1977

I woke up yesterday morning...
...to the beginning of a new year.

Yep that's right, it was my birthday, and my day was full of surprises!  From a beautiful, fresh bouquet of summer flowers to Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush lip gloss (8 tubes of it) to Blingy, Oversized sunglasses to sweet smelling Sexy Little Things Love Me perfume and lotion (another Victoria's Secret Special), to MORE Beauty Rush lip gloss and makeup...(Love that girl, Vickie and her store)!  A Very Big Thank-You to Dad and Kelly; Mom and Rick; and the fabulous Queens of Quality.  By the way, I am thinking all of that lip gloss will last me approximately 5-6 months.  Although, certain individuals might argue with that statement.  Actually, I think they have placed some bets on how long it will last me.

Terry had to have been a pretty busy fella yesterday afternoon with all of his birthday planning he was doing.  When I got home, I walked up to the house and could smell the sweet aroma of a freshly baked cake, so I knew Terry had been doing some baking after he got off work.  However, I was instructed to go immediately to the room and wait.  A few minutes passed and he told me I could come out. There stood Corey, holding the cake, Terry, Tillman, Brooke, Colby and Cameron.  They all busted out in song...  "Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday Dear Ma, Happy Birthday to you."  Terry had definitely been doing some baking.  The kitchen counter was filled with Terry's Famous Burritos, Homemade Rice and Beans and the yummy chocolate cake decorated with colorful marshmallows. 

My birthday was FOR SURE a day of surprises, and I love them all!

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style.

Waterlogged

From just about sun-up to sun-down...
...the swimming pool was where the boys spent their time.

Seth, my nephew, spent the weekend with us.  We don't get to see him as often as we used to, so it was great getting to spend some time with him.

The boys, well Seth and Corey spent every evening this week with Memaw, Papaw, Aunt Teresa and their cousin Shelby, at Vacation Bible School in Morgan.  Cameron joined them on Thursday and Friday nights, when he got back from camp.  I have been told they had a baby goat, chickens, and all kinds of crafts during VBS.

Since Friday evening was the last night, it lasted a little bit longer than the other nights.  That sure didn't slow the boys down any.  They busted through the front door sometime after 9 that night, all three of them talking at once.  I don't know if they were all just so excited Seth was staying or if it was all the sugar they had been eating; my guess is, it was a little of both.  They eventually settled down enough for Terry and I to rustle them into the bedroom and get the Netflix streaming.  After a few moments of quiteness coming from the bedroom, we felt it was safe to go on to bed. 

I'm not sure what time the boys went to sleep, but they didn't wake up until just a little after 10 the next morning.  I still haven't told them they slept right through Grandaddy and Mi-Mi's visit. 

Seth and Corey woke up with just about the same excitement as they had the night before.  I saw a streak come from the bedroom, right out the back door and straight into the swimming pool.  I finished up the little bit of cleaning I was doing and decided those boys had the right idea.  I joined them for a day-long swim.

The boys would get out just long enough to get a snack, and they went right back to swimming.  We spent the day floating toy boats across the water, sinking plastic army men and then swimming to the bottom to rescue them.  Seth even got to meet the frog that lives in our rock waterfall. 

We finished our evening off with watermelon and ice cream cones.  I think the watermelon was a big hit with Seth, because when Uncle Terry got it out of the fridge, Seth grinned a big ole grin and said, "I'm in a good mood for Watermelon!" 

I had plans of meeting my sister Sunday after church, but Seth ended up hitching a ride with Grandma.  I'm hoping he had as much fun as we did this weekend.

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style!

One Long Week for Mom; One Great Time for Cameron

Holding back the tears...
...I gave Cameron a hug and said "Good-Bye".

It wasn't like he was going away for a long time, it was only four days.  This four days happened to be the first time any of the boys had gone to camp, the first time any of the boys would be gone for longer than a day or two, and the first time any of the boys didn't have dad, me, a grandparent or aunt with them.  Cameron was on his own.  I guess, not exactly on his own.  He had his best friend, Hunter, Clay the boys' camp sponsor and eight girls and their camp sponsors traveling with them for the week.  Still...this four days was the longest of my life.

The church van left out on Sunday afternoon, so Cameron and I spent the morning packing his suitcase.  I'm sure I overpacked, but he needed clothes for four days plus an extra set, swim wear, flip flops, tennis shoes, sheets, covers, towels, pillows, band-aids, soap, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrush, money, mine and dad's phone numbers, ink pens, and his Bible.  We got all of that in one, very large suitcase. 

When we pulled up to the church to drop him off, I could already feel the lump in my throat.  He was so excited, and I couldn't dare let him or any of the other parents see that at any moment I could possibly turn into the bawling crybaby.  I kept telling myself, It is only until Thursday morning.  He will be fine.  I knew he would have blast, but believe me it wasn't easy watching the van pull away.  (I'm guessing this is some foreshadowing of what is to come when they go off to college)

I got to work the next morning and learn I can see some pictures from camp through their website.  How awesome was that?  Technology sure is a great thing.  I opened the photo album, and sure enough there are pictures from Day I and some very good pictures of Cameron.  Of course, I shared the pictures with every person who walked by my office, and of course, I left the pictures up on my desktop so I could look at them every hour or so.  Alright, Alright - every few minutes.

