I am in the next akward Pixie grow out stage, so I figured it was time for an update! Starting point, and where I am now. I am riiiiight here in the pixie grow out graphic.... bahahahaha!!!! Sad but true. Totally having to do headbands to HIDE everything! That is because I went from nice sharp clean lines, to totally shaggy, hide the ears hair. Not long enough to tuck behind ears yet, but too long to leave down. WHYYYYYYYY!?!?!?! First I was hiding it with this style headbands: Now, I have to do this kind alot of the time. It hides more! I also use clips on the sides when headbands don't match my outfit..... Did you notice a color change???? Yup, I was bored of red stripes, so I picked BLUE. We are trying to go Blue Diamond this year with doTERRA, so it seemed fitting with my goal. It is NOT holding very good though. We had to bleach, then dye blue, or it didn't show. My red on top of the natural color lasted 6 months easily. The blue is washing out by the second month for sure, annoying! I think the bleached strands must let go of color faster. Hair goals. Progress!!!!
Hugs, T
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I LOVE getting new Stitch Fixes to freshen up my wardrobe! And doTERRA Leadership retreat was just the time to get one coming my way. Here is what they sent me..... First up, the Brooklyn Dress...... Stitch Fix has the NICEST shoes! Soft, high quality leather and in this case, fabric. These are Nine West printed flats called "Speak up" they are nice and LOUD, which I LIKE! Next up, BB Dakota Sacha Cold Shoulder Knit Jumpsuit. I adore one piece outfits! I just struggle to find ones that accommodate my short torso. This one in particular was ill fitting and too tight. I put it on as a tank, and then realized its actually cold shoulder style but you can wear it either way! I put it on as a tank, and then realized its actually cold shoulder style but you can wear it either way! I really liked this Elissa Ruffle Detail Blouse. I feel like you could do it with slacks and heels or shorts and sandles and make it go either way. Its a nice blouse-y fabric. Last but totally not least, my favorite and a for sure keeper: Derica Cold Shoulder Knit Top! This is more of my normal style, and it's nice to be pushed outside my little cotton dress box once in a while. ;) Especially with us going to Leadership Retreat with other doTERRA leaders soon. I got these at Old Navy the other day. Comfy AND cute, perfect for RV life and limited closet space. Because of this, I only kept the cold shoulder top. I am already looking forward to getting another Stitch fix again soon! If you are ready to try your hand at a Stitch Fix and push yourself out of a Fashion RUT, give it a whirl.
Here is my referral link! :) Try it! It's so fun and easy to return, simply bag up what you don't want and put it out in your mailbox. They provide everything needed! www.stitchfix.com/referral/3137778 Hugs, T We are loving our time with Nana in Florida! It gives us even more of an excuse to see Uncle Chad and Auntie Lauren too, so we planned lots of shared dinners and fun nights.... We request a Nana Day, all day Sunday. We picked her up for church, then planned to have her for the day. We read in the sun, she napped (and snored haha!) and enjoyed a snack supper before we took her back home. I don't actually have any photos of this, we were having too much fun I guess?! :) I did have a little mishap Sunday morning..... Note to self, if your contact container tips over during the night, it will NOT properly neutralize the benzoid peroxide solution. FIRE. In my eye ballssssss... Thank goodness for fun glasses to distract! Avery wanted pretty curls for church, and we realized we left her corkscrew soft rollers in Kansas, so we improvised and went OLD SCHOOL. Rag rollers! Totally worked like a charm. She was SO excited to show Nana her curls Sunday morning! We plan to leave town a few days to head SOUTH. It's time to face Papa's house without him there for the first time, and help Drea with any remaining Papa things. I have butterflies, but I know another level of healing can be accomplished simply by facing that place that holds such sad memories of his final days.... Before we left, we went over to Chad and Lauren's for dinner to soak up some Nana time. Dale made a DELICIOUS chicken & rice dish for us all, his families recipe from Costa Rica, with a special salsa that you sprinkle on..... Avery made a no bake Eclair cake, served with Strawberries from the festival.... And just like that, it was time to head south for some sunshine..... Hugs, T
We met Auntie Lauren, the boys, and Nana at the Strawberry Festival Saturday morning! The day was PERFECT, not too cold and not too hot, although we still got sunburned!!! There was a car show, music, booths and fresh strawberries, of course. BMX Trick show: Funnel cakes, lunch and then home.... Hugs, T
