That's My Boy

Today I mentioned to no one in general "I need to clean out the fridge" Shane said that he would do it for me!!! Then before I could blink he moved on to the pantry! This was after cooking the meat for tacos the other night. My boy is growing up.

Taco Meat

My clean and organized pantry!

He 'fixed' my pictures on the fridge.

My fridge and freezer!

Suitcase of Love.

I've been thinking about what to invest myself in next year. Here's a shocker, it has to do with Foster Care. I've been doing a bit a research and reading lots of foster care blogs. There is a terribly sad fact. When children leave their birth home or leave their foster home to another home, they take their belongings with them. Whatever they may own, in most cases it's put into brown paper sacks or garbage bags. So my new mission for the year? I want to stock each child in Gloucester's foster care system with a suitcase. Then I'd like to move on to the surrounding areas Mathews, Middlesex, Yorktown/Poquson. It's going to be at least 100 suitcases. I'm going to start small. Yard sales and thrift stores. I'm hoping to have fundraiser and raffles. Every child should feel they are of worth. It's hard to feel of worth when your possessions are shoved into a garbage bag. So there's my mission. I can't wait to get started!

My Christmas Miracle.

Oh, there's a story. I wish I could tell it. It's not my story to tell though. I thought one day it might be, but God has other plans for us. I will say that I just got to witness one of the most miraculous sights. I watched a family be formed, right in front of my eyes. I've never been in the room when a baby was born (well besides my own) so I've never seen something like that. I imagine that's what it's like to see a baby place into the hands of the ones who have waited so long. So through my tears, I smile. We did what we were meant to do.

My personal Handy Manny.

I love my husband. I love that he can be sensitive and loving. I love that he'll rush home to take care of me if I'm sad or sick. I love how he loves our kids. I love that he can be soft. I also love that he's a 'mans man" He can hunt and fix things. Like this mess!

 

That is our ceiling! There was a tiny leak, then a large leak. Then water pouring out through the light fixture. All I could see where dollar signs of a plumber. However. My hubby came to the rescue. Cut the ceiling open, fixed the pipe and stopped the leak!

Pre-massive cut.

My JUST mopped floor.

And now he's out under the truck trying to figure out why it was leaking all over the place. I have no doubt that he'll fix that too. I'm so thankful for him!

The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn (Book Review)

The Encounter by Stephen Arterburn is a fictional story based on two real life events. The Encounter is a short fictional novel that follows Johnathan Rush as he returns to his hometown of Fairbanks, Alaska from his warm Miami home. After a suicide attempt and at the advice of his pastor he returns to find his birth mother and put his anger to rest. With the help of local reporter Erica, Johnathan starts at the childrens home where he was left by his mother. The journey leads to a lady named Mercy. Mercy has information on Johnathan's mother. Will what he finds help him overcome his anger or will never be able to forgive and move on.

The Encounter is a short and easy read. It is fairly predictable. I found it a nice uplifting and heartwarming story.

This copy of The Encounter was given to me for review by Booksneeze.com. I was not compensated in any other way. 

I feel sorry for your kids!

So a blog I follow posted a status. She's going to homeschool! Woo. I love her. She's an adoptive mom, a foster mom, a 'going off the grid' mom, she's been a single mom, a teen mom, and she's awesome! I know homeschool starts conversations, some heated. But this, this was one of the comments:

 "Ive never understood homeschooling. Dont U have 2 B VERY highly educated? I only kno 2 momz personally that homeschool thier kidz. 1 becuz 3 blockz iz 2 far 2 walk (OMG!) n the other becuz it would B 2 much of a hassle 2 put them in school (gimme a damn break!) n both R dumb az a box of rockz n in my mind pure lazy. I feel sorry 4 thier kidz."

Oh lady, I feel sorry for your children. So, no I don't think everyone should homeschool. This lady's children need to be in school, far far away from her. Maybe she was kidding. I hope she was joking. 

Snow Globes!

 We made snow globes! We used baby food jars, a small toy, hot glue, and glitter! It was very easy. Hot glue the small toy to the bottom of the lid! Fill the jar with water and glitter. Screw lid onto jar. Shake and instant snow globe!