Heartbroken

My job can be  hard, frustrating, and, exhausting. But today I realized how much I care for the boys I am working with. There is on boy who I have become close with. He is a good boy, and has had a rough life. He has been waiting to step down to a foster home, since July. Jake and I never thought he would be with us very long, but over the 7 months we have grown so attached to him. We found him a foster home. I was excited when I heard the news but never imagined how hard it would be to drop him off and say goodbye. I know that he is excited to be leaving and moving on but I could see anxiety and sadness in his eyes today. I cried before I took him, and cried the whole drive home, and my heartbreaks each time I think about him or walk past his room. Our house will never be the same without him. We love him. The good news is that Jake and I are allowed to have visits with him, and we hope to continue to build our relationship with him.

Gratitude

It amazes me so much how aware Heavenly Father is of me, and how he uses people in our lives to answer our prayers. The last 24 hours I have been feeling down and discouraged. I logged into facebook and a friend of mine had posted a talk by President Holland, An High Priest of Good Things to Come. As I read this talk I had an overwhelming feeling of how much my Heavenly Father does love me and is aware of me. It did not take much for me to feel his love, but I am grateful for Him and those who listen to His promptings.

Happy New Year

2011 was a stressful, happy, wonderful year. I graduated from college, which was a huge accomplishment. Jake worked in Twin while I lived in Boise, I hated driving back and forth each week. We moved to Utah, and now have 7 teenage boys. We have the most amazing job in the whole word and are grateful everyday for it.

I accomplished a few of my goals in 2010.
* Completing College.
*I lost 40 lbs. during the year.
* I can run 4 miles at a time.

I have been so excited to start a new year. I love reflecting back and making goals for the coming year. I have 4 goals for the year 2012.
* Lose 30 more lbs.
*Run the Top of Utah Marathon
*Pay off Student Loans
* Be more active in my ward.

What are your goals for this new year?

Christmas Party

Jake and I really wanted to make Christmas fun for the boys this year. It was our first year being away from home, and planning Christmas for a whole family. It was one of the best Christmas's that I have ever had. To make Christmas fun this year we decided to have a party with the boys, our associates, and their spouses. Brandy home made the gingerbread, and made houses. They turned out so cute! We paired each boy with an adult and they had 15 minutes to decorate their houses. The boys had a blast and it was really fun to set a time limit. I loved how they turned out!

 The boys and all the adults made snowmen to represent themselves. 

 This is the tree we had in the rec room that the boys decorated. They did a great job!

Christmas Decorating Contest

The Director over all the group homes announced that he wanted to do a Christmas decorating contest. The winner would win all 8 Harry Potter DVDs, Harry Potter Clue, popcorn popper, popcorn, and candy. Our boys were so excited about this that they spend about 2 weeks cutting out paper snowflakes. So one night me, Jake, Kael, and Ashley stayed up all night decorating the house for the boys. We got our inspiration from the movie ELF. The boys were so excited when they woke up and saw the house. The boys won 1st PLACE!!