decisions that count

Well It has been quite awhile since I have posted. I have been rather busy, and I honestly have not had a day like this in a long time. I woke up and read a really good book I got from the library last night. http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8927997-between-two-ends
 If you like adventure books you should check this one out! :)
 Anyway This morning I have done some extensive research of the anti-inflammatory diet, and honestly I do pretty good, but I am going to have to get stricter I decided. I told I have a condition called Costocondritis which is inflammation in the ribs. So this week it has been particularly bad. There is not anything I can take for it, but like my back I just have to take it easy. But I know that I may be able to help the pain with the foods I eat.  Waking up in pain this morning I decided I am going to research and do what I can. That's all we can do right!? and trust in God and not worry which can be hard to do, but I know God has it all under control but I need to do my part as well.
 Me and my husband have actually done a very good job at eating healthy and clean we both have some health issues and decided awhile ago to cut some definite things out. So for me here I go again..and it may be a never ending journey of eliminating things and figuring out what does and doesn't work. I am up for it though!
 So I decided no more putting it off today I will start  with baby steps to cut some things out of my diet and my more things in it that are ant inflammatory foods :) So to start off I made an omelet with kale and veggie cheese ( sounds gross but is actually good and pretty cheap at Wal mart) and some raspberries and blackberries. it was delicious !:)
 So after I do some housework I am going to head to the library to find some cook books/nutrition books to learn more about what I can do :) I pray that God gives us all wisdom on how we are to treat our bodies and the foods we put in them.
 Hope you all have a wonderful day even though it is rainy :)

artsy weridness

I don't really have a lot to share tonight, but I do have some new artwork I just did that I wanted to share.  I did it last night and I actually hated it, but got it off the wall and made some changes..made it look messy, and now I love it. I like doing artwork and hanging it in out house because we didn't buy it but it is our own creation..:)

Here is a close up

Sunshine & slippers

Today was an absolutely beautiful day! :) I have been so full of joy today.  This morning sure did wear me out but it was a wonderful service. Couldn't do it without all the help of every single volunteer..so thank you all of you so much! :) This morning was a blast! We had BGMC and a new worship song. I purchased the new DVD from Yancy and sang a new song from that.
Our lesson today was about serving the Lord and how God can use us no matter how small we are.  We talked about In John 6:1-14 how Jesus fed the 5000 and he used a boys lunch. I told the kids that God wants their lunch..What!!?? That means he wants your talents and abilities..he wants you to do those things for him. I preached right up until parents came up, and actually they had to wait a few minuted before i prayed and dismissed.
 So after church went to the busy Kenton Walmart to get lunch stuff for the week, and now that I can drive I always go to Kroger on Monday mornings to get meal stuff. Anyway later in the afternoon i went on the porch and read my new book (Sara's Key) It is a really good book, and i have seen the movie and it is good too!  So i got to spend some great time in the sunshine.
 I was so excited today because a girl i have in class on Sunday mornings made me a beautiful wreath, and i put it on the door. It looks lovely, so i wanted to take a picture. I go outside and shut the door...UH OH!!!! i just locked myself out..great! haha yes i laughed because Josh has already left for youth. So i walk to a friends house (in my slippers) and hang out with them and use their phone. (Thanks Prestons!) Josh came home and unlocked the door for me..and we laughed about it together..:) So here is a picture of the lovely wreath Kenya made me.  She did a wonderful job! :) Love it! So i decided after locking myself out that it was time to stay in for the night.

picture of our super cute dog!!!!!!! :)

Nursing homes, Hairspray,and marshmallows

Well the title sums up what I have done the last few days. You are probably trying to figure it all our right now... We will start with Wednesday when we went to the Nursing home. Last week our two Wednesday night girls classes made crafts to take to the nursing home. So we went and the girls read the Easter story out of the Jesus Storybook bible. I love that bible! Afterwards they handed out their crafts and we just hung out for a bit. It was so great to see the girls talking with the elderly people. Some of the girls surprised me because they are really shy and they were really enjoying themselves. It was awesome to see that:)  We are going to keep going back and doing different things, so I think it is good for the kids to experience something new. 
Thursday night I made plans to hang out with a couple of the girls that had asked to help on with the Good Friday service. I knew that they were excited and really wanted to help so i thought it would be fun to go over the plan and everything and hang out. We had so much fun and these girls were full of great ideas :) We also watched Hairspray and ate junk food..Girls night! Had so much fun definitely doing Girls nights more often.
 Tonight was our Good Friday service, and this is the first year we have really done something. The adults watched Passion of the Christ and took communion.  The kids definitely had fun..we played Easter bingo and used giant marshmallows as our markers. FUN!!! but we still were very serious. I used the What's in the Bible volume 10 church edition and it worked out great! Thought this was really good for kids! There were 4 videos and after each video we had a small discussion and activity. Since we only had nine kids we didn't break up into small groups. The third video was the longest and it went into more depth about Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter. After the video we had seven stations, and we had an activity and small discussion at each station. We were basically walking through the whole story. The first was Passover tradition so the kids colored the door ( picture) red, the second was Palm Sunday so they all colored palm branches, third was the last supper (loved this station) all the kids got a piece of bread and they put their piece of bread down on the picture and we took a few minutes just to think about what it means to us, fourth Jesus prayed in the Garden and so we had huge pieces of paper and the kids either got to write or draw a prayer, fifth was the cross and the wrote the word sin on paper and made it ugly and then crumpled it up, sixth was the empty tomb Jesus has power over death so we threw the papers in the trash can, and seventh was the sunflower seeds and here we talked about God's Kingdom. We used the seeds as an illustration, and just like these seeds will grow with care we can Grow God's kingdom if we work at it. (praying for people, being nice, showing God's love) I am not sure what the  kids took from tonight,but I hope as they are home that they think about the things we talked about. I hope that the seeds remind them of the things they learned. I really hope that Easter is more to them then candy and Easter bunnies. All of that is fun but they need to know what it really is about and why we celebrate Easter. If you need help sharing this with your kids I would definitely suggest going to www.whatsinthebible.com/  There are lots of videos and resources to help your children understand and know what Easter is all about. 
Have a great weekend! :)

