Where does the time go?

How have I gotten so behind on blogging?  Where does the time go?  Believe me, I have very good intentions of  staying up to date and writing witty and inspiring post for all the world to see!  Every time something, cute, funny, tragic or just down right annoying happens during my very average and normal days I start mentally writing my blog post to depict it.  But some how it always stays a mental post. And by the time I get to a computer, and have two minutes to think *poof* my mental masterpiece has vanished leaving behind only the vague realization that once upon a time I actually thought of something clever to write.   So that is that.


Now on to life.

It keeps on moving, just like my busy and mischievous little boys.  Davers and Scotty keep me busy.  Stephen keeps me grounded and laughing and everyday life, well it just gives me something to do and a million moments to pray to God for the strength to make it through another day.

So here are a few pictures to catch you up on the growth of my little family . . .

Our family this Easter at Stephen's Parents House

Going to the Park!  The boys love walking to the park on nice days.

The fireworks in Litchfield - July 2011

Waiting for the Watercade Parade - David LOVED all the candy!

Me and my man at the Parade

My Bible and a Gun

David just loves to be like his daddy.  Lately he is always telling me he is "going to work" and then he'll take his little "brief case" and put on his shoes and ask me if he can "use the car".  Well the other day I decided to take a look at what exactly he was taking to work in his brief case, I opened it up and found, a cell phone, an orange play gun and a bible.  I got kinda chocked up at that.  So often I feel like i'm not measuring up as a mom, and that because of my failures my boys won't grow up to be the men we desire them to be; so i think that this was a little encouragement from God.  Because that is exactly what I pray we will raise, boys who boldly go forth into the world with their Bible in one hand and a gun in the other.  Boys with a strong spiritual foundation and a burning desire to win the world for Christ, and boys who know it's their God given duty to protect and provided for their family.  Thank you Lord for my little man, with his Bible and his gun!

And Thus Begins 2011

I know, I know.  I have been quite horrible at updating this blog.  I apologize to any of you unfortunate enough to be following my ramblings!  But thank you too.  2011 has begun.  And with it my boys are growing quickly . . . so here are a few pictures from the first month of this year . . . 

David & Scotty playing with magnets - or maybe they are eating them. hmmm, I guess perhaps I should feed them more!

David ridding in the car with his "uncle" Jack.  Davers and Jack are the best of friends and get along soooo well, it's a blast to watch them play!

In the Holiday Spirit at Stephen's Aunt and Uncles on Jan 2nd

CUTE!

David's new favorite thing to do is give Scotty baths. I'm not sure Scotty enjoys it half as much as David does :-)

Oh' my baby is eating food, *sigh* I guess they do have to grow up . . . 

David turns 2! We had a little birthday party for him!  His uncles and cousins came and played for the day, what fun!

L-R: Uncle Jack, Cousin Mathias, David, Cousin Holden, Uncle Carl, & Uncle Bruce

Thanksgiving Treats

This year we spent thanksgiving day with Stephen's family, it was a lot of fun!  David just LOVES to play with his "uncles"!   I was asked to bring some pies, so I thought I would create a photographic journey of our thanksgiving pies, i'm sure no one will really care about this besides me, but I took the pictures, so now they get blogged!

Getting every thing together so we can begin!

All my fruit for pies and cranberry relish!

Ingredients & Utensils ready to go!

Eggs - yes I know, store eggs :-(

Starting on those pies . . .

First pie crust in the pan!

Rolling out my pie dough

Apple Pie!  A Thanksgiving must have!

What would I do without my apple peeler/corer/slicer?

mmmm . . . apples ready for the pie

Ready for the top crust

And into the oven we go!

Davids pie  . . . 

David just loves to help me in the kitchen!

I gave him his own pie dough and  some sugar along with a little bowl . . .

And, what do you know, here is his "pie"!

Getting Started on another Thanksgiving classic  . . . PUMPKIN!

My recipe called for a 29oz can of pumpkin, but mine was all nicely frozen in 2cup bags - so out comes the scale! 

Just in case any one wants to know, 29oz is about 3cups of pumpkin!

Lunch Break!

Then out of the oven comes the Apple pie!

And in goes the pumpkin pie!

Crusts ready to be filled!

Pumpkin pie filling

And into the oven we go!

This pie recipe had a really yummy topping with it, I had never made a pumpkin pie quite like this before but thought i would give it a try, my husband says it's the BEST pumpkin pie EVER, so I guess the recipe is a keeper!

