presented to Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.” 11 Then Samuel asked, “Are these all the sons you have?”

“There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied. “But he’s out in the fields watching the sheep and goats.”

“Send for him at once,” Samuel said. “We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”

12 So Jesse sent for him. He was dark and handsome, with beautiful eyes.

And the Lord said, “This is the one; anoint him.”

Okay, so this is where the "Not Me" begins....

"No, I didn't cry ALL THE WAY through my SISTER reading this story to me over the phone.. NOT ME! (I'm not THAT emotional today)

"I didn't cry AGAIN as I read it to Zach while looking into HIS beautiful eyes.. (TRYING to explain that GOD is looking at HIS heart also) Not Me! (I mean, I'm not hopelessly EMOTIONAL TODAY)

I also didn't SOB like a baby when I watched this video..

Nope, NOT ME! (Wait! Yes, I am THAT emotional.. I just hope my mood swings don't switch over from being a crybaby today to being SHORT TEMPERED with my loved ones!) NOT ME, I'm NEVER like THAT!

O:-)


(Oh, and if you see us out somewhere, please DON'T mention to Zach that I told you about this??)



If you want to see how "Not Me!" Monday is REALLY supposed to work, stop by, "MckMama's" and see what she has to say!

Then Sings My Soul Saturdays

THAT was a fun version, now THIS is an ADORABLE one! This kid is TOO CUTE!




For more posts on this "TSMSS" visit Amy at Signs, Miracles, and Wonders.

Is Your Marriage Fireproof?

(Just click "watch trailer" on the graphic below.. it'll load up and play from here)

Hello, Friends!

I thought I'd check in and share a video clip on the new movie, "FIREPROOF." (You may have already seen it)

We've yet to go, but will hopefully make it to the theater tomorrow. I want to go in part because I think "Hollywood" NEEDS to KNOW that people still want FAMILY FRIENDLY films. More than that, it's important that we ban together and let them know we want movies with MORALS! (I mean, REALLY.. the "PG" ratings now are what "RATED-R" movies were when I was a kid) I'm REALLY HOPING that the movie will have a TREMENDOUS turnout!


This movie seems to be one that will CONVICT and ENCOURAGE us to put our spouses FIRST (Second ONLY to GOD, of course)



Now, as for every day "stuff" with our little family...

Some of you asked if the hand with the broken bone was Zach's "good hand?"


Yes, It was! No worries, one of the benefits of homeschooling is that you ALWAYS have your teacher with you! SOOOOO.. He didn't get out of any work! I've been taking those notes and writing those answers for him. HA!! =-)


Okay, I'm going to turn in for the night. I'm supposed to get to keep Allie Grace tomorrow so I'd better get my sleep while I can. Hehehe..

HOPEFULLY I'll have LOTS of new pictures of her to share.


Thanks SO MUCH for checking in with us!
LOVE,
Tonya

Guess what WE did yesterday!?

Our boys had a sleepover on Friday night.. with a couple of boys their ages. Well, their "roughhousing" got a little too rough. Zach was running through the house and hit his hand on a wooden piece of the couch. By Saturday morning (the next day) his hand was REALLY SWOLLEN. (I thought - HOPED it was bruising) AFRAID NOT!

We took him to see a bone doc yesterday and found that a bone in his hand was broken. (It was the quickest we could get in without going to the ER)

The bone that had a break in it is the one that follows your middle finger back towards your wrist. (It's about halfway between the knuckle and wrist)

Now, don't be worrying about Zach, he thinks it's COOL! (If you could believe that?) HA! I guess I said it right the other day when I titled one of my most recent posts, "Boys WILL be boys." =-)

Here's a couple of pictures of him "finishing off" the mac-n-cheese (Oh, and giving me the "thumbs up")...







Oh, and if you're wondering.. YES, he caught a LOT of heat from EVERYONE about running in the house. (Yes, I got a kick out of that) It seemed that every medical person he saw yesterday - INCLUDING his doctor - "ragged him about it." (They were like, "Didn't your Mom ever tell you NOT to run in the house?") Hehehe.. it's NICE to have SOMEONE else nag I mean, tell him for a change. O:-)

Okay, I'm gonna run. I've gotta get these boys fed and school started. You guys have a GREAT DAY!

