The Big Number 7!

Fireworks over Nashville

This coming Monday will not only be the Fourth of July, but it will also be my 7th Wedding Anniversary! Not everyone knows how I got together with my Beloved, so I thought I would fill you in.

I had divorced the father of my three sons in 1994 for infidelity, and I had just about given up any hope of remarrying before the kids were grown. At that time, they were ages 8, 7, and 3 months. I mean, what man in his right mind would want to take on the responsibility of a woman and three boys---a ready-made family? I had dated a little, and most men were completely put off by small boys.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am completely devoted to my kids, and there was never any thought of abandoning them with their father or anyone else just for the sake of some selfish man. My grandmother, who had been in a similar situation, counseled me that I might just need to wait until the kids were grown to start looking for another relationship.

So, I pretty much settled in for the long-haul to be a single lady raising 3 boys with not a lot of help. I learned to do lots of things myself, from fixing the belt on a broken washer to taking a toilet up, removing the jammed toy soldiers, and replacing it with the seals and all. It was too expensive hiring repairmen, so I just got books and did things myself. I could put the belt back on the lawn tractor as well as any fellow around.

I also decided during this time that it was time to get computer literate. I got a computer and taught myself how to use Windows and email, etc. Then, I went exploring on the internet to see what was beyond my small little world in Tennessee. I had gotten my computer in January of 1997, and by February, I found a place called "The Christian Connection" (which I don't believe is operational any more, sadly) where Christians (using the term broadly) could meet and develop a relationship at their own pace.

Just a couple of days into being on this site, I got a letter from an interesting guy named Tim who lived up in New Jersey. It seemed that both of us were trying to keep up with the steady flow of people who were interested in our profiles and writing to us. Within just a few days of emailing, Tim and I were so engrossed in each other's potential that we decided to go "exclusive" and just explore the possibilities. It was right around Valentine's Day, and he created me this website just for me, and it was so romantic that I was quite intrigued. I had never had anyone go to so much trouble for me, so I knew that there was something a little different about this one.

Both of us had been hurt in a previous relationship, though Tim had never been married. Our defenses were up somewhat, and we took it pretty slow. But within a few weeks, we took it to the next level and tried a phone call. That went well, also, and Tim requested a picture. That kind of ticked me off a little, as I felt like looks should not be a huge factor, but I could understand that he needed to see that this Tennessee girl had the majority of her teeth!

By May, Tim wanted to come down and meet me. Well, you can imagine how that went over with family. I don't think his family was exactly excited about his being interested in a middle-aged divorce' with 3 kids! My policeman father and the rest of my family thought that I had totally lost it. Tim and I resolved that it really did not matter what family thought, because we were old enough and experienced enough to make up our own minds about such matters.

The May meeting went very, very well, and I was invited to come up to New Jersey for Tim's sister's wedding in July, as all his family was coming in from all over the country for it. I was able to take the baby, who was 3 by now, with me, and we had a ball seeing the sites of New York City, including the 4th of July fireworks. His sister married on the 6th, and it was great fun meeting the entire family. I found that they were a very intelligent, creative, and fun-loving family, much like my own.

So he had met my family, and I had met his, and we were still talking! That pretty well sealed the deal, and the rest was just logistics. At one point, we were just ready to elope and get it over with! But one thing that bothered me was that we were not on the same page exactly on religious matters. Tim was about as close as one could be to being a New Testament Christian without actually being one. We studied together on the phone, and pretty soon, he found a group of Christians to assemble with in New Jersey. In December, he decided that his previous baptism had not been done for the right reasons, so he was baptized into Christ for the remission of his sins. (Acts 2:38)

Now that we were finally "on the same page," we set a date and started planning a wedding for July 4, 1998. We picked that date mainly because the previous 4th had such meaning for us--seeing the spectacular fireworks in New York City and falling in love.

We put a lot of thought into how we wanted to do everything, from designing our rings to picking out the wording for invitations and programs. We wrote our own vows and meticulously picked out every song for the wedding. Our theme was "Let Us Begin in God's Presence." Our music was all done a capella, and each song had meaning to us.

Tim arrived late on Wednesday night before we married on Saturday. He and his parents joined me and my parents at my home, where he got down on one knee and proposed "officially" and slipped my diamond on my finger. Due to the distance and the time it took to have my ring made, he had just kept it until we could get together. I got to wear it a whopping 3 days before we added my wedding ring to the finger as well. We all still laugh because he was nervous and chewing gum when he proposed, and his mother made him stop and spit out his gum before he continued! He will never live that moment down!

We had just a couple of days to get our marriage license and get all the last minute things done for the wedding. At the last minute, we hired a videographer--something Tim did not necessarily think we had to have. We were so happy in the long-run that we professionally videotaped the wedding and had 3 other cameras running, as we have watched the tapes a million times. We also had an excellent photographer, and the day could not have turned out more beautiful. The church was fairly new and needed little enhancement, as it was quite elegant and just the right size for our wedding. The ceremony went flawlessly, everyone looked beautiful, and there was not one technical glitch. The only thing that hampered the day somewhat was a thunderstorm in the afternoon which knocked out the power for a bit after the ceremony was over, but we worked around it, and the sun came out again later. I regret now that we did not have more outdoor shots of Tim and me, but in the Tennessee humidity of July, neither of us would probably have looked too calm, cool, and collected!

I ended up being in my dress longer than I anticipated, and by the time the picture below was made, I had probably been in the dress for about 7 hours! In this particular photo , we were at the New Orleans Manor, an elegant Nashville restaurant, where we had a spectacular dinner after the wedding with family and the wedding party. Then, we were off for our honeymoon, and everyone else went to see the fireworks over Nashville.



As the saying goes, there has been a lot of water under the bridge since that day in 1998. In some ways, it does not seem like it could have been 7 years already since then. In other ways, I think I have felt every single day! Tim and I have had our share of trials since we married, mostly due to incessant health issues. Those are things over which we have no control. But the best part of our marriage has been that our values are the same and that we are so much alike in so many important ways. That has enabled us to keep our focus through some very rough times and come out on the other side of the trials refined by the fire instead of beaten down by people and circumstances. We stand united on principles and values, and it surely is easier when two walk together.

God has blessed our union with two additional kids--both girls and both dolls. We all love our blended family, with traditions from Tim's Northern roots and my Southern ones. My boys make wonderful brothers for the two girls, and they all love each other as though they were full brothers and sisters by blood. I don't think they ever think of it any other way.




Tim is a wonderful husband and father and most of all, Christian. He has more guts than a lot of "weathered" Christians that I know, and he does not compromise the Truth for the sake of family or friendships. The Lord was definitely watching out for me and preserving Tim for me for the time of my life when I would need him.

So now you know our "love story." We are off this weekend to celebrate with the family, so I may be gone for a few days, but I shall return, Lord willing. Everyone have a wonderful 4th, stay safe, obey the laws of the land, and I'll see you when we all get back!

No Applause, Please....

Your IQ Is 135

Your Logical Intelligence is Genius Your Verbal Intelligence is Genius Your Mathematical Intelligence is Genius Your General Knowledge is Exceptional

A Quick and Dirty IQ Test

Time Keeps on Slippin' (Slippin', Slippin') Into the Future.....

Sorry, but I was overcome for a brief moment with a musical flashback from my teen years when music was really music and not noise. June is getting away from me. Just a couple more days, and we will embark upon the second half of the year. I can hardly wait for all the Christmas in July sales to begin, as they now last clear to December. I think at the local Walgreens, they have just given up on trying to stock seasonal merchandise, and now they just have a row for each holiday. You want Valentine's Day candy??? Aisle 6!!! Halloween decor? Aisle 13!

O.k., well, maybe it is not quite that bad yet, but it is getting there quickly, it seems. Meanwhile, the clock of my life seems to be running like an out of control windup alarm clock with the hands spinning in a complete 12 hour circuit every 20 minutes or so. I commented once in a blog that I really think the time-space continuum has changed somehow since the days of my youth, but I have so far been unable to prove it. (Look here, though, and you will see what I mean....)

Happy Birthday wishes go out today to our New Jersey Dad, Father-in-law, and Grandpa Bill! Wish we could be there with you, Bill, and play a few hands of Spades, and eat a little lowfat cake! Hopefully, we can find time to be together before too long, if your son will stop working so hard!

