Vacation ahead...

Well, we are preparing to head out to Disney in 9 days. We are taking Kerry and Gayle Duvall and their kids and families. Kerry, along with Glynn, are distributors of the metal roofing that we manufacture. They have been good to us and our business, TJ's Metal. They have been our distributors for several years now. Tony decided a few months back that we needed to do something in appreciation for all their business...and.....aha! I know! Disney!...what else?....since Kerry and Glynn are partners in the business it was a no brainer that we would take them both..but Tony got to thinking, Kerry and Gayle only have 1 other child...hey..let's just take them too!...so in 9 days we'll board a plane and head to Orlando once again....We are also taking our other 2 distributors at the same time in January. That would be Tony's brother Neal and his whole family, and his sister, Melody and her family...they both are distributors of our metal. Tony and I love Disney...we enjoy going ourselves, but we love taking others..we love to see the faces of the little ones as they see the castle for the first time..or Mickey Mouse...Tony says he remembers us being a young family and not being able to afford taking us anywhere..coming to Alabama was our "vacation"...but that was ok..I knew we couldn't do anything else, and our kids had never gone anywhere anyway so they didn't know anything different....that's one reason we love taking others...maybe take someone that wouldn't be able to go on their own...and no kuddos to us...cause we get something out of it ourselves....lol.
I think after our trip in January, we are going to go on one more family trip..and retire from Disney...maybe go once a year or so... just not go so much. I am looking into us "retiring" with a Disney "land and cruise trip"...4 days at WDW, then a bus pick us up and take us to a Disney ship and spend 3 days at sea. We've never been on a cruise before and we've always wanted to, just kinda leery about seasickness...yuck..just take tons of Dramamine I guess..anyway...that won't be til round June or so..i'll worry bout that then. We would also love to go to Hawaii again...
Well, it's church night tonight..hope we have a good service..hope we hear the Word of God...hope I see myself if i'm found short...and I probably will be...usually am...especially if it's about Charity...ugh.

God is Still Good!

I liked the title of my last post so well, and it is still so true, that I decided I would use it in this post as well..He is so good to me and I feel so truly blessed by Him. He has been everything i've ever needed Him to be. A friend, confidante, financial advisor, financial provider, healer, comforter...He is everything!
I see His plan in my life every day..when I wake up, it's because He let me. When I go about my day, from one place to another and back home...it's because He kept me safe. When I face life's trials, disappointments and sorrows, He is always there with the right remedy. Sometimes it's hard to imagine that someone as big as him, would know every little detail of every human being. I find it so hard to think that He knows every second of every minute in the day and what it will hold, and He walks ahead of me to prepare the way. What is even more amazing is that He knows this for every single person. I think of all the things that He has made right in my life, and I think, how in the world can I ever repay Him? I know it's said that all He wants is our praise, but that seems too easy. Well, sometimes it's hard to do that, but not because I don't think He's worthy. Just that I feel so inadequate, and what I have to offer in the way of praise is so small. But I believe that every single sacrifice, each and every testimony counts. I've been testifiying and have had my mind go completely blank. I might recover in a second or two, but by then i'm ready to sit back down...lol...i'm thinking.."what in the world just happened"...ha...but, He knew. And i've thought, "boy, that was so pathetic", there is no way that that offer made it on the books, but it did. Each and every one does.
When I think of the things He has been so good to me about, I have to mention our little Crimsyn. This lil booger is growing so much! He laughed out loud at church with me Thurs night..that was music to my ears..I've wanted my grandbabies to stay newborny for as long as they would, but time doesn't stand still..and when they just had to pass that stage, I always looked forward to the time when they would start laughing out loud..Crystal had been telling me he had started laughing, but Granny wanted him to laugh for her...and he decided he would oblige me Thursday night while Br Shirley was preaching..he had just had a good nap, and had finished his bottle and he was ready for Granny!...it was like all I had to do was look at him and he would laugh!...that made my heart so happy! To think that things could have been so different if the Lord hadn't answered our prayers...Like I said...God is good...He will always be good! Thank you Lord...I love you.