Love,
Tonya

Our boy, "Pilot for a Day"

Hello, FRIENDS!

We FINALLY had a couple of our laptops fixed and there was a TREASURE of photos that I'd not seen in a VERY LONG time on there. (One of the laptops was Brent's the other was Link's)

Many of these treasures are of Brent during treatment. (The reason being is that some VERY GENEROUS ladies that work with my Aunt heard that Brent wanted a laptop - and they made SURE he got it!) SO, there are LOTS of pictures on here - YES, it's a gold mine to us!

Just below are a few pictures of Brent with Zach at an air force show. They were made while Brent was in the middle of his battle with cancer. (He was invited to their "Pilot for a Day" program)

I LOVE to find pictures of Brent showing affection to his brothers, and yet it breaks my heart to see pictures of him so pale and without hair. (I have this nice "healthy" picture of him TATTOOED on my brain - it's the one I recall when I think of him)


The boys riding on the bus they had for us... Oh, and check out Brent wearing the COOL pilot uniform they had for him! (Each of the the children that participated got one)

(This is the affectionate shot I was telling you about)



and a couple of them "horsing around"







Brent with two of the pilots.. he had an AMAZING day!



I feel like you're probably beginning to dread coming here.. I say that because I feel like I'm ALWAYS asking you to "do" something. Well, once again I'm here asking a favor. (Only THIS time it's FREE, and REALLY QUICK & EASY!) O:-)

If you have a few minutes to spare, could you watch a few VERY short videos on childhood cancer? (There are 6 in total) For every video you watch (they're about 30 seconds each) sponsors will donate 25 cents! You'll answer a question at the end of each short clip.. they get the donation whether your answer is right or not.

I PRAY that we get to see the day that NO family EVER loses another child to this HORRIBLE disease. I just can't stand the thought of another human experiencing what Brent went through. I hate the thought that some child's parents would have to watch them suffer the way we did (an so many others have with their own children).

Now, we know that Brent IS HEALED AND HEALTHY NOW! At HOME with his JESUS!

He got his Ephesians 3:20 HEALING! God HEALED Brent IMMEASURABLE MORE than ALL we could've asked for or imagined! (It was a TREMENDOUS gain for Brent - a gain so great it cannot be measured, for us.. it's the greatest loss we've ever had)



This is the way I remember him (that photo that I told you was "etched on my brain")




Again, if you have a moment please click here to watch these short little clips. (I think there were only 6 - I've forgotten already)

THANKS AGAIN!
Love,
Tonya

Boys WILL Be Boys

They actually clean up pretty well.. HEHEHE!






More pics from our "photo session" at the lake coming soon!

Wacky & Weird Tomatoes

Alright, my friends... I've FINALLY made good on my word to show you some of the weird things I've grown in my garden. Much to my dismay, there is one photo missing. I don't know if I accidentally deleted it, but it's GONE nonetheless! (It was a siamese cucumber - I GUESS that's what you'd call it? It was TWO cucumbers grown CONNECTED from one end to the other. It was REALLY ODD in appearance)

Just below are my siamese tomatoes. Actually, I think ONE was "siamese," the other was just PLAIN STRANGE! (It TRULY looked like Mickey Mouse! If ONLY I'd have thought to make the picture upside down!) Oh well, use your imagination.. hehehe

Now, in the words of Porky Pig... "Abde-abde-abea-that's all folks!"

Oh, the other post I did earlier today is just below.. ;-)

LONG overdue..

Hello, Friends!

How've ya been? I've been... well, doing pretty well actually. I "hit" another "bump in the road" a couple of weeks ago and struggled a while with, hhmmm, I don't know what to call it. I don't want to say I've struggled with depression, but maybe that's it? I guess it's understandable. Anyway, I PRAISE JESUS for being my Comforter, my ROCK, my LORD! I truly cannot imagine how people deal with the death of a loved one without HIM. As you have probably already heard me say, this is the time of year when things started going DOWN HILL for Brent. We were told we should "keep him comfortable" but REFUSED to give up. At least not when he appeared so healthy still.