I am already planning ahead for a hectic July. Daniel has two schools to go to, if we get all the details worked out, as he begins his life's journey towards finding a career that suits him. He is still tossing around the idea of some college classes this fall, but that is not definite yet. First, we have to get him licensed as a driver so that he can get where he needs to go. He's looking at all his options. I am glad I am not his age again. It is a tough age to be.

Meanwhile, I also need to get my tookus in gear and start planning home schooling for the three next oldest kids for the fall. (Yes, Jen, if you are still reading, it is looking more and more like a reality.) But I am going to have to hustle to get all the paperwork done and curriculums purchased by the time we need to start.

Another kink in the plans surfaced today as well. I went to the Gynie for my yearly check (don't ya just love those?) and it looks like I am going to get yet one more minor surgical procedure before too long. Remember my "womb with a view?" Well, it is working overtime, and I am tired of it, so we are going to try a relatively new little procedure called Endometrial Ablation. It has been around a few years, but it is not used on just everyone. There is a beautiful website done by someone here, and if you want to know more about the procedure, this is a great site (and a very peaceful one) to visit. I'm singing the "OBG Why Me Blues" tonight, but hopefully all will be easily dealt with and I can get back to chasing my little Bee who turned 20 months old yesterday! Yep, that time's a flyin'!

I've got my eyes on a nice long weekend, filled with family, fun and lots of time in the parents' pool. My Hubby and I will celebrate our 7th Anniversary as the Country celebrates her 229th. It is going to be great to not even have to get out of the water to see the fireworks a couple of blocks away! Meanwhile, hopefully, I can coerce my dad to try out his new grill and make us up some yummy burgers and hotdogs to munch on. It seems like it was just a short time ago that I was a teen celebrating the 200th anniversary of America!

Mama's, hug those babies tight, because they don't stay little long.

Meanwhile, this song is stuck in my head....
Feed the babies
Who don't have enough to eat
Shoe the children
With no shoes on their feet
House the people
Livin' in the street
Oh, oh, there's a solution

want to fly like an eagle
To the sea
Fly like an eagle
Let my spirit carry me
I want to fly like an eagle
Till I'm free
Fly through the revolution

Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin' Into the future
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'
Into the future

(Steve Miller Band)

Under the (Beautiful) Weather

Well, unfortunately, I have been feeling pukey again the last few days, which is a shame, because the weather this month has been superb in Tennessee. It has been cooler and dryer than usual, and I have been grateful for any relief from the humidity that we usually get.

I ended up at the E.R. on Friday night with abdominal pain. The Dr. was concerned that I might have another obstruction, so they kept me for a few hours testing out various theories. Sometime around 2 a.m., they said I could go. The i.v. fluids had perked me up some, but the pain was still there. They are just chalking it up to a virus. I don't even want to hear that word again this year.

I realized today that it has been almost a week since I updated last. I have to do better! The kiddos are keeping me hopping, and I haven't felt really well this week, so I guess maybe things will get better this coming week and I can catch up.

Thanks, K8, for telling us about the new photo tool. I am going to try it out!

Well, let's see....what has happened since the last big post....We had a lovely weekend in Lawrenceburg last weekend. It kind of spilled over into the week. We were unaware until Saturday that they were going to be having special services on Sunday where my brother preaches. They had an old-fashioned gospel singing at 3 and preaching at 4. Then, we were going to go on to our usual Sunday night services where we attend at 6, but I got sick during the p.m. preaching service. I'm not sure if I am having some pancreatic problems or not, but it is hurting in that area. It can't be my gall bladder because I don't have one anymore, so I am scratching my head wondering what is going on.

Anyway, we had a good time over Sunday and Monday celebrating Father's Day and Sam's birthday between services. My brother preaches at this little country church way out in the sticks, but it is just the neatest church. They are way out there in the country away from all the city influences, and what they have is just pure Christianity. The singing in that little building is heavenly. It just reverberates off the walls and ceiling, and it makes the harmonies beautiful. Plus, when you have your dad (who sounds like Pavarotti) and your mother (who sounds like Julie Andrews/Karen Carpenter) beside you, along with all the others in our family who sing well, it is just wonderful! Each man got up and led a song if he wanted to during the singing part, and we counted 7 of our "Edwards" men who led! Music has always been an important part of our lives, and I am glad to see the tradition continue in my boys.



Dad, a.k.a. "Pappy"




Mom, a.k.a. "Meme" with some of the grandchillin's








The boys got to enjoy some pool time at the parents' hacienda at the first of the week, too. However, the nights have been getting so cool that it makes it kind of painful getting into the icy water each and every time. I think they are ready for some good old hot weather so that the water will warm up.

I thought I would add some posts to my blog of some neat thoughts that I occasionally get in email. If nothing else, I will have a record of some of these things the next time my computer crashes. I always lose all my email, and then I can't find the good prose and poetry that I am searching for when I need it. So bear with me as I find and post some of my favorites. Hope you will like them as much as I do.

Hope you all have a glorious week, and those of you that are praying folks, please pray for my recovery so that I can effectively chase these 5 children around!

Redneck, and Proud of It!

You might be a Redneck if:

1. It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, "One nation, under God."

2. You've never protested about seeing the 10 Commandments posted in public places.

3. You still say "Christmas" instead of "Winter Festival".

4. You remove your hat and bow your head when anyone prays.

5. You stand and place your hand over your heart when they play our National Anthem.

6. You treat American Veterans with great respect, and always have.

7. You've never burned an American flag, but would kick someone's patooty that did.

8. You know what you believe and you aren't afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.

9 You respect your elders and expect your kids to do the same.

10. You'd give your last dollar to a friend.

Taking the High Road

I had an interesting conversation tonight on the phone with a lady that I got to know just a few weeks ago. She lives in my community, and we share some mutual interests that were the topics of our conversation. We were discussing what action should be taken concerning a mutual problem we are having.

I shared with her a valuable lesson that I have learned within the last couple of years of my life. A few years ago, this "daughter of Charlemagne" would have emerged with her sword drawn, ready to right all the injustices in the kingdom of Gravyville. However, age is mellowing me, and time is softening my approach to near-daily encounters with pea-brained individuals.

By nature, I am an activist. I am not one to sit around and let important causes go unchampioned. If I see a need on a personal basis, I would almost rather die than let the need go unanswered. There is a strong calling down in the bowels of my being that causes me to feel injustices in my world quite deeply, and in the past, this has gotten me into trouble, because, quite frankly, I have stuck my big nose in where it was not wanted.

In times past (and I am sure I will do it again at least a time or two before I die,) I have butted into situations where I was obviously not welcomed. That is the risk one takes when she tries to treat others as she would want to be treated. Some people are just very private, and they do not want to be bothered for any reason any time, even if their world is completely falling apart.

Back to tonight's conversation, however. As I spoke with this lady, it was evident that she thought that I had been "wronged" and that I needed to stand up for my "rights" and tell my story to people who just might listen. I told her, "Sometimes it is worth it, and sometimes it just is not."

(Digressing again...) A very wise friend told me a long time ago when I was a young parent to choose my battles wisely with my kids. There are so many times that you have to emphatically tell them "No!" that you can lose credibility with them if every time they ask you for something or to do something and the answer is "NO!"

The last time that my daughters asked me if they could get some pots and pans out and play in their kitchen band, I was tempted to say "no." After all, a mommy has enough dishes to wash after supper without having additional band instruments to clean up. Then, I thought about it, and I said, "O.k!" You would have thought that I gave them a set of Pearl drums!

It is that way with adults, too. Sometimes people do some pretty cruddy things to one another. Sometimes, people that you think are your best friends let you down in unimaginable ways. Sometimes it is worth bringing up and dealing with the issues. Sometimes, it just plain old isn't!

I told my friend tonight that this is one of those times. The Bible has quite a bit to say about fools, and there certainly are a lot of fools in this day and age. Proverbs is a great book full of everyday wisdom, and if you have never read it, you should. Though it was written hundreds of years ago, it is just as relevant today as it was then, because people never change. Proverbs tells us basically that there is a time to (and this is paraphrased) reason with a fool, and there are other times that it is absolutely futile.

