A Helping Hand...

A helping hand can make all the difference ..... My  wonderful friend Barb wanted to adopt a family for Christmas... i helped her find a family .. lidia and her 3 boys ... This weekend Barb and her daughters Hayley and Kelly brought over boxes of food and Christmas presents...Lidia was so very grateful and happy.. Thank you  Barb, Haley and Kelly for your generous hearts...priceless moments that charge the spirit....give hope to other people......

Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies...

My awesome friend Emily has a super fun  Christmas cookie exchange party every year...  This year i made Chocolate Gooey Butter cookies... very yummy... Thanks Emily , it was a great party.....love you and your friendship...

Ingredients


1 (8-ounce) brick cream cheese, room temperature

1 stick butter, at room temperature

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 (18-ounce) box moist chocolate cake mix

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.



In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the egg. Then beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the cake mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to firm up so that you can roll the batter into balls. Roll the chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls and then roll them in confectioner's sugar. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake 12 minutes. The cookies will remain soft and "gooey." Cool completely and sprinkle with more confectioners' sugar, if desired.

Fun visitors--Fun Weekend...

 the girls with rita and her sisters rosita and analevy

rita

izzy and neyvada

This weekend, Laura ( Neyvada's Foster mother that took care of her in Guatemala druing the 8 month adoption process ) came and spent the weekend before she leaves next weekend back to Guatemala.. As some of you know that was laura's only wish was "to come to the united states" and after Neyvada came home, she called me and asked if i would help make her dream come true... i wrote a letter to the U.S. Embassy in Guatemala and with much luck she was given a visa to come to the U.S. I hosted her for a month that year. Since then she has been back 2 other times. She now has a 10 year visa because she follows the requirements and goes back to Guatemala each time..Laura likes to spend time with Neyvada when she can..before she left we packed a big bag of the girls clothes and toys for her to take back and to share with the children living on the streets...Saturday night little Rita (Maritza niece) stayed with us..She loves staying at our house.. She has lots of fun with the girls . We went to see their friend Izzy's Christmas play, went to lunch , mcdonalds ranch to the petting zoo and ride a horse ,went to pinnacle peak to country dance, and to the park.. At the end of the fun weekend i took the girls to El Encanto to listen to the flamenco guitar player and the girls had fun feeding the ducks by the stage and got lessons on how to dance with the flamenco fan...the fan is truly a jewel  for the Flamenco dancer and really accentuates the the dancers dramatic movements....it was a nice weekend...

Never look down on anybody, unless you're helping them up.


Please read the following quietly then send it back on its journey

To realize the value of a sister/brother: Ask someone who doesn't have one.

To realize the value of ten years: Ask a newly divorced couple.

To realize the value of four years: Ask a graduate.

To realize the value of one year: Ask a student who has failed a final exam.

To realize the value of nine months: Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.

To realize the value of one month: Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realize the value of one minute: Ask a person who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of one-second: Ask a person who has survived an accident.

Time waits for no one. Treasure every moment you have.

You will treasure it even more when you can share it with someone special.

To realize the value of a friend or family member: LOSE ONE......

A B C 's of Friends....

A Friend...




(A)ccepts you as you are...

(B)elieves in "you"...

(C)alls you just to say "HI..."

(D)oesn't give up on you...

(E)nvisions the whole of you... (even the unfinished parts)

(F)orgives your mistakes...

(G)ives unconditionally....

(H)elps you....

(I)nvites you over....

(J)ust "be" with you....

(K)eeps you close at heart....

(L)oves you for who you are....

(M)akes a difference in your life....

(N)ever Judges....

(O)ffers support.....

(P)icks you up.....

(Q)uiets your fears......

(R)aises your spirits.....

(S)ays nice things about you.....

(T)ells you the truth when you need to hear it.....

(U)nderstands you.....

(V)alues you....

(W)alks beside you.....

(X)-plain things you don't understand....

(Y)ells when you won't listen and....

(Z)aps you back to reality..........                        

"There is simply nothing NOT to be grateful for"......Those were the thoughts i had after we left the Watkins Overflow Homeless Shelter today.....to me there is more to the holidays than preparing and eating  big meals at the dining room table,  when so many don't have food , a home or a table to sit at. For the last few years i have been able to find shelters and volunteer work to do with the girls now that they are a little older. When the girls get older i want them to just know with compassion in their hearts that "there is more to holidays"... (and other days throughout the year)... caring for others less fortunate without an agenda...Our Thanksgiving day was perfect.. We made dinner for our extended  Guatemala family  early and went to the shelter by 2:30 and stayed unril 7:00...It is really hard to feel sorry for yourself and what is not perfect in our life when there are alot sadder stories...We made over 100 goodie bags and brought coloring books, (and  thank you to my awesome friends Brenda and yati who donated 150 tubes of toothpaste from their dental office ) the girls played with the little kids at the shelter and made new friends and then we helped serve food to everyone... it truely was a happy thanksgivng day ..

A Message From Abby....

Friday, November 19, 2010


Done.

My name is Abigail Riggs.

I've been doing chemo for 986 days. I almost died a couple a of times. It's been going on for so long that I don't know much of any other type of life. I've made lots of friends and God has used my cancer to touch many lives.

I'm finished with chemo as of today. I still have a lot of recovering to do from taking rat poison for two and a half years. Taking poison to save your life... not something I had planned for Kindergarten.
Tomorrow I'm going to celebrate with many of you. The next day I'm going to start my new life without the label of "cancer". I've been blessed to have so many people love me and walk through this with me.

I hope you'll continue with me on this new journey too.

We send many hugs, love , and prayers to you ...Your a brave and strong little girl...