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Go Beyond Awareness

September 30, 2014 By kelly Leave a Comment

So, today is September 30. Which, can we just take a second and reflect on how quickly September passed by us? Or was that just me? Seriously, September got up out in a hurry. Whew! The girls had a (glorious) week long break from school in mid-September, so that surely contributed to the swiftness of the days ticking off, I’m sure. Anyway. It’s almost gone now, only hours left. And, thus will end “Childhood Cancer Awareness Month” for 2014. BUT, it doesn’t have to stop here, y’all. Awareness is okay, but it’s really not enough. Let’s help by going beyond aware and doing more. How? Well, I’m of limited knowledge, admittedly, but I do know of some ways to help and I’m glad to share info about some amazing pediatric cancer support non-profits that I know of and know to be fully on the level with all that they do.

First of all, some stats from ACCO.org:

Childhood Cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in children under the age of 15 in the US.
Worldwide, more than 160,000 children are diagnosed with cancer each year.
In the US, among children from birth to age 19, more than 15,780 cases of cancer are diagnosed each year.
Every 40 minutes a child is diagnosed with cancer in the US.
The most common type of cancer in children is Leukemia.
One in 285 children will be diagnosed with cancer by the time they are 20 years old.

Sobering, right? I mean, really — it just socks me in the gut every time I read those statistics. And, those are just SOME of the stats. These statistics also don’t show the amazing faces and lives that go along with pediatric cancer. Those kids are beyond precious and more needs to be done for them.

Another stat that really gets to me is that less than 5% of all federal cancer research funding goes into pediatric cancer research. LESS THAN FIVE PERCENT. That’s just not okay, in my opinion. These kids need research funded for a cure. This lack of federal funding is a big motivating factor for me, personally, to feel compelled to donate to non-profit agencies that help pediatric cancer patients and their families and also help to provide much needed research money. Some of the organizations I recommend for you to check out AND donate to are:

Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation

CURE Childhood Cancer

Curing Kids Cancer

Rally Foundation

St Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital

Also, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta has a Stop Childhood Cancer Alliance page with links to other charitable organizations that aid in the fight against childhood cancers.

Let me say this too, EVERY LITTLE BIT HELPS. It really does. Whether you have ten bucks or a million, the money helps. This is a lesson that we’ve been teaching our own girls as we encourage them to donate, as well. They have chosen to donate to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, Georgia Chapter and have seen firsthand that even kids can donate and every bit is for the good for those that need it.

So, please — let’s don’t just be aware. Let’s be active. Odds are, you know a child that’s been affected by cancer. Maybe it’s your own child. Or maybe, like me, you’ve known and loved many that have had to be valiant warriors against horrible cancers at young ages. I don’t think any of us will go through this life not knowing a pediatric cancer patient. The statistics are staggering and I just really feel strongly that we can all pull together to help make a positive difference. If you feel lead, and I hope you do, please make a donation to one of the non-profits I listed. And, hey, if you feel further lead, do it regularly. Get involved with these agencies. Let’s get behind these kids and their families and show them that they are not in this alone. Let’s beat this cancer beast down. TOGETHER, WE CAN HELP FIND A CURE!

Book Review: A Life Intercepted by Charles Martin

September 8, 2014 By kelly Leave a Comment

I am writing this review fresh on the heels of attending a book signing event at which I finally got to meet one of my favorite authors, Charles Martin. I just finished his latest novel, A Life Intercepted, last night, so the book signing was well timed for me. It was my very first book signing and I enjoyed it tremendously. It reminded me of just how much I adore small bookstores and how much I enjoy having an actual book in my hands. I love reading and always have, but I have been addicted to e-reading on my Kindle the last few years. It’s fast, it’s less expensive…what’s not to love? BUT, then there are bookstores. Maybe they are a bit old fashioned, but that’s okay with me. I rediscovered a love tonight for locally owned book stores and I will surely be back there. It was wonderful! The two authors present were Lisa Patton and, of course, Charles Martin. I had never read any of Ms. Patton’s books previously, but I left with a signed copy of her first novel, Whistlin’ Dixie in a Nor’Easter, and I can hardly wait to get started on it. I have read all of Charles Martin’s books already, some more than once, and I also left with a signed copy of A Life Intercepted. Both authors were just wonderful to hear and meet in person and I’m thankful I had the opportunity to be there this evening.

