Fosters At Home

The Beach

2006-05-31T12:26:00.000-07:00

We just got back from a little beach trip that we took with Cindy (Aunt Cin) and my Mom. We went down to Orange Beach and rented a great condo right on the water. It was such a fun time! The kids had a blast playing in the waves and at the pool. I was really wondering how the beach would look after last years hurricane season, but it was just perfect! I've been to the Gulf Shores area many times over the years, but I've never seen the sand so white or the water so clear. It literally looked like the beach was all new or had been "vacuumed" somehow... It was really beautiful. Because we went early in the season (great benefit to homeschooling!), it was cool enough to sleep with the sliding doors open at night... Nothing beats the sound of the waves to wake up to!

Oh What A Fish! (I'm back...I think)

2006-05-13T21:56:00.000-07:00

I know, I know! I've been away for awhile, but if anything could get me back to blogging, it would be Sissy catching this HUGE fish in our pond!! I picked up a box of worms for her and Drake this afternoon and then came home and settled in for a nap with Molly. About an hour later I hear what sounds like a heard of elephants running through the house! She had caught this big catfish and she and Drake had carried it home in a five-gallon bucket full of water. Of course they were both soaked because they had to drag it sloshing all the way! While I was taking the pictures (18 of them!), Laurel was saying, through her smile, "Mom, it's making weird noises....it sounds like it's going to throw up.....oh..ok I think it's dead now..." She is such a tomboy! I was so worried that it was going to fin her, but she loved holding that nasty thing! It didn't die and is now happily swimming in the pond again. Maybe I'll be posting pictures of Drake with it next!

Upward Basketball

2006-01-08T21:05:00.000-08:00

I know! I'm trying to catch up on my blogging all in one night! I just had to say something about Upward Basketball... Drake played last year...He had tons of fun, but never really seemed to get into it much. Well, he had his first game of the year this past Saturday and boy was there an improvement!! He had so much fun and he really seemed to understand the game better. He even won the "Most Christlike" Award!! We were so proud!
Laurel is playing too this year for the first time. She's never played basketball before...ever! Saturday was her first game too and she was AWESOME!! Donnie and I were amazed! She really hustled! Of course, she was the shortest girl on both teams but she didn't seem intimidated at all... She looked like a little bumble bee running around out there. hehe She won the "Best Defense" Award! We were so proud of her too!
Upward is a great program and I'm so thankful for First West for sponsoring it every year. We love it!

Daddy's Home!!!

2006-01-08T20:50:00.000-08:00

I've realized something about myself this past week... I know it's not very PC, but I could never make it as a single person! I need my husband!! Being raised with a very manly Daddy and two older brothers has made me completely dependent!
Donnie was gone from Monday through Friday of this week and I almost fell completely apart...Really! I don't know how to do anything that is, in any way, a "man's job". The pilot light went out on our furnace and I had NO idea how to light it! Luckily we only had one cold night and we were all in my king size bed anyway. I guess we would've just froze to death surrounded by bags of trash that didn't get taken out for four days! (I don't do that either!)
Anyway...I'm so glad he's home! He goes on this trip only once a year. (archery trade show for work) I'm thinking that next year we'll just have to ALL go! :)

We Almost Lost Our Cowboy!!

2006-01-08T20:34:00.000-08:00

Saturday morning, before we left for the basketball games, I let Cowboy Foster (my beautiful blue-point siamese) in for his breakfast... When we left, I let him back out on the porch. This is what we do every day...he sleeps outside, but spends almost all day laying around the house. :) When we got home, he didn't come running up as usual and, even after I called him all day and again late last night, he never showed up! When he didn't come up for breakfast this morning, I got really worried. After church, I started calling for him as soon as we drove up. As I was walking up on the porch I heard him crying!! It was very faint, but I did hear him! Laurel and I looked all over for him and I finally found him--IN AN ICE CHEST!! My poor kitty!! Donnie had washed out an ice chest and set it on it's side to drain. I don't know how Cowboy managed to get inside it with the top closed but he was definately happy to get out! :) I've been loving on him all day!
This is the same cat that, as a kitten, rode on the spare tire under my van all the way to town once! He jumped out at a gas station and we saw him... I wonder how many lives he has left??!!

Thinkin' about goats...

