Wednesday, April 28, 2010
4 Years!
As of today, I have been married for four years and I can say without a doubt that has been the best four years of my life. I love having a husband who loves the Lord and strives to do God's will. I could not ask for a better husband. I LOVE YOU!!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
What If We Were All Missionaries?
I'm piggy backing on the post I posted this week from the girl who lives in Uganda. She really got me thinking about what being a Christian really means. It was refreshing to read what she wrote about how being a Christian does not mean you are comfortable. Carrying your cross daily might not actually mean living in a nice house and going to work every day. When Jesus carried His cross to Calvary it was not a pretty picture, so why do we always think that we can carry our cross in the nice pretty suburbs? Jesus says "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" Matthew 28:19 Granted I realize that America is also a nation, but what about all of the other ones?! He says ALL nationS. Not just one nation. I know that some of us are called to stay here and witness to people here, but when I look around, I feel like there are a heck of a lot of Christians who are doing their "mission" work here. I say this because I have always been this person. I have felt like I can tell people about God right here in the comfort of my own home, but how often does that really happen? I don't think Jesus meant that maybe once every two weeks we were supposed to tell someone about Him. I think he meant that we are supposed to be teling people about Him and His Dad ALL OF THE TIME!
Now, I know that some of you are thinking, "But there have to be those of us who send the missionaries. Someone has to provide the financial support." As someone who is going to be needing that financial support in the near future, I have to say that I am grateful for it and will happily accept it, but WHAT IF WE WERE ALL MISSIONARIES? What if some of us (some of us not all of us) stayed here and witnessed to people every day all the time, and the rest of us went out to all of the other nations in this world and shared about Christ's love. What if we worked in those countries alongside people and shared about the greatest gift ever? What if we made enough money to live with the people we were witnessing to instead of down the street in a safer more comfortable place. What if we made the same amount of money they made? Then we wouldn't need the financial support because we would all be doing it together.
Now, I am the first to say that this does not sound fun, and maybe I'm wrong. Maybe missionaries do need to be financially supported so that they can spend all of their time focusing on telling others about Christ, but at the same time couldn't we do that while working alongside the farmer, or the women carrying water from the nearby well?
I don't know. These are all just thoughts I have been having lately. I know that good works don't get you into heaven, but God's word says, Luke 9:57-62, “As they were walking along the road, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” He said to another man, “Follow me.” But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my Father.” Jesus said to Him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Still another said, “I will follow you Lord, but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts His hand to the plow and looks back will be fit to enter the Kingdom of God.” That's some pretty serious stuff. I just fear that a lot of us look at being a Christian as a side job when Jesus clearly states that it is supposed to be our life.
So, what if we were all missionaries? Arent we all supposed to be missionaries?
Now, I know that some of you are thinking, "But there have to be those of us who send the missionaries. Someone has to provide the financial support." As someone who is going to be needing that financial support in the near future, I have to say that I am grateful for it and will happily accept it, but WHAT IF WE WERE ALL MISSIONARIES? What if some of us (some of us not all of us) stayed here and witnessed to people every day all the time, and the rest of us went out to all of the other nations in this world and shared about Christ's love. What if we worked in those countries alongside people and shared about the greatest gift ever? What if we made enough money to live with the people we were witnessing to instead of down the street in a safer more comfortable place. What if we made the same amount of money they made? Then we wouldn't need the financial support because we would all be doing it together.
Now, I am the first to say that this does not sound fun, and maybe I'm wrong. Maybe missionaries do need to be financially supported so that they can spend all of their time focusing on telling others about Christ, but at the same time couldn't we do that while working alongside the farmer, or the women carrying water from the nearby well?
I don't know. These are all just thoughts I have been having lately. I know that good works don't get you into heaven, but God's word says, Luke 9:57-62, “As they were walking along the road, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” He said to another man, “Follow me.” But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my Father.” Jesus said to Him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Still another said, “I will follow you Lord, but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts His hand to the plow and looks back will be fit to enter the Kingdom of God.” That's some pretty serious stuff. I just fear that a lot of us look at being a Christian as a side job when Jesus clearly states that it is supposed to be our life.
So, what if we were all missionaries? Arent we all supposed to be missionaries?
Saturday, April 24, 2010
My New Favorite Blog
This girl is amazing. From what I have gathered by reading her blog. She moved to Uganda after high school. She is now 21 and has adopted 14 little Ugandan girls. There is so much more to her story and it is SOOO inspiring and interesting. She is truly living her life for Christ how we all should. Here is her story and here is her link. You can also go to her website by clicking on the photo titled Amazima at the top left of my blog and support her financially!
my heart spilled...
