Why did we go to the beach over Christmas?

Not even to the condo...STOP THE CAR NOW!

Why did we decide to go to the beach this year for Christmas?? Let me tell you why my heart was aching for this...

10 months ago, a beloved sister in Christ and dear friend lost her son in a tragic car wreck. His name is Dylan. He was only 18 years old and life was truly just beginning. His sweet momma, Cindy and her husband Scott also have 3 boys just like we do. From the moment Cindy and I met 10 years ago, my heart immediately connected with hers. She was just far enough ahead of me in the parenting thing that I hung on every word she said. I still do. I lean in and listen when Cindy has something to say. There is great wisdom in her heart and words. We were also in church together and began praying together once a week in her living room....a living room that is full of beautiful family history and heirlooms. Its a place to sit and you instantly feel at peace, you are loved deeply and you are welcome to sit for days. Cindy and her home is love to me.

When Cindy's first born was called home to Jesus a piece of my heart died that morning. I can't explain the emotions, the sights, the sounds, the feelings that come over you as a friend and a mother when you walk through this.  I am forever changed.

God has shown me more than I could ever share through Dylan's life and death. One thing I am completely sure of is this....Our Father in Heaven gives us the gift of family and time. My family of 5 and the time with them is truly a gift each and every day. I have no idea how long I have with them. I learned this year that so much of my time was spent on things that were absolutely not necessary. I have learned how to balance time between the things of this world and eternal things....for example, do I really need to sit and scroll on that phone for the 7 millionth time when a child is right there and we can actually talk about something...possibly something of great significance?  This was a big step for me. This was eye opening.

Where am I investing my time daily? I was reminded quickly with Dylan's death....deep into my soul type of reminder......that time is not a promise nor do we get it back.  Time is precious.

I feel as if time is moving at lightning speed these days with my children. Now that Christmas is over, we only have 2 more Christmas's with my oldest, Clay, living under this roof. Time is precious.

My children, probably like yours, have everything they could want. Why buy more of the same or buy them things for the sake of buying them more things. I can't buy back time lost. Time is precious.

If I asked Cindy what she would want more than anything right now....my guess would be that she would want more time with her beloved Dylan. 

"Oh Lord, I never want to take for granted the gift of time with my precious children. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow. Let me savor every moment, conversation, sight, and sound with these precious sons of ours."

We wanted our Christmas to be about time together as a family. Time is precious.

Here are a few shots from our time together. This was my favorite Christmas to date. My hope for all of us in 2013 is to be very intentional with our time and spend it wisely in the things and people that truly matter.    


 Seriously God...this is the 1st sunset you give us??  Be still my heart. Tell me...is there anything more beautiful? Not to me. This place. My family. This is my heaven on earth.

We are never too old to laugh and put on silly balloon creations that the waitress makes for us. No...never too old for time to laugh together.

Time in a hot tub together. Notice momma decided against this. I prefer a tan when a swimsuit is on. ;)

Starbucks was first up and then we saw a movie together...Parental Guidance...I have no idea when the last time all 5 of us went to a movie together. Sweet time together.

Time in Seaside is so peaceful and happy for us. We would move to Seaside in a New York minute. Or I could play the lottery simply to buy a place down there and go once a month. None of this seems unrealistic to me. ;)

There is absolutely nothing more beautiful than seeing God paint His sunset over the ocean.

This is the place our family goes to when we need that time a family needs. Life is full and busy of wonderful things, but time can also move so quickly that you stop and ask yourself, "when were we really together?" Time is truly a gift. We never know how much we have. The older I get, I cherish each moment of time.

Would you take a moment and pray for the Kirk family and anyone that you know who lost a family member this past year? Keep them tucked close to your heart always. I love you Kirk family. Not a day goes by that I don't give you to the Lord asking Him to be your love and your strength. I'm honored to call you friend. 

A few Christmas pix!

Ho Ho Ho!!! Merry Christmas!!! Happy Birthday Jesus!! Christmas 2011 is a wrap! All things were happy and grand for the ole Thomas family and momma Claus is pooped out. :) Here are a few snippets inside the fun. Enjoy!

