Jacob's Football Homecoming

On October 17th ,Lil Man had his SPB Football Homecoming.

Jacob escorted Miss Abby Reed.

It was a fun & sweet day.

Brunswick Stew

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup chopped onions

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 1/2 pounds ground pork

1 1/2 pounds ground beef

1 (3 pound) whole cooked chicken, deboned and shredded

3 (14.5 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes with liquid, chopped

1 cup ketchup

1/2 cup hickory flavored barbeque sauce

salt and pepper to taste

hot sauce to taste (optional)

1 green bell pepper

3 (14.75 ounce) cans cream style corn

Directions
1.Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, and saute the onions and celery until soft. Mix in the pork and beef, and cook until evenly browned. Do not drain.
2.Transfer the pork and beef mixture to a large stock pot over low heat. Stir in the shredded chicken, tomatoes and their liquid, ketchup, and barbeque sauce. Season with salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Place the whole green pepper into the mixture. Cook, stirring occasionally, 2 hours, or until thickened.
3.Stir the cream style corn into the stew mixture. Continue cooking 1 hour, or to desired consistency. Remove the green pepper; chop and return to the stew or discard.



Trust in the LORD with all thine heart;and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him,and he will direct thy paths. ~Proverbs 3:5-6

Our Sweet GRANDbaby:)

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

A Mother's Prayer
By Rachel Aldous

Verse:

My sweet baby on loan from above

no better treasure could I more loved

I stand here beside your bed as I pray

I lay my hand on your head and I say:

Chorus:

May you grow up to serve Him

all of your days

May He lead you and guide you

in all of your ways

May His hand bless your future with

friendships that last

May you cherish your youth

and not grow up too fast

Verse:

I stare in wonder at your tiny frame

Just to think that God knows you by name

He knows every hair on your beautiful head

He knows all your thoughts before they are said

Chorus:

May you grow up to serve Him

all of your days

May He lead you and guide you

in all of your ways

May His hand bless your future with

friendships that last

May you cherish your youth

and not grow up too fast

Prayer:

May God grant you peace

in the midst of a storm

May God give you strength even

when youre forlorn

May you answer the door when

Jesus comes knocking

May wisdom guide you when

your mouth is talkin

May discretion protect you

and keep you pure

May you never stumble

or fall for a lure

May your heart remain humble

to the very end

May uprightness and truth

be what you defend

May the world not ensnare

or change who you are

May the light that's within you

shine like the stars

May angels surround you

body, spirit, mind

May favor and peace be yours to find

May rejection and pain

never reach you

May your spirit grow bold

for what youre called to

As you rest in Gods care I will rest too

Knowing that Jesus is watching over you

Amen

To hear this precious song click on the video:)

Our Weekend In Pictures

Our weekend was great!

We had a lot going on ,but we had a great time.

 Here are pics from our weekend.

One of my sweet peas (babysitting kid)

celebrated his third birthday!

Happy Birthday Elijah!

He celebrated with a train birthday.

(Elijah, Ashley, and Bailey on the train)

(Bailey)

Emma (One of my other Sweet Peas)

Sweet Lil Bean & Ashley

Elijah got a horse!

Elijah got a horse for his birthday:)

He is growing up in a family that loves horses,

so now he has one too!

He was one very happy lil boy.

I told Elijah not to tell Katie about

 getting a horse for his birthday...lol

I think she has asked me & her daddy

every year for a horse.

She couldn't understand that we

 had no place to keep a horse.

Now,maybe she can go ride Elijah's:)

On Sunday,

Samantha had a housewarming shower.

Congratulations Samantha!

She is moving into a new home.

She had a great party and

 got some really nice things.

Miss Kylee (She is one of my past Sweet Peas)

I kept her for several years until she started school.

Lil Bailey came to spend the weekend with

Uncle Brent & Aunt Sandy

Did you notice her little lip? She was wanting to help me

with Samanth's shower stuff, and was trying to come down the

front steps and fell and busted her mouth.

She's gonna be okay ,but she scared me to death.

Little Bean looking so big setting up by herself.

More pics of my sweet little Jelly Bean

She is trying hard to crawl on her knees.

Look at her sweet little face.

She is one of the sweetest babies

that I know.

I love you sweet lil Bean.

Besides that,

We enjoyed a wonderful church service at my

Uncle Randy's church on Sunday.

His son Chris just got called to preach

and I went to hear his first sermon.

I know God has great plans for him.

The weekend was great ,but it went by to fast.

What's happening in Howellville?

I figured it was about time for a Howellville update.

Here are the things we have going on right here

in our little neck of the woods...

Today I will be taking Ashley to see a new podiatrist. She has been having problems with her feet for the last couple of years. She saw a podiatrist last year that said she had a cyst & a bone spur and he told us to go buy foot pads and new shoes every six months and her foot would heal on it's on. Well, that really hasn't made the cyst nor spur go away. So today, I'm taking her to see another doctor and hopefully he will be able to remove the spur & cyst for good. Keep her in your prayers. Her feet have really been hurting.

We have a very busy weekend planned and I'm really trying to figure out how to squeeze it in.

Friday-Pick up Bailey for the weekend.

Trinton's coming for the weekend.

Girl's Night out with my daughters

Saturday-Jacob has a game

Elijah(a lil friend) has his 3rd birthday party

My mom's half sister Debra has invited me to a party at

her house for her son's graduation.

