Reflections from a Christian Mommy Writer: Faith, Military Life & Mommyhood

The Battle Against Overboard Retail Therapy

by Tonya on January 26, 2012

Hi Everyone!

I hope that you’ve had a chance to check out the online book club for Faith Deployed … Again. I’ve been keeping up with the daily posts and have been blessed by the devotions I’ve read.

And guess what? My post, “The Battle Against Overboard Retail Therapy,” is being featured today! The post includes my experiences with retail therapy as a military wife and some tips to avoid the pitfalls that come with it. Be sure to stop by over there and leave a comment to join in the conversation.

Those who visit my post and leave a comment will be entered for their chance to win the book, Half Price Living: Secrets to Living Well on One Income by Ellie Kay.

So what are you waiting for? Come join the fun and let’s get the discussion going!

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Faith Deployed … Again Online Book Club!

by Tonya on January 2, 2012

Hello Everyone!

Jocelyn Green is hosting an online book club for Faith Deployed … Again: More Encouragement for Military Wives that begins on Tuesday, January 3rd! This is a great way for military wives and Blue Star Moms to start the new year!

If you are unfamiliar with Faith Deployed … Again, here’s a link with more information. This book has touched many lives and I know it will be a blessing to all that read it.

Here’s how the online book club is going to work.

1. Visit www.FaithDeployed.com every weekday in January and Jocelyn will tell you which devotion to read in the Faith Deployed … Again book.

2. After you read the devotion in the book, refer to the blogpost of the day, which will most likely be written by the person who wrote the devotion. The blogpost will be on the same topic as the devotion, but a little more in-depth.

3. The blogpost will end with a question that will stimulate conversation in the comment section. Feel free to chime in and share your thoughts.

4. Leaving a comment will automatically enter you for a chance to win a giveaway for that day!

And guess what? I’ll be participating in this online book club later in the month with a post that goes along with the devotions I wrote about finances! I’ll let you know more about that as the time gets closer.

If you would like to know more about the online book club for Faith Deployed … Again, click here.

I hope to see you over at the online book club!

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My Top 11 Posts of 2011

by Tonya on December 30, 2011

Hi Everyone!

The year is soon coming to a close and I must say that 2011 has been a roller coaster ride full of ups and downs for my family.

The first part of the year was incredibly stressful. Dear Hubby was deployed, Little Man was diagnosed with Autism, and we received unexpected PCS orders across the nation.

But the sun started shining on the second half of the year. We reached many financial goals, got settled into our new home, Little Man began receiving needed therapy, and we got a chance to take memorable trips to Dallas and Hawaii. Dear Hubby even got to spend Thanksgiving AND Christmas at home with us, the first time since 2008.

God really turned things around!

To sum up the year, I decided to share with you eleven of my most popular posts. You may see a running theme…

11. Prayer for the Navy Seal Community

10. A Prayer for Japan

9. Military Spouse Appreciation Day 2011

8. The Mountain Moving Faith of Martin Luther King, Jr.

7. Osama Bin Laden is Dead…What Does That Mean For Us?

6. What’s the Best eReader?

5. Texas Mansion Cookies – The Best Cookies Ever!

4. “Army Wives” & “Coming Home!’ Season Premieres

3. Should Athletes Thank God After Winning a Game?

2. The Nook Color eReader…An In-Depth Review

And my Most Popular Post of 2011?

1. A Prayer for Children Going Back to School

It is my sincere prayer that you have been blessed by the words I have typed this year on my blog. May God abundantly bless you and your family now and in the year to come!

Happy New Year!

Tonya

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The Perfect Gift For Christmas

by Tonya on December 19, 2011

Christmas is in less than a week. But I’m not worried or stressed one bit. Surprisingly, I finished the majority of my christmas shopping on a three day weekend shopping excursion. Now I’m just sitting back, counting my blessings and doing some reflecting.

Back in October, I told Dear Hubby that I wanted a “real” camera this year for christmas. I was totally oblivious to the fact that he had already bought me a Canon T2i Rebel DSLR camera, a week before I even mentioned wanting a camera for christmas. He did the research and found a great deal while he was TDY. When he came home with it, I was surprised because he knew what I wanted before I asked for it!

