ONLY in Mississippi

I love living in Mississippi. It totally cracks me up sometimes. I wish I could live somewhere else (like New York, California, Michigan) just to have something to compare our red-neck state to! Pretty much on a daily basis I see something that makes me say..."only in Mississippi." So, I decided today that I'll start posting some of these things to share with yall! Here are a few to kick off this series:

Only in Mississippi...

....would you find a pasture of cows in the middle of a neighborhood, in the middle of town!
....would you take money from someone who just pulled it out of their bra
....would you be traveling at 45 mph and have to completely stop for 5 minutes to let a turkey figure out its way across the road
....would you pass a lady driving her electronic wheelchair down a HIGHWAY!!
....would you see a trailer (mobile home) with a brick roof built over it
....would you see cars with logos painted over the entire car, such as: fruit loops, trix, budweiser, cheerios, and other ridiculous things
....would you sit behind a man riding a HORSE through a Taco Bell drive-thru


Those are just a few that I've seen or heard about in the past couple of days. I'm really excited about writing these down on a daily basis so that I can share them with yall. I hope yall fall on the floor laughing like I do!!! Maybe I'll try to post these on Wednesdays, cause we all need a little push to get over that HUMP!


happy hump day,
Tonya :)

Friday's Thoughts & Challenge~

Ok, so today has been a super busy day, and I have to leave my office in 15 minutes to go recruit at Magee. Yes, I have to recruit at 5:00 PM on a Friday. No comment.

*Do-Overs
We've been hosting "Preview Day" at Co-Lin the past 2 days, and Brother Bruce Brady did our devotional both days. He talked about "do-overs." He told the story of when he was younger, him and some friends would play baseball in the backyard. And sometimes as they were running bases, the family dog would get in their way and cause them to get distracted. So in that case, they would yell "DO-OVER" and they'd get to try again. Well, isn't it awesome that God allows us do-overs? He doesn't give us one chance, and then when we fail, throw us out of the game. He allows us to go back to home plate and try again. This little devotional couldn't have come at a better time, because I'm in desperate need of a do-over.

*Easter
Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! Am I the only mother of the year that has not even started getting stuff for my kid's Easter baskets?!?! Gosh, I feel like I will never get caught up on my life. Just when I feel like I have a break, something unexpected like EASTER pops up!!! hahahaha!! Well, I did buy Abby some plastic eggs yesterday, because she's been dying to practice her egg hunting skills. And I guess I'll get out this weekend and start shopping for basket goodies.

*Ballyhoo
One reason I'm looking forward to going to Magee. This store is located on Hwy 49, in between Mendenhall and Magee. It's fabulous. They have a little bit of everything: Vera Bradley, Peter's Pottery, candles, yard decor, clothes, kids clothing, purses, wallets, etc etc. I love this store.

*My hair
I'm not loving it as much as I was last week. I have to spray it about every 30 minutes to keep body in it, so then by the time I get home everyday it's like a hot oily mess! YUCK!

*Austria update
I am getting really excited about Austria. I cannot wait to have 8 days alone with my husband.

*Disciple Now
Sooooooo.......guess who volunteered their house for Disciple Now weekend?! The Bishops!!!!!!! God has really laid it on my heart to be more involved with our youth, so when our youth pastor asked Michael about being a host home--I SAID YES!!!!! Then he tells us we have 7th grade boys! hehe!! Once again, gotta love God's sense of humor! We're having our first meeting this Sunday, so I'm really anxious to see exactly what I've signed up for. I'm thinking Michael and I will have some type of leadership position. I'll keep yall posted.

*My job
I haven't talked much about my job lately. There is not a day that goes by that I do not thank God for this job. I LOVE what I do!!!! I seriously look forward to going to work every single day. I love interacting with students every day, I love getting to know all the high school seniors in my area, I love hosting events on campus, I love the ladies in my office, I love the president of our college, I just love my job.

*Working out update
I worked out one day this week. I'm ashamed. I've just been SO busy!! However, I do plan on getting outside alot next week and enjoying this beautiful spring weather.


Ok....I have 1 minute until I have to go, which means there is no time for fun pictures! :( But, I do still need to challenge yall. Hmmmmmm.....

Think of an area in your life where you need a do-over. Make the decision to repent and redo, commit it to God, and then praise God for his mercy in your life.


thankful for God's mercy,
Tonya

Abby & Parker

I realized the other day that I don't do a good job of blogging about funny or "new" things my kids are doing. CRAP! I need to do that! I want to look back and remember these things. So, here it goes....

