Crazy Busy

I am so sorry that it has been a while since I have blogged. It has been crazy busy the last week or so. With trying to get ready for little man to come home and with the holidays it seems like we have been constantly going. TJ and I have been working really hard on getting our little guys room ready. He is going to have a western room and I have to tell you that I think that it is the cutest thing ever! I will post pics once we are done with it. We completed and mailed off our family book. LM (little man) foster family will show him the pictures and help to prepare him to join our family! Right now our son is relatively nameless. I know that I posted it in the last blog but that is not what he is going to go by. We may post it at a later date but right now it is still under wraps from everyone but a select few. Anyway, back to the book. I had so much fun creating it. There are pictures of most of our family members in the book and a short little bit written about each of them. We will work with LM when he gets here too with who everyone is. We have actually gotten to talk to him twice now! We, including LM, are very blessed with his foster family. They are amazing people and I have no doubt that God placed our son in that house so that they can help him to transition. They have allowed us to speak with him and are already telling him about us. He has the cutest little boy voice! He is just adorable in general. We are so happy that he is a normal all around boy. He loves everything boy. From running and climbing to wrestling. No girly boy here!! He is fearless and loves animals and to be outside. Hmm sound much like me and TJ?! TJ and I got to share our adoption news with my family over two different Christmas. Let me tell you how excited they are! I think my aunt and uncle are just as excited as TJ and I! I love it! Don and Tami have been awesome through the whole thing. They have been through adoption before and have been such an encouragement to us as we have been through so much. It was a tough Christmas for them but they were still so excited for us. My uncle had to have some major surgery on the 23rd. He is doing awesome and now they are planning a huge family party once little man gets home! LM got so spoiled this Christmas. His room is already overflowing with toys and clothes! This little guy is going to be so loved and spoiled! Now we just pray that the paperwork can hurry up and go through, that there are no problems with the ICPC or ICWA stuff. That is what we are waiting on now. If everything goes as it should than in about 3 weeks we will be off to meet and bring home our son! How absolutely crazy is that?! God works in such awesome ways. TJ and I were both about to give up and had little hope left when we got that call. I mean read just a couple posts back and you can see where we were. But God really did have a plan and it was this little man. And he is perfect and we are so excited to add him to our family. He is already loved. He has been prayed over for many years and now he has a real family that is so ready to meet him!

We are going to be parents!

It has been a while since I have posted and I have some news! We got a call from SD on December 14. We were the family selected to adopt an adorable little 3 year old boy named Jerrell. What an amazing Christmas miricle. TJ and I are now crazy busy not just with Christmas but also with getting everything set up for Jerrell to come home. If everything goes well than we should travel up to SD the last week of January to meet our son! There are still some things that could slow up the process if not halt it all the way. So many prayers are being said that things will go smoothly. We can totally see God in this though. We have come into quite a bit of money unexpectantly that will help a lot in the travel and preperation for bringing Jerrell home. We are so excited. I am going to be able to be a stay at home mom and so I am extremly excited about that. It will be a totally new world for me and TJ. We are used to having 2 full time pay checks and I make almost as much as he does! To go from making that much and having a nicely padded account and savings account to only having one income will be an adjustment. It will be odd to actually have to budget! My husband is awesome and works so hard to support us and has a pretty good job so money is no really a worry but it will still be an adjustment! Right now we are having so much fun getting prepared to bring him home. J will be one spoiled little boy. He is the first grandkid on my side of the family. I am not sure who is more excited, me and TJ or my brothers. They are going to have a blast teaching him all sorts of things and buying him the most annoying toys there are! Our friends' little girl is already asking for him to come over and play. This little boy is so loved and we just pray that things continue to go smoothly and in about a month we will get to meet our little boy!

Christmas Cheer

After my depressing last post, I thought that I would lighten it up some. I really am not doom and gloom all the time. I just tend to find writing therapeutic so often times my blog takes the brunt of my moods! I would rather get it in writing than to burden another person with my whining!

So anyway, here are a couple pictures of our house all decorated for Christmas. Our mantle which I love. I really am a minimalist. I think the less the better in some cases. And our poor little Christmas tree. TJ and I always get a real tree. You just cannot beat the smell of a real tree. I love walking in the front door and being greeted by the smell of pine and spices! This year we bought a real tree that was bound so we did not get to see really what it looked like until we got it home. It turned out to be a little lop sided!!! Oh well. We had fun decorating it and I think that it looks great! After this weekend, there are MANY more gifts under the tree. We have such a large family so it is always fun to go and buy for everyone. Its always fun. I know that gift giving is not the reason for Christmas. We do not make a huge deal out of this part of Christmas. But I have to say that I love giving gifts more than I like to get them! I love to really think about what a person would like. It makes me happy to make other people happy. TJ and I usually start shopping for gifts right after Christmas so that we do not have to do it all at once right before Christmas. With the chaos of this year, we did not get started as soon as we usually do.

We leave on Friday to head to my parents. When my brothers and I reached college age and moved out of the house, my parents decided that we would do our Christmas the weekend before the real holiday so that once we have our own families we would not have to worry about where we would go or anything. So off we are to Christmas with Mom, Dad and the boys this weekend. It ought to be a blast. Mom is cooking a big meal and we will just hang out and relax for the whole weekend. Our plans for the actual holiday are pretty exciting for us too. We are leaving home on the Thursday before Christmas. We are headed to my hometown and where TJ and I went to college. We are staying in a hotel that night and getting to see all of our friends. I am so excited. My best friend had a baby almost 5 months ago and I have yet to see him. I am so ready to hug on and love little Gavin Kai!!! We will hang out there until around 4:00 on Christmas Eve when we will head to my Granny's house about 45 minutes away. There all of my family will gather for a huge country Christmas. When I say all I mean all. 6 aunts and uncles, my parents and brothers, and too many cousins to count. It is always so much fun to all get together. We have done it every year since I was tiny. What is even more fun is that there are usually several unexpected people that just drop in to see everyone. It is loud and crazy with a ton of awesome food. My Granny's house is not a big house by any means and so it is crammed with people of all sizes. The little kids run and play inside and out. She lives on a ranch and so there is tons of room to run and play.

Christmas Day is spent at my Grandma's house an hour away. This is a little more calm and collected. It will be my family and my uncle, aunt, and cousin. Not too many of us but fun all the same. This year I think that the guys are planning to go and shoot skeet. I am going to laugh when my little bitty momma can out shoot them all. She really is a great shot! Yeah, I know that is not a traditional Christmas activity but it is my family. We are just different. And we have a ton of fun together.

I am looking forward to seeing everyone and I am sure that there will be a ton of pictures following!