Dear Hubby had no idea that we were going to Hawaii when he bought the camera. Boy did it sure come in handy! Taking pictures of the beautiful sights we saw made our trip so much more memorable.

Posing for the Camera with the Camera! LOL

I’ve probably taken 2,000+ pictures since I received the camera. I even took some engagement pictures of a family member and their fiancée. Some of those pictures came out really good if I must say so myself! I’ve really been utilizing my early Christmas gift.

I’m very thankful for my camera, and anything else that may come my way for Christmas, but my Pastor said something at church that made me do some soul searching. He said:

“Quit thinking about what you want God to give you and think about what you can give God.”

Wow.

That resonated with me. I don’t know about you, but I can certainly give more to God. More of my time, more of my worship, more of me. It’s better to give than to receive. Besides, Christmas isn’t my birthday anyway. It’s Jesus’s birthday.

I encourage you on today to consider what you can give to Jesus on his birthday. He’s certainly worthy since he gives so freely to us all throughout the year!

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A Day Out with Polynesian Adventure Tours in Oahu, Hawaii

by Tonya on December 9, 2011

Dear Hubby and I signed up for a day long tour with Polynesian Adventure Tours. I highly recommend tours because it helps you to see things that you may miss out on while exploring on your own. Here are the highlights from the places we visited.

Pearl Harbor – I posted about this earlier. Click the link to read about it in detail.

Windward Oahu at Nu’uanu Pali Lookout – This was a scenic view on top of a very high cliff. I certainly understand why it is called “windward”. The winds had to be close to hurricane force on the day we visited. Any hope of having a reasonable hairdo was done after the wind had my hair going north, south, east, and west.

Dear Hubby and I at Nu'uanu Pali Lookout

Being afraid of heights, I was afraid that I would be blown off the cliff! But Dear Hubby had no fear. He went and looked over the edge. The cliff was VERY steep and it was a long way down. Here’s a picture of the view from the top of the cliff.

The incredible view!

It started raining while we were on top of the cliff, but as we got back on the bus and went back down, the rain ceased.

Byodo-In Temple – This temple was built to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of Japanese immigrants to Hawaii. It is a replica of the Byodo-In Temple in Japan. The temple has been featured in several TV shows, such as Hawaii Five-O, Lost, and Magnum P.I.

Byodo-In Temple

Tropical Farms Macadamia Farm Outlet – This wasn’t a regular stop, but the driver introduced this place as one of the well-kept secrets of Hawaii. This store offers free sample coffee and macadamia nuts.

Home of the best macadamia nuts EVER!

The macadamia nuts come in different flavors, such as caramel, onion, garlic and more! Dear Hubby and I sampled the caramel macadamia nuts and couldn’t believe how good they were! We bought a bag of them, but later wished that we bought a case!

Polynesian Cultural Center – This is one place in which I wish we had more time. There was so much to see here and it was very interesting to learn what little I did learn about polynesian culture.

Polynesian Cultural Center

Sunset Beach – This area is famous for the waves. During the winter months, waves are known to get as high as 20 – 40 feet! It’s a surfer’s paradise. Unfortunately, the day before we visited, a surfer went missing. There are many signs on the beach about the dangerous shorebreak and strong current.

A surfer enjoying the waves at Sunset Beach

Shrimp Trucks are very popular on the North Shore, which is the area that Sunset Beach is in. The dinners prepared are supposed to be very good. I wanted to try some of them, but there wasn’t a shrimp truck near our stops during the tour.

Dole Plantation – I’m not sure how I thought pineapples grew, but I didn’t think they grew like this:

Growing Pineapple

Dear Hubby and I bought some pineapple ice cream here that was very tasty! There was a pineapple maze, but we didn’t get a chance to explore it.

Taking a day tour is a great way to discover things about a new area you are visiting. The only negative thing about it is that there may be times that you want to spend more or less time at a certain spot than is allotted. But the good definitely outweighs the bad by far.

A few other things I want to mention about Hawaii is that if you want to buy souvenirs, be sure to check out the International Market in Waikiki and the Swap Meet at the Aloha Stadium. You can often negotiate prices with the vendors. Also, on the strip in Waikiki, there are many places to go shopping that include designer stores and a duty free shopping mall.

I hope that you enjoyed this Hawaii series. I had a wonderful time there, as you probably can tell!

