Author: Blog-admin

Seeing how Tatum responds to sinful actions has been a fascinating observation. I love to see her heart and how she learns from her errors.

Unfortunately I had to confront her last week of something I saw on the iPad. Deep down, she knew she had made a grave error, but she did not know what to do or who to talk to.

This is when I am SO VERY GRATEFUL we have such a strong bond. She may not come to me immediately, but usually within a day or so, she MUST talk to me and confess or share her heart. I NEVER had this safety or comfort with my mom nor really with ANYONE. Suffice it to say, I often felt completely alone and afraid. Moreover, I did not have a relationship with God through Jesus, so I was even more starkly isolated. I can see now the ramifications of this in my current heart state. GRATITUDE that I have Jesus now, but also realization that I still have undealt with trauma inside. (like many do).

Welllllll, I asked Tatum about this so called situation, and she at first, looked puzzled and denied. She even tried to hide it like Adam and Eve. BUT, within 2 minutes, she told me everything. And then she started to cry because she had NO IDEA this even existed. She questioned WHY WHY WHY would a woman do this?
IT BECAME A HUGE blessing because it opened up the lines of MORE communication about the sacredness of our bodies and the privacy of them, exposing them only to our husbands. (saving that precious gift). Anything else is a slap in the face of God’s design.

WOW. This is the way to LEARN! Otherwise, it just sounds like piety and prudeness.

THEN, the coolest thing happened. She wrote a story.

C.A.T.H.A.R.S.I.S. CONFESSION. LESSON LEARNED (early on in life!)

                          Accidental errors        By: Tatum Hay

“Hey Opal, over here we have something to show you!” Opal’s friends,Harper, Zoe, August, and September were all standing huddled over a tablet. There was something sort of like a picture on the tablet and all the girls were gawking over the picture. 

That night nine-year-old Opal sat on her bed, talking to her mom. “ Mom, what am I supposed to do? I’ve done everything to forget that one picture of that one woman naked, it’s so terrible! What am I supposed to do?”  Opal’s brother , Greyson , who is five, walked into the room.  

August walked up to Opal the next day at school, and started pulling Opal’s arm. “ come on Opal we’re gonna go look at that one picture again. Are you coming or what? My brother yesterday, whose name is Russell, told me everything that is on the web.” Opal stared at August and yanked her arm back. “I don’t wanna be your friend anymore you’re so mean to me! You do everything just to make me your friend! But I’m done with you, me and my mom talked it over last night!” 

“Hey mom, I talked to August today we’re not friends anymore. Now I just gotta talk to Harper and September and all the others. Can I have a snack maybe like a cookie or something or a bag of Cheetos or something or-“ “Opal as much as I’m glad for you doing that,by the way that takes a lot of integrity, I can’t just forgive you ,snap ,just like that I just don’t know what to do. You’ve never done this before.“ 

That night Opal snuck outside with her phone. She went on Safari, and looked up naked women. She knew it was the wrong thing to do , But she did it anyways. “I know it’s the wrong thing to do God but please just forgive me for doing it just this once I’ll tell my mom and ask for forgiveness. You know what God I won’t get in trouble if I don’t tell my mom at all. Yes, that’s what I’ll do!“  

The door cracked open, and her babysitter Dora, stepped outside. “Hey Opal, what are you doing out here? It’s midnight, you know?”  Opal ducked behind a tree. Her entire body was shaking, and her mind was racing. She tried to hide her phone in her pocket. 

“Opal! What are you doing!“ Opal’s mom ran outside and caught Opal staring at naked pictures on her phone. 

Opal finally learned her lesson, but even though she begged for forgiveness, her mom still took away her phone for two months. 

Two weeks past and she ditched all of her old friends. But she found three new BFFs, Wednesday, Peter, and Jocelyn.  

Peter was a nice nine-year-old boy with brown hair that flung everywhere but when he wet it down with water, it stuck to his head like a magnet. He had three siblings, two sisters, and one brother, 12-year-old, Alyssa, 15-year-old, Fuchsia, and seven-year-old Grayson. 

Wednesday, on the other hand had beautiful golden hair that was always held back with a nice, beautiful purple headband that sparkled in the sun. She had four siblings, Nevermore, who is 15 and a girl, Prairie who is a boy, nine and her twin, Johnson who is a boy and 12, and Rocky who is a girl and nine. 

Jocelyn was a nice 10 year old girl, who had black hair that was always in a high ponytail, and she was the only child, but she didn’t get away with most everything in her house. 

Months later, Peter,Jocelyn,Wednesday, and Opal started a prayer group at school.  Several kids came a day to get prayers, but one day, Harper, the mean girl came over to get a prayer. “ Can you please pray for my mom, she’s fighting cancer. we used to be well, Christians, but ever since she got sick, we fell away. “ 

This little one. She enjoyed the PVCP picnic with Daddy and came home all butterflied up! Apparently she and Kacey got matching designs to make a complete butterfly.

And then, in the morning…our pets.

Cooper is all about play until the BIG SCARY RIO comes a-tweeting towards him. Cooper gets all flustered.

