My favorite time of year......

when it's acceptable and expected by most of the country, for me to be mad about basketball.


Like last year, we're combining out love for the game with our love for all of God's children.


Please read all the details at http://hopethruhoops.blogspot.com/ and join our bracket pool to give hope to these orphans in the DR.

more snow

The snow doesn't even seem to be a big deal anymore.....I still love it ESPECIALLY when the sun shines the next day!

We had a good little snow this week and seems that roads were a bit treacherous (I think TDOT has surpassed their snow budget.) Thankfully, we had no reason to leave home except on foot searching for a hill that hadn't melted so we could do little sledding. Between keeping up with Shizz and kids, I managed this one pitiful video.

A Football Game Gives Hope

Well, I wasn't expecting to cry hard tonight. God has given Jay and me a heart to help break cycles. To Love. To be Present. To help fill a Gap. Sometimes, we just need to help break a cycle. You can't always plan those opportunities. You can only be available when the opportunity arises. So this video that my college roomate sent me turns me inside out. (Mute my playlist at the bottom before listening to the video.)




Found out last week, that my lil' brother and I are going to be featured in a newsletter for Big Brothers and Big Sisters in Nashville. Here's an excerpt of a letter one of his teachers at school sent in to the BBBS organization.

"MG signed up to play basketball at FH this year. Unfortunately, he did not show up for his first game. I guess Stephanie spoke with his grandmother, and she was sure to pick him up for his second game. On Saturday, she came to the gym with her husband, 2 small children, and MG. She and her family watched and cheered MG on! Just after half-time, he scored a basket, and the whole family jumped up to cheer for him! The look on his face was priceless! He was so proud!Without his big sister, he probably would not have been at the game on Saturday, and he would not have had such a special moment! It just reminded me what a huge difference BBBS makes in the lives of so many children......"

A hero in my life is MG's grandmother. God "matched" us so we could help her stand in the gap. She has made an amazing sacrifice for MG and his siblings. I didn't know her heroic sacrifice or his whole story when I originally met him 4 years ago. I just knew God was asking me to show up. 4 years later, I know alot more about how crafty God can be when we just show up.

Mom, Please be sure Dad sees this post. And special thank you to mine and Jay's parents to position us to serve our Lord the way we can. We do not take the generations of blessings for granted, and we are striving to pass these to our children. Each week, WW takes his shoes off for MG to wear during the game so he'll have non-slip basketball shoes. Clearly, WW has alot more to learn in life but he just may already have the biggest lesson learned. Stand in the gap---like Jesus did.

How you know it's deep into "the season"?

1) we look for any extra pockets of sleep.....today was good b/c WW had no school so we slept until 7:30!!


2) Go to 6 basketball games in one weekend (partly for Willie and Montreal, but majority is so I can see my husband either at his own game or recruiting (who I admire all dressed up, but by the time I see him back at home....it wouldn't cross my mind to tell him that.) So, Jay, you're always looking fine!

3) I burn soup (who could do that?) b/c I'm doing a conference call while playing fetch with dog which made me.....

4) late to pick up son from basketball practice .....

5) shocked dog (literally) as I speed out drive on way to pick up son ....Threw him (dog, not son) in the back of truck without removing his invisible fence collar which was my strategy to keep....

6) Shizzle, the dog, from shredding anything else---like son's backpack from earlier in afternoon which must have had a crumb down in the bottom of it (our dog has an eating disorder). Bought new backpack and deja vu.

7) Pull up husband's twitter account so I can get more of what my he is thinking (mainly about the team b/c I hate to focus our precious conversation time on the topic that takes up most of his brainspace this time of year)

8) Let Ruby wear her new Valentine PJs from Nana to church on Wed night b/c she dressed herself for bed a little early and it would be inefficient to change and then rechange for bed


9) End our phone conversations with husband "get it done (i.e. win) and come home please"

Sadly, it's last weekend of home games. One more road trip....then the tourney. While I'm thankful for the homestretch I'd be delighted for this season to go DEEP into March.

College Chalktalk:NCDS: Jay Walton, Asst. Coach - Lipscomb

One of Jay's former players told me the other day, he was most scared of Coach Jay when he was playing

"what? are you kidding me?"

"yes, Ms Walton, still waters run deep."

I'm thinking if this guy hasn't blown with me over the last 20 years (yes, 20 years total), he's not blowing.....

Enjoy Jay's take on the emotions of coaching at College Chalktalk. Don't get me wrong, he has his ups and downs which tends to track wins and losses this time of year---but he gets it (which I knew from the moment I met him 20 years ago.)