So, how do you know when to confront someone and when not to? I think the answer lies within us and not the "foolish" person. Sometimes, we might have the wisdom to say something that might touch someone's heart and turn them around to a better way of thinking. And then, more often, I think, there are times that it just does not do one bit of good to say anything at all. They are too far gone to care or to act upon what you are saying. You are just wasting your breath to try and get them to see things your way.

So, when someone has mistreated you, you have two options. You can "take the low road" and fight to the death, or you can take the high road and walk away. Lots of people cannot walk away until they have "made their point" or "made a scene" or in some way visually called attention to the injustice that has come upon them.

It takes a lot more strength of character to walk away. Forget pride. It is highly overrated. You can still be inwardly proud of yourself and the way you have handled a situation. Forget about losing face. Losing face with whom? The foolish, ignorant, pathetic, misguided soul? He or she does not make a good friend/mate/business partner/etc., so why do you care if you have an on-going relationship with such a person? I have never gained any self-esteem by going a few verbal rounds with an idiot!

Lest I sound like I am all high on myself, that is not the case, I assure you. While humility is not my strongest suit, it is not my weakest, either. I'm just learning as I go that we all have so many battles to fight in life, and we can, if we are not careful, end up fighting something all the time. The next thing we know, we are old, and we really have not accomplished anything except for sparring with those whose minds we have no chance of changing.

Duty lies within every individual to search out truth, find it, and act appropriately upon it. Any lesser action is laziness at best and cowardice at worst.

No, my dear blog reader, it hasn't always been an easy climb to scale the sharp rock walls from the low ground up to the high road. Sometimes, I slip up and tumble pathetically down the slopes, arriving bruised and bleeding back in dangerous territory. I have to just make myself get up and resolve to do better at "rock climbing" and get back to treading down the high road. It gets a little easier with each successful battle.

Sam in 1993!

sam5thbirthday, originally uploaded by gritgravygirl.

Here is my curly-headed sweetie pie when he was just a little tyke. The curls have gone away, but the sweetness remains.

Sam in 2004!

Sam is pictured here at 16 years of age.

Sam with his great-grandfather Carl a couple of years ago

Sam and Siblings

My three sons, all built entirely differently, but all as sweet as they come. From left to right, Dan (Shaq), Micah (Shorty Pants or Little Pappy), and Sam (Newbie)

Happy 17th Birthday, Sam!

Lately, I have given more Blog space to my oldest "baby" whom my husband informs me is "no baby!" I have another "baby" who is also getting on up there in height and years. Today, Sam turns 17! It is unbelievable that these years could have passed by so quickly.

I remember Sam's Birth Day as though it were yesterday. My parents and younger brothers had come out to South Carolina where we were living and doing our Air Force stint at Shaw AFB. It was hot, hot, hot. My daddy says he remembers that he had never been hotter in his life. That is South Carolina for you.

The family had stayed with us for about 10 days in our little two bedroom house waiting for the child Sam to come on out. Time had dragged by, and the family needed to get on back home to Tennessee. So, on Sunday night, June 19, I went for a two hour walk with my mom. We came back home, I got in the shower, and the contractions started.

We went to the hospital at about 11, and all the men folks stayed home with our smallfry Daniel, who at the time, was about 18 months old. Sam's daddy was not feeling well, so Mom volunteered to go and get me started and have daddy join us later.

The labor went pretty quickly, and they would not give me anything much for pain. I think I got one shot of Demerol. Sometime in the 3 to 4 a.m. range, Dad and Sam's dad came over to the hospital, which was only 5 minutes from the house. I was begging my father to make them give me drugs!

All the birthing rooms had been full, so I was in a grungy labor room which was little more than cots lined up down a wall. Finally, someone came in and wheeled me down to delivery. My ex, Sam's father, decided that he was too close to throwing up to go with me into Sam's birth, so Mom got drafted at the last minute. I was screaming pretty good by this point, and Mom was panicking, as she had never witnessed a birth before. Somehow, she managed to be knocked out for all 5 of us!

Anyway, Sam came on out pretty soon, a little after 5 in the morning. His cord was tightly wrapped around his neck, and he was sooooo blue. They wasted no time with him, whisking him away to the nursery. Later, I found out he was really in distress. He had strep and pneumonia caused by my water leaking and them not catching it. His condition required an 18 day hospital stay, much to my distress.

Additionally, I had pushed so hard having him, that I broke all the blood vessels in my neck, chest and face, so I was quite a sight. They call them petechial hemorrhages, but at the time, even the doctor was not sure if I was having a reaction to the drugs or what. So, for a bit, there was pure chaos at the hospital as they tended to Sam and me.

Sam, when he pinked up a little, was the most beautiful baby! He was so cute, and he had a deep, lusty little cry. He was a spunky kid. They had to put i.v.'s in his head, and he learned that when they washed his head off, they were going to insert a needle. We had a hard time when we got him home giving him baths, because he thought bad things were coming.

It was devastating not to take my baby with me when I left to go home. I exhausted myself in the following days, driving up to the hospital every 4 hours to nurse him. Despite my best efforts, my milk supply did not hold up, and he had to end up bottle feeding eventually. He did well after the initial crisis. However, in later years, we found out that the incident had left him with mild cerebral palsy. At age 4, he showed signs of extreme speech problems, and we sought therapy. Though he was a beautiful kid with curly blond hair, his face showed signs of something like a stroke---a drooping on one side. It did not last forever, and the speech therapy all but corrected his speech.

Sam has always been such a great, sensitive kid. I personally believe his ordeal left him with some gifts which he uses to the glory of God. He is so sensitive to the needs of others. He was invaluable to me when Hannah was born and I was so sick. He took up with her and cared for her with the greatest tenderness. His hands are "healing hands." He can rub a migraine away like no one I have ever seen before.

My second-born loves music of all kinds. He loves to lead singing in our local church, and he is quite gifted. He was in the chorus at school and won many awards this last year. He has a set of Pearl drums that are his pride and joy. He will shortly be adding to the drum set with some new cymbals. He tried playing the sax for a while, but he has had some teeth problems that have made that difficult, so he gave that up.

Sammy, alias Newbie, alias Newbie Newbie Doo, was a favorite among teachers and students, when he attended school. (I guess he will be returning to home schooling this year.) He won the academic achievement award for the last two years in a row for his grade. He loved playing basketball,and although he was not a starter, he loved the game and was getting pretty good by the time the season was over. Of course, it helps that he is nearly 6'3" with a size 13 foot! He can nearly dunk it!

Sometimes, it seems like the second-born lives in the shadow of the first-born, but Sam has never seemed to mind that this was the case in our family. He has always been happy to sit back and laugh at his brother Daniel who was entertaining the family. But the truth of the matter is that Sam is really the wind beneath Daniel's wings. They are as close as brothers can be. They complement each other so well. Where one is weak, the other is strong, and they work together to finish a job. There is a quiet sense of mutual admiration between them. Each recognizes that the other has talents and abilities that he does not have, and they work together to do what needs doing in any given situation.

Yes, sometimes Dan and Sam fight like an old married couple. But like an old married couple, they "kiss and make up" pretty quickly, too.

I was looking for pictures of Daniel when I did his senior board for graduation, and it was very difficult to find one of Daniel that did not have Sam in it, after Sam came along. They have always been together, in their memory at least. I don't know if they will always stay close, but I suspect there will be a life-long bond there.

Sam's sisters are great fans of him as well--especially Hannah. Sometimes, she has been known to call him Mama, a fact which brings her father much distress. I tell Tim that I am not surprised that she has done it, because Sam absolutely took over for me when I was so sick in the six months after her birth. He cared for her so tenderly that she bonded with him. Both of the girls will run to Sam above their other two brothers when they want something, because they know that he will likely get it for them.

Sam has been the best son a mother could ask for. He never has caused me grief, except for the brief period of time when he was going through puberty and got the universal "stinky attitude" along with the stinky feet! But it was not bad, nor did it last long. When I am down, Sam is there to lift me up. He is full of love and compassion, yet he is very masculine and strong. He is going to make some girl a dandy husband with these qualities.

Yes, it has been 17 years since those turbulent days in 1988 in the Magnolia State. Life is indeed but a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. You mothers of little ones reading this blog---hug them tight and know that you will turn around one day to find yours all grown up, and you will ask yourself, too, how the time got away so quickly.