Disclaimer: This post was hard to write, and for some it will be hard to read. I prayed before I posted and I do believe that it is what the Lord would have me say. This is my blog, a place where I share my private thoughts and I invite you to remember before you comment that no one has forced you to read it.
She was eighteen years old and she had never been in love with anyone she could touch before. I mean, she had been in love with Jesus since she was little, but this was different, touchable love.
In her eyes he was perfect. He loved the Lord, not to mention he was pretty darn cute. He went to church with her and joined her on silly errands and at family dinners. He made her giggle by saying things that only she found funny. He made her heart flutter when he swept that one always-stray piece of hair out of her eyes.
They were the “perfect couple.” They were desperately in love; one lit up as the other entered the room. They could see their beautiful future together. After high school, they would go together to college, get married, work a bit, settle down and have children with his eyes and her big smile. They would grow old together, laughing at secrets and kissing each other goodnight.
And then God asked her to move to Uganda. At first it was just going to be a year. They could do a year. She would come back and they could still go to college together and all their dreams would still come true. When the Lord asked her to adopt her first children, it became a bit more complicated. She rationalized that her youngest was 7, so in 11 years, she could move back home and be with him. But her children kept getting younger and His call kept getting stronger. She would go back in 13 years, in 17 years, in 20 years. Finally she came to terms with the fact that God was just asking her to STAY. And that when He said He wanted ALL of her, He meant all. She would live in Uganda. But she held on to her love because remaining comfortable was so much easier than dealing with the hurt and the emptiness would be.
Her eyes were opened and her life was changed. She couldn’t pretend to be the same person. She couldn’t sit still in his would anymore, it made her head spin and her heart ache. And still she held on because she didn’t love him any less. She knew God could move mountains and she prayed He could change his heart. After all, such a love must have been God orchestrated.
He made her feel beautiful as she walked through life as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. He believed in her when the rest of the world said raising eighty thousand dollars or adopting ten children was silly. Even from the other side of the world, he cheered her on and he picked her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. His voice on the other end of the phone turned a rough day right around.
They were moving in opposite directions. They both new it, but they both refused to let go.
So she asked God for a very specific sign. For something that she thought very unlikely if not absolutely impossible. And then something devastating happened. God gave her the sign that she asked for. So she kissed him goodbye and drove away and cried so hard that she doubted she would ever breathe again. She tried not to wonder if anyone would ever love her like that again or how she would do this all alone.
And that’s when He reminded her that she wasn’t. That HE would make her feel beautiful as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. That He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. That He believed in her when the rest of the world thought everything she did was crazy. That He would cheer her on and pick her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. That His voice whispering in her ear would turn those rough days right around. That He would ALWAYS be faithful. That His love would be unconditional. That He, her ONE TRUE LOVE would never leave or forsake her and would give her heart’s desires. That He would make all things new, ever her shattered heart.
* * *
A few days ago an American woman who had spent about three days of her life in a third world country looked at me and said, “I would SO love to do what you do. I would do it in a heartbeat. Oh, I would take 14 kids in a second!” It is a good thing that I was having a graceful day, because I said, “Aw that’s nice.” But my not so graceful heart was angry. And the not so graceful voice in my head wanted to say to her, “Ok then, do it. I can have you 14 orphaned, abandoned, uncared for children tomorrow. So here is what you have to do: Quit school. Quit your job. Sell your stuff. Disobey and disappoint your parents. Break your little brother’s heart. Lose all but about a handful of friends because the rest of them think you have gone off the deep end. Break up with the love of your life. Move to a country where you know one person and none of the language. And when you are finished, I will be here waiting with your 14 children!” I wanted to ask her what was stopping her, knowing that the answer would be her comfort. I wanted to look at her and tell her that my life was full and joyful and WONDERFUL, but I also wanted to tell her to COUNT THE COST. Because my life IS full and joyful and wonderful, but it is NOT easy. My life is NOT glamorous. I do not expect it to be. I do not think that anything about carrying a cross was easy or glamorous either.
Which brings me to my point. I am not actually that angry about what that woman said, it was just an offhanded comment. But it got me to thinking… How many times to we grieve our sweet Savior’s heart because we refuse to COUNT THE COST? How many times do we choose comfort instead of the cross?