The kids have been doing extra good at school lately, so daddy surprised them with their favorite local treat, Twisty Treat to be exact. Destiny went to the car and ate her slushy while we all waited 25 more minutes for our cones. They must have had some techincal difficulties with the machines because we have NEVER waited that long! Nana came to town for a visit! She flew in from Kansas to see her kids and all her grands here in sunny Florida. We always enjoy when she comes..... We met her shuttle in a parking lot and took her to a nice family style dinner. She came bearing a comic paper wrapped gift for Tylan, a new Adventure in Odyssey disc, yay!!! They promptly got to reading! One of the reasons momma is here is because we all head to Leadership Training here in a bit, to learn more how to use our strengths, lead strong and have some fun with other oilers. One night is the Into the Deep Blue Sea party, so I've been doing some online bargain shopping in the meantime! Mermaid mail!!!!! I am sure I'll have loads of pics to share from there once we get back! :) I am so excited to go! We live in horse country Florida, 2 hours from the nearest beach. We love the sunshine, yet not too hot weather. We love the tree covered roads and horses, southern mansions and the "farm" feel of the area. One of the newest additions to our town, is a paved walking and bike trail that goes on for MILES. One particularly nice and lazy afternoon, we decided to go walk it. (We can't figure out a way to get all 6 bikes in our family car, so thats another project for another day) Walking it is!!!! We set off, and it was BEAUTIFUL!!!!! There was a cool old house, just off the main trail we went and check out..... SO COOL! Can you find all 4 Fergusons? :) Well, we are headed to the Strawberry Festival, so I will write more again soon. Hugs, T
WOW, hard to believe it's been 3 years already, and what an amazing ride it's been! 47 states and more adventures than I can recall later, we are still loving RV life..... It wasn't easy to drive away, we knew it was a treasure, one we probably wouldn't find again. We were scared, a bit nervous we had sold our beautiful place, but totally at peace because the Father moved in big big ways to make it happen. Our path, for the moment, seemed clear. We were to go and travel! So, we moved our family of 6 and 2 dogs, into our first cute little diesel bus thinking me might be on the road 6 months or so, before settling back in Kansas. 2 weeks in, we knew. THIS was the life for US! :) Over the years, our family has learned to live simply, to crave experiences, not things. We have grown closer, our business has grown bigger, and our heart more full of gratitude each and every day that this, THIS amazing life, is the life the Lord mapped out for us, long long before we even DARED dream it up. I am humbled. I am honored. I am grateful each and every day I wake up, that this is our journey, our destiny, our blessing from a Father who knows how to lavish on His children. Who blesses obedience time and time again....
Happy 3 Year RV-Versary, Ferguson Family!!!!! So blessed to be "doing life" with you in 400 sq ft of intentional living! <3 You are invited to a 2 part, read along class on Essential Oils for Special Needs, happening on our public class page, March 19 & 20th at 8 pm EST.
Pre-class posts will actually start now, so be sure to join the page, turn on notifications and interact!!!!! That is what makes these events fun! :) Join our class page here. There is an OIL FOR EVERYTHING! Hugs, T Ty is the MASTER Lizard catcher around here. But this time, well this time takes the cake..... Meet Boris the Broadhead Skink. The kids created a nice habitat for him and fed him a huge cockroach. They hung out for a while and then decided ol Boris was probably ready to go home to his family, so we released him back into the wild. A fun part of living in Florida for the winter, is that my brother and his wife are nearby, as well as my step momma. That means loads of family dinners, cousin play times and even date night OUT! Woot woot! We love when Grammy drives up to stay at the farm apartment and work with Uncle Chad at the furniture store because it means we get to see her for dinner and church and have some fun. We always like to go to brunch after church, have you ever heard of First Watch? Man, they have unique foods. All fresh and local too. This is the Gruyere and Ham omelete, I split this and the lemon ricotta strawberry pancakes with Dale. Mm mm amazing! That night, we headed out to a great sushi place with Chad and Lauren! It's so nice to have a built in babysitter.....thanks Destiny! We have a lot of fun with these two! Speaking of Lauren, she shared a great recipe with me I wanted to tell you about. Now, in true Tonya fashion, I changed it up a lot, but it was so so good. I'll try to explain what I did: I added more parmesan cheese, used the refrigerator noodles and the already made pesto, I like cold fresh better then canned. I added porta bella mushrooms sauteed in butter with the julianned zucchini and garlic before dumping it all into the pot and stirring it together with the fresh basil and tomato. We served it with french bread, olive oil and dipping spices. YUM! We had a good weekend of star gazing, moon watching, class teaching and preparing for my Momma to come from Kansas for a nice, long visit!