Tired

***Warning*** This post is going to be pretty much just a vent session. Feel free to skip it.


So this has not been my week. And today is not really helping anything. A couple that we know are adopting twin boys. And they found out that their adoption will be finalized on Friday. That is great news for them and I want to be happy for them. The thing is that they only started this process in June. Like literally started it then. Their home study was approved in June got a call about twin newborns in July. They didn't even have to pay the agency fees because the agency could not find anyone else that wanted these two little boys. Now I am happy for this family. I really am. They wanted another child for a long time. But really? TJ and I have been trying to adopt for ages now. I know that we are not supposed to covet what our neighbors have. But it is so hard not to get upset. I know that God has called TJ and I to be parents and yet we continue to struggle. What seems so easy for other people is not for us and it is getting really old. I DO have faith that God is in control but truthfully I am angry with Him. And that makes me feel bad. But honestly that is how I feel. I don't understand why it has gone on this long and why God won't bless us with a child. Why give us the desire and the calling and then not allow us to become parents? God's first commandment to man was to go forth and be fruitful. For a couple that really tries to live our lives obeying ALL of God's commandments, this is tough. No matter how hard we try to fulfill this commandment, we cannot do it on our own. Trust me, we have tried. I know that part of the reason that I am so emotional this time of year is the fact that we lost our second baby on Christmas Eve. Every year we think that this will be the year that we will bring home our own child to have Christmas with and yet another year is drawing to a close without the hope of fulfilling this commandment. I know that I sound pathetic and whiny but unless you have been through it than you don't know what it is like. Most days I can overcome the anger and just keep moving but for some reason this week has just been really rough. Next week may not shape up to be much better either. The three kids that we may be interested in all have court dates next week. TJ is telling me to stop being so negative but I am not really seeing anything great coming out of these calls and court appearances either. It is like I have just come to expect the worst. The little girl that has a date is one that we learned about more than 6 months ago. We have been through so much with this child. Ups and downs and court dates moved and uncooperative workers. You name it. We would love to have this little girl. But what we are facing seems huge. Her foster family wants to adopt her and her case worker wants that to happen as well. The problem being ICWA laws. She is NA and the foster family is not. That means that legally they should not be able to adopt her. The little girls tribe also has stated several times that they do not want her foster family to adopt her. The only way around the law is to prove that it is in the best interest of the child to stay where she is. Well by putting off the court dates and leaving her in the home etc, they are going to claim that she is bonded with her foster family and that it would be traumatizing to move her. And it will be. I can understand and feel for the family. They love her and want her but at the same time a law is a law and TJ and I would also love to have her be a part of our family. most of all we want what is best for that little girl. It just seems like such a huge thing to have to overcome. I know that God can crumble any obstacle in the way but from past experience it just seems like our reality is that it won't happen. One of the other children that we are interested in is a little boy that actually has a placement call. We made it to the final three that will be presented to a board for selection. You would think that is a good thing. It really is but we have been there so many times before and with this same state! I think that all the workers know us by name! They don't even ask for our home study even more because everyone has a copy! So that call is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday. We will see. This state has on more than one occasion told us that we were the choice for a specific child and then at the last minute chosen someone else. The final child is a little boy here in our state. This would be an ideal situation for us. He is not local but at least it is the same state and there would be no interstate compact to worry about or anything. His court date is about visitation with his birth mother. Currently she has been deemed unfit for even visitation. Her rights on this little boy have not been terminated yet but it seems like just a matter of time until they are. She has already lost custody of her other 2 children. We know that his current foster family has no interest in adopting him. What we are hoping and what our worker is trying to do is arrange with his case worker for us to have a legal risk placement. Which means that we would technically foster him until mom's rights have been terminated. If she regains her visitation rights on Tuesday than that won't happen since we live on the other side of the state. Ideally the mother will have gotten her stuff together and cleaned up her act so that she can be a mother to this child. But if not than we really hope that the worker will want to work with us!
So now that I have vented and gotten some of my frustration out, I feel a little better. I am a writer by nature and so just getting my thoughts down help out a lot. I really am not a negative person or someone who is always down. I am actually just the opposite. It is just the adoption stuff is so hard. It is something that we want so badly but no matter what we do or how badly we want it, there is nothing that we can do. We try. We are on our knees daily. If someone is reading this, please remember TJ and I in your prayers this holiday season. We really could use them.

One of those days

Do you ever have "just one of those days"? I try not to have too many of them but today is definitely one. I would give anything to just go back to bed and start over again. It started when I messed up financial reports not once but twice this morning. Not a big deal? Well it is when it takes so long to do them! And then I find a loose thread on my tank top. Come to find out I have been losing sequins off my top all day! So not a big deal. Well it is the first time that I have even worn this shirt! I am just tired and cranky. Poor TJ is going to have to deal with it tonight! He has already offered to cook dinner and get me a nice hot bubble bath though. He knows me all too well. I don't think I can say it enough, I have a pretty good husband.

An adoption update. Well there is no real update. We are waiting on TPRs and placement calls. The story of our lives. I just seem to be a Scrooge this year. I had a dream earlier this year that we would have a child by Christmas. As it keeps drawing nearer and nearer it just doesn't seem like it will come true. This will be the 3rd Christmas since the miscarriages and the second since we started the adoption process. It just seems to drag on and on. These past 3 years have been pretty tough around the holidays. That first one not only did we lose our babies but TJ's grandmother also passed away. Last year, it snowed so much that TJ and I could not travel to go see family as planned. We were snowed in with nothing to eat but Ramon noodles. This year my uncle passed away and I have another uncle that is really sick and may not make it to Christmas. I am trying to keep my spirits up because this is the time of year to give thanks and to remember that the whole point of Christmas is the birth of my Savior. That is such a great thing that it should out weigh all of the bad. I really am trying to be more upbeat. Maybe after a nap, dinner cooked and a nice hot bath, I will feel more like myself!

Nothing

So I really don't have anything to say today. Just a couple pictures of what we have been doing. Its been a pretty busy last week or so. We had a great Thanksgiving and are now in full Christmas mode. I did have some pretty bad news this week. My great uncle Richard past away this past week. No one even knew that he was sick. It was really sudden and unexpected. Most of my cousins live in CA and so they have had to travel back this way for the funeral. The funeral is tomorrow. It is always so hard to lose some one you love. I will always remember Uncle Richard's love for my granny's pecan pie. That used to be all that he wanted for his birthday. He was a great man with a ready smile and laugh. He loved his wife and they were together since they were teenagers. He is going to be missed and remembered as a wonderful man. We love you Uncle Richard!

Thankfulness End

With all the chaos that happens over the holiday weekend, my Thankfulness countdown has been neglected. So rather than try and catch up I think I will just end it now since tomorrow is that last day of the month anyway. We really did have a pretty nice holiday weekend. I spent the majority of Wednesday night and Thursday in the kitchen. But as I have stated in past posts, I love to cook. I am blessed to have a husband who is willing to help out with the cooking too. This was the fits holiday meal that I have had to fix on my own. It really was not too bad!
Friday was my birthday. TJ made me a birthday cake from scratch. What a great husband! Neither one of us are real big shoppers so there was no black Friday shopping for us! That evening we headed to the Christmas Train. TJ posted about it in the previous post. It has become a tradition for TJ and me. We love to go and spend that time together. It just gets the Christmas season going for us. It was so much fun to share it with our nieces and nephews this year.
Saturday was all about the Christmas decorations. TJ and I love real trees so we got up and went on a hunt for the perfect tree. I think that we did a pretty good job! We got it home and then put up the outside lights. Personally I think that it turned out pretty well. Since moving into the new house, I realized that we don't have nearly enough decorations to fill up the bigger house! Oh well. We can add to it as we go. I will post pics of the house later.
Sunday was church. We LOVE our new church and are so excited to be attending there. For lunch, TJ's family came over again. We had a simple lunch of sub sandwiches but my nieces and I made brownies. It is so fun to have them help in the kitchen. I know I loved helping my family growing up. I hope Kiah and Ryann have the same memories when they are grown! After they left, TJ and I just relaxed for a little while. It was the first time all weekend that we really just got to sit and breathe. That only lasted for so long though. We headed to our friends house for a chili dinner. Wow can Alison cook! It was so good. There is nothing better than good food, good friends and great conversation. We got to play with our two favorite girls for a while too. Love those kids! They got me an amazing picture for the wall. It is the Serenity Prayer. That is a prayer that Alison and I both hold close as it has gotten us through so many tough times the past few years. So blessed to have such good friends!
So that was our Thanksgiving holiday. I hope everyone else had a great one too! Now we have about 2 weeks before the Christmas chaos begins! Bring it on!

