Life with my sister

 This boy. Oh, this boy. He has a purpose far greater than we realize and I cannot wait to see what God has mapped out for him. It will be anything but boring. Henry is all boy yet more perceptive than anyone I know and with that comes intense awareness of others feelings. He carries others burdens in a way I wish I could bottle up and pour into my own heart some days. He isn't worried like we worry, he is just concerned and hopeful with sweet innocence. It is a beautiful gift he has. Bath time is a big time of reflection for him. I hear a lot about friends at school and their days during his baths. I am pretty certain these friends have no idea how Henry has grasped onto their day and that he is thinking of them and praying through anything that he picked up as a concern during the day. It makes me laugh sometimes and sometimes it brings me to tears. I wish I could be the type of friend Henry is. He had a foster kid at his school leave and come back and the sadness a

It's Food Friday! I am not a huge fan of Chicken noodle soup but with weather like we have had and days couped up in the house, I found myself branching out with what I had on hand. It reminds me of being sick at home by myself as a teenager and opening the can of soup mama had left out on the counter for me before she left for work. It reminds me of having a sore throat or a stopped up nose. It always made me feel bloated. I am weird, but tell me you don't relate things together like this? Anywho, I ran across this recipe and it was a winner! My guys liked it and it was easy to make. I hope you will try it and pass it along. 3 cups of cooked chicken (chopped) 8 slices of cooked bacon (crumbled) 1/2 yellow onion (diced) 1 ranch seasoning packet 30 oz  chicken broth put all this in a pot and start to bring to a slow boil. Add spaghetti noodles (eyeball them...you chose the amount) stir them in and let soup heat until noodle are soft. Add 1 cup milk (or more if yo

Who reading this has a vision casted for yourself in 2018? Well, I have a fun way to cast a vision for yourself, your marriage, your work and your family. I love doing this and haven't done it in a few years. Since we had a ridiculous amount of time inside this week because of the weather, I made one. Henry loved making collages with all the old magazines for his bedroom wall, so it was an activity that both of us enjoyed. Maybe you are like Julie and your response to this is," Sister, I don't have a single magazine in my home. I read online. It's 2018. hello." You can make a vision board in several different ways, you don't have to use magazines. I have started a Pinterest board to help you get your creative juices flowing. Sometimes it is so good for my mental well being just to stop and be crafty and reflect on things that make me happy. As you can see, mine is wordy. I love words. They have so much power. Pictures don't reach me like words do. E

I just love to do fun crafty things. I also love to focus on blessings when and if possible...we all know those times can be hard though. So, a few years ago I started a blessing jar for the year. I cut some paper into strips and put it in the jar with a pen. My goal is for those in my home to stop and jot down a blessing throughout the year. Fold it up and throw it in to the jar. Easy, peasy and fun.   On New Years Eve we get out the jar and read what was in it. It is comical to recap it all and it is also so cool to see what little things made an impact on us throughout the year. My guys are something else and love to leave things like this in the jar at times. What are some fun, interactive ways you get your family focused on their blessings? we would love to hear! Abby Jo

It’s Friday and that means food!! Back in the day every Friday was Food Friday over here at Life With My Sister . It's time to bring it back! Food is one of my favorite subjects. I wake up thinking about my next three meals, the good thing is, I'm not picky. Fast food, nice restaurants, eating out, eating in, as long as it involves eating i’m IN! Especially when it is eating with my sister...she's my fave. I lied a little just then. Eating in really isn’t my favorite thing to do ( sorry, sis!). The cooking, cleaning up, planning, shopping stink. None of those are things I enjoy. Although, I do love a bargain and our grocery store has a little clearance section in the back refrigerated section, and I love it! Yesterday I got a gallon of milk for $1.00 and eggnog (I have drunk my weight in eggnog this Christmas season) for 25 cents. A quarter? Are you kidding me?  Grocery shopping is really at the bottom of my list of fun things to do. To do it w

What a time of reflection the new year brings to us. "Bye, Felicia" was the most overused hastag and witty comeback I have ever typed with my short little fingertips. I don't know Felicia, but that poor girl needs a welcome basket or a party invitation in 2018. Every 365 days we get a do over . A cold, brisk try again awaits us as the calendar strikes day one. I am quite fond of this slow and cold time of year. It is when I met and fell in love with my husband . I love the newness and stillness that comes with the brand new year. As wild as it sounds, winter is my favorite time of year. You know, some years are just plain crazier than others and 2017 was every bit of that. It was my best professional year ever and one of my worst on a personal level. I just plain bombed life as mom and wife. Taking on too many good things that were not my best yes caused me to stink up my reign as queen bee of the Lee 3. I can blame it on a lot of distraction and things not fitting