This picture is actually my favorite. This is at my inlaws house and each of the grandchildren went around the circle and said a favorite bible verse and/or part of the Christmas story. Huddling is in the Christmas story, right?! It was so sweet though. These 5 kiddos really do love one another.

This is the gift to my parents. It was the picture we used in our Christmas card and the fabulous Erin Condren turned it into this!

This is my 70+ year old momma listening to some "beats!" She has no idea who or what she is listening to. Cute, huh?!

This guy got the Tim Tebow book.....kids version. I'll be reading this.

These are the infamous beats. Its the hot cool thing. Expensive cool thing I might add.

Here is stud with his new bat for the year! Watch out!

And then here we are Christmas morning by the tree. I'm still in pj's and therefore hiding in the back. ;)

It was really a great few days as a family. The kids are getting older so the Christmas fun and dynamics are seriously changing and after 15 years I'm truly ok with it. I'm now spending some time really really really thinking about this new year and what needs to be done.

I pray you use these days to thank God for where you have been and really seek Him this next year like no other time in your life. Its a comforting feeling and a crazy, hold on tight feeling all at the same time!

Happy 2012!! Hope your Christmas was oh-so merry!

Our naked Christmas card

Hubs has officially named this "the naked Christmas card" and it makes me laugh every time.
I didn't think a thing of it when I chose it for our card, but I probably could have chosen something a tad bit better......with more clothing.

I used something cheesy like "Warm wishes to you this Christmas season." Clever is my middle name.

Sooooooo......

I hope your Christmas is full of fun, laughter, joy, and HIM as you celebrate this week!!!!

What a gift you are to me!!
Hugs and blessings~
Fran

Stress maybe? Denial?

Ok...I have noticed the calendar and December is ON US PEOPLE!!! I'm totally freaked out.

We have lots of birthdays and then just the normal Thanksgiving/Christmas stuff going on and I'm just slightly overwhelmed.

Ya see.....

I haven't bought ONESINGLETHING for anyone for Christmas.

Anyone else?

Are you all done? Why do I feel like the whole world is finished except for me?

Please tell me I'm not alone.

And, can you give me a brilliant idea for a 12 and 13 year old boy that isn't a $300 electronic something?

Ok, I'm catching the Christmas spirit and trying so very hard to remember the real reason for Christmas.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

Oh yeah, the darling picture above? It's last years. I'm just realizing I haven't thought about Christmas cards at all. Nice.

Love y'all!

Tis the season~

All in the Family

I'm a little behind on posting because once "Throw Up Christmas '08" moved on, it was time to pack up and get ready to head to the big D. As in Dallas. TX. Beautiful, fun, exciting Dallas, Texas and home of the last and final Cotton Bowl to be played in whatever stadium that was.



We had the absolute best trip. I thought about putting all 527 pictures up on the blog, but a lot of you have seen them on Facebook by now, so I'll just put a couple at the end of my "New Year, New Fran" post. Just kidding. But, isn't that exactly what we do this time of year??? I have had 16 hours in the car to do a lot of reflecting, dreaming, hoping, and planning for 2009. I won't get into all that with you because I bet some of our items are exactly the same.



However, at church this morning....I had an epiphany. It was an "ah-ha" moment indeed. I have spent much time thinking about me. What are my goals? What are my dreams? What are my desires? What are my wishes? What are my plans for 2009??



The last time I checked, I am part of a family of 5 that God has deeply blessed me with. I have a fabulous husband and 3 beautiful boys. We are FAR from perfect and probably more outside the norm than inside the norm. So......what am I planning for us this 2009?



I'm begging myself and I'm begging you to spend some time really thinking about what God has in store for your family to grow spiritually in 2009. And, even if you are single with no children, God has entrusted you to many sweet people in your life who are a part of your family. Family is and can be defined differently by each one of us.



So....don't let this idea go. Jot some things down. Pray hard. And, let's do something amazing and challenging and different for 2009 as a family.