2005-12-30T05:45:00.000-08:00

I've been reading alot of new blogs lately by "homesteaders". The folks who created homeschoolblogger have now come up with homesteadblogger! I'm completely amazed with these people who grow their own food! I think Mom was a Homesteader before there was a name for it! We always had a garden and lots of animals...the only difference is that we went to school 45 minutes away. (It's ok Mom, we forgive you!:))
Now I'm thinking that we need to buy a couple of goats when we move! We'll have a huge wooded area with tons of underbrush for them to eat. (that's the excuse I'm using with Donnie) I think it's a great idea!

Christmas

2005-12-30T05:17:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas this year! We always have fun, but this year was even better because Donnie got to go home with us! It's always a huge letdown Christmas morning when we have to drive off without him, so we were so excited that he didn't have to work Monday and could join us.
Mom and Dad went way overboard with the food as usual and we all ate too much. The kids had a ball playing with their cousins. Todd had brought Jacob's go-cart and they rode all day. Drake got a new BB gun and he's already showing signs of his Daddy's shooting skills. Mom said he couldn't shoot birds IN her yard...."But can I shoot a bird if it's flying TOWARDS your yard, MawMaw?" :)

O Holy Night!

2005-12-22T20:24:00.000-08:00

There has never been a better Christmas song than O Holy Night! The kids know that if it comes on the radio in the van, Mom's cranking it up! I'm a little sad that I won't be able to sing it with the Choir at WFR Christmas morning because we'll be on the road headed to Mom's. I did go in and listen to them rehearse last night and it sounded wonderful. What a worshipful song! Here's a link to Josh Grobin's version and I think this might be my favorite yet!
http://www.cojoweb.com/josh-groban.html

Fit Pitchin'!

2005-12-20T21:07:00.000-08:00

My little Molly Kathryn threw the biggest tantrum I've ever seen today!! She wanted me to hold her, but I was busy making the syrup for the caramel corn....(really I was eating bon-bons and couldn't be bothered!:)) I've always heard of toddlers screaming like this, but I've never seen one of my OWN do it! Wow! What happened to my little angel?? It must be the Foster in her....we Jolibois don't act like that! :)

Up To My Ears!!

2005-12-19T12:07:00.000-08:00

I'm drowning in caramel corn here today! Every year I make a few batches to give to friends...and a few batches for us. Well, for some reason, this year people keep asking me if I will SELL my caramel corn?!! YIKES! I've never considered doing this so I had to figure up how much it cost me to make it and add a little for my time. (TWO hours for a gallon!) Mom said to just give out my recipe. WHAT??? No way!! "Have you HAD my caramel corn??", I asked in my most shocked voice... "It's PERFECT! Real butter, two kinds of extracts and fresh pecan halves!" Call me Scrooge, but I'm not giving out my recipe! Everyone will just have to be really good and hope that Santa brings them a big jar of it for Christmas!

'Tis the Season...

2005-12-12T08:08:00.000-08:00

I'm just going to accept that I'm a terrible blogger and work from there! I only have one good excuse for not blogging regularly... Almost everytime I'm at the computer I have a sleeping or nursing baby in my arms, so I can't type! I don't even post to my forum that I moderate every day. I do read it...my arms are just too full to post most of the time. There! That's it! That's my only excuse...
Last week was insane here! I had something to go to EVERY night! Monday was Bunco...Tuesday was dinner and a movie with girlfriends...Wednesday was church...Thursday was Heart To Home....Friday was Chancie's birthday party. Saturday night I did get to stay home and shell pecans while Donnie and I watched a movie. Sis was gone all weekend which was weird for me... I don't like it when one of us is missing! She spent the night with Chancie Friday night and then both of them had Chelsea Thomlinson's birthday Saturday night. We finally got her back Sunday at church! We were all so glad to see her!
I do want to comment on the movie that we saw Tuesday night.... Pride And Prejudice!! Oh my! It was soooo wonderful! I took Laurel to see it again Friday and she loved it too. I think I'll go again this week! :)

2005-12-08T08:46:00.000-08:00

This is not the picture that we chose for our Christmas card, but I just love it!

2005-11-28T10:59:00.000-08:00

Kiss the cook!

