"we encourage" - Gettin My Workout On

Oh how I strongly dislike this topic.But here is goes.I started exercising today.Have I mentioned before how much I dislike exercising?Well I dislike it, to the max.
So here is my new work out friend...

She looks annoying doesn't she? 

Well she keeps telling me what a good job I'm doing and I just hate to disappoint her.

Of course I realize that a workout routine would be much more likely to succeed if I could get out of the house. You know, away from the couch, the computer and the food pantry. 

Unfortunately right now that just isn't going to happen so here is what I endured to feel a little healthier today.

At worst this little helper practically sat on my head any time I was doing a floor exercise.

At best she stuck her nose in my ear.

This little helper did not appreciate the woman on the video who was wearing very short shorts and only a sports bra.

Apparently modesty is very important to her.

She spent the whole 1/2 hour yelling "naked!" at the TV in a very disapproving tone.

So here is the bottom line. It's going to be hard. I don't like doing it. The same way I don't like thinking about the food I eat. I mean if I want to eat a sleeve of Oreos who is this ap to tell me I can't?!

But I want to be healthy. I want to have energy, and I want my kids to see that their parents think it is important to be active. Hubby takes care of that on his side in the form of an obsession with mountain biking {ok not really an obsession, but still. So rude of him to get all healthy without me}.

Luckily I have some wonderful bloggy friends who are coming along side me, encouraging me and inspiring me {and making me laugh til it hurts, you know who you are}. We are in this together.

Here is my true heart,

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God- this is your spiritual act of worship.

Romans 12:1

I spend a lot of time in other areas of my life. Prayer, keeping my home, being a wife and a mother. The truth is I put basically no time into my body and my health and I know that is not what God wants for me.

So here I go.

Not because I want to.

Only out of obedience.

Any tips you want to share?

You Know, Just Some Random Stuff

Yesterday a few of us were sick, booooo. But guess what?! My amazing Hubby found the Michael Jackson channel on our blue ray!

Did you know such a thing existed?! 

Needless to say I was beyond excited and spent as long as I could lounging on the couch watching "beat it", "bad" and the list goes on.

Then it was time for the moment of truth.

That's right. It was time to introduce my little ones to "Thriller". You know, just the greatest music video of all time.
And yes, I still remember every word {including the narration} and every dance move.
And yes, the whole family loved it. I always knew they were awesome, this just proves it.

I love Redbox. Two movies for $2.50? C'mon, amazing.

We watched Mr Popper's Penguins. Well they did, I fell asleep within the first five minutes.
Then after bed time Hubby and I watched Immortals. Terrible movie. It may be awhile before I get to pick out any movies on my own.

I kept W home from school today. I know my kids. After being sick he always needs one more day to recover. The younger ones love having him home.
I think these two are going to be able to solve all the world's problems.
They have the best conversations.

At the end of the week I went with N on his field trip to the gentle barn.I could show you lots of pictures of him with the animals. Brushing them, feeding them.

But this was my favorite pick of the day.

He was so happy and didn't let go of my hand all day.

Heaven.

Thankful for Prayer & Him

See this kid?
He gave me such a great reminder the other day.
A reminder about prayer.
A reminder about my relationship with God the Father.

Also, he picked out his own outfit, he's a stud.

This was his prayer at bedtime.

"Dear God, thank you for this day.

Thank you that Daddy came home safely and that I got to play with W after school.

And I really wanted that chocolate cookie, even though Mommy said I couldn't. It looked really good and I really love chocolate. Maybe tomorrow I can have a chocolate cookie.

And please help me to obey.

And thank you for race cars."

Seriously, I can hardly take it. The cuteness.

My little man's prayer reminded me that what is important to me is important to God. It's not small to Him.

If chocolate cookies {that's Oreos, for the record} and race cars are what's on his heart, then that is what God cares about.

That truly amazes me.

If a financial situation or a strain within a friendship is on my heart, that is what God cares about.

I am thankful for that kind of love.

I am thankful that I have my little ones to remind me what an open honest prayer life looks like.

And I am thankful that my children understand they can take anything to Him, their heavenly Father, and lay it as His feet

"we encourage" - We Did Wha?!

Interesting title for a post right? 

Here's the thing. About a month ago we cancelled our home phone. For the most part the only calls we were getting on it were from sales people {boooooo, I know they have to make a living, but still, booooo}.

And for all you worry warts out there you can still dial 911 from a land line even without phone service. I don't quite understand how, but you can.

Then on Saturday we did something I never thought we would do. 

We cancelled cable!

Wha?!

I know.

Here's how this miraculous turn of events happened.

I gave up watching news for lent. I was wasting way too much time with it, it was depressing and I think becoming somewhat of an idol.