College Chalktalk:NCDS: Jay Walton, Asst. Coach - Lipscomb

Birthday Week Recap

Happy Birthday to our babies! Do I have to stop calling them "babies" because they are 7 and 4 this past week? I've always celebrated my own birthday a month (2 weeks before and 2 weeks after). OK, Jay tries to cut it to a week but if I need a rationalization in that month period---I'll likely claim the celebration is still on.

Non-stop celebration---the Party, the After Party, Mexican (Ruby's request at onset of week), Sushi (Willie's request at end of week), Ice Cream (b/c Willie ate so much Sushi the rest of were still hungry and we "deprive" our kids rest of the year to hear the grandparents tell it), Happy Birthday song with the Bison mascot at half time, mailed packages*, birthday wishes from the Bison Radio Network, classroom cupcakes, Encore birthday hostess-- that's how we do it. Four trips to the grocery for iced treats might as well be packed into one week for more punch!

Ruby started her 4th year with sponge rollers and beautiful curls. She is GIRLIE. I warned her they'd be a little uncomfortable. She was so jacked about her first real party which fell on her actual birthday by luck of the calendar and basketball schedule. No complaints from her about the rollers or the joint party with her big brother.

Willie's birthday comes at the end of the week-long celebration. Don't underestimate the sombrero and fried ice cream to make a boy feel special. We grabbed some good friends, The McClendon's, after church and made sure Willie felt super special on his actual birthday. I'm fueled up to mommy through Year 7. His SS teacher who I don't know (big church) made my YEAR when she went out of her way to tell me he was friendly with everyone in his SS class (noted, not the kids he goes to school with) and that he showed extra care for our friend Amelia who gets around in her wheelchair and uses sign language to communicate. Another glimmer of hope to make the life lessons around here worth it. (Cinco de Mayo smears ice cream on your face evidently and that's extra special for a year old boy.) To top this, Daddy comes home today with a big win.

Here's some scenes from the birthday blast at My Gym!

*In the midst of the celebration, Nana sends us 4-6 dozen treats. There was not time for baking at Christmas with Grandma's funeral so Nana thoughtfully decides to treat the kids for their birthdays. Shizzle intercepted the package on the front porch before I ever knew it existed. After a trip to the ER Vet in the ice and snow and $400 later, Shizzle's steal stomach is as good as new. I wanted to be mad at Shizzle. You'd think the fact he was starved as puppy might soften me. I even call him "your dog" when I tell Jay who was nice and warm in the Carnegie Hotel, about Shizz's shenanigans. A couple of days later, it occurs to me that if I had intercepted that package before my children.....the scene might not have costs us $400 but would have looked similar. I can only see myself tearing into those chocolates and cookies and telling these sweet babies that it was so thoughtful of Nana to send them each a dozen cookies:) Shizzle, I deserve you. You saved me from those calories and you've taught my children to get their plates to the sink quickly after dinner! We've all got our issues.

Just Blink!

After one review of the pictures stored on my camera awaiting download....I generally think to myself, "don't blink" or you're going to miss it. Our children have grown so lean and tall. Their interests are changing so quickly and I really fear forgetting it all. We allow (and prefer most of the time) for our world to spin fast but it warrants a "don't blink"sign it seems. Here's the thing--there's much to experience and much to accomplish! I sometimes feel compelled to move fast and try not to blink.

Our life here is really short and I say that even as I have reflected on the 91-year life of my Grandma that we celebrated just 2 days before Christmas at her memorial service.

It seems like just yesterday, that we ran barefoot at Grandma's walking on the green moss under the oaks. I can remember her pretty potted porch plants while we swung high as the chains would take us on her porch swing. We loved ringing the dinner bell mounted high in her yard and the memory of her drive-way that seemed like a mile long. Her homemade biscuits and everyone but me raved over the dumplings. The yellow gold linoleum is a vivid as ever as we sat there rearranging the fridge magnets over and over. My Grandma was really funny. She loved to laugh and she was extremely loyal. Read multiple newspapers everyday. Shot turkeys from the bedroom windows and ran that news in the county news. This seems so long ago but then again it's like I blinked and here we are 30+ years later. But, I know it will be in a blink I'll hear her laugh again one day.

I'm thinking the motto should be "just blink!" Life here is quick even at 91 years. Blinking helps us to refocus. I suggest not trying to slow things but just to go with things. I resolve to blink often in 2011 to stay focused on what matters.