2005-11-28T10:58:00.000-08:00

Girl Cousins

2005-11-28T10:57:00.000-08:00

Riding with PaPa

2005-11-28T10:56:00.000-08:00

The Boys

2005-11-28T10:54:00.000-08:00

Chapmans

2005-11-28T10:52:00.000-08:00

Home

Thanksgiving

2005-11-28T09:58:00.000-08:00

The kids and I loaded up the van and headed down to Mom's Wednesday. It's getting harder every year to leave Donnie here for Thanksgiving. Of course, he was scheduled to work "black friday" and there was no getting out of it. He had Thanksgiving dinner with his family and then he spent the rest of the evening with our dear friend Claudia Hinton. This was her first holiday without Glen, so it was perfect that she and Donnie could spend it together.
Mom and I cooked all afternoon Wednesday and Dad played with the kids. Thursday was a great day filled with food and family. Uncle Donnie, Val, Katie and Matt came up from Amite...Duane, Becky, Amanda and Mrs. Mabel and Todd, Val, Jacob, Josie, and Anna all came that morning too. Mom had gone and gotten Ma that morning also and it was great to see her. Molly loved her and it was sweet to see them playing together. Uncle Donnie had brought a huge box of old pictures from Ma's house and it was amazing to see that Ma recognized many of her family.
Todd took Drake and Jacob camping Friday night with David, Nathan and their boys. They had a blast and Drake thought he was so big to be going with Jacob. The girls stayed at Moms and had a big bonfire complete with roasted marshmellows. They were going to camp too but found that MaMa's warm beds called them back into the house! Hey, girls can change their minds! :)
The whole weekend was great and now we're all looking forward to going back for Christmas!

A Catch-Up Post

2005-11-28T09:41:00.000-08:00

I know, I know....I've been neglecting my blog! Before I post about Thanksgiving I have to mention the weekend before! Two of my favorite people came in town.... Wesley and Holly! Wes came in Friday and I met him and Cindy for dinner that night. We had a great time catching up and LAUGHING! I laughed so much that night that I went to bed with a terrible headache. (It was worth it though!)
Saturday I spent all day with Holly and, of course, it was wonderful to be with her and her kids. Karen and her little Katie joined us at the zoo. It was a cool day, so all of the animals were very active and the kids loved it! We were there at feeding time, too which was really neat for the kids. (and us!)
That night Miss met up with us and we had dinner together. It was great for all four of us to be together again. Now if we can just convince Brad that he and Holly need to move HOME soon!
Sunday we were back on our pew that we sat on together for eight years before they moved to Baton Rouge... I'm sure that between our five kids we hindered everyones worship for at least five rows up! I sure do miss my friend!

Jack Winn

2005-11-18T16:07:00.000-08:00

Jack
Jay and Kathy's little boy...

A Mystery To Solve!

2005-11-16T22:16:00.000-08:00

Chrys Howard comes up to me at church tonight and says that she met three women that know me and now she can't remember their names!!! Aarrgghh!!! She was in Orlando for the Girl's Getaway Cruise and they (she and Philis) were on a bus going to the drop-off. Apparently the bus was carrying all of the people for the cruise.... anyway, three women were sitting behind them and they struck up a conversation and discovered that they knew me from home! It's driving me crazy 'cause I cannot figure out who this could be. I'm offering a reward for whoever lets me know! Here are the clues:

They knew me from CYE (at least one of them was a cook there)
Chrys thought they said they were from Baton Rouge
They knew that I go to WFR

A Great Idea!

2005-11-16T08:46:00.000-08:00

I read on another Homeschool Blog about a mom that has everyone sign her Thanksgiving tablecloth every year. After the holiday she had her daughters embroider over the signatures in different colors! Isn't that a great idea?? Alot like Todd and Val's tradition of having everyone sign the bottom of their table! I love it!!

CMA Awards

2005-11-15T22:33:00.000-08:00

Ok apparently I'm in the minority here (see http://www.getoffmynerves.com/ourhouse/), but I LOVED the CMA Awards tonight! I am a die-hard country music fan and I thought that this was one of the best shows they've had in years! The performances were great!! (most of them) Who can deny that Allan Jackson singing Wonderful Tonight was WONDERFUL! Or Faith and Tim!!! They were awesome! I'll admit that I was dissapointed that Brad Paisley didn't win Entertainer of the Year, but I really like Keith Urban. (I know he looks like a rock star, but in this case that's not a bad thing! :))

Still no news...

