But for the grace of God, There go I...

It was the day before Christmas

We loaded in the van

With a pot full of chilli,

Bread and coffee in hand

Smith and Jones were the cooks extrodinair

The homeless were waiting

In the cold morning air

They came from all over

Many did we feed

So very humbling

To see folks in such need

All the kids handed out food

We want them to know

How to give and be thankful,

And to let compassion show

When I look at all the faces

I see stories etched there

Does anyone see?

Does anyone care?

We are so blessed

We have so much

The least we could do is share our lunch

May we always remember to pray

Cause really.... It could be us

One tragedy away

 

Merry Christmas to all!  And a Big Thank You to all who gave!

Love you!

 

Happy 2nd Birthday lil DJ!

Happy Birthday D'Sean!

I am forever grateful that God has allowed me to be a part of your life! You are such a vibrant little guy with a love for living!  I love you so much!

   

Family Pictures 2011

Thanksgiving

 

As a Thanksgiving post, I thought I would start this with saying how thankful I am.  For Starters, I have two handsome, healthy, happy boys.  They are my heartbeat!  The rest of my family is pretty great too! =D  I ended my last post with saying I am thankful for friends who make life’s journey a little easier…  I mean that with all my heart.  There are always a certain few that brighten our day and make us smile.  I have been blessed with many. 
Near and far, I am so thankful to have you in my life!

Since Gigi said we could NEVER come to Oregon during the winter again (she cried last year as we made our way home over Donner in a terrible storm certain that we would have to eat each other before the ordeal was over) we stayed in Reno.  We were blessed to be invited over to Derrick and Rose’s house for Thanksgiving dinner.  And what a feast they provided!  Get this- Turkey, Prime Rib, Tri-tip, Ox tail and beans, Dorito Casserole, and homemade soup, then the sides-stuffing, rice, fresh green beans, Macaroni & Cheese -Mashed Potatoes and Yams (from my mom) rolls, and lastly the desserts- Pecan pies, Pumpkin pies- sweet white potato pie, peach cobbler and reese’s bars (from me) and our little turkey friends that my mom and I stayed up until 2:30am putting 60 of the little guys together.  We were delirious and cracking upl  One of my favorite places to be is in the kitchen.  Having my mom there too was like winning a million bucks.   Anyway… back to our wonderful friends.  A little R&R, a wee bit of wii, and a few do’s (hair) later and it was time to head out to Pastor’s.  There we were greeted with a boatload of desserts!  More feasting, lots of gabbing, and a few really good belly laughs later and we left just in time to start our “Black Friday”-oops (Thursday 10pm) shopping!  Five stores and six hours later, I flopped into bed at 4 am, the proud owner of a….. $9 CROCKPOT!!! What a crazy night!  Hosted breakfast at our house at 5pm.  Yes, we have our days and nights mixed up! Played cards, enjoyed the night!  Saturday went shooting, forgot the 22 rifle, but had the 20 gauge shotgun.  We all shared and had a BLAST!!! (get it?)  Anyway! 

I hope that you all had a wonderful, fun-loving Thanksgiving!

A Fun-Filled Weekend

This past weekend was a busy one for sure.  Friday night we had Jr. Youth for our kiddos, then headed over to Sam and Lisa's house to try our hands at making Siao Pao (Show Pow).  Saturday I had a root canal and crown prep and later we went to the Christmas Tree Lighting at Legends.  They had a live band that played various Christmas songs and then performed The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.  The Fireworks were AWESOME!!!  After we were practically frozen solid we headed home and Jace helped me make Reese's bars for Sunday School snack.  Sunday we had a get together at Roland's Parents.  Prime Rib, Turkey, Ribs, Chicken, all the side dishes and desserts fed all 30+ of us.  I am thankful for friends that make life's journey a little easier!

Great Grandma

Great Grandma's Departure back to Jamaica is rapidly approaching!  We have enjoyed getting to know her and will cherish each memory!

Super Duper Sweet Tooth!

I have been in "SWEET TREATS" mode for a week!  Here are a couple things I made this past week... And yes, "Bakerella" is my inspiration!  The chocolate crackle cookies were on her site and looked so good I just had to make them!  She just put up another chocolate cookie yesterday that I will have to make too!!!

First rolled in Granulated Sugar, then Powdered...

Transformed into a Beautiful Chocolate Crackle!

Had the deep fryer out, So doughnut holes it is!



Reese's Cereal Treats



And of course I had the best little helper in the world!!!

Disney On Ice

We went to Disney on Ice this past Saturday with Derrick, Rose and their kiddos.  It was a lot of fun and totally made me feel like a kid again!  You just can't help but smile when you are surrounded by music and princesses! 

Thanks Smith Family for a wonderful night!  Love you!