Thankfulness Day 26

Today I am very thankful for the Christmas Train. You might be wondering "What is the Christmas Train?" It is a really cool place where Gina and I have been the last 3 years. We took my mom and Alvin and my sisters and the nieces and nephews. We had a blast. You get to ride a real steam train and as you ride you get to hear the story of how God created the world and the life and death of Jesus Christ. It is located on an old western movie set. You also get to do some shopping and have some hot chocolate or coffee and listen to some live music. It is good a good family time. Can't wait to go back next year.

Thankfulness Day 25

This is TJ and I am very thankful to have my family here for Thanksgiving. My mom and Alvin flew in to town on Thanksgiving evening and we had a wonderful dinner that was prepared by my wonderful wife. She is such a good cook and worked very hard at making sure the meal was perfect. We had some Turkey, stuffing, corn, salad, rolls, etc. It was an awesome meal. Couldn't ask for anything better.

Thankfulness Day 24

Yesterday I wrote about sunshine and loving it. Today is the total opposite! It is rainy and overcast. This is my least favorite type of day! But what I am thankful for today is a good book. I love to read. I read just about anything I can get my hands on. My favorites are the classics and poetry. Both are things that never fail to transport me to a different world. I also love a good thriller. Something about putting my self in the characters shoes and trying to figure out who done it before the character does. Children's books also hold a special place in my heart. I have quite a collection. My love of books and reading came pretty natural. Mom and Dad always read to us when we were young. We had a HUGE collection of books. Dad built us a special bookshelf just to hold all the childrens books. I think that Mom still has them all. Every night each of us got to choose a book to have read to us before we went to bed. Once we were old enough to read, we took turns reading chapter books with our parents. I would much rather read a book than watch tv or a movie. I think my imagination is much better than that of screen writers. on dreary days like this, I love to curl up in my favorite chair in front of the fire place with a book. That is the only way that I can be still! TJ and I plan to encourage the love of books in our kids as well. Much better than planting them in front of a tv for hours! Studies show that children who read have much higher test scores and IQ than those who watch tv. Who wouldn't want that for their kids?

Thankfulness Day 23

On this bright and sunny day, I am thankful for the sunshine! I am such a sunshine girl. Bright warm sunshine just calls for being outside soaking it all up. It brings out the amazing colors that is in God's creation. My daddy used to sing "You are My Sunshine" to me all the time. I don't really think that started my love of sunshine but it sure helps. I love the fact that the sun helps things to grow. Without it photosynthesis cannot happen therefore no oxygen. (Yeah I am a science junky). This time of year is really tough for me because it starts getting dark so early. There is not enough time to walk Capone or go for a jog outside. It gets dark almost as soon as I get home from work. What fun is that?! My favorite thing to do is to have a nice sunny day with a slight breeze, Josh Groban cd playing in the background, a good thriller in my hand and a nice cold glass of lemonade in my hand, laying out in the hammock. Picture perfect day for me. Sunshine warms my soul and makes me happy.

Thankfulness Day 22

Hmm this is getting tougher. And I am sorry for the lack of pics but I usually blog at work and have forgotten to bring my camera. As the holidays approach, I am most thankful for my family. I know I already did family but that was my immediate family. I am so blessed to have great relationships with all my aunts uncles and cousins. I was lucky enough to grow up close4 2to0 all of my family so that we could have Sunday dinners at my Granny's house or Grandma's and get to see everyone. I have first cousins ranging in age from 25 down to 3. We are a rowdy group when we all get together! Too top that off, often times my mom's aunts and uncles and their families are thrown in there too. Growing up there was never really a distinction between whether they were my uncles or great uncles or whatever. Like I said, I am so blessed to have so many people to love. It was never lonely growing up! We all still keep in touch even though we are growing up. I am lucky enough to say that my cousin, Kenna is one of my best friends. There is a small age gap between us and when we were younger she was like a cute little sister but she has grown into an amazing young lady. So blessed to call everyone family. I love ya'll!

Thankfulness Days 20-21

Day 20
Today I was going through all of my recipes looking for things to make for Thanksgiving Dinner and making my shopping lists. Looking at all of those old family recipes brought back a lot of memories. I am so thankful for the fact that I have the most amazing grandmothers, great grandmothers and mom in the world. So many women my age do not know how to really cook. Taking something out of a box or bag and warming it up does not mean that you are cooking! Some of my favorite memories of my family holidays revolve around being with the women of my family in the kitchen. I started helping when I was so small that I had to sit on the counter in order to be tall enough to reach. And for me, who has always been really tall, that is saying a lot! I cherish the memories of hanging out in the kitchen and learning to cook. My Grandma is straight full blood Italian. I absolutely love knowing how to make and feed my husband authentic Italian food. He has become a bit of a snob when it comes to Italian food. He will take a bite and then say, This isn't as good as you or your grandma's. His palette has grown quite a bit because at first he wanted to put ranch on lasagna! YUCK! My granny is a different kind of a cook. She is definitely Southern. She is a ranchers wife and cooks like it! The best thing that I learned from her in the kitchen is the importance of your ingredients. Granny has always had this HUGE garden where she harvests most of her veggies. There is nothing better than going out to the garden and picking the veggies that you are going to be eating for dinner that night! Home grown veggies that you know are clean and organically grown are the best. TJ and I have a garden as well but it is not nearly as large as Granny's!
Both of my grandmothers equate food with love. The first thing that they ask to you as you walk through their doors is if you are hungry. Holidays are full of such good food. This is the first year that I am doing Thanksgiving at my house. TJ's family is coming over. I know that there is no way that my food will turn out half as good as the spread at my grandmothers' houses but hopefully it will be good! I am a pretty good cook so we will see!


Day 21
As TJ and I came home from church, I was thinking about the fact that Sunday is supposed to be the day of rest. With our busy lives, this is not always our reality as it should be. There are often times that is the only day that we can really get things done. We always go to church, but we often mow the grass or clean or do any number of other things. This week we did not do that. It was great! We took advantage of the day of rest and didn't really do anything other than cook dinner. I read a book, TJ watched football and we were just together. Anyone who really knows me, knows that I do not sit still and do nothing well so this is usually really tough for me. I hate to be idle. But spending this quiet day with just TJ and Capone was awesome. I felt refreshed and recharged as well as feeling like we were doing what God had intended for Sundays. We decided to really try and make that a priority in our weekly lives. I am thankful for quiet days of reflection to spend with my family and with my God!

