Monday, February 27, 2012

I HAVE IT ALL! Part 1

Yep, that pretty much sums up the way I feel.. Blessed to have everything.. Blessed to have ALL that I could want or need. Blessed to have a Savior that CONSTANTLY keeps me on my toes to remind me of just how good I have it..

I was personally humbled several times in the last 6 days. I felt fear, lonliness, sadness, helplessness, admiration, love, anger and so much more. These 6 days have been a crazy whirlwind. Stirring up some serious emotion in my soul. So much so that I really didn't even know where to begin with this post...

It started out on Tuesday morning. We got a call fairly early from the Juvenile Justice Office. I knew when I saw the caller ID that there was most likely a child out there in need. I knew that we were needed and that God wanted to use us before I answered the call. Sure enough, there were 3 sisters ages 3, 4 & 9 who needed a safe place to go immedietly. The circumstances they came from are unimaginable for most people. Would we take them?

There was only one problem, I was scheduled to go out of town (2 1/2 hours each way) to do a wrap party with my new business. I didn't want to leave The Captain alone with 10 kids to include the 3 new young ones especially without a "mother figure" around. I told the worker I would check with The Captain and call her back within 15 minutes.

The Captain just amazes me with his willingness to serve. He wasn't hesitant. He agreed that he would be fine with the 10 kids from noon until I got home well after midnight. I called the worker back, explained that I would be gone and was concerned about a "mother figure" not being around. She simply said "I don't think they have one anyway so they probably won't miss that." Sad, heartbreakingly sad..

The sweet angels arrived at our home around 11am Tuesday morning. Cutest and most beautiful things you've ever seen. The plan was to keep them until court on Thursday at which time a judge would decide their fate from there. The oldest girl was extremely sad. Her eyes screamed in pain although she acted like a precious, sweet, well-mannered doll. She thanked me for EVERYTHING!The 2 younger ones accepted the situation quickly and jumped right in to play with the other kiddos.

Can I just say again that MY HUSBAND AMAZES ME? He encouraged me to start this new business that is BOOMING & has kept me busy and has me feeling so good! Not to mention scooping those little girls up and hugging on them right when they came through our front door. He treated those 3 like part of our family from the moment he saw them. And how many guys offer to care for 10 children with absolutely no problem? Thank you Lord for a wonderful husband. A wonderful husband that you picked out JUST FOR ME! Boy, I HAVE IT ALL

The oldest girl was concerned RIGHT AWAY. I could tell she was troubled. She had left her Bible at the Sherrif's office and I could tell it really bothered her. I assured her that we would get it back as soon as possible and she could borrow one of ours in the meantime.

I headed out, and realized about an hour away from home that I had forgotten my purse! I'm such a ding dong! How was I suppose to look good for all the meetings I had scheduled WITH NO LIPGLOSS or GUM? LOL. I got to my hometown, met with a new client at a hair salon, headed to visit my mom. She's the best I'll tell you. I had told her I forgot my purse so laying there as I walked in the door were a variety of purses for me to choose from to include lipstick, kleenex, fingernail clippers, her credit card (in case I needed it) and GUM! THANK YOU MOM! I HAVE IT ALL

It also happened to be my mother in laws birthday so I headed there next. We had a nice long talk at her office and I had fun delivering her birthday gift. She encouraged me with her hugs, wisdom and gave me some great Godly advice. I HAVE IT ALL!

Then I headed to a friends house I hadn't seen in years. I enjoyed visiting with she and her family and chatting about old times. I have such great friends! I HAVE IT ALL! It was time for the party!! It was held at my friends adorable candle shop in Weston, Missouri. It was a FABULOUS turnout and I signed 2 new distributors and EVERYONE lost inches and loved the ITWORKS products. We just had a ball! I HAVE IT ALL!

The sherriff's office was on my way home and I just couldn't get that Bible off of my mind, I HAD to get it for our 9 year old guest. I got home after midnight that night and rose early to our 10 kiddos! I HAVE IT ALL!