God is so good

Wow...this journey the kids are on seems neverending...As most of you have probably heard by now, Crimsyn is in the hospital with Spinal Meningitis. And although I wonder when is their life gonna get back to normal, I am not ignorant enough to ask what else could go wrong. This could have turned out so much worse than it is and I am thankful things went the way they did. Had this baby still been in Hawaii and this happened to him, well...I don't want to think about it...Not knowing what situation the birthmother is in right now...we have to think that Crimsyn would probably not have received the care he needs...not that she wouldn't have provided it...but because she couldn't have...It was heartbreaking when I got to the hospital today and he was laying on the pillow in Crystal's lap, crying and moaning because he was in pain...he couldn't stand for Crystal to move him, it made him cry out worse...but our God is an awesome God...He had one of His children lay hands on him (and Crystal)...and within minutes, Crimsyn had ate a full 4 oz of milk and was just laying there smiling at me and Crystal! He appeared to be in no pain...just contented to lay there looking at us...he would turn his head toward my voice when I spoke to him, and turn his head and follow me when I moved...it was nothing short of a miracle!....he laid like that for probably close to 2 hours...Crystal said he wasn't feeling as well this evening, but he has had a rough 2 days and was probably tired...they are very optomistic about his recovery, but he still has a ways to go before we can get the all clear and we know the extent of things....Crystal looked at me and asked me "what if he was still over there"....thank the good Lord, we don't have to worry about that anymore.

This is one boring Friday night...

Ok, it's Friday night. I'm bored. Stuffed full of CrackerBarrell and ready for bed, yet i'm not willing to call it a night. Got a lot of things on my mind and I can't seem to turn it off. I thought about sleeping with the windows open tonight...I love the fall and late Spring season cause I can do that...Tony doesn't like it much, but as long as he doesn't have that sticky feeling from the humidity he usually gives in..lol. I was hoping one or some, of my grandkids could spend the night with us..at least the evening, but they all had previous plans..so that left Pappy and me to fend for ourselves. So I washed some clothes. Easy and boring enough. Tony decided to go fishing, but came home in just a little bit...said it was too windy, and, he sheepishly tells me, he forgot to put the plug back in the whatever it's called and the boat began to fill with water and the motor that pumps the water out of the whatever it's called came on. He didn't know what was going on at first, then he remembered that he forgot to plug it back up. So he hurriedly takes the boat out of the water, puts the plug back in and comes home. That was the extent of our excitement and even then, I didn't get to be there and him telling me the story wasn't quite as exciting as if I had actually been in the sinking boat with him. I am sure I would have panicked and cause an even bigger commotion than he already had going on all by himself. But I got tickled at him..instead of telling me, or I should say admitting to me, that he forgot to plug the whatever it's called back up and that he had to take the boat out of the water to fix it, so he just came on home..he just said it was too windy to fish..hee hee. Actually, it was too windy to be out there, and I was kinda surprised he went to start with. We decided to head on up to CB for a late dinner..beans, cornbread and carrot cake...it was all good...Now i'm here, right back where I started...it's still Friday night and i'm still wishing I could have seen the kids, and bored again...so I thought I would blog a boring story to go along with my nearly perfect, boring night...Tony ruined my chances of a completely boring night, with his boating episode..and I didn't even get to be part of it....oh well....maybe next Friday night he won't mess it up and I can boast of our boringness! ...is that a word??...ugh.

My " I'm Thankful" List...

I've seen several blogs lately, listing the things they are thankful for. Being the age I am, and having the Holyghost for over 42 yrs now, there are several things that I could post. As I state in my blog's title, I wonder how much memory I have here on this computer..i'm sure if I could relive every day of my life in my mind, I would use up all of it here on this one blog alone. I know it is easy to say that you have so much to be thankful for, but until you sit down and start to name them one by one, do you really start to thinking.."wow...He really did that for me"...etc. So in keeping with the other blogs, i'll try to post some of the ones that come to mind...

I am thankful for my mother and dad. Altho times were hard at home, and some of my worst memories of life come from that point in my life, i'm still thankful I had a home. Thankful that my dad steadily worked a job and provided for our needs..thankful that mom withstood a lot of hard times and heartache to keep us all together. I love you mom and dad.