"Sweet Lord, stretch me and cause me to take my family to a different and exciting place with you this year."



I can definitely be better at spiritually growing my children.



What can you do to take it up a notch and seek God more for your family??



Oh, He's ready to grow us all. Not just me. Not just my husband. Not just my kids.



ALL OF US JESUS! HAVE ALL OF US!!!



Hugs and blessings and Happy 2009!

Post Christmas catch up!

I have missed y'all so much. Seriously. Ok, maybe not. Totally kidding. I think. Let me start over. *Ahem.*

This has been the longest blog break I have ever taken. 11 whole days it was. And, I've concluded that if it weren't for Facebook and Twitter, I would have clearly died.

Confession: ADDICTED TO ALL THINGS TECHNOLOGY!!!

Ok, I feel better now.

Now, I had to take down the Christmas bloggy design. I never really liked it from the beginning, but I felt pressured. I'm a sucker. And, I totally went with everyone else and turned the blog into all things Christmas. Well, dumb me obviously doesn't know how to get my professional design back and I've emailed Amy to see if she can quickly pull up the old design. So far, she's still on Christmas break too and I haven't heard a peep from her. Dern.

Well, how was Christmas???

Ours was renamed "Throw up......Christmas Style." No lie. We had the stomach bug. And, all I can say is it was N-A-S-T-Y. I'll leave it at that.

So, we kinda missed Christmas and all those precious memories that the rest of you had. The wonderful 24-48 hours just blew right passed us in a flurry while we.....ya know....got sick.

Thankfully, Santa brought us Cotton Bowl tickets and we'll head to the big D for a few days of "Post-Merry Christmas and Happy New Year" fun. And, I'm back in fun, full force and will get on your nerves with loads of pictures from the adventure.

Here are a few Christmas pix before the big bug bit us on Christmas Eve......

This would be homeboy getting his Christmas groove on.

Homeboy is giving some evil looks don't you think??

Homeboy is blowing out the biggest candle in West TN for a birthday cake. We pulled out the best for Jesus.


Remember, we are from TN. No monogrammed stockings here. Just throw up (ha! no pun intended) some notebook paper and some tape and you are good to go!

That last picture was our last moment of happiness before the bug bit us.

I love ya bloggy peeps. Love to have you on Facebook or Twitter too. Come join the addiction! That's not nice of me is it?!

Come back soon for pix from Dallas. This would be our first trip as a family to TX. We are PUMPED too!!

Happy New Year!! I think 2009 is going to be a fabulous year.

Hugs and blessings~

A lot of Christmas pictures!

We had a fabulous Christmas and covered a lot of family, food, and gifts in 24 hrs time. I won't comment too much on each picture, but allow you a look inside our time together!! I hope Christmas blessed you all.

Where is Santa now?? We only checked this radar every 2 minutes!! Just too cute!



We even at dinner off the fancy Christmas china and that table called the Dining Room table....thanks mom for fixing that up for us!!




And, then there was the "Happy Birthday Jesus" cake!



MOM! These candles won't light!!






And, there was a note for Santa himself.....and he had to sign it before he left!




And, then we had to get Santa's cookies just right!



Opening ONE gift before they went to bed....





Thank ya....thank ya very much! GOOD-NIGHT! Christmas morning awaits.....




CHRISTMAS DAY!!!!

Don't worry, this is not all for my kids. This is at grandparents house and there are 5 grandchildren. Still alot though!



Dylan's favorite gift of all....a PSP.



Tyler's favorite gift...a scooter thingy that is motorized




Clay's favorite gift are tickets to a Memphis Tiger basketball game....



Come on mom! Please not a picture!



There was a lot of coke drank by my kids these last few days and a lot of PSP playing too. It was a BIG technology Christmas for them and we all might need our stomachs pumped tomorrow.





The Thomas kids and their cousins hope your Christmas was full of fun and cheer.
And, may the new year be filled with God's love in your hearts and homes.