Mixing up the topping 

Aaaaaaaaaaaaah! Dishes!

The one thing I hate about baking!

And the Pumpkin pie comes out of the oven!

Now on to the Cranberry Relish - a delicious Fresh recipe from a friend . . . 

Once again my little helper!  He thought the cranberries were balls!  And was pretty sad once they were all chopped up.

This Relish was sooo easy, and had no sugar!

But was amazingly good! Yum! Yum!

Last, but by no means least!  The Mocha Fudge Pie . . .

Yes! It really did have Coffee in it!

Finished product!

What David looked like after "helping" me with the Mocha Fudge Pie!

The Finished Product!

Finished up just in time to make some Chicken for dinner!

Oh! And Scotty wanted his picture on here too! :-)

So that was our day!  Wew!  A lot of work but well worth it!  I give all of you who actually had to prepare the thanksgiving meal a BIG round of applause!  Four pies and a salad wore me out.   I meant to take pictures at the actually Thanksgiving day meal too, but even though I brought my camera I was so busy enjoying myself relaxing and chatting with relatives I never even took it out!  oh' well.  I'm sure no one wants to see any more pictures any way!

Count Your Blessings

As Thanksgiving is fast approaching I have been thinking about all the wonderful gifts God has bestowed upon me.  Honestly, some might not think we had a whole lot to be thankful for at first glance. In many ways this has not been an easy year, physically, emotionality, or financially.    But God has been there every step of the way and HE has provided!

In March Our sweet little Scott decided to join our family 8weeks early

 

Although we were more than happy to have Scotty join our family, his subsequent 21 day stay in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit was a very emotionally and financially stressful time. But God brought us through.  And not only did we add a wonderful, sweet, happy little boy to our family; but God taught us so much about trusting him.  God showed me so many ways I had not been trusting and relying on my wonderful husband.  I realized more than every before just how  blessed  I was in this Man I call mine :-)

As the summer went on and merged into fall Stephen quite his job, and just when we were beginning to think he wouldn't find another one, wala, God provided!

We have a warm comfortable home, always good nutritious food, good clothes, amazing fiends and family, a sweet church family and so much more . . . we have CHRIST.  We have the hope of eternal life.  We have two precious, eternal souls entrusted to our care . . . Thank you LORD.  We are Blessed.  Let us NEVER EVER forget it!!!!

Look at my now strong healthy little men -

look at my beautiful family . . .

What more could I want?  What more could I need?

Count your Blessings and have a Blessed Thanksgiving!

We have had a busy month!  I just can't even believe it's November already!  How time moves.  The boys are growing fast, and well.  At times they are such a challenge and then other times it's pure joy!  Even in the midst of crabby disobedient children, messy houses, and hard decisions God gives grace and reminds me that he is LORD and he is ALWAYS in control.

At the beginning of October Stephen quit his job with Aflac.  It had been really slow, and he had had issues with other people in the company, we both really felt it was time for him to move on.  He had just started working part time Managing a local Snap fitness, which he really enjoyed, and was hoping to find a job quickly that would mesh with his Snap job.  But God's timing was different than ours!   Although a he had an offer of employment it didn't pay what our family required and we felt it was not what God had for Stephen at this time.  October was hard!  Stephen was working only about 3hours per day and we have bills that have to be paid regardless of if we have money or not!  But God was faithful!  From a friend calling Stephen up and offering him a week long construction job, to a friend hiring me to photograph his wedding, some how we always had the money required when the bills came due.    

Then this last Monday we once again reached a crisis point.  Stephen's job with Snap was about to end (on Thursday, Today)  And he was waiting on a call back from a job interview, but it had been nearly two weeks and we were beginning to think they had decided against hiring him.  Monday night the men at Stephen's Bible Study lifted him and his job situation up to the Lord in prayer, we had been praying about it for a month, but this was the first time we had asked other Christians to pray as well.  Then on Tuesday as Stephen was showering before leaving to work at Snap he began to pray that BCR would call and give him an answer one way or the other.  I was washing dishes in the Kitchen and heard Stephen's cell phone ring, I thought, "Lord, please let that be BCR"  but didn't go to look.  When Stephen came down from the shower I told him he had missed a call, and low and behold it was not only BCR but they were calling to hire him!  He as able to start part time the very next day, and full time the following Monday!!!

Oh' but what a God we serve!

Thank you, thank you, thank you LORD!