Thanksgiving 2011

Thanksgiving is my favorite...and as my very wise daughter Lashae pointed out, it really is the most Biblical holiday, giving thanks to God, celebrating together, and encouraging one another.  

Hebrews 10:23-25

English Standard Version (ESV)

²³ Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,²⁵ not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Esther playing in her first big snow!  She loved it, but discovered it is very cold.

Lashae and Chaney practicing on how to manage 8 kids...I told them, I hope this is how their future looks.  Hehe

Enjoying the SNOW!!  Charsie catching air.

The family all together!!!
  Chaney may beg his bosses to have  the next holiday off, he probably didn't realize what would happen if he took "no" for an answer.  :)

Thanks Chaney and Lashae for letting us come for Thanksgiving and being the best hosts EVER!!!

Sisters baking while Lashae was wearing Maezie.  

Charlie and Kole had to make the table bigger!!!!  

My cousin Deb and her sweet girls came to visit us.  We had a very good time...Tiffany the one in the middle was "practicing on Maezie" because she just announced she will be having a baby of her own in about 8 months.  Yippee!!! And Deb my cousin was practicing being a Grandma, and Brittany was practicing being an Auntie.   I love all these girls!!!

Marlece and Jim and their boys.  They were such troopers coming all the way to Montana for Thanksgiving .  Jim left straight from Montana to the airport to fly back to his job in California.   Layton, the oldest boy, will probably be a Montana resident someday, he loves hunting, and everything about the woods and big country.  He's a true farmer and rancher at heart.

God blessed us with a beautiful time together, the roads were clear....the travel was relatively easy.  Esther remembered EVERYTHING we needed.  It was hilarious in the car, every time someone expressed a need for something, it just appeared.  Esther had a little bit of everything you could ever need right at her fingertips.  Charlie was saying his fries needed more salt after we had stopped at a fast food restaurant and were eating on the way...and low and behold a salt shaker appeared.  We all laughed because Esther thought of everything and had it all at a moments notice.

1 Thessalonians 3:9-13

The Message (MSG)

 ^9-10What would be an adequate thanksgiving to offer God for all the joy we experience before him because of you? We do what we can, praying away, night and day, asking for the bonus of seeing your faces again and doing what we can to help when your faith falters.
 ^11-13May God our Father himself and our Master Jesus clear the road to you! And may the Master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you. May you be infused with strength and purity, filled with confidence in the presence of God our Father when our Master Jesus arrives with all his followers.

We are so thankful that God cleared the way for us to splash a little love on one another!!!

Thanksgiving Plans Changed :)

I have some good news!!!!

 I'm extra extra thankful today.  Thankful for crazy family members and last minute decisions.

 Let me first confess that on Sunday I was NOT feeling very happy or thankful.  I was kind of throwing a fit...I kept it pretty quiet, but in my head I was throwing a TANTRUM.  I learned that Lashae and Chaney could not come for Thanksgiving.  Oh how SAD I was.  I was trying to be strong for my girls who were really upset and I was feeling great compassion for so many mothers out there that don't get to have their kids together for Thanksgiving. I was feeling spoiled for taking it so hard, but I accepted it.  I just had too....but my girls did NOT accept it, not one bit!  They prayed and prayed that we could all be together for Thanksgiving.

And then my sister who is supposed to come here for Thanksgiving called and said, "Let's go to Montana for Thanksgiving!"  What...?????  I mean her hubby is working out of town...it is a LONG drive and he will barely fly home and have to jump in the car...go 10 hours and fly back to work before he even sees his house in the daylight.  I said, "No, it's not fair to Jim, he's coming a long way already."  She then proceeded to inform me that he already agreed to the whole crazy thing. Jim is a softy especially when it comes to his nieces...he has 4 boys, so his nieces hold a very extra special place in his heart. Well then, I began to get excited!!!

We need new tires and I thought I needed new brakes...but turns out I don't need brakes and I have to buy tires anyway if I want to drive this winter. Charlie was having a hard time with it...he was planning on working on Friday and Saturday...of which, I think the guy needs a few days break anyway.  I keep reminding him he has a lot of years left because as we all know we are not even close to having our family raised.  hehe...so I think he needs to preserve his body just a bit and give it a few days rest here and there.

We all went to bed last night, with the thought that Charlie would sleep on it, but it wasn't looking good, and I must say...I had a hundred ideas in my head to convince him... probably about as good as when Eve convinced Adam to take a bite of the apple...but I knew I should SHUT IT!  Sooooo, I let the man sleep and I tried to sleep, and then in the morning I asked if he had any angels visit in the night...he said he had NO IDEA what I was talking about..He was torturing me, as usual.  He then said....,"Let's GO to Montana!!!"...

