POST SEASON!

Well I haven't updated since August---I just thought things would slow down and I would have more time after school started! So to bring you up to speed from the last post I will update on each of the little blessings in my life! We are now headed into Round 2 of the playoffs and the Bearcats are giving it their all! I have enjoyed this football season more than any other season yet. The parents are so supportive of their team, the coaching staff is very well balanced and the players, well I cant say enough good about them! We as a family have gotten really close to a couple of the players and I am so blessed by their relationships and friendships that have made with the boys. Coach loves Deleon and so do we, we are even discussing buying a house here, eeeeekkk!, that's a big deal for coaches! We have joined the First Baptist Church too since I posted last, we feel like its home, we have made some really good, close, safe friendships there and can't wait to continue to grow in different ministries. I have struggled with the loss of our church family at Cornerstone but stand firm that God will fill that void in His own way. I have developed 3 really close friendships and several good friendships, that has been a struggle in the places we have lived in the past because I was always busy with the kids and they have welcomed the kids and I everywhere we go, people step in and help out all the time, which they may or may not know but it is a huge blessing. :)

#4-- Jaxon is getting so big. He can crawl, cruise on furniture, and bear crawl! He is up to 24 pounds and 26 inches long. He wears 12-18 month clothes and we just celebrated his 10 months! I can't believe he will be 1 in just a few weeks. I love seeing him grow up and get to be home with him for all his milestones. He has been going to physical therapy for almost 6 months now and has improved his torticollis (shortening of muscles in the neck on one side) but still has a ways to go as it has effected the whole right side of his body, so we will continue to go to Abilene once a week until he's up straight, big and tall! He says mama and no no and Coach really is working on dada!

#3--Biscuit is doing great! He loves staying at home with me and cuddling on the couch and being the big brother while the boys are at school but by the end of the day he is ready to pick up the boys from school, I mean mom cant be fun for that long! He loves our new pet, Hass, they are best friends. Hass is a boxer that we rescued. He was being starved and we have had him about 6 weeks and he is finally starting to put some weight on.. (Ill post a picture below of our new big brother!) Biscuit rides him around and wrestles with him EVERY day! Biscuit loves some Bearcat football and even had a Bearcat 4th Birthday party in October. I cant believe he is already 4, he is so excited about going to school next year!

#2--Well well well... Michael has been working so hard in Kindergarten, he LOVES going to school, his teacher, his friends, lunch time, recess, and everything in between, oh and nap time is his favorite! He is going to physical therapy 2 times a week and occupational therapy 2 times a week to help him grasp those lacking gross and fine motor skills. He has joined 4H and just competed in his first competition, the Food Challenge. He likes being involved in something but were still not sure 4H is for him (see pictures below, haha) Michael is doing really good with his braces and they are just a part of him, he completely accepts them and we havent had any negative reactions! He also lost his first tooth, and by lost I mean swallowed!

#1-- Jay is growing up fast too! (they all are really) He turned 7 this summer and hit a big growth spurt, even though he is still really small for his age! He played football this season and did well! He had some dedicated coaches and he enjoyed the season. His grades are good and he LOVES going to school and his teacher! He has made several good friends and I am so proud of him. He is fun and loving and would give anyone the shirt off his back if they needed it! He is my little helper and loves his little brothers.

Now for Coach--well if you see him tell him we said hi! haha! He is so busy with football and he is coaching JV girls basketball and then we will go straight into baseball! Woo Whoo! But he is an amazing daddy and does the best he can to take care of all of us!

We have had some other pretty heavy stresses in our life lately that hopefully we can celebrate soon and share with you all but for now I will leave you with these encouraging verses I have received while we try to navigate down the path that God wants for us. I have a bad habit of trying to carry the weight of the world on my shoulders alone and if I do not tell anyone then the fear, worry, the burden wont be real, however this is VERY real and I am so thankful that the few that I have shared with have reacted in prayer, love and encouragement.

• "Give all your cares to Him...He cares for you!" 1 Peter 5:7 
• "They will have no fear of bad news..." Psalm 112:7 

Well it is Wednesday and that means therapy in Abilene so I better get to going! The boys will be up soon and there's no stopping them! I will try to post more than twice a year, TRY!

Enjoy the pictures!

 Michael and Bob, Michaels first lost tooth, Michael at Therapy and Michael and his best friend.

