Out of time machine

In September of 2012 we were invited to go to Wild Adventures theme park by Camp Sunshine, who support children who are fighting cancer and their families. Silas had finished treatment a few weeks before and we were planning to take him for a CT scan the following Monday to confirm (we hoped) that he was cancer free.

Silas really loved rides and roller coasters! He wasn't big enough for all of them. One he really liked at Wild Adventures was called "Monkeyin' around" AKA "Tilt-o-whirl".  Silas called it the "out of time machine" because he said it reminded him of Heaven, and Heaven is outside of time! (The things he came up with!!). We rode it several times over the weekend. We had a lot of fun with the boys that weekend, but there was some scan-xiety going on too. We knew that scan was coming on Monday.

Turns out, the scan was not good. The cancer was back. Silas never got to go to Wild Adventures again.

Camp Sunshine has continued to graciously invite our family to go back each year (Thank you Camp Sunshine!!) and bring our boys. It has been a fun time to remember Silas and enjoy time as a family. This year we got a huge surprise! A little blessing from the Lord!

So last year, the "out of time machine" was not in it's usual spot, it had been dismantled. We were so sad, until we spoke to an employee about it and learned that they were just moving it, not taking it out of the park. When we went this past weekend we discovered that they had moved it, put new paint on it, and renamed it "Turtle Twist"!! Wow! Silas' favorite Wild Adventures ride named after his favorite animal! How cool is that! Silas would have loved that. Thank You Lord for that smile!

We still miss Silas, we always will. He was so special and I am so very thankful that he was in our lives. I am also grateful that we have come to the point in our grieving process where thinking of Silas doesn't only bring tears, often it brings smiles.

I don't want to talk about Childhood Cancer

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. If you know me, you probably already know that.

I don't want to talk about it.

I don't want to tell you that kids get cancer too.

I don't want to talk about the fact that cancer is the leading cause of death by disease in children, and that cancer among children is on the rise.

I want to enjoy September, the weather changing, the sun shining.

I don't want to talk about Childhood Cancer.

I didn't want to fight cancer with my baby boy when he was just 3.5 years old.

I didn't want my little boy to be killed by cancer just 10 days before his 5th birthday.

I don't like that I have to live the rest of my life without my son.

I don't want to talk about childhood cancer.

I don't want to think about the other little boys and girls who have been diagnosed with cancer.

I don't want to think about how many boys and girls have also been killed by childhood cancer.

I don't want to think about how few treatments there are for childhood cancers.

I don't want to think about how dangerous those treatments are, how miserable they make children feel, or how much long term harm they cause in an attempt at a cure.

I don't want to think about childhood cancer.

But I can't help it.

Childhood cancer is a thing.

Kids get cancer. My kid got cancer. My precious little boy, and too many others, have lost their lives to cancer.

It is too real to not think about, too big of a problem to not talk about.

I don't want to, because I wish childhood cancer didn't exist, but it does, so I will.

I will tell you because children can't always speak up for themselves.

I will think about and pray for the other children who have been diagnosed.

I will think about those who have lost their lives, and I will pray for their families.

I will always remember my son, Silas Nathanael.

I will tell you, kids get cancer. Everyday, everywhere.

I will tell you that you and I should take every opportunity to make others aware.

I will tell you that we need more funding for research so that we can discover safer and more effective treatments.

I will tell you that everyone, even you, can do something to help.

Father God, I hate childhood cancer. I know You do too. Please be near all of those fighting this beast right now. Bring them peace and comfort. Give them the right doctors and treatments to help them recover. Please use these devastating situations to open eyes to see You, and to bring hope. Bring the church to rally around those fighting this, to offer support during these dark times. Bring healing. In Jesus name. Amen.

My first Wal-Mart Pick-up experience

If you asked me what my favorite grocery store is, I would be pretty quick to say "Costco", but I live in a small town and the nearest Costco is over 2 hours from here. Wal-mart is generally my go-to for the majority of my grocery shopping, though I occasionally shop elsewhere.

In recent years I have struggled with widespread pain and chronic fatigue. Sometimes I put off grocery shopping, or send one of my kids with a list. Other times I go myself and just push through it, but usually crash when I get home. Once in a while I feel fine and am able to get groceries without too much difficulty, but in general, grocery shopping is a big chore for me. Oh, and did I mention, I have THREE teenage sons?! I have heard teen girls eat a lot too, but it is hard to believe anyone eats as much as teen boys! Sometimes I will shop for the whole week, and four days later I will hear "We're out of groceries! There is nothing to eat!" While this usually isn't entirely true, we are often out of a lot more than I anticipated half way through the week.