I took 6 girls and headed to violin lessons. On the way there, the oldest of our new gals asked when they would be leaving. I told her about court and that a very nice judge would make a decision to make sure that she and her sisters were safe. She began to cry and before I knew it, I was sobbing, I just couldn't help it, I looked in the rearview and I could see tears streaming down "T's" face too.

I got ahold of myself and the lessons went fine. I promised the girls that we would make cupcakes later in the afternoon. The Captain called as I was driving home and said there had been a change of plans and the court date was changed so the girls would most likely be leaving soon after we got back. They all begged to play outside. It was a nice day so I let them. I gathered all their things and washed/dried their clothes. We decided not to tell them they would be leaving. To let them just play and enjoy themselves and be kids without any worry until they had to leave. I tucked a family picture in the Bible with a note from us saying that we would miss them & would pray for them always.

The sherriff was so sweet. He was gentle and kind. They already knew him from the day before so it made things better. We hugged and said our goodbyes. We all kept smiles on. As the littlest o3 year old was walking out the door she looked up at him and said "DO YOU KNOW HOW TO MAKE CUPCAKES?" OH MELT MY HEART.. I ran to the kitchen, got a cupcake mix and gave it to her to take with her. We all stood on the porch and waved with smiles on until the car went down the drive...That's when my tears began to flow and I hugged my children tight. I HAVE IT ALL!

It is SUCH a difficult job but we DO NOT do it for ourselves. We do it to SERVE.YES, it's uncomfortable! YES, it alters our schedule.YES, it makes our family in dissarray. We do it out of obedience to our Father. A Father that took US IN! A Father that adopted us!! A Father that forgives all our sin. A Father that blessed us with 8 children. A Father that saved 7 of those childrens lives! A Father that protected those children in the womb. We have a family, We have a warm home, We have all our needs met.

We have JESUS!!! WE HAVE IT ALL!!!!

Please say a little prayer for our 3 angels that Jesus holds them close, that God's hand of protection be around them and over them and that they rest easy in a home that teaches them about
HIS LOVE..
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Sunday, February 19, 2012

7...Our MyMy

OH HOW THE TIME FLIES! Seems just yesterday I got the call that she needed a foster home. She's already 7!  Today, makes me ponder a lot but mostly the thankfulness I feel deep in my soul for God's Gift of Myah Annmarie as our earthly daughter. The sweet babe born in the back seat of a car to a meth addicted mother. THANK YOU LORD for saving our girl and protecting her life. Gratitude to the LORD for this precious precious girl!

She wanted to make some "Swirly cupcakes". So we did. We divided our cake batter into 4 bowls and made them 4 different colors! Pink, purple, blue and green.

Then we put a bit of each color in the cupcake papers and swirled them around with a toothpick.

Then before we knew it, they were all baked up!

Then we got "ALL FANCIFIED" and made our own homemade butter cream frosting FROM SCRATCH! This was the first time for me. Turned out doggone devine. Blew away that canned junk. How come ya'all never told me to do it this way? I think I gained 4 pounds licking the spoon with this stuff and it wasWAY EASY!

MyMy wanted more than anything for her birth sister to come. That is really all she asked for. Well, her sister got a case of lice from school and wasn't able to make it. Both girls were very sad but THE SHOW MUST GO ON! Luckily, we planned a skating party here at our local rink also. 

Here is the "party table" all set up at the skating rink.


She picked out tubes filled with glowing earrings, necklace and bracelets and we added little tags that said "Thanks for ROLLIN over to my party" Love, Myah


We made the little cupcake toppers!
I even used a bag and one of those fancy tips to put the frosting on. What do you think? I know, I need practice :) but she LOVED THEM!

The sweet Birthday Girl!

Even Lolli fell in love with skating and went around a MILLION times!


