Prayer, Healing And Believing

We were having a conversation today about healing and prayer. It made me start thinking about some of the times that I KNOW that I was a witness or recipient of healing through prayer. Some of my family and close friends know of these times but, I feel the need to share them here with all of you.

One of the first times I was given the gift of healing through prayer was when I was about a year old. My Granny was cooking in the kitchen and had opened the oven and I walked forward and fell on the oven door, severely burning my hands. My Granny had my Mother take me to a lady in our community who could "talk" fire out of burns. When we got there, I had my hands clenched so tight that she told them there was nothing she could do. I was taken to the doctor instead. My hands were bandaged for a long time and I was left with these really bad purple scars. My Mother had me at church and was looking at my hands and began to pray. Within a few days, those purple scars were gone and all I was left with was  a couple of scars that unless I show them to you......you can not even see. 

When my middle son Ethan was born, his blood work kept coming back showing that he had a serious blood disorder. They tested his blood a couple of times and each time it came back showing the same results. The doctor told me to bring him back when he was a couple of weeks old and they would do the blood work again. If it came back the same, we would be sent to Birmingham to a specialist. The day I took Ethan to the doctor, his little arms were so tiny that they had to cut a rubber band to tie around his arm to even be able to draw the blood. When I got him home I laid him in his crib and as he slept, I laid my hands on his back and prayed that God heal him and take this away from him. Two days later, the results came back and he was perfectly normal. To be safe it was checked a few more times and each time it was normal! The doctor could not explain it but.........I could!

    This is a photo of Ethan sleeping just before I laid my hands on him and prayed!


As many of you may know, our baby, Hayden was really sick when she was born. Most of you probably don't know the whole story. When I was about eight months pregnant, I called the pediatrician to find out what their fee would be for her hospital check up. I was told that it was such and such amount and that I would have to pay that because it was considered well baby care. She then told me, now if the baby is sick or has anything wrong, the insurance will pay it all. Well, of course I laughed and told her "that's okay.....we will be glad to pay out of pocket!" After I hung up the phone, it was as if everything around me just went away and all I heard was this voice saying "there WILL be something wrong but, it will be alright.....you will get through this" I told two people about this, my Mother and Tim. Of course they acted like I was crazy and just laughed it off. Then, when my baby was born and she was so sick, no one could understand why I was so calm and able to deal with it the way I did. It was almost like they were mad at me. I explained to them what had happened and what I knew. Now, don't get me wrong, there were times that it all got the best of me, I cried and I was scared but, I ALWAYS had a peace about everything. You see, I had already been told it was going to be alright and I believe to this day that God spoke to me and gave me that reassurance and because I believed........Everything was okay.

                          Hayden in the NICU in Montgomery, AL when she was so sick!



Every day we witness miracles and answered prayers. Some things are really big and profound and other times it may be something small, but just as important. Some may not believe as I do but, I know the things that have happened in my life and I believe!

Isn't it a wonderful thing to know that through prayer, God can heal, soothe and bring us peace!

Born To Be Romantic Or Learned

I admit it.......I am a romantic at heart. My husband Tim is just not! He tries but, it just does not come easy to him. Tim does not understand that sometimes very simple things can be so romantic. I don't want him sending me flowera on Valentines day because that is one of those times he feels like he has to......that is not romantic. When he buys me a card instead, that means so much more for me. That meant that he had to physically walk in a store and choose the "right" card. So far he has nailed this one. He can handle special occasions but, it is the spontaneous unexpected moments that he needs to work on. Occasionally I will wake up and he has left me a little note stuck to my makeup case that simply says......" I Love You"! That gets me every time. Romance doesn't always have to be something big.

Where does a romantic person get it from. Do they learn it or is it something just ingrained in you some way. My boys can both be romantic. My oldest Zachary, took Erica to Disney World and booked the Cinderella's Castle dinner. That is where he proposed to her! I thought that was a very sweet and romantic thing to do!

When Taylor asked his now fiance Taylor our for their first date, he did the sweetest thing. He bought a rose and took it to school. He went to her first class and left the rose and a note asking her if she would do the honor of being his date for homecoming, and left it on her desk. How sweet and romantic was that?

Did they learn these kind of things from me or is it just in their makeup to be thoughtful and caring enough to know how to make things special? I hope I have taught them but, I also love the idea that they were just born to be kind, thoughtful men who have a romantic flair!

Who knows where it comes from but, as Mothers, we need to try to teach our children about being thoughtful and kind. I think when these things are ingrained in them, the romance just comes along with that!

