#1000 Gifts

I always enjoy my Bible studies with Grace at our Church. However, I think this one is going to be the BEST EVER! I am REALLY loving it! Maybe it's just that I am REALLY needing it right now! Our goal is by the end of this session to have a journal with #1000 things that I am thankful for/appreciate in life. It is really teaching me to be aware of the "little" blessings in life.

Life on the Farm

While Jeanne Claire hung out at the house with my girls, we took Joseph out to the farm today. He always has fun going out there with us. I think we (my family) take for granted living in the "country" until we have Joseph around and realize that there really is a difference in "city" life (Memphis) and Covington! We were able to cut the gas line and poison it. 

As I rounded the corner, I caught a glimpse of what I thought was a snake. I called Judson over and sure enough, out came a nice sized snake. Joseph got to watch his Uncle Judson kill it! 

The boys in the deer stand. Joseph said, "Aunt D", I have NEVER been in a deer stand! Poor city kid! 

Goddaughter

Uncle Judson and his "Goddaughter", Jeanne Claire got to have some good old bonding time today. She and Joseph came to Covington to spend the weekend. Her Uncle Jud always loves to give her a hard time and she does the same to him!

Soaked and Flattened

Today was a rough day "on the farm" for ole Jud.  First, he had a major flat on his tractor. Of course, his truck was parked in another part of the farm far away from him. 

Then he got his phone wet. Ouch! 

Harvest Time

This is my favorite time of the year. I LOVE seeing all of the farmers harvesting their crops! I think it is because it reminds me so much of my Papa! 

Doves with Dad

Judson checked Oney out of school a little early and headed to Jackson to Mike Barker's dove hunt. Oney was worn out and fell asleep the minute he and Judson got on the road. 

He woke up in a great mood and ready to hunt.

Serious Hunter

Silly Hunter

Squinty Hunter

The Retriever

After much debate with his Father, he murdered "tweety bird"! There a was tiny bird flying around them the entire time they hunted tweeting nonstop. Oney, being my sweet persistent Oney, begged his Father to let him have a shot at it. Judson finally gave in and ... BOOM! Tweety bird bit the dust! Judson said Oney was so tickled you would have thought he just killed the biggest buck ever! Its the little things in life...

Doves

Of course, on their way home from the hunt, they drove through our farm to check out the wildlife. Standing with tradition, Judson let Oney drive him around. I swear, he is going to be the most responsible, well rounded kid ever. I guess thats what happens when you are the third child!

Words DO Hurt

Kids can be cruel. Adults can be cruel. Whoever said "sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt" was WRONG. Words hurt when you are a kid AND even when you are an adult.

www.Ask.fm is the newest thing among teens and social media. It is a place where you can "ask" any question you want to any of its members and be anonymous. Just like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vine, etc Judson and I check the kids' posts for "appropriateness" every so often.

Back on August 2, I laid in bed at Pickwick after a hard day of cleaning/packing up around our flodded house and decided to check the kids twitter before I crashed. This tweet had just been tweeted by Ally. It was a response to a question asked of her on "Ask.fm". The question is abbreviated below, but basically made a very rude, crude comment about why Ally's mom walked with a limp and was crippled. A similar question was posted on Abby's account. I thought my children handled it VERY well and responded to the question much better than I ever could or would have. They shared a link describing the condition, Cerebral Palsy, that I have had since birth.

In that instant, I was briefly transferred back in time to my childhood when I very clearly remember being made fun of and being mimicked for the way I walked. It really hurt my feelings. I was sad and mad. I was embarrassed for my children. I felt inadequate and lesser of a person. I cried.  I am 40 years old. Words still hurt.

Why am  I blogging about this? I don't know who reads my blog-but I know a few people do because I have a few page views. So, I wanted to blog about this hoping that just maybe I could influence people to be cautious in choosing their words. Think before you speak. I hope if I have taught my kids ONE thing in life, it is to NEVER make fun or others no matter what and to ALWAYS have compassion for others situations. I PRAY that prayer often. I'm not sure who made those rude comments about me that night. It doesn't really matter. I have once again been reminded to be kind and compassionate to others and to remember to choose my words wisely.