After living in such a colorful apartment for so long this winter, the black and gold RV looked positively DULL. I begged Dale to let me add some color, and he said, ok ok, if you must. I am a super duper bargain shopper and got most things for a little bit of nothing, even the quilt set, was like $30! Check it out, it's happier already! :) I found a SUPER cute vintage banner from the same gal that made the orange and blue one in the apartment.... Here store is on Etsy and it is called Greenbug Marketplace. She always does a good job accommodating my colors.... Look what my team got me! LOVE it, there's no place like home. <3 Love my doTERRA Dorothy team! I also painted the black pot and chicken in the kitchen to be HAPPIER.... Blue to match the garlands on the windows. Isn't that OH Happy Day sign cute?! 40% off at Hobby Lobby! The mustard and red paisley tray on the oven didn't match anymore, so I spray painted it blue like the chicken....I am SO bad at before and afters, just afters get photographed. It looked like a louder version of this plate. Blue looked much better next to the Oh Happy Day...... I also got a few plants here and there to give a little life to the place. I found a plain wood colored USA cut out, and decided to paint it the same blues as the rest of the colors. It now hangs in the bathroom next to the Not All Who Wander Are Lost sign. This room is also what we call our War Room, I did a blog about it here: RV War Room. The bedroom might be the biggest change, its WAY brighter with the lights bouncing off the bright comforter as opposed to the black and gold one...... Look how HAPPY it is! Before and after. It's not the kind of RV makeover with the pretty painted white cabinets and new floors and all that, we hope to sell this one and get another, so I wasn't looking to do anything permanent......but its FUN, right?!
What do you think?! HAPPY? Sunshine and Skittles for SURE! :) Have a blessed day! Hugs, T We are finding happiness again, here on Papa's beloved "Florida farm". The kids adore being here, and I think the happy memories are taking over the sting of the loss of our precious Papa. I love their joy and giggles. The stories around the fire again. We have been eating our way around the favorite places! Mmm, MOJO's has the BEST black beans and rice! One of our favorite things about living somewhere for longer than normal is that we can get a LIBRARY card! Eeek! There is NOTHING better than paper books, real ones you can hold in your hand. We have been lounging around in chairs and hammocs after school and just enjoying! :) Even MOMMA gets to read! Ahhh, guilty pleasure. We chalk, we bake, we play after school each day and enjoy the sunshine. We eat outside a LOT, we miss being able to all fit around the table, plus its SO pretty out! Look how sweet and precious my family is..... OH WOW. Nice kids. How about this one? Really Ty? ONE more chance guys..... MUCH BETTER. :) Mmm! I love having an oven to cook in, Drea lets me use the apartment kitchen. We always have to make Creamy Hamburger Casserole. Do you remember that one from the blog? Click here. Speaking of cooking, I have a NEW favorite recipe from Drea. You are going to want to make this! I bought a 5 pound bag of Brussels sprouts from Sam's. Cut ends off and wilted leaves and halve. Drizzle with olive oil and generously salt and pepper. Roast at 425* until fork tender. Drizzle with balsamic reduction, add craisins and goat cheese. And walnuts if you'd like. Serve hot. Mmm, I can eat bowls of this stuff for my WHOLE MEAL! We took the kids skating on Saturday! As a child of the 80's I grew UP skating all over the tiny town I grew up in. The kids are used to bladeing, but seemed to transition well to skates. It was a cute little rink and an easy way to pass a Saturday afternoon. They had a ball! Hugs, T
I feel bad, blogging our Valentine's Day activities from half a month ago!! I am THAT behind. Oops! BOGO week was such a blessing and a busy time, so I am giving myself some grace. So many of you joined our Oil Team and I am so excited about that! :) So for Valentines Day this year, we had a date night earlier in the week at a restaurant called Sky Bistro. Oh my word, it was amazing! Dale and I got fixed up to meet my brother Chad, sis in law Lauren and step momma, Drea for a FUN night out on the town! My pixie grow out is going ok, but not great....so I had to quick think of a way to pin back the akwardly long short sides. (does that even make sense? different blog for a different day) The menu was phenomenal! Upscale asian food, and because of a mix up on our fried rice, we got a FREE dessert platter of bread pudding and some kind of funnel cake fries with drizzle. Mmmm! My funny little Valentines and the love of my life, hid love notes all over the RV for me to find. Precious! 