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Commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Attack on Pearl Harbor

by Tonya on December 7, 2011

Since we are a military family, a visit to Hawaii wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Pearl Harbor. As a matter of fact, it was one of the first places we visited.

Unfortunately, we got there about 30 minutes before closing time. Disappointed, we decided to try our best to see what we could in the short amount of time. There were several rooms with artifacts and videos describing the 20th century’s September 11th. There were several outdoor exhibits. We could see the USS Arizona Memorial across the harbor, but tours had already ended for the day.

Things eventually worked out for us because four days later, we signed up for a day long tour of Oahu and Pearl Harbor was the first stop! Dear Hubby was so excited because he loves military history and really wanted to take in everything that the memorial site had to show us. It meant a lot to him as a military member to pay his respects to those who lost their lives protecting our freedom.

At the beginning of the tour, we watched a video about the attack. We then took a boat ride commanded by the US Navy over to the USS Arizona Memorial. This is what it looks like.

USS Arizona Memorial from a distance

Seventy years ago on December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, which led to the United States getting involved into World War II. The Japanese mission was to destroy the United States Pacific Fleet and aircraft. During the attack, the USS Arizona was hit and a fiery explosion broke out, killing 1,177 sailors. In total, 2,390 people were killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The USS Arizona Memorial is built on top of the remains of the battleship. There were several other ships that suffered high casualties, but the USS Arizona Memorial commemorates all who died in the Pearl Harbor attack. The ship was filled with oil the day before the attack and oil still leaks from the ship to this day.

Oil leaking from the sunken USS Arizona battleship

Inside the memorial, there is a wall with the names of all who died in the attack. Sailors that survived the attack have the option of having their ashes interred within the battleship with their fellow comrades. Their names are listed on the square box on the left hand side.

Those who died on the USS Arizona

After the tour was over, three Pearl Harbor survivors were available to sign autographs. The men were very nice and I enjoyed talking with them.

Pearl Harbor survivors signing autographs

Pearl Harbor survivors: Capt. Robert Kinzler, Ret.; SKC Alfred Rodrigues, Ret.; & SGM Sterling Cale, Ret.

Pearl Harbor survivors: SKC Alfred Rodrigues, Ret., and Capt. Robert Kinzler, Ret.

SKC Rodrigues, Ret. talks to someone in line while Capt. Kinzler, Ret. gives a smile for the camera!

If you are ever in Hawaii, I highly recommend that you visit the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Just like we shouldn’t forget 9-11, we shouldn’t forget Pearl Harbor. To keep the memory going in my own family, I bought a USS Arizona christmas ornament to hang on my tree. May God rest the souls of those who lost their lives on the “date that will live in infamy.”

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My Experience at Paradise Cove Luau in Hawaii

by Tonya on December 5, 2011

Dear Hubby and I were told that we couldn’t go to Hawaii without going to a luau. I’ve always been curious about what a real luau was like, so I didn’t need much convincing to check it out.

In Oahu, there are two luaus that you can attend. When Dear Hubby and I were at the International Market, a local resident told us that Paradise Cove was the one we wanted to attend. We took his word for it and we weren’t disappointed!

Dear Hubby was able to get us discounted tickets from the Navy Exchange ITT (Information, Tickets, and Tours) office. We were picked up at 4pm at a designated area very close to our hotel. The bus ride over to Ko Olina Resort, where the luau took place, took a good 45 minutes from Waikiki Beach. Traffic was heavy, but the tour guide helped the time pass away by telling jokes and getting everyone on the bus involved and hyped for the event ahead.

Upon arriving at Paradise Cove, you are given the choice of an alcoholic or non-alcoholic Mai Tai. I had the non-alcoholic one and it was fabulous! Dear Hubby drank about three of them. No, seriously, he drank about three of them. That’s how good it was.

Mai Tai

Next, you are ushered through a walkway and given leis made out of shells or flowers. Your picture is taken, which is available for purchase at the end of the luau. There are several events that you can take part in while you are waiting for the official festivities to begin. Several vendors were around so that you could purchase souvenirs. There was also an area where you could participate in arts and crafts.

My handcrafted headpiece!

The area in which the luau was held was beautiful! It was beachfront and on a lot of land. The weather was perfect and a slight breeze continually flowed off the ocean.

