Tag: special

Easter Surprise!

April 5, 2021

Easter Surprise!

Becky has been spending six weeks with Grandma up in Tennessee visiting family and traveling around. The best part I’m sure being the special time with Grandma.

Originally, I thought she would be back just before Easter, however, it became April 5th return in time for her dentist appointment and braces adjustment.

I try very hard to be a mom who lets her children slowly develop independence. I let my older girls plan their schedules, agree or deny to work outside jobs like babysitting or dogsitting or volunteer time, choose their college classes, lay out their educational and financial goals, etc.

They start on their journey toward independence as soon as they can pick clothing by choosing to dress themselves and it expands as their responsibility grows. I mean, one of our main goals as parents (mine as a mom, at least) is to raise responsible and independent adults, right?

I was honestly sad about the thought that, for the first time, one of my babies would not be with us for Easter.

Christmas and Easter are big holidays in our house.

Christina and Kimberly have both missed New Years due to encampment, but we don’t do much there anyway except stay up late and watch movies like “Holiday Inn.” (Sometimes the big girls buy sparkling grape or apple juice and toast in the New Year.)

I know that as they grow there will be holidays were we are not all together. I know this. I try not to let that make me sad. But in a hidden back spot in my mother heart, it does.

When Easter came, Becky texted me to say they were on the way. It’s a loooong drive from Tennessee. I expected Monday.

At church, I dropped my Thea at the nursery, Lucas and Jillian were at kid’s church, Christina serving, and I was sitting with Louis, Kimberly, and Jaquline. As I sang, the first song was one of my favorites, I reminded myself to be thankful for my family and chose not to be sad about Becky not being with us.

Then this face smiled at me.

I found myself crying and overwhelmed with emotion. Thankful beyond belief, happier than I thought I would be, Becky and Mom had surprised us by showing up for service!

What an amazing Easter surprise! Christina cried when they popped into the nursery before coming to service! (And she had recently lamented that no one ever surprises her.)

Thank you, Jesus, for my amazing family and for all You give us!

Type at you later!

~Nancy Tart

Movie Review: Onward

April 12, 2020

Movie Review: Onward

As a family, we got to watch a new movie called “Onward” (Disney/Pixar) recently.  Curled up on our couch, eating tangerines instead of popcorn, we also got to discuss this movie during the end credits.

I was pleasantly surprised at this movie. 

(Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t seen the movie and want to watch it without knowing the end, don’t read any further!)

In this technologically advanced world that mirrors our own, mythical creatures have lost their magic and settled for the easier way of doing almost everything.  Fairies don’t fly. Centaurs don’t run fast. Elves don’t go on quests.  Wizards don’t exist. 

The only relics of magic are mirrored in a game that young adults play like our Dungeons and Dragons.

The protagonist is a 16-year-old elf named Ian whose older brother, Bailey, is lost to this “gaming” world and set a little in the past with his audio cassette tapes and 70s roadie van he built himself like a hot-rod.  Ian never knew his father.  His mother’s centaur policeman boyfriend is a far cry from the father figure he is looking for. 

After a bummer of a birthday, Ian and Bailey are given a special present from their late father – a staff and crystal and a spell that supposedly will let him come back for 24 hours to see who his boys grew up to be.

So the spell doesn’t work.  Mom leaves.  Bailey enters as Ian is actually making the spell work – and enters half-dad.  Yes, Ian brought back a walking pair of pants with purple socks and leather shoes.  Bailey knows it’s his dad because of a tap-tap on shoes game they used to play. 

The boys go on a quest (based on Bailey’s game knowledge) to find another crystal and bring their father all the way back.

They end up finding the crystal but releasing a curse (huge dragon made of weird stones pulled from their school and a construction site) as the sun is going down (when dad will disappear). 