Thankfulness Day 19

I am thankful for my dad's financial lessons. My dad is a banker and has been since I was in the 1st grade. I am really thankful for his lessons and guidance in financial matters since I was young. My brothers and I were really young when we started getting an allowance. Really young. It wasn't much money but Dad wanted to be able to teach us early on how to manage money and how money is a necessity but mis using it was a sin. Anyway, from the very start of our allowance, we knew that we had to tithe 10% and put 10% into our savings account. Not 10% for a later date for a big thing. It had to go into a savings account that drew interest. Now for a little kid to get $10 and automatically lose $2 didn't seem fair at the time. Now I am glad that he taught us this because it has become a habit. We also keep our checkbook balanced. This was really difficult when we were first married because TJ had never done this and didn't know how! So when we got out joint account for the first time, we really struggled. I had my first checking account when I turned 13 and Dad would make sure that I balanced it every time I spent anything out of it. Another lesson was that we could not get a forward on our allowance. If we ran out of money or did not have enough for whatever it was that we were wanting than we had to wait. This is an important lesson about borrowing money and living above your means. Don't do it. TJ and I have 1 credit card and it has a very low balance and is used only for emergencies. If we do not have the physical money to go on a trip or to buy expensive gifts or whatever than we don't do it. My parents pay for almost everything in cash and flat out. Mom just got a brand new car and paid cash. This is only the 3rd brand new car that my mom has ever had. Dad's motorcycle is the same thing. Totally paid for. TJ and I are not there yet. We were barely married for a year when both of our cars that were totally paid off died! We bought two nice used cars with really low miles so that they would last a long time. We now have one of them paid off and are working hard to pay the final one off. That extra money would be really nice! Our house is great. We got a good deal on it but also did not even come close to the top of our budget. There is no need to live above our means.
I think that the one lesson that I took from my dad the most though was giving. My family has always been relatively well off. We never struggled and were always provided with what we needed and most of the time wanted. There is a difference in a need and a want but that is for a later post. But Dad always taught us about giving. This time of year reminds me to do that even more. Growing up each of us kids always selected a child off of the angel tree. Mom and Dad would then take us shopping and allow us to choose things that we thought that the kids would like. They always reminded us that these were kids less fortunate and that this might be the only gifts that they got in an entire year! We also would go through our closets and toys at least once a year and get rid of the stuff that we did not wear or that we did not play with. We would then load it all up and take it to either a shelter or to the Salvation Army. TJ and I have carried both of these actions into our marriage. Every year we have taken either one or two children from the angel tree and bought them gifts. And we go through our stuff at least twice a year if not more than that. It really is a joy to give.
All these are lessons that TJ and I hope to pass on to our kids one day. Money should never be the most important thing in someones life.

Thankfulness Day 18

Today I am thankful for all of the amazing Christian couples we have to look up to. When TJ and I were getting married we had all sorts of alarming statistics thrown at us. Divorce rates, infidelity rates, etc. For a young couple just beginning their lives together that is very scary. Especially for TJ and I because we had only known each other for a little over a year. We did not have a long courtship and then a long engagement. We met got engaged and were married within a year and a couple months. I would not have done it any different because I knew that God had destined TJ and I to be together. He is truly my other half.
Anyway back to thankfulness. With all of the negativity that we faced early on, we knew that we were going to need to find mature couples that we could look up to and look to for guidance. My parents have been a huge support. Not only because they are my parents but because they have been married for over 30 years. They act just as much in love now as when they were first married if not more so. My parents are like TJ and myself. They met in October and were married the following August. No long dating or engagement. I got to see first hand what a christian marriage ought to look like. God was always first in our home. We were always in church. All of us in a pew with our nice church clothes on. We prayed often in the house, not just at dinner times. And one thing that TJ and I try to emulate is date night. Even when we did not have the money for Mom and Dad to go out for a date, they sent us to the grandparents so that they could have a nice meal and just be together without the 3 of us underfoot. This happened a minimum of once a month. Mom and Dad knew it was important to be a couple not just mom and dad.
Both sets of my grandparents are also great examples. One set was married for over 50 years before my grandfather passed away. The other set did not make it that long because my grandfather passed away. but both sets were very much in love until the day that they were forced to be a part. My moms parents never in the length of their marriage spent a night apart. That is dedication!
We have also been blessed to meet many other older couples through the years that we have learned a lot from. The advice we have been given, the prayers, and sometimes the smacks upside the head have really helped TJ and I to form a strong bond. When you take 2 people as different as me and TJ you really need to learn how to mesh. But through it all we are stronger and very much in love. Thank you guys for being such great examples not just to me and TJ but to others out there who watch you. You are truly an inspiration and we hope that one day we can mentor other young couples as you did us. We love each and every one of you! TJ and my goal is to be the old couple sitting in the front pew sharing a hymnal just like you!

Thankfulness Day 17

I read a poem this week about a florist and that her special this time of year was a bouquet of rose thorns. A customer was really confused by this and asked what the deal was with the thorns. What the florist said is awesome. She told the customer that she had been through many many trials in her life. She said that she really struggled with her relationship with God during those times and one day came to a realization. That she often thanked and praised God for the roses or the good times in her life. She never praised or thanked God in the times of thorns, or the bad times. She told the customer that every since then she displayed an arrangement of not roses but of thorns at Thanksgiving. This was a reminder that she needed to praise God not just for the good times but for the thorns as well. The customer was going through a rough time herself and left the shop with a huge arrangement of thorns for her dining table.
All this to say, I am thankful for my thorns. TJ and I have had some real trying times but we realize that even in those times we are not alone. God has CHOSEN us to go through these times. I think that is an honor of sorts. I have read plenty of blogs written by people that are going through the same things that we are. Some of them sound so bitter and broken. But my God knew that TJ and I were strong. That we could carry this burden and bring light and attention to God through our struggle. God chose us to bear this cross and to bring honor to Him in all that we do. That includes times of thorns. We still have our moments where we feel down and just wish that His timing was our timing but we try to bring glory to Him daily in our walks. I thank God that we have been through these tough times. TJ and I are closer than many other couples that we know. We have been through much heart break and many good times. All together far from family and friends. He has brought many new people into our lives to help us, pray with and for us, to rejoice with, to be our family. We have grown so much as people this past few years. We know what we are on this earth to do and we have realized what our dreams are. We have identified what needs are verses wants. We definitely have a new appreciation for the blessings that we do have. We are blessed beyond what we really deserve. I am truly blessed to go through the hardships that we have gone through. I am honored that God chose me to go through these and I am so blessed that He chose TJ to be my partner in this journey.
My challenge is to be thankful for our thorns not just this time of year but every day. We need to live our lives that way every day. And to be a light to those that might not see any other light. Thank you Lord for my thorns. Let me bless You with them every day. I know that too often I am resentful for the fact that we struggle. You know what is in my heart. And I know that You have a plan. You are my Heavenly Father. You love me even when I am unlovable. You love me when I throw tantrums because I do not get my way. You love me even more when I am self centered and complain about my place in life. Help me to remember every day that I am blessed. Help me to help others less fortunate. Help me to use my thorns as a way to bring others to know Your everlasting love. And Lord, I thank you for TJ. What an amazing person to be on this journey with. I cannot imagine not having him to walk this path with. His faith, humor, and loyalty have carried me when I do not have any strength left. Thank You for loving me and for sending Your Son as my Savior.

Thankfulness Day 16

Today is all about technology. I am so thankful for my handy laptop and my cell phone. When you live a ways from your family and some of your best friends, it is great to be able to pick up either one and to connect with each other. I think that both are over used sometimes but handy none the less. As much as I love to immediately hear from friends and family, it is also nice to receive a nice written letter in the mail.I got well versed in letter writing when many of my friends were and are serving over seas. Often that is the only communication that we may have with them for a while. I do not think that I am as tied to my devices as many people that I know (no names here!) but I do appreciate them. The one device that I love above all though, is my digital camera. It took me a while to get on this kick though. I have a minor in photography. So I was so snobby when digitals first came out. The images were not as clear as film and I loved going into the darkroom and developing my own pictures. I still love the thought of doing that. but for handiness my digital is nice. I can see the picture as soon as I take it so that I know if I have a good shot or not. I carry a camera with me most of the time. I know that is sort of hard to believe since I don't always post pictures on here but it is the truth! I promise! I love the ease of sharing photos and the simplicity of editing my photos. What used to take hours in the dark room can be done in minutes on my camera or computer. How awesome is that?