Parker:

Just yesterday he started:

-drinking from a sippie cup! He is a PRO!! I gave him one with 2 handles and put a little bit of white grape juice in it. Oh, and some ice. He loved it!!! He was a little confused at first, but once he tasted that yummy stuff, he sucked it down.
-separation anxiety! Yes. We took him to church last night and brought him to his class just like normal, but this time he threw a fit!!!! As soon as I handed him over, he started screaming. Not crying. SCREAMING!! "Hmmmm..." I thought?!? "Well, let me see if this works." So, I took him and he immediately stopped crying. What in the world?? He has never done this before! But I have to admit that a part of me loved this. I love to feel needed. And it made me feel kinda good that all he wanted was his mommy. Can you imagine what he was thinking? "Um, hello mom, I've been at daycare from 8-4:30, you leave me in the car to nap while you and sissie get ready for church, you bring me to church and leave me in my carseat while yall eat, and now you're going to just hand me off to someone else?!?!??!!? No ma'am!" So, I did what any good mother would do. I skipped church service and rocked my baby.
-waving bye-bye. O-M-G!!!!!!!!! I've been showing him how to wave bye bye, and we've been practicing for a while. Well, last night he did it. On purpose. I looked at him, opened and closed my hand, and said "bye-bye." And he looked at me, smiled, put his arm in the air, and open and closed his hand!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I yelled for Michael to come look, and he did it again. And then of course Abby wants to see, and he did it to her too!!! I am so excited!! Now, if we can just get that boy crawling. Or just show an interest in crawling.
-he's rotten. He used to be so laid back, and he'd lay in his chair/swing for hours just content as can be. Nope. Not anymore. He wants someone to hold him at all times. Me. Michael. Mrs. Margaret. His grandparents. Anyone.

Abby:

-this girl is asking so many questions about God & heaven. There is absolutely no greater feeling that your child asking you questions about the God that made her! Her questions/comments include:
Can we go see God?...How do we get to heaven? Do we float way up there?...How did God put me in your tummy? (I've tried to avoid that question lol)...When will I get to meet God?...I'm so glad God brought me to you...I'm glad God brought us brother.
Does this not melt your heart into a puddle!??!?! She is my little reminder that I've got a lot of work to do to have just an inkling of her faith. It's kinda neat for a mom to look at her child and think...I want what she's got!
-she is a little adult. After school, and before daddy gets home, me and Abby sit and talk about her day. And she just talks to me like my best friend would talk to me. Telling me what she did at school, who she played with, who made her mad, that her friend complimented her on her shoes, and all kinds of stuff. This is one of my favorite parts of the day. I love getting to sit down with her, eat a snack, and just talk. Nothing could ever take the place of those memories.
-we're setting up her first after school play-date next week! Now, Abby has a ton of friends (my friend's kids), and she's able to play with them alot. However, she's never had a school friend over before! Her best friend from school, Allison, is going to come over one day next week to play after school. I can't wait! I think I'm more excited than Abby is :)

So....that's really all I can come up with right now, but I'll try to do better about posting little "funnies" that happen each day. Because it's an every day thing. I think God's sense of humor is most evident when He gives you kids....in alot of different ways.

Stay tuned for Friday's thoughts & challenge tomorrow.


have a fabulous Thursday,
Tonya

Spring Break was a TRIP!!!!

Actually....it was TWO trips! Two totally different kinds of trips. One family trip. One girls trip. And a whole lot of fun in between! Let me explain...

Friday, March 12~
I'm walking on the track during my lunch break when all of the suddden, a co-worker starts screaming my name from the bleachers!! She said the daycare called and said Parker was throwing up! OH FABULOUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, I hurry over there to get him and then head home. "I guess we'll have to cancel our trip," I thought....Well, GUESS AGAIN!!!!!!! I watched him for the rest of the afternoon, and he seemed fine. Soooo...we packed the car and headed to the beach! What was once a 4 hour drive defly turned into a 7 hour drive! On our way to Florida, we made a stop at the Essers to meet baby Caleb, ate at Firehouse and told Abby the story of our first date there, swung through Seattle Drip so they could warm Parker's bottle for us (lol), switched Abby to my parent's car, potty break in Mobile, fell asleep at the Florida state line, and woke up at my aunt & uncle's house. We visited with them a little and then hit the sack! *Funny story: the bed that me, Michael, and Parker slept in was a double bed (but seemed like a glorified twin). We propped Parker in his boppy pillow to sleep. For those of you who don't know what a boppy is, let me just put it this way....it took up half the bed! So, Michael and I are sleeping on our sides with our butts hanging off the bed. Around 2 am, I woke up with a serious crick in my neck and then realized that my body was on the bed but my head was on the NIGHTSTAND!!!!!! bahhahahahHAHAbBABAhahahahahah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Saturday~
The guys went to play golf and the girls went shopping. Well, my mom and aunt got to shop. I got to babysit!! Shopping with 2 younguns is a no-go! So needless to say, I got frustrated, loaded the kids up, and headed back to my aunt's. Oh well....at least I "saved some money!" The rest of the afternoon we just hung out at the house, because it was too windy and chilly to be on the beach. However, I did throw on a tank and walked around the neighborhood so I could get a little sun.

Sunday~
We hit up some souvenir shops, met my sissie for lunch (she was there babysitting for a family), hung out at the house, napped, and ate dinner. Oh, and this was the day that Abby started complaining about her tummy hurting. I just thought it was all the junk food she had eaten.