If there is anything I have learned this year, it is how blessed I am to have two good sons like Dan and Sam. I still have 3 little ones, and we will see if they turn out as well. I see so many kids in trouble these days, and I am just thankful that my kids are not playing with fire. I hope that when they leave me, and it won't be long now, that they will be good men and good husbands, etc. When they do go, I will have many wonderful memories of two cute little blond towheads who were both brothers and friends.

Being a Slug

Every since we made it through the graduation of my oldest boy, my brain has refused to work for a living. It promptly went on vacation, and so far, it has refused to return to work yet. Thus, I am having to manage without it.

Life without your brain is interesting. You forget to do the most ordinary tasks like feed the children or mail Father's Day Cards. Luckily, the children remind you when they need to eat. Cards don't stand up and say, "Mail me." So, unfortunately, to all the important men in my life---grandpa's, great-grandpa's, uncles, and even my dear Father-in-law, I offer you my sincere apologies! Your cards are going to be a little late, but they are coming.

My A.W.O.L. brain is not the only malfunctioning part of my body these days. Yes, folks, I do believe I am going to lose one more now-non-essential part before my post-surgical days are over. 3 guesses as to which part that is. I'll give you a hint. It has carried 5 babies to term and two others that did not make it to term. It has done its job, and now, it is begging to go the way of other worn out, non-essential organs like my appendix, thyroid and gall bladder. Methinks that I will at least wait until the fall, because once you have surgery, you cannot lift anything for at least 6 weeks, and longer if they do you like they did me in 2003. Those kind of surgeries take a year to get over. Hmmm....I wonder if I could find a doctor who would take my tonsils, too, in a 2 for 1 special????? I think if I get rid of these two things, I shouldn't have too many more troubles until I get to really old age and start having to have things tacked up! Unfortunately, no one wants to take a 42-year-old's tonsils out anymore.

Speaking of A.W.O.L., is it just my imagination, or have a bunch of bloggers seemingly been abducted by aliens or something??? No one is updating much these days! C'mon, people, let's get cracking. I am the only one who is allowed to go a week here without writing something, due to my cerebrum absentia.

Well, changing the subject, since I have been unable to accomplish much at home this week due to the missing brain and my missing 18 year old (he has been off working for his Uncles this week making some moolah, I figured that we would head on out tonight to a shower/garden party/potluck with the group from the Columbia church! It was rescheduled from last week due to rain. It was a wonderful party! They had really gone all out on the sweet decorations for a garden party for a really nice young couple who married in April. The couple had planned a summer wedding, but they had to move the date up when the bride's mother found out that she had breast cancer. Knowing she would start chemo soon and lose her hair, they decided to have the wedding earlier so that Mom would have her hair in the pictures. There was not time for a shower before the wedding, so they had one tonight.

The food was yummy, and we all had a good time visiting on an unseasonably cool night. We did a little karaoke without the microphone or the music---I guess that is a capella, not karaoke! A few others tried too, but most were down right chicken! It was just about right, temperature-wise. I am hoping against hope that it will stay this way through the summer and that we won't have the murderously hot temps we usually have in Tennessee in the summer. A good time was had by all members of the family, and the kids were especially proud of the little portable fans that were given out to those who wanted them. They let the kids take them home at the end of the night, and you would have thought that my kids had been given a big hunk of gold or something!

The kids are worried about the cool temps affecting their ability to go in their MeMe's and Pappy's pool this weekend. I don't think it will be too cold, with the daytime temps around here reaching the 80's and low 90's sometimes. Sam's birthday is Monday (my other "baby" is turning 17--boo hoooo hooooo hooooo hoooo!) I guess we will celebrate Father's Day and Sam's birthday this weekend, in addition to going to a gospel meeting Sunday afternoon between services of our church. If I hold up, I will be doing 4 services Sunday! But it is always really great! Any of you who are close enough, call us for details about Marcella Falls' meeting and come see us!

This has been a really lazy week, but when Daniel gets back, we really have to kick it up a level, and start cleaning out kid junk. Way too much has accumulated, and it is time to sell some, consign some, and Ebay the rest. Add to that my planning the kids' home schooling for the fall, and I have my summer cut out for me. I have two who have to get their driver's licenses and then jobs, and we would like to get a vacation in there somewhere. But the way my husband's work load has been this year as they re-structure a lot of things, I am wondering when we are going to all get out of here for a while.

Oh, well, lucky for me that we have a ready-made retreat for us anytime we can get there at my mom and dad's place. Add to that 3 brothers, 2 lovely sisters-in-law, and 3 adorable nieces/nephew in the same town, and we end up not really caring if we make it out of the state. I would love to see my in-laws up in Jersey along with his siblings who are more spread out, but maybe we can convince them to come down here! I'm getting too old to travel far, and with this missing brain thing, it is probably better that we do not stray too far from home!

While driving down the road in our beautiful Tennessee countryside last week, we came upon quite an unusual sight!

Closer inspection found what appears to be giant marshmallows littering the field.

Here is a closeup of the giant marshmallows. As you can see in the background, giant trucks have begun arriving to haul them away.

The giant marshmallows will soon be sent to Texas, where they will be used in Texas-sized cups of hot cocoa and for giant s'mores at the President's ranch.

This sweet little critter and its sibling were discovered under our old, dead van this last week. They are living there, and they have managed to go unnoticed for a few weeks now! They seem to be evolving, as their previous brothers and sisters did not make it because of the coyotes which are taking over our small rural area. These guys run for the engine when danger approaches.

Small Miracles

In one of our last installments, you may recall that in my 100 things I talked about the fact that all our kitties have been going missing. At one point, we had at least 3 adult cats and a litter of babies. We were getting worried how we were going to take care of all these kitties. I could just see us trying to catch these mostly wild cats to try to get them vaccinated. Well, one by one, they started to vanish. In one way, it was a relief, because we stay on the road a lot, and it is hard to properly care for animals if you are not home. But in another way, it was irritating, because we did not know what was happening to them all. I even suspected that a particularly cranky neighbor of ours was setting traps to eradicate some of the pet population, but since I don't go snooping on his expanse of property, I have no way of knowing. Said neighbor has the male cat who propagates the neighborhood cat population. It is funny, because everyone in the neighborhood has a cat who looks like this man's long-haired male. This male seems quite tame, so I wonder why they have not had him neutered. I guess they don't have a problem, in their own estimation.

Our old mother cat--the grand ma-ma--should have exhausted her nine lives years ago. Just when we would all speculate that she was gone for good, she would show up at the back door, hungry and begging. She even lost one eye in a fight with something. Now, we have not seen her for a good while, and we suspect she finally did use up those lives. Our neighborhood is set at the base of a "mountain." It is not a really tall mountain, but it is one in a chain that you can see in the marshmallow photographs I am posting today. We are an official neighborhood, but it is rustic out here, and there is a big cow field behind us where all types of animals live. Deer are plentiful, and it is not unusual to see 7 or 8 in our yard at dusk and dawn. We have seen skunks, possums (yuck!), foxes, and most recently, coyotes, which scares me to death. I have heard that they will even drag off small children if given the chance. So, my girls never go out to play unaccompanied. Our yard is 2.6 acres, and the boys love to play football or any kind of contact sport out in the yard with the neighborhood boys, and the girls love to get in their Barbie jeep and ride around. I just won't let them go by themselves.

As I mentioned in my 100 things, which you should read if you have not by now, we used to have a dog who at least kept the critters away by barking. She was a big, clunky golden retriever who was just not too smart. We were always disappointed with her from the start. Take my advice, and if you want a really good dog, go to a reputable breeder instead of a pet store. We should have known she was hyper, because she could not be controlled at the store. We thought she was just excited about getting out of that nasty cage. Unfortunately, she was just stupid.

When we brought her home, she would go to the bathroom in her kennel, and she would not go outside for anything. We would put her out, leave her a good while, and she would promptly come in and mess up her kennel. That got really old really quick, so she became an outside dog. Well, then, she was too stupid to go in her house. She would sit out in the rain, snow, or whatever and howl and bark all night. Finally, to get any rest at all, we had to let her in at night and put her out in the daytime.

Then, she started running away. Before we knew it, she went into heat, and she met up with a "traveling man" in the neighborhood. One night, we heard the worst ruckus in the back yard. It sounded like a cat trying to sing or something. It had started to turn chilly--it was November, I believe---and Tim went out to see what the noise was. He came back in with a small living creature that we could not readily identify. After some cleaning up of the small thing, it was determined that it was a puppy. (Newborn puppies who are cold can make a lot of noise for such a little creature!) "Dog," as Tim called her, was having puppies!