Thankfulness Day 15

Health. This is something that TJ and I take for granted every day. So that is what I am thankful for today. Neither one of us ever really gets sick or hurt or anything like that. Because of the adoption and foster care stuff, we have to have annual physicals. We are both totally healthy. Low blood pressure, cholesterol, our weight is both in the normal range, neither one of us wear glasses for anything other than reading and no dental issues. How amazing is that? We do both have seasonal allergies but it is nothing that a little over the counter meds can't take care of if it gets too bad. I can even add Capone into the healthy category. The only time he has to go to the vet is for his yearly shots. We are one healthy family! I credit alot of that to how active we are. We do not really eat or exercise to lose weight, it is just something that we enjoy. We love to eat and cook with natural ingredients and neither one of us is really into sweets or junk food. Our down fall in the healthy eating area is ice cream! Even Capone likes that. When we eat it, he gets a small scoop in his bowl too. Other than that we are pretty healthy eaters. as far as exercise goes, we don't really have a plan. We both enjoy the outdoors so we hike and play softball and walk around the neighborhood. We stay busy and that is one key thing to being healthy. Just keep moving. But all in all I am very grateful that we are all healthy. It is such a blessing.

Thankfulness Day 14

Today, I am thankful for hard work. TJ and I cleaned out the garage. And I mean clean! We are not pack rats by any means but we still had a ton of stuff in the garage. Most of it things that we have taken out of the house like old light fixtures and curtain rods and things. So we have a big old pile just getting ready to go to the Salvation Army. Not only did we clean the garage but we went through our closets and have about 6 bags full of old clothes and coats and things that are also ready for donation. I had made a big old pot of chili that simmered all day so when we were done with all of our hard work, we sat down with a bowl of spicy chili and the Amazing Race! There is nothing like the feeling you get after you put in a full day of working hard. We were tired and dirty but totally satisfied with all that we had gotten done.

Thankfulness Day 13

Today I am thankful for summer! TJ and I went to the Hog game tonight and we froze! We love football and going to games but sitting there freezing your buns off is not fun! I love the warm summer temps and feeling the sun on my face. If it never got below 60 degrees I would be one happy camper! I love it hot. All in all though we had a blast and even better, the Hogs kicked butt!

Thankfulness Day 12

Mi casa es su casa. I love this phrase and TJ and I try and live by this every day. We LOVE to entertain and have people over. I had that kind of house growing up. Our house was the gathering place for all of our friends. Probably because Mom always fed them! Today I am thankful for our house. We found it and got an amazing deal. we had a smaller 1300 sq foot house but when this house came up it was too good to pass up. It is MUCH bigger than the other one and is set up for entertaining. We have a formal dining room and breakfast room so plenty of space to feed tons of people. A nice large backyard and covered patio to grill on and play games. A huge living room that fits many. The house is pretty new. Only about 6 years old so it is in great shape. The down fall was that the whole thing was painted mustard yellow on the inside! No joke. Plus it had gold light fixtures in every single room. Yuck! We are slowly changing all of that. Lots of paint and shopping for light fixtures! But it has hard woods throughout so didn't have to worry about carpet! That was a huge plus.

We feel truly blessed to have found such a nice house at such a great price in our target area. We know that God led us to this house and we want to honor Him with it. We often open our home to people from the church as well as having housed some great foster kids. We want our house to be a place of love, laughter, and fellowship. Thank you Father for blessing us with this house and may we in turn bless You and spread Your love with the things that happen in this house! I love our little house!

Thankfulness Day 11

This is a little unoriginal considering the day but... I am very thankful for our men and women that serve in the arm forces. I was just starting my freshman year of college when 9-11 happened. This means that many of my friends and classmates headed straight overseas. My younger brothers friends turned 18 and signed up. Coming from a small town, most of the graduates either went to college or joined the military of some form. Some of my best friends have seen and done things that I don't even want to think about. My younger brothers best friend is literally scarred for life. He was the sole survivor of an ambush and car bombing. He had 3rd degree burns over 75% of his body. Many of them of PTSD and will never really be the young carefree guys that I knew and loved. But not one of them regrets the decision to join or to fight for our country. It makes me sad to hear all of the people that protest soldiers funerals. That is so disrespectful. I can promise you that those soldiers believed in what they were doing. anyone my age or younger that is in the military knew exactly what they were signing up for when they put their name on the line. Not one of them can say that they didn't know they would be shipped out. They put their lives on the line every day so that we have freedoms that we do, which includes a VOLUNTARY military. No one is forced into service. To all those that are out there today fighting, thank you. For all those that have fought before, thank you. For all those families that are waiting for loved ones to return from service, thank you. You guys make a difference and we pray for you often. As my best friends husband is preparing to go off again, our prayers are with you. Know that we appreciate all that you sacrifice. To Cody H, JD, Mark, Colton, Scott, and all of the others, you are in our prayers and we love you guys and pray for your safety!

Thankfulness Day 10

Today I am thankful for my college education. I was speaking with my cousin who is still in college and was missing those times. I am so blessed in that I did not have to work or take out loans while I was in school. Between my scholarships and the money that my parents had put back for my education since I was a baby, I was totally covered. I really got to concentrate on school and just enjoying my time there. My mom and dad owned an apartment complex so I got to live there rent free with my older brother. We often fussed about having to live together but cannot imagine having to share a house with anyone other than him! I had already lived with him for many years before. Plus we were good friends and study partners. As I have stated in other posts, Chris is genius level smart so it was great to have him there to help with some of the tougher classes. True to form, I somewhat followed in my brothers footsteps in college. Both of us went into science fields. Chris has several advanced degrees in fields that I cannot even list. I got my degree in Kinesiology. Thus lots of science and math classes. Not my best subjects! Chris helped me out there and in turn I helped him with his Spanish classes. By far my best class! Anyway, my time was spent studying, hanging out with the BCM (Baptist Collegiate ministry) crowd, FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes), and playing volleyball. Such great times. It wasn't until my senior year of college that I even met my future husband, TJ. We were introduced by one of my FCA friends. It was a great way to transition into adulthood. No worries other than grades and what we were going to do that night. 2 weeks after TJ and I graduated, we were married! I don't use my degree now as far as the kinesiology part of it but I learned a lot about responsibility, attention to detail, and advanced math which I use in my career now.

Day 9

I am so very thankful for my wonderful puppy. Well he is not really a puppy. He is a grown dog that seems to think that he is small. I wouldn't say that he is a big dog, but he definitely isn't small. I love him so much because no matter what he is always right there by our side and just wanting to be loved on. He has so many toys and they are always all over the floor. You can pick them up 20 times a day and in a matter of minutes he has the back out and all over the floor. He thinks that they don't belong it the basket. We love him very much and don't know what we would do without him. He is such a bright spot in our lives.

thankfulness Days 6-8

I promise that one of these days I will get some more photos to put on here!

Day 6
I am thankful for family time. TJ and I make Saturday mornings family time. We often head into town to go do our grocery shopping and just run our errands. It is not anything huge or planned or anything but it is time to just be together. I think that is sometimes the best times. We get to take time out and just be together doing something mundane. Sam's Club is always on our list of places to go. We try to time it right so that we can grab lunch there. You can't beat $5 lunch that feeds us both!

