Birthday #33...Ready Or Not, Here I Come!

Bags packed. Check. Babysitters (a.k.a. parents & in-laws) mentally prepared - (Is this possible?) Check. Reservations confirmed. Check!!!

Yes indeed, I'm one excited lady today! The reason? In less than twenty-four hours, Trae and I will be en route to our weekend getaway (Sunday is my 33rd birthday) where we plan to rest and relax, do a little sightseeing, and enjoy a dinner & a movie Friday night!

So please check back early next week to see how I celebrated this special day.

Have a great weekend, everyone! Tory

Spontaneity At It's Best!

Well my friends, after years of travelling to the white sandy beaches of Gulf Shores, AL with an entourage of family and friends by my side, helping me with troublesome umbrella strollers, countless suitcases, bulging diaper bags, etc..., I was brave enough to "go it alone" this past weekend and drive my children to the beautiful "oil-free" coastline for a few days of fun in the sun.


This wasn't a planned vacation for me and the kiddos. You see, just before dawn broke on Sunday morning, I stirred from a peaceful night's rest to the sound of my husband getting ready in the master bath nearby. After being out of commission from work for three days due to a vicious stomach virus, Trae was anxious to return to his hay bailing responsibilities in Sumter County. Apparently, two-hundred bails worth of hay on the ground was plenty incentive to get Trae showered, dressed, and out the front door within a matter of minutes.

So, with the house completely silent, I flipped on the table lamp in our bedroom and began to ponder how the kids and I would spend the remainder of our holiday weekend in Millry. There was plenty for me to do at home: laundry (ew!), finish painting the trim work in our upstairs hallway (double ew!), or I could remove the wilted summer plants from our flower beds (ew, ew, ew!). Hmmm... Each chore seemed extremely productive but also sounded exactly as A DREADFUL CHORE!!!! And then I asked myself, "Isn't Labor Day intended to be a day of rest and relaxation, surrounded by those you love immensely (or completely alone if you enjoy solidarity)?" The wheels began to turn inside my head, contemplating the perfect day of relaxation for our family.

A few hours later, after Catie and Conner arrived home from a sleepover at their cousin's, the first words that rolled from Catie's lips, "Um, Mom? Can we please spend the night at the beach?" As you can see in the images below, it didn't take much for Catie to convince me to pack our bags, throw some snacks and drinks in a cooler, and make last-minute reservations for our over-night stay in Gulf Shores. And I must admit, being spontaneous with these youngsters felt absolutely INCREDIBLE!








I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Labor Day weekend, too! Tory

A Lot Going On!

I've always loved the summer days in Alabama - especially July. This is the month when my family spends every waking minute either in Gram's swimming pool or in the front yard playing baseball. And the best part is you never know who is going to show up.

Now, with the Fourth right around the corner, I find myself wondering where May and June went. Last night, with tons of photos to upload on my computer, I flipped through the three-hundred images on my memory card and understood exactly how time has passed so quickly. These are some of my favorite summer moments thus far!


Surprising my mom on her 58th birthday in Jackson, MS was one of the best events yet! It was so difficult keeping this little secret from her - she's the perceptive one in our family, usually knowing everything before everyone else. Though somehow we managed to pull it off!



The Overstreet's gathered at Kim and Todd's house (our cousins that live in Flowood, MS) to celebrate this wonderful event! Needless to say, the children (and adults) had a blast!



Cousin Ray was our captain for the day, taking Nikki, Christy, and me and a bunch of children out on the Ross Barnett Reservoir in Jackson, MS. It was a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky, and we enjoyed every second of touring the magnificent waterfront homes.



I think we all learned something new about boating and water safety after touring the reservoir with Captain Ray!



Back at the clubhouse, the little ones enjoyed splashing around in the pool.



A few weeks back, Trae and I took our children to Gainsville, AL for a fun-filled week of horse-back riding w/ cousin Susie and Vacation Bible School at his mom's church in Livingston.



Our children have fallen in love with Honeybun. He is the most gentle quarter-horse I've ever seen around kids, following Catie wherever she led.



Courtney loved showing Susie her new trick from the diving board!