Well, I got her inside, and I put her in her kennel, which had some hay in it, because she liked the hay. That was a big mistake. The puppies came at a rate of about one every 30 minutes. Each had its own little sack of fluid surrounding it, and the mother would chew it out of the sack and clean it up. But the hay was getting stuck to the puppies. Dog seemed to trust that I was there to help, and she would let me take the pups and warm them after she was done cleaning them. She would rest until labor started again. Dog and I went all night, it seemed, and sometime around 4 in the morning, we had 9 puppies! All thanks to the "traveling man!"

The next 6 weeks were very intense. Daniel and I had to bathe all 9 puppies daily, or the stench became so bad we could not take it. I think it was 6 or 8 weeks until it was nearly Christmas, and we placed an ad in the paper and got a good response and sold every puppy for $25. I did not want to give them away, as there are people in our county who would take them for free and not care for them and possibly even have them for dinner. No kidding. (This is Tennessee, folks!) Those who got them were generally happy to have a part Golden Retriever, part traveling man puppy for $25. I won't tell you the insane price we paid for "Dog."

Well, eventually, Dog decided that it was more fun to hang out with the Bassett hound across the road, and the two of them started getting into trouble together. We brought Dog home, and tied her, but she would find ways to get loose and go again.
Finally, she ended up over at the home of a little old lady down the way. The little old lady apparently makes homecooked meals for Dog, whereas we only supplied her with yucky dog food. (She did get scraps.) So, Dog started spending more time there than she did at home. We went and asked the little old lady if she wanted us to bring the dog home, and she said, "Oh, no, she loves it here, and I love her! Let her stay!" So, we did. My kids can visit their not-too-intelligent canine any time, and she seems to have settled down some now. She has eaten so much there that she is fat as a butterball and can't run too far.

And, in the meantime, since the dynamics of our lives have changed in that we are away more than we used to be, we decided not to replace the pets. Our part-time cat has had two babies in the yard. They will either grow up and be good mousers like their mom or go the way of the other cats. That just seems to be the cycle of life around here. I wonder at the "small miracles" in nature almost every day. These kittens seem a bit smarter than their predecessors. I guess we will see, if they live to adulthood. I am rooting for them. I would protect them if they would come to me, but they come from a long line of wild kitties, who are most comfortable in the great outdoors, with only slight feeding assistance. They catch most of their own meals, and they only come begging when times are lean. We are most happy to help them out, seeing as they are kind enough to keep the mouse population down. Mama cat even had a snake cornered the other night. I HATE snakes, so I was distressed to see a snake in the yard, but I think it was harmless. Tim killed it anyway, just to be sure. Ahhh, country life. There is never a dull moment.

A Work in Progress

This blog is always a work in progress. There is never the time to really do it justice, but it is a fun way of keeping up with family and friends, making some new friends, and sometimes, just good old fashioned venting. People have been keeping diaries for centuries; now, we just do it electronically. This suits me fine. I am a better typist than penman, though I don't do either especially well anymore.

I finally got together my list of 100 things about me. It follows below this. You may not agree with everything I say or even how I say it. I do not wish to be unkind. There are some behaviors that push me to my limits. That is when the Irish part of me fires up, I suppose.

Anyhow, you will know me a little better when you read this. I am so thankful to live in America where I can freely express myself and have little more than a few disgruntled fools to worry about. As some one else said, if you don't like my list, go make your own list on your own blog and rant about people like me. For the rest of you reasonable people, (LOL) read on!

My 100 Things

1. I don’t know if I can think up 100 things about myself.

2. I am a 45-year-old female.

3. I am married to a 46-year-old guy who does Internet security for a company you would know. He keeps a low profile to protect the company, so I can’t say the company name.

4. I have 5 kids--3 boys, 2 girls.

5. I, coincidentally, came from a family of 5 kids.

6. I was the oldest child and the only girl.

7. It is great being the oldest.

8. Being the oldest has its disadvantages.

9. When you are the oldest child, you get to make all the mistakes first.

10. Your siblings should learn from your mistakes, but they generally don’t.

11. I thought at one time I would never be able to have children.

12. I have had 2 miscarriages. I never knew if they were boys or girls. I hope to get to meet them one day in heaven.

13. I thought when I had 3 boys that I was done for good.

14. God had other plans.

15. God (not Al Gore, as is widely circulated) created the Internet just so that I could meet my second husband. At least, that is how I see it.

16. My first husband had fidelity issues...he could not be faithful to one woman. I divorced him in 1994, four months after the birth of our third son.

17. I was single for about 3 years when I had a sudden and strong urge to buy a computer. I did not know why the urge was so strong at the time.

18. I met my soon-to-be 2nd husband on an online matchmaking service (now defunct) called “The Christian Connection.”

19. My family, including my father, a retired Highway Patrolman, thought I had lost my mind to use an online matchmaking service.

20. All my big, burly brothers, my mother, and my father accompanied on my first “date” with my Internet love.

21. After a very thorough interrogation, I was permitted to date sans familia!

22. Our first solo date was to The Old Spaghetti Factory, a neat, refurbished warehouse in Nashville. Incidentally, if you notice on the map, it is just a hop, skip and a jump from where my great-great-great-great-great-granddad, James Robertson, founded Fort Nashborough, the beginnings of Nashville. Cool, huh?

23. After a year and a half of very unconventional dating, he proposed in front of both sets of our parents on one knee (his mother made him spit his gum out first!) We married on July 4, 1998. The whole country is nice enough to celebrate our anniversary every year.

24. My husband has absolutely no excuse for forgetting an anniversary.

25. We moved from the South to the North for one year.

26. I cried for a whole year.

27. We moved back to the South.

28. I think that the South is the ONLY place to live, but I am partial.

29. I never thought I would have a daughter.

30. I have 2 daughters.

31. All my kids have Bible names...Daniel, Samuel, Micah, Sarah, and Hannah.

32. My husband has a Bible name...Timothy.

33. I am the only one without a Bible name. sniff sniff!!! But "Dana" is not as common as some other names, so I like it just fine. It suits me.

34. I used to have pets, but they were all eaten by wild animals, caught in traps by an evil neighbor (which I cannot prove,) or ran away. (Update: we have now replaced said lost animals with 2 dogs and a cat.)

35. I once owned the stupidest registered Golden Retriever in the world. She would not stay home, and she chewed up everything of value, including our back door.

36. She now lives with a little old widow and her granddaughter on the next street. The widow feeds the dog hot biscuits, and she is fat as a tick. I am glad the dog is “protecting” the widow and the little girl. She does bark well.

37. We have one part-time cat. She divides her time among neighbors. The rest of the cats have, sadly, become coyote food.

38. My husband, my older kids, and I are all believing, practicing Christians.

39. I take my faith very seriously.

40. I have very little patience with people who do not take their faith seriously. I feel you should believe and have some zeal or don’t believe, but get off the fence.

41. I am a people-lover.

42. I generally believe that most people are good, and I think the best of others until they show me otherwise.

43. I love to observe human behavior. I think they call it people-watching.

44. I am a night owl. I think best after 11 p.m.

45. My mother is a morning person. We drive each other crazy.

46. My mother and I are virtual carbon copies. It is scary. We can wear each other’s clothes, shoes, hats, whatever. Our feet were once exactly the same. (We have gotten older now, and feet change.)

47. My mother and I have some sort of mental connection. We dial the phone at exactly the same moment, at all different times of the day.

48. My next-youngest brother has the same mental connection with Mom.

49. My brother and I always call Mom at the same time, and she has to pick one of us to talk to, just like always.

50. I love my brother.

51. I have not always loved my brother.

52. My brother was as mean as a snake when we were kids. He got bettah! (A reference to a scene from the “Holy Grail” movie.)

53. My family used to always watch “A Christmas Story,” “Raising Arizona,” “Christmas Vacation,” or “Monte Python and the Holy Grail” whenever we got together. It was always as funny the 75th time as the first time.

54. Some of these movies had bad words. Now we say, “What were we thinking?” Now we like to watch edited movies...all the laughs, none of the bad stuff.