Day 7
Today I am thankful for our church home. We have recently moved our church membership. There was nothing wrong with our old church, we just felt that God was leading us to a different place. Boy am I glad that he did. We LOVE this new church. The pastor and his family are amazing! They are huge supporters of fostering and adoption! We were so excited to learn that they had fostered and adopted 2 of their children and are working on the 3! They have been a huge support through the recent roller coaster ride that we have been on. Encouraging and understanding and a shoulder to lean on. What a blessing. We are also totally excited about the children's and youth ministries. For the size church, it is huge! They average over 100 kids for Awanas and 60 youth every single Wednesday night! God is really moving in this church and we feel blessed to be a part of it. We are excited to see what god has in store for us at this new church!

Day 8
Jobs. In these hard times, I am so thankful that TJ and I both have secure jobs. I know that is not exciting or profound of anything but it is the truth. I am so thankful that we really don't have to fear for our jobs. Especially TJ's job. For several years, we have been preparing for when we have children. This means that our house and our one car payment are all based off of TJ's income. Mine right now is pretty much just a bonus. So TJ's job security is huge! I love that he works so hard to provide not just for us but for the future that we want so badly. It is awesome to know that TJ has a job that can support us and that will enable me to be a stay at home mom when that time comes around! We are truly blessed!

Thanksgiving Days 4 and 5---Oops

Sorry, I really meant to post everyday and then I was so busy yesterday that I didn't remember until I was already in bed. So I will double up today.

Day 4
Today I am thankful for my friends. God has truly blessed me in this area. Erin Dee has been my best friend since Jr. High. We have been through so much together and I love her like a sister. We are so completely different now that we are grown but one sign of a true friendship is that doesn't really matter. I know that I can still call her and that no matter what, she will be there.When I am down or sad or whatever, she always calls and cheers me up. I love that girl and her adorable baby boy! Alison and I have been friends even longer. Our dads started working together when we were in 1st grade! That is a long time ago! Anyway, we were great friends all through school but lost contact when we went away for college. But God saw to bring us back together when we relocated to a totally different state! Who knew that could even happen? We are hours from my home town and I ran into her in Hobby Lobby of all places! But what a blessing that was. She and her husband have been our biggest support through the whole pregnancy, miscarriage, adoption thing. They brought their two little girls home almost 2 years ago now. TJ and I are in love with those little girls! Alison has rejoiced when we rejoiced and cried when we cried. They are definitely a blessing to us! Since moving, I have also had the opportunity to make 2 new great friends. Cher is someone that I love to hang out with. She is funny and just a blast to be around. She and her husband have been through some pretty rough times too and I am in awe of her attitude. Erin H and her husband Ryan. Wow who knew that we could form that close of a friendship that quickly. They are such a blessing to TJ and I. Once again, a huge support when we needed them. Such an amazing Godly couple who we are so blessed to be able to call friends. Our times together are such fun. We have gone sledding, blue berry picking, and the worst was moving them several hours away. We miss them like crazy but the distance has not hurt our friendship at all. We still talk all the time and I thank God for them every day.


Day 5
First these days are not really in any order. It is sort of whatever comes to mind at the time. I really can't rank most of these things. Anyway, back to what I am thankful for today...
My family. I have the most amazing family. I wish that I had remembered my camera cord so that I could post some pictures on these posts. I will try to remember to later. My family... Lets start with my mom. She is the most amazing christian woman. The total Proverbs 31 woman. She is everything that I aspire to be. My childhood was filled with picnics on the kitchen floor when it was raining, dancing to the Beach Boys. belting out Elvis songs at the top of our lungs, and sitting in the rocking chair reading stories and when we were to big to sit in her lap (she is barely 5 feet tall!) sitting next to her on the couch. Then there are the things that I look back on now as an adult that I took for granted as a kid. My mom was a stay at home mom. She was always there when we needed her. She still is. Mom was always the first mom to help out at our school parties and go on class field trips. She is really creative and talented so that kids always liked whatever snack she brought. She is also an AMAZING cook. She cooked dinner every night and had it on the table ready for when Dad got home from work. And I am not talking hamburger Helper dinner. No she cooked from scratch. When we were in high school, we had open campus for lunch. My friends always wanted to come to my house for lunch because often times, Mom would whip us up something good to eat! Much better than fast food or cafeteria food!
Dad. My dad is also a great man. I know that I took his hard work for granted when we were younger. He worked in the oil field when I was really small. He did not graduate from college until I was in kindergarten. He got a job as a loan officer shortly after that. and to see him now as a bank president is amazing! In just a short few years he has worked so hard to get to where he is now. I am so proud of him! I am more like my dad personality wise than my mom though I think. I am fiercely independent. I think that drives my dad crazy sometimes. He still sees me as his little princess. Dad is also an amazing christian man. There are few times that I remember not praying before a meal or that we were not in church. My dad has those amazingly stretchy arms that could thump you on the back of the head if you were misbehaving even if you were at the opposite end of the pew! My dad is larger than life. He is about 6'5 and somewhat of a scary man. He is really quiet and has ice blue eyes. Most of my dates growing up were scared of him and he loved it!
My brothers... Chris and Russell. There is so much to say about them. I was blessed with those 2 also. Just don't tell them that! My older brother has a huge heart. He puts on this tough front but he really is a cream puff on the inside. Especially when it comes to kids. His intelligence is astounding. Growing up, my goal was to be just like him. I pushed myself to be just like him in school. I took the same classes he did and tried to make him proud of me. I was totally the annoying little sister. I followed him every where. I hung out with him and his friends. But he never complained. Granted we are really close in age. There is about 17 months between us. He was truly my best friend. I admired the close relationship that He had with our Heavenly Father at such a young age. Chris is caring and loyal and an all around amazing man. Russell...what can I say about my baby brother? He is the stereo typical youngest child. Spoiled not only by my parents but by me and Chris as well. As you can see in the last sentence in me calling him a baby. He is not a baby. He is not even 2 years younger than I am! But he was definitely treated as such. Russ has this amazing love for life. He goes through life with a twinkle in his eye. That twinkle has gotten him into so much trouble! You can always tell when he is up to something by that twinkle. Russ lives life to the fullest. Sometimes not really thinking of the consequences. His the broken bones and stitches are proof of that! He is always up for anything. The one thing that I admire most about my younger brother is his loyalty. He has had the same group of best friends since he was in kindergarten. They have added some to the group and lost a few along the way but the core group has always been the same. These boys have been through so much together. Fighting in the war over seas, tragic loss of a close friend, and tons more. These boys are more like brothers than friends. I grew up with those boys and so they are like my brothers as well. Russell is also an athlete. I have never seen anyone like him. He literally can play anything even if he has never played it before. Russ is also very helpful and caring for those he loves. He would do anything that he can to help.
So that's it today. My family is the best and I love them warts and all!

Thanksgiving Day 3

Day 3

This is TJ here and I have many things that I am thankful for. I am so thankful to have the wonderful wife that I have. She is such and amazing person. I can't imagine being with anybody else. We have a lot of fun together no matter what we are doing. We have been through some good times and some not so good times, but no matter what we always stick together. I appreciate her being there for me anytime that I need her. She is an amazing christian woman that loves to worship God and you can't ask for anything better than a good christian wife. Love you so much baby. You are awesome!!