If I had three daughters, Taylor would definitely be my third. Look at the sweet text she sent to me that night.

The next morning I read my Jesus calling devotional and guess what the topic was???

"Watch your words diligently."

Wow, coincidence? I think not. It was a God thing. It reminded me that I am no less of a person just because I have a handicap or walk funny. It reminded me that many a day in middle school when I came home from school sad, tormented, made fun of, that I learned to turn to prayer and scripture and became a much better person because of it. Here is my Jesus Calling that morning. 

My devotional for today...

August 3

Watch your words diligently.Words have such great power to bless or to wound.When you speak carelessly or negatively, you damage others as well as yourself. This ability to verbalize is an awesome privilege, granted only to those I created in My image. You need help in wielding this mighty power responsibly.

Though the world applauds quick-witted retorts, My instructions about communication are quite different: Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. Ask My Spirit to help you whenever you speak. I have trained you to pray—“Help me, Holy Spirit”—before answering the phone, and you have seen the benefits of this discipline. Simply apply the same discipline to communicating with people around you. If they are silent, pray before speaking to them. If they are talking, pray before responding. These are split-second prayers, but they put you in touch with My Presence. In this way, your speaking comes under the control of My Spirit. As positive speech patterns replace your negative ones, the increase in your Joy will amaze you.

Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
—Proverbs 12:18

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.
—James 1:19

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
—Ephesians 4:29

As I was typing this blog post I googled Jesus Calling and thought I would share the Kids version of that days' devotional. A lot of the time, it is much easier to grasp on a child's level!

Jesus Calling for Kids – August 3rd
Sticks and Stones

The saying “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” Just simply isn’t true. Words can cut deeper than a knife. And the wounds they leave behind may never heal.

The world praises people who say “clever” things – even if they embarrass and hurt others. But that is not the kind of person I want you to be. Your words are powerful tools. I want you to use them to build up those around you, not tear them down.

I know you get angry and frustrated at times, but don’t say the first thing that pops into your mind. Pray first! Before you pick up the phone, pray. Before you answer someone else’s angry words, pray. Before you say anything, pray! A simple, split-second prayer – Help me, Jesus” – is all it takes to put your words under My control.

Ephesians 4:29 (ICB) When you talk, do not say harmful things. But say what people need – words that will help others become stronger. Then what you say will help those who listen to you. 

Proverbs 12:18 – The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

James 1:19 – My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,

Canadian Geese

Ms. Judy, our sweet neighbor and Oney's "surrogate Grandmother", allowed the guys to hunt the Canadian Geese that have made home base her pond. They thought they would be able to shoot a couple, but ended up limiting out! It was a lot of fun! 

Since we didn't have a dog, we used the kiddos! They jumped in the canoe and went out into the pond and retrieved them. 

Look at all of those geese! We gave them to a worker who was appreciative of the meat! Guess what...two of the geese were banded! 

Breck, Judson and Greg

Duck Duck GEESE

What was supposed to be a casual afternoon of shooting at Ms. Judy's (our neighbors) pond, turned into a good 'ole Goose slaughtering! The pond behind our house has had a huge family of Canadian Geese all Summer. They are beautiful birds to watch but they can really make a huge mess! That being said, we got Ms. Judy's permission and blessing to hunt the geese last Sunday night. I am not sure of the exact number, but I think we did pretty darn good! Two of the geese were banded which was really cool! Addey, Carson and Oney retrieved the geese that fell in the pond and loved every minute of it. 

The first round of birds before it got too dark

Judson was a little hot in this picture!

Breck, Judson and Greg

After the hunt, we had bar-b-q at Breck and Stephanie's house. It was a fun way to spend one night of our  Labor Day Weekend. Stephanie is great hostess!