So, as you can see, there's been a lot of fun and exciting events going on for the Minus family this summer. I'd love to know what's been keeping you busy so please leave a message in the comment section below. Have a safe annd happy Fourth of July, everyone! Tory

Another Road Trip for the Minus Gang!

Our bags are packed and the countdown has begun...three hours before the Minus gang heads out into the wild blue yonder (week-long trip to Gainsville, AL), so my posting may be sparce for the next few days.

I hope you all have a wonderful week! Tory

13th Annual Alabama Writers Symposium

What could be a better way to wind down a hectic week of shuttling four children to and from school and baseball games, than to rub shoulders with the very best amongst Southern writers, including Carolyn Haines, the 2010 Harper Lee Award winner?

Yesterday, I was fortunate enough to go, relax, and pose questions with some of the state's most elite authors at the 13th Annual Alabama Writers Symposium in Monroeville, Alabama. The picture above is myself posing cheerfully next to Phillip Shirley, author of Sweet Spot: 125 Years of Baseball and the Louisville Slugger. Mr. Shirley was kind enough to answer some of my questions about the publishing industry and sign a book for my nephew's upcoming birthday.

After listening to nonfiction author, Eddie Curran (gentleman at the bottom left in the photo above), deliver a highly entertaining powerpoint about his first book, The Governor of Goat Hill: Don Siegelman, the Reporter Who Exposed His Crimes, and the Hoax that Suckered Some of the Top Names in Journalism, Jessica Ross (my wonderfully talented, super cool library director friend at the top right) and myself felt under no circumstances could we return to Washington County without a signed copy of his book. Wasting no time at all, Jess and I dashed to the bookstore, purchased a ton of books, and stalked Mr. Curran in order to steal a few minutes of his time. His personality is a mixture of comical charm and clever sarcasm, but by far, Mr. Curran is the funniest author we encountered during the day.

The distinguished gentleman at the bottom right, Mr. Ted Dunagan, is the author of The Yellow Watermelon, an Accelerated Reader book, which fits the bill for any avid young book lover. Mr. Dunagan was extremely approachable and very encouraging of my writing endeavor. I came home with a signed copy of his fascinating novel as well.

After a splendid hour of booksigning and refreshments, Jess and I headed over to the Monroeville Community House for the Harper Lee & Eugene Current Garcia Award Presentation/Luncheon. Elegance is not the word to describe the lovely decorations, floral arrangements, and stylish table settings placed inside the dining hall of the community house. For the next hour, we ate like queens and enjoyed listening to Carolyn Haines and Ralph Voss deliver such eloquent speeches after accepting the Harper Lee & Eugene Current Garcia Awards.

The afternoon in historic Monroeville could not be complete without paying tribute to the critically acclaimed author, Harper Lee. With the 5oth anniversary of To Kill A Mockingbird, it only felt natural to end the day by driving past the old courthouse located in the downtown square and paying homage to the woman who's writing inspired me the most. This experience was one like no other, and I will forever remember where I was when To Kill A Mockingbird turned the BIG 50! Happy Anniversay, Harper Lee!

Meeting Gilbert Morris!

So today, I (along with 18 ladies and gents from Millry Baptist Church) traveled South to Foley, Alabama to meet the famous Christian writer Gilbert Morris. It was a thrilling experience because I was aware the 83-year-old author had written and published over 100 books, including the House of Winslow series.

It isn't only that I admire Mr. Morris as an accomplished writer, though of course I do, but I admire him even more because he has spent the majority of his life preaching God's word.

The highlight of our lunch meeting came when several ladies from our group encouraged little-old-me to engage Mr. Morris in conversation about his success in the publishing industry.

At this point, my throat tightened and my upper lip began to quiver. But instead of letting my fellow church goers down, I took a deep breath, smiled confidently, and pranced my five-foot, eleven-inch body down to Mr. Morris' end of the table. Given that I felt a dozen eyes staring at my back, I swallowed hard and bravely asked Mr. Morris for a minute of his time (I can assure you that I'd already planned an exit strategy just in case he became aggravated by my presence!).

