You Can Sleep When You're Dead!

Where do you start? What do you say? How do you choose what happened to you today that you wanna share with the world?

I really don't know where I am supposed to start on this 30 day journey. I know that I am SO not too busy to commit to this, however, when we pulled up into the driveway this evening, I started to cry cause I am so OVERWHELMED!!!! I don't really have a whole lot going on right now, but what I do have.... takes up ALOT of my time. I tell ya, last week, we worked til 4 everyday on Hunter's homeschooling. & that's another thing.... How do you find time to grocery shop, wash clothes, vacuum, clean toilets, dust, fold clothes, prepared dinner & RELAX?????? I haven't figured that one out yet! I do LOVE the homeschooling & I wouldn't NOT trade it for any amount of time, however, sometimes, I do miss my days of doing nothing!

Hummm...... A day of doing NOTHING!!!! What is that?????

I sure sometimes wish my to-do-list looked like that! Wouldn't that be nice?


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Today was a BUSY day! How many of you woke up EARLY this morning? Not just early, but and hour earlier than normal????? Well, of course, I did. I tried SO HARD to stay in bed.... NOPE, wasn't gonna happen. Needless to say, I ended up waking everyone else up early too & we arrived 30mins earlier to church than normal. It was kinda nice tho, not having to be in a hurry. After church we had lunch with my Mom & some friends. It was really nice getting to spend some time with Mom again. We haven't been able to sit down together in months! Good visit! :-) Shopping & more church, then a wedding....!

Today was a really good day too tho. God gave me a peace. The message this evening was in 2 Peter 1:1-11. You can read it all for yourself but I do want to focus on a few of the scriptures.

5. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; 6. And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 7. And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

Diligence - constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken; persistent exertion of body or mind.

Faith - confidence or trust in something.

Virtue - moral excellence; goodness; righteousness.

Knowledge - acquaintance with facts, truths, or principles, as from study or investigation.

Temperance - self-control.

Patience - the quality of being patient, as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, WITHOUT complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.

Godliness - Having great reverence for God.

Brotherly Kindness - the quality or state of being kind.

Charity - benevolent goodwill toward or love of humanity.

WOW, that sure puts those words into perspective for me!

I am ALWAYS supposed to give my whole self! Don't we become EXHAUSTED??? (Like I am right now.) Seriously, Jesus EXPECTS 100% of/from us at all times? Seriously???? But you know..... Jesus was human too. I am sure He knows what it is like to be exhausted.... therefore, it may be HARD, BUT NOT TO HARD!!!!!!!!!!!


& not only does He expect us to give 100%, 100% of the time, he also expects us to have virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly love & charity. ssseeeeeeessssshhhhhhhh what a mouth full.... but you know what He was! & even tho I am not perfect nor will I ever be, I am to STRIVE to be like HIM!!!!



So, tomorrow, I will diligently wake up & start my day the way Jesus would have me to. I know I will fail but I also know that He will forgive me & He will be there to pick me back up, bandage up my wounds & tell me it will be OK. He still loves me & NOTHING I ever do will change that! Praise God!

Inspirations.....

I am inspired by MANY things in my life.... At this moment tho there are 2 things that inspire me the most.




#1 The Bible: Of course the Bible is VERY inspiring... IF you read it! I love the daily devotionals that I have. Alpha & Omega Productions (the company I get Hunter's Homeschooling from) sends me a devotional every morning. I so look forward to reading it! What a way to start the day off.... in God's word! Hunter & I also have a devotional we read together every morning before we go to "school". Not only am I excited about the devotional God chose to give me each day, to pertain to the things I am going through in my life, I am just as excited to read the devotionals that Hunter & I get together to help us as a Mom & Son! What a way to learn and grow together....




#2 My very dear friend, Stacy: Now, as she reads this, she will probably say "Whatever". However, in the last several months we have really gotten close & to see what she goes through on a daily basis, and the determination that she has every day.... well, that's enough to be inspiring. I won't go into details on her story... you can follow her blog at
http://www.journeytobecomingarockstar.blogspot.com/
but I will say that she is on the commitment kick of blogging for 90 days. WOW!!!!! The BUSY life she lives already as a Wife, Mom, Boss, Sunday School Teacher & Child of God..... on top of it all she is now a BLOGGER! :-)

I look at her & think about ALL she has on her plate.... I am SO NOT NEAR as busy as she is. Yet, she still finds time in her busy schedule to be a Wife, a Mom, a Child of God, a Sunday School Teacher, a Boss, a Friend, a Sister, a Shoulder to Cry on, an INSPIRATION!!!!!!

I say to Stacy.... WELL DONE! I am so proud of you & what you are allowing God to mold you into. I want what you have.... I want to get motivated.... I want to be an Inspiration.

SSSSSSSSOOOOOOOOOOOO...................................