I am thankful for my religion. I thank the Lord for giving me the Holyghost. I love my religion. I can trust the people I go to church with. I can call on them in time of need and know that they will be there. I am thankful for my church family especially, I love them, and I know they love me.

I am thankful for Tony. The Lord sent him to me when I was at a crossroad in my life. I needed someone to love me, and protect me and He sent me this skinny, black haired boy from Alabama to fill that need. Together, we've weathered storms and sunshine, good times and bad, happy and sad...key word here is "together".

I am thankful for my children. No mother could be any prouder of her offspring than I am mine. I have a son, who has always been a joy..ok..well...he did go thru a spell where I wanted to wring his neck, but he wound up being one of my best friends. He pastors a church now, and his life direction has taken a serious turn, but every now and then, he's becomes my fun-loving boy from days gone by. My daughter, Erica, has done me so proud. Have you ever been to her home? Immaculate..ever hear her sing?...sounds like angels....know her as a friend?....she's faithful...I seriously don't know what I would do without her. She is such a help to me now that i'm not able to do like I once was...and like her brother, I feel she is one of my best friends...I can tell her anything...

I am thankful for our in-laws, Crystal and Todd...everyone should have a daughter in law like Crystal..she takes such good care of our son and grandchildren. She has never given us a reason to worry that our son wasn't being treated right..and she has shown us nothing but love and respect...she has such a caring nature about her and i'm proud to call her my daughter in law. We also love Todd very much. He is extremely loyal to his household..he adores our daughter and grandchild...he has worked and provided for our daughter, and we've been so thankful we haven't had to worry about that..everyone that knows Todd, loves him, and we're no exception.

I am SO thankful for our grandkids!! Woo Hoo!! Grandkids!! We wanted a bunch....and what a bunch we have...lol...Kristen, Carter, Caden, Resiana and Crimsyn are our pride and joy...all of the older ones have already developed their personalities...and they are all different...and what fun they are! Baby Crimsyn is still too tiny to tell about yet, but we're sure he'll fit in somewhere between spoiled rotten and a cutie patootie...him being our last (probably) he doesn't stand a chance..he'll probably be both.

I am thankful for the way the Lord has blessed our business. He has provided for us all through our married life. I remember when Tony made $1.85 an hour...

I am thankful for the times the Lord has healed Tony and me. He healed Tony of ulcers, and me of RA..not to mention all of the other illnesses we encountered along the way..

I am thankful for the Lord's comforting hand. It's been there during some of the most heartbreaking times of my life...I felt it as I said my last goodbye's to Daddy...then again with Mom.......when we said goodbye to Tony's dad...the peace from that comfort saw us thru those dark days of sadness.

Well, as you can see, the list could go on and on...i'll stop before I bore you to death and you unfollow me...lol......see ya!

A New Beginning...

Well, it looks like our storm is over..the wind blew, our faith tested, but the Grace of God found favor with us, and allowed our family to be complete. I've held him, kissed him, cuddled and adored our little Crimsyn, and yet it still seems so unreal that he's with us now, forever. He will probably be the last little one in our small family, so I am really trying to take in every minute. They are little like this for such a short time. It's hard to believe he's already 4 weeks old today..he still looks like a newborn..maybe 2 weeks old. And i'm kinda glad...altho we would have been glad to see him come home a year from now, i'm thankful that the Lord allowed us to get him back now, so we could enjoy him as a newborn, get to see him sit up, his first attempts at crawling and walking..his first laugh, tooth,..too many "firsts" to mention...it could have so easily been denied us...and I have my kids back...last night I was at their house and Crystal was almost back to her usual self, a little tired looking, but cleaning every little nook and cranny as I sat there and held the baby...I finally had to tell her to stop cleaning and sit with me..so she sat at the table with me and wiped the centerpeice down as we talked....lol..I don't think she can help it....and Slick was playing hide and go seek with Caden and Resiana...it was so good to hear their laughter and squeals of excitement as they found each other...(smiling here)...the past few weeks they have just been a shell of who they are..walking around in a daze, amid a whirlwind of emotions, questions and wondering what the future held for the baby they had to leave behind. But all of that is over now. We are at peace. And I know I am saying "we"..and I know it is the kids that are actually going thru all this and some might not understand my use of the word "we"...but Tony and I grieved over this situation too...we had waited for him right along with the kids, and anticipated having another grandchild added to our fold...we went for him as a family, left without him as a family...I have said since i've been home. that one of the hardest things I ever went thru, was when that plane left the ground and we were on it without Crimsyn. I knew no one on the plane, other than the family, knew what we were going thru, and altho I cried, I didn't feel like I could let go like I wanted to...it was like in the movies..I kept thinking that if I looked out the window I would see someone running down the runway after the plane waving their arms trying to stop it, to tell us she was there with the baby..and we could take him with us after all...but when the wheels of the plane left the ground...i'm telling you, it was such a feeling of despair and disbelief that we were really leaving without him....and then when we landed and they turned the radio on, the song that was playing was "Just call out my name, and you know wherever I am..i'll come running..."..which started the crying all over again...later on I said that the people that could see us probably thought...wow..those ladies sure are scared to death of take off and landing..lol...
We're looking forward to the holidays now..can't wait for all the family gatherings that are in the days ahead..I sure am glad I have a big table...and we're thrilled the Lord has added Resiana and Crimsyn to it...and i'm so happy I didn't give my high chair away!

