My Recap Of 2015

This was the first time in forever that I didn't send any Christmas cards or a Christmas letter.  I really really wanted to but it just never happened.  And what's worse is that we didn't even get a family picture done!!  We tried.  But by the time we figured out how to coordinate everyone's schedules, it was too late, too cold, and everybody got sick.  And I do mean EVERYBODY.  Except Ethan.  He was the lone survivor.

But here we are at the new year of 2016 and I didn't want to leave out the highlights of last year.   It was a full, busy, fun year......

~We started out on a sad note when our precious Gram went to Heaven.  And although I know she is having the time of her life in the presence of Jesus, I sure miss her.  And Christmas wasn't the same without her.

~We took 30 hours of PRIDE training classes, 4 hours of CPR, unearthed countless important documents for our home study, filled out tons of paperwork, and readied our house to open for foster care!

~We celebrated Meg's 23rd birthday!

~ We celebrated Laney's 21st birthday!

~We celebrated Joshua's 14th birthday!

~We celebrated Christian's 19th birthday!

~We celebrated Nathan's 11th birthday!

~And to end the birthday run with a bang, we celebrated Zeke's 8th birthday and welcomed our 1st foster son (Blue Eyes) on the same day!

~We started a new business.  NewFire Athletics was launched in the spring.  We hosted two very fun seasons of soccer.  We had a great turn out and a lot of good times.

~Joshua's chickens hatched their own eggs.  Not with an incubator, but with a REAL LIVE chicken sitting on top of them!  I decided we were pretty good farmers after all.

~Except we still didn't have a good garden.  So never mind on the good farmer part.

~Our 2 bee hives came out strong in the spring and we doubled our apiary to 4 hives.  We were able to extract some honey and get some new equipment.  I even got to help a friend with her bees this year too.  I love beekeeping!

~We welcomed foster baby #2.  Strawberry Princess stayed only 2 weeks until she got to go to her grandmother's.

~We welcomed foster baby #3 and fell HARD IN LOVE with a newborn that grew into a chunky love of a baby.  Bentley stayed with us 5 months and got to go home to his momma.  Now I get babysitting privileges and the chance to spoil him, and kiss him, and love him, and squeeze him all over.  Really, I just can not get enough.

~Zeke's baseball team won 2nd place in the championship tournament!  Love that first baseman!

~Nathan got glasses and he is the handsomest 11 year old ever.   This month he will also get braces.

~Meg and Laney got wisdom teeth extracted.

~Christian and Laura both bought their first car.

~Joshua had a fun year rabbit hunting with friends.  Then he got to take a trip to Texas to hunt with Grandpa and Nana.

~We celebrated my 46th birthday!

~We celebrated Honey's 48th birthday!

~We celebrated Ethan's 24th birthday!

~We celebrated 27 years of marriage and even took a small day trip!

~Christian entered into a relationship with Haley.  She is a sweetheart.

~Blue Eyes moved out of his crib and into a big bed.  This move brought a world of challenge but we are doing better.

~My parents bought a house about a mile away!  This meant that we got to see them a whole lot more last year and hoping for even more this year!!

~Laura Beth played volleyball for Charleston High School for the first time.

~Joshua started piano lessons.

~We entered the county fair and struck it rich.   Mallory won a blue ribbon for cookies.  I won a blue ribbon for honey and we both won fifty nine cents!  Joshua won 3 first prize and 2 second prize for his chickens.  Strangely enough, he did not win fifty nine cents though.   We also hosted a booth for NewFire.

~Jesse and Joshua both played football and we spent many Thursday nights cheering on our Tigers!

~In addition to Laura's job at the school, she also started teaching tumbling once a week.

~Most of us are beginning a new venture and studying to be able to repair outdoor engines.  We are hoping to start business #2 this year.

~A new children's home opened about 2 miles from our house.  It was fun to get to watch and be a small part of it from the beginning.  Now Laney and Ethan are both working with teenage boys at Maggie House.

~We celebrated Laura's 18th birthday!

~We welcomed foster baby #4.  Ellie came to us at 6 days old weighing just a little over five pounds.  Such a tiny little baby girl.  She stayed with us 6 weeks until she was moved to another foster home with her sister.  Her new foster mom and I text and Miss Ellie is doing great.

~We celebrated Jesse's 13th birthday!  4 teenagers at once.

~We celebrated Blue Eye's 2nd birthday!  A fun party with the family AND his sister!

~We celebrated Mallory's 10th's birthday!

~My nephew, Tate, came to visit all the way from Arizona!

~Laney and Christian finished their 3rd semester of college and Laney was accepted into the graphic arts program.

~My parents came for Christmas for the first time!

~And right before Christmas we welcomed foster baby #5.  Pumba is a sweet one year old that loves to snuggle.  Blue Eyes is starting to have fun with him.   He came to us sick and we all caught it just in time for Christmas.   And even though he has felt horrible most of the time he's been here, he has still been a sweetheart and hardly cried.

So that's it for us and 2015.  Thank you for being a part of our great year and for reading about it all the way to the end.  We love you all!!