55. I have 3 other brothers who are very different than the oldest one. It is as though they were raised by different parents. Two are married, and one is a bachelor living in Germany.

56. I adore my parents. They are both superlative people.

57. My dad has a voice like Pavarotti. No kidding.

58. Mom had a voice like Julie Andrews. It has gotten lower in range with age but it is still pretty. Now she is more of a Karen Carpenter, if you are old enough to know who that is. If you aren’t, you need to look her up. She was awesome.

59. My parents sound like a pair of songbirds when they sing.

60. I did not inherit their singing talent. That is one trait I would have loved to have gotten. I was good enough, however, to make the chorus in college. I love singing a capella. It’s a pure sound.

61. My dad can paint, draw, write, sing, play music, speak well in public...pretty much anything he wants to do. Dad is right-brained.

62. I got my creative juices from my dad, and my left-brain-ed-ness from my mom.

63. I grew up with 3 sets of grandparents, due to divorce. I thought everyone had three sets.

64. I loved all my grandparents, but I guess I idolized my maternal grandparents.

65. I re-named my grandparents when I was born. The other grandkids had to suck it up and change what they called them. I called my grandmother “Nanny” and my grandfather “Cocky.” Don’t ask me where I got those names.

66. My uncle said that my relationship with my grandmother was much like the relationship between Jesus and John--the disciple whom Jesus loved. Our spirits were indeed quite bonded.

67. Nanny’s death in 1987 was the hardest thing I have ever had to endure.

68. My other grandmother’s death in 2004 was probably the next-hardest.

69. My “Cocky’s” death in 1989 has never really seemed real because I did not get to come home for the funeral. I was a military wife in South Carolina at the time.

70. I am an enigma to most of my friends.

71. I have no patience with rude or foolish people.

72. I cannot stand it when people do not give me their full attention when they are talking to me. I try to give others my full attention when they are talking to me. That is just common courtesy.

73. I could care less if you are rich or poor, fat or thin, tall or short, toothless or have the perfect smile. I love all kinds of people. But I especially love poor people. They make the best friends. That seemed to be a secret that Jesus knew, too.

74. I now go by “Oprah’s rule.” Believe people the first time they treat you a certain way. Don’t wait until the 29th time to “get it.”

75. I “get it” a lot more now than I used to. I was raised with rose-colored glasses by good, protective parents, and I turned out a bit naive. I still get blind-sided every now and then, but it is just not as often now.

76. I live by the golden rule. I try to always treat others the way I would want to be treated or better.

77. I believe that children have feelings and should be treated with dignity. God believes that children are quite special, too. That is why I think that anyone who mistreats a child will have an especially rude awakening on Judgment Day!

78. I don’t believe that children are so important that you should have to interrupt a conversation with an adult to acknowledge a child. The child is not going to die if he/she has to learn to be respectful and patient and wait 30 seconds to be acknowledged.

80. I believe in the Trinity-- the Godhead--three in one--- as well as the deity of Christ, the power of God, the work of the Holy Spirit.

81. I believe that every word of the Bible is inspired by God.

82. I believe that each one of us does come with an instruction manual, and it is called the Bible.

83. I believe that God had a plan for everything that matters in our life. The plan is in the instruction manual, the Bible.

84. I believe we can understand the Bible and that God is going to hold us accountable if we don’t try.

85. Believing firmly that there is a pattern for everything we need, I don’t have a lot of patience for people who have never read the plan and claim that there is no plan and that we can all safely do what we want.

86. I hate sin, but I love sinners.

87. Some sinners are more lovable than others. Some sinners, like some Christians, are just down right despicable.

88. I am definitely “old school.” I still believe in men holding doors for women, saying “Yes, Ma’am” and “Yes, Sir” to anyone older than me, and pulling over for a passing funeral procession. I believe in waiting 'til marriage for sex, and I believe that God made marriage between Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.

89. I love our country, the flag, and our military. I am not ashamed to say it or show it.

90. I love to read, but I rarely have time to do it while raising children. They come first. There might be a little time left for reading by the time I raise all five of them. When I do read, I love murder mysteries best of all. I also like American prose and poetry.

91. I am fiercely competitive, but I try to be a good sport when I lose. I am always up for a good competition, if the old body will cooperate.

92. I am most afraid of snakes, mice, sharks, alligators/crocodiles, and flying roaches the size of Texas, in that order. Spiders only bother me if they are poisonous.

93. I am a neat person who lives with 6 messies. I have tried to reform the messies, but I suspect I will die trying. I firmly believe that it is more important to have a happy home than a clean one. If you feel differently, you need not visit here. If you don’t mind sharing the couch with some unfolded clothes, come on over.

94. My favorite perfume is Aqua Di Gio by Armani. My favorite flavor is chocolate. I prefer fake jewelry to real stuff, but I do like the metal part to be real gold or silver. The only "real" jewelry I own consists of my wedding rings and a strand of pearls my husband gave me before we married.

95. I never snuck out of the house once as a teenager. I would kill my kids (not literally, just their back sides) if I found out that they snuck out. Some of my friends don’t know that their kids sneak out. My husband snuck out many times as a teen. But it’s cool; he’s already confessed to his parents.

96. Red and Purple are my favorite colors (not together, though.) I wear a lot of black because it is slenderizing, and I need a little slenderizing. O.k. maybe a lot of slenderizing. I don’t worry about my weight except as it relates to health. I am not vain. I’m lucky that my husband likes robust Italian women. Please don’t tell him I’m not Italian. There is nothing wrong with being thin if that is who you are. But real women are not all skinny. If you want proof, go look at a picture of Botticelli’s “Springtime.” (“La Primavera”) or something by Peter Paul Rubens done in the pre-Barbie days.

97. I love to cook, but I prefer to do things from scratch rather than a cookbook.I come from a long line of from-scratch cooks. I do use cookbooks occasionally.

98. I also come from a long line of over-achievers.... Charlemagne, Jonathan Edwards, Thomas Jefferson, Aaron Burr, Eli Whitney (inventor of cotton gin,) James Robertson (founder of Nashville.) It’s no wonder that I have a big mouth and big ambitions.

99. I did not think I could think of 100 things to write about myself.

100. The ground is level at the foot of the cross. My sins as well as yours put Jesus on the cross. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God, so no one is any better than anyone else. God loves us all and wants us all to come to repentance so that we can be saved. If you are not sure how to be saved, e-mail me, and we’ll talk. It’s in the New Testament. “Seek and ye shall find.” Read it, believe it, and do it!

Glorious Graduation!

Below, you will find a whole slew of graduation photos, Daniel's speech in its entirety, and the account of the sweet evening! I want to learn how to post pictures within the text, but since that will take a bit to figure out, I have to post the pictures individually right now. Many of those below are people referenced in Daniel's speech. I thought that it might make the speech more meaningful if you could see some of the people he was talking about in the text. Enjoy!

Daniel and his Mom!

Another hero of Daniel's--his Pappy!

The inspiring Tracy Wade

Daniel and his "quiet hero," Mr. Haggard

Always smilin'--"Brother" Loyd

Miss Emily tears up a little as Daniel talks about her in his speech

Daniel with his teachers, Mr. Lyn and Mr. Loyd

Dr. Tetter gives the Commencement Address

Two big ol' "Edwards" boys--Daniel with his Uncle Doug

Daniel with old neighbors and long-time friends Sarah, Debbie, and Kyle Wood

Daniel's Graduation Speech

**************Daniel's Graduation Speech****************

Mr. Tedder, Mr. Warren, Faculty and Staff of Victory Baptist Academy, and Honored Guests,

"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference."

I recently found out that my mother and I both share a love of poetry by Robert Frost. His poem, "The Road Not Taken" has undoubtedly provoked the thought of many a graduating senior through the years.

Two years ago, I had come to the place in the path of my life where the road forked and went off in two very different directions. Like the traveler of the poem, I had to pick a path to take, and standing at the fork, the paths did not look very different on the surface. The paths were my educational choices, and I could pick public or private school. My choice was to come to Victory Baptist Academy, and like the traveler’s choice in the poem, taking the road less traveled has made all the difference.

Sometimes, I am not sure that you can fully appreciate the blessings in your life until you have been without them. I came to appreciate VBA very quickly, with all that it stands for, and I was thankful to have found my way here, even if I was about 10 years late.