Surprise!!!!!

If you've come here looking for news, well you've come to the right place. I have lived one of the hardest days of my life trying to keep a secret and if you haven't heard by now, you've guessed it...CRIMSYN HAS COME HOME!!!...

The kids got the call from the adoption co-ordinator at our singing Fri night..she said the birthmother wanted Slick and Crystal to come and get the baby..she has been sick, and never really wanted them to go home without him to start with..so...back to Hawaii they go! They were gonna wait and try to go Monday,..but they (adoption lawyer) told them they needed to get over there quickly, so they hurried up and made their reservations, boarded the plane and took off around 3am Sunday morn...Now we had no idea this was taking place, we were in Florida, so when we got home Sunday afternoon, I just assumed we would see them at church that night...of course they were no-shows, and everyone was looking to me and Tony for answers as to where they were and we had none! I didn't know where he was myself, and why they had left in that manner...now understand...Crystal had sent me a text message the day before saying she was gonna throw Slick a surprise birthday party on Wed nite because we had missed celebrating his b-day since we were in Hawaii at the time, and he was so depressed..yada yada...so i'm already concerned that my kid is depressed, now he and his wife are no where to be found!...I text and text, then finally, Slick texts me back that they are ok..just had to get away for a few days...they would be home Wed morn...so I back off, I was ok just knowing they were ok..I should have put 2 and 2 together tho...Slick had told me that if they ever got the call to come get him, that him and Crystal were gonna slip off over there, and not tell anyone..that way if they came home empty handed again, no one would know it...but I honestly didn't think they would do that...Fast forward to last night.........

We were all sitting at Triple R behind the door...someone says "They're here!"...so we are real quiet...sitting there bursting with anticipation the door opens and in steps Crystal...one of the little kids couldn't hold her "surprise"...and we all laughed...but quickly quieted down again waiting on our "victim"....Crystal finally opens the door all the way and when he comes into view all the held in/up anticipated "Surprises" all come out...then dead silence for about 2 seconds! When our "surprise" fades away mid-word....he looks at us and said.."No...Surprise" to us!...then the real yelling started....We were dumbfounded...there he is, holding our precious Crimsyn!...it took a second for it to really sink in to some..Todd said he was thinking...why is he holding a baby?...then he realized WHO that baby was...BJ said he thought the same thing...there were tears of joy, lots of laughter, hugs, hugs, and more hugs...as he quickly made his way from one family member to another..it was mostly immediate family,...but there was no Clark family and Wooten family..we were as one, all there together, celebrating the return of our beloved baby...

The kids had wanted to surprise us, and that they did. We have kept it quiet all day, because they want to surprise the church tonight...not sure just how Slick is gonna do it..but right after they came home, he was telling the church that they still had hope it would work out someday, and not to be surprised if one night Crystal didn't walk down the aisle holding baby Crimsyn...it will be interesting to see what he does...but she is gonna wait in the kitchen and when given the signal..she's gonna walk down the aisle with him....I can't wait!