Monday came and went, then Tuesday, Wednesday and finally Thursday was here.  Those four days seemed to drag on forever.  I was getting ready for work, when I got the phone call - the kiddos are back home and at the church.  I felt like a kid on Christmas morning.  I ran to my closet grabbed the closest pair of flip flops and ran to the car.  As I backed out of the driveway, I realized I have no make up on and my hair is half straight.  The other part of my hair is piled on top of my head in a clip because I wasn't quite finished with the flat iron.  What a sight. 

Now, the church is only a short four or five blocks away, but I am positive that I drove miles and miles at the top speed of 1 mph to get there.  Two blocks away from the church - the best feeling a mom could ever have...There stood Cameron on the edge of road next to the church van, his arm stretched as high as it would go and waving his hand back and forth.  The smile on his face reached from ear to ear.  He waved nonstop until I put the car in park.  From the moment I saw him standing there, tears filled my eyes.  There I was again, pulling myself together and wiping away the tears before I got out to say "Welcome Back". 

Cameron had a blast at camp.  He had so much fun, he no longer had a voice.  Cameron gave me a hug and in a raspy voice said, "Hello."  He said, he cheered and hollered so much he actually lost his voice on the first day of camp.  The kids were given four Bible verses to learn, and Cameron learned all four of the verses on the first night.  He slid down a 100 foot water slide into the camp swimming hole, took a 300 foot zip line through the park, and shot Clay, their sponsor, with paintballs at the camp paintball field.  Cameron and Hunter, the only two boys from Walnut who went to camp this year, were given the Cleanest Cabin Award.  Out of the 550 kids at the Next Level Kids Camp, Cameron and Hunter kept their cabin the cleanest throughout the week.  I'm thinking this type of behavior should carry on to Cameron's bedroom.  (I won't hold my breath.)  On the last night of camp, Cameron and Hunter got take part in the pizza party since they memorized all of their memory verses. 

Memories to last a lifetime.  The smile on Cameron's face, the excitement in his voice when he shared all of his experiences at camp are well worth the tears on a momma's face as she watches her kiddos grow up right before her eyes.

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style.

Didn't Know My Own Strength

"Education is when you read the fine print...
...Experience is what you get if you don't." - Lydia M. Child

That quote just about sums up my spring semester.

I had taken all I could at Hill and was needing to transfer to El Centro College right smack in the middle of downtown Dallas, to take HPRS basically an Intro. to Nursing Course.  You see THR (my employer) has a contract with El Centro, so the actual Nursing Program is completed there.  A 5 hour Saturday class, 3 hour round trip drive through traffic (and those Dallas drivers are crazy) was definately something I was NOT looking forward to, but I put my big girl boots on and got through it.

I read my medical terminology book and learned the difference between Sporotrichosis and Paronychia....the fine print....BUT I didn't know the experiences I would gain from the lab portion of this course...

There were three pass/fail checkoffs during this semester.  Pass/Fail meaning you fail the checkoff, you fail the class.  No ifs, ands or buts about it. 

The first checkoff...Vital Signs, temperature, pulse rate, respiration rate and blood pressure.  Easy enough. Checkoff Passed. 

The second checkoff...Wound Care.  This is a sterile procedure.  It isn't a "rub some dirt in it, slap on a band-aid," procedure.  By the way that works with kids.  There are several steps to maintaining a sterile field.  Enough steps, that the first five individuals failed their first try (we were given three chances to pass).  In I go and out I come - Checkoff Passed first try.

The third and last checkoff...Catheterization.  Now for the true experience.  I headed to class knowing that several students still needed to work on the first two checkoffs, so I wasn't mentally prepared to attempt catheterization.  In walks the teacher with the sign-up sheet, so I figured what the heck, might as well give it a try.  Unfortuneately, my nerves didn't feel the same way.  I walked in to the lab with uncontrollable red splotches on my neck, legs weak, knees knocking, and hands shaking.  I had decided the checkoff would be easier performed on a male mannequin since there is something to hold onto, but I didn't know the part wasn't secure.  I prepared the patient, the room and supplies, reached over with trembling hands and took ahold of the man part.  BUT the man part came right off in my hand.  I let out a holler and looked at the instructor with huge eyes, mouth wide open and a rubber penis in my hand.  I had two options, I could stop the procedure and try again next week or I could continue with a detached member.  I decided to keep on truckin'.  Good thing I did, because I passed that round of checkoffs - first try.

So most definately, as Lydia M. Child said, "the Experiences are what you learn the most from". 

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style.

For God so Loved the World

Several months ago, the youth leader knocked on our door to share with us some exciting news...
...Corey had talked to him about asking Jesus to come into his heart.

