The Miracle of Laud

The Miracle of Laud: A beautiful birth story

*Author Note* Wow, I didn’t realize I have not posted all summer!  To say this summer has been busy is a severe understatement; this summer has been a crazy roller coaster jam-packed with life craziness.  Hopefully, this happy little story of a new miracle will make you smile! *

August 7, 2023

The Miracle of Laud

There was a day Louis and I took off of work and decided to celebrate our anniversary.  As I was reserving tickets for our gym’s Parent’s Night Out for my kiddos who weren’t working it, my boss laughed and said, something to the effect of “no more babies!”  Louis wanted to try for a boy and I was not against it! (I love being pregnant!)

Almost two months later we took the last opportunity to let all the kiddos know in person (Becky was home from college).  Our teenagers had various hilarious reactions we should have filmed (ranging from “ya’ll are crazy” to a slamming door to “are you kidding?”).  Jillian was super excited.  Lucas started cleaning a spot in his room for the baby; which Louis was convinced would be a boy since he used “Dr Jack’s method” that worked with Lucas.  Thea asked a million questions and kept trying to hear the baby’s heartbeat and talk to the baby.  

My babies like to hang around and I love being pregnant.  This time around was so different.  I was measuring large, but there are lots of factors that impact fundus measurement so it is more just a guide to make sure the baby doesn’t stop growing.  I’m forty and my last pregnancy to term was four years prior.  Even though, yes, I’m in what I consider really good shape, my body has been stretched out and back seven times.  I actually wore maternity clothes a friend gave me this time like normal!  I actually looked like I was pregnant from about 5 months on, a real first for me.  I loved that!

We went to the team banquet, it was the first one Christina got to come to, and the girls teased me saying I didn’t have any formal clothes… I surprised them with what I considered the cutest maternity dress ever (gift from the same friend – they just hadn’t seen it yet).  It felt so cool to show off the baby.  Friends who had seen me pregnant before asked if I was sure on the date or if there were two in there.  (Louis loved this, the baby inside was doing some movements that I still can’t explain, and secretly, I would have loved twins.

My “official” date from LMP would have been August 28, 40 weeks from the baby’s start would have been September 4th.  I just told people September or early October.  I honestly thought early-to-mid-September because most of my babies were about 42 weeks old when they came; I usually carried closer to 10 months.   

July 31st started braxton-hicks contractions, the baby was still sitting up high right under my ribs and had not yet “dropped”.  That was spot on for me because braxton-hicks contractions usually come 4 to 6 weeks (even 8 weeks, in two instances) before the baby comes.  My babies tend to drop 3 or 4 weeks before.  The baby-mapping information, which is super cool to research if you have time and want to be amazed, was telling me the baby was up to one side.  My milk usually starts leaking a week or so before the birth too and there was no sign of that yet,  

We went to the beach in the late evening of August 2nd.  It was beautiful!  I always feel like praising God for everything when I watch the majesty of the ocean, hear the laughter and joy of my children enjoying the water, and slow down to consider how honored I am to be so blessed.  The others did gymnastics drill competitions in the soft sand (handstand holds, perfect Ts, candlestick holds, etc.) while Becky and Thea made a sandcastle from dripping sand – absolutely breathtaking.  

(beach shenanigans and laughter)

On the way home, it felt like the baby shifted to sit sideways.  I mentioned that I would like the baby to drop soon so sitting in a car wasn’t so uncomfortable.  Christina laughed.  The sing-along music at the top of their lungs and windows open made it so no one else heard.  

I woke up on August 3rd a little after midnight.  I thought my body was doing Braxton-Hicks contractions; it had been off and on since July 31st.  These stretch-and-prepare contractions came and went in tiny spurts and historically clusters of three to ten stretches that disappear after I move around, shower, or stretch was “normal” for my previous births.  I remembered seeing a facebook post about one of my best friends getting home from the hospital with her son; she often didn’t have night nursing and I hadn’t meshed schedules with her in a very long time.  I texted to see if she was awake and able to chat.  God knew I needed to hear her voice and we chatted for a couple of hours.  Just after 4:15am, what I thought was Braxton-Hicks contractions about midnight (I had showered and they went away completely), became an intense contraction that came in a wave.  I paused talking to breathe through that one and mentioned that it was different.  I said, “this is early,” or something to that effect and told Hannah I was going to wake Louis & call Misti.  As I stood up – or tried to – another contraction came in which the baby shifted from sideways inside me to “in position” and dropped all in the same intense contraction!  I’ve never felt that before! 