So, instead of cleaning my house today, I am getting my car ready for a road trip and getting 6 kids ready to travel to see their sister.  Yippy Happy Day at the Brewer House!

Happy Dance!!!

I Stand Corrected. ;)

Ok...I've been called out...I've been "talked" to.

Robert, one of our dearest and bestest friends of all time, likes to keep me on the straight and narrow.  So I posted my new favorite quote a few posts back..."I will not be entertained by anything Jesus died for"....yes, I know, NOW I realize, thanks to Robert, it's got some complications.

 Robert called and reported that we can no longer be friends...due to my latest favorite quote, because Christ died for him.  Oops, the minute he said it, I went, "Oh no, that is NOT what I meant or what I heard when I read it". 

 I'm so glad for good friends that let me know when I just said or posted something REALLY dorky.  I need an army of them to help me...God knows this, and that is one more good reason that  He put Robert in our lives.  

And just a side note:  Robert  knew exactly what I meant, he just likes to get my dandruff up, and besides, what the heck is he doing reading my blog anyway...isn't it a girly thing? Shelly get him off the bloggy world.  :)  

 I love you Robert and Shelly, and I stand corrected Robert, although I do find it quite endearing that you read my blog.  :) Keep it up and keep me straight.  

I'm the luckiest girl in the world to have such good, loving, and crazy  friends, and when I say crazy I do mean it! I know that when we all hang out, Jesus is smiling because He sees friendships that are here on earth that will continue into eternity and that just blesses us all 

 FOREVER!

 Keep me straight Robert..it's your job to help Charlie.   And Shelly, keep Robert straight it's your job to help the world.

Please take a look at this blog..

http://www.allarepreciousinhissight.blogspot.com/

This family is doing a fundraiser for the adoption of 2 boys!  I do not know this family in person, as I only know them because they were so supportive of our efforts in adopting our Esther.  They are Jesus loving, kid loving, cowboy people.  Just our type. :)

God Heals

I'm just going to lay out very simply a chain of events..to give Glory to God, and to remember, so that when I'm struggling to understand something, or feel like God can not hear my prayer...I can look back and remember, He is faithful and He is a healer...it is a Memorial Box  event.  To put down what God has done and remember and in the hard times....just remember and be thankful.

Friday, November 4th, 2011...Kole is playing in a high school football game in Ontario...it's the 3rd quarter and his knee gets dislocated....it's ugly...and it hurts...there are witnesses....the coach, Charlie, the paramedic...we have it on film...the knee was totally out of joint....it goes back in by itself, Kole feels major relief, and is able, with help, to get off the field and get on the bench to watch the rest of the game and ice his knee.

Sunday, November 6th, 2011...We decide to pray over this knee, do as it tells us in God's Word and just lay hands on Kole and pray, I mean, what can it hurt to ask our Father in heaven for healing, He is the Healer.  It was simple and right to the point and totally football like, nothing elegant or fancy...Ben, his football buddy and friend said a prayer, a few others prayed as well, and  we all agreed.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011...I take Kole to the Orthopedic Surgeon.  He is a well known awesome Doctor that has been doing this for many years.  He is gifted at his practice and he has done many surgeries  for our extended family and our friends.  He is an answer to many prayers prayed over our family and friends.  We trust him and his work, he is a kind and gifted Dr.

So....here's how it goes in the Dr. office:

Dr. :  So you dislocated your knee huh?

Kole:  Yes sir.

Dr.:  Checks knee out pushes and prods....pokes and manipulates.  He questions Kole again, "Are you sure you dislocated it?"

Kole: Oh yes.

Dr.:  What makes you think it was dislocated?

Kole:  Describes in detail what it felt like and looked like.

Me:  We have it on film and Charlie was queasy it was so deformed looking...

Dr.:  Charlie went on the field?

Me:  Yes, along with the coach and the EMT.  Everyone saw it.  It was completely dislocated..we have a film of it.

Dr.:  Checks knee out one more time...backs up and says...this knee DOES NOT act like a knee that has been dislocated...it's tender in areas and swollen, but when you dislocate a knee you tear stuff, and this knee feels solid as a rock...not shifting, no looseness.  It just doesn't make any sense...Nothing is making sense about this knee...hmmmm....well, how about you take 3 weeks off..no jumping, no running, no lifting, and then come back.  I don't think you need an MRI, I just don't feel like it's a knee that has any ligament tares. I will look at it in 3 weeks and if I think you need a MRI at that time we can do it then.
 
