My Family

My Family

Thursday, August 6, 2015

When God BLOWS Your Mind!!!


Last night, my husband and I went to the Outcry Tour at the BOK Center with my best friend and her family. It was amazing! So many great artists in one place and my spirit was lifted. I definitely need a few of these concerts each year to fill my cup. 

My favorite song to hear live was Oceans by Hillsong United. This song is very inspirational and has a lot of meaning for my best friend and I. While I was going through my cancer prevention surgeries last year and she was beating thyroid cancer, this song was the uplifting message that we both needed to stay strong. I would fall asleep to this song many times with tears in my eyes and a hand raised toward Heaven. It was great to stand beside my long time friend (our husbands on either side of us being the rocks that they are) with uplifted hands, to thank God for his faithfulness and for bringing us both through hard times. God is good. All the time. Even in the dark valley, He is there, and He is good!

Between songs, there was a speaker from Compassion International (click here to learn more). Our first sponsor child was through Compassion and he graduated the program a few years ago after we had supported him for 10 years. Our second child is currently with World Vision and we've supported him the past 12 years. Last night, God was tugging on our hearts to get a third child to support on a monthly basis. Not eating out just one time each month with our family of five will supply this child with food, education, clothing, medical attention, mentorship, and God's love. We can easily skip one dinner out a month to significantly change a life. 

Compassion volunteers were going up and down the aisles of the BOK Center which seats almost 20,000 people. Selfishly, I wanted to look at a group of kids to find one with some kind of significant so that we could feel an instant connection and share that with our three girls. We would have looked for a birth date that is a match to someone in our family, etc. Isn't is just like God to blow your mind when you think that you have to be in control?! As a volunteer passed with a stack of cards in his hand of kids waiting to be sponsored, he reached into his pocket (not the stack in his hand) and randomly gave my husband, among the 20,000 people at the concert, this card...


Did you catch that? Look at this name. We were blown away and tears flooded our eyes. My expectations were on a matching birthday, but God matched our NAME. How great is our God! I love when He reaches down among so many people, and with over 550 kids being sponsored that night, and He gives us Ruben MORRISON Mensah. Sometimes God has to literally spell it out for us to see his Love. Spell. It. Out. 

Well done God, well done. 

We can't wait to send our first letter to Ruben. Our oldest (she's 7) has been telling us for a few weeks that we need to adopt a boy. I'd say that Ruben is a perfect match to our family. Not to mention, he's 2 years and 5 days younger than our oldest daughter and 25 is our favorite number. Coincidence? Never, not when God is in control!

Matthew 25:40 - "The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.' "




Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Rhea Lana: Fall/Winter Kids Consignment Sale COMING SOON!!!




It's. The. Most. Wonderful. Time. Of. The. Year ... It's time for the Fall/Winter Rhea Lana of Broken Arrow Sale! But, if you were expecting me to say Christmas, I will let you in on a little secret. This is a GREAT place to do some early Christmas shopping & Back to School shopping for the amazing kids in your life!

THE VOTES ARE IN ... Rhea Lana won the TulsaKids Magazine 2015 Family Favorite in the consignment sale category! This is the second year the local, family owned business has been awarded this category and the first year they received the FAMILY FAVORITE AWARD! They are proud to offer a wide variety of high-quality items to the local community at affordable prices!


What is Rhea Lana you ask?
  • "Rhea Lana's of Broken Arrow is a community event that benefits families all over Broken Arrow and the surrounding areas! We LOVE what we do! Our mission is to add value to the lives of families by providing the highest quality consignment experience possible. We hold two consignment sale events each year. This upcoming event will feature HIGH QUALITY Fall and Winter children's clothing (infant - junior), maternity clothing, shoes, toys, books, DVDs, children's electronics and gaming systems, children's furniture, baby gear and equipment, household furniture, and much more!  Some of our favorite brands are A Pea In the Pod, Baby Nay, Childrens Place, Gap, Gymboree, Hollister, Janie & Jack, Justice, Matilda Jane, Mini Boden, Motherhood, Old Navy, Pottery Barn Kids, Ralph Lauren, Under Armour and many others. Brands are not required but sell well because moms know and trust their quality and style. We accept all children's clothing in excellent condition so you know your items will be high quality. * One of the most rewarding moments comes for us after the event when we get to donate thousands of high quality items to the Margaret Hudson Program and Broken Arrow Neighbors to benefit those in need! Consignors can opt to donate their unsold items to these families in the Tulsa area, and we will take care of the rest!"
  • "We are accepting shorts! This sale we are accepting all fall and winter clothing, as well as shorts, short sleeved shirts and capri pants! We will not accept spaghetti strap type shirts, tank tops or sleeveless shirts, swimwear, sandals, or flip flops… save these items for the Spring & Summer event. Don’t forget about… Halloween costumes, Holiday & Christmas outfits, snow suits, winter jackets and accessories!" 



Where is Rhea Lana located & When is it held?
  • The Sale dates are Aug 15th - 19th at the Rhema Ninowski Rec Center in BA
  • There are Full Price days, 25% off days, and Half Price days
  • See the full event schedule HERE

How do you consign your items with Rhea Lana?
  • First time consignors click HERE
  • Returning consignors click HERE

Want to volunteer to help out this amazing organization and get in on some early shopping?
  • Learn more by clicking HERE

Want to be the first to know about all of the Rhea Lana events? 
  • Like their Facebook page HERE

Are you a Mom to Be? 
  • If so, click HERE for an Early Shopping Pass!

Are you wanting to Consign, but you're not sure how to price your items? 
  • First, let me tell you that the average consignor in the Spring/Summer 2015 sale made $342! Wow! I was one of those consignors!
  • Second, a pricing guideline is right HERE
  • Third, HERE is some handy prepping information




Consignors: You have until Wednesday, Aug 12th, at 11:59 pm to enter your items so there's PLENTY of time left to clean out those closets and make some money!@ Entering items is super easy...especially with the new VOICE ENTRY option via your Smartphone! And, you get to watch your sales update LIVE throughout the day!

Shoppers: Please consider volunteering to get yourself an early shopper pass. Trust me, there are some great items that you will want to get first dibs on!

My Super Secret Veteran Tips: 
  • Halloween costumes always sell. I've never had one return home!
  • Super shiny things sell!
  • Outfits sell better than individual items! Put pieces together to make sets.
  • I've bought and sold brand new items with the tags still on them at super discounted prices!
  • If you happen to have three girls, you WILL buy almost every cute outfit that you come across. After all, these items can be passed down to younger sisters!

Feel free to contact me with questions, or you can contact the owners of the BA event, Debbie (debbiew@rhealana.com) or Kristin (kristin@rhealana.com). I've been blessed to get to know these amazing ladies over the years and they will treat you like family!