In my NIV Bible, the header above Luke 9:57-62 says, “The Cost of Following Jesus.” Here it is, plain and simple, laid out for us by the Lord. “As they were walking along the road, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” He said to another man, “Follow me.” But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my Father.” Jesus said to Him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Still another said, “I will follow you Lord, but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts His hand to the plow and looks back will be fit to enter the Kingdom of God.” THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF. A little later in Luke 14:25, “The Cost of Being a Disciple,” Jesus tells the crowds gathered around Him, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes even his own life – he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry His cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to complete it; everyone who sees it will ridicule him saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first consider if he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. In the same way any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”
In Luke, in the days of Jesus, He expected EVERYTHING of his disciples. Do we believe that He requires the same today? We sure don’t act like it. If you ever read my blog or have heard me speak then you have heard me reference Matthew 25, the parable of the sheep and the goats. Jesus basically looks straight at the crowd and tells them that when He comes back, those who have seen the needy and met their needs will come with Him to heaven. He also says that those who have seen the needy and done nothing will be sent away to “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Right, hell. This is heavy, I know, but I believe that it is TRUE. I believe that the words of Jesus are timeless and therefore still apply to anyone desiring to be His follower today. (Oh, and in case you think you can get away with saying that you have not seen Jesus naked or hungry or thirsty or in need and therefore you are off the hook, let me help you. 30,000 children will die today because of hunger or preventable disease. There. Now you know. Now you are responsible too.) Faith without good deads is DEAD, my friends. Yes, I believe fully in salvation by His grace alone. I do not believe that anything we do or work for will save us. I also believe that if we are indeed saved, meaning that He lives inside of us, we will desire to do what is pleasing to Him. That if we really love Him with all our hearts and all our strength, NOTHING will feel like sacrifice in light of the promise that one day we will get to be with Him forever. Automatically, we will help those in need, we will give our all, we will love our neighbor as our self, because our heart is aligned with His. But so many don’t. This then begs the question: If we are not walking in the words of Jesus, do we truly know Him? Do we really know and believe in the Jesus of the Bible. Because if we do, if we believe what He says is true, our lives will be powerfully, unimaginable, radically different than the lives of those around us. He requires EVERYTHING.
I wonder today if I had been one of the people listening to Jesus as He spoke in Luke 9 and 14, if Jesus would have convinced me to follow Him or if I would have walked away. I believe I would have really really wanted to say goodbye to my family. I wonder about “Christians” today. We wear Jesus on our T-shirts, we wear His cross around our neck and a bumper sticker with His name on it on our car. Have we just laid the foundation without being able to build the building? Does Jesus feel like I did when a woman I didn’t know told me she would love to do what I do but I knew that she never would? Do we claim the precious name of Jesus Christ without counting the cost? Without being willing to REALLY give it all? And does Jesus, in His infinite grace, look at us and say, “Aw, that’s nice,” but really with the furry that he flipped over the tables in the temple want to spit our lukewarm selves out of His mouth?
This is heavy on my heart. I have spent hours typing it to get the words out right and still I feel like I am rambling. If you would like more references on God’s heart for the poor, try Isaiah 56-58, Proverbs 14:31, 21:13, 28:27, Matthew 19:16- 30, Luke 6:20-25, 18:18, James 5:1… Please feel free to add more in your comments! If we believe that these words are true, the way we are living is not tolerable. How can we live in willful disobedience and claim to know Jesus Christ?
I do not claim to have the answers. I do not claim to be doing it right. I do claim to believe that the words of Jesus are absolutely true and apply to me, right now today. I want to give EVERYTHING, no matter the cost. NO MATTER THE COST. Because I believe that nothing is sacrifice in light of eternity with Christ.
Please take an hour of your time to listen to this sermon by David Platt of Birmingham, Alabama. I pray that it would drastically change your life: www.brookhills.org/media/series/radical
my heart spilled...
Disclaimer: This post was hard to write, and for some it will be hard to read. I prayed before I posted and I do believe that it is what the Lord would have me say. This is my blog, a place where I share my private thoughts and I invite you to remember before you comment that no one has forced you to read it.
She was eighteen years old and she had never been in love with anyone she could touch before. I mean, she had been in love with Jesus since she was little, but this was different, touchable love.
In her eyes he was perfect. He loved the Lord, not to mention he was pretty darn cute. He went to church with her and joined her on silly errands and at family dinners. He made her giggle by saying things that only she found funny. He made her heart flutter when he swept that one always-stray piece of hair out of her eyes.
