Bad Things Best Things...

This is so true!  If it weren't for the bad things that we have been through in our lives it wouldn't have put us on the path to our best things.  

I'll start with my life.  Growing up in my parents home was hell, literally.  An alcoholic father with a mother who enable him.  She was scared of him because of his violent temper.  Us kids got to go through all the hell experiences and sometimes it was directed at us but more often than not it was directed at my mom.  I watched as she would cover her face with makeup as if to hide what he had done to her time and again.  It wasn't as if everyone didn't know anyhow because they did.  But it led to my best thing...my life now.  I'm happily married to an awesome man of God who is a great husband and a great father to our son.   Our life together is the total opposite of what I went through as a child.  It wasn't an easy road getting to where my life is today.  I had a lot of help through the years before I met and married my husband that put me on the right path in life.  God brought many amazing people into my life to influence my life in such a deep way that it has always stayed with me and made me into the person I am today.  A woman who knows her worth and who loves her husband and son with her entire being.  What God brings us through to get us to our best lives is nothing short of amazing.  

Our sons life.  At the young age of 15 he has been through so much.  He's had two near death experiences.  He did sparring from the age of 8 to 15 (July 2023 was he last comp).  The amount of mental and physical abuse a fighter goes through in the sport of TaeKwonDo sparring is something else.  Our son loved the sport so much that he just took it and kept doing his best to move forward.  He took it until there was a point that his father and I said no more.  That point was reached when our son reached an impasse with his last coach.  Things happened.  The coach inserted control basically ending our sons fighting career and his love of TaeKwonDo altogether.  But it led to his best thing...Weightlifting.  Tim started weightlifting training in August 2023.  He has progressed more rapidly than his coach had expected he would.  His weightlifting coach is amazing.  I can't say enough good things about him.  He's doing what a coach should do and that is doing what is best for his athlete.  Instead of breaking him down he's building him up.  Instead of anger and frustration our son is full of happiness and joy now.  He's smiling more than he ever has.  He really loves weightlifting.  Everything he's been through has prepared him for doing what he's doing now.  It just makes his dad and my heart overflow with happiness to see him so incredibly happy.  This is a move that probably should have happened a long time ago but it took what happened to happen in order for us to move on to what Tim is doing now.  

I can't speak for my husband on this subject except to share what I know.  He was laid off from his job before we met and married.  I know that it was a bad thing that happened to him but it was also one of the best things to happen to him.  It led him to building the business we have now that has been going strong for over 20 years and it pays way more than he would have ever made at his old job.  I've watched as we have went from having portable units in our business to having truck mounted units (way better) in our business.  We went from a minivan to run the business to a large Sprinter Van (until it died on us) to a truck and trailer.  God has always provided just what we needed to run our business.  Our repeat customers are our bread and butter.  I believe if Scot were to share for himself that he would share exactly what I've shared with you here.  That was his bad that led to his best outside of our marriage of course.  We are partners in life and business.  We love our life together and even with the ups and downs of everything we wouldn't have it any other way.  God is so good!

All Glory and Honor to God for all that he has done in our lives and is continuing to do in our lives because I know there is more best things to come.

Lesson Learned from Last Year...

With all we went through mid year last year this was our take away from it:

The saying that time heals is so true.  We've all went through a healing process through all that happened mid year last year.  It's been a really good family bonding and healing time since then until now.  We love where we are at and looking forward to all that God has in store for us this year.  We are so excited about this year and all the possibilities that lay ahead for us and we give praise, glory and honor to God!!!

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.