😍🍓 4 Oaks Academy students attended their second ever, fancy lunch for their Valentine's Day party, and they loved every minute of it....I sent them out to work and play and got started with food prep. The restaurant was the oh so fancy "La Cruiset a la Rv Désirer". (None of us actually knew what they meat except fancy cuisine in the desired RV, but it sounded ritzy.) Dale and I carefully set the table, poured the bubbly, and went to see if there was a line at the door for lunch service....yup! On the kids' assigned spots was a clue, as to where their valentines treat was hidden, around the RV. The menu included: (you have to read it in a fancy french voice) *Mini tea sandwiches in both egg salad & cream cheese cucumber dill *Veggie a la raw (you had to take one of every color, chefs orders) *Raspberry lemonade jigelette *Le Puffs of de Cheese There was a Strawberry Creme Tarte next to each plate, and a glass of Cranberry Bubbly. Prayer and then CHEERS!! Time to eat! They sure had some crazy wait staff! One of the waiters even got fired I hear! 🤣😂 (Several times.) Riiiight, Dale Ferguson?! After they went on their scavenger hunt for their chocolate hearts (no pics, sorry) it was arts and crafts time! Last surprise was the Valentine's Olympics!!!! ☀️ First event: Relay Run Race to rake leaves till the pile is as high as your ankle, run to tag your partner. Partner has to find a silver torch (spoon), poked in the ground before proceeding. Run "torch" to your awaiting team and together run with it and clang swing handle. Second event: Water Relay Using a spoon or lid, run relay style to fill up your measuring cup. Fullest at the end of 2 minutes - wins! Girls pulled the Gold at the last minute by 1/4 a cup. Third event: Partner Color Guard Link arms with partner and never let go. Race from color to color as they are hollered out by the announcer. You must both touch the color! So hysterical to watch them, they loved it! :) My thoughtful kiddos begged to get Grammy a Valentine gift so she would feel happy on Valentine's Day too......look what they picked out! They displayed it on the table so she was sure to see it as SOON as she got home. :) It was a happy Valentines Day, all the way around....
Hugs, T
What are oils?
How do they work? And how the heck do I use them? How can I get a $100 SHOPPING SPREE? Watch this Natural Solutions Class I recorded on FB Live the other day, and learn ALLL about it! :) (Deals are valid through Feb 28) Print or download paperwork to a second device and follow along: www.doterra.com/US/en/empowered-success-natural-solutions ((You can fast forward first part where I am waiting for everyone to hop on)) Watch and comment. Hugs, T xoxo My Ty Guy is 11?! How is that even possible? We have always let the birthday kid be the king or queen of the day, lounging while everyone does their chores, getting to pick the meal of the day, the dessert...all of it. Thank goodness, because that has been an easy thing to maintain in our RV life! The kids decided King Tylan shouldn't have to do his own hair either...... We also like to focus on EXPERIENCES not STUFF! We did make an exception this year because Ty is super into legos, and doesn't have many. Easy to pack along in the RV and big time on sale at a closing Kmart. Everyone wins!!! :) Someone VERY ornery in our family, also decided to wrap up something extra special for him...... The Kindle he had misplaced a few days ago! Hahaha, his face!!!! Special mail! Since we are currently living in Florida, Ty wanted his Uncle Chad, Auntie Lauren and the cousins to come join us for dinner..... He picked a GIANT 30 inch pizza from 5 Star Pizza, and mom insisted on a salad. There is this amazing local bakery called Betty Cakes, oh my heavens! I have never ever tasted a more moist cake! Double layer, white frosting in the middle and on top and then this luscious chocolate ganache poured over. Birthday boy was happy! :) But when he opened up his gift, Uncle Chad was not...... HEY! Lauren, I wanted that one!!!!!!!!!!!! Hahahah! Avery's gift to Ty, was that she spent the last week learning how to play Happy Birthday on the keyboard so she could play while we sang to him. SO special! Happy 11th Birthday to my Ty-guy! ☺ This miracle baby, all grown up, is such a joy to my heart. You are kind, gentle and loving. I love that you are SUCH a bookworm and we have go to the library 2 times for you to our every one. I love how you love to be a gentlemen and pitch in. You've done that since you were old enough to run ahead and get the door. You are smart as a whip, and do so well in school. You infectious giggle reminds us of your Papa Clay. You have the biggest grin and an even bigger heart.....♥️ Happy birthday buddy, today we celebrate YOU! Love, Momma xoxo
Today it all begins, Buy One, Get One FREEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is the PERFECT time to buy and try, these amazing life changing oils..... I will be posting a video and image everyday of the "deal" on my RV Oilers facebook page. Come check it out and say hi!!!!!