I made it from by the couch to the just inside the bathroom (didn’t get to my bedroom to get Louis) and another seriously intense contraction came.  Someone had left two of the deep soft towels laid out flat on the floor on top of the bath rug (a nice, soft place to pause where clean up would be easy). I heard Christina coming out of the barracks and she asked, “mom, are you dead?” I was in full relax through the contraction mode and answered “I’m fine” with a tiny voice she knew meant baby was coming. She woke Louis and went to get mom.  Louis came in the bathroom and rubbed my back, “this is coming fast” my bones were doing the separate-thing they do at transition (feels like my spine is coming apart). With the next contraction, my water broke.  I texted “my water just broke” and called.  Misti ended up being on speakerphone with us the whole birth.  I remember wanting to double check my “official” LMP due date that was in my phone memo with all the other baby measurements for this pregnancy (my phone appears to be my notebook for everything to keep me straight on facts – I sometimes call it “my memory” because I upgraded from a purse-calendar-planner to that).  I couldn’t focus on anything but listening to my body because I didn’t want to move too fast; my brain kept trying to slow my body down – nope, body wasn’t listening.  

One more contraction at total relax and the next one came with a burning urge to push.  I felt the baby moving to crown and said something, likely incoherent at this point, about the baby crowning.  I heard what I thought was Louis repeating what I thought I said.  I heard Misti say something too, but I was focused on listening to my body and slowly (in my head it felt slow, but time is so relative when you are in concentration on something – it was likely fast) pictured what the muscles in my body were doing and focused on working with them instead of fighting against them.  I remember praying and feeling God say, “listen” like a soft ocean breeze in my ear.  He made my body to do exactly what it was doing now.  I relaxed – rested – in my trust of Him.  

Louis told me the baby crowned and to push, I didn’t feel a contraction but refused to panic, I waited and breathed deep to calm and listen; another contraction came and pushed our little one out.  There was a cry followed by a choking sound.  As I looked to see the baby in Louis’ hands, the baby’s fingers then arms and toes then legs started to turn from a bright pink-red to blue!  The baby had come out with the umbilical cord wrapped and Louis unwrapped it. 

Time here slowed for us.  It felt like an eternity. 

“What happened?” Misti seemed to be able to see everything though she was just on the phone, we said he was turning blue like he choked, she said to suction his mouth.  I remembered that from Kimberly’s birth – her cord was really short and the midwife had stopped me from pushing to unwrap her cord, then used a long tube to suction out her mouth – she had been blue.  I couldn’t see using a nose suction thingy, it was too short.  I had heard Louis say he was a boy as he first cried.  Now my mind said “he” instead of “baby”.  “How do I do that?” I remember not panicking although the back of my mind was screaming at me “he’s blue!  Not breathing! He’s going to die!”  Misti said to hold his nose and suction him with my mouth.  It was like she could see that I wasn’t pulling strong enough, I remember, “no, pull like you’re sucking a milkshake through a straw,” I prayed and sucked up a ton of mucus which I just spit on the floor.  “Blow into him, firm but gentle,” I heard.  I blew a breath as I prayed again.  He shuddered and breathed in and cried out!  I cried.  

Christina had called 911 when he started turning blue.  He’d been not breathing.  It had really been less than a minute between choking sound and his next full cry.  It had felt like ten minutes.  It had felt like eternity.  Everything had happened so fast but in my mind it had happened in slow motion.  

Fire rescue came in.  My mom said one guy heard the baby crying and whispered, “thank God,” as he entered.  Misti told us to rub him so we had been rubbing on Laud all over to get the circulation back.  We’d recently watched Thea’s “pongo dog” aka “101 Dalmations” and one of the kids mentioned, “just like the puppy.”  I didn’t know which of the girls were awake just yet.  I did suddenly realize when there were strangers in my house that I was naked and bloody and there was a giant mess in the bathroom – I made a mental note to throw out the towels on top of the rug and I didn’t care if they were the big nice ones or not.  I had been focused on Baby Laud.  Louis covered my shoulders with a big towel.  The Fire Rescue guy looks at the cord, which was wrapped around my leg, the placenta hadn’t delivered yet, and Laud is at my chest height being rubbed.  He said, “wow, that cord is long.”  They waited a moment for the pulsing to stop so all the blood from the cord went into Laud.  Cord was cut and they did some stuff checking out Laud.  I told them, “we called for him, not me,” because “blue and not breathing is scary” and I told them what I needed to do for me (deliver placenta, get blood off to see if I am actively bleeding, etc). The guy agreed and said the baby was good asked if he’d urinated. Yes, with his first big cry after I suctioned him, he’d peed all over, which honestly had made us laugh. Since Louis and the rescue people had Laud, I washed to get most of the blood off and stimulate my body to contract again and get the placenta out.  Misti was still on the phone and had all the times and such.  Someone (likely Louis, Mom, and Christina) cleaned up the mess on the floor (I hoped the towels just got tossed).

One of the rescue guys said they couldn’t leave until they made sure baby and I were good – for me, that meant delivering the placenta and not actively bleeding. Placenta delivered along with huge blood clots. Louis goes, “I know what to look for.” He says the placenta is a fascinating organ and knows what the whole one looks like. The placenta was whole. I’ve seen them too, but usually I’m a little occupied with the baby and only once do I remember examining one because I was curious. No active bleeding. Sweet. Just that drainage, which honestly appeared too light to me.