Then, I tend to get "down" when I think about the upcoming holidays. We pretty much KNEW by Thanksgiving that it would be our last with Brent. By Christmas, well, we'd made the gut-wrenching decision to take him back to Memphis and wait for him to go HOME. (We'd been in Vermont as a last effort to make him well) Now, add to that his birthday is coming.. October 28. I guess it's just a BIG OLE MIX of EVERYTHING.

Oh, I'm pretty sure I've not mentioned it here, but I did a post on "Laced With Grace". In it, I talked about the struggles I had with faith (and GOD) after we lost him. Check it out if you'd like.

Now, I shared all of that with you to tell you how I've been. God has DELIVERED me from another dark moment in time. (I'm sure there will be many more until we too, go HOME)Isn't it a BLESSED thing to KNOW that we have an ETERNAL HOME with our LORD?? =-)

Okay, to change the subject a bit..

Have I told you that the boys have started flag football? They're SO CUTE, all those little ones! They are LOVING it!! (You wouldn't BELIEVE how many home-school children there are in our group!) WOW!!

Oh, I also told you that I'd share those crazy garden pictures. Well, whatever made the computers work has reversed. Now our supposed "wireless" isn't working again. UGH! I sure didn't want to start unloading a TON of pictures on Link's new computer because I KNOW that's what played a HUGE part in slowing down the other one. (I'm NOTORIOUS for making TOO MANY pictures) They actually joked about making me a hood ornament when we went on a mission trip a few years ago because I hung out of the window snapping shots. (Hey, in my defence we were in lots of MOUNTAINS and it was BEAUTIFUL!!!)

I'll go AS SOON as I finish this update and TRY to connect it AGAIN! I just had an idea as I was typing this. I can upload those pictures and take the laptop somewhere wi-fi is offered. (I'm S.L.O.W. - I admit it) O=-)

Alrighty, I think I'm going to go now. I'm inspired to try to get those pictures up TODAY!

THANKS SO MUCH to those of you who've checked in so often even when I've been slacking in my posts. I also wanted to say THANKS again to everyone that sponsored our "virtual walk." You guys are simply AMAZING!

I hope to check back soon...

LOVE YOU!
Tonya

Just checking in..

Hello, Friends!

Before I get started I want to say, "THANKS," to everyone that donated money for childhood cancer research!!!! We're a little more than halfway to our goal. As I said in the post below.. every amount great and small helps!

(If I've not emailed you personally, I will. I can't say how blessed we are that you've joined us in this fight! So, again, THANK YOU!)





NOW... I wanted to stop in and say, "hello." It's been a LONG time and I really didn't intend on letting so much time pass me by in-between posts. I'd mentioned before that I would share my "crazy garden" photos. Well, when the new computer arrived I vowed that I would NOT use up all the storage with pictures and such. SOOO.. I thought I'd just do it from the old one. The problem?? It's not been connecting to the internet. Well, somehow our boys have figured out how to fix it and it's working. NOW.. I just have to slow down long enough to load the pictures. (Maybe I'll do that TOMORROW?? Hehe.. I won't make any promises)

So, to fill you in just a tad on what we've been doing.. the boys are playing flag football with our home school group. We do that twice a week.. then of course there's church on Sunday and Wednesday. I'm sure your lives are just as crazy.. I just can't seem to figure out how to "DO" everything.

Oh, here's a funny little tidbit on our family. We've got a new pet. (Or should I say, PETS?) They're hermit crabs and have been quite the hermits! (HA!! Pardon the pun) O=-)

The VERY FIRST night we had them, the boys left the lid off, and a "stick" leaning all the way to the top of the cage thingy. (I have NO idea what to call their little home) ANYWAY... as you have probably already guessed one of them got out! ICK!!

No worries.. he was quickly found and returned to his little home. We actually started out with 3 but one of them has... UUMMMMMMMM.... we'll, let's just say he's "not with us any longer."

HHHMMMM... what else?? I know there was more to tell but it's getting late and my day starts EARLY! (I'm normally up with my hubby around 5 am)

I've REALLY MISSED you all! HOPEFULLY I'll make it back tomorrow and update with those pictures I've been promising. Until next time..


THANKS SO MUCH for checking in on us...
Love,
Tonya