Thanksgiving Day 2

Today what I am thankful for is my unbelievably sweet, handsome, Godly husband. TJ is my best friend and I cannot imagine trekking through life without him by my side. He has been my rock through some tough times these past couple years. He makes me laugh. He does these silly little dances to make me smile. I had a horrible sinus headache last night and when he came home from work he had a card and Tootsie Rolls (my favorite Halloween candy) for me. He is constantly striving to be a Godly man and leader in our home. He spends a great deal of time in God's word and in prayer. He has a wonderful friend named Ryan that he turns to when he needs Godly advice. TJ is not only my husband but also my best friend. We do everything together. I can't imagine it any other way. I am often the only fan at TJ's softball games. We love to go hiking and camping. We go to sporting events and all the fun guy stuff, but he has also escorted me to a fair amount of craft fairs and junk shops. We work on the house together. We paint and switch out light fixtures. We dream of the boys ranch that we one day want to open. We have cried together, laughed together, and grown together. I thank God that He chose TJ as my husband and brought us together by chance. Who knew that a country boy like TJ and a country club girl like me would ever get married and start a life together? We are so different in so many ways but the love that is between us has over come so much. As long as we have God as the center of our relationship and don't take our eyes off of the path that He has directed us to, than nothing will separate us. It doesn't hurt any that he is handsome!!! I love you honey!

30 Days of Thanksgiving

Since Thanksgiving is less than a month away, TJ and I decided to do 30 days of the things that we are most thankful for. We will see if we manage to do a post a day! So here it goes...

Today is Day 1 of our 30 days. I (Gina) am most thankful for my relationship with Jesus Christ. At church yesterday, we had the Lord's Supper. Bro. Jack's message pertained to the meaning of the supper and how to prepare for it. Wow, how many times have I not been in the right place to fully observe the Lord's Supper? Anyway, I am so thankful that I am the daughter of a loving Father. He loves and cares for us even when we are selfish and needing children. He loves us when we turn our backs on Him because we think that we know better. He loves us when we vent our anger and frustration on Him. He loves us when it is hard and no one else wants to be around us. We sing that song "Amazing Love" all the time. I catch myself singing it as I clean or drive down the road. But how have we managed to lose the meaning in that song? Those words are so meaningful and don't deserve to just be sang or spoken lightly. With everything that TJ and I have been through, I often feel like a whiny kid when I pray and forget how truly blessed I really am. I am so thankful that my Heavenly Father, loved me enough to sacrifice His only Son on a cross for my sins. He did this so that when I do act like a whiny brat, my sins are forgiven! My goal is to remember His sacrifice and thank Him every day for the ability to have such a close relationship with Him.

Red River

Wow so blogger did nit upload these pics very well. Oh well these are just a few of the many we took. Enough to give you an idea anyway. Our home away from home is a wood "cabin" 4 bedrooms, two living areas, 4 fireplaces and an awesome kitchen. TJ and I went up there with my parents, older brother and grandmother. It was a crazy busy couple days full of good food, activities, and tons of family time. Mom and Dad went fly fishing on Friday after we got there. Mom caught the most and biggest fish! She has pictures to prove it! They had so much fun. I love getting to see my parents have fun. It is such a blessing to grow up with them and see how much they love each other still. While they were fishing, TJ, Chris, Grandma and I went to "downtown" Red River. We went in to all of the local shops and had lunch in town. Since we went in the off season there were not many people there. We went hiking the rest of the day. We found lots of rocks! If you know my family than you know that we have rocks from almost every where we have ever traveled. Dorky I know but oh well. That night, my mom made homemade lasagna. So good. We stuffed ourselves and had plenty left over for lunches later. We played a couple different board games and just hung out. Saturday morning, TJ and Chris got up to go and play golf in Taos. I thought they were crazy because it was so cold! We woke up to snow on the mountains every morning! But that is what they wanted to do so... I went with the rest of my family on whats called the Enchanted Circle tour. Pretty much we drove a big circle through the mountains. We saw Angel Fire and Taos. I could have spent days in Taos. There was so much to do and see! This is just a fraction of what all we saw and did but I have to go and finish the laundry from the trip!

Psalm 147:3

This is a picture of my friend Daniel's new tattoo. I know it is not the greatest picture but we will go with it anyway. I don't know what your opinions on tattoos are and I won't try to convince you one way or the other. I have a tattoo and TJ has 2 of them. The one thing I will say, if you are going to get one, make sure that it is something that has meaning and that is well thought out. You don't want something that you are going to regret later! Anyway, back to Daniel's... I LOVE the imagery on this tattoo. It depicts me so well. No, I am not going to go and copy this on my arm!!! But what you can't see too well on the banner is a bible verse. It is Psalms 147:3.

He heals the brokenhearted

and binds up their wounds

This is such a simple verse but carries quite a punch! I love the heart that is torn in half and sewn back up. There are too many times when the torn heart has represented my heart. That I have been brokenhearted and felt so alone. But God has bound my wounds and has healed me. To me, this tattoo represents the stages that I have been through. the broken heart representing literally my broken heart. The three crosses representing what God sacrificed for me and that He also lost his Son. The thread represents all of the ways that God has bound our wounds. Faith, amazing friends, and family. Then the repaired heart. My heart will always have a scar. It will never look the exact same as it used to. And that is ok. But God has bound the wound and now my heart looks and acts like a heart again. I am healed and covered in His grace and love. Isn't that just an amazing image? I love to know that my heart was broken but now because God loves me so much, I am healed. When I was at my lowest point, I didn't ever think that I would reach a point where I could say that I have healed. But by the grace of God, I am healed. I have a fully functioning heart. One that is ready to love and might one day crack again. But the good news is that even if that happens, God has enough thread to bind those wounds as well. I encourage you, if you are hurting, to allow God into your life. He will bind your wounds as He has done mine. Praise God that He heals!

Now although I love this image on Daniel's arm, it will not grace my body! I will just carry that amazing image in my head and if I ever forget, I can just give Daniel a call! My arm would definitely not look this good with a tattoo covering it! And Grandma would faint! So thank you God for Daniel and for allowing me to see this art. Isn't it funny how something so taboo can bring such peace and blessing? Thanks Daniel for sharing your art!

Vacation!

TJ and I are on vacation countdown! We are so excited to get away for a little while. We are headed to Red River, NM with my family. Well part of my family that is. My parents, older brother, and Grandma will all be there. We have a cabin up there and so we will have all the amenities of home just not the stress! It is always nice to go and not really have any worries. The best part of the cabin is that we will get to cook every night and just be able to spend time together and not be in hotel rooms. We are really looking forward to it. I am sure that we will post a ton of pictures on here when we get back. My family is not really into the do nothing vacations. Our trip is already completely packed with activities. First comes fly fishing. I have never done this before so it will be a new experience for me. I know that it is a lot of work. I have seen A River Runs Through It many times. Fly fishing is an art! The boys are going to go and play golf. I like golf but not when it is like 40 degrees! But they will have a blast I am sure. There will also be horse back riding, taking the 4 wheelers out, and hiking! Our cabin is right on the river and I am hoping to spend some time with my camera and working on natural elements photography. Pretty excited about it really. The family time will be great too. We are planning to just hang out in the cabin at night and cook, have light a fire and play board games and drink cocoa. After the kind of year that we have had, this sounds perfect for me! I am sure that we will both put on a ton of weight while we are gone with the combination of my mom and grandma's cooking! We will definitely get spoiled rotten. I have already done a little shopping and got some super cute new clothes. That's part of the fun of vacation right?! The hardest part of the vacation is that Capone doesn't get to go with us. We are having to board him while we are gone. That makes not only him sad but also me and TJ! Capone was a pound puppy and definitely remembers his time there. It is so hard to leave him even though we know that they spoil him rotten while he is there.
On another note, this month starts a marathon in our lives! October through January is always crazy busy for us. We have a total of 14 birthdays in that time span plus holidays. And this year we added vacation! It is such a fun time of year though. We love to stay busy and so the parties, football games, hay rides, pumpkin patches, and everything that this month brings is so much fun. I cannot believe how quickly this year has flown by. Oh well. Totally ready to slow it down some while relaxing on vacation! Vacation! WooHoo!!!!!