All Laud’s vitals were good!  His little fingers and toes were pink by the time the placenta delivered and I’d cleaned up a little so I felt ready for the baby.  They checked my blood pressure, which was “a bit low” so I had to explain that my blood pressure is always low, stress makes it “normal.”  They were so nice and it was amazing how quickly they arrived.  Everything was good so we opted to stay home because I never sleep in hospitals anyway.  Laud was perfect!  

From the “my water just broke” text at 4:36 to when he was born at 4:43 was literally 7 minutes.  I am still in complete awe of how quickly everything went. Rescue guys and lady left somewhere before 6am (that was when I texted someone, Misti or Hannah likely)

Our little Laud Arik “stole” Christina’s title of “lightest” at his new 6lbs 4oz.  He tied Kimberly for the shortest at 19 inches.  His name means “Praise” and “Lion of God” in Hebrew.  The teenagers pointed out he is a Leo.  He is such an amazing blessing!  The girls of course, are vying for who gets to hold him.  Lucas commented, “you have two brothers, he’s my only brother.” (Although that is literally true, it’s also a little funny that he decided that was why he should be able to hold him more than the girls.)  

Our littlest love is here!

He’s ready to be loved on and spoiled by big sisters, his big brother (who has been his shadow since birth), family, and friends.  We’re so awed and blessed and honored to have another little “arrow” to raise up!  Thank you, Jesus for friends, family, quick rescue workers (even though he was all okay when they got here, it was provision in case he wasn’t – not breathing is scary to watch)! Thank you, Jesus, for Your perfect timing!  Becky gets two & a half weeks with him before she’s gone until November, Christina gets a week & a half before her final senior semester craziness, I only missed the last two days of camp at gym and will be ready for driving with the start of school, my mom travels over summer and was here for just a four-day stay in between visits & got to be here… I have always teased that babies don’t read calendars… and my cumulative experiences with births keeps showing me every time is different and God has all of it in His hands!

Thank you, Jesus, for the miracle of love and life!  Thank you, Jesus, for the miracle of Laud!

*Pictures because my girls say I can’t write about him without sharing pictures! (photo credit to Grandma Tina, Christina, Becky, and Kimberly because I was way too busy to think of pictures!)  

(Stretching all over!)

Thank you for reading!

Type at you later!

~Nancy Tart

Sister-Cousin Spring Camp

Sister-Cousin Spring Camp & Making Memories! #2023 #Family #Sister #Cousin #Blessings #Connections #SistersAndCousins #TartSpringBreak2023 #SpringBreak2023 #Friends #WateringFriendships #PurposefullyBuildingRelationships #FamilyAndFriends

March 27, 2023

Sister-Cousin Spring Camp

The week of Spring Break for our county was also the Spring Break week for one of my nieces!

While I had an adjusted work schedule because rec classes were taking the week off, Spring Break Camp at WGVG was in full swing and my also-on-break-college driver wanted to make her own “cousin camp” with fun trips, crazy baking escapades, and lots of memories made!

The girls spent time making crafts, dropping in to Spring Camp to do fun stuff, took at least one beach trip, at least two “mushroom park” trips (aka Trout Creek Park, where there is a mushroom you can swing from), chased the escapee bunny that they let loose quite a few times, used the big floor blocks to make several castles and rooms, baked all kinds of egg-free Anastasia-safe goodies (I got to taste some), Christina and Jaquline made unique suppers and lunches, Christina went to a Celtic Festival, 

I love that Christina is making these amazing memories with her sisters, brother, and cousin!  She doesn’t have many limits on where they can go – and just like we’ve always done, everywhere is usually “free” (aka just the cost of gas).  Christina filled her few days of break with loads of “taxiing mom and gymnasts” back and forth (competitive team didn’t take off spring break).  She also got to drop all the siblings and cousin at gym one day to spend a perfect day with her best friend – who was also home from college!

When I was watching Katy, Buddy, Becca, Charley, Stacy, Dorothy, and Mary doing special outings and making memories with my oldest girls, I dreamed of my older girls continuing with their siblings, cousins, and friends.  There were memories like “Monster Truck Show outing,” shopping with aunts, Alligator Farm trips, “Special Day” outings, long walks to the ice cream shop, beach days, park days, camping nights, firepits and roasting marshmallow visits, and other just “visit” days.  

Now I see my not-so-littles being purposeful in their connections to their friends, younger siblings, and cousins – continuing to water those friendships.  It makes me so happy!  (A few pictures included to enjoy)

Random faces at the Mushroom Park

Swinging Antics

These were their “look like yourself portraits” that crack me up! Christina perfectly captures each of their respective personalities in these funny pics!