Monday~
Abby is still complaining about her tummy, but being the great mom that I am, I got her dressed and we headed to the beach for pics!! Here are some of my favorites:






















So, then we went to Lillian's Pizza for lunch. After that we told Abby we'd take her to a playground down the road from my aunt's. She played there for about an hour and then we headed back to my aunt's. When we got in the car, Abby tried to tell us that her tummy was still hurting, but before she could finish her sentence------she threw up everywhere!!! How I didn't throw up, I do not know?!!? "So, maybe she was serious about her tummy hurting," I thought to myself?! We get home, I put her on the couch to rest and watch a movie. After a 2 hour nap, she seemed back to normal. YAY!! So, my parents offered to watch the kiddos that night while me and Michael went out. We met Sammie Sones and his fiance Brittany at LuLu's. Our 2 hour wait turned into a 5 minute wait when our buzzer started vibrating only to find out they thought we were "Smith party of 4." So, we smiled and agreed....and sat down. Sorry Smith Family! We had a fabulous dinner...I LOVEEEE the Sones couple! :)

Tuesday~
I wake up to my step dad telling my uncle that Abby had thrown up 3 times in the middle of the night. WhAT?!?!?!?! So, we let Abby sleep in and when she woke up, she seemed fine! We hit the road back to Mississippi, and thank God Abby made it all the way home with no more vomit episodes! We got home around 5:00 Tuesday night, and I went directly to the tanning bed. I was determined to get some "sun" since I didn't get any at the beach!

Wednesday~
I got a little cleaning done, played with my babies, and then went to get my hair done. (See previous post)

Thursday~
I got a little more hardcore about my cleaning, ran some errands, and got packed and ready for my girl's trip. I seriously couldn't sleep Thursday night. It felt like Christmas Eve. I kept waking up wondering, IS IT TIME TO WAKE UP YET?!?!

Friday~
Woke up. Got the kids bathed and ready for their weekend with daddy. The sitter arrived. The girls arrived. And off we went. We got to the coast around 3:00 and shopped at the outlet mall til 5:00. We went to check in at The Beau, got showers and dressed, and headed to Emeril's for our 7:30 reservation!! The best part about Emeril's, besides for the fabulous company, was being able to eat in peace! So, we left Emeril's, went back to the room, freshened up, and headed down to the casino. None of us are big gamblers, so we decided to put a $20 in the penny slots and about 5 minutes later---it was gone. Depressing. How do people gamble? YUCK! So, then we went to the jazz bar and listened to a live band. Then, we headed to the nightclub. Just give me a dance floor and a DJ, and I am good! Whitney, Cheli, and Mandy sat at the table and watched (and laughed) as Sandy and I danced the night away!!!!! And when I say "danced the night away," I mean til about 1am. Which is super late for a bunch of mommys! HAHA!

Saturday~
We all woke up around 7:30 (so much for sleeping in!) and got ready for our spa appointments. We went by the coffee shop for a quick breakfast, and got to the spa around 10:00. Tonya: facial, Whit: prenatal massage, Sandy, Mandy, and Cheli: pedicures. It was FAB-U-LOUS!!!! Afterwards, we drove "the strip" for about 30 minutes looking for an Olive Garden and then ended up back at the Beau and had lunch there. Funny story: it takes 5 girls and a GPS to not know where we're going! After lunch, we went to see Hairspray! Through our exhaustion and doze offs, we really enjoyed the show. By this time, we are all super tired and ready to get home to our babies and hubbies. But you know we made time for a Chick Fil A dinner on the way home. YUMMY!

It was a perfect trip. I LOVE my friends. There are so many funny stories and inside jokes I could share, but I'll spare yall! One thing I do know is---we will be doing girl's trips ALOT more often! Here are a couple pics:









Sunday~
We went to church, and then had lunch with my parents and sissie. Today has been a lot of R & R, and a little cleaning.

So, now I sit here in my bed....listening to my little man and my wild woman talk to eachother. They melt my heart. And let's not leave out Michael. Even with his abnoxious obsession with the TV show, Cops....he melts my heart. And even though I had a grrrrrrrrr8 time on my trip with the girls....nothing is better than coming home to my precious family! And I'm even looking forward to going back to work tomorrow. A week without my co-workers is long enough for me!

I hope everyone had a great week. I know I did. :)


girls just wanna have fun,
Tonya

~My New Do~

Ok, so first of all....thanks for letting me vent yesterday. I'm feeling MUCH better!! Even though it was 55 degrees today and I'm sooooooooooo ready for warm weather!!! But that's beside the point. So...I took a few pics of my hair today (on self timer, so they're not the best pics). I'm liking my hair alot better today...whew!!!

Front View:


Right Side:


Left Side:


The bangs (not as short V.B. had them):


Yes, I'm in 5th grade and still make kissie faces for the camera!! It's just how I roll....and plus kissie faces make any hairstyle look good! hahahaha :)


Ok, so there ya go. My new do!! And I'm a little irritated because I spent 30 minutes cropping each picture so that Parker's dresser and box of wipes weren't in the pictures, but....for some reason the edits didn't save?!?!?! OH WELL...I'm not about to do all that over again. So, just overlook the background....I was snapping some pics while my little man was rolling around on the floor.