Me: In the corner of the room with a funny grin on my face...giggling to myself and knowing that I just witnessed God doing something so sweet for my son.  He healed him and gave him 3 weeks rest!  How cool is that.

Me and Kole went practically skipping out of that office and we got in the car and realized something very cool had just happened.

Random Thoughts and Thankfulness

My new favorite quote:
"I will not allow myself to be entertained by anything that Christ died for"  

**

Month of November is Thanksgiving...I'm so incredibly thankful for so much...and I'm going to try to ACT like it!!!

**

Football is over ended with a bang and a dislocated knee.  Cross Country is over ended with Charsie getting to go to state her freshman year.  

**

Looking forward to Thanksgiving!!!  Oh I hoping this house is busting at the seams because EVERYONE shows up.  Come on family...let's do it.  

**

I'm running again, and I'm THRILLED beyond anything.  I was frosty this morning and I can't tell you what a thrill is was to be sweaty in 15 degrees and holding hands and praying with the "girls" again.  One of my most favorite things.

**

Baby Maezie is a complete joy!  She eats a lot at night and yes I have some little helping hands during the day, but I have to say...I'm the only one that can feed the little turkey and I have changed EVERY single diaper except one that my sister changed when she was here...I just had to throw that all in there because I have a tenancy to let the older children do the raising of the younger ones...simply because they do a better job frankly, but when they are infants I try to pull my weight.  haha

**

This week is rodeo week, where Charlie and I  take on the job of putting on the Circuit Finals Rodeo, and I do the ticket job...I think it's going good, but I have postpartum brain and I'm going on 5-6 hours of totally interrupted sleep for the last 8 weeks..so only the bottom line will tell the true answer.  The truth of the matter is, I have some great friends that have helped me for years..so I'm not worried in the least...they will keep me lined out. 

**

October 2011 Highlights

I'm here to tell ya...life has been good!!  I'm just going to give picture highlights to recap...I could write a post about each event, but then I would never get caught up...so I'm giving the highlights...

Our friends brought these precious treasures home to their forever family!  It makes my heart jump with joy to see these kids be adopted...but not just to any family, to a great, Jesus loving, kid loving family who happen to be our friends.  SCORE!!!!  God is so much fun!!!

My sister and 3 of her boys came to meet Maezie and also to watch Kole play football.  Of course, we packed in a FULL week-end of crazy fun.  Maezie barely survived all the slobber  I mean love by my sister...she kissed her until she was raw.  Maezie loved every minute of it, and so did my sis...I think her hubby hates me right now because I'm sure my sis is at home trying to convince him for just 1 more baby.  Hehe.

Charsie made it to state in Cross Country...yep she's a stud!!!  She's quite a runner.  She placed 6th in the district, and her team placed 1st.

Kole's football team made it to the play-ins..pretty fun especially since this is his Senior year.  The boys are a very close team...a bunch of very cool boys that are so fun to watch and just plain fun to be around and root on in everything they do.

Charsie and her friends were ninjas for Halloween.  They had more fun than the little kids.  It was fun listening to them.  They couldn't end the fun, so the girls came to spend the night and giggle some more...I LOVE THIS!!!  I've been missing Lashae soooooo bad, I needed an overload of girl laughter and last night I got my fix!  I still miss Lashae, but I feel like I may live until Thanksgiving, but if I don't get my Lashae fix then....I may die.  Just sayin'.

The most precious pumpkin on the planet!!!!  She is so sweet she's more like pumpkin pie.

Here's the Halloween kids....Esther is wearing a costume my Grandma made for Lashae about 10 years ago...it blessed my heart to have her wear this...my Grandma was THE BEST and she would love to have seen Esther wearing this costume that she made.  Luke was a nerd...enough said...Kennedy..(my other daughter) ;)  was a gypsy..Charsie a ninja and Reece a football player.


Esther had NO idea what was going on and what Halloween was, but she LOVED it, and thinks it's pretty cool to go door to door and get candy.  She's all in, let me tell ya.

We are having fun with these kids that God has so generously blessed us with...I don't know what I would do with my hubby if he didn't have all these kids to play with...he is such a kid himself he would drive me crazy if it were just him and I, so I'm  glad God saw fit to bless us with MANY years of raising MANY kids.  It just doesn't get any better than this!

Seriously!!!!