…and they are always at the top of something or trying something daredevilish….

Each one is now looking forward to summer and the next trip(s) they get to do… even if it’s just friends and cousins over at the house playing with critters outside, swinging, reading, having a mega Frogger challenge, or the fifteenth Among Us game with every mobile device in the house, or the next life, monopoly, clue, or catan board game and resulting laughter!  And food… my family does revolve most everything around cooking, eating, and cleaning up food (who really doesn’t?). 

Thank you for reading!

Type at you next time!

~Nancy Tart

Thanksgiving Week 2022

Much to be thankful for!!

December 6, 2022

Thanksgiving Week 2022

We hosted Thanksgiving at our house for those who could come.  It lasted from November 22 (our 20th anniversary) to November 27 (Sunday).  This was our “vacation” from gym/work.  It included lots of traveling (for me, Becky, Christina, Jaquline, Lucas, and Thea), lots of fun, and lots of food!

For my anniversary, we still had to work (thank you, Hurricane Whatever in September – I don’t commit names to memory) because we had school and a make-up day at gymnastics.  This started our Thanksgiving Break because I started out just before midnight on 11/22 with Christina to go pick Becky up from college.  

This car trip was super fun!  Christina and I drove.  Lucas and Thea went with us as Kimberly had early practice (Xcel Platinum) on the 23rd (a friend played taxi), Louis still had work like regular, and Jaquline & Jillian were cleaning and cooking with Grandma Tina.  

We got home to take naps, help finish cooking, cleaning, and such.   The table was set so pretty! (Yes, that is a marble chessboard that we use as a hot plate to set the turkey on!Louis had it when we were dating and after some “accidents” happened to the pieces over the years, it was just too pretty to toss so was repurposed.)

Uncle Buddy came.  Anastasia came.  Gavin came.  Aunt Becca sent yummy desserts! We had so much fun!  Louis brought in new chairs.  (our table was used when we bought it and was missing chairs – we originally used the piano bench, but since the piano & bench are in storage for lack of room…) We played games.  Okay, yes, most were group video games or Frogger Challenge (two players, winner takes on next player…), but there were a few Boggle games and it seems we can’t have Thanksgiving fun without a campfire!

Uncle Buddy wanted to play Age of Empires with Lucas & Becky; even Louis and I joined in on a 5-person hot-seat Heroes 3 game that lasted all day (and we didn’t finish).  The kiddos (will leave anonymous which adults joined in as well) did a super-multi-player Minecraft / Imposter with phones and computers.  The shouted directions in the living and dining room had everyone else laughing! 

My Angel Eggs were a different story.  I made two platters.  I love making food look beautiful but most of the time we are short on time so I can’t.  (I used to even make everyone’s birthday cakes from scratch & even made two wedding cakes!)  Today I made beautiful piped eggs. 

One platter was gone in T-5 minutes!  Jaquline did warn us she was going to eat more than the eggs she shelled!  I love making food people enjoy.  

Being around my family when we aren’t rushed always reminds me to be thankful for them!  Uncle Buddy had prepped his head for military service (more on that next time) and Lucas thoroughly enjoyed playing video games with and snuggling with his uncle.  I am super thankful for this life God has given me and I pray my home becomes the gathering point for family and friends always on any Sunday we have family day or any holiday.  Food and good company is always a reason to gather together!

Thank you for reading!

Type at you next time!

~Nancy Tart

Exploring Big Sister’s Campus

I love watching the younglings do something new; why I love just walking and exploring. We can always find something to enjoy when we slow down and ignore the overbearing stresses of life. Take a break. Make yourself take a break.

Exploring Big Sister’s Campus

Throwback Story from (October 24, 2021)

I am sitting with Thea at the side of a pool on the Embry-Riddle campus because we chose to ride down with Christina for her Sunday afternoon flight block.  Thea is laughing at pictures “Anastasia and the Bunny-Bear” from Easter at gym.  (The Bunny-Bear is the Easter Bunny outfit Jaquline & Kimberly wore.)  “The Bunny-Bear loves my gymnastics!” Thea says and laughs.

She jumps around; we’ve already walked the campus and she’s pointed out “safe” lizards (I told her here the lizards are not allowed to be chased) and flowers and bumble bees and honeybees and “boys and girls at Christina’s school.”  She’s asked me almost everyone’s name.  “What’s that boy’s name?” “Who is that girl?” “Are they all Christina’s friends at school?” (She goes to gym-school and all of those participants are her friends, so she assumes everyone at the school you go to are your friends.)

After listening to my stressed-out teenagers discussing life in the early afternoon, I’m convinced I didn’t do a great job of teaching them how to enjoy life and be grateful for the moment they are in.  Sometimes that is really, really hard.  Sometimes life’s circumstances don’t seem good.  Sometimes it’s hard to be grateful – but you have to!  I usually feel like I’m enjoying what I am in.  I am grateful for the life I have; I love my family, my job, my church – those are the important things!  I am so happy for the amazing things God keeps doing in our lives!

