Deep thoughts while in the car...alone

A few weeks ago I had a very rare few minutes in my car ALONE! I can probably count on one hand the number of times I have been in my car alone this year, and I might have a few fingers left over. It never happens! So, when I am, I like to turn off the music and think. Or pray, Or stare off into space and then realize that I don't remember passing certain landmarks. Dangerous.

I thought I would share my thought process, as weird as it may be, and then end with a question for y'all. I hope you will comment! I would love to hear your answers!

I am driving in the Medical District and I see a guy using the traffic light pole to stretch. And, I laugh to myself because I obviously do not take exercising as seriously as this guy. I mean he is using every second he has while waiting to cross the street to keep up his heart rate or whatever you exercisers do. And when the light changed, he waiting for a car to get out of the way and then took off like someone was chasing him. He was not about to let a car get in the way of his speed.

My first thought was...Oh how the people in their cars would be belly laughing if they saw me running down the road {think Phoebe from Friends, but with hysterical giggling because I cannot run without laughing}.

And, my second thought was Heaven. And how I do not want to let anyone or anything on this earth {traffic light or slow driver} get in my way of going to Heaven {good workout}!
**Odd turn, I know, but that's how my mind works folks!**
And that made me think, What in the world is Heaven gonna be like?
I have always thought of it as the BEST of everything, and everybody's favorite everything, and happiness and love and laughter. But, my favorite things are not your favorite and vice versa.
So, how wonderful is it that we can all go to a place so much better than this old world with no tears or sadness! And we will all be happy there with all of our ideas of happiness meshing together. Even though we have never even experienced the true meaning of happiness and won't until we get there.

One of my ideas of heaven is a reunion with those that are already there. A place where I can walk with my papaw down dusty field rows and he can show me the most abundant stalks of cotton and the tallest corn that he has ever grown. Where he doesn't ever have to worry about the crop because there will always be bumper crops in Heaven!
And I can sit at a sewing machine with my mamaw since I never got to do that here. And all of our seams will be straight! And we can eat our daily ice cream like we use to except we wouldn't have to walk 4 times around the driveway afterwards because surely everything is fat free in Heaven!
And she can meet my kids one day. And I can meet my other grandfather for the first time.
And my momma can hold her baby girls. And my daddy can retire if he wants to and watch someone else farm.
And poor ol WB will probably still be working y'all because that's just what he does.:)
But, the best of all is that I can meet Jesus and thank him! And see what he looks like and hug him and just be in awe of it all. I mean, I get giddy just thinking about it.

So, what would your idea of heaven be?

This is one of my favorite Bible verses:
1 Corinthians 2:9 (NIV)
However, as it is written:
No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him

First Week of School and such

Did y'all think we had been under the weather? I've let the ol blog get a little dusty because we have been doing things and going places and being busy and starting new things and so forth and whatnot.

The biggest achievement of the week was Sister starting preschool!
This was her with her teachers on the 'drop in' day. It was a little hour of meet and greet. See how happy she is? That is because a)it was called 'drop IN' and not 'drop OFF' and b)we had been there for an hour and she was finally getting in the groove of things. Then we had to go.
And that is the only picture I have because there isn't a lot of smiling going on when we are getting ready for school or taking her in. But, I will say, I have not had to drag her in like I thought. Here's how our first week has gone.
Day 1: Tuesday, we got ready with minimal fussing, but I had been preparing her for school without T-O, so there was some resistance. She felt the need to take something from home and was planning to carry a magazine. So, on the front were some owls, and I cut out a pic of an owl and let her take that. Small, compact, thought it wouldn't get in the way.
Drop off was great (for her...there was some crying, but not bad). Buddy and I went to get my license renewed and got caught in the monsoon so I decided to chalk up the rest of my list and come home to do some chores. I also called WB and my parents letting them know how good she did. I fold 1 load of laundry, get halfway through changing the sheets on my bed and the phone rings. And I look at caller ID, and reluctantly pick it up.
"Mrs. Honea, this is so-and-so from school. Sister is inconsolable and has been crying for the last hour. She was fine until they put up the play-doh. We would like for you to come get her." Seriously?
So, I tell them to FIND THE OWL and I will be there in a few minutes. And, do you know when I got there, they said, She's been saying T-Os or something. Let me go find her.
Which to me meant, we found the owl and she is now fine and back with the class. And sure enough, she was playing in the playground happy as a lark with owl magazine cut out in hand. But, I was already there and she had seen me, so there was no sneaking out. So, I bring her home. They tell her to bring T-O tomorrow and she can put him in the cubby.
And, even though she "cried for an hour" she sang me 2 new songs, told me that their theme this month was flowers and leafs, and that they would be doing chapel and motor skills this week. And Seger Mar-get (Sarah Margaret) had piggy tails. And they called her only by 1 name and not the double name. (Yes, we are one of those)