yummy new recipe

My Post last night was about some of my favorite things, and one of my favorite things lately have been flat bread pizzas. I bought a ton of flat bread wraps from Aldis and been using them to make pizza. It is so good and healthy..i have it at least 2 or 3 times a week for lunch or dinner. Today i decided to try something new. The bag of Kale in the fridge is starting to go bad, so i decided to try kale pizza. I have only been putting Kale in smoothies I haven't actually tried it in anything else yet, so I was a little nervous. I brushed the flat bread with olive oil then sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on, covered with kale, then topped with mozzarella cheese. Preheat oven to 350 and i think I left them in for about 10 min. Really you can just keep checking and when it looks good to you and can get it out. As you can see I was a little nervous that I wouldn't like it so I made a regular one to.
 Here is the finished product, and it taste great! I found a new tasty use for Kale. Even if you don't think you will like Kale pizza you can try any other one you like. This is so tasty and healthy and easy. :) Just thought I would share with you all one of my new easy favorite things to make. :)

favorite things

It's been awhile since i posted..believe me I have wanted just not enough time.  Yesterday was a fun day!  Got stuff done around the house but got a short nap, also gave Zoe a much needed bath, and got to see my 2 favorite little boys. :)  my favorite thing is spending time with my husband and being able to do fun stuff together. Giving Zoe a bath was definitely fun! :) Zoe is such a good dog! After the bath I relaxed took a short nap another favorite thing.

 I have really been missing my nephews lately so wanted to try and see them yesterday. Went over to my parents to hang out for awhile. I love Saijyn and Baikyr so much! :) They made my whole night..:)  In these pictures they are wearing the coyote..this sits on the back of the couch. These are my two favorite boys..love them so much!

So after I left last night I came home and spent some time with my husband:) Church today was of course Great! I love what I get to do every Sunday! Another favorite thing my Job! Get to spend some time with some great kids, and share God's love with them. Today we had some prayer and altar time at the end of service, and I tell you what it really is amazing to get to pray with kids. Another favorite thing is getting my make muffins and be a wife to my husband. No I don't always feel like baking and getting his lunch together, but it really does put a joy in my heart that I can do that for him. It is a favorite thing because I love being a wife and being able to do things for him:)

 

These are just some favorite things from my weekend, but I have to add in that I babysit 3 days a week for 2 sweet little boys :) This is also a favorite of mine. I have so much fun with them every week,and getting to watch them grow up.  I love getting to be a part of their lives. What are some of your favorite things?

the unexpected

Happy valentines day! Hope you are all having a wonderful day! :) I have had a lot of time to think today. So glad I have a chance to blog..
 One of my favorite movies is Julie and Julia, and I have wanted to read the book for a long while. We found it about a month ago at Goodwill and I was so excited. Well I am sad to say that I couldn't finish it, and I always finish books. There was a lot of bad language in this book, and I coldn't handle it, so I had to just stop reading it. In this case the movie was wayyy better than the book. That very rarley happens so it was quite unexpected that I did not love the book. Another book we found at Goodwill, and I really enjoyed was I don't know how she does it. A good read!
 Today has also been an unexpected kinda day..In a good way. Josh has this plan for tonight that I don't know about yet..I am excited! This morning as I was rushing around to get ready I found a giant card and chocolates on the table. So Sweet! The unexpected can be fun sometimes..

Happy Groundhog day!