So, back to the book review…

A Life Intercepted is Charles Martin’s tenth novel and it does not disappoint. It was one of those books that I wanted to pace myself to read through slowly, but, at the same time, I didn’t want to put it down. It was such a powerful and amazing read all the way through. I was engaged from start to finish. There were moments when I had tears, there were moments when I had smiles and there were moments when I just felt my heart being pulled all over the place, but in the best of ways. Once again, Charles Martin’s writing style drew me into his characters and their situations. I was invested all the way through the book. And, it didn’t let me down for a single second. Every page, every chapter was just as riveting as the one before and after it.

I hesitate to talk too much about the story lines because, well, I just don’t want to give anything away. I can tell you that there are elements that deal with football, with personal identity, with loss, with redemption and, of course, with love. And, as with every Charles Martin book there is an element of faith intricately woven into the stories. He doesn’t preach and he never gets cheesy, he’s just real and you feel the depth of his own personal faith in his writing and in the fiber of his characters. As my friend Debbie and I agreed in talking about his books, you come away from reading one of his books wanting to be a better person. That says a lot. Books that captivate your attention, get you emotionally invested AND leave you with lessons to apply to your own life? Those are excellent books. And, those are the essence of Charles Martin’s writing.

I absolutely recommend this novel to anyone. It’s a truly wonderful read. If you’ve never read Charles Martin before, start with this one. Work your way through the other nine novels. Then, do me a favor, won’t you? Come back and tell me how much you enjoy them. Because I can guarantee that you will. The way he writes relates to everyone. If I were forced to choose a genre for Charles Martin’s writing, I would say “southern fiction”, but, even at that, his writing has something, I believe, for everyone.

I’m going to close with a photo collage from tonight. On the left is me with Charles and on the right is his inscription in my copy of A Life Intercepted. He wrote: Kelly – Blessings! “Love does what hatred cannot.” Charles. And that, I believe, sums up a lot. That is what you will find in this novel and that’s what you’ll find in this lifetime. Read this novel, and his others, and you’ll be as blessed by them as I am.

Blessings,

Kelly

Oh, Middle School…

August 26, 2014 By kelly 2 Comments

Well, we are into week four of this school year already and we have a middle schooler in the house this year. MIDDLE SCHOOL. The very phrase has struck fear in my heart since the first day Macey walked into a kindergarten classroom. Every year of elementary, I would think that at least I had x more years until middle school. I don’t think I’m alone in that, right? I mean, seriously, who looks forward to middle school?! I think we can pretty much all agree that middle school is basically a big hormone casserole baked at around 98.6 for three years. Can I get a witness? So, yea, the dread was totally there. But, I’m here to say that it’s going well. Better than that, actually…it’s going great! Color me shocked and HAPPY!!

I actually started making peace with the whole middle school process last spring when I attended an open house for upcoming sixth grade parents. Just listening to administration and teachers gave me a peace because, let’s be honest, this isn’t their first rodeo and they know how to help acclimate these kids to a new learning environment. It may not be the warm fuzzy adjustment of kindergarten, but that’s not what these adolescents need anyway. They are learning independence and gaining self-awareness, so what they need more than hand holding is some good old fashioned nudging along.

In our county, schools start/end at staggered times. So, we have Mariana going to elementary around 7:30am and we have Macey going to middle around 9am. Then Mariana’s school dismisses at 2:20 while Macey is still in school until 4:15pm. This is a definite change from shuttling both girls to one school and picking both up at the same time. But, it’s working out quite well. Mariana decided to ride the bus this year, so that buys me extra time in the afternoons, then we go pick up Macey together and she does her reading and other homework in the carpool line. Bam. Problems solved!!