Day 2: Upon being awakened "Do I go to school today? But, I want to stay with you!"
"No you don't! We will be vacuuming...you know you don't like the vacuum. And you get to go to the playground and chapel today. Plus, you get to take T-O who really wants to learn about flowers and leafs." So, after hearing how much she wants to stay with me, we drop off. It wasn't the worst ever, but there were tears. I call no one to tell them about it because I did not want to brag about nothing like I had done the day before.
And, there was no phone call from the school! (which I had already decided I wasn't going to pick her up again until the end of the day.) So, we pull up to get her and she is beaming! She has a stamp on her arm, a cars sticker on her leg, and a Hello Kitty necklace and bracelet. There was a birthday party in her class-on the second day. She said, "They gave us ice cream. And I ate it!" So I asked her what she did that was fun and she said "Everything was fun mommy! And I didn't cry too much. I didn't play on the snail outside, I just looked at it. And we danced! And Dillon threw a pit (fit) before lunch. He was arguing with Miss {teacher}. And his friend threw a pit too, but I don't know his name. And they called me {first name only}. But, we didn't do motor skills." So, you'll be excited about going back tomorrow? Uh-huh!
Day 3: "I wanna stay with you mommy!" And, so here we go again~same cries, different day. No dragging, but some crying when dropping off. No phone call.
When we picked her up here was her synopsis "I got on the snail today but I couldn't get off. We went to motor skills, but we just danced. I got sweat outside and I was fussing. They told me to go play or go sit in the shade. Seger Mar-get was there. I had fun though."

My synopsis-not as bad as I thought it would be. Hopefully this week will be better. I am actually expecting the same if not worse behavior in the mornings. Someone asked me if I cried. And, I didn't, but I am sure I will when she "wants" to go...if that ever happens.

And, since we have been talking up school and how you will have to go for a long time, etc, etc. I just threw out the question "what do you want to be when you grow up?"
Buddy's answer must be A Cow and Puppy Doctor since he spent the better part of yesterday walking around with the stethoscope on, cow and puppy in hand, mooing and barking.

Sister's answer?
TALL!!!

Back with more exciting news for the other Sister soon!

Our conversation before nap

We are reading a little Bible Story book before nap and bed these days. There is a little one page story with a picture for each one. Today we were talking about Jesus and the empty tomb and him rising to Heaven.
These are the questions my little 3 year old asked:
Mom, how am I gonna get to Heaven?
Is Jesus gonna come get me in his truck?
Are you gonna ride with us?
Will you put my car seat in? Well, I probably won't need it because I will be a tall gur (girl) and you can have it for your other two babies you said you were gonna have.

I hope you won't need a car seat baby, because that will be too soon for me to see you go!
And what other two babies are you talking about??

Look who's home!!!!

Baby Zack!

SLR camera straps now available!

SLR camera straps are now available at SisterBug! Order yours today!!!


If you are looking for a Zack update, he is doing very well! The next few weeks will be spent getting him ready to go home. He is tiring out really easily, so he will have to get stronger before he can get home and keep up with his big brothers.
We still need prayers! Thank you!

Thankful Thursday - Zack Edition

It was one week ago today that I was heading down to Montgomery to see my new nephew! My kids only took a 25 minute nap in the car and so I was praying that we made it without incident since we are not normally car travelers. And, I definitely have never driven down by myself. And, I was praying that the DVD player would work the whole time.
I was also thanking God for a healthy Zack and that Aunt Shanie had a great delivery this time. All week I had a feeling something would be wrong, but when they called me (while we were going through B-ham), they said he was fine and I thanked God that my feelings were wrong.
Sissy was SUPER excited because she loves babies so much and we had already talked about how she would have to wash her hands real good and she could not kiss him but on his feet. She wanted to kiss his face, she said, but I reminded her that we can only kiss little baby feet until they are a little older.
And, when we arrived at the hospital, we were expecting to see Zack and hold him, but the blinds were drawn and he was not in his bed when I peeked through. I was not worried because they had already said that he was ok, right?
Fast forward to about 10 pm when I headed back to the hospital after a few calls from my brother saying Zack was really sick and they were transporting him to another hospital. (Memae and Papa stayed at the house with all of the other kids.) I was to stay at the hospital with Shannon while Bub went with Zack.
I got there in time to see Zack in his transport bed with wires and such everywhere, intibated, and sedated. And, it was the first time I had seen him, but somehow it made me feel better. Just to see his little face and his big ol feet and how much he looked like his big brothers did when they were born. And I prayed for God to heal him and to bring peace to my brother and sister. And, I knew that he would because God is amazing and was hearing so many prayers for Zack.
But, at the same time, it was so hard not to hold that sweet baby. You know, like when your kids are sick you just want to hold them and rock them and kiss them. And, I knew if I was feeling that way as his Aunt, that I could never imagine how hard it was for my brother and sister.
But, do you know what? THEY GOT TO HOLD HIM YESTERDAY!
So, on Thursday, I am THANKFUL that God heals and Shannon & Brandon got to hold their sweet baby Zack! And that he is on the right track to recovery.
And, I am also thankful for friends who will pray for babies they don't even know. Because God hears and is working on Baby Zackie. And one day soon, I will get to hold him too.