While Tim is not the most romantic person in the world he has had his very special moments. When our oldest was born, he came in the room carrying a bouquet of my favorite flowers.....yellow roses! I still have them! I have all kind of little notes on scraps of papers that just have sweet little message on them. He also has his moment when I think hmmmmmmm. After having my back surgery, I had to wear my hear piled in a pony tail with no makeup for weeks on end. Finally one day, I was able to take a good shower and I put on makeup and washed and rolled my hair and put on real clothes. This is the comment I got......"Mama.....you sure do look pretty tonight......you know you have been looking pretty old and haggy looking the last few weeks but, you look alright tonight!" LOL......how in the heck do you take that? He DID tell me I looked good but, I am not sure I needed to know how bad I had been looking! Bless his heart.....he meant well.

Of course, my comment back to him didn't sit real well with him.....I told him "well, you see, I have been trying to dress down so the old man I live with wouldn't feel so bad about how he looks!" Thank goodness we are secure in the love we have for each other! LOL

Kids, Sacrifice and Appreciation

As a parent, I often ask myself....."do my kids appreciate everything I have done for them?" I know all parents have to ask themselves this at times. You wonder if they appreciate the sacrifice or even realize a sacrifice was even made. Did they see how hard you worked to make sure they had all that they needed or wanted? Do they realize how full of love your heart is for them? Do they realize that when they hurt you hurt even worse? Did they notice, feel, see or hear everything you did and said?

Recently, I have realized that without even saying a word, my kids have shown me that they indeed did notice! I watch my children as young adults and see them living their lives in the way that I taught them. Their Daddy and I did not always teach them by words but, maybe more by actions and deeds.

I watch as Hayden, a Junior in high school works so hard on her homework. I have watched her overcome a learning disability to not only make A's & B's but to also pass her exit exam in the first try. She is taking geometry and chemistry this semester. At one point we discussed her dropping chemistry because it is such a hard course but, she would have none of it. She is determined to take it and pass it! She could have said "what the heck, I don't have to take this, I will just quit" but, she didn't. She has learned to work hard to reach her goal and she even sacrifices her play time to study instead. I watched as my baby girl took care of me after my back surgery. She cooked, fetched carried and cleaned for me and not one time did she complain or act resentful. She would lay in bed and giggle at youtube video's with me and was constantly coming to see if I needed anything. She spent her summer taking care of me......how many seventeen year old girls would do that with such a good attitude?

I have watched as my oldest Zachary has gone from an eighteen year old kid who had no idea what he wanted to do with his life,to go on to become a fireman/paramedic. Zachary did not always have an easy time in school and he did not always "fit" with some of the kids he went to school with. He was often harassed and excluded but, he never once let that get to him. He knew how much we loved him and we taught him that he could be anything he wanted to be and what others thought of him did not matter. To say that Zachary is a fireman/paramedic really does not explain what this child has accomplished. He has a true fear of heights and as you may know a fireman has to go up really tall buildings and ladders yet, this has never stopped him. He has passed every test and registry he has taken. He now works three jobs and volunteers! Yes, I said three! He works as a full time fireman in Dothan, and he works as an paramedic fireman in Headland and Abbeville. He is also now working as an auxiliary policeman in Headland. He is a busy young man to say the least! Oh, and all those kids that were not so nice to him in school......he would stop to help them in a heart beat and not think twice about it.

For my Ethan, the last few months have shown us and him that life can throw you a curve or as I like to call it.......a detour! In just a few short months, Ethan will become a Daddy. Of course as a parent, you want your children to grow up and become parents but, this was a little sooner than we had planned. Ethan has taken the responsibility of becoming a young parent by the horns. He is working hard at his job at the hospital and on his days off, he works to completely remodel a home for his little family! He goes to the doctors appointments with Taylor. He worries about Taylor and tries to make sure that she is comfortable and has everything she needs. He does all of this with a smile on his face, at times  it is a very tired smile but, a smile just the same. He has already learned about the sacrifices you make for your children. There were some things he would have "liked" to have done to fix his truck up but, he just smiled and said "I guess that will just have to wait!"

Watching my kids as they have become young adults, I have realized that they DID appreciate and see the things that we did for them! I know this because they are living their lives in the way we lived ours. They are making sacrifices, they are working hard to provide for their families and reach their goals. Even though they may not say it all the time, I know that my kids do appreciate all that we did for them. They don't have to tell me. Watching them become the kind, hard working and forgiving young people that they have is thanks enough.