Anyway.....I am about to hit the sack, because tomorrow I leave for our girl's trip to the coast!!! Never been so excited in my lifeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!! Shopping, spa, food, dancing, Hairspray show, more shopping, defly more food...ahhhhhh....I need this!!

I'll have pics and play-by-play details of my Spring Break in a few days. Until then...yall enjoy your weekend.


ready to roll,
Tonya

The dreaded "Aunt"

Ughhhhhhhhh I HATE when Aunt Flo comes to visit!!!!!

First of all, she decides to come while we're at the beach...seriously? thanks alot!

Secondly, she puts me in the absolute worst mood of my life!!!! Like, really, don't talk to me today. Lots of people always comment on how positive and fun I am....not today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! No sir'ee!!

Then...I went to get my hair done today (I'll talk about that in a minute) and my hairdresser tells me that color doesn't take real well when your hormones are out of whack! WOO HOO!! That's fabulous news!!!!!!!! I LOVE paying $100 for highlights that might not take!

And just FYI--don't do anything drastic to your hair while Aunt Flo is visiting, because no matter how cute your hair looks, your aunt will tell you otherwise! I will eventually post some pics, but I just can't today....my bad attitude is showing in every pic that I take! *disclaimer: I loveeeee my hairdresser and I loveeeee my haircut....I just need a day or 2 to get used to it!

Everyone is on my nerves! And I know I'm on my husband's last nerve!

Does anyone else have an aunt that brings a sharp knife with her that she jabs into your stomach over and over????? Yes, that's my favorite!

And....forget the fact that I've been working out like a maniac, cause I seriously look and feel like a big fat cow!

Have I mentioned that my attitude sucks?? Do I even have to mention that? Hello, Captain Obvious!!!!

Oh, how I love being a girl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But I do have ONE reason to be thankful for this dreaded visit....it means I'm not pregnant!!!! Yes, for a second, I thought I might possibly (against all odds) be pregnant again. OmG, it makes me nausiated just thinking about being pregnant with a 6 month old!!!!! Don't get me wrong, I love love love my kids and I love being a mommy, but I'm not real sure I'd want another one right now!

If you're a guy and you just tortured yourself by reading this post....so sorry! But now you know that your wife, girlfriend, or "gal" friends are not the only ones!! And once again, I have proven not to be perfect! Whew...I feel much better!



bring on the chocolate & midol,
Tonya

Friday's Thoughts & Challenge~

Ok, so this is a little early for Friday's thoughts, but I've got soooooo much to do today. Blogging is NOT on my to-do list, but I'm sure I can fit it in :)


*Packing for the Beach
Yes...I said "packing." As in, I am STILL packing for a trip that we leave in 8 hours for!!!!!!!!!! Why didn't I do a little each day? Heck if I know?! I have no excuse whatsoever...I just didn't want to! So, last night I'm running around the house like a crazy person (nobody needs to comment)....I'm rushing in and out of each room, packing clothes, trying to find suitcases, wondering why things I need are in the dirty clothes hamper, trying to keep Abby out of the suitcases, and of course barking out orders at my ~wonderful~ husband! (Love you, Michael!) Yes...he is a great husband. He's just running around behind me asking, "What should I do now?!" haha! We also had some friends stop by last night...one surprise visit was to check on my hubby's burn on his hand (Shout out to Tim & Sandy)...and the other surprise visit was to use our bathroom, hahahaha! (Shout out to Trey & Ashley) So, by 9:00 I decided I had enough! I hopped in the tub and then got in the bed. Yes, I left LOTS of things undone...along with a long to-do list for today. Sigh....

*Trike-A-Thon
So, both my kiddos participated in a Trike-A-Thon for St. Jude yesterday. Between the 2 of them, they raised $225! It was such a beautiful day for it!! All the mommys (and some daddys) got to go down to the track and watch! Here are a few pics from the event:

Most parents were putting helments on their kids. I was putting sunglasses on mine :) And plus...a helment wouldn't fit over her pig tails...DUH!

Parker was just chillin. He didn't care, just as long as he had his fist to chew on!

I think Daddy got more of a workout than Abby!

Parker was just taking it all in...and he lapped his sister about 3 times. But who's counting?! :)
We even got a famliy picture!!

*Tanning Bed
Oh, how I hate you! I really am not a big tanning bed supporter. However, I knew I needed a LITTLE color before we got to the beach. So, for the past 2 weeks, I've been going every other day and staying in the bed for like 8-10 minutes. Well.......I went one last time last night and fell asleep in the bed. O-M-G!! This body was just not ready for 20 minutes in the tanning bed. Needless to say, I am burnt to a crisp today. From neck (because I cover my face) to toes! The whole reason I was going to the tanning bed was to get ready for the beach, but now I'm afraid I won't even be able to go to the beach! lol!!!