More Zack

I don't know if y'all are checking Zack's blog or not, but I will post links here too when Bub updates it. (It is under my friends section as The Moore Family Blog)

He is doing really well, but still has a few weeks. There are a couple of new updates, so scroll down. He was able to have a visit from his oldest brother, Jay. They said that when he heard Jay, he tried to pick his head up!

And, you will never guess who is going to see him tomorrow! (Not me, unfortunately. I don't think they want my 2 kids added to the mix!)

Keep praying y'all! God is good and is working hard on this baby!

Good News from Zack and My Messy Marvin

First things first...God is so good!! Zack is off the ventilator! You can read more about it here.
We love baby Zack around here! Sister has renamed Baby Mary to Baby Zack and she said today "Mommy, I LOOOVE baby Zack. I can't wait til he can touch me and I can share the chewy toys with him! He is gonna LOVE me!"
Please don't forget to add him to your prayers! He still has a long way to go, but his improvements are so encouraging!
A few have asked, Zack was full term and weighed 8 pounds 13 ounces. We are glad of that too because it will mean that after all of the other issues are resolved, he won't have to worry about gaining weight too. And, judging by his feet, his is gonna be tall just like his older brothers.

Speaking of brothers...
This little man had his first chocolate ice cream this weekend and MMmmm'd after every bite.
Tasty!

And, he is doing really well with a spoon/fork, but if he drops it, this happens-

Messy Marvin!

Update Link on Baby Zack

Hey everyone...my brother put out an update here on Zack. I think the last paragraph sums it up the best...

Zachary Garrett is Hebrew and Latin for 'The Lord Remembers the Courageous'....and he is earning his stripes. Keep praying for us and Zack.

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST!

Please pray for my sweet nephew Zack! He was born on Thursday and is having some heart and lung complications. He is responding to treatment, but has at least a few week's stay in the NICU. Please pray for my brother and sister-in-law too. They released her after 24 hours since they had to move the baby, so she can be with him.
The good thing is that we are all believers and know that God will take care of Zack and the doctors treating him. But any prayers help.
I know a lot of you are NICU mommies, so please comment with what helped you the most while you were waiting. I want to get together a little care package to mail to them. It was hard to leave yesterday and I want to feel like I am doing something while they are 3 hours away.
I will update again as soon as I know something. Thanks y'all.

How To: Chicken and Dumplins

I keep doing these recipe tutorials for 2 reasons.
1-for my friends that don't know how, or think some things are too hard,
2-for Sister to have when she is older and I have the blog published in a book.

So, if there is something you would like to know how to make, let me know and I will be glad to post it for you!

On to the show...

WB loves Chicken and Dumplins! He says these are better than cracker barrel and of course I believe him. The other night we were eating at a little local restaurant and he ordered the dumplins. When we left, I asked him what he thought about it and he said 'It was ok, but I can get that same food at home.' Now, I am totally taking that as a compliment because what he meant to say was 'Yours were better.' it just didn't come out that way.

You will need-
1 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup of butter, or margarine or crisco (I just didn't have crisco on hand)
1 paper carton of chicken broth PLUS 1/2 cup water (you can also use the chicken broth leftover from boiling your chicken)
3 chicken breasts, boiled and chopped
pepper

Incorporate your butter (margarine or crisco) into your flour. You can use your hands or a fork. Just mash it all together until the butter is really crumbly and about pea size.
Make a hole in the middle and add the water, then use your hands (or fork) to combine it until it forms a sticky ball.
{Please excuse the fact that there are no pictures...I had this stuff all over my hands at the time.}
Turn the dough out on a floured surface and sprinkle flour on the top.


Flatten in out some and wash all the extra stuff off of your hands.

Put your broth on with the extra 1/2 cup of water. I add water because I think the store bought broth is too thick and salty. Let it begin to boil while you finish the dumplins.
You could also use your broth from boiling your chicken if you would like. OR you can make broth from water and bouillion cubes (1 cup to 1 1/4 c. water)
Just make sure there are 3-4 cups of broth for your dumplins.

Use a rolling pin to roll out your dough to about 1/4 inch. It should be thinner than you would roll your biscuits, but DOES NOT have to be exact! You can also use a glass if you don't have a rolling pin or if your son is attached to your leg and it is the closest thing you could grab.

Use a butter knife to cut strips both ways in your dough to make the dumplins.

Drop the dumplins into the boiling broth. DO NOT STIR THEM! They will start floating to the top when they are done...real quickly.
My Mamaw D always said that stirring dumplins makes them soggy. I don't know if this is true because I have never stirred mine. I just choose to believe her.

When they look pretty done (you can get one out and cut it open. it should look flaky like a biscuit) turn the heat down and add your chicken and as much pepper as you like. Turn the eye off after about 3 minutes or so...it doesn't take long for the chicken to heat back up.

Serve them to your husband who will think his Granny stopped by and made supper for him.
If you are serving these to your kids, please make sure to take theirs out and let them cool for a while. Dumplins will hold the heat for a long time!

Hope you try them!
Sorry about the dark pictures too.