Sunday-My uncle Randy (from dad's brother) has invited me

to his church Sunday morning to hear his son (my 1st cousin) preach his

first sermon. I don't really know my dad's family that well,

but I thought it was very sweet that he invited me and

I am planning to attend that.

Also on Sunday,

Samatha our oldest will be having a house warming shower.

She is moving in her new home very soon...

I hope she has a great out turn.

Besides the weekend plans,
 here is what else I have on my mind and heart.

Hubby & Jon just got back Alabama visiting my Father-In-Law.
They went over there to help him to get wood up for the winter months.

Ashley has been working on ADAP (Alcohol Drug Awareness Program) and finally passed it so we will be going next week to get her drivers license. Way to go Sassy!!!!!

Katie has been keeping the roads busy. She's also been working alot (babysitting) at a friend's house. It seems since she got license she is always gone. When she's on the go I am a nervous wreck. I had to pray and ask God to forgive me for worrying and not trusting Him. It's just so hard not to worry. Last night, she was out late and I think I called her three or four times. I just couldn't help myself. I love my kids so much.

Lil Jelly Bean is starting to crawl on her knees and she is finally eating baby food. She loves sweet potatoes and squash the best. We were told some good but also sad news about her this week. Our Lil Bean's time is about up with us. Our purpose was to foster her to health, and that's what we did. So starting next week we will start the transition home. Meaning she will be visiting more often and staying longer and eventually over night in her real home.  Then next month, sweet lil Bean will be going home to live. It's good that she will be able to be returned to her real family, but it's always sad for us to say goodbye. So keep Lil Bean, her family, and us in your prayers. Lil Bean's family has said they are willing to keep sharing Lil Bean with us, and that will be awesome if they do. We love when we can keep in touch with our babies. We do have a bond with each of our fosters, that alot of times the birth family don't consider or just can't understand. It's like they take a piece of our heart with them when they go.

Once Lil Bean is home ,we plan to open our home for the next child or children in need. Usually,we take a break for a while to kinda get through the letting go process, but this time we are not going to do that. If another child comes in care needing placement ,then we want to be there for them. I believe this is what God wants me to do.

I started my Christmas shopping this week. I am almost finished with Jacob already. I didn't want to wait around to the last minute. I have only a couple more small items left to pick up for Jacob. I had asked him what would he like for Santa to bring him this year and he gave me some ideas. I really enjoy shopping for kids.

My kids don't get alot of things through out the year, so at Christmas I like to surprise them and get them a few things that they will really enjoy. I'm looking forward to the holidays. Can you believe it's almost here?

Jon got  a new bow and he has been practicing all week with shooting it. He hasn't went hunting with it yet, but I think that's his plan for this weekend. He is a country boy to the bone...just like his daddy.

I started back walking/jogging this week. I kinda had slacked off because it's just been so hot here, but I got motivated with these cooler temps,so Ashley & I have jumped right back in the walking/jogging mode. Maybe I'll shed a few pounds too...that would be nice.

Next week, my goal is to start back working on our shops & sheds. We just have so much stuff that we really don't need or use anymore and I really hate letting this stuff just keep collecting when it could be a blessing to someone else. I have tons of baby stuff, kids stuff, toys, homeschooling books,house stuff, collectibles, etc that need new homes. It's finally getting cool enough to go through the shops & storage.

Well, that's all that I can think of right now.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

God designed each of us

so there would be

no duplication in the world.

Noone has the exact same mix

of factors that make us unique.

That means no one else on earth

will ever be able to play the role

God planned for you.

Raising babies & raising chickens

Our three new family members

Well, we've raised a little of this and that through the years. We've had babies, dogs, cats, rabbits, squirrels, a raccoon, pigs, fish and birds. But, we've never raised chickens. Well, a friend of ours thought it was about time we did. So he put out three in our yard (a rooster & two hens). Wish us luck. I don't know anything about raising chickens...lol

We are working on raising this little girl
 the right way...on "real" food.

Brookelyn had her first ear of corn. She loved it.

However,she mostly gummed it since
 she only has 1 and 1/2 teeth...lol

Brookelyn's first teeth

Last weekend sweet little Bailey came for a visit.

We had a great time with her.

She is getting so big and so smart.

She can carry on a conversation with you now.

She loves talking and never meets a stranger.

She's a sweetheart.

Little Bean was chewing on a Gerber puff and it turned just right

to look like she had rabbit teeth...lol Every time we put

one in her mouth she would turn and let it stick out.

We all got a good laugh. She loved the attention.

(Don't worry Lil Bean you will get teeth soon).

Yesterday, Amberly & Devon (past foster) came over to visit.

I haven't seen devon in a couple of months and he is just growing

like a little weed. They are just precious to us.

*Amberly*

*Devon*

Brookelyn just did not know what to think about Devon.

She kept taking his passy...lol

She would spit hers out ,to take his.

He learned quickly if he would pop hers back in

then she wouldn't get his...lol

*Devon*

*Brookelyn*

My Lil Man (Jacob)

rub-a-dub-dub Meme's punkins in the tub:)

Just being a boy...(kool-aid mouth and bare feet)

Her nose was stained orange from baby food...lol

Well, that's it for this post.

Have a blessed Day!