Christina and her educational journey is a continuing story of how God keeps answering prayers!

I’m so thankful for the people God has put and keeps putting in the path of my teenagers and young children through church, gym, and friendships.  Becky has learned so much from the mentors in her life.  Kimberly has positive role models who keep encouraging her. 

Our journey has been full of ups and downs like any life story.  We have to find the positive and focus on that.  Like right now.  Thea is running around on the “Water-bridge” after touching the “scary man” (metal statue of Wilber Wright) tentatively.  She’s singing something I can’t figure, likely made up, and I’m typing. 

Perfect contentment while exploring the strange surroundings that are Christina’s school.  I’m sure I’ll hear lots of stories about the man, the critters, and the “boys and girls” she discovered. 

I love watching the younglings do something new; why I love just walking and exploring.  We can always find something to enjoy when we slow down and ignore the overbearing stresses of life.  Take a break.  Make yourself take a break. 

Enjoy the slow down.

It makes life more fun!

Type at you later!

~Nancy Tart

Walk and Enjoy

February 3, 2021

Walk and Enjoy

Louis likes to do “spur of the moment” fun.

We had a lovely Saturday; work, the guys watched a game, we played outside, we had some really good food some of the girls helped Louis with, and we were winding down for the early evening when suddenly…

“Let’s go downtown!”

“Yippee!!”

Everyone grabs warm top layers for the wind. They have learned that Florida winter off the Bayfront can be cold. “Shoes? Socks?” I have to remind the gymnast crew that feet need to be covered as well. We load into the van and we text Becky (who was babysitting) and her charge’s mom to make sure they wanted to come and had permission.

We swing by and grab two more singers to add to the movie soundtrack sing along concert and windows down – well, down partway because we can’t freeze the baby! We continue to the only spot you can find parking on busy Saint Augustine nights (behind the Lightner Museum, you’re welcome) and walk down MLK to the Bayfront.

Well, actually, that is the cliff notes version. It sounds tame. Nope, not tame at all! Jillian was just 9 and commented on how we are all odd for now. 17, 15, 13, 11, 9, 7, 5, and 1. Thea will be 2 shortly but yes, for almost a month, all of our family and Anastasia are odd. One of the kids pipes up with, “but oddballs all the time!” Which makes all of them laugh and act silly. All of this and we haven’t reached the front of the Lightner!

We climb, jump, skip, or literally skip the steps up to the grass (Dad jumps up the wall instead of using the steps). “Cartwheels!” and there are five gymnasts showing us backward rolls, cartwheels, roundoffs, handstand rolls, and other such skills on the “softest grass around town” and two or three popped into a handstand contest. This turned into running in circles around a small tree, playing a quick round of tag, and pointing out horses and trolleys as they passed. And dogs. Christina noticed every dog of all types from a pair of tiny Maltese scurrying along like fluffed up marshmellows to the giant Newfoundland walking with his huge head taller than Jillian’s!

Now after most of their giddy energy has been spent, we are ready to walk our normal almost 2 mile route. They always giggle and ohh and ahh like this is the first time they’ve explored downtown. I love that! As we are standing at the intersection waiting for the walk signal, Anastasia announces, “Huge group coming through! Party of ten over here!” One of my teens at the rear is literally pointing and counting heads! We look like crazy tourists!

“Ooooo!” shriek six voices, “look at that cute doggie!” Please don’t hurt the doggie’s ears!

At the Bayfront, they all turn toward the bridge, “May we walk the bridge?” “The bridge, yeah!” “It’s so windy we better hold on tight!” (It’s not that windy, but let their imaginations run wild!) “Look! Lights on the boats!” And, yes, we walk the bridge! They pause, run, race, and walk; depending on whatever imaginary fun thing they are doing at the moment. Louis keeps up with the racers in the front and Mom slows to stay with the chatting teens in the back. Really, Mom is walking or jogging at Thea pace. Thea thinks she is scared of the big lions – never before has she been scared of them (vacuums, lawnmowers, air dryers, showers, yes, but not large carved critters until today). She is not scared of the grate over the water anymore (or maybe because it’s dark and the water looks black just like the grate?) which makes crossing the bridge easy.

Craziness walking back (all as a group this time, which is interesting with the motorized bicycles that are in the narrow walkway! “Single file! Don’t try to fly right now!” – yes, I yelled that ahead!) and watching boats from the “turret” (the spot where we can all fit!) while they sang jingles and cracked jokes.

Along the stones at the Bayfront, the moon was gorgeous.

Many people were just walking right from the sidewalk up to the sea wall without stopping to see the obstacles so it was another “straight line please!” and “not on the grass!” or “watch out!” as five duckies from 13 to 5 maneuvered through the groups of tourists like a long snake in a single row with the 5 year old leading to the fort.