 Halloween 2013-- My superheros and the little mouse!

 Jay and Jax, Jay winning the seed spittin contest, Jay's first day at school and Lunch with Mom

 Homecoming 2013! Go Bearcats

 Biscuit and his Bearcat buddy and making cookies for the football team!

 Michael's 4H team!

 Jaxon enjoying some football, snoozing and smiling!

 We are a family!

Biscuit and his new big brother, Hass, Biscuit kissing Jax and Biscuit in the diaper rash cream!

18 months, 3 seasons and 1 baby later!

I can't possibly update you on everything that has happened in the last 18 months but here is my attempt! 18 months in a nutshell! We fosters 6 more kiddos after the last post. We moved to Houston in May of 2012, found out we were pregnant, AGAIN, then moved back to Stephenville in July 2012, had a successful football season at Stephenville High School and won the state championship, went on bed rest and prayed a lot for our little guy to stay alive. Our little guy was born January 10th, lots of ups and down in his first few weeks and in and out of the hospital. I started a photography business, eM-Jay Designs. Soccer season was successful going deep into the playoffs. Michael, our 5 year old was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. My sister got married and I am now expecting a niece any day! Jeremy accepted a Head Baseball position at Deleon High School and we moved to Deleon in July. Whew--its been a fast and furious 18 months and our little guy is now 7 months old, Biscuit is 3, Michael is 5, and Jay is 7!

So now that your caught up I will try to post more often! School will be starting in 12 days, (who's counting!), so I will have a little bit more time. I absolutely loooooove having a baby, I hold him all the time and he is growing up so quick! Michael will be getting braces on both of his legs soon and we have also ordered him an Amtryke bike with money that was donated just for his bike! I'll be posting pics soon! :)

I will end with a picture of baby Jaxon and hopefully post some updated pictures of the other boys soon!

Put me in coach--we're ready to play!

Well the holiday are over, finally! We traveled almost everyday for 3 straight weeks. Needless to say we were glad to be home and enjoy some quality family time while Jeremy was off work for Christmas break.

Our Christmas was great! We enjoyed spending time with lots of family and friends. We went to Stephenville to see our best friends and stayed there for 3 days. We went bowling with ALL our Stephenville family and made lots of memories! The boys got so many gifts at the nine, YES NINE, Christmas celebrations that we have. One thing I really struggled with over Christmas break was how many presents the boys got, when we got home, we filled up a closet with all their gifts. It really bothered me. We spent over $1000 on gifts for other people. Next year I think we are going to give a gift/donation in the name of the person that I would have normally given a present too. Our family is very fortunate to be able to afford everything they want and need. My kids got so many presents they don't even know what they got. We put everything in a closet and we talked to the boys about giving some of their gifts to new foster kids that come in our home, they seemed to agree, so thats what were doing! What bothers me even more is when kids get so much stuff from just their parents...who needs a Wii, 5+ Xbox games, a cell phone, new shoes, karoke machine and tons of other stuff...there are people that do not have anything, simply because their hardworking parents can not afford the basic necessities much less Christmas presents. What really got to me is that we were able to be a blessing to a family in Menard that only had a sweatshirt to bring her newborn daughter home from the hospital, I gathered supplies from friends and family for the baby and was able to set her up for at least a few months with everything she needed. It takes a village to raise a child. What happened to people helping other people!? I wish people cared more about other people. Next year, we will be doing something different for Christmas next year and focus more on celebrating the real reason for the season and not 100's of gifts.

We were licensed on December 14 to foster again and received a few calls during Christmas break but none of them every lead anywhere. On January 2, we got a call at 4:30 pm for 2 year old twins and their 3 year old sister. At 5:30 pm CPS calls and they were on their way home TO OUR HOUSE!!! Whoa--6 kids under 5, yikes! God knew exactly what he was doing. The three kids that came home, couldn't be more perfect for our family and they are adjusting so well to our family dynamics. They have picked up on using their manners and the boys are getting along really well. they came from a very sad sad background--wish I could share more--but it's their story to tell someday. CPS says this will be a long term placement, so were not sure how what the plan is as of now.

Miley is the oldest and she is 3. She loves shopping, talking, and being girly girl! Jaden is the girl 2 year old twin, she thinks she is the boss. Hayden is the boy 2 year old twin and his sisters do all the talking for him. Enjoy the pictures!