I am committing to 30 days.... Yes, JUST 30. We will see where the Good Lord leads me after that. I will start my 30 day blogging on Nov.1. I am looking forward to the road Jesus is gonna take me down. So excited but scary at the same time. However.... "For God hath NOT given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." ~ 2Timothy 1:17

My prayer is this, that God gives me that POWER, that LOVE, and that SOUND MIND. He knows I am gonna need it....

Jesus is MY ROCK & MY SALVATION, whom shall I fear?

Here are a few quotes that I have heard/learned over the past few days. I hope they inspire you they way that they have inspired me.......

"Impossible is not a word, it's just a reason for someone not to try" ~Kutless

"Take the word Impossible of your life" ~Dr. Robert Shuller

"To many of us are addicted to negativity. We need to speak and think positive thoughts each day so that we become addicted to loving life" ~Michael Wittig, Stars Go Dim

"Have the COURAGE to CHANGE" ~Rick Belluzzo, LP of Microsoft

"The single most important thing we can put on each morning is a SMILE" ~Terry Bradshaw

"Your yesterday does NOT determine your tomorrow."; "Get PAST your PAST."; & "There are only 2 options that matter; Yours & Gods." ~Tamara Lowe, Get Motivated Seminar Hostess

~May I be an Inspiration to someone today! Thank you Jesus, for loving me & taking time for me. I will try my hardest to SHINE for YOU!!!!!!~

Hell House

Tonight we are taking the Teens to the Hell House in Cedar Hill.

I personally have never been but I have only heard good things about it. It's not really a haunted house.... more of a reality house! There are 7 rooms to go through. Some of the topics include drugs & alcohol, rape/sexual abuse, car wreck, suicide, etc. I am really excited about it! At the end there is a "coffin" you get into and then you go to Hell followed by an invitation to go to Heaven! I can not wait!!!! I do ask all of you to pray for salvation's this evening.......

What a testimony this church has for the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Check out the website. http://www.darkrailhellhouse.com/

The Dark Room: We Know Your Secrets

October 9-10,16-17, 23-25, 28, 30-31 @ 7pm

The cost is $10 per person.Group rates are available for purchase of 10 or more tickets. We will provide one free ticket for every 10 tickets purchased.

Darkrail Presents Hell House 19: The Dark Room. The Dark Room isn't the safe place you thought it was. The weight of the memories and the grip of the lies will find you. Truth makes you vulnerable and the prison of your mind will never protect you. In fact, it will expose you. Where will you hide then? You can blame whoever you want but you know the truth.

Hell House was first opened in October of 1991 and is a creative alternative to the traditional haunted house. It is a dramatization of real life situations. Each year over 10,000 people walk through its doors with an ambiguous expectation. With Hell House now entering its 19th year, we attempt to keep that ambiguity going by offering new, fresh, in-your-face scenes and ideas.

This year there are 7 scenes, with the walk-through taking an estimated 45 minutes (not including waiting in line). A demon or death monitor will guide you through the maze-like walk-through. Each scene will give you a look into the real life issues that we deal with everyday. Hell house is not meant for children under the age of 13. There are guns, blood, violence, intense scenes, and disturbing images.

The Car God Gave Us........

There she is....

A 2001 Chevy Cavalier. Immacualte interior....not one single hole, burn, tear or stain! WOW.... how many times do you find that?????

OK, OK, OK..... she's is SSSSOOOOOO NOT a 2007 Kia Sedona! I know that! But she is the car God gave us! After driving 700+ miles and searching for 72+ hours SHE found us! $1000.00 + tt&l = $1350.00. Paid cash & drove her home last night! We are still on the look out for a 07/08 Kia Sedona w/stow&go. This is a temp fix til we find what we want. I know that God has the P~E~R~F~E~C~T car out there for us, we just gotta find it!

Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. ~Psalm 37:4~

Til next time..... Still Searching......

?????Our New Car?????

Just wanted to share the pics of the Van we are looking at & will hopefully be driving home this afternoon! She truely is a gift from God as this Kia Sedona is EXACTLY what I wanted! I am so EXCITED!!!!! Pray, Pray, Pray......

......You Can't Rush Fine Art.......

Well, I have come to my 3rd post now, and with thoughts floating through my mind, I have decided to blog about kiddos. Not just any ol kiddos, but 2 that I have spent alot of time with lately. Yes, of course, Hunter is one of them... & let me just start off with saying that this "homeschooling journey" that we are on, is very much a BLESSED one!!!! (Goes way beyond any expectations I had of what it might be like.... & btw I am sure there is a blog in the near future about it.)

The other kiddo in my blog tonight is Logan Bostic. He is a very special kiddo. One I have grown to love and loved to watch grow!!!!! He holds a very special place in my heart. I won't go into details on his life, just know.... HE IS VERY SPECIAL! Absolutely a gift from GOD!

I meet Logan when he was just a couple of days old. We go to church with him & his family. I have watched him grow into an AWESOME kid, or as Danny says "The coolest kid I know". Logan will be 6 (OMGosh, really! 6 already!!!!) in December. Over the summer I have gotten to really "know" Logan! He really is neat-o! :-)

Hunter & Logan have grown pretty close these past few months. Our families have started spending more time together & recently, after weeks of Logan begging his Momma, he stayed the night with us & this is when it all began!

