broken hearted.

It finally happened.

It was just a matter of time.

A certain big brother in the house had his heart broken today.

Broken for his little brother.

It happened as we were leaving the school where Jackson goes to preschool.

We've walked down the hallway a million times this past year.

We've walked past the sweet children that line the walls waiting for their parents the same million times.

But today was different.

I heard the snickering.

I chose to ignore it.

We got through the doors and out into the parking lot.

I had to stop dead in my tracks because my oldest son could walk no further.

His head was hung low.

When I asked him what was wrong,

He looked up at me...

With tears in his eyes.

And he said,

"They were laughing at Jackson".

My heart broke for both of my sons.

We knew this day would come.

It was something we talked about with the kids before we adopted Jackson.

How would we respond?

We would always defend him and protect him.

Jadon walked over to Jackson in my arms and kissed his knee and said, "I love you, Jackson!"

Tonight we pray about the best way to defend and protect him.

Tonight we pray about how we can educate others with love in our hearts.

Tonight I pray and thank my Lord for breaking my son's heart with what breaks His!

Praying that all of my children's hearts will break for what breaks His!

Still Here...

in case you were wondering!

We've had sporadic episodes of stomach virus.

First Child #1...

Then Child #2...

Then Child #3...

Then we were good...

For awhile!

Then we were back to Child #2...

and then Child #3...

Then we were good...

For awhile!

Now we're back to Child #3!

Crazy thing is.......

FCAT was happening during all of this and I teach 3rd grade which has to take the test.

As I look at my data here, it seems that there is a pattern...

that follows some type of rule...

But I can't seem to figure out what input is causing our output!

meat?
milk?
Peeps?

So for now, we continue to make mad dashes to the potty!

We have so many posts to catch up on!

Like someone turning the big 40!

The garden...

Soccer...

A new camera...

Sign Language...

Potty Training...

A special double-digit birthday coming up...

Speech/Language evaluation testing for placement next year

Hope you'll stick around...

strawberry jam

Until our strawberry plants produce enough fruit as this, we will be making strawberry jam using the amazing ones we bought on sale at Wal-mart. They were selling them for $1.58 for a pint. Aren't they beautiful?? I hope ours will be just a yummy!
My friends Amanda and Tracy coached me through the process of making freezer jam. I'm hoping to get the Pressure Cooker for canning for my birthday. The 8 oz freezer container on the left is made by Ball and on the right is an 8 oz container made by Ziplock. They both come in packs of 5.


If my picture weren't sideways it would be easier to recognize the food processer. I think the texture of the strawberries would have turned out better had I used the potato masher instead. But this was my trial batch. I just used the Sure-Jell Pectin and followed the directions in the packaging!

I'm not sure if it was from using the food processer, but when using exact measuresments throughout the process, I ended up having double what I should have had...I think!? After processing the 2 pints of strawberries, it then called for 2 cups of crushed strawberries to be added with the 4 cups of sugar...I ended up with 4 cups of crushed strawberries!

All in all, I was able to make 10 ~ 1 cup containers of stawberry jam!

The kids LOVED it!

spring has sprung

Spring is here in FL! Our garden size was more than we anticipated!

But we are excited to see what we will be enjoying on the dinner table!
Tomatoes, Red Bell Peppers, Green Bell Peppers, Banana Peppers, Sugar Snap Peas, Green Beans, Carrots, Yellow Squash, Romaine Lettuce, Cucumbers! (We ran out of room...the okra, corn, and zucchini didn't make it in this year!)

We even planted strawberries!

We can't wait to see what will grow here! Blackberries, Blueberries, and Grapes!

It's beginning to take off! We'll be sure to post more pictures as it begins to flourish!

The kids always enjoy working outside in the garden!