*2 new babies!
Two of my very best friends had sweet babies this week!!!!!!!!!!! They were both boys~Caleb Andrew Esser and John Henry Barrett. I have not met either one, but you better believe that I will be getting some Aunt Tonya lovin over Spring Break! Here are my sweet babies:

~Caleb Andrew Esser~


~John Henry Barrett~


*Day trip to New Orleans
So, Michael and I STILL have not gotten our passports for Austria! I am alot of the reason why we have put it off for so long. I just didn't see any need to get a passport for a trip that I was not going on! haha! I have really struggled with being away from my babies for 8 days! E-I-G-H-T!!!!! But I'm doing a little better with it. I'm actually getting excited about spending 8 days with Michael, and no kids. Ever since Parker's been born, Michael and I have not gotten to spend alot of alone time together. Sure, we've had date nights here and there...but no "getaways." So, I'm getting pretty excited about this trip! Ok, so back to New Orleans. We've decided to just make a day trip to New Orleans one day next week to get our passports and take the kids to the zoo! Abby has only been to the Hattiesburg zoo, and for those of you who have never experienced the Hatti Zoo...it's TERRIBLE!!!!! So, I'm really excited about taking Abby to the zoo in NO. I'm also excited about NO food...yummy! And I guess I'm a LITTLE excited about getting our passports. :)

*MY HAIR
It's about that time of the month that I fall into this hair rut! It needs to be highlighted, the length is annoying, and it's super freakin flat! Thank goodness I go next Wednesday for a re-vamp! I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. Here's a reminder of what my hair will look like....except it will be blonde:

If anyone has any comments or advice, or can think of any reason I should NOT do this, please speak now...or forever hold your peace!

*Challenge
Ok, so my challenge to yall is this....
Be spontaneous this weekend! (or next week, if you have off for Spring Break) Break out of your shell a little and maybe do something you've never done before!! So, basically what I'm asking you to do is...challenge yourself!

I hope everyone has a fabulous weekend, and for those of you who will off next week for Spring Break....ENJOY!


so thankful for sunshine and spring,
Tonya

HAPPY 1/2 BIRTHDAY, PARKER!!!

Yupp, that's right...Parker is 6 MONTHS OLD today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I can't believe for a second that it's been 6 months since I had my little man :(

**Here's a brief run-down of the past 6 months:

~Parker was born at the same time the swine flu was born
~I worried myself SICK over Abby and Parker getting the swine flu
~Seriously, I cried non-stop over the thought of it
~I kept Abby home from school for 2 months so that she wouldn't be exposed to it
~I pretty much stayed in the house, with both kids, for 2 months so we wouldn't be exposed to it
~I turned into a HUGEEEEEEEEEE germ-a-phobic, and made everyone sanitize their hands about 50 times when they came to visit
~I drove my friends crazy
~I finally got on Lexapro (I'm thinking I'll have a Lexapro post soon)
~The Lexapro kicked in, and life was good...once again!
~I started back to work...full time
~November was a super busy month for me, but I loved being back in the real world again!
~December was all about Christmas...shopping, parties, pictures, food, Santa...
~November and December= still no set schedule...kinda crazy at the Bishop house!
~January, Abby turns 3, still no set schedule
~February, a schedule is starting to be set
~March, here is our fabulous schedule:
-I get up at 6:00 am every morning and spend the next hour getting ready..by myself!
-I get the kids (and the hubby) up at 7:00 am and spend the next 45 minutes getting them dressed, fed, and packed up. (Michael helps get bottles ready, bags packed, car warmed up, and kids buckled in)
-I drop the kids off at school around 8:00 am and then head across the street to my office (perfect set up)
-I pick the kids up at 4:30, and head home to do whatever activities have been devoted to that specific day (Monday-family time at the house & 24, Tuesday-gymnastics & American Idol, Wednesday-church & American Idol, Thursday-family time, Friday-weekend plans begin)
-Michael, Abby, and I eat dinner around 6:00.
-I feed Parker his dinner around 7:30.
-Parker gets his last bottle for the night around 8:30.
-Both kids are in bed by 9:00. (This may sound late to some...but it works for us)
-Michael and I spend the next hour and a half together!
-Hit the sack around 10:30

**What Parker is doing at 6 months:

-rolling over. He does not like to lay on his back, he immediately flips over.
-starting to scoot a little bit. If you lay a toy out of reach while he's on his stomach, he will inch towards it.
-grabbing noses, pulling hair, poking eyes. If you're laying close to Parker or holding him, he will reach up and pinch your nose, or grab your hair, or poke your eyes! I loveeeeeeee this, because when you say "OUCH!!" He'll look at you and laugh.
-loving on his sister. Parker L-O-V-E-S Abby!!!! He always wants to see what she's doing, and he's even started "bothering her."
-talking. And when I say talking, I mean coo'ing! He has started to say "Da-Da" a little bit, and he'll scream "Ma-Ma" only when he's crying! Hey, I'll take whatever I can get :)
-he loves cell phones. I seriously don't know why we waste so much money on toys, because all he ever wants is a cell phone!
-he's spending lots of time in jumpers and walkers. I didn't think we'd ever get to this point. But he loves his free standing jumper and the door way jumper. He also loves his walker...even though he can't move it yet :) Poor baby has his mommy's short legs
-as mentioned before, he is finally sleeping the entire night in his crib! He's always been a good sleeper, but he's going from 8pm to 8am with no bottle...and that makes things so much easier on me!!
-he's chewing on EVERYTHING. He's been doing this for a few months now, so I'm just waiting for a tooth to pop up any day now. Anytime he has something in his hands, it goes straight to his mouth. However, his favorite chew toy is his fist.
-he's a happy baby! This child has the most precious smile that will melt your heart in a second! And the best part is, he is always smiling. However...catching it on the camera is a different story. Both my kids are hard-headed picture takers!