2005-11-14T14:40:00.000-08:00

We still do not know what's going on with Drake's blood sugars! We've had more tests run and they have all come back normal. Praise God! The only thing that's weird is the occasional high blood sugar. It's hard not knowing... So now I've come up with a game plan: Once a week, I'll test his fasting Blood Sugar and then a few days later, I'll check his urine for glucose. I'll do this every week until we see something change. This way I won't be pricking him so much. We are praying that his pancreas holds out and keeps kicking out enough insulin. I'm so relieved that his tests have been normal and we aren't starting him on insulin. ! :)

Here we go again...

2005-11-10T20:11:00.000-08:00

Well, I hate to even type this because I just don't want to believe it, but Drake has been running elevated blood sugars. Wednesday night before church I noticed that he was going to the bathroom pretty often, so I checked his blood sugar. He was at 131 which isn't high at all for a diabetic, but would be higher than normal for us. I didn't really worry about it and we went on to church.... After church we ate at Wendy's and when we got home I checked him again and he was at 257! YIKES! My heart sank... I wanted to check for ketones but there was not one ketone strip in the house! Arghh! I called Cindy and she met us at Glenwood. To make a very long story short...his sugar has gone up and down since then, but there is no diagnosis. The highest it's been since last night (that we know of) was 180. He did not have ketones; there was no glucose in his urine; and his HbA1c was normal. I am very hopeful that there's another reason (other than type 1 Diabetes) for these high blood sugars. I do know this: The Lord is in control of Drake's health and He's given us what it takes to take care of him. Unlike when Laurel was diagnosed, I feel very prepared and confident. We have learned so much over the last six years and God has walked with us every step of the way. He is faithful...

My Christmas List

2005-11-08T22:23:00.000-08:00

I posted this question on The Motherhood Club message board yesterday....What are YOU getting for Christmas? Well, as I made my list, I realized that I'm either really practical or I'm getting really OLD.

bathroom towels
two 12' cast iron skillets
two of those big wooden adirondack chairs for the yard
Third Day Offerings CD*
Photoshop Elements*

Maybe I'm practical AND old...

*edited to add a couple of things that make me happy!

Peas and Carrots

2005-11-08T22:05:00.000-08:00

The kiddos and I spent the whole day at Cindy's yesterday....sometimes she "overplans" and needs a little help. (I know...hard to believe) I made eight mini carrot cakes, two cherry/pineapple dump cakes, a green salad and a carrot soufle'. It really was fun for me 'cause I love to cook and it helps her out of a pickle.
Tonight I went to La Bella Vita with two of my favorite gals, Steph and Mindy. I think Donnie knew I needed a night out by the glazed over look in my eyes....or maybe it was the babbling and drooling....I don't know. We had a great time visiting w/o little ones....between us, we have EIGHT! :) We all have awesome husbands who are always willing to take over tending the home fires so that we can get a break. Thanks guys!

Jay and Kathy Winn's Baby!

2005-11-06T12:15:00.000-08:00

Zoo Pics!

2005-11-05T20:35:00.000-08:00

Zoo Fun!

2005-11-04T20:10:00.000-08:00

We had a Homeschool Field trip to the zoo today.... The weather was perfect and the kids had a blast. I was really surprised at how far our zoo has come in the couple of years since I've visited it! Cin calls it the "Lemur Farm"! LOL! I was really impressed with the animals today... there's a Lewis and Clark exhibit that is fairly new that we loved, too. We all had our favorites, but there was a tiny baby monkey that was the cutest thing I've ever seen! Oh my! The kids took a small class this morning that, I thought, was wonderful. They got to touch all kinds of Desert and Rainforest animals....even a Hissing Cockroach!! yikes!
The best part of the day was meeting our new friends, the Ellermens! They are a new family to our homeshool group and I think God brought them there just for us! They have three children... a girl (10) and two boys (6 and 7). It was really amazing how much fun our children had with kids they had just met! We ended up staying hours after the field trip was over and having lunch and going on the zoo boat ride together. I'll post some picures later! My batteries died in my camera in the middle of the day, but Sherri took tons of pictures!

Great News!!

