Braces Are Off!!!

Tim got his braces off yesterday and he is loving it.  He also got his retainers yesterday and he's not loving that...LOL! Mostly because he has to wear them all the time except for when he eats for the first three months.  We told him three months will go by in a flash and it will.  We love his smile.  His teeth look so good.  Here's some pics to share with you all.

Tucker's Christmas 2023 Pic...

Our Tucker is so sweet.  I was able to get this pic of him while his dad was holding a pizza bone for him...LOL! 

1993 and 2023....

This is how our sky looked in 1993 compared to 2023.  The difference is the chem trails that they are putting in our sky calling it "artificial cloud cover" to supposedly help with global warming.  Does it look like it's anything that is good for us?  I don't think so.  There is no telling what them spraying that into our sky is going to do to us down the road either.  So many have no clue that this is not normal or healthy either.  Pray like never before.  Pray! Pray! Pray!  This is so concerning.  

This Year....

Everyone does New Years Resolutions at this time of year.  I'm not much for doing those because in the first week I always blow it.  Goal setting is what we do.  Once we achieve one goal we set another one and just go from there.  We always say, that it's ok to try and fail but get up and try again and never ever quit!

This year it is my hearts desire to see my family healthy whole and complete from the tops of their heads to the soles of their feet and that includes me.  I want to see us all thriving like never before.  

I personally want to make a new commitment to God to grow an even deeper relationship with him as I seek him more than I ever have in my entire life.  I want to know him on a much deeper level than I ever have.  I want the change to be so incredibly evident in my life that it turns heads.  

I want to work on being a better version of myself physically than I ever have been.  I want to be the best version of me that I can be not only for myself but most importantly for my family.  I love them so much and we so enjoy doing this life together.  I want to get every area of my life health wise in check so that I'm the healthiest that I can be for my guys especially.  I love them so much.  Outside of my relationship with God they are my entire world.  

I want to see my husband the happiest that he has ever been.  I want him to be able to work less and enjoy life more and I'm committed to seeing that happen for him.  I'm seeking God for his direction in making our work life much easier so that we can enjoy life more.  To that end I'm looking to God for Him to drop into our spirit what it is that He would have us do at this time in our lives.  We are seeking a "God Idea" that makes making money physically easier on our bodies than what we have been doing all these years with our carpet cleaning business.  It's been a great season but we need something that isn't so taxing but that will also pull in the same revenue if not better.  I know that God has our backs and that He will show us exactly what our next move is supposed to be and until that time we will continue doing what we are currently doing.  I trust God completely.  I always have.  He's been so good to us!!! 

I'm also committing to continuing our blogging journey too.  I want to continue to write things down so that it will be here for Tim to look back on years from now.  So that he can see all the ups and downs, the good times and the bad.  I want him to see every ounce of love that is poured into this blog when he takes the time to pour over it once he's grown.  Scot and I love him to moon and beyond!  

For our son we want to give him the moon of course.  Tim has been through so much in his young life.  He's been in the hospital because he never tested positive for strep throat and ended up having his GI messed up so bad that it could have killed him.  He's had to have a hernia repair surgery.  He's been hospitalized from losing all the salt in his body from training hard with sparring causing him to go into a seizure that could have killed him.  Twice satan tried to take his life and twice he's made full recoveries.  He's our miracle.  God's hand has always been upon him protecting him every step along the way and Tim knows this too.  We are committed to helping him to achieve his goals in weightlifting in 2024.  He has accomplished so much at fifteen and he still has so much more that he desires to accomplish and we will be there supporting him every step of the way.

2024 is going to be a great year!!!  Not because I wrote it but because we are in an overall better place as a family than we have ever been.  One thing I can say for certain is that without God we'd be just as much of a mess as this fallen world that we are living in.  God is our constant.  He's our everything.  We are so thankful for everyday that we get to spend together.  And we all know just how much we mean to one another and when you know that, I mean really know that, it makes every ounce of all that we go through in life worth it.  God Bless You All This Year!!!  

Welcome 2024...

Happy New Year!

We rang in the New Year while watching the Nashville Bash.  We got to see the ball drop in NY and we got to see the Note drop in Nashville, TN and hour later.  It was a nice evening spent with my guys.  We toasted with Sparkling White Grape Juice in my new crystals glasses.

And Tucker got to enjoy himself on his dog bed just chilling.

Farewell 2023!

We don't go out for New Year's Eve anymore and haven't really in years.  We like to be safe and snug in our home to ring in the new year as a family.  

As this year comes to a close we say farewell to a year that was a roller coaster for our son but ended on a fantastic note with him starting his weightlifting journey with coach Jarrod at Athletic Lab and laying to rest a very bad ending to his sparring journey due to issues that were beyond his control.  