They were the “perfect couple.” They were desperately in love; one lit up as the other entered the room. They could see their beautiful future together. After high school, they would go together to college, get married, work a bit, settle down and have children with his eyes and her big smile. They would grow old together, laughing at secrets and kissing each other goodnight.
And then God asked her to move to Uganda. At first it was just going to be a year. They could do a year. She would come back and they could still go to college together and all their dreams would still come true. When the Lord asked her to adopt her first children, it became a bit more complicated. She rationalized that her youngest was 7, so in 11 years, she could move back home and be with him. But her children kept getting younger and His call kept getting stronger. She would go back in 13 years, in 17 years, in 20 years. Finally she came to terms with the fact that God was just asking her to STAY. And that when He said He wanted ALL of her, He meant all. She would live in Uganda. But she held on to her love because remaining comfortable was so much easier than dealing with the hurt and the emptiness would be.
Her eyes were opened and her life was changed. She couldn’t pretend to be the same person. She couldn’t sit still in his would anymore, it made her head spin and her heart ache. And still she held on because she didn’t love him any less. She knew God could move mountains and she prayed He could change his heart. After all, such a love must have been God orchestrated.
He made her feel beautiful as she walked through life as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. He believed in her when the rest of the world said raising eighty thousand dollars or adopting ten children was silly. Even from the other side of the world, he cheered her on and he picked her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. His voice on the other end of the phone turned a rough day right around.
They were moving in opposite directions. They both new it, but they both refused to let go.
So she asked God for a very specific sign. For something that she thought very unlikely if not absolutely impossible. And then something devastating happened. God gave her the sign that she asked for. So she kissed him goodbye and drove away and cried so hard that she doubted she would ever breathe again. She tried not to wonder if anyone would ever love her like that again or how she would do this all alone.
And that’s when He reminded her that she wasn’t. That HE would make her feel beautiful as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. That He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. That He believed in her when the rest of the world thought everything she did was crazy. That He would cheer her on and pick her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. That His voice whispering in her ear would turn those rough days right around. That He would ALWAYS be faithful. That His love would be unconditional. That He, her ONE TRUE LOVE would never leave or forsake her and would give her heart’s desires. That He would make all things new, ever her shattered heart.
* * *
A few days ago an American woman who had spent about three days of her life in a third world country looked at me and said, “I would SO love to do what you do. I would do it in a heartbeat. Oh, I would take 14 kids in a second!” It is a good thing that I was having a graceful day, because I said, “Aw that’s nice.” But my not so graceful heart was angry. And the not so graceful voice in my head wanted to say to her, “Ok then, do it. I can have you 14 orphaned, abandoned, uncared for children tomorrow. So here is what you have to do: Quit school. Quit your job. Sell your stuff. Disobey and disappoint your parents. Break your little brother’s heart. Lose all but about a handful of friends because the rest of them think you have gone off the deep end. Break up with the love of your life. Move to a country where you know one person and none of the language. And when you are finished, I will be here waiting with your 14 children!” I wanted to ask her what was stopping her, knowing that the answer would be her comfort. I wanted to look at her and tell her that my life was full and joyful and WONDERFUL, but I also wanted to tell her to COUNT THE COST. Because my life IS full and joyful and wonderful, but it is NOT easy. My life is NOT glamorous. I do not expect it to be. I do not think that anything about carrying a cross was easy or glamorous either.
Which brings me to my point. I am not actually that angry about what that woman said, it was just an offhanded comment. But it got me to thinking… How many times to we grieve our sweet Savior’s heart because we refuse to COUNT THE COST? How many times do we choose comfort instead of the cross?