Logan: Mrs. Tonya
Me: Yes, Logan
Logan: Sometimes, Puppy (his dog) gives me a wedgie in my ear.
Me: A wedgie in your ear?
Logan: Yeah, a wedgie in my ear!
Me: Uhh, don't you mean a wet willy?
Logan: No, a wedgie!

I would have to tell you guys.... this was the funniest conversation I have EVER had in my life! It was about 3 weeks ago and I still laugh every time I think about it!

Which leads me up to my blog.......You Can't Rush Fine Art.........

Famous words from our kiddos! (and our friends sometimes too)


You can still trade your boots in, if you want to!

Sometimes, Puppy gives me a wedgie in my ear!

If Dad has a seizure, just leave him on the ground. He'll wake up.

You can't rush fine art.

Mommy did you know when something looks like something that really isn't -- it is called an ovulation????

My Monkey has boobs!

Does the Elephant hurt when you take his butt off????


& last but def NOT least (cuz I am sure there will be a part 2 to this blog).....

Will you go check on my husband? He has been in the restroom a long time.... (When he hadn't been with us AT ALL that day!!!!!) ~ Anonymous, but you know who you are :-)


I have had many MANY interesting conversations with these 2 kiddos lately! I am sure there are many more to come.... I love my Hunter & my Logan.... (yes, I consider him MY Logan too.) I can not wait to watch these 2 to continue to grow in to God Loving, God Fearing Men!

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. ~ Proverbs 22:6

It's true.... You really can't rush fine art! Kids are God's masterpiece and He is working on us ALL everyday! Some of us may be Dali's, Ansel Adam's or even Thomas Kincaid's.... but we are all truly God's fine art & He doesn't try to rush us into HIS masterpiece.....!

Kids really do say the darnedest things!

I'm out!

Life is a series of transitions....

Chapters are opened, read, and then closed for the next to begin. What chapter of your life are you in? Things will not always remain the same. Enjoy the moment you are in now to the fullest. God is with you and... knows exactly what you should be doing & exactly what you need.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven" ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1

So, a chapter in our life ended this week. Danny's Aunt & Uncle, Billy & Junella Smith, were called to Pastor a church in Cross Plains, TX. This really is a good thing & I am so very excited for them... however, I am very selfish & part of me wants them to stay. I have to be honest! Life will def be TOTALLY different without those 2 precious people around.

You see, they are the reason we are at Liberty. We have been there for 8+ years now. In 2001, Danny & I moved back to Cedar Creek Lake. We church "hopped" for weeks, if not months! We just couldn't seem to agree on the right church home for our family. He liked the church his Mom & Dad were going to & I liked the church my Mom was going to. I remember one morning Danny saying to me, "You can just go to church with your Mom & I will go with mine". Well, God never intended for it to be that way! Billy & Junella invited us to go to church with them at Liberty. I knew the moment we walked it that it was supposed to be our church home. Danny.... not so much! It took a little while for him to come around, but it was all in God's plan.

Billy & Junella became a HUGE part of what Liberty is today. They really allowed God to work in their lives & lead them to where they need to be. They have gone from Young Adult Sunday School Teachers to the Senior Citizen Sunday School Teachers. Billy was ordained to be a Preacher, Junella taught a Young Ladies Class (which btw was AWESOME), and together have just grown so much in the Lord.

Over the years there have been many laughs, tears shed and hugs given....

Walking in to church this coming Sunday morning will be a hard one! I, myself, have been very much in denial! If I talk about it it becomes true, if I cry about it its reality, if I think about it..... well...... the list could just go on. Junella told me Wednesday night, "You can only be in denial for so long". It's true.... but seriously this is the first time I have really allowed myself to process it!!!! Tears roll down my cheeks as I type.... WOW! What a difference life can be because of the LOVE that people show you. Life is different because of what they have done for me & my family.

Pioneer Baptist Church could not be getting a better Preacher & Preacher's Wife than the one's that will be there Sunday morning. Liberty will never be the same, but neither will Pioneer.

He healeth the broken in heart & bindeth up their wounds! ~ Psalm 147:3

Perfect scripture for today as Billy & Junella head out on their new journey! Not having them here is gonna be hard, BUT NOT TO HARD! (I will NEVER forget Junella teaching us that in the Young Ladies Class)

We just have to remember that God is willing & waiting to carry each of us through the tough times!

Life is a series of transitions — chapters that are opened, read, and then closed for the next to begin. What chapter of your life are you in? Things will not always remain the same. Enjoy the moment you are in now to the fullest. God is with you and... knows exactly what you should be doing & exactly what you need.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven" ~Ecclesiastes 3:1

We will miss you dearly!

Thanks for allowing God to be your Leader!

We Love You Billy & Junella

With all our LOVE, Liberty