Now that we’re almost a full month into the middle school experience, I know we still have a LOT to learn, but I am thankful that the adjustment is going well. Macey is, step by step, learning to be a little more independent. Bless her, she still wants to ask her homeroom teacher a lot of questions, but she’s getting there. And, she’s learning better accountability because if she forgets, say, a binder or homework, well that doesn’t really fly. The administrators and teachers at her school encourage us, as parents, to let the kids falter sometimes because it’s only in faltering that they can pull themselves back up and see that, hey, they ARE capable of redeeming themselves. We also believe in natural consequences in our family, so it’s also helpful to learn that good or bad, every action has a consequence attached to it. Granted, this is crazy hard to do sometimes, but these are excellent life lessons for the long haul.

I’m sure we’ll hit some bumps in the road along this way, but I feel good knowing that we’re at a middle school that is well run and looks out for its students. I feel confident in the teachers and administration which also goes a long way in helping me have peace with this whole transition. I’m serious when I say that I have literally dreaded these middle school years for ages. But, I’m seeing now that there is nothing to dread. Hey, it’s inevitable, so we might as well face it, right? And we call came through the hormone casserole our own selves. I won’t say it was all fun, but we all grew and learned from every experience along the way. So, I’m embracing this new season for Macey and our family. I won’t even go into the tween stuff today, that’s another post, but I say that middle school, as far as I can tell right now, isn’t going to be a stink pot. I think we’re going to enjoy it. In fact, I’m confident we will. And, who would have thought THAT?!

Blessings,

Kelly

More than an uncle…

April 29, 2014 By kelly 4 Comments

I’m dusting off my blog for the first time in a long time. To be honest, I wish I were coming out “posting hibernation” to write ANYTHING but what I am going to write today. I wish I had a book review to share, or a recipe or a cute new outfit. Anything else. Instead, I’m writing with a heavy heart. A week ago today, our family had a sudden and devastating loss when my Uncle Lawrence, my mama’s younger brother, went to heaven unexpectedly. To say that we are in shock is an understatement. It’s still unbelievable, even a week later, and I can’t fathom that is going to change. I know we will get through it, but we will never get over it.

I want to tell you about Lawrence, who was more than an uncle in a lot of ways. He was only 17 years older than me, so in a lot of ways he was like a cool big brother. In other ways, he was a great friend. And, yes, he was an awesome uncle. He was that uncle that every kid deserves to have, really, because he thought of my brother Charlie and me as his own. He was also a fun great uncle to our girls and to Charlie’s kids too. Our family is no longer complete, to say the least.

Some things about Lawrence:

He was my mama’s first baby. She was four years old when Gran and Pop were expecting another baby and she prayed HARD for a baby brother. When someone would ask her what if the baby was a girl, she would get tears in her eyes and say “But, I asked God for a baby brother…” And, she got one. He was her baby from June 28, 1956 onward. She will tell you that the happiest day of her life before she had me and then my brother was the day Lawrence was born. She always looked after him. They had an awesome relationship. He called her “Sistuh” (sister) in a way that only he could say. She often called him “Bubba” and told me that when he was little she sometimes called him “Ducky.” They looked out for one another. They had a bond that is still unbroken today even though he has gone on.
He loved his family and his friends. Lawrence was loyal and kind. If he had something you needed, you were welcome to it. His home was open to his family and friends. We have spent some really wonderful days at his place, just hanging out and content to just BE. He always had fun things for the kids to do and loved having them over to play. And, he sure did love Vikki. She was his “Vik” or “CC” (cool cat) as he sometimes called her.
He wasn’t motivated by money and never tried to keep up with any joneses. Lawrence was who he was. Some might say he was a “simple man”, but don’t take that to mean he didn’t have depth. He definitely had depth of character and had strong values, but money didn’t drive or motivate him. He didn’t need the big fancy house, the latest designer clothes or a shiny new ride with all the bells and whistles. Oh, he liked cars, trust me, but it didn’t have to be brand new. He was content with the blessings he had and he didn’t try to live beyond his means.
He drove a cotton truck for McClesky Cotton in Sasser, GA and he loved his job! He kept his cotton truck clean and in great working order. On days when he could, he would go by and pick up Pop to let Pop ride around and pick up cotton modules with him. When it got tougher for Pop to climb into the cotton truck, Lawrence fixed him up some steps by the road so Pop could get in the truck easier. That’s the kind of man he was. He loved his job and his family.
He was mischievous. I might as well confess — this is a family trait. Many of us are like this. We like to “scare” people or pick, but it’s in fun, never mean. He was always up to something, or at least you had better be prepared in case he was. I didn’t understand his picking when I was a little girl, but, like our friend Polly said, eventually we learned to laugh at ourselves and THAT was an awesome lesson he taught us. Life is too short to be taken too seriously all the time, that’s for certain.
Lawrence was a giver of nicknames. If he knew you, you probably had a nickname. AND, if he had your phone number, it’s probably stored in his cell phone under your nickname. I cannot recall EVER hearing him call me “Kelly”, but I can still hear him calling me “Kel” or “Boo” or “Boo-Bear.” We all had nicknames, even if it was just a name shortened down.

I could honestly go on and on, but I can’t put him into enough words. He was so many things to so many people and his funeral was a testament to that. My dear friend Sammi told me after that it was the sweetest and most honest service she has ever been privileged to be a part of. His service honored him. His neighbor and friend “Mr. Horace” gave the message and some of his friends came forward to speak. To hear grown men speak so lovingly of their friend was a true tribute. And, to hear his lifelong friend Jimmy say that Lawrence wasn’t in a mansion in heaven, but a shop out back — well, that rang true of how Lawrence is and would want to be. In my heart and mind, his passing and his funeral came WAY too soon, but if it had to happen then he couldn’t have been honored in any better or more touching way. I dare say that at the end of all of our days, we will want to be celebrated in the same way by those that knew and loved us best. I wanted to speak at his funeral, but…I just couldn’t. I couldn’t get the words to come. Those that DID speak did an awesome job and I hope they know how much their words meant.

I still don’t have all the words. I’m going to be working for this for a long time, I know. Last week, at a time when I really needed a word of encouragement, I read the following quote on Facebook and I am sharing it again here because of the truth it rings. “Thank you, Lord, for the pain we feel. It is the price way pay for having loved someone so much. It is worth it.” As badly as this hurts and as much as I miss him already, I have to remember that it wouldn’t feel this bad if I didn’t love him and be blessed with his love too. There is no eloquent way to say how this feels and how it is to live in a world without Lawrence, so I’m just going to flat out say that it sucks. It does. And, I’m just glad our Heavenly Father, in His grace, doesn’t expect us to understand because I never will. I trust the Lord and His provision, but I will never understand these things.

I’m going to close this post with two pictures. The first is Lawrence with his wife, Vikki, and the second is Lawrence with his daddy, our Pop. Look at that smile on his face. It was ever present. (As was the toothpick in his mouth.) He was full of love, life, mischief and fun. He made our world a better place just by being in it. And. I’m counting on him to keep heaven fun until we get there.

And, one more of him and Vik – he had been being SILLY just before this shot, but got him some sugar from his wife:

I love you, Lawrence…we all do and we always will!! We miss you so much, Buddy!!

Your Boo forever,

Kel

PS: If you have a memory or anything to share, please feel free to do so here or on my Facebook.