2005-11-04T13:31:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning to a wonderful email from my dear friends, Jay and Kathy Winn. They are in the Ukraine right now waiting to adopt their son! Everything has been touch-and-go for the past week or so, but today we got really great news! They have been offered (is that the word?) a beautiful, wonderful little 16mnth. old blonde, blue-eyed boy! We are all so thankful to the Lord for this gift!! We have been praying for almost a year for Him to lead them to their son and that is exactly what He has done! We are now praying that this process goes smoothly from here on out. Hopefully they will be home to spend Thanksgiving together!

2005-11-03T15:05:00.000-08:00

Welcome Drew Tatum Anderson!

2005-11-01T20:04:00.000-08:00

Terral and Richard welcomed their brand new baby boy tonight at around 5:30. He weighed 7lbs. and was 19inches long. Oh what a beautiful baby! He's doing great and Terral looks wonderful. :) Congratulations to big brothers, Colton and Trent!

Trunk or Treat

2005-10-31T22:40:00.000-08:00

Sunday night, instead of housechurch, we all went to the WFR parking lot for Trunk or Treat...It was a huge tailgate party with lots of food, costume contests and candy for the kids. Laurel and Chancie went as basketball players, (they're way too cool to wear actual costumes! :)) Drake was Capt. Jack Sparrow and Molly was just Molly. :) I made a gumbo to share and it was gone in record time. A good time was had by all...

Our Thirteenth Anniversary!

2005-10-31T08:59:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday!!

2005-10-29T09:29:00.000-07:00

Today is the birthday of two of my favorite people! My brother, Duane and his beautiful daughter, Amanda! I hope they have a very happy day!

Bunco

2005-10-28T18:33:00.000-07:00

Last night, I had my monthly Bunco girls-night-out. Miss was the hostess for the evening and, of course, everything was great. :) We had Terral's famous Shrimp Confetti Soup (Miss made it) and french bread. For dessert we had Apple Pie and French Silk... YUM! Everyone was there last night except Jil who had a night out with her hubby. Karen Traxler played in her place and I was reminded again of how glad I am that she's back from Dallas. :) Miss made wonderful fleece blankets for prizes....no, I didn't win one and yes, I'm OK with that! I really am! :)

Fun in the Park

2005-10-27T12:47:00.000-07:00

Biscuits and Tomato Gravy!

2005-10-27T08:57:00.000-07:00

Donnie was off today, so I made his PaPa's biscuits and tomato gravy for breakfast. His PaPa made this for him every morning as he was growing up, so, of course, when we married he had to teach me! This is one of the only things that we ALL love for breakfast and I try to always make it when Donnie has the day off.

Buttermilk Biscuits

2 cups Self-Rising Flour

1/4 cup oil

"enough" buttermilk

Blend the flour and oil with a pastry blender until coarse... Add enough buttermilk to make a "wet" dough. Grease a 10 inch black iron skillet and spoon dough into about eight little biscuits. Smooth the tops with the back of the spoon and a little oil. They will all be smooshed together, but when they bake, there will be seperate biscuits. Really! :) Bake at 420 for about 20 minutes (until golden brown). Enjoy!

Tomato Gravy

3 Tbs. oil

3 Tbs. flour

Stewed Tomatoes

Salt

Pepper

Blend the oil and flour together and make a roux...stirring constantly.

After roux is dark, add water and whisk until smooth. Add juice from can of stewed tomatoes and a couple of the tomatoes (chopped up with your spoon). Salt and Pepper to taste. Eat over buttermilk biscuits!

2005-10-26T22:27:00.000-07:00

Well, here goes!

2005-10-26T22:07:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to do this for awhile now, but I was afraid to take the leap... I'll probably just keep this to myself for awhile. :)
Mom came up for a visit yesterday and spent the night... she left this afternoon. Dad's working in Baton Rouge now, so he didn't get to come. Molly kept saying PaPa and pointing to the porch. :(
Yesterday we shopped and "ran the roads" with Mom and all three kids. It was really alot fun...we took the stroller. :) It was great to not be rushed and to just play while Mom was here.
This morning Laurel and I got up at 5:30am for a dentist appt. for her. She had a great check-up! This afternoon we picked up Cane's for dinner and went to the park before church. Daddy met us there and we had tons of fun. Aunt Miss, John Thomas, and that Callie I love also met us there to play. :)
This isn't so hard! ;)
Tomorrow I'm going to try to post pictures!!