Let me introduce you to "THE CUPCAKE STALKER" who was caught putting his finger in more than once..EWWWW!

Living out in the boonies like we do, we don't have a LEGIT skating rink but BOY do the kids love skating on this wooden floor and BOY is it LOUD when they fall, bang bang bang. We attended the beginners skate from 5-7pm along with the rest of the town. I'll bet there wer 70 little ones trying to skate that evening. I rewarded myself with a LARGE dose of ibuprofen when I got home.


MyMy and all her friends. It took her quite a long time to come up with a wish!


The INSIDE of our cupcakes! LOVED THEM!



HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our precious princess!!!

On a side note, MyMy and Bits birthmother JUST got out of prison and we are looking forward to seeing her. She has gained 50 pounds since being clean and off of meth in prison. We are hoping and praying we can see her "CLEAN" for the first time ever very soon!

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Sunday, February 12, 2012

IT WORKS! I LOST 4 1/2 inches in 45 minutes!!

I NEVER would have believed it worked but it is THE TRUTH! I went to my first wrap party this past Friday night. I admit I was very skeptical but excited to try it!

I got the wrap applied to my stomach after being measured in 3 areas and marked with a sharpie. I waited 45 minutes as the other party guests got wrapped. After 45 minutes, my wrap was removed and I was remeasured. I LOST 4 1/2 INCHES in 45 MINUTES! NO LIE!!

The wrap was then reapplied and I wore it home, put my spanx on and went to bed. When I woke up in the morning, I took off the wrap and tossed it & THE CAPTAIN remeasured me at the exact same sharpie marks and I had lost almost 2 more inches! The wild part was that he NOTICED a PHYSICAL difference in my stomach. He wanted me to JUMP ON BOARD and sell the wraps right away (which I will also be using on him :) SO I DID! I signed on as a distributor and already have 3 LOYAL CUSTOMERS (customers who commit to buy any one item from ITWORKS for 3 months)
As of this morning, I have lost 8 total inches. The wraps can be applied to belly, rear, legs, arms, neck/chin area. There is also a facial one.

You will see the effects of using just ONE WRAP for up to 72 hours and keep the inches off for 2-6 months. You CAN re-wrap after 72 hours if you want to but I will most likely just do it once a month.


I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes! The pictures below are not of me but of an actual ITWORKS client!


The wrap is all natural. It has all natural ingredients on it. To me it felt like Vicks on my belly when I was wrapped and gave a cooling sensation.

Here is the video of how to apply the wrap.

 I can POP one in the mail to anyone interested!
Let me just tell you I signed 2 people up to purchase these (Loyal Customers) on a regular basis already in just 12 hours time!

This product is SELLING LIKE HOT CAKES and I had to share it with you! IT SELLS ITSELF!!!

If you have been thinking about making a bit of extra money on the side, this may be for you!
Feel free to check out the wraps on my ITWORKS PAGE!

OR EMAIL ME with any interest or questions!

It is so neat to see God present me with this opportunity to do something fun on the side (because you all KNOW I'm BORED and have nothing to do right LOL) with other Christian women on my team where I get to interact with some awesome people and have a small business for myself!

Giving him all the praise for this awesome new side job of mine that has stirred up so much excitement!

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Saturday, February 4, 2012

Big OL RV TRIP...THE END of the road!

We woke up and were driving by 7:15am on the morning we left.
We left most of the kids in bed sleeping.  
I knew THE END would eventually come.

I think my sadface was contagious!

The sign as we exited our home..

The blurred campground & fishing bridge in the background as we drove away..
Oh how I missed it all instantly..

I also miss the palm trees..

The sunrises...

The boats & fishermen..

The beautiful scenery..




And mostly just the "LAID BACKEDNESS" of it all!
I can tell he missed it too. He fell asleep in his swimming goggles!

The kids were SO GOOD on the drive. We decided to get out and go to FAMILY DOLLAR at the end of our first day traveling home and let them all pick out one thing..