Wow, saying that sounds completely ridiculous. Yet still true.

I really felt the Lord nudging me to give it up.

Once I gave up watching news I realized the TV is hardly ever on.

Wha?!

I know!

So Hubby agreed {maybe slightly reluctantly} and now we are a cable free home.

I definitely felt "lighter" once it was gone. No pull to watch some time wasting show. 

Truthfully I don't know how I ever had time for it. I'm finding there aren't enough hours in the day to do the things I truly need and want to do.
And I haven't found Hubby curled up in the fetal position somewhere {yet}.

So...

More time in the Word.,

More time being present with my kids.

Hopefully more conversation with Hubby.

More reading.

More crafting.

The possibilities are endless.

I tell you this to encourage you that even things that may seem uncomfortable at first can be a huge blessing. If you are feeling a "nudge", listen to it. Don't wait for it to smack you in the face.

And not to worry, we do have NetFlix.

PS: does anyone have any thoughts on Hulu they would like to share? Considering that too.

Bits of Our Weekend

We had such a great weekend. 

On Saturday, lots of relaxing at home and getting some much needed rest.

I snuck out of the house with W to get him a new school belt but we did make a secret stop.

A pit stop for frozen yogurt and a solemn vow not to tell anyone what we did. It makes such a big impression on him just to have a little time alone with Hubby or I. I always try to turn errands into a little something extra. We had a great time.

Sunday I helped lead worship at church. One of the hugest blessings in my life. I'm so privileged to be able to serve doing something I love.

After church we went to a big BBQ to celebrate a dear friends promotion.

Nothing better than spending the day with great people who know how to love each other well.

Here is where I give a shout out to my Hubby and tell you what a keeper he is...

This is just a small sampling of the number of kids he hung out with in the pool. The actual number of kids there was ridiculous {in a wonderful way, of course}. Thanks honey!

And since he was in the pool I was left in charge of her.

Yah, it's a tough job, but somebody has to do it.

Found - Brothers

I feel so blessed to have caught this moment between my boys.
Watching the rain outside, still in their jammies.
I want to soak in the way they are looking at each other.
The smiles.
I can almost hear the conversation but it doesn't even matter.
To me, this picture is pure love.

"we encourage" - Don't Miss the Blessing

I love serving others as a family.On Easter night we got to do just that.
Our church works with an organization called Family Promise.
Local churches house homeless families while they look for work and get back on their feet.
Each night there has to be a host who stays overnight at the church.
In the past Hubby has done this on his own usually with our boys. It was sorta "his thing".
This time we were short on volunteers and Hubby asked if I would do it with him.

I'll tell you a secret...I didn't want to do it.
I mean I REALLY didn't want to do it.
Mostly it seemed inconvenient.
I am hosting Easter at my house and we are leaving for vacation the next day. How am I supposed to do all that?!
Of course I instantly felt horrible over my selfishness and reluctantly agreed to do it.
And as God does, He used that night to open my eyes and to bless me.
We were housing 3 families.
All single mothers.
Among the kids were a teenager and a 6 month old.
But what really humbled me was the mother who was at the hospital delivering her baby that night. She would spend 2 days in the hospital and then come to our church because she has no where to live.
I can't imagine it. The overwhelming feeling of having no where to take your baby.
I never got to meet her. We came back the next day to deliver our pack n' play. A small thing, but I hoped it would make things more comfortable for her.
I haven't stopped thinking about her and I don't even know her name. But I think about and pray for her and her precious newborn. I pray that she felt the love of Jesus through what these volunteers were doing. I pray she has not lost hope.
I found myself feeling sad. Not for these families without a home. I am confident the Lord will provide what they need through His people and they seemed confident of it too.
Sad that I almost missed it.
I almost missed the opportunity to bless someone I would never meet.
I almost missed the opportunity to be shown in very bold terms all the ways I have been blessed in my life.
I am thankful to my Hubby for quietly leading me down the right path and to my God for allowing me to be a small part of the work He is doing.
Be careful. Don't miss out on the blessings He might have for you.

Bits of Easter

I know I'm a little late on the Easter pictures but we left for vacation the next morning so I'm playing catch up.
Easter is always full with friends, family and lots to do.

But for me it's always the little moments that hold the best memories.

The details that might be missed by others.

These are some of my favorites.

Resurrection rolls. Yes!
Making sure they know Easter is not about eggs and bunnies.



Preparing for the all important egg dyeing.

They were all very proud of their work.


The silly puddy eggs were a big hit.


A Little Mario Kart on the Wii


The egg hunt.


Sharing the goodies.

It's my favorite holiday. The colors, the weather and the kids running around.

But mostly the celebration.