Rio is clueless of how he taunts the little white fluffball.

The joys.

Tatum is so excited to play you!
In the PVCP Christmas concert!

She tried out, and she GOT IT. Here are her lines:

(In the character of Mary) – It all started when I was visited by an unexpected guest…an angel.  Instantly, I was scared to death!  

He told me not to be afraid & then he reassured me that I found favor with God.

He actually said that I was highly favored and that the Lord was with me.

He told me that I would conceive and give birth to a Son…not just any son…but the Son of the Most High…the Son of God! 

I was to name Him, ‘Jesus.’…Yeshua…meaning Deliverer…Rescuer.

My head was spinning…

WAIT!!!  I’m supposed to be marrying Joseph…How can this happen?  Why me? My family?  We would all be disgraced.

I was scared…I was uncertain…..but I was CHOSEN…….chosen…

(PAUSE FOR OTHER NARRATION TO BE STATED ) 

I am the Lord’s servant.  May Your Word to me be fulfilled.

SHE TRIED OUT with so many other students, and a few days later, we got this email from Mrs. Cline.

Congratulations!

This email is to notify you that Tatum has been selected to be Mary for this year’s Christmas program.

We are so excited and proud of you, TOT!

Visiting with Dr. Frankl, we learned so much about growth platelets in kids. God is so good with how the body is made.

Supposedly, a child’s body is like a young tree. If you try to bend a branch, it’s pliable and will bend back. If it is an older tree branch, it will crack in half.

Here is Tot’s forearm; see the bulge? That is the air fracture.

Choice was a cast or a brace. She thought about ITCHING. She can take off the brace for an itch, for bathing and swimming. So brace it is!

She loves it so much more, and Coopy gives her so much TLC.

We love broccoli. Well, rephrase. I LOVE broccoli; I’m trying to get my kiddo to LOVE it too. However, I can get her to love the sprouts since they are so fun to DIY!

DID YOU KNOW?

Both broccoli and broccoli sprouts are full of healing antioxidants, although broccoli sprouts has 50-100 times more healing properties than the big bundles of broccoli you might buy. What makes is so healthy? “Sulfurophane.” (it’s that odor you smell when you cook cruciferous veggies)

SO…for instance, 1 cup of broccoli sprouts equals 100 cups of broccoli due to the sulforaphane extraction found in the munched up sprouts we chew.

I’d rather get more bang for my buck with the sprouts, although I’ll still eat my little delicious trees! I do know that the sprouts help with digestion.

I bought the seeds, watched a video (thanks to my honey’s research), bought the venting lids, and ….

(oh I purchased other sprouts too….like radish, alfalfa, and clove. Who knew you could sprout so many veggies!

Ok, Tot…help. me out. My one-armed little one poured the water. (read another blog about the WHY behind the one-arm).

Three days later!!!

I am so excited. Daddy is excited too since a package of these at the store is about 5 bucks

They are done and ready to partake. MORE LATER

HEEHEE! Stay tuned for more sprouting stories.

About an hour before her soccer game, I got a call from her school. She was in PE, and apparently she got hit with a soccer ball. I could hear her crying in the background.

I immediately headed over there to pick her up. No game today!
I figured she sprained her arm, so we headed home and I gave her some aspirin to dull the pain.

It looked pretty. lifeless but again, I thought it was sprained.

The next day was to be a 1/2 day at school, so we made an appt at urgent care for 8:45am.

We showed up early to get in!! She was in a ton of pain; more than was normal for a sprain.

OH, so hard to see her in this much pain.

We waited and waited….and waited, trying to get our minds off the pain!
Finally after X-rays, we saw….oh. yes. Fractured.

They wrapped it up in a temporary cast and a CUTE sling (thank goodness for the cuteness)

and they gave me a few Orthos to call.

FOUR places. THEN…..BINGO!
We got in first thing MONDAY morning in a location RIGHT NEXT TO OUR HOME! Not a coincidence.

So we have the weekend to rest, relax, and recover until the BIG CAST; what color will it be? Stay tuned. So proud of my one-armed gal.

She may be fractured, but she is never broken. SHE GETS BACK UP AND KEEPS THE FAITH. LOVE YOU TOT! (Goodbye soccer this season)

Can I get an AMEN!? For almost TWO years, Tatum has had those little silver friends attending her mouth party.

We arrived early to our appointment since it was on a school day; she had to miss the morning and then return in the afternoon to be fitted for the retainer. Oh the anticipation…get them off me!

Pretty smilel!! EEEEEE!!!!

Now, she gets fitted for a retainer.

But wait!!! They have a PARTY GOING ON RIGHT HERE….A CELEBRATION.. (playing in the background)

Thank you Dr. Barakat! See you soon!

For a parting gift, guess what they gave her? A stuffy? No. A container of toothpaste? No. A near bike? No.

Yes, a dentist favorite. Milk Duds, Swedish fish, gummy bears…all the things that she couldn’t eat. AYE AYE AYE!

But, all she wanted was a salad for dinner. YES! A girl after my own heart.

Delish!
Oh, the joy. Now, popcorn is in the cards for today as well.

We love your smile… my love.