Thankfully, Mr. Morris' face matched my enthusiastic expression. He held out his hand and offered a spot next to him at the end of the table. And for the next fifteen minutes, I listened attentively - hoping my forgetful mind would kick in overdrive and soak up every ounce of his words.

On the drive back to Millry, I thought of the experience and realized that I had been in the company of one extraordinary man!

Good nite, everyone! Tory

Spring Break 2010

There is so much to share about our Spring Break Vacation, so let me just jump on in and explain what the past few days have been like for our family!

Monday evening: first, imagine me slinging five overstuffed suitcases in the back of our suburban while crossing my fingers that the grocery bags at the bottom of the pile have not been crushed completely (Yep, I am the last person in the world you ever want packing your vehicle for a road trip!). From the sound of two Pringles cans popping, I quickly realize the snack bags have flattened like buttermilk pancakes on a warm-iron-griddle. I cringe, but unfortunately there is no time for a sit down and cry.

The kids are strapped tightly in their seatbelts, so I dash inside our home for a last minute view of my inbox before heading north for a weeklong trip with Grumpy, Sneezy, Sleepy, and Happy.

Argh! My Yahoo mailbox is empty, but I convince myself that every agent I've submitted to is up to her eyeballs with Monday morning query letters.

Meanwhile, Trae (a.k.a. the hardworking and underappreciated husband) is on the other end of the phone, half-way listening to my rants and rages about being the biggest pushover mom in the state of Alabama. He silently agrees, then wishes me well on my two-hour journey.

Before I pull the rear hatch on our vehicle, the 18" T.V. I've packed (a necessity when going off with our motley crew) tumbles from the mound of suitcases and hits the garage floor like a ton of bricks. Thank God I'm a pro at biting my tongue, because the words that came to mind were definitely not appropriate for the little ears in the backseat!

After a quick count to ten, I lean my head on the driver-side door and glance inside to see Grumpy, Sneezy, Sleepy, and Happy with their eyes glued to the 8" x 8" television screen in our vehicle.

My kiddos were completely oblivious to what I was enduring for their happiness (I think God gives us these moments to make us appreciate our own mothers even more) so I climb in the vehicle, strap myself in and allow my thoughts to drift to something pleasant: the book and a new WIP (Work In Progress) that's been brewing inside my head for the past few weeks.

And in that moment, all my troubles disappeared.

For the most part, the drive to Hill's Ranch was relaxing, and with the help of our energetic and enthusiastic Sumter County relatives, the next few days were nothing but sheer delight for our family. Trae and I were even lucky enough to attend a dinner date with one of our favorite Livingston couples.

Spring Break 2010 was definitely an event our family will talk about for many months to come. Hope you had a great one, too! Tory

Our Super-Easter Weekend!

Although in the beginning I promised not to bore you all with cheesy updates about our motley crew, yet somehow, I knew this weekend would be the exception. Therefore, today with great effort to entertain and not bore, I give you the five things I learned while visiting my in-laws for Easter weekend:

1.) Wireless router is my friend!

2.) I really, really should pack two boxes of Band-Aids when traveling with our fearless kids.

3.) It is impossible to start a new book (Dark Secrets #1 by Elizabeth Chandler) when four children are hyped on jellybeans, chocolate Cadbury eggs, and Cousin Susie's delicious brownies.

4.) Never polish toenails or shape eyebrows while your husband is driving down the road screaming at the kids to be quiet (Yes, sadly this was the best opportunity to do these tedious things!). For some odd reason, I believe we could pass as the Griswolds!

5.) And most importantly, always take your three-year-old to potty before Easter Sunday Communion begins (Of course, Courtney blurted out in church that she had to pee-pee. Thankfully, those sitting closest had a sense of humor!).

So, it goes without saying I was exhausted from our fun-filled weekend. Yet after scanning through the images on my camera, I couldn't help but get teary-eyed as the precious photos of my children flashed before my face. I turned and looked at each of them sleeping in the backseat of our suburban and realized the greatest joy of our weekend was being together as a family, celebrating Jesus' resurrection. It was truly a priceless moment!