Fort! Finally!

They run up the grassy hill to the midsection where they all have ingrained lifetime memories of rolling to the bottom. Same five duckies go rolling down the hill in three, two, one! Rolling over each other, around each other, past the baby roller to reach the bottom, laugh, and climb back up to start again.

Now it is walk down (they rolled) to the crosswalk that gets us in the alley by the Pirate and Treasure Museum (We’d love to go in, but it’s closed which means window shopping and vivid imaginations run wild!) to St George Street. They read t-shirts from windows, announce shop names, talk about where family members have worked, and sing along with songs from the live bands we pass or sing along with whatever they are humming in their own head.

Lots of “ooh, doggies!” and “wow, look, a horse!” exclamations later, we get back to our van and the parade turns into another dance and sing-along party where the whole backseat is heads bobbing in time and Thea’s whole body is wriggling like a worm (except for her torso, tightly strapped in the baby seat). By the time Becky and Anastasia get to their destination, two of the adventurers are asleep.

I love making happy memories! I love Louis’ spur-of-the-moment perfect outings and ideas! Thank you, Jesus, for my family and for fun! Thank you for the time I have with them!

Walk and enjoy!

Type at you next time,

~Nancy Tart

My Little Learner

March 29, 2020

My Little Learner

Our gym has an after-school program where our comfy vans pick up from several area schools and bring little athletes back to gym. They do gymnastics, crafts, eat snacks, and do homework. Thea and her other gym baby friend sometimes hang out there. Thea loves it and thinks she’s a big kid! Just like at home, she tries to do school with them!

Especially when someone wants to play teacher! Ellie loves to play teacher and Thea loves to “learn” and she likes the chalkboard.

At home, Thea knows not to eat coloring tools like pencils, crayons, markers, and even paints! At Aunt Becca’s she got introduced to big sidewalk chalk and tasted it. Sister-cousin Anastasia laughed and said, “eww, gross Baby Thea, you color with it like me!”

Once Thea saw that, it was like “aha! this is an outside coloring tool!”

Sitting with Becky one day, she pulls up a pencil and paper and says “yeah!” and starts babbling in her own way, giving us serious glances as she explains what her work is. Jillian said, “Thea thinks she’s doing school!”

Thea and Becky are quite alike. Becky understood before her first year that coloring tools were not to be eaten too. Baby Becky never ate Legos (except for the black squishy tires, she called them gum and we had to remove them temporarily – I think she still secretly stashes them somewhere and chews them). Baby Becky was my earliest potty trainer (at 14 months telling us when she had to go & by 18 months in regular underwear – I have no clue how!) and Thea is already potty training herself. She got super excited when I bought a baby potty for her tiny self – and knows exactly what it’s for (showed us by pulling at her diaper so we took it off & she used the potty, I teased Becky that she may lose the designation of youngest potty trained).

I love watching my little love get more independent. Each one of them unique and special. Each has different strengths and weaknesses. Each helps the other in various tasks to make us a cohesive team – we build on each others’ strengths.

This is how we all should be. Learning, assisting, encouraging; each doing what we do best and helping when and where we can. It isn’t just for siblings or families. This understanding of the learning and growing and maturing process is an important life skill.

And Thea is playing in the grass without eating it – amazing! She is totally a little Becky… until Uncle Buddy came along and taught 2-year-old Becky she could eat dollar weed (and then she wouldn’t quit eating them!).

Thank you for Reading!

Type at you later,

~Nancy Tart

Sister-Cousin Outing

December 22, 2019

Sister-Cousin Outing

You often read that cousins are usually your first friends.  They know all about you, love you regardless of your differences, and enjoy life with you from start to finish…

Gaylord Pearson Family (My parents & siblings) – 2002

I always dreamed of how close my siblings and I would be as adults and prayed our children would grow up together, loving each other as true friends.  Just like sisters and brothers.  My sister, Katy, even started the kids calling each other sister-cousins and brother-cousins – they act like siblings when they are together.  They are tight as buddies and fight like enemies – yet love each other through all celebrations and disagreements. 

So this day, Jaquline, Jillian, and Anastasia had a sister outing!  Becca (my sister, Anastasia’s mom) took all three of them to go see Frozen 2 in a real theater – oh see those smiles? 

Sister-Cousin Outing @ Frozen 2! L-to-R: Jillian, Anastasia, Jaquline

I didn’t hear much about the movie except, “it was good,” but heard all about the jokes, fun ride, giggles, and enjoyment of their time together. 

I try to teach my littles to focus on relationships – invest rather than spend time.  I also want them to have competent adult mentors to look up to.  I pray they never feel they can’t talk to me, but I hope that if they feel they can’t, they know they have dozens of family members and close trusted friends they can go to.  Aunt Becca is such a strong, wise aunt (and super fun), my older girls have already gleaned life wisdom from her and ask advice sometimes.  (And since Mom is as much a student of makeup as they are… they honestly are waaaaay better at it… they usually ask Aunt Becca for beauty advice!)