The Dream Center

It is Friday morning. Two of the three children are still asleep at 8:00....(I love breaks from school and the sleeping they do!) And, it's foggy and wintry looking, but a balmy 55 degrees outside!!! But, I am overcome with thoughts and emotions as I sit in my comfy bed with my laptop on lap, big giant cup of yummy coffee next to me, and Christmas is literally 4 days away!

Life is good.

But let me tell you of an amazing experience from Thursday evening where life is not so good for everyone......

Last night, our families within Children's Ministry at our church, had the opportunity to deliver "dreams" to the Dream Center here in our home town. Let me tell you what the Dream Center is first. This is a Christian facility for adults and families to live for free while they get their feet back on the ground. You see, there is no alcohol or drug addiction, they just need some help getting their feet grounded. They must have a job and go to work. As soon as they begin to make enough money and afford a place of their own, its time to move out and move on. It is truly a wonderful place for people to get the help they need, spiritually and emotionally. It is a temporary landing when they had no place to go. I LOVE IT!!

For 3 or 4 years now, our Children's Ministry families are given an opportunity to take a "dream" off our Dream Christmas tree at church. And, can I tell you when I first get this list of dreams from the center that I cry like a baby over it. There is a 23 yr old male at the center who asked for one item in particular......I thought, this is great, we can do this......and then he asked for a 2nd dream.......

A family that loves me.

Whoa! I took a deep breath and prayed right there for that boy. There is heartache in this world. There is sadness in the Dream Center. There is a desperate need for hope and love for these folks. Really, for any of us.

I could hardly get through our presentation last night of the "dreams" that we had bought, prayed over, and delivered to these families. The emotions were high in my heart and finally broke through as we sang "Silent Night" at the end.

Their dreams were very different than our dreams. They want families that love them. They want items for the center in which they live.....BASIC necessities that we just go out and buy at Walmart. They want easy, easy things. These are their dreams.

The joy from this event comes at the end of this process of picking a name off the tree, getting their dreams, wrapping the gifts, and then.........you get to actually SEE who you bought for and prayed for. To put names and faces together was awesome. We made dreams come true last night and the gratitude from their hearts and mouths was the most genuine thing I've seen in a long time.

Their faces were joyful. Their "thank you's" were straight from the heart. Their hugs were from deep within. Their dreams were met.

Thank you to all our church families who participated and who were able to come. We gave them hope. We gave them love. We came together as the body of Christ. I felt Jesus in that room last night. I was overjoyed and full of love.

I hope you have had those feelings of "Jesus in the room" and being overjoyed and full of love this Christmas season. If not, I pray your heart allows Him to do that beautiful thing that only Jesus can do........His presence can come at any moments asking. He is at His finest when He is present. Because, hearts and lives are changed forever whenever He shows up.

I love you, Jesus. I want to thank you for your birth. You were the greatest gift of all. I'm overwhelmed with gratitude.

Merry Christmas friends. I love all of you deeply. Thank you Leigh for praying.

Romans 15:13 was our scripture and it says this...."May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Amen.

Kids, Carols, Candles, and a word from God

I'm beginning to write this on Sunday night and asking God to give me the words to convey my heart to you. I told someone at church tonight that if you could split me down the middle in two parts, I would be 1/2 happy, and 1/2 lay down on the floor and cry for 101 reasons.



Tonight at church, we had our annual Carols and Candles service. This service is my favorite service during Christmas. I grew up going to it on Christmas eve, but our church has communion on Christmas eve and this service is the weekend prior to Christmas. And, I absolutely love what it does for my heart and to my heart. I think.

I instantly had a lump in my throat from the very beginning.



We began to get ready for the service and I decided that I wanted peace among us as we left the house and entered the sanctuary, so I told all 3 boys that they didn't have to "dress up" for the service. And, that went over very well to say the least! So, we pull into the parking lot and the first family I see is all decked out and I instantly second guess my decision. However, I knew we were probably going to be sitting in the balcony because we were late getting there and maybe noone would see us! :)



And, then my mind began swirling all around (for a split second) the opinions we all have based on what we wear to church. And, I grew up getting dressed up for church and there were no casual service or jeans in church. But, I've become more casual with myself and my family as we head out on Sundays. But, my point with this thought was not about me but about the man, woman or child that cannot have nice clothes for church. What if they want to come into church but don't feel as if they "look" the part so they do not. That breaks my heart. So, now I begin to pray for a place for everyone to find God and worship with Him. I will show reverence to God and give Him my best. But, my best should be found in my heart. And, that is exactly what I asked God to do. Purify my heart Lord and let me come before you to worship and be only with you.