I love a good BARGAIN! Don't you?! :) Hugs, T Limited time offer, through midnight tonight. One deal a day through Saturday!!!!!!! You had me at BOGO! It's here, it's here....Buy One Get One Free with doTERRA!!!!!! The best bargains await you.... Join the RV Oilers BOGO page here, so you can scope out the daily deals:
www.facebook.com/groups/1704930466481396 The fun starts now, the BOGO deals start TUESDAY, come on over! :) Hugs, T I am so sorry its been so quiet here before this week, I find myself at a loss for words, and participating in a time of quiet reflection, pulling inward quite a bit. I suppose that is healthy and good, right? I just have some guilt for not coming to hang out with you as often. I have had all kinds of blogs floating around, just didn't write, schedule or upload them. We have been here in Florida a month now, and its not as hard as it first was. The first day we pulled in, I laid in the back bedroom for a long time before I could even step into the front of the RV with all its big windows looking out. My heart was longing for him out there, waving excitedly from the front door as we pulled in, just like years past. In fact, I pretty much cleaned the whole house, dripping tears everywhere I went, before I could step foot ouside. We had a little whoopsie that dropped me to my knees: Check out my 4 month old laptop. During travel it slid back, still in the case, and nestled perfectly between the slide out and the wall. Needless to say, we were all a little out of sorts, and no one checked like we usually do, before sliding it out. CRUNCH!!!!!!!!!!!! Tear tears tears. So many tears that day! I told satan to LEAVE US ALONE..... I finally decided to step outside, I was ready..... It felt like a ghost town. All his little touches were gone. He was such a tidy person by nature and took pride his little second home. Looking around at the closed up tight apartment, the empty RV that wouldn't be driven on a fun summer trip this year..... There were leaves everywhere, and we realized for the first time, how much work he did on "our spot" to get it ready for us with its little porch and clean raked yard. So here we are, living on my daddy's beloved "farm" in central Florida, and missing him everyday. (this is dad and Drea's second home, when they came up from their big house down south by the beach, to work the family furniture store with my brother Chad) At first being here was salt in the wound, but just a few days in, it became comforting somehow, to be surrounded by a place so "HIM". And you can tell he left thinking he would be traveling back up again.... Shoes by the back door. A tool out on the work bench. An RV waiting for the next trip. When we sit by the fire in this peaceful spot, in the beautiful cool Florida nights, we know he is happy we came and enjoyed this special space.... We can do it for him. He loved it so much, just like last years time hop showed me. So here we sit, missing him terribly, thankful for the promise of seeing him again one day... I know life moves on, and we all will too, but for now, I am embracing every layer, every tearful, hard day and every happy, laughter filled day, with my whole being. Trusting my Abba Father to guide my path, and take my broken heart and make it new. And maybe someday soon, I will stop glancing up in the window when I walk by, to see if he is inside with his feet up in the afternoon.... So I smile through my tears, because I know my daddy is so happy and healthy up there in Paradise with Jesus.....and he wouldn't come back even if he could. Our human mind cannot grasp the glory he now lives in everyday. I just wish he could be here again.....I'd sure have a lot to say. Hugs, T
We were heading to Florida, but we had just a few last stops to make.... In lieu of flowers, we asked the community to donate to my dad's alma mater, Central Christian, instead of flowers. We were THRILLED to find out, that just over $3000 was raised. And it was just the right amount for a much needed new commercial dishwasher for the school kitchen. Theirs no longer worked! That is a big problem! I am so thankful to all who donated, we'd MUCH rather have the gift that keeps on giving like that, as opposed to flowers that wilt and die. Dad would've been so proud! I showed the kids his senior photo on the wall while we were there. :) We needed to make one more VERY important stop on our way out of town.... We wanted to pay our respects and see Papa's resting place. The headstone is ordered and will be up when we get back this summer. Still doesn't seem real that he isn't waiting for us anxiously in Florida....he was always so full of life and joy! Our trip to Florida was fairly uneventful. We took it extra slow, and stopped more than usual. A celery spill from a semi that wrecked, that held us up and extra hour...... Ranch dressing, anyone? OH! And a gas station exercise session outside leads to a jackpot for Destiny - $100! We make the kids do stretches, yoga and RUN RUN RUN when we stop for gas. This gas station had a HUGE hill down to a nasty drainage ditch. There was a concrete ramp run off, that was dry, and she was walking up and down it, while the little kids ran around. She looked over, and down between the concrete blocks, she found this bill that had washed down, who knows when, just stuck there! She had just shared with me that she wished she had spending money, and that it was hard to earn anything while traveling. I told her to pray about it! Guess what? The LORD answers! :) We did school like normal while bouncing down the road, and the kids performed "Paul Revere's Ride" by Longfellow.... It was a good travel day! We took 3 whole days to get down, I didn't want Dale pushing hard, he was too weary. We ALL were! One morning, our hose froze at the spicket, and poor Sophie could NOT get close enough to the heater vent. Haha! The closer to Florida, the warmer it got, but the more the butterflies flew in our tummies. ☀️🌴🦋 Staying at a place so full of memories of my dad, a place so HIM, is going to be really really tough. Big reality check for sure! This next layer of healing is a big one, and I am grateful we never walk alone! Hugs, T