Corey seemed to understand what it meant, that Jesus died on the cross for everyone's sins, and he wanted to be part of it.  The next step...Baptism. 

Now, Corey, my daring child, who shows no fear at most anything, has an extremely shy side.  He doesn't like change much, so walking down to the front of the chuch during the invocation was not something he was ready for.  He wanted to be Baptised; he just wanted the gettin there part to be well, behind the scenes.

So for the last several months, when services were over, Corey would ask me very quietly, "Momma, when am I going to get Baptized?"  I would again explain to him the process of walking down during church service when Brother Jason asks for anyone to come.  He would quickly repond by shaking his head and saying, "No, I don't want to do that." 

I guess Corey had really been thinking about all of it because, well, this past Sunday was different.  The preacherman had finished his sermon and stepped down from the pulpit.  Soft piano and organ music was playing in the background.  Everyone's heads were bowed.  The congregation stood quietly, as people listened to Jason's inviting words.  The church was calm, except for a fidgity 8 year old who was standing right beside me.  I hear a very loud, youthful whisper, "Mom, MOMMM!"  I quickly responded in the motherly fashion, "SSHH!" and shot Corey the "This is NOT the time to be making noise look."   He sure didn't listen to me and continued to whisper, only this time just a little bit louder, "MOM!  I've got to go."  I soon realized what he meant and together we made our way down the church aisle and up to the preacher. 

Corey was filled with nervous, excitement that Jason barely got down to Corey's level before Corey was saying, "I wanna be Baptized." 

A big step for a shy little fella and a proud mom.  Corey will be baptized next Sunday.

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style.

One Word 24 Points

I am a big fan of Words with Friends on my iphone.  The boys have watched me play and have now become fans themselves.  They are constantly asking if it is my turn so they can play the next word. 

Colby realized this weekend that hidden deep in the back of our hall closet there sat the board game Scrabble.  He pulled it out and asked me to play.  It didn't take very long for Cameron and Corey to come into the kitchen asking if they could play the next game.

Corey's patience wore thin, so he headed back to his room for some Madden, while Cameron sat back and quietly studied the game board.  Although Colby was having fun playing Scrabble with his mom, heading to Wal-Mart with Brooke sounded more interesting to him.  Our game was over. 

Then Cameron sat down ready to play.    I could hear Terry in the background, "You better watch out, Cameron is pretty smart.  He might beat you."  (Please remember Cameron is only 9 years old.)  With a smirk on his face, Cameron played the first word...SERVE...on a double word square with a double letter square.  Was it luck or should I have been nervous?  Let me just tell you now, I should have been nervous. 

I decided Cameron's word was just luck and since this WAS his first time playing and I have a knack for words, I would take it a little easy on the fella.  WOAH, Big mistake on my part.  Cameron was laying down words, totalling 20 points here, 24 points there, and so on.  He watched the colored tiles and strategically placed his words on those tiles for more points.  I had to step up my game, but it was too late.  I was behind and there was no catching up for me.  He beat me.

I know next time Cameron and I play, I have to pull out my big guns from the beginning unless I want to get beat by a 9 year old. 

At one point during our game, Cameron hooked on to the letter "L" and played OL.  Yes that's right LOL.  (No LOL isn't technically a word that could be used while playing Scrabble.)  I looked at Cameron and asked him, "What is that?"  He gave me the "Are you serious, Mom?" look and said "L.O.L. - Laughing out Loud."  No Cameron does not have a cell phone, and No he doesn't text, but he knows what LOL is?!  I was LOL-ing. 

Well, Cameron and I sure do have a Scrabble rematch coming up, and I am going to do my best to win one.

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style.

Survivors

The end of October is near...
...But let awareness stick around all year.

I ran barefoot down a stone-covered dirt road carrying my scared boys on my hips.  Desperate screams of help shattered the still night.   In front of me, the road disapeared into the darkness.  Behind me, a man carrying a shot-gun.  The closest house was a mile away and vacant.  I prayed someone would hear my screams.   Blood and tears soaked my face.  I tried to convince myself and my terrified boys we would get away, but I couldn't run fast enough.  With every pounding step I took, the gap between the boys and I and the man chasing us got shorter.  Questions raced through my mind, "Will the boys be okay?", "Will I be shot in front of them?", and ultimately, "Am I going to die today?" 

I survived that terrifying night and many more like it, before I took a stand and walked away.  As the years pass only a few scars and memories remain.  I have rebuilt self-esteem and restored my strength.  I have provided the boys with safety.  We are Survivors. 

During the month of October, I have seen purple ribbons tied around the trees on the courthouse lawn, and a large sign that reads, "October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month".  The end of the month is fast approaching, so don't let the awareness be packed away like the ribbons on the trees.  Domestic Violence just doesn't occur in October it occurs every day of every month.  Reach out to someone who needs a hand, because your hand could be the hand that saves them. 

I must say "Thank You" to those who stood by me, and especially to my husband, Terry for showing me what true love is. 

Until next time...
...We're gonna keep on doin' it Townley Style.