**The 6 month check up:

~He's in the 30th percentile for weight (15 lbs), 50th percentile for length (25 3/4 in), and 75th percentile for head. He's got his daddy's head ;)
~Dr. Smith said everything looks great, and his previous wheezing has stopped.
~And props to daddy for taking Parker all by himself. Michael hatessss when the kids have to get shots. He will literally leave the room and make me sit in there with them. But he took Parker today all by himself and sat with him through the shots. He's such a good daddy!

**The past 6 months in pictures:


~September~


~October~


~November~


~December~


~January~


~February~


~6 months~

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above"

Thank you, God for this perfect gift!!

one proud mommy,
Tonya


P.S.-Happy 1/2 Birthday to Ryder Wilson also!!! :)

Friday's Thoughts & Challenge....on Saturday!

Ok, so I wasn't able to post my thoughts and challenge yesterday, and here's why....




Yes, that's my husband's car. Yes, he was in there. Yes, he is ok. Yes, the person in the other vehicle is ok. Yes, it's a miracle that nobody was seriously/fatally injured. Yes, our car is totalled. No, it wasn't his fault. No, nobody else was in the car (thank God).
So, here's what happened....in the order that I found out. I'm finishing a campus visit when my phone rings. Michael's picture pops up and I think he's just calling to say hey, like normal. He tells me that he's been in an accident. I don't really think anything about it, because I figure if he's calling me, then he must be ok. He tells me that the car is totalled and he's going to the ER. OK!!!!!! NOW HE HAS MY ATTENTION! "I am on my way," I tell him. I announced to my office, on my way out the door, that Michael's been in a wreck and that I'll keep them updated. So, I pull up to the scene of the accident and when I saw the car, my stomach dropped. From the looks of it, I'm expecting the worst! But then I see Michael, standing up, talking to the cop, with no blood, and I feel a little better. I ran to Michael and gave him a quick hug as he's explaining things to the cop. While he's talking to the cop, I start getting details from a friend that was talking to Michael on the phone when it happened!!! Ryan tells me that he was talking to Michael when all of the sudden Michael yells..."OH SHIT!!!!" (you'll have to excuse his language...but can you blame him??) Then Ryan hears screeching tires, followed by a loud crash! After the crash, Ryan just hears Michael groaning. He said his heart stopped and he was thinking the worst possible outcome. *Side Note: THANK YOU GOD FOR NOT ALLOWING ME TO BE ON THE OTHER END OF THAT PHONE LINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ryan is screaming into the phone..."Michael, Michael, answer me...say something!!" He finally hangs up and got a phone call from Michael several minutes later. Come to find out, when the air bag deployed, it knocked the phone from Michael's hand and he wasn't able to find it until he got out of the car. So, after I talked to Ryan for a few minutes, I went back to Michael and he told me what happened. He was driving down Highway 51, heading to Co-Lin to play golf. A truck pulled out from a store and Michael slammed on the brakes to try to avoid hitting him. However, his brakes locked up and he skid for about 50 yards, only to hit the truck full force! Thankfully the man in the truck heard Michael lay on the horn and he stopped. If he would've gone a few feet further, Michael would've hit the driver's side door and possibly have killed the man. *Side Note: you cannot hear a story like this and not believe in God's divine intervention. So, after the car was towed, I took Michael to the ER to have his hand looked at. He didn't feel like it was broken, but it was severely burned from the air bag being deployed. The nurse confirmed the friction/chemical burn from the air bag and treated it as a 3rd degree burn. *Side Note: we can handle a 3rd degree burn! I'm just glad it wasn't any worse!!!! We went to clean out the Honda and say our goodbyes to our first purchase as a married couple. Michael is in a rental until we can get the money for our car and purchase another vehicle. *Side Note: we WILL be paying cash for another vehicle....because it's the "Dave Ramsey Way!" :) So, my thoughts for Friday consisted of being thankful God's protection over my husband and being reminded of just how quickly something like that can happen!

Other Thoughts:


*Online Shopping
Yes, this is a picture of a month's worth of online shopping. Thank you eBay & Old Navy. Parker is officially set for Spring/Summer thanks to eBay, Old Navy, Beyond the Rainbow, Target, and lots of great hand-me-downs! Abby's S/S wardrobe is not complete yet, but I've got a good start. I was also able to find some good deals for me and Michael too!!!

*Working Out Update
O-M-G...I did something this week that I have not done yet. I worked out through the pain! Usually when I start hurting, I'll stop. But this week I decided...NO PAIN, NO GAIN! Dumb, Dumb, Dumb! I literally have not been able to walk for 2 days!!!!!!!!! So, I'm going to take it easy this weekend and start back next week....but not so hardcore!