In my NIV Bible, the header above Luke 9:57-62 says, “The Cost of Following Jesus.” Here it is, plain and simple, laid out for us by the Lord. “As they were walking along the road, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” He said to another man, “Follow me.” But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my Father.” Jesus said to Him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Still another said, “I will follow you Lord, but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts His hand to the plow and looks back will be fit to enter the Kingdom of God.” THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF. A little later in Luke 14:25, “The Cost of Being a Disciple,” Jesus tells the crowds gathered around Him, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes even his own life – he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry His cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to complete it; everyone who sees it will ridicule him saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first consider if he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. In the same way any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”
In Luke, in the days of Jesus, He expected EVERYTHING of his disciples. Do we believe that He requires the same today? We sure don’t act like it. If you ever read my blog or have heard me speak then you have heard me reference Matthew 25, the parable of the sheep and the goats. Jesus basically looks straight at the crowd and tells them that when He comes back, those who have seen the needy and met their needs will come with Him to heaven. He also says that those who have seen the needy and done nothing will be sent away to “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Right, hell. This is heavy, I know, but I believe that it is TRUE. I believe that the words of Jesus are timeless and therefore still apply to anyone desiring to be His follower today. (Oh, and in case you think you can get away with saying that you have not seen Jesus naked or hungry or thirsty or in need and therefore you are off the hook, let me help you. 30,000 children will die today because of hunger or preventable disease. There. Now you know. Now you are responsible too.) Faith without good deads is DEAD, my friends. Yes, I believe fully in salvation by His grace alone. I do not believe that anything we do or work for will save us. I also believe that if we are indeed saved, meaning that He lives inside of us, we will desire to do what is pleasing to Him. That if we really love Him with all our hearts and all our strength, NOTHING will feel like sacrifice in light of the promise that one day we will get to be with Him forever. Automatically, we will help those in need, we will give our all, we will love our neighbor as our self, because our heart is aligned with His. But so many don’t. This then begs the question: If we are not walking in the words of Jesus, do we truly know Him? Do we really know and believe in the Jesus of the Bible. Because if we do, if we believe what He says is true, our lives will be powerfully, unimaginable, radically different than the lives of those around us. He requires EVERYTHING.
I wonder today if I had been one of the people listening to Jesus as He spoke in Luke 9 and 14, if Jesus would have convinced me to follow Him or if I would have walked away. I believe I would have really really wanted to say goodbye to my family. I wonder about “Christians” today. We wear Jesus on our T-shirts, we wear His cross around our neck and a bumper sticker with His name on it on our car. Have we just laid the foundation without being able to build the building? Does Jesus feel like I did when a woman I didn’t know told me she would love to do what I do but I knew that she never would? Do we claim the precious name of Jesus Christ without counting the cost? Without being willing to REALLY give it all? And does Jesus, in His infinite grace, look at us and say, “Aw, that’s nice,” but really with the furry that he flipped over the tables in the temple want to spit our lukewarm selves out of His mouth?
This is heavy on my heart. I have spent hours typing it to get the words out right and still I feel like I am rambling. If you would like more references on God’s heart for the poor, try Isaiah 56-58, Proverbs 14:31, 21:13, 28:27, Matthew 19:16- 30, Luke 6:20-25, 18:18, James 5:1… Please feel free to add more in your comments! If we believe that these words are true, the way we are living is not tolerable. How can we live in willful disobedience and claim to know Jesus Christ?
I do not claim to have the answers. I do not claim to be doing it right. I do claim to believe that the words of Jesus are absolutely true and apply to me, right now today. I want to give EVERYTHING, no matter the cost. NO MATTER THE COST. Because I believe that nothing is sacrifice in light of eternity with Christ.
Please take an hour of your time to listen to this sermon by David Platt of Birmingham, Alabama. I pray that it would drastically change your life: www.brookhills.org/media/series/radical
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Love Weight Watchers
Went to my first meeting last night and weighed in (this weekend was a killer so I will be starting my 30lb deal over again and basing it on my WW weight)The leader of our ww group lost 135 lbs 10 years ago and has kept it off since. She is also a nutritionist, so that is helpful. The meeting was great. Everyone in there is after the same goal. I loved it. I will be going back until I lose my 30 lbs.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Weight Watchers
I signed up today! and...I already threw half of my coffee away because it was from Starbucks and cost me WAY too many points. Its $39 a month but that gives you meetings and web site use. The web site is awesome. You can go on there and keep track of your points and the kinds of foods that you eat. It keeps you accountable to how much water you are drinking too. I'm going to try to go to my first meeting tonight to get weighed in. Once I get weighed in, Ill be going by that weight on this 20lb loss thing.
On another note, John spent $160 on two pair of pants last night so the saving money thing might not happen as expected. I think I need to make him do this no weight loss no clothes thing.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Fun Weekend Filled with FOOD!
We had the opportunity to have a wonderful family stay with us for about a week. The Garcias are from Guatemala and are staying here in America for a month because it is Missions Month at North West Bible Church. They let us stay with them when we lived in Guatemala for a month, and now we were fortunate enough to return the favor for a bit. It was so much fun, BUT it was filled with eating food! I don't even want to weigh myself this week! Anyway here are some fun pics from the week. Dara and Jaris are my favorite little girls in the world besides Ryann Cate of course.