Good afternoon! Well this post honestly has nothing to do with Groundhog day..except that today is Groundhog day, so i found it to be an appropriate title.  Today has been rather strange...Josh had to work today, and this morning he was running late and forgot his phone..:( I sent him a text on his way to work this morning (4:45 am) and I woke up with no reply. I tried not to worry to much, but i like to know that he gets there safe. His first break is at 8 a.m. so i woke up to check my phone and no text...hmm..something is wrong. Apparently i wasn't to worried because i went back to sleep and got up at 9 a.m. I got up hoping he had left his phone here, and he did..:( :(
 Why does this make for a strange day?  Me and Josh have always enjoyed talking to each other, and we don't go a whole day without at least a text. I miss him so terribly much because i am used to talking to him on his breaks. I am sure this seems ridiculous to some of you..I will see him around 4 when he gets home from work :)

 Saturdays I usually get to have ME days ( which I really don't mind) What does a ME day consist of?  A yummy breakfast which you see here! :) Today was french toast with fruit on top. I will do laundry, read my bible, journal, and watch a girly movie. Depending on how my back feels i usually try to dome some house work.I have to say because it is Saturday I try to rest and not to let myself do to much.
 Music is always involved..singing loud! Right now i am listening to a wonderful song That I think we will use in worship. It is called How great your love is by Gateway Next. When i start a new song for worship i listen to it over and over and over...
 I have really been enjoying blogging alot more lately..it has really helped me:) I am trying to sit at the computer and blog more often. Oh and it is day 6 without coffee. ( yay me! ) I have been drinking some tea..love chai tea. Also for bed time sleepy time tea has been wonderful. i usually wake up and toss and turn and don't feel rested, but this tea helps. :)
Well I hope you all have a wonderful snowy Groundhog day! :)

 Love this man!!!!!!! :)

No coffee!

As most of you know I love coffee. I would not say that I am addicted, but I like it in the mornings to wake up, and i love the taste of it. Well I have been and still am doing a lot of research on Fibromyalgia, and what i have found and I guess knew already was that most medical problems come from the food we put into our bodies.
We need to trust God but God has also given us wisdom, and I believe it is wisdom for us to cut out some foods that we eat although we are fairly healthy we could definitely do better. So the first step that I have decided to take is cutting coffee out of my daily routine.  No coffee is not necessarily bad for you, but I have read that people with Fibro should avoid coffee. So for now I am going to see if that makes a difference. We are slowly going to be taking steps to a healthier and cleaner lifestyle.
 I am excited! I know that it will be a long process figuring out what works and what doesn't. Most of all I want me and my husband to be healthy..I want us to use the wisdom that God has given us and be putting the right things into our bodies. Today is day 3 without a cup of coffee. I will admit it takes me a little longer to wake up, but my counter looks nicer and I have more space without the coffee maker out.  :)
So we are taking things day by day, trying to be wise ( which can be hard) and trusting in God.

little hands and big prayers

Today has been a very encouraging day.  This morning in our preschool class the teacher wanted the kids to lay hands on me while she prayed for me. It was the sweetest thing...All the little ones are gathered around me with a few of them holding my hands, and some hands on my back. It was so awesome! I believe that is a feeling I won't forget..:)
 In Kidz 4 Christ today we talked about prayer. Why do we pray? It is pretty easy for me to stand up in front of these kids just staring at me and talk to them about God's word every week because i need to do these things that I tell them and I believe everything I say. With passion I tell these kids how important prayer is. I am almost in tears because I said When we pray we need to say Whatever your will may be God. I read the passage in Matthew right before Jesus was crucified, and he asks God if there is any other way, but then he says your will Father and now mine. I said this is how we should pray..So i said i have a back issue, and I pray that God heals me, but I also say God if you don't I trust you because I know you have a plan.  I am saying this with so much  passion knowing yes this is how I need to pray. God does have a plan, and I do trust him. What I am saying hits me so hard.  I know the plans he has for us is way better than any plan I could come up with myself. :)
 After talking to some church family today I left church feeling so encouraged and blessed. I feel so blessed to be able to teach, love and spend time with kids each week. I feel blessed to have such a wonderful church family that I can talk to and know that they are there for us and praying for us.

Big green pillow

 You could say that these past couple of weeks have been a little on the rough side for us.  As most of you know I have some issues with my back.  I have a severe case of scoliosis ( curvature of the spine) and I believe that I also have fibromyalgia.  Both of these things are hereditary. Anyway I am not writing to tell you about all of my problems, but to say that things have just been a little tougher lately.
 I have no reason to be discouraged though because I have an awesome family and church family that I know have been and are praying for us. :) God really has blessed us! It can get discouraging when I am in pain but I have been learning to lean on God. He has a plan and he doesn't see me as someone who can't do a lot.  He sees me as the beautiful person he made me to be, and he knows the plans he has for us. (Whatever they may be)
 So you are asking where does a green pillow come in? Well today my husband worked and after work he went to the store and he said he had a surprise for me.  I absolutely had no idea what it could be...He got my a long, fluffy pillow and a green pillow case for it. Seriously a pillow! That's what you are thing right..? The cool thing is this pillow will help me a lot (I am using it right now) I was so excited about this pillow. It will help me sleep and just be comfortable.
 So it is leaning on God, trusting in his plan, and having people around you that care and can support you when times are tough. In my case a big green pillow( from my wonderful husband)  brightened my whole night.