*Breakfast in Bed
No...not for me...for my hubby!!! I knew that he'd be super sore when he woke up this morning, so I got up and decided to spoil him for a change! I made him some blueberry muffins, a glass of apple juice, a cup of coffee, and a side of extra strength tylenol :) He is doing a lot better than expected today, so that's great news!!!

*Spring Break
One more work week until we leave for the beach!!! Just sayin...


*Locks of Love
We're growing Abby's hair out for locks of love. The poor child has my straight, fine, stringy hair!! So, needless to say, it's about to kill me to chop it off into a cute bob....same reason mine stays short...it never looks "great" long!!!! But we're only lacking about 2 inches for locks of love, so we're going to tough it out until we reach that goal! Stay tuned for new hairstyles from me AND Abby!

*Parker is a BIG BOY!!!
Yes...Parker is finally sleeping in his crib from 9pm-7am!!!!! He could've been doing this alot sooner, but I just wasn't ready to give up my cuddle buddy! But Michael and I just tried it the other night, and this new sleeping arrangement is fantabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Both kids are STARTING OFF in their beds, and Abby comes crawling in our bed around 5am. But that still gives me and Michael from 9pm-5am by ourselves!! For the first time in 2 years, we get our king size bed to ourselves!!! Enough said ;)

This weekend's challenge~
Be reminded that life is short and you never know when your last breath will be. Don't take anyone or anything for granted. Make it a point this weekend to tell your loved ones that you love them....just in case they're not there tomorrow!


full of love,
Tonya

~The Lost Sheep~

I've debated on whether I should save this post and put it into my "Friday's Thoughts"...but then I thought...I didn't think about this on Friday...I'm thinking about it NOW! So, I just wanted to share this with yall. I hope this will challenge you and make you think, like it did me.

I have shared a little bit about my spiritual warfare over the past couple of weeks. However, I haven't shared as much as I'd like to. Like I said before, I like to show that I have it all together...but God is breaking me of that. He is showing me that it's better to be real and open so that people can relate to you and be fed by your honesty. Well...I've been going through this for about 2 years now. I'm not where I want to be spiritually, and I lack the desire to get there!! This is really hard for me because in high school-I was on fire for the Lord! Then, in junior college I drifted and decided partying was much more fun. Then, at Southern, I met my husband and he helped me get back on track. Then, we moved to Brookhaven and "church hopped" for a year. Then, we finally found a church that we felt God was calling us to, but after a while we discovered we weren't being fed spiritually. I take that back..we WERE being fed, but it was more like little snacks rather than big meals. So, over the past few months we've really struggled with the desire to even get up Sunday morning to go to church. We've prayed about it and just haven't felt God telling us to leave that church. Well, this past week, our church has gone through some major changes. I won't go into details, but I will say that I feel like prayers are being answered and that Easthaven Baptist Church is doing what is necessary to follow God's will for our church.

Ok so last night at church, we had a "guest pastor" come in. And I can honestly say that last night was the first time (besides for Sunday School)that I (let me emphasize I, because this post is my opinion)have felt the Holy Spirit and truly left there feeling refreshed. I'm terrible with names, so for a lack of better words, I will call this man "the preacher." So, the preacher gave a sermon on ~remove, restrict, and restore~ He said that the Lord will remove things from your life, He will restrict things from your life, and then He will RESTORE you! This was refreshing for me personally, and for the future of our church. But beyond that, this is what stood out to me the most....

He talked about the relationship a shepherd has with his sheep. I don't have a Bible around right now, so I will have to tell this in "Tonya Translation." You know that when a shepherd loses just ONE sheep, he will search night and day, around the clock, until he finds that sheep. NOT ONE SHEEP gets forgotten. And when the shepherd finally finds that sheep, after it's been rolling in dirt, covered in mud, with sticks and thorns stuck in it's fleece...you know what he does with that sheep? No, he doesn't just leave it there to die. He doesn't think that the sheep is useless just because it got dirty. No, he takes the sheep to be cleaned up. The first thing that the shepherd will do is to shave the sheep to it's bare NAKEDNESS. He doesn't just wash the sheep, he strips it of all the filth. WOW-WOW-WOW-WOW!!! Praise you, Jesus, for not turning your back on us when we're filthy. Over the past several months I have felt filthy. I'm not in the Word like I should be, I'm not spending quality time with my Savior, I'm not being the "go tell it on the mountain" Christian that I should be. I'm just simply going through the motions. And I have felt like God has given up His search for me, and decided to take his flock of sheep and go elsewhere. BUT NO!!! That is not what shepherds do, and that is not what THE Shepherd (God) does with his sheep (us). I needed that simple reminder last night that I have NOT been forgotten. God will search for the next 50 years if He has to, until He finds me, or until I'm ready to be found. And at that time, He will take me and strip me to my bare nakedness. And He will let a new fleece coat cover me. A new, fresh, clean fleece coat! And you want to know the even better news...He will strip you naked as many times as you need. We are all sinners, and we will all have filth in our lives at some point. But don't be ashamed and run from God. Let Him find you and clean you up. You are his sheep, and He loves you!

ready to be found and stripped,
Tonya

~St. Jude Trike-a-Thon~

~Donations due by March 10th
~Donations in any amount
~Checks payable to St. Jude
~Send donations to:
Tonya Bishop
P.O. Box 649
Wesson, MS 39191


I am VERY blessed to have two healthy children, so I want to do what I can to help those who aren't so fortunate. Help me, Help them!


thanks,
Tonya

My Weekend...in pictures!!