As we holed up in our Kansas apartment during snowy cold, NEGATIVE 20 degree days, we realized quickly our living room needed some additional seating. (And that we needed to go to Florida sooner than later!) We, in particular, needed some spots that were in front of the fireplace. Its tiny in that living room, and we had to be super careful not to overfill the space, as you have to be able to walk from front door through the living and kitchen bar stool areas to access the staircase. I ordered some petite blue chairs, site unseen, and hoped for the best. I also found a rainbow rug that made me SWOON! It was like happy rainbows and skittles! Thank goodness, everything fit just as we hoped. I LOVE IT! The kids hunkered down right away in front of the fireplace with their books on the soft new rug.... Here it is in the daytime: It's not done yet, I still want to put a little table between the two chairs....and I can't remember if I showed you yet or not, but the banister is done! I love how light it is, I was scared it would close it in, but it didn't. :) We also moved our travel window wall, and by "WE" I mean Dale. :) He helped me move it up to the fireplace because it fit the space so nicely up there between the two high windows. I'll show you the dining room wall where it used to be in a sec. The mantel got a little makeover too! I found this DARLING vintage fabric pennant banner on Etsy. The shop is called "Greenbug Marketplace" and you will LOVE to work with Heather! My goal this summer, as we travel the east coast, is to go antiquing and fill the gaps and empty walls with AMAZING treasures. Road signs, old games, anything that would be cool in our space. So the blue church window used to fit here in the dining room, but now that its on the mantel, I was on the hunt for something "FOOD" themed to go there. Literally, the next week, I found a GEM at our local treasure store. Can you believe how perfect the colors are? I even found a little menu to prop above my stove! Eeek, so cute. 45 cent burgers, anyone? If you want to see more of the Retro Apartment, simply use the side catagories (they are at the bottom on a cell phone) to select "Home Sweet Shed" and have at it! :)
Happy Valentines Day! Hope its a great one... <3 Hugs, T We so enjoyed our time in Kansas over Christmas and through the first of the year. Our little apartment feels so safe and quiet, cozy and happy. The perfect place to mourn daddy before facing Florida again..... This time without him. Ugh. I can't even.... My heart just aches when I think about. I am taking this time to just be still, reflective and allow the Lord to bring healing. As the kids and Dale started feeling ready to join in outings and family events again, sweet Dale whispered to me to just stay home, read a book, or take a soak in the tub and just BE STILL. He knows what I need when I am hurting, and I love him for that. I got the BEST stack of books read, while we were home! Guilty pleasure! :) After living in an RV for 2 years with only a shower, the deep soaking tub we put in the apartment is SUCH a great! Even better, I tuck all my empty oil bottles into a cute jar of epsom salt and when I get a scoop, it makes the best smelling bath! I may have even allowed myself an extra indulgence or 5.... ;) Have you ever put cocoa pebbles in your ice cream? MMmm Mmm amazing! So is homemade cocoa with heavy whipping cream and high quality cocoa powder! Mmm The Father knows my heart and He knows how much I have missed seeing snow, all cozied up in the house by the fire with a blanket and a good book. It hasn't snowed in our small Kansas town for several years now, and it DID, like THREE TIMES when we were there. Praise Jesus for my Winter Wonderland! It was BITTER cold, like -20 with windchill some days, so we cuddled inside, stayed in our jammies, and played games and family wii. (kids Christmas gift for the apartment this year) My photography friend texted and asked if she could get some shots of Destiny in the snow. She had been waiting 3 years for a nice snow to shoot in, and it finally came! We of course, said yes! Here are the images. Heavinly Blessings Photography, by Heather Schlatter if you are in the area. I worked with Heather a ton before we moved, she does such a good job! I just have to say, that I am so thankful that the Lord gave us the urgency to finish our apartment this summer, even when we didn't understand why we wanted to finish it so badly. After all, it had sat unfinished, and empty, except for our stored items, for 2 whole years! Just sitting there waiting for us to have the gumption and finances to finish it. Now it all makes sense..... We needed a safe place to come home to, a place to host our Florida family that flew in for a Christmas funeral. A place to be still and heal. A place to call