I so admire how my very busy sister takes time to invest in my youngsters!  They LOVE all Aunt Becca outings!

I try to invest time myself – especially in those little humans I’ve been blessed to raise.  I sometimes feel time slips away.  (You know, when I realize that was the last Thursday morning I’ll be required to drive Christina to college as she gets her license the day before her next semester starts in January.)

I choose to enjoy each moment

Type at you next time,

~Nancy Tart

Targets

July 8, 2019

Targets

We have enough of a spot to set up our archery target (big fat canvas block thing) and our bb gun target (the windfresh bucket with three aluminum cans) and safely target shoot at those.

On perfect days when Mom and Dad are out, the question always comes, “may we set up the targets and shoot?”

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Anastasia rode Lucas’ bike between turns!

Christina prefers the bow and arrow – her “weapon from a more civilized age” as she mimics Obi-wan and Kimberly laughs.  Lucas is just learning to shoot with those.  We have a 10 pound bow and he can finally pull that one back.

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Jaquline and Jillian prefer using the bb rifle since our little Daisy is easier to load than the bows.  (and they are in front of the metal beam! no ricochets here!)

Kimberly likes both.  She’s a lot like me.  My favorite gift ever was my crossbow (which no, we can’t shoot here, but when we got it, I had space enough to use it).

Today, we’d backed the cars off of the carport and set up the targets.  Archery on the left and airgun on the right.  I was overseeing (and assisting with loading) the airgun shooters.  I’m not paranoid, but probably repeated “never point a gun at a person,” and “don’t load if someone is in your range of vision” a hundred times.  I like them to know how to shoot, but I want them to treat every weapon with respect.  Ocean, vehicle, weapon, hot stoves – anything with the possibility of causing injury – safety is the first priority.  Always err on the side of safety and you will eliminate possible accidents.

So for about an hour, I loaded the little Daisy and Jaquline, Jillian, Anastasia, Lucas, and Kimberly took turns taking three shots each at the three target cans.  A few “wow, you got all three!” and a few “oops, try again,” shouts.  They encouraged each other.

Sometimes you feel like you were aiming at something and the site is off.  You can’t hit it at all.  Sometimes everything falls down perfectly.  Life is unpredictable.  Sometimes your perception is off.  Sometimes something that looks perfect is lying.

Strange thoughts I have while the children are shooting?  I couldn’t get out of my mind how thoroughly I’d believed in the good while the truth was right online for me to see if I’d just searched the county records.  (I had to update my story)  I heard “Black Eyes Blue Tears” and cried.  I cried as the kids danced to “Fireflies” just a bit ago.  I pray for her ex-husband.  I pray that her babies remember her.

Briefly, thoughts like that interrupt my life now.  I am there, helping to load the bbs and saying, “yea!  You got them!” but I’m also crying inside because I was supposed to be there to protect her.  I watch Christina patiently help Lucas aim his bow.  I see her mouth move and I know she’s saying, “breathe out, release the string,” just like I did to her.  I teach them safety.  I teach them truth.  I teach them about life.  But I can’t protect everyone.  That reality hurts.

I pray daily for my children, nieces, nephews, the boys and girls in my gym classes, those I influence.  I pray they will find the true Protector in Jesus and follow His direction so their life will be anchored in love, truth, and joy.

I help Anastasia aim the rifle and she giggles when the bb hits the target box.  (The targets are supposed to be the cans, but the box counts too.)  I pray that God puts a hedge of protection around all of His precious children and keeps them safe from deceit.

Jillian and Anastasia are giggling while Jaquline grunts trying to pump the rifle because she’s too big for help.  It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was helping my baby sisters aim our old “red ryder” bb rifle down at the pond, popping off pinecone targets.  I can’t change the past.  I can help mold the future.

Hope.  Hope is what helps me through each day.

The girls are giggling again because Louis is pretending to close his eyes and act like he’s asleep.  It is easy to choose joy with these angels around.

Joy.  Yes, joy is my strength.  Thank you, Jesus, for giving me the strength to choose your joy!

Type at you next time,

~Nancy Tart

 

Fireworks and Family

July 6, 2019

Fireworks and Family

We have only missed one “Fireworks Over the Matanzas” in all of Christina’s 15 years.  We were at Wild Adventures park in Valdosta and Christina wasn’t even one year old.

Every year we go downtown.

Louis monitors the weather so we’ve avoided being soaked like we ended up a few of the earlier years.  Those were so fun though, cool, wet rain on the hot July day.  Children never mind the rain – normally they dance in it with newly made friends.

Today was no different; my little gymnasts put on a show in the grass and met a few new friends.  It sprinkled a little but that didn’t stop them!