Ok, moving on to what was inside the beautiful sanctuary tonight. As we headed upstairs to the sanctuary I proudly sat with my family right smack in the middle, looking down to see the full choir, the orchestra and musicians in place, and God's house filled to the rim!! WHAT A SIGHT! Right then and there, God fell on my heart and into my mind and I couldn't get Him to let up. He arrived with much to say over me during that 45 minute service. Oh goodness. What do you have to say Lord?? My heart was prepared and once I focused my mind, I heard so much from Him. This is where we started.....


As I looked around at the people sitting near me, I could see many things.....I was HIGHLY entertained by a precious 3 yr old boy who used his candle as a microphone to jam out to some of the very grown up songs. I saw him also use this same candle to try to look through it like a telescope or something. And, then the highlight was him sticking the candle up his nose for all the boys around to giggle and laugh. Even this mother. He would say out loud in the hush of the service..."Look Mama!" I truly love all these moments as a bystander and not the mother. I wonder if momma was sweating buckets over there with that precious boy who reminds me so much of my Dylan?!


I saw families who deal with anniversaries of the death of loved ones in the month of December. I wonder how their heart felt during that service and I prayed for each of them to experience another level of God's healing and mercy. When you put the church body together, you can look around and see much that has taken place in their personal lives. Our own Sr. Pastor lost his mother just this past week and his dads death was 2 yrs ago on Sunday. December can be a very difficult time for so many. I felt that emotion come over me with each reading of scripture and each magnificent song. I prayed for God's presence to touch each families life in that new and loving way that only He can do.


I got teary eyed as my finger followed along the words to some of the traditional Christmas hymns and my sweet 7 yr old son sang his heart out. He sang with true joy. I had flashbacks of my mom holding the hymnal down for me as a child and using her finger as a guide so I could follow along. That moment can take you back for a second as you see yourself all grown up and you have been given the beautiful gift of children to grow, love, and teach them about Jesus.


My oldest son sang and that made me so happy. He truly followed along with every word, song and prayer. It was beautiful for me to see him participate and not be "too cool."


I saw families of many generations come together during this Christmas season. I thought of the future when my boys come home at Christmas and what that relationship will be like and look like. I will pray daily for their futures. I don't want them to fall off this safe path they are on now. The world has not hit them yet. Oh, Lord, may their hearts and minds be set firmly on Who you are and Your desires for their life.


And.... now the end of the service and the lighting of the candles and the dimming of the lights.....


Ok, Fran....no crying! You see, this is a very tender part for this momma's heart.....the beauty of the church and its families, the children carefully holding their candles waiting for their turn, realizing again that WE are the light of this world and we pass that light on to each person we know....our families first. We sing the beautiful song, Silent Night, and tears begin to roll down my face. I can't help it. God has come in and showed me many things tonight.


Jesus came as a human. The WORD became flesh to dwell among us! That hit me fresh and new. He came for me, for you, for all of us. I pray that each person in church REALLY knows the daily-ness of God. I pray that when we leave the church and shine our light brightly, others will be drawn to us and we can share Jesus with others. He is the perfect gift. I pray that you spend some time reflecting on Him, your family, and your prayers for the World, His kingdom and your role.


I was blessed beyond words at our Carols and Candles service. I allowed Him to come in and reveal things to me that I might not have seen.


Do that between now and Christmas. Ask Him to reveal new things to you. Feel Him in places that you should and then places that surprise you. Wherever you find yourself this Christmas, spend some extra time seeking Him in these new places.