As I think about all that happened this year I shake my head at some things and smile at other things.  We find out who our true friends are during the tough moments.  Those that bail out because things got tough are not worth our time or efforts.  It's best to let them go and move on and that's just what we did halfway through 2023.  But I smile so big these days because Tim has found something he's truly passionate about and it's changed his whole world.  His schoolwork is better than ever and I don't have to constantly remind him to make sure that he's getting it done.  He's just doing it.  Because he's so happy it is touching every aspect of his life and relationships.  For those still in his/our lives they are seeing it and are so happy for him and us.  For those that bailed on us it's their loss in such a humungous way!!!  

Oftentimes God has people in our lives for just a season.  Other times He has them in our lives for a lifetime.  As you grow in this life you find out who your life long friends are and you hold on tight to them and never let them go.  The ones that are there for a season are those that miss out on so much because they make the decision to be that seasonal friend instead of that life long friend.  It's a choice and ours to make of which kind of friend we will be.  Being a true friend means being a life long friend.  That's the kind of friend that I always strive to be to those that I call my friend and it's very sad when we come across those that have all the right words and on the outside seem to be a true life long friend but are really just fake.  We said goodbye to several of those this year.  Some were a shock to us and others not so much.  But nevertheless we are so thankful for those that have remained our true friends through it all.  

I sit here so incredibly thankful for friends who are like family.  Friends who even though we don't talk or see one another a lot we are still close at heart and always pick up just where we left off.  For friends near and far.  No matter where our friends are we appreciate your friendship.  Our hearts swell with overwhelming gratitude because of you and how deeply you touch our lives.  

I also sit here so incredibly thankful for our family.  Our family has had it's ups and downs this year but through it all we are always there for one another and love one another.  Our hearts are filled to overflowing from the love we feel for and from our family.

Lastly, I'm so overwhelming thankful to God for always being there for us in every moment of our lives even the ones that we aren't as proud of.  We all have those moments in our lives when we feel that we've failed God on some level or another.  We take time, especially at this time of year, to start the new year fresh.  We pray asking God's forgiveness for when we missed the mark.  We pray thanking God for giving us the strength to hit the mark more than we miss it.  And we pray asking for His blessings over us, our family and friends in the New Year and for an even deeper faith to do better as we continue to walk this walk of faith with Our God!  Our Savior!  Our Reason for Living!  God Bless You All!

Tim's Meal After Making Official PR Lifts...

Tim chose to go to the Gatehouse Tavern after making his official lifts on the 23rd.  He loves their flatbread pizza.  He is so happy to be able to eat and not be cutting like he used to have to do at this time of year.  It's the first Thanksgiving and Christmas in 7 years that Tim has been able to really enjoy the holiday cooking goodness.  Cutting weight for competitions sucks.  He was always in cutting mode for a comp when he was still sparring.  Tim is glad to be doing weightlifting now because he can eat, gain muscle and most importantly grow at the rate he should be growing at his age.  We were never on the page of cutting but it was forced upon Tim so that he could fight guys more his size.  It was the only way that he would be able to be competitive in sparring.  So so glad that is behind him and that he's loving this weightlifting  journey that he is on.  

An Even Better Video...

An even better video of Tim's Official PR lifts.

December 25th, Merry Christmas...

I look forward to this time of year every year.  Christmas is my absolute favorite holiday for two reasons.  One we get to celebrate our saviors birth because without it there wouldn't have been made available a path that leads to heaven for us.  Two because I love being an extra special blessing to the kids in our family at this time of year.  It's such a joyful time of year.  

Tim had quite the Christmas haul this year.  His big gift items were his IWF Approved Bar Bell so he can do weightlifting training at home when he needs to, new AirPod Pros so that he can listen to his music and the new Quest 3 so that he can play online games with his friends on vr.  All his other gifts were just icing.  Here are some pictures...     

Quest 3

Caffeine & Kilos socks and fanny pack.

Weightlifting Belt

A flag to hang in the garage gym.

AirPod Pros

A comfy head piece for the Quest 3 VR.. 

December 23rd Lifts....

These are now Official lifts that were done for USA Weightliftings December Qualifier that qualifies Tim to be able to sign up for National/Elite Level Weightlifting Meets.  It was so great that he was able to do this on video at Athletic Lab where he trains and just upload them to the USA Weightlifting sight.  It sure beats having to go to a competition to qualify like he used to have to do when he was still sparring.  Everything is so much better in the weightlifting world verses the tkd sparring world.  

57kg Snatch + 75kg Clean & Jerk = 132kg total.  He had to meet a minimum requirement of 130kg total.  So proud of all his accomplishments in such a short time with weightlifting.