Now I’m gonna preach a little. One of my favorite Bible passages deals with being thankful. In the 17th chapter of Luke, 10 lepers came to Jesus begging to be healed. Now I can relate to these lepers somewhat, because this year, I came down with a nagging case of psoriasis that has just about itched me to death.

I can only imagine the agony these 10 fellows were in when they came to Jesus for relief. Jesus promptly healed them and sent them off to see the priests who would proclaim them clean and fit to re-enter society. In their extreme jubilation over being healed, 9 of the lepers forgot to even say "Thank you" to our Lord. Only one man came back to thank Jesus. By failing to thank the Lord adequately, the text tells us that the other nine failed to give glory to God.

Tonight, I do not want to leave this place without giving the Glory to God for the past two years of my life, and I want to try, in my own feeble way, to extend my thanks to all of those who have given of themselves so that I could leave here a better man.

To Mr. and Mrs. Tedder,

Thank you for having the vision over 30 years ago to see that education in a Christian setting is the right thing for people of faith!!! Thank you for making a place where boys and girls can come and learn from Bible-based curriculums and from men and women of high moral character.

I have appreciated the opportunity to hear the Creation story as it should be told---the way everything began as recorded in Genesis. I have been so proud to not have to listen to the wild theories of men or read from godless textbooks about where I supposedly came from.

Mr. Tedder, thank you for marrying such a gracious lady full of inner beauty and character. She does such a wonderful job of teaching the little ones here, and she is a great encourager of us older ones, too. Her smiling face was often the first one we saw here every morning.

I will always remember the tremendous lessons you have taught us, and I will forever be grateful for your vision and your commitment to youth.

Romans 13:7 says, "Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour."

Mr. and Mrs. Tedder, tonight, I honor and thank you both!


To Mr. and Mrs. Lyn Warren, Mr. and Mrs. Loyd Warren, and Mrs. Leathers,

You have been my teachers, my advisors, my directors, and coaches during my two years here. My mother says you all have her deepest sympathies.

I think that somehow, there was a mistake made this year when I won the basketball award for being Most Teachable! I fear I am not the easiest student you have ever taught. Even though I haven’t tried to be difficult, I know there were days that you would have pulled your hair out if you could (well, those of you that have any to spare.)

It has been said, "A teacher affects eternity: he can never tell where his influence stops." I believe this is true. Your influence will go on with me through the years. I know that each of you, and all the teachers here, sacrifice much to try and produce well-rounded students. I know that few see the hours that you put in here, many times long after all the students have gone home. You have to be extra-vigilant, because you are people who care if what we study is true to the Word of God and morally right. That is time-consuming, and for all that you have done for me in this regard, I thank you. For all the time that every member of the VBA family takes away from their own personal lives for the good of the students---I admire you all, and I offer you my gratitude.

Proverbs 4: 11-13 says, "I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths. When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life." You have instructed me; now, it is up to me to hold fast to the Word of God.

To Mr. Lyn, Miss Angela, Mr. Loyd, and Miss Emily Warren and Mrs. Kimberly Leathers thank you, and God bless you all!

I would be remiss if I left this stage without remembering a few more people who have touched my life in ways that I will never forget.

To the Bible class teachers I have had through the years who guided me in my study of the Word of God-----thank you for your work and your prayers for me. People like Annie Lou McCarty make an impact on little 6 and 8 and 10 year old boys who will soon grow up to be teenagers, tempted in this world. Miss Annie Lou wrote me countless letters through the years, thanking ME for coming to Bible class and doing my lessons! Thank God for faithful men and women who see the future of the church in the children of today and steadfastly encourage us to remember our Creator in the days of our youth.

There are many people here at VBA who take on the role of servants. They do the many thankless tasks that make a school run smoothly. To the many who take on roles of servitude here at VBA---like Mrs. Hull, the cafeteria lady--thank you for doing more than filling my stomach. You gave me that figurative cup of cool water on so many days when I did not know if I could take another step. In Matthew 25: 37 and 40 it says, "Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? .....And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Mrs. Hull, you have refreshed my soul and encouraged me to always take the high road. I will always remember your wise counsel. Thank you!

To Miss Emily--the wind beneath the wings of the 2004-2005 VBA chorus this year....thank you for your untiring service to those of us who wanted to go to Convention and win in all the music categories. You worked with us out of the goodness of your heart, when you could have been using your musical talent to land a paying job! Your selflessness afforded several of us some of the sweetest moments of the entire year. Thank you for your sacrifices for us all! Psalm 95:1 says "O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation." Thank you, Miss Emily, for making it possible for us to sing to the glory of God!


To another servant, Mr. Larry Haggard---to those of you who may not know Mr. Haggard, he is a quiet man who goes around and takes pictures at events here at VBA. Then just as quietly, without any pomp or glory-seeking for himself, he shares his pictures. You don’t know the joy you bring to people through your form of serving others. People like you--people full of quiet humility---you are my heroes. Matthew 5: 5 says, "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." Mr. Haggard......thank you for your example!

(Dana's note: the following is about a young man with a severe case of cerebral palsy. His mind is very good, but his body is frail. He has a wonderful outlook and spirit.)

To those like Tracy Wade, who wear a smile day-in, day-out and are natural born encouragers of men, I am so grateful! Tracy, even though your physical body is probably not the earthly tent that you would pick if you could, your mind and your spirit are enviable. Each and every time you came to one of our basketball games and cheered us on, you lifted me up with the eagles! I pray that one day, we’ll walk together on that street of gold in heaven in our perfect glorified bodies! Matthew 5 : 8 says, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God." Tracy....thank you for what you have taught me!


And while I am on the Wades, let me thank Mrs. Wade, the third and fourth grade teacher for her constant belief in me and her encouragement in my years here. I guess uplifting others just runs in your family! I Thessalonians 5:11 says, "Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do." Mrs. Wade, you and Tracy have both edified and comforted me this year, and I will never forget you!

To the man we all affectionately refer to as "Brother Loyd,"

I don’t think I have ever seen you without a smile on your face, unless it was a time when we were all sorrowful over something. The Bible says that "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine." I could not possibly count all the times that your smile was like medicine to my soul. You could even hear the smile in your voice as you introduced the Victory Baptist Patriots to the court at each and every home game. And you always made me laugh with the nicknames you thought up for this gangly old boy on the ball court! I cannot get that voice out of my head---I will probably remember it the rest of my life, and each and every time I do, I will smile!

Your happiness is contagious, and it can be said of you, Brother Loyd, as it was said of Solomon in I Kings 10:8, "Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom." You’ve taught me a lot, Brother Loyd, and I appreciate the spirit in which you have done it!


I love all my family, and to all of you who came tonight to see me complete this journey, I give you my loving thanks.

But worthy of special mention is my grandfather, Ronald Edwards. To show you what a selfless man he is...... last fall, on the very day of his mother’s burial, he was more concerned with instructing me and encouraging me in the Lord than he was with his own grief. He had but a few brief hours to say goodbye to his beloved mother, but he took time for me. There are few people left in this world anymore who are able to put self aside and put others first. I will always remember that day, Pappy, as well as the many sacrifices you made for our family throughout the years.

Pappy’s hair has turned white now, probably mostly on account of Sam and me! Proverbs 16:31 says, "The hoary head is a crown of glory, IF it be found in the way of righteousness." Leviticus 19:32 says, Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD."

Pappy, you have done something right, for you have 5 kids and 8 grandkids who all love the Lord. For the righteous life you lead and the example you have set as a decent and honorable man among men, I honor and thank you tonight!


And lastly, to my mother, Dana Nolan. Mom, you undoubtedly are the leader of this extraordinary group of people I have listed tonight. I cannot count all the times you have lifted the spirits of someone, let alone your own son. You have been as selfless as a person can be over the years, only wanting to see the happiness of those you love. On those innumerable occasions when I would crawl up in your bed and talk with you, you gave me hope when you yourself had very little to spare. You calmed my doubtings and struck down my fears. You trained me up in the way I should go, and I am resolved not to depart from it so long as I have breath within my lungs. You have been more than a provider for me-- you have been my mentor and my best friend. I hope that the Lord will allow me to continue on the road of life with you by my side! I love you, Mom!


And finally, someone has said,

"Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

Whether you follow the path less taken or you forge your own way in life, the important thing is to stay on the narrow road that leads to heaven, and leave a trail of kindness and goodness behind you.