home in that community. I am so in awe of my Heavenly Father, and how He cares for even the smallest (biggest) details of my life! As we were in the apartment more, we realized quickly, that our living room needed some additional seating. Spots that were in front of the fireplace, not beside it, like the couch. Its tiny in there, and we had to be super careful not to overfill the space. I found THE blue chairs to fit the bill....and a couch I wanted super bad, but alas, no room. And it'd be silly to have a backless couch to curl up on, we'd fall out! ;) But that's another post for another day! :) We made sure we saw all the family, as we prepared to leave again. Kids had friends over, made sushi with our new Sushi Bazooka and just had some fun before closing up shop to head out. Mom came over one day and we went through a box of old photos.....memory lane! We went up to Dale's moms restaurant a ton, she is so sweet to feed us lunch. Amazing amazing yummy lunch!!! :) On our way home, we found my first car in a tiny used car lot downtown!!!! THE '88 Mustang I got from my daddy for Christmas when I was 13. Eeek! I wanted to buy it but its now super duper duper rough and would take like $10k to restore, so we walked away. Darn it! Wouldn't that have been a cool first car for Destiny? I got to enjoy a girls night with my BFF, before we loaded up the RV again.....I don't have any photos except the one I sent when she asked how casual I was going. Haha! We literally were talking a mile a minute and didn't take a single picture. OOPS! We went to our favorite sushi place and had a long fun dinner and then, we saw the BEST movie! The Greatest Showman. Oh it was so good! We went to the new theater in town with cool reclining seats and ate popcorn and candy and all the bad things you shouldn't. ;) As the days went on, we started feeling the PULL towards Florida. A dread, anticipation and a desire, all at once. Dale watched the weather closely so we could move out and hit the road between cold fronts. Buses and ice DO NOT mix! Now it was time to face the hardest part, the new reality awaiting us in Florida. It almost didn't seem real, from so far away, that daddy was actually gone. You *almost* could forget from 1500 miles away in snowy Kansas, because he wasn't part of THAT life if that makes sense?
But it was time, and we knew the Lord would provide the help we needed in this transition.... Hugs, T You are invited to our Oils in the Bedroom class!
Join us TONIGHT in an easy to read class format. It's all done on Facebook, so kick back and enjoy from the comforts of home...... Class is 2 parts, tonight and Tuesday night at 8 pm EST. (Feb 12 and 13) The pre class FUN has already started!!! Come check it out: www.facebook.com/groups/1876272422702901/ Hugs, T xoxo
Hi blog friends, You are invited to a 2 part Oils in the Bedroom class, Feb 12 & 13th at 8pm EST, from the comfort of your home!!!
This essential oil class is an easy read along format....hope you can attend. I am giving away some awesome prizes and schmexy time recipes! ;) Join our class page here: www.facebook.com/groups/1876272422702901 For now, watch this sneak peek! It's an Oils in the Bedroom Mini class I recorded, when I was a guest on a large oil page. Enjoy! I promise I won't make you blush! ;) Hugs, T We've added something NEW to the RV Oilers website and I am SO excited to share it with you today! Check out the new category across the top: FREE ONLINE OIL CLASSES I try to offer you lots of educational opportunities to learn about oils, but what if you are working, or can't get away to enjoy them?! What if you work best at your own pace when you have free time?! AWESOME, this is for YOU! Simply register for, and take, these FREE classes at your own pace. You still get access to me for questions and ordering when your class is done! Win-win! Now, there is still nothing better than a LIVE in person class, or even a facebook live class, so I hope one day you will come do one of those too. I have one coming up next weekend, possibly the 21st. Watch for details! I will continue to add classes and expand our topics as we go. :)
So what are you waiting for? Go check out our newest tab and take some FREE Essential Oil classes!!! :) Hugs, T As the Christmas gatherings went on, I found myself getting more and more weary. Both emotionally and physically, and the Lord began speaking to me to BE STILL. I knew I better obey, so we quickly ran some errands, made some lingering returns and grabbed enough groceries to hunker down and just BE STILL until the New Year. And so, we did! We said no to lots of fun invitations, but obedience brings healing and blessings. We played games. We read loads of books. Watched movies. Played Wii. Listened to new Adventure in Odyssey cd's down by the fire. Ate snacks, leftovers and yummy food sweet friends dropped by. We were just STILL, and enjoyed some down time for our hearts and emotions. Dale has been my rock. He is such a blessing to me, caring for me when I can't think how to care for myself. Asking if he can run me a bath, nudging me to bed when its getting late. He can always make me laugh, even when I don't want to. I am grateful to have him to lean so heavily on, in this time of grieving. He knows this feeling all to well. I am grateful to have such a cozy beautiful place to hunker down in and rest. The Lord knew it was important we finished the apartment, so we could be here safe and warm for dad's funeral and the days of healing after.