We got..A rainbow pad of paper, a police set, a New Testament, glow bracelets, a plastic knife, plastic earrings and BALLS for the baby. ALL WERE THRILLED!

UNTIL.....

THIS TRAIN WRECK HAPPENED. Bits stuck his finger in one of Lollis balls..
And it got stuck...I MEAN REALLY STUCK...
He was hysterical..which made me a bit hysterical...
THANK GOD The Captain remained calm..
AND THEN IT GOT WORSE...

MyMy came up and calmly said "MOMMY, I HAVE A PROBLEM."
His older sister who protects and looks out for him AT ALL TIMES decided to "REENACT" his   action to see if she could find a way to help get her brothers finger out
AND GUESS WHAT??
YUP!!!
2 balls stuck on 2 fingers and 2 kids WAILING as we drove down the highway.

At this point The Captain of our Ship decided that it was time to pull our rig over and check things out..... He got out his bag of tools...

And the surgery on both kids was performed. 
He did a fantastic job remaining calm as I remained a BASKET CASE!

THE "DOUBLE FINGER BALLECTOMY" was a SUCCESS!

Then it was time to handcuff the baby so that no more ball incidents happened again!

We stayed in a our usual Wal-Mart parking lot that night and headed out the next morning early. We wanted to be at our friends house by supper time so we had to put the pedal to the metal. I showered while going down the road and then it was The Captains turn..Which means I had to drive the big rig. It was the longest I've ever driven er' and YES, I know I didn't have my seatbelt on. I WAS SO NERVOUS I guess I just forgot. I held er steady while The Captain got his shower in. I was white knucklin' it ALL THE WAY!  You get quite the jolt when the semis pass you. It's kinda scary.. Maybe one day I will take more of a role in the driving but I am hoping not!

We arrived at our friends house in time for dinner! YUMMY!

My friend of 10 years! 
We've been through a lot together and I was THRILLED that we stopped by to see them!

T was happy to spend the night in the house with the girls!
That is what is SO NICE about the RV..You can go visit, hang out and not feel like whoever you are visiting is inconvenienced by having to find a place for 9 people to sleep!

My friend and I stayed up talking after everyone else crashed out until we both started nodding off on the couch after midnight! It was such a blessing to catch up!

We woke up to my friends FAMOUS homemade Cinnamon rolls!
I can still taste them now.. DEEEEEVINE!!

The girls..

The boys..

You don't know my friends husband holding Blakely here but let me just tell you...
He is one of God's favorites..
He did ALL SEVEN of our adoptions including Blakely's embryo adoption.. He is a compassionate friend and attorney. We will be forever grateful for his unselfish service to our family. He (with God's help) is the reason that we have some of our kids and we are so thankful for him! Lolli loved him!

All the kids before we headed out!

Our last stop before home!
Waving goodbye!

Several people have asked me if I missed home.. If I am happy that we are back in our house.
I am, don't get me wrong but HONESTLY I cannot think of one thing I missed. I missed a couple of people but I think I could have stayed there forever. In a beautiful place. meeting new people, where the weather is always warm and the atmosphere so relaxed. A place where I didn't have to share my husband with his job or farm work-that's a BIGGIE! A place where we had no "running around to do" and could soak in the beauty of God's creations daily..

I didn't think I would survive 30 days in our RV with 9 people but it was extremely easy.. and fun.. The Captain is already talking about staying longer next year and I am game!! Especially as I look outside at the snow today..NOT A FAN!

I am thankful to the Lord for our time away to love our kids and bond as a family. A time that was ALL OURS. Memories made for a lifetime!

I DO HAVE SOME OTHER NEWS!!
I AM WRITING A BOOK!  
I have 4,000 words typed so far. and I WELCOME ANY ADVICE ON BOOK WRITING, PUBLISHING etc.. that any of you has.

I am still pondering the name but am considering the name of my blog as the book title. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THAT?


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