Summertime Boredom Busters

June 13, 2013 By kelly 1 Comment

I have to say that I always look forward to summer. It’s my absolute FAVORITE time of year. What’s not to love about warmer weather, going to the pool, beach trips, relaxed schedules and MORE? Seriously, summer rocks my world.

But, along with summer comes the inevitable — summer boredom creeps in on our kids. Frankly, this baffles me to the point of me thinking it’s a phenomenon because HOW can these children today be bored with three hundred thousand (give or take) things to do around our houses. Do they not realize that when we were kids, we were playing outside except for meals and sleep times? We won’t clue them in that we got bored too. We’ll just remind them of the fact that we had far less “stuff” and forget that we played hours of Super Mario on our sweet Nintendos.

So, when summer boredom inevitably strikes at your house, what do you do? I recently posted on Facebook that the two phrases I have come to dread the most this summer are “I’m telling” and “I’m bored.” I’m working on the tattling business – in other words, don’t tattle unless you are bleeding or on fire – and I have some creative ideas for the boredom issue. I’m happy to share some ideas and I’d love to get your ideas too. Please comment with your best boredom busters.

SUMMERTIME BOREDOM BUSTERS

CHORES — The other day, our 7 year old complained to me that she was bored. Guess what? She learned to scrub toilets. No kidding. I put the “stuff” in the bowl and she scrubbed all three toilets in this house. Was she a fan? No. But, she learned a valuable life skill. Then, I kid y’all not, the little goober told me she was STILL bored. (insert jaw-dropping here) Are you kidding me? Okay. On to more chores. Guess what she learned to do next? She learned to clean baseboards. I gave her a spray bottle of cleaner and a rag and showed her how to clean the baseboards on the main level of our house. Another life skill learned. Check. Guess who wasn’t bored anymore? You know it was that sweet and sassy 7 year old. So, here’s the deal — don’t tell your kids, but create a list of chores they can do when they complain of being bored. Scrub toilets, clean baseboards, scoop kitty litter, sweep the deck, empty trash cans, fold towels, scrub the bath tub. I mean, the list is endless, let’s be honest.
Make Oobleck – I had never heard of “oobleck” in my life until recently when a friend posted about it on Facebook. So, I got on Google and discovered what it was and how to make it. So, what is it? It’s a concoction of 2 parts cornstarch to 1 part water. How do you make it? Mix the two together. I did 1 cup of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of water. The wonder of oobleck is that it’s a solid when it’s in the container and when you hold it with any pressure. BUT, if you let it just sit in your hands, it gets liquidy. The girls’ minds were blown. This is some good fun, but it’s not very clean. So, do what I didn’t do and have them play with it outside. And, by all means, don’t put it down your drain unless you just want to put a plumber to work on your drains.
Shaving Cream “War” – Our girls recently had friends (who are sisters that are their ages) over for a play date and I let them have a shaving cream “war” on our trampoline AND we had the sprinkler going underneath the trampoline. I gave them each a can of good ole Barbasol and let them have at it. The only big rule was that no one could put shaving cream above anyone else’s shoulders. They were a little bit timid at first, but before long there were four girls giggling and covered in shaving cream. Good, clean fun that didn’t cost much at all.
Crafts Bin – We have a craft bin at our house that has all sorts of things from Perler bead sets to markers to felt sheets to googly eyes to pipe cleaners and MORE. This is great to have, especially on rainy days.
Geocaching – This is an activity that can be fun for the whole family. We got the official app and even though it was more than I would normally shell out for an app, I’ll be the first to say it was worth it. We’ve done one “big” family geocach and had a blast. We spent a Saturday going around our area looking for caches and at the end of the day the girls turned them in for prize packs. Geocaching opportunities are available all over the world, so check out the site and the app to see what’s in your area.

Of course, we have other activities to battle boredom too. We go to the pool, we go out for fro-yo, we have play dates and sleepovers, we hit up local parks and so forth. What are YOUR favorite ways to combat boredom?

Have a great summer, y’all…
Kelly