2 FOR 20!!

Been meaning to order a ROCK WHAT YOU GOT tee... 

(or two)? 

Well, now, is the time to get 'em!  

From Monday, April 29th at 10:00 pm until Tuesday, April 30th until 10:00 pm we are offering a HUGE special...2 TEES FOR $20 (+shipping if we have to ship yours)!!  

Available Colors/Sizes:

Boys:

Small (1) in Navy/ Orange print

XS (1), Medium (2), Large (2) in Navy/Lime Green print

Girls:

Small (1) in Navy/ Pink print

XS (2), Small (3), Medium (2)in Heather Gray/ Pink print

Email us at: sales@thecommonthreads.org to get yours--first come, first served. We will notify you via email if we do not have the size and/or color you would like asap.  And, we will update the blog with accurate information frequently.  Thanks!!

*10% of all sales this month are going to Ian Winfrey, 

an amazing young man from Grove, OK*

Impossible Prayers

A few weeks ago, I was reminded by my MIL and FIL to pray the "impossible prayers" more.  Pray for those things in my life that I have absolutely no control over, the things that ONLY God can do.  Continue to pray the prayers that I have prayed for years with "no result".  Sometimes (or a lot of the time) I  pray for the things that seem very possible to me because I can contribute to the outcome...but, in those prayers of complete and utter dependence on Him, something special happens.  There's something so powerful about totally releasing a stronghold, person, or circumstance to The One who knows the beginning and the end.  The One who knows how many hairs are on the head of the person I am praying for.  The One who is in every detail of every circumstance I face.  

The Word is full of so many scriptures that inform us that God is able, so why don't we (I) go to His throne more with these impossible prayers?  The Lord was so incredibly gracious to allow me to see two miracles just days after bathing in these truths.  The stuff ONLY He can do is still taking my breath away today as I write about it.  

Jesus said, "With man it is impossible, but not with God.  

For all things are possible with God."  

Mark 10:27

About a week after I received this reminder and had been praying for some pretty "impossible" things to happen, the Lord gave me something I had been missing since the middle of March...

Andrew and I just put the boys down for the night and were getting ready for bed ourselves. We had just replaced our stolen iPad with a iPad mini over the weekend and we were playing around with it.  Andrew was asking Siri what to wear the next day because our weather had been anywhere from 40 to 75 that week...gotta love Oklahoma weather!  Anyway, right after he spoke the words "What should I wear tomorrow?", our notes from our original iPad showed up on the screen of the iPad mini.  You might be thinking, "huh?!" or "what?!" right about now.  Trust me, that's exactly what we were thinking too.  Andrew immediately emailed the documents to me and as I looked everything over, it was all there.  Most of the notes from my book, my journal entries, Jack's progress notes that I have taken since his diagnosis, etc.  We just looked at each other and didn't know what to say...but, we both knew it was a miracle.  It was something ONLY God could have done.  We were not backed up to iCloud.  We didn't even know what iCloud was before all of this happened (shocking, I know.) And, yet, there it was, right in front of our eyes.  Simply amazing!

We can't explain it and it doesn't make sense, but we are completely okay with that...because we believe in His word that tells us:

God can do anything, you know--far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!  He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.  Ephesians 3:20

About a week after we got the notes back, we had the opportunity to see another sweet miracle.  I decided to take Jack's cane to school to see if he would attempt to use it again instead of his K-Walker.  We tried to get him to use in January and he wasn't too fond of it-it was used more as a sword with Will than anything else :)  When we picked him up that day, he had not tried the cane yet, so we decided to give it a shot on the way out of school.  As soon as I put the cane in front of him, he grabbed it and just took off towards the door!  It was as if  a light-bulb went off at that moment and he felt confident that if he needed the cane, it was there to help him.  We all stood there amazed, grinning ear to ear.  And again, we knew it was the Lord doing what ONLY He can do.  