Some of the luau attenders got to participate in a canoeing event. Dear Hubby and four other guys were picked to participate in a special ceremony. They had to put on a grass skirt and dance around in front of everyone. But Dear Hubby didn’t mind. He enjoyed having permission to clown around and have fun.

After that, we went over to the Imu ceremony, which included the removal of a pig that has been cooked underground. Here’s a picture of them removing the pig. We didn’t have this pig for dinner though.

Removing the Pig from the Underground Oven

The dinner was buffet style and the food was good. The only thing about it was that if you wanted to go back for seconds, you had to go back quick because the buffet didn’t last too long after the last person was served. But I had no problem with that because I got everything I wanted the first time around.

The live performances started after most people were done with dinner. It was very entertaining! The performers had several different routines that included sticks, maracas, and even fire! Here are just a few of my favorite pics from the event.

Dancers with sticks

Group performance with maracas

Fire Dance Performer

Overall, Dear Hubby and I thoroughly enjoyed the Paradise Cove Luau. It was lots of fun and we made memories that will last a lifetime!

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A Trip to Hawaii!

by Tonya on December 2, 2011

Hi Everyone!

I haven’t been posting much lately, but I have a legitimate reason. Dear Hubby and I got a chance to take a trip to Hawaii!

The trip was short notice and a lot of things had to fall into place in order for it to happen. But God smiled upon our trip plans and moved mountains so that our dream vacation would come true.

Earlier this year while Dear Hubby was deployed, I wrote him a letter about how wonderful a trip to Hawaii would be for our 10 year wedding anniversary in 2013. Surprisingly, our trip to Hawaii ended up being on the weekend of our 10 year dating anniversary! I just can’t believe that was a coincidence. God will give you the desires of your heart!

I’m so thankful that we did the Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University program. It taught us how to structure our budget and pay off bills quickly so that we could later capitalize on opportunities like this that come our way.

We spent six wonderful days in Oahu, which is one of the most beautiful places on Earth in my opinion. It truly is an island paradise.

Here are a few pictures that I took to prove my point.

Waikiki Beach

View of Waikiki Beach Hotels

Statute of Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana'Ole

Over the next few days, I’ll be blogging about our Hawaiian Adventure and some of the things you’ll want to be sure to see/do whenever you visit America’s 50th state.

Have you ever been to Hawaii?

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I’m Thankful!

by Tonya on November 23, 2011

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays!

It’s a time of reflection, a time to be thankful, and a time to focus on family and friends.

My thanksgiving experience has varied over the years. Growing up, I often spent it with my mom’s extended family. When I got married, I started spending Thanksgiving with my husband’s family.

One year, my husband and I cooked Thanksgiving dinner with friends. I now look back at that year and laugh because everything I cooked seemed to be a challenge or not come out the way I wanted it to! The turkey took forever to cook and my jalapeño cornbread turned out to be too hot and spicy for my reflux issues. But I was thankful for the time we spent with our friends.

This year is special to my family. Dear Hubby is going to be home for the entire holiday season! This will be the first Christmas in three years that he has been home. We are so excited and thankful!

I’m also thankful because I had a great IEP meeting this week with Little Man’s teachers. They all spoke well of him, raving about how much he has improved since the beginning of the school year. I am so proud of my Little Man!

And last but not least, I’m thankful for God’s unconditional love and for the ultimate price that Jesus paid on the cross for you and me!

So what are you thankful for?

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 KJV

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Stories of Faith and Inspiration in Military Spouse Magazine!

by Tonya on November 18, 2011

Hello everyone!

I have two articles that are featured in the December 2011 issue of Military Spouse Magazine. God has been blessing me with one writing opportunity after the other and I’m so thankful!

The first article is about a remarkable Marine wife named Kimberly Herman. She gave the gift of life in a unique and selfless way. You have to read the article to see how she did it, but I’m sure you’ll be inspired by her story.

The second article is about a topic dear to my heart: faith-based resources for military wives. The article features Jocelyn Green, Emily Smith, and Sara Horn. These three women share a similar story of stepping out of their comfort zones and reaching out to others to create thriving communities of faith for military spouses.

Get your copy of the December 2011 issue of Military Spouse Magazine and let me know what you think!