*Food & Friends Friday*
So...I went to Crystal Springs Friday night around 6:00 and got ready to go out with my sister. First of all, being in Crystal Springs with just my sister, my mom, and my step dad was so neat, because we never get to spend time together-just us! And secondly, it was sooooooo fun "getting ready to go out" with my sister. No kids. No husband. No worries. Just getting ready for a night on the town with my sissie Lu.

This is a picture of us after we ate at Margaritas...heading now to a "going away party." This is a terrible picture because I defly look like Casper the friendly ghost!!!!! But...oh well! Such is life :) So...after we ate at Margaritas, we went to a friend's house. A friend that I haven't seen in years...Jerry B!!!


While everyone was partying it up...I went and visited with another friend...one of my very best friends back in the day...Victoria!!!

Victoria and I spent the next 3 hours talking and catching up! Then I looked at the clock around 11:30 and thought to myself..."this is wayyyyy past my bedtime"...and I still had an hour drive back home! So, Lauren brought me back to my car and I headed home. It was a fabulous night!! Didn't do much. But just getting to hang out with Lauren and long-lost friends was perfect :)

*Saturday Surprises*
We woke up Saturday to SUNSHINE!!!!!!!!! Immediately I knew that we had to take advantage of this beautiful day. No cleaning. No laying around. No. NO. NO!!! Well, I take that back...I did clean a little, but then got in the shower and talked to Michael about what we should do the rest of the day. We decided to load everyone up and head to Jackson. We told Abby that we had lots of "surprises" in store for her! She was SOOOOOOOOO excited!!!! So, mommy went to tan and get her eyebrows waxed (necessities, of course!) and then we hit the road. First stop-CHICK FIL A...Duh!!!!!!! We told Abby that was her first surprise...but it was actually mine :) After we ate and played at CFA, we headed to our next stop. One of my best friends since childhood, Ashli Harper Moore, was in town! So, we stopped by her parents house, let the kiddos play, and we got to catch up for a couple hours. Between the 2 of us, we have SIX kids!! Here they are....

3 of them...Jayden (4), Abby (3), Sam (2)

Selah (1)

Parker (6 months)

Hatti Grace (7 weeks)

...After we played with the Moore's, we headed to GATTI TOWN!! This was going to be Abby's "big surprise" of the day. However, it turned into a big surprise for me and Michael. O-M-G...there are 750 million people there...no exaggeration...ok, maybe a little! Anyways, it was on the verge of a nightmare. We had some friends from Brookhaven meet us there, and we just tried to make the best of it. But after being there for 2 hours, I decided enough was enough. We ate pizza, we played games, took pictures, but when I saw the line to turn in your tickets for a stupid toy...I said NO NO!! We gave our tickets away, and I told Abby I'd take her to Target to pick out a prize. My patience couldn't take one more line...especially not for a rinky dink toy! Needless to say, a perfect day turned sour! I didn't talk the entire hour home. Michael kept trying to talk to me and I finally said..."I'm in a bad mood. If you keep talking to me, I'll probably blow up." He immediately shut up. Here are some pictures from our wonderful Gatti Town night!



sweet Carson

*Sunny Sunday*
Ahhhh....another day of sunshine!!!!!! Well, I woke up in a somewhat better mood but I was convinced that church would not be in my agenda today! Good try, Satan!!! Michael had to go because he plays in the praise band, but I told Abby that we were just going to play at home. SHE THREW A FIT!!!!! "Noooooooo....I wanna go to church!!!" Ok, Ok, OK! So, I jumped in the shower real quick, got ready, got both kids ready, and off we go. And praise the Lord for my child that talked me into going. The Sunday School lesson and sermon were just for me! I needed to be refreshed, and that's just what God did for me! So...after church, we went to eat as a family and then headed home for a stroll through the neighborhood. There's nothing better than killing 2 birds with one stone...family time and exercise! :)After our stroll, mommy and Parker took a nap while daddy and Abby went to play golf.




After nap time/golf time, we loaded up and went to Crystal Springs for dinner. Nothing ends a perfect weekend like a meal with your family. Here's a couple pictures of us playing at MiMi and Papaw's!



gross pic...but Michael and I never get pics together, so I gotta take what I can get :)

Someone told me last week that I had it made. Great husband, great kids, great house, and a great support system. And they were SO right. Sometimes I forget just how blessed I am. My prayer this week is that Satan will not tempt me with things of this world and that I'll take the time to sit in My Father's lap.


just happy,
Tonya