So many of you know that this has been a prayer of mine since Jack was diagnosed at 9 months old.  He will be 4 years old in July and Andrew and I have prayed so many "impossible prayers" over his life the last 3 years...we are thankful to the Lord for giving us hope and for allowing us to see Him at work!

My prayer for anyone reading this is for you to be encouraged to pray the "impossible" with me. 

Pray for that job you so desire.

Pray for your marriage to be strong in the Lord.

Pray for your child to say "momma", to take a first step, to make a new friend.

Pray for your loved one to follow Jesus.  

Pray for deep relationships with others.

Pray for financial freedom.

Pray to forgive the unforgivable.  

Pray to give up a stronghold in your life.

Pray for complete healing-- emotional or physical.  

Let us never forget--

Our God is able.  Our God is stronger.  God you are higher than any other.  

Be Blessed!!

Tiffany

Our Little Light

Little Light of Mine

Shine so Brightly.

What a precious gift to have this video of Jack and the two doctors who have been so helpful to our family the last 3 years.  Thank you, Shriners Hospital for Children in Shreveport, LA and The Children's Center in Bethany, OK for all you do!  You give families hope and somehow make us feel "normal" as soon as we walk in your door. May God continue to bless the work of your hands!  

Giving Back~April

Hi!
Meet Ian Winfrey. Ian is a a sweet 8 year old who lives in Grove. His parents are Susan and Rod Winfrey and he has 2 sisters, Madison and Chloe. Ian was born with a neurological condition called Angelman Syndrome which is a deletion in his maternal 15th chromosome. Some characteristics of Angelman Syndrome may include a stiff jerky gait, developmental delay; absent speech; seizures, fascination of water, and a super happy/ excitable demeanor. Despite Ian's diagnosis, he is one happy, loving, laid back, beautiful boy who makes everyone he comes in contact with, smile. He teaches us all to enjoy the small things in life, smile at the beauty around us, and laugh even in the midst of trials.

　
He is now 8 years old and is currently in a wheel chair, however, a lot of "angels" walk and Ian is showing much progress in taking many assisted steps. He currently attends Grove Lower elementary and has a wonderful team of teachers, aides, speech, occupational, and physical therapists that help Ian progress daily. Ian also receives extra therapy at home by a local pediatric PT twice a week and by his family.

　
Ian and his family will be attending the Dallas Angelman Syndrome Walk this year May 18th. Will you please help by supporting this cute little guy?

Angelman Syndrome Foundation hosted 30 walks in 30 cities across country to raise awareness, funds to find a cure for Angelman syndrome. More than 10,000 supporters attended and raised approximately $1,030,000 to date! Not only is investment in AS research expected to help those living with and affected by AS, but other conditions that share related symptoms such as autism, epilepsy, Rett Syndrome, Prader-Willi Syndrome and even forms of cancer. By investing in AS research, we have the potential to positively impact the lives of more than 12 million people worldwide. Since 1996, the ASF has funded over 66 research grants totaling over $4.6 million. The most aggressive funding of research is aimed at finding therapies and treatments for curing certain AS symptoms.

　
Thanks for sharing your amazing son with us, Susan! Also, Ian's mom is the founder and creator of Hipperbibs(www.hipperbib.com).  Please check out her website and see if it might be something your child needs...there are so many great designs and they are very durable! 

CP Awareness Day 2013!

The Lord has done it this very day;

    let us rejoice today and be glad.

Psalm 118:24

Today, March 25th, 2013 is designated National Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day by the US Congress.  We are so thankful to those who have worked so hard to make this happen.

You might be wondering, how can I raise awareness?  What is it that I can do to help?  You might be surprised how easy it really is.  I can't tell you how much encouragement we have received from conversations that have taken place because of a t-shirt.  Talking about, educating, fostering acceptance...these are all things we are about at Common Threads and we pray that you will join us in our mission to spread awareness.  