Ian has realized that his real father figure is Bailey and that Bailey is the one who must speak with dad because he blames himself for being scared of the hospital and missed his chance to say goodbye to his dad in real life.  Ian starts the spell to bring dad back and leaves him with Bailey so he can fight the dragon.  Mom and a manticore bring in a magic sword to kill the dragon (she was on her own side quest).  Through teamwork, the curse is destroyed, Ian uses magic to repair all of the dragon damage, Bailey gets to say goodbye to his dad, and magic reenters the lives of some of the people; the biker fairies are now flying, policeman centaur boyfriend is now running, and Ian now is a wizard.

The theme is love: Mom’s love for her sons and the brother’s love for each other.  The lesson of enjoying what you have instead of wishing for what you don’t is also there.  Ian wishes for the father he’s never known and wants to be like him while ignoring or disregarding his elder brother until he realizes that all the love he was searching for in a father figure has been coming from his brother all of his life. 

We discussed how it is very easy to focus on what we want but don’t have yet miss what God has given us.  In every situation, our character shines with how we choose to handle said situation.  I choose to focus on what is with me now.  Right now, I’m thankful to still have a job when so many I know are suddenly unemployed.  I’m thankful to be able to play more board and outside games with Christina and Becky – all the girls, but they had started to get heavily involved in extracurricular activities and with Christina driving, I had seen less and less of her.  Forced online college courses and the closing of CAP and the gym mean I get to hang out with her more.  I’m enjoying what I have.

Live your life enjoying what you are given and love your family with a sacrificial love: that’s our take from “Onward,” a very entertaining, slightly funny, kid safe movie with real truths embedded in it.

Thank you for reading.

Type at you later,

~Nancy Tart

Thoughts on Sunday

Thoughts as Lucas is impressed by dozens of TVs, and talks about “His Baby” and “a real football girl,” and my young ladies are deep in conversation.

December 9, 2018

Thoughts on Sunday

Louis has this gas card that does reward points but you have to spend them at a specific restaurant.  Usually, this ends up being our “date night money” every two or three months.  This time, he said there was a special at one restaurant for kid’s meals and he had enough reward points to cover almost all of the meal.

Cool.  So we went out.  Party of eight.  This was the first time Becky (who, in her new “sweet” wedges she “found” for $4 at a resale shop, is the same height as Christina!) was not assumed to need a kid’s menu.

My teenagers (that’s a scary reality!) are sitting all dressed up at one side of the table with Jillian and Jaquline in their Sunday best across from them.  Louis and Kimberly sat across from me and Lucas was sandwiched between the wall, me, and Becky (wise waitress to give us the corner wall).  The three older girls have been working odd jobs to raise “Christmas money” (and saved “birthday money” so they can buy presents).  When they went shopping yesterday, they bought Christmas presents from several resale shops and a few small “scores” for themselves.  Kimberly was wearing her new pair of beautiful triangle clip-on earrings that complimented her stone cross necklace and her favorite dress and pumps (another “sweet find” from a clearance rack last year that she purposefully bought one size too big and can now fit).  She looked so like a young lady.  I love how my girls are growing into young ladies.  (It’s also a bit overwhelming to realize each of these three are sporting make-up, high heels, and share at least one adult size with me.)

Lucas couldn’t get over one thing… the restaurant had dozens on TV screens and five games going at the same time.  Lucas must have counted those TVs fifty times.  One fellow patron periodically would glance and smile at Lucas after he would gasp, “look, more football!  One-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eleven!”

“Mom!” Lucas exclaims as we walk to the bathroom, passing the other side of the restaurant and multiple other TVs, “more football!”  This amuses the few tables we are passing.  Lucas gasps, “a real football girl!”  (This is as he notices our server wearing a football jersey – she’s had it the whole time.)  One gentleman asks Lucas if he’s about to be a big brother.  “Oh yes, this is my baby I get to keep.” Lucas taps on my belly.  He asks if Lucas wants a brother or sister.  Lucas says very seriously, “I want this baby to grow big and come out.  This is my baby I get to keep.”

His baby.  Lucas is so excited about not having to leave “His Baby” at church.  Back to our seat and he’s counting TVs and football games all the way there…

Thanks for reading!

Type at you later…

~Nancy Tart

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