Jambalaya with Shrimp, Chicken & Sausage & my 70th Birthday

Tonight I am going to sleep with the biggest smile ever on my face !!  :)   Today is my 70th birth-day & this day was as special as it ever could be imagined !!  :)  

This was one of the most heart warming birth-days ever & I will never forget it !!  :)   It coincided with my regular day of feeding the homeless & since I believe in gifting others on my special day, it just felt right to cook & feed today.  :)

Not too long ago I discovered a wonderful recipe for Jambalaya, which I had never eaten nor cooked before.  It had shrimp, chicken & Kielbasa in it & sounded like the best meal treat for today.  :)   How often do the people in the parks get shrimp??!!  My awesome neighbors Dave & Linda donated all the shrimp & meat for the meal.   :)  We ended up feeding 38 people & they loved it.  

Faith, my Cooking Angel, came over & together we made two huge pots full. :)  Faith, you are the fastest chopper I have ever met !!   :)   It all turned out quite good & I didn't make it too spicy, so everyone could enjoy it, even my three lil' Munchkins, if they wanted to try it.  :)

J.J. gave me a card when I picked him up at the bus stop & he asked me to open it right there.  Out fell three gift cards to some of my favorite places plus one more to a new one to explore.  They all were from J.J., the anonymous "Water Angel", and Mark B. & Patty B., all go to the same church.  I almost lost it right there, but had to drive us to the park.  I was touched so deeply by all that Love.  :)

Yesterday, J.J. gathered Marilyn, Mark & Patty, & I at "Something Sweet" for sandwiches & mega desserts.  :)   And kind Mark took care of the whole bill.  The world is full of great & loving people & I really believe that we all are finding each other to make a difference in others lives.  :)  Life is wonderful !!  :)

Thank you Mark & Patty for your loving Kindness & for being the Angels you are !!  :)    

When we got to the first park J.J. ran along the whole line of homeless & whispered in everyones ear that it was my birth-day.  All the good wishes were just incredible & I was so touched.  So much Love again !!   :)

Melissa, Brian & the Muchkins came to help out again this time & Allison (3) was handing out the water, Lucas (5) was in charge of giving out the cookies & Jillian (5) tried to talk everyone into having a jalapeno.   :)   The kids gave me a picture of the four of us together in a frame that they decorated themselves by drawing on it all over.  You have to see it, it is precious !!  :)  Lucas made me a special birth-day card all by himself.  Jillian was dancing & singing for me a lot at the second park & it was such a joy !!  :)  And Melissa gave me a loaf of her own special zucchini bread.  Yummmmmm !!  :) 

Diane & Don stopped by at the first park to say "hi" & that was sweet too.  :)  Don't stay away so long you two, it is always great to see your happy faces !!  :)

When we got to the second park, Debbie, one of the homeless, handed me a card with a big & proud grin on her face.  :)  Now, we had just gotten to the park & there had been no time for anyone to sign anything.  So "Sneaky Snake J.J."  :)  (I kept calling him that all evening) two weeks ago had gotten a card & had Melissa go around then to get everyone to sign it.  :)  I had no idea this was going on, I thought Melissa was just socializing with everyone & saying prayers with whomever wanted to.  Sneaky, I tell you.  ;)

It has become pretty obvious that I need a small freezer chest for the homeless food, especially with all the deals in the grocery stores lately on meat.  I keep trying to borrow freezer space from my neighbors & my friends.  :o  Dave came over the other day & told me that he & Linda are giving me a freezer for my birthday.  How incredible is that ??!!  You two touched me so very deeply once more with your Kindness & Generosity !!  :)   You have made such a huge difference in my life & you are the worlds very best neighbors !!  :)  Thank You for all your Love, your caring & your unwavering support !! 

J.J., you made my special day so very, very special & I'm going to sleep with a huge smile on my face now.  :)  Thank you for being my constant helper & my friend !!  :)  I am so blessed by you & your caring & beautiful Heart !!  :)   You are making many brownie points "Upstairs" !!

Good night everyone & sleep with the Angels !!  :) 
My prayer is that all your Kindness is coming back to you all many fold each & every day !!  :)

More & more pictures from 9-14-13

 

Spaghetti, Tossed Salad, Garlic Bread, Cookies & More Cookies :)

Faith, my Cooking Angel, & I made Spaghetti in a meat sauce with fresh mushrooms, broccoli & cauliflower florets today.  We ended up with two huge pot fulls & a medium sized one too.  It was all eaten up except for just a little left over.  :)    J.J. loaded up the plates really good & I did the same with the salad.  We fed 47 people today, but it felt like we fed many more.  We had a lot of regulars today & some new faces too, which always happens of course.  :) 

I would like to dedicate today's meal in Gratitude to Frank & Sandy, who so graciously & lovingly have donated funds to help out with the costs, especially after feeding Hilde & I a most delicious lunch at their home earlier this week.   :) 

Melissa made a whole bunch of yummy garlic bread, which looked great.   :)  I missed out on it.  :o
Thank you for putting your Love into those !! 

Marilyn & Brian became the official photographers again.  :)  Please see all the pictures & movie below.  Great job you two !!   :)   It is always nice to have pictures to post & to share with all the helpers too. Thank you both !!  :)  And later on Brian got appointed the "Milk Man" to serve milk in small salad bowls.  I had forgotten to bring the drinking cups, but we figured it out anyway.   :)

Shawne & Tobin it was nice to meet you both & I appreciate your wanting to help out, plus your handing out extra sweets to the people at the parks.  :)  Most so love those & some came back for seconds as you saw !!   :)    

Talhia & Tiffini how great it was to see your sweet faces at the parks with us & Tiffini you & your lil' one baked a lot of wonderful cookies !!  :)  See how fast they went ??!!  Tiffini you were a great "Cheese Girl".  :)  Thank you both lots !!  And thank you also for all the clothes & shoes you donated so kindly !!  :)  Your Mom is smiling down on you from Heaven with pride!!   :)

Dave & Linda, my dearest neighbors, I'm running out of ways to thank you, but please know that all of it is deeply heartfelt & my Gratitude is never ending for you both !!   :) 

And of course we had our three lil' Munchkins, Allison (3), Luke (5) & Jillian (6) with us again to help hand out water, cookies & everything else.   :)   :)   :)   All three are our most cheerful helpers & always put big smiles on the faces of "The People in the Parks". 

I asked Melissa to let me know what our Munchkins said on the way home & here is what she wrote:
"The kids loved it as usual.  They decided they didn't like calling them 'Homeless' or 'Poor people' and wanted just to call them the people in the park.  We talked about how God made us all in perfection and equally."  Out of the mouths of Babes & of course Melissa, their wonderful Mom !!   :)  

Good Night now, time to get some rest !!  :) 

Sleep with the Angels each & everyone of you !!  :)

More People in the Parks on 9-14-13

 

Pictures of “The People in the Parks” on 9-14-13

 

The People in the Park at Estevan today

Three lil' Munchkin Helpers

These cute three lil' Munchkins are my latest Helpers with Feeding the Homeless, along with their Mommy & Daddy of course.  :)   Allison is 3, Lucas is 5, and Jillian is 6.   :) 
I feel so blessed by these lil' ones & their precious parents !!  :)