Tonight, I complete one leg of the journey here on this earth. I leave here tonight thankful to have known each of you and to have drawn from your life’s experience. I take the gifts you have freely given--- your example, your sincerity, your servitude, your counsel, and your love, and I will try to freely give back whenever and wherever I can.

And now I leave you and dedicate to you one of the sweetest blessings penned in Scripture:



"The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:

The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace."

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A Magical Weekend!

This last weekend was one of the nicest weekends I can remember in a very long time!
I have been inspired by so many people and events that I likely cannot count them all, but I will try to chronicle some of it, anyway.

Before I get into that, I have to give praise and thanks to God for bringing my father-in-law, Bill, safely through surgery Friday. It was touch and go a couple of times, but he now has a pacemaker successfully installed. We were told that he flat-lined once on the table. Now that is not pleasant to hear or think about, but the doctor thinks that all the problems are resolved and that he will have no further problems with this.

It is surely emotional to have your son graduating on the same day your father-in-law is in surgery one thousand miles away. Fortunately, the day ended happily all the way around.

The patient readers of my blog have heard my tales of this school year, with all of its ups and downs. Sometimes it seemed like it was mostly downs. Some years are just better than others, it seems, and we did not have a particularly enjoyable school year for a lot of reasons, but we are thankful that there were some great moments that came out of the time near the end of the semester.

Friday night was the most wonderful night a kid could have asked for in a high school graduation ceremony. There were scads of people who came up to Daniel and told him that they came just to see HIM graduate. Relatives that we did not know would get there were able to come. Old friends came from town and from M'boro to see him graduate. We had our own little cheering section! There was barely room for my parents and my brother to fit into the "Daniel" section when they arrived, but they scrunched in, and we all had a good view of the ceremony. The place was packed, and the ceremony was sweet and personal. I have been to public school graduations where you sat for 2 hours while the names were called for the diplomas. I was SO thankful that we did not have to go through anything like that. My nerves would not have made it that long!

In our school, they also honor the top students of grades 5 through 11 before the seniors have their moment. We were delighted when Sam snagged the award for highest g.p.a. for the second year in a row in his class. Micah missed getting his by 1/100th of one point! Ouch. He was so sweet about it, though. He said the little girl that beat him out has diabetes, and he was happy to see her get it, because she had to struggle every day of her life. I wholeheartedly concur!

Then, they presented the academic awards for the seniors. Daniel got the title of Valedictorian! I was so shocked! You could have knocked me off my chair with a feather. My first thought was, "No way!" My second thought was, "Man, if they had just told us this a little sooner, we might have gotten some really neat scholarships!" LOL!

I stayed in shock until it was time for Daniel to take the stage and give his speech. Then, the nervousness of feeling for him---having to give a speech in front of that many people--jarred me back into reality. Daniel is not a natural-born orator. He has really had to work at it. Looking back, I do not think I could have given an address at my high school graduation. I would have fainted from the fear!
I thought that Daniel gave as poignant a speech as I have heard in a long time, and his delivery was his personal best ever, hands down. I was tremendously proud of him, mainly for sticking out this extraordinarily difficult year. There were so many times he wanted to just throw up his hands and quit, but each time, we would discuss it and decide to trudge onward. There is a great deal of personal satisfaction in knowing that you have done something very hard and done it well. He worked like a dog this year, and in the end, it paid off.

We had plans to take the out of town group and go out to dinner, but those plans slowly faded as we all stayed and talked to the crowd quite late! We made about 150 pictures that night, trying to capture every memory we could.

Daniel and I had cut it close getting his "Senior Table" ready that afternoon. We had not wanted to put it up on Thursday, because they were having Kindergarten graduation that night, and we could just see little hands all over the items on the table. So we waited 'til Friday afternoon to lay it out, and we just about did not finish in time to get home and shower and get back to the school.

People lingered a long time Friday night, sharing their "Daniel" stories. Both sets of neighbors on either side of us where we used to live in our old house when Daniel was little were there! Neighbor Bob told us about the day he moved in, and Daniel went over to welcome him to the neighborhood. Daniel was probably 7 or 8 at the time, and after the initial introductions between Bob and Daniel, Daniel asked, pointing to the back porch, "So, is that your wife?" Bob answered that it was, and that her name was Michelle. Daniel then scratched his head and said, "Is she pregnant?" Bob laughed and told him no, that they had just been married two days before! They had Daniel blushing with that story!

Everyone sat around a long time, eating cake and punch (boy, the punch was good!) and reminiscing. Finally, when just about everyone else had cleared out, we decided it was time to call it a night. We took one of Daniel's friends and headed for a M'boro restaurant to give aid to our starving stomachs. I had had 10 chicken nuggets and a piece of cake all day! We pigged out, and then we came back home and opened all the cards and presents that had been left on Dan's senior table. I really wanted to just crawl into bed, but Daniel was so exuberant that I knew that sleep would not be coming for a while!

Needless to say, we were total slugs all day Saturday. My talented husband did fix the washing machine, and we washed just what we would need for Sunday. Otherwise, we did not do anything, and it felt so good! I did manage to transfer my brother's wedding from small video tape to VHS, and I made a copy of our video camera's taping of graduation. We are going to get a full version on DVD, but we taped some stuff too. I am always afraid something will happen to the original, so I backed it up.

Sunday was a glorious day! The weather was beautiful, although it seemed slightly muggy in the morning. We went to worship, and we were delighted and humbled when our elder with throat and mouth cancer came in and sat right up front. He was masked with a hospital mask. A friend at church told me that his mouth area has been severely burnt by the radiation, to the point that he could not even take water in his mouth. Talk about a present day Job! This dear man has suffered. Last weekend, he lost 15 pounds, so they inserted a feeding tube and kept him in the hospital a few days, giving him a round of i.v. antibiotics. He cannot even put a straw in the back of his mouth, it is so excruciating. Yet this man, having endured burning, surgery, i.v.'s, and chemotherapy found the strength to come and worship with his brethren.

We then went to my mother's and dad's, as is the custom on Sunday, when we are not all sick! We decided that we would rather be in the pool than the kitchen, so we ate tuna sandwiches and chips and salad, donned our swimwear, and hit the pool. Now, as I have explained before, we all dress modestly to swim, even as a family. I get made fun of every time, because I look more like Morticia Addams of the Addam's Family than I do a covergirl. Add to that a swim mask, graciously loaned to me by brother Doug, and I am really a sight. (These are pictures that shall not make this blog! ) New sister-in-law Brooke baked our graduate a yummy chocolate cake, which we enjoyed with ice cream by the pool. Brother Doug lamented the fact that we were replacing all the calories that we had just swam off! Oh, well, it was good.

We finished off our Sunday with our second worship service of the day at 6:00, drove back to Mom's and visited with the siblings sans pool. The younguns were sad that they could not get back in, but we promised them plenty of pool time this summer. I am already looking forward to July 4th, when we will have our first 4th in the inground pool, with fireworks being shot less than a block from the high school football field across the street. It is going to be awesome.

Well, that's the update. I am now getting ready for a long, lazy summer with little responsibility other than to sort out my closets and garage and to help with the disposal of the items from my grandmother's house. I don't plan to be really structured for at least 3 months. We have worked hard this year as a family, and it is time for some well-deserved rest. I hope we can even work in a few trips. I would LOVE to see my New Jersey family and the stragglers out in MN and WI. Hopefully, we can do some of that, if Tim's work schedule permits.

Love and best wishes to the sick in the family---Dan, go get a checkup...Bill, we are praying for you! Get well soon. And to little Ben, best wishes with your upcoming surgery! We send wishes for good health to MaiMai and Uncle Tom as well. We love you guys!

Meet the newest Valedictorian of VBA! 

Daniel accepts the award of Valedictorian from Dr. Tetter as a happy Mr. Warren looks on 

Daniel with guests Aunt Marty, Meme, Pappy, and Uncle Delton 

Daniel and his principal, Mr. Warren 

Daniel's life in pictures and stories.... 

Daniel takes a break from setting up the senior table to enjoy a candy snack! 

The right end of "Double Aught's" senior table, complete with his favorite candies to give away! 

A happy Valedictorian celebrates at Chili's 

Chillin' at Chili's after graduation!