Because HE IS RISEN.

I am forever grateful for his sacrifice and free gift of salvation.

"we encourage" - Thank You

Today I wanted to take the time to encourage 2 of the lovely ladies who helped send my family to Mexico a few months ago. You can find their buttons on my right sidebar, please go check them out.

First is beautiful Christina. I mean really...look at her. Her family also has a heart for helping others and it is so inspiring. Please take time to go read more about what they are doing. 

Thanks for your support Christina!

I am so glad to be here with Jami and you. Don't you just love the inspirational life that Jami leads!?! I am also so glad to be a sponsor this month.

So, a little about me.  I am proud to say, I have a little Etsy shop with hand sewn goodies, 1581Designs.  I love to create and sew.  I give 10% of the profits to an anti-human trafficking organization called The Magdeline Project.  My husband and I are going on a mission trip with the non-profit next summer to Guatamala.  Very exciting!  I also blog over at TheAndrewsUpdate.  I categorize it as a Lifestyle blog because I write about everything.  I often write about things that I love to create, repurpose, sew, or cook.  I occasionally write about fashion and the style I wish I had.  I love to write about my husband.  I learn so much from that man.hunk and our marriage.  I write about musings from motherhood, the things that make me laugh, the things that inspire me, and my journey of faith.  I try to be real, so sometimes I write about things that are a little harder to share.  Most of all I write to open my heart, in hopes that my perspective will encourage a reader or two.  I hope to help, inspire, create, and teach others, while learning and loving along the way.

Come by and share a little of yourself with me.  I would love to meet you!

Here is a little discount code that will be good for one week after the post.  FREESHIP

Next up is Kim, literally one of the funniest people I know. I'm not kidding when I say that a good day for me is when I log on to Pinterest and see that Kim has been pinning. Laughing...out loud...by myself.
 Slightly embarrassing but always worth it.
But even better than that is Kim's heart for the Lord. She's the full package people.
Kim was one of the first people to jump on board and sponsor my family and I am so grateful. Take some time to read her stuff, you won't be sorry.
Love you CuppaKim!

Sending Him to Haiti

The Lord has brought some things into the life of my family life that I never would have expected.

All things that I am grateful for and in awe of.

One of these is a heart for missions.

Reaching out to the lost and showing the love of Jesus.

This passion is without a doubt lead by my Hubby who has a true heart for helping and reaching out to others.

I am excited to tell you about his next adventure.

Hubby and a small group from our church will be heading to the Dominican Republic and Haiti this June.

That sounds so far away to me, and a few years ago I think I would have been nervous.  But my heart has been changed, my faith deepened, and now I am nothing but excited and prayerful for what might be accomplished.

They will be traveling with the International Youth Initiative to spread the gospel to families in low income housing, children's groups and in youth prisons. They will also be helping young men at a university in the Dominican Republic with their English skills.
We are trying to cover most of the travel costs but also seeking any help we can. Every little bit helps.
You can donate by clicking the button at the top left of the blog.

Please pray for this group as they head out to make a real difference in this world.  Pray for safe travel and that the hearts of the people this team speaks to will be open and willing to receive the gift of salvation that is offered to them.

Thank you in advance friends. I can't wait to hear how lives are touched through this mission trip. My heart is full with anticipation.

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us ,too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of the Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.

Colossians 4:2-5

PinterTest Kitchen - I Baked

For this PinterTest challenge I baked.

I know.

Impressive.

But these are super easy. I think they only qualify as baking because I had to turn on the oven.

Here is my pin...
baked oatmeal

                                                                                 Source: sugarfreemom.com via Jami on Pinterest

Perfect on the go breakfast. These were supposed to be gluten free and diabetic friendly. Neither of which I'm worried about so I modified the recipe a bit.

No flaxseed meal because I don't have any, and I substituted 1/4 cup brown sugar for the stevia.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups applesauce, unsweetened
• 5 cups, Old Fashioned rolled oats
• 1 banana, mashed
• 2 3/4 cups milk 
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 3 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Optional toppings: raisins, walnuts, chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix eggs, vanilla, applesauce, banana and brown sugar together in a bowl.

Add in oats, salt, baking powder, flax and cinnamon and mix well with wet ingredients.

Pour in the milk and combine. The dough will seem very wet, don't worry, it's supposed to be that way.

Spray the muffin pan or use muffin liners, and pour dough into the muffin tin.

Here are all the fun toppings I used...

The strawberries I cut up and put them inside the muffins. The chocolate chips {which were the crowd favorite, I know, shocking}, candied pecans and granola I sprinkled on as toppings.

And there you go. You can freeze them and just take out what you need the night before.

Loved em and I'll be making them again.