In the Kitchen!!

I really used to hate to cook, but recently Gina and I have started finding different recipes and putting our little spin on them. We have a good time in the kitchen when we cook together. It is just more time that I get to spend with her. We recently made a sandwich that was awesome. I was on the internet looking for something good to eat and I came across this awesome recipe on the Pat and Gina Neely's website on Food Network. We love to watch them cook. They are a very cool couple that love to make some good food (especially some BBQ)!!! This recipe is called Smoked Sausage and Pepper Sandwich. Man was it good. Would also be good over some rice. In case you would like to try it out here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound smaoked sausge, sliced into quarters then lengthwise

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 yellow bell pepper, sliced

1 orange bell pepper, sliced

2 medium yellow onions, sliced

3 garlic cloves, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup Neely's BBQ sauce

4 fresh hoagie rolls

Provolone Cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet or dutch oven over medium heat. Add the sausages and brown on all sides, about 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from skillet and reserve.

Add onions and peppers to the skillet and saute until tender and golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant. Stir in the tomato paste, water, and BBQ sauce. Cook for a few minutes, then add the sausges back to the pan. Reduce heat and simmer until the sauce is nice and thick, about 10 minutes.

Slice the bread open, put on sheet tray, and toast in oven while the sausge is simmering. Remove the bread from the oven and fill the the sausages and peppers.

Transfer to serving dishes and serve.

Got to be Thankful for Something!!!

So Gina has finally talked me into blogging. This will be my first time to do it so bear with me. I have many things that I a very appreciative of. Here are just a few of them:

1. JESUS: There is no one like him and anybody that will die so that you can everlasting life is pretty awesome to me. Glad I don't live without him.

2. GINA: Wow what an amazing person. Can't believe I am actually married to her. Couldn't imagine myself with anybody else. She makes me smile when I had a long day at work and is just goofy all around.

3. MY HOUSE: Not very long ago Gina and I were able to purchase a very nice house. It is such a blessing that were were able to fall into such a deal. It is a work in progress, but nothing we can't really do on our own. I enjoying getting to make it our home together.

4. MY FAMILY: I have an awesome family whether it be my mom, dad, and sisters or my in-laws. They are absolutely fabulous. They are always there for me when I need them and couldn't ask for a better family.

5. COWS: You are probably wondering why I am thankful for cows?? Well that is what I grew up around. There is nothing better than getting in the truck with my dad and just driving the dirt roads to different pastures talking and checking the cows. The best part though is when we get together to work the cows and calves. It is great family time.

6. PLANTS AND FLOWERS: Gina loves to be outside just digging in the flowerbed and planting any kind of plant that she can find. It is nice to be able to spend that extra time with her. Right now we don't have any landscaping but come spring it is going to be time to plant some flowers etc. Can't wait. It is hard work, but it makes your house look that much nicer.

7. FRIENDS: We have some amazing friends. They are the kind that would be there for you anytime you needed them. Just give them a call and they are on there way. It is nice to know that we have such good friends.

8. WORK: I am so very happy to have a job. With the hundreds of thousands of people that are out of work these days it makes me very appreciative to have a job that helps me to support Gina and I.

9. SMELL OF ALFALFA HAY: I know I stole this from Gina, but I don't think that there is a better smell. It is just awesome. Nothing like it.

10. CAPONE AKA MR. MAN: This is my dog. He is the best dog I have ever had. I don't know what we would do without him around. He definitely keeps us busy playing throw, trying to be a cute puppy, and trying to give you kisses. The best part is when he falls asleep and starts having his puppy dreams. I always get a laugh out of it. I love him very much.

Doom and Gloom

I was just looking at my blog and realized it has been all doom and gloom the last few posts. That makes me sort of sad. I PROMISE that is NOT who I am most of the time. I am actually a really goofy, happy go lucky person most of the time. So to combat the sad posts, I am going to tell you some things that I am thankful for and looking forward to
1. Vacation!!!- Yep at the end of this month my parents, older bro, Grandma, and TJ are going to Red River, NM! The boys are planning on hitting the golf course, while the girls shop. Also on the agenda is fly fishing, hiking, renting 4 wheelers and lots of family time. My family has a really nice cabin right on the river and am so looking forward to relaxing for a while!

2. Craft Fair- there is a HUGE one in this area and I am making TJ take me. Mom usually comes down to go with me but since vacation is the next weekend I am not having her come.
3. Friends- We have the most amazing friends ever! We had the Raymers over Saturday night and had a blast. They have been such a support through the whole adoption process as both of their girls have been adopted
4. Lame jokes- I love silly jokes. I have been known to tell them and laugh hysterically at them when everyone else groans! example: What do you call cheese that is not yours? answer- NACHO CHEESE!!! I laugh every time
5. Little girl giggles and imaginations- love the Raymer girls! Hearing them giggle and pretend play is so up lifting!
6. TJ- he will kill me for saying this, but he has a ton of little dances that he does to make me laugh. I love getting to see him be silly and cut lose. By the way, he has no rhythm at all!
7. Capone- silly spoiled dog! He loves to go on car rides and goes nuts if you ask him if he wants to go. He LOVES ice cream and licks it when we put it in his bowel. He loves kids and seeing him with them is so much fun!
8. My mom- She really is my best friend. Never thought that we would ever be at that place but we are. She is a wonderful woman and the kind that I strive to be every day. Seeing her and my dad's marriage still going strong after 30 years is such an encouragement to TJ and myself.
9. My older brother Chris- He is literally a genius. He is so smart it is scary. We are so close in age (18 months apart) that he was and is one of my closest friends. He is the one person who can really push my buttons. He thinks that he still needs to be my protector at times. He still tells me what to do! But he can also make me laugh and some day he is going to make an awesome dad!
10. Sunrises- Love to see the amazing colors God paints the sky with and it is a beginning of a new day!
11. Children's books- this is a love I share with my mom. I collect them.
12. Flowers- so beautiful and can make me smile. I love to just go to a nursery and look. I love when TJ comes home with plants. He knows I would much rather him buy me flowers that last rather than ones that will wilt!
13. Rocky road ice cream!- I am not a huge sweets fan but you really can't beat RR while watching a movie!
14. Old movies- another love carried over from my mom. Arsenic and Old Lace is by far my favorite movie! I love that things were simpler back then and not everything was a curse word or had to be totally violent for people to watch and laugh. I also watch old westerns and war movies. That is definitely my dad's influence! The Dirty dozen makes me cry every time!
15. The smell of fresh cut alfalfa. Is anything sweeter? It reminds me of home
16. My Father in Laws ranch. Love to be outside and love helping work the cattle. Being with TJ and my FIL and doing what they love to do more than anything puts a big smile on my face. I love being there at night when there is nothing between you and the stars. The cattle settling down for the night one of the only sounds you hear.
17. TJ praying- makes my heart smile and rejoice in knowing he finally has such a close relationship with God!
18. my Granny's house- my favorite place in the world to be. That is home. It is nothing special. Its actually really small and when my whole family is there it is cramped. But I know that it is a place of love and laughter. So many precious memories of my childhood are there in that place.
19. Junk shops- You never know what you will find! TJ and I go sometimes and have a blast!
20. Relationship with God- This is what I am most thankful for. That He loved me so much that He sent His Son to die for me. The other 19 things on this list do not even compare. Because of this one the other 19 are possible.