Have a wonderful day my friends! Thank you Jesus for coming to dwell among us.....first as a baby and now in our hearts. I love you~

Jesus "action" figure

Somewhere I read about family traditions at Christmas and to be honest I had to think a little bit. There is much we do together during December, but to think about a tradition caused me to think deep. What do we do year after year that would be considered a tradition???

I will say that my DNA is made up of some strong service genes. I love thinking about how we, the body, are all made up so differently with different gifts. When working together, we can bring others closer in their walk with Jesus. We might even be the first glimpse of Jesus these people ever have! What a thought! If you ever just think about the differences in humanity you can get blown away. Boy! God knew what He was doing, huh?! We all have gifts and a purpose.

The body is defined as the physical part of a person and also a group working as a unit. Think about it....a GROUP working as a UNIT. I love it.

Thank you Jesus for the differences in the wonderful body. Let it bless us and not divide us. May we have the eyes and heart to see your beautiful body living at its potential!



Today, my 2nd son, Tyler's 4th grade class, went to RIFA. RIFA stands for Regional Inter-Faith Association. It started 31 yrs ago by a group of pastors to help people who are without jobs and are in need food, clothing, etc. Today, they take care of the working poor, the homeless, and anyone that is of need. RIFA provides EVERYTHING, to the best that they can, for those with a need. One piece to their puzzle is the Snack Backpack program for elementary school children. Let me explain this fantastic puzzle piece....

The schools began to see that children were coming to school on Monday morning very hungry. Teachers learned that these children had not much, if anything, to eat over the weekend at their homes. So, with donations, RIFA puts together a "backpack" once a week for these 250 children to take home EVERY Friday. This, my friends, is one beautiful example of the body of Christ at work. Here are some of the kids assembling the backpacks for the children.....



You see, some people want to shop for the food to bring. Some people will be able to take the time to sort through the food. Some people will want to fill the backpacks. Some people want to load the backpacks into the proper place for the school to pickup. Some can give a lot of time. Some can give only a little bit of time. Some might not be able to give anything of time, but they can give money to buy the food for the backpack But, in all of this, there is one most important similarity.....

THE HEART OF JESUS!

When we are able to do what God calls us to do...no matter how much or how little... God doesn't see size....we can be Jesus to others. We can be Jesus to others and maybe they didn't even see who did all the work. Sometimes our work is behind the scenes. Sometimes our work is with our hands and feet right there with the people.

I love it all!! I want to serve and show Jesus to anyone I can. Because, Jesus transformed my heart and life, I want others to see the hope that comes from only Him. He heals. He restores. He loves. He saves. He provides. He is faithful. He is merciful. He can do anything with anyone! HALLELUJAH!

One tradition my family can count on in December is being Jesus with skin on to many people. I want my kids to be hands on for Him. I want them to be involved from beginning to end with a family we might support at Christmas, a mission, or a project of some kind. They won't just buy the gift. We will find scripture for that family and their circumstance. We will pray daily for them. We will deliver the gifts as a family if we are able. We will see it from beginning to end. WHY?

This will make a difference as they grow older. I want them to be servants for Jesus and growing His kingdom. It needs to be something they feel, see, and hear. Here are Tyler and his classmates being hands on and making a difference in the Kingdom....







Y'all the body of Christ is the most beautiful thing to me. I pray that I am not angered or frustrated when I don't think people are doing what they should be doing.
God convicted of me this recently and I pray for the body to be using the gifts HE gave them. Not the gifts that I think they have.

The Message says this in 1 Corinthians 12:4, "God's various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God's Spirit."

So, if your gift is service, wisdom, teaching, preparing, etc. The gift is from God and when we work and operate together in unity, we are a beautiful body in action.

My child experienced action today as he put his hands and feet and heart to help others. I pray that you, during Christmas, will experience the fullness of serving and showing the love of Christ to others. And, that will look different for each of us. And, thank you Lord that it is!

And finally, boys wouldn't be boys if they weren't allowed to jump in a giant box and stomp the trash down! Have a joyful, loving, giving Christmas. May Jesus shine brightly for others to see Him through your family.



Love you all! Be a Jesus Action Figure this Christmas!!