I was delighted (and skeptical) when I heard about the Wal-Mart grocery pick-up coming to town. This could save me so much time and energy! I downloaded the app and waited. I waited for my store to show up as a pick-up site. Finally! July 3rd! I started adding things to my cart on the app a few days before and placed my order on July 2nd. I chose 10-11 am as my pick-up time. Oops! I forgot to add something to my order! Phew! No problem. I was able to add things I had forgotten for a few hours still. I found the app easy to use, it was easy to look up items I wanted to purchase, and they even had a list of items a normally buy on the top of the page so I could add them. (Y'all know you are being tracked, right?)

Today at 9:41 a.m. I received a notification that my order was ready. My son and I got ready and headed out the door. I "checked in" on the app at 9:48 a.m. (they ask you to turn on your phones GPS for this so they know how far away you are and how long it will take for you to get to the store). They estimated my arrival in 17 minutes. It took us 20 to get there. We arrived at 10:08 am. The app told me there was no need to call the number on the sign, as I had already checked in on the app, they would be out in a moment. It took 10 minutes for someone to come out to our car and ask for my name so they could pull my order. She apologized for the long wait and said my order would be out in a minute. Another 10 minutes passed and at 10:28 am my car was being loaded. I received another apology for the long wait and was asked if I would like to inspect my groceries before departing. I declined. I could tell by the sweat on the brows of the people loading my car that it was hot, and when I checked the weather app on my phone I saw that the heat index was 107F. No thank you! I will stay in my air conditioned car and inspect my groceries at home. The Wal-Mart employees were courteous and friendly, perhaps more so than I have come to expect from Wal-Mart.


I arrived home just over an hour after receiving the notification that my order was ready. (If I had gone and shopped myself it would have taken me more like 2.5 hours). We brought the groceries inside and inspected them. I did not order a lot in the way of produce, a couple of lemons, a couple of cucumbers, and some cherries. All were just as I would have picked out myself, except maybe for the number of cherries. I ordered a 2.25 lb bag of cherries, but according to the receipt, I received a 2.21 lb bag and a .76 lb bag. I decided to weigh them myself, and the total was 4.5 lbs! Not really a big deal. They were out of jicama, so I did not get any, nor did I pay for it. There was one substitution, they were out of the 16 oz. bacon I ordered so they gave me a 22 oz. pack at the same price as the 16 oz. The only thing they actually got "wrong" was the peanut butter. It was the right size and brand, but they gave us the regular instead of the "natural" I had ordered.

Over all, I was pleased with what I got and super pleased that I didn't have to get out of my car! Probably not the best thing to sit there running the A/C for 20 minutes, but between today being their first day, and being the day before a holiday, I thought it went fairly well. Hopefully they will get the hang of things quickly and I can spend less time inside Wal-Mart, especially during the Summer!

One last observation. As I add items to my virtual cart on the app, I can see my total. It helps me keep an eye on how much I am spending and adjust my purchase accordingly. While they do try to show you other items you may want to purchase before you "check out", I believe there are a lot fewer impulse purchases made using the app vs walking through the store. Both of these things should help me stay on track with my budget.

By the way, I was not asked to write this review. I was not compensated for writing it either. Just thought my friends might be interested to hear my experience. ;)

Milestones

As of August 2018, all three of my sons that are still with me are teenagers! I really enjoy having all teens, but it isn't easy! Less crumbs on the floor and sticky finger prints on the glass, but more deep thoughts, tough decisions, and life lessons!

Next month Michael will graduate from High School. Homeschooled all the way through and took dual enrollment classes at Brewton Parker College the past year and a half! Michael finishes his classes at BPC on May 1st. It has been a really good experience for him. Just for the fun of it, we are having a homeschool graduation ceremony/party with a few other homeschoolers who are also graduating this year. We ordered him a cap and gown in his favorite color and I am working on getting a diploma ordered! We gifted him with a laptop for his 18th birthday/graduation gift. He is working part time now and plans to work more hours once he graduates. He is saving up to go to Bible College in a couple of years. At least, that is the plan at the moment.

Gideon got his driver's license in March! He turned 16 in February. He is a very good driver, but I do worry about all of the other crazy people out on the road. I always pray for the boys when they go anywhere. Right now, Gideon can't decide whether he wants to be a Blacksmith, or a Chef, or maybe both! He really enjoys both, but lately has been focusing mostly on cooking and baking.

Jason is getting ready to start Swim Team in a few weeks. He is excited for a longer season this year as the last season was cut short due to the new pool not being open yet. This year he will be able to start the end of April. He got a haircut for the first time in 2 years, partly to make swimming easier, and partly because he would really like to get a job at Chick-fil-A in August when he turns 14 and he figured a clean cut haircut would help. It looks really good on him! You can still see a bit of the purple hair dye if you look closely.

Archie and I will celebrate our 20th Anniversary on May 1st. I can't believe it has been that long! Then again, those 20 years have been jam packed with life! We decided to go on a little trip just the two of us. The boys are old enough now to do without us for a few days and we have never really gone away by ourselves more than a day or two. I am really looking forward to it! 💕