I don't know what the future holds, but I know WHO holds my future, and that is enough for me. Hugs, T We are never short family when we are home for a visit, and were thankful to be able to get together with my extended family and Dale's family, the 2 days after Christmas..... First up, Aunt Gena's house! It's really such a shame there was no food to eat while we visited.... I have been wanting to make this recipe since our OLD house and recipe blogging days!!! A SAVORY cheesecake, and when we moved in, I just so happened to save a springform pan for such a time as this.... http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/appetizers-and-snacks/chili-cheesecake-2/ It was as tasty as I hoped it be! I did Doritos crust instead of regular chips for more flavor, and added a layer of shredded cheese to the top. I had a larger pan, so mine is much thinner than the photo, which isn't a bad thing, its RICH! And only requires a tiny sliver as it is! Slideshow: So fun to all be together and let the cousins meet and play for the first time for our Floridians! The next day, we headed over to Dale's momma's for a ham dinner and snack supper/game night....Eileen recently remodeled her main room and kitchen, so its PERFECT for big gatherings! Everything was amazing and we had a lot of fun, even if I got stuck on the first phase of Crazy Phase 10 FOREVER!!!!!! If you are a Phase 10 fanatic like we are, be SURE to google crazy phases to change the whole game up! :) Slideshow: After games and snacks, brave Grandma, had ALL the grands stay for a slumber party. They were SO flipping excited! Destiny was fighting a sinus something and decided to head home to sleep it off. Little did I know, we'd ALL end up with it! UGH. Thank goodness for oils! Hugs, T
It was a different kind of Christmas this year, so soon after burying my daddy....but life doesn't stop, does it? We had planned to spend Christmas here at our apartment for the first time ever, just not under these circumstances. We don't really do gifts anymore, due to our lifestyle, but with more space in the apartment and the kids having sold nearly every toy, we decided to do some last minute shopping and get them a gift and a family gift to share. We also wanted to get a few things for my nephews since we haven't ever had a Christmas here with them before. Christmas morning, for the first time in the HISTORY of the Ferguson family, our kids woke us up before 7 am. Niiiiice kids, real nice. We read the Christmas story and had a Jesus birthday party before opening gifts.....I was too tired the night before to make any of our normal preprations, but we still had daddy's famous scrambled eggs and some homemade cinnamon rolls I bought from the amish bakery close by the funeral location. The kids loved what we got them, especially the FAMILY present, which was a Wii mini we found a steal of a deal on. And some used games! We do not do screen time much, but figured once they read their alloted hours, it might be fun to hole up with some family gaming upstairs once in a while. Good thing too, it's been negative temps here with the windchill, and we alternate between playing games, reading and wii time! :) My brother, Chad and sis in law, Lauren were still in town for a few days, so we had everyone out for Christmas dinner. Sweet Avery and Destiny made us a Peppermint Trifle! Recipe here: we did chocolate cake instead of red velvet because I don't like red dye. It got better day 2, so word to the wise, make it ahead. www.tastesoflizzyt.com/peppermint-cheesecake-trifle/ Slideshow: Nana had us play a game that ended with a prize... A CRICKET SUCKER. I didn't figure anyone would eat it, but little Dylan went to town. For a while anyhow. At least until he realized he had eaten the antenae off. EWWWW!!! We were honored to have Gigi and Miss Toni join us for Christmas dinner and games! And of course, we needed some family pics.... Slideshow: No matter why we were all together, our Christmas day was special, and I am grateful.
One down, 2 more Christmas gatherings to go! Hugs, T |
Tonya Ferguson
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