And, I wish all of you could see how Jack responds to seeing "his" glasses and walker on the tees...he is so proud and I know it provides him so much comfort to know that others support him.  Never gets old to see the smile on his face :)  

So, we are wearing some GREEN today or a Common Threads tee...or both!  Will you join us? Then, post your pics to our Common Threads FB Page @common threads, on Twitter @common_threads1 or Instagram @thecommonthreads (#cpawareness)? 

If you do, you will be entered into a drawing to win a FREE Walk by Faith or ROCK WHAT YOU GOT tee!!  

Today, we honor our son, Jack and the thousands affected by Cerebral Palsy.  You are our heroes and we are blessed because of you; your joy, perseverance, and unconditional love have taught us so much.  May you always know how much you are loved right back.  

  

Say Cheese!

Are you a special needs family who would love to have new family portraits?  Or, do you know a special family you would love to nominate to receive a family portrait session?  If so, this is the place to be!  

Here at Common Threads, we are always looking to partner with others who share our mission of being an encouragement to others.  My sweet friend, Abby Coyle of Abby Coyle Photo Artistry (www.abbycoyle.com) is offering a special family a mini photography session completely free!  

All you need to do is comment here and tell us why you would love to have family photos taken or why you would like to nominate a family and you could win!  The session will be for 30 minutes, near Oklahoma City, so the receiving family need to be willing to travel to the OKC area in order to enter the contest.  You must enter the contest with your comment by Monday, April 1st at 10:00 pm.  And, Abby will contact the special family after the contest to discuss location, time, and date.  

Friends, please share the word...we would love to hear from lots of families!  


Be Blessed!
Tiffany

Choosing Joy

As we were driving home from Oklahoma City on Saturday in the pouring rain, without a front passenger window, and glass pieces everywhere (our car was broken into while at the State Fairgrounds watching HS basketball and numerous items were stolen, including Jack's iPad, my purse and wallet, and our camera), Andrew looks at me in the backseat, sitting in between Will and Jack and says, "We will not allow the enemy to steal our joy." 

John 10:10 says, "The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the full." 

And, from that moment on, our attitudes shifted.  Our perspective changed.  And, boy did we need it to.  We were all sad, angry, depressed, blindsided, blaming ourselves (Will kept saying, "I am so sorry, Mom,I should not have brought the iPad."  Man, I love this kid's heart), and just flat-out sick to our stomachs.  

But, as soon as Scripture was spoken, we were different.  

We were lighter.  

We laughed.  

We praised Him in the storm...literally.  

We knew that so much had been lost-countless videos of the boys and most of a "book" I have been working on for almost 2 years about our experiences the last 4 years.  

But, we knew that we still had SO much, too. It was hard to have bad attitudes when we focused on what we still had and not what had been lost. 

And, although it's not a fun situation to go through, our prayer is that something good will come out of this.  Who knows?  Maybe the person who took the iPad will watch a video of Jack walking for the first time or sitting up on his own as his brother cheered him on, or read something I wrote and it will make an impact.  Maybe this person will see those with special needs differently.  Maybe this will soften a heart that has been hardened.  Or, maybe because of something they read about the Lord, they will turn back to Him or come to know Him for the first time.  Only God knows.  But, I am choosing to believe that He allowed this to happen for a purpose far beyond my understanding.  

Lord, you are so faithful to give us your Living Word when we feel so robbed and beaten up...help us to continue to choose joy over anger and sadness and have the right perspective. And, we know that you are in control and see everything.  So, again we pray that good will come from this circumstance, even though we may never see the end result ourselves, because we know that in all things, You work for the good of those who love You. Amen.  

After a rough weekend, we were thankful for a very joyful moment at Horses for Healing (www.horsesforhealingnwa.com) in Bentonville, Ark!

What a perfect week to get back on the saddle! 

And, the Lord gave Jack a horse named "Scooter"!
God Bless Horses for Healing!