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They played various games like “Duck Duck Goose” and “Red Light Green Light” – timeless favorites.

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Christina and Becky held down the spots on the edge of the wall – giggling about the turtles and fish passing below their feet.

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Grandma, Aunt Becca, and Anastasia showed up.  Anastasia has been with us to almost every Fireworks show since she was born.  Becca has come almost every time too.  This was my mom’s first.  Daddy didn’t like fireworks (lots of veterans don’t) so they never even stayed for the Disney Fireworks shows the few times we went when I was really little.

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Grandma joined the teenagers at the edge of the water.

We goofed off and chatted, playing, spending time together.  We made several bathroom runs – the last one just as the announcer said “20 minutes to go!”

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Thea sat in her stroller and enjoyed the view.  She fell asleep about 6:30 and woke up after the fireworks show finished so she could spend some time in Grandma Tina’s arms!

The Fireworks Over the Matanzas show gets better every year.  I love our little town.  I enjoy family time of just sitting around, playing goofy games, watching the children enjoy themselves, dancing to music, and finally watch their faces erupt with amazement and rapture at the brilliant fiery explosions in the sky.

The next morning, Lucas asked, “is fireworks like Family Fun Fest?  Only one in the whole year?” When I answered “yes,” he said, “I can’t wait for next fireworks!”

 

Type at you later,

~Nancy Tart

 

Miracles!

May 25, 2019

Miracles!

 I haven’t been writing for my blog often.  I’ve been very busy lately!  (And yes, the picture is an old one, like 4 years ago, but it’s one of my favorites of Becca & Anastasia.)

This past week was totally amazing in how God just orchestrated things to work out for good.

If you’ve been reading, you probably know my little sister has been going through some rough medical challenges.  Read this if you don’t know about it.  (Okay, she’s always going to be “my little sister” to me, even though she’s a very competent adult.)  On Wednesday, my Mom texted me at work (she was playing taxi for Becca) with awesome news!

God had closed up one of Becca’s varicose veins!  But she was already prepped for surgery and had prepaid for it so the Doctor said they’d do the worst vein on the other leg.  That was so amazing!  Actually, they scared her to death before telling her it was good news.  The nurse with the Doppler says “stop talking” and moves the Doppler around with a serious face.  Becca’s heart jumped into her throat.  Then she sets the wand down.  “Let me get the Doctor.” And then Becca had to find her calm place and bite her tongue as they both moved the Doppler stuff around and made comments like “I see it” and “yes, that’s odd.”  Becca said finally the nurse says to the Doctor, “shall I tell her, or do I?” and then they told her it was gone.  They offered, since she was already prepped, to just start in on the other leg (the worst, largest vein) so of course, Becca said yes.

The second miracle happened two days later.  Anastasia has been severely allergic to eggs all her life.  Like so allergic she needs an EpiPen and can’t touch anything that touched eggs.  We have chickens, so you’d think our house was a definite no-no, but we are very diligent about keeping her away from our eggs and washing everything (hands, countertops, etc) to keep any contaminates from her.  And we bake cookies, breads, ice cream, and cupcakes without eggs anytime she’s over.  She’s really good about asking if it has eggs in it.  (Louis picked up a cookie snack from Aldis when she was shopping with us & she asked, “does it have eggs?” so we put it back and Christina made eggless cookies instead.)

Anyway, so much for backstory… at the end of school, the school gives back all medications to the parents.  Normally, that’s on the last day, but they almost gave Anastasia’s EpiPen back on Thursday instead.  Her Dad wisely didn’t take it; he told them her Mom would get it on Friday.

So her EpiPen was at school for the party day.

And that was when she needed it.  She misunderstood somehow and thought the cupcakes were eggless, so she ate one and two bites into it, her body rejected it and it ended with her in anaphylactic shock.  Although she had to go to the hospital, my brave 5-year-old niece recovered fine.  Becca raced from work to get to her.  The paramedics let Becca drive her to the hospital and she was admitted with a “severe level 5 reaction” so the doctors had to observe her in case her reaction returned as the medicine wore off.  (It didn’t.)  The Doctor was extremely helpful and handed Becca his card, which had John 3:16 written on it!

God lined everything up so that Anastasia would have her medicine and get just the right care.

Our family has felt the love of God and amazing miracles in the prayers, support, and love from all of you!  Please continue to keep Becca in your prayers!  I just had to pass along how awesome our week had been in the way God had been letting Becca feel His presence through these challenging moments.

God always has our best.  We give Him our lives with all of our stuff and He blesses us with His constant love and care.  He shows us love and grace and we are the hands, feet, and arms of Jesus on Earth.  Sometimes we are the givers and sometimes receivers.  And sometimes God shocks everyone with something totally unexpected like healing something in our bodies!

Thank you God, for Your warm arms gathering my little sister and her baby in Your tender care!

Thanks for reading!

Type at you later…

~Nancy Tart

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