Just Not Myself

Tomorrow will be two weeks since my back surgery and.......well......I  am just not myself......still. I am the type person that meets every obstacle head on. I don't let it get me down and I work hard to get back to where I want to be. THIS has gotten the best of me.

 I don't know why this is so different. Maybe part of it is because this is just not what I wanted. I think that even though I had two months to adjust to the fact that I HAD to have this surgery, I just could not mentally prepare myself for what was to come.

I fought this for as long as I could and when it came down to it, nothing I did mattered. I still had to have this surgery. I feel like I let myself down. Maybe I did not work hard enough or something......I just don't know.

I have always been a fighter.....always. I have always powered through regardless of the obstacle. I had three babies without any pain medication at all, I have suffered through injuries from an accident that included a dislocated shoulder, fractured back and my pelvic bone was fractured in three places and I fought my way to the other side. I just don't understand why this is so hard.

Granted, this is the worst pain I have ever been in and I also have the underlying fear that this may not fix it. I am just so tired. I also am having to do something that I hate more than anything and that is depend on others for just about everything. I despise that. Everyone keeps saying oh sit back and enjoy it......let them take care of you for a while........they just don't understand.......I don't enjoy it......at all. I am happiest when I am taking care of others and I am at my most miserable when I have to let others take care of me.

I have always been the caretaker......always. Even though my brother was only three years younger than me, I still watched over him and stepped in when I needed to. I was okay with that I love him so much and taking care of him makes me happy.

Then there is my sister. She was born when I was twelve and from the moment she was born, she was mine. I raised her. I took care of her and I was never more happy than when I was taking care of her. I have never resented it......ever. I loved it.....she was and still is my world.

Then you have my kids. I have always taken care of them. I wanted them to have a childhood full of fun. I have taught them to be responsible but, I have never dumped the weight of the world off on them. My happiest times are when I am doing things for my kids. My most miserable times is when I have to ask them to take care of me........I hate that.

Then there is Tim. He is being so good. He is washing clothes, shopping and taking care of me and I hate it. He is working twelve to fourteen hour days in the heat and them coming home to take care of me. It makes me miserable.

Today has not been a good day. I am tired of lying around. I can only sit in a hard chair straight up for thirty minutes at the time while wearing a brace. It is not a pleasure at all. I can't even sit or lie on the couch because it is too soft. I am stuck in the bedroom by myself with nothing to do. I have already read eight books and I am tired of reading. I want to be productive. I want to be a part of life again. I am just not myself right now.

I know that it will get better and I will look back at this post later and call myself a wienie and a whiner but, for now.......today.......this is the way I feel and frankly...........I AM JUST NOT MYSELF!!!!

Fathers Day

What better day than Father's day to tell you about some of my special Daddy's! First the number one Daddy in my life......T!

While T can come off as being a hard gruff person, he truly is not. Especially when it comes to our kids. He is one of the most proud loving Daddys I know. He is not always quick with his praise for his kids but, it is not because he is not proud of them, it is just that he doesn't always know how to put into words, how he feels.

The joy on his face each time we found out we had another baby on the way is a picture I can see in my mind even today! The tender way he looked at each of them when they were born just took my breath away. It made me fall even more in love with him. I knew that I had not only picked the right person for me.......I had chosen the best Daddy for my kids.

When T gets a chance to spend some one on one time with the kids, it just brightens his day. Something as simple as going to get gun permits with Zachary or spending a long weekend at the beach with all of them, can just light up his world. When one of them comes to him just to talk he becomes a different person, he lights up and he is so thrilled that they needed him!

Tim is basically quiet and has a hard time expressing himself but, through his actions, his kids know just how much they are loved. He may huff and puff sometimes but, when it is all said and done......he loves those three kids more than they will ever know.

The other Daddy is my Daddy. After many years of not being a part of my life, my Daddy is once again a BIG part of my life. We almost lost my Daddy and I thank the Lord we didn't. Me, my brother and my sister were able to go visit him when he was sick and reconnect and establish a new relationship with him.

I have missed my Daddy through out the years but, now I have him again and I will not let him go. When my phone rings and the caller ID say Daddy......it just gives my heart a lift! I recently got the chance to go out to eat with him and my brother.(another special Daddy!) It was one of the best nights I have ever had. To be able to have two of the most important men in my life together with me, was more special than I can even begin to explain.

On this Fathers day, I have a sense of peace and contentment that I have not had in a very long time. I think it is because of the special Daddy's I have in my life. T, my brother and my Daddy. What more could I ask for?