Goodbye 2012!

Fa la la la la, it's time to say goodbye...

Even though 2012 will be gone in just a few hours, the memories of this year will forever remain in my heart. Incase you missed them, here are the highlights of my 2012.

January - I took a shot at homeschooling the boys. It failed, but at least now I won't spend my life wondering "What if?"

May - I turned 29, making this the last year in my 20's. BIG SAD FACE :(

June - I found my brother and sister on Facebook, giving me two sisters, one brother, two nieces, and three nephews!!! :)

July - I started working at The Excel Center. I also got to meet my sister for the first time!!!

September - Robbie started attending Liberty Christian School, the BEST decision I ever made for him! :)

December - Travis and I celebrated our three-year anniversary. I also met my brother and sister-in-law for the first time on the 8th, then went back to spend Christmas with them!!!

  

After such an amazing 2012, how can 2013 ever compare? I guess only time will tell. 

What were the highlights of your 2012? Feel free to comment below!

Blessed by Him,

Adrienne

Christmas Blessings

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

That's right, I'm talking about Christmas!!! The time where you get together with family and friends to celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

This year was very special because I got to spend it with someone very dear to me: my brother! Some of you know that I just found him and my sister on Facebook a few months ago. The last time I saw him, he was 1, I was 7. That was 22 years ago! My husband and I went to meet him and his wife a few weeks ago and we had a blast! We were able to come back for Christmas, and it was such a blessed experience. Not only did I get to see him, my sister-in-law (I really don't like the word "in-law", but I didn't want to confuse anyone), and their beautiful daughter (my niece), but I also got to see my brother's mom (we are half-siblings), who I remembered as a caring, compassionate woman. Seeing and talking with her on Christmas confirmed that my memory was right. In fact, she was even more awesome than I remember!

I also got to see my brother's other siblings, who I remember from when I was 7. I actually went to school with his sister and we were good friends. It was great to see her again! I really enjoyed the reunion, as well as meeting new people. I am thankful that God brought us together again and allowed us the chance to form a sibling bond. I know there are many who will never get that chance, and my heart aches for them. I have been there, and I know the pain of knowing you have family out there that you may never see. To those who are in this situation, all I can say is PRAY! I prayed for years and years, hoping that one day God would answer my prayer, and he finally did. He IS listening!

Yes, Christmas is a wonderful time. Not only did I get to celebrate Jesus' birth this year, but I got to do it with people who love him as much as I do. And for that, I will rejoice! Here is a pic of my brother, his mom, and me.

Blessed by Him,

Adrienne

Thanksgiving

Food...Fun...Family...Friends...Did I mention FOOD?

Over the years, Thanksgiving has slowly become one of my favorite holidays. Growing up, it was viewed as just a day where you get together with other people and eat until your stomach hurts. We never prayed, never thought about WHY we were celebrating. I grew up not really understanding the true meaning of this special day. It wasn't until 2009 (when I got with my husband), that I really began to see why Thanksgiving is a day to truly celebrate. 

Travis and I made a small feast in 2009 and 2010. In 2011, we attended a community feast in our neighborhood. Even though those events were fun, they can never compare to this year. Travis and I (and our boys) worked together to make a nice big dinner. Oh, and by the way, this was the first time I've made pumpkin pie. Granted, the pie came from a can, but still, I had to mix it with other ingredients and pour it into the crust myself! That can be considered "from scratch", right? ;) 

Travis had a "first" this year too. He made some delicious deviled eggs (not in the picture), and they were amazing! I think I had maybe one or two (or ten). I love cooking with my husband, and I love when we do "firsts" together. It makes for a wonderful bonding experience. 

We invited a couple friends over and had a great time. We asked God to bless the food, and enjoyed the company of friends (including Jesus). All in all, it was a great day, and one that I will remember for a lifetime. Here is a picture of our wonderful feast! Maybe next year, YOU can join us! :)

Blessed by Him,

Adrienne

Robbie at Liberty Christian

Robbie got accepted into Liberty Christian School. He starts Tuesday. I'm so excited! I really feel that this will be a good fit for him. I can never seem to find enough time throughout the week to teach him about God, so now I can feel better knowing that while I'm at work he'll be learning in a Christian environment. Right now, it seems as though he's nervous to talk about God in public school, and when I tried to pray with him outside his classroom, he tried to hurry me up. It was almost as if he was embarrassed, which made me really sad. I don't want him to be ashamed to pray. At Liberty, the students and staff pray together every morning before class starts. It's a school-wide prayer. I love it! Maybe now he'll actually like praying and won't feel embarrassed. 

Also, when the Principal did his placement test Saturday morning, he scored at the 3rd grade level for Math, but a beginning 5th grade level for Reading! It was actually stated as "a 4th grader in the 9th month of school", but if you think about that, there's only nine months of school. So basically he's reading the same as a 4th grader who just finished the 4th grade and is getting ready to go into 5th (after summer break). He just started 3rd grade so I'm super proud of him for being such a great reader! My little man is growing up to be such a wonderful person, and I couldn't be happier.

Robbie's 8th Birthday!!! :)

Today is Robbie's birthday. I can't believe he's already 8! Where did the time go? He got to go with me to work today as a special treat. It was fun! I told him he no longer needs to sit in his booster seat, but he's still in it, LOL. I think he's gotten so used to it that he doesn't want to give it up. Maybe tomorrow!

Happy New Year!!! :)

Well, I don't know about you, but for me, last night was AWESOME!!! We rang in the new year at church and it was so much fun! The evening started off with food and a movie (Facing The Giants was our choice for the evening). We ate chips, chicken, mushrooms, cupcakes, brownies, pizza, macaroni salad, potato salad, and my favorite....fried pickles! Pam always makes them sooooo delicious. She also made the fried chicken and fried mushrooms. If this sounds as good to you as it does to me, you should contact her and ask her to make you a bowl...or two...or fifty. I don't think she'd mind. Really, she would LOVE it! *Notice the sarcasm?*

So after filling up on this food (I was already full at Pam's house before we left!), I decided to relax for a bit. We played a card game while I had a few more bites of brownie. Okay, okay, I know what you're thinking, but it was begging me to eat it! It kept looking at me and whispering my name. You would've heard it if you had been there...at CHURCH...where you SHOULD'VE been!

So, after the card game (which lasted more than an hour, for ONE game) *Still loved it though!*, we put our stuff away and headed upstairs to count down the seconds to midnight. I have always watched the ball drop on television, but we don't have cable at our church. Pastor felt bad for me *more sarcasm*, so he wadded up a sheet of paper and threw it up in the air to welcome the New Year. Can you imagine people's expressions in New York if their ball suddenly got thrown into the air? HAPPY NEW...AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!

Okay, back to reality. After our ball "dropped", we listened to a quick sermon, sang a couple songs, and went home. It was so exciting celebrating the new year with God and family. Maybe next year, we can use a bowling ball...or not.