Lucki making a face because she knows Julio is CHEATING
Dara being cute
putting together a map of the USA
Sitting under a picture of themselves
Playing Cranium
Some pics at the zoo!
John getting ready for a soccer game
Me and John just being cute.
Julio and Lucki singing songs in our kitchen.
Lucki and the girls on the couch being cute!
Lucki and Jaris watching TV
Julio and Lucki at Maggianos. He calls her Mi Amor every time he talks to her. So sweet!
John and Julio at dinner. We love them so much!
Dara and Jaris making silly faces at dinner because they were BORED
Jaris getting into trouble for something
Lucki and Beyonce on the couch. I love this picture
Me and John just being hot...I actually think I look pretty bad in this picture..
Garcia family enjoying an Italian dinner. Lucki said if was going to die and could have one last meal, she would choose this one.
I recommend that if you are not friends with a missionary family or if you have not gone on a mission trip that you go. It is a blessing to get to know people who are willing to give up their lives to tell people about Jesus. It is also great to learn about a different culture. Befriend a missionary at your church and have them stay at your house. It will help you grow more than you could ever know!
Lucki making a face because she knows Julio is CHEATING
Dara being cute
putting together a map of the USA
Sitting under a picture of themselves
Playing Cranium
Some pics at the zoo!
John getting ready for a soccer game
Me and John just being cute.
Julio and Lucki singing songs in our kitchen.
Lucki and the girls on the couch being cute!
Lucki and Jaris watching TV
Julio and Lucki at Maggianos. He calls her Mi Amor every time he talks to her. So sweet!
John and Julio at dinner. We love them so much!
Dara and Jaris making silly faces at dinner because they were BORED
Jaris getting into trouble for something
Lucki and Beyonce on the couch. I love this picture
Me and John just being hot...I actually think I look pretty bad in this picture..
Garcia family enjoying an Italian dinner. Lucki said if was going to die and could have one last meal, she would choose this one.
I recommend that if you are not friends with a missionary family or if you have not gone on a mission trip that you go. It is a blessing to get to know people who are willing to give up their lives to tell people about Jesus. It is also great to learn about a different culture. Befriend a missionary at your church and have them stay at your house. It will help you grow more than you could ever know!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Thats Right. The Scale Has Moved
So its only 1.5 lbs, but its still 1.5 lbs. I'll take it. Maybe its all water weight, but it just got me that much closer to buying some clothes:)
I was very aware of what I ate yesterday. Looking at food as something that I am a slave to pisses me off and makes me want to not be a slave to it anymore so that is really helping. I did have a random bag of chips yesterday without even thinking about it because our company (who only speaks Spanish) came into town and they were all eating lunch. I grabbed the bag and opened it because it was the only thing I could do besides sit there and stare at them:).
Im not doing very well this morning (white mocha from starbucks and a donut) but I am justifying it because of my company. I had healthy blueberry muffins at home but if I ate those, they would not have had anything to eat. I'll do well for lunch. I am also drinking LOTS of water. That is my first little baby step.
Dont eat as much food as you usually do.
No more snacks at night (unless its 50 calories or less....I need something sweet after dinner)
and water water water water and more water.
I was very aware of what I ate yesterday. Looking at food as something that I am a slave to pisses me off and makes me want to not be a slave to it anymore so that is really helping. I did have a random bag of chips yesterday without even thinking about it because our company (who only speaks Spanish) came into town and they were all eating lunch. I grabbed the bag and opened it because it was the only thing I could do besides sit there and stare at them:).
Im not doing very well this morning (white mocha from starbucks and a donut) but I am justifying it because of my company. I had healthy blueberry muffins at home but if I ate those, they would not have had anything to eat. I'll do well for lunch. I am also drinking LOTS of water. That is my first little baby step.
Dont eat as much food as you usually do.
No more snacks at night (unless its 50 calories or less....I need something sweet after dinner)
and water water water water and more water.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Get Rich or Get Skinny?
I choose both. I mean really there is not way I am going to drop twenty lbs in the next month and a half, so that means I will not shop for at least two months and thats only if I get really really serious and get my butt to the gym two times a day. My schedule does not allow that, but I am thinking that I need to get to the gym or do at least 45 minutes of something a day.
So day one of no shopping/losing weight was yesterday. It didnt go all that well. I ate a lot. I have realized that I am a slave to food. It's not because I have some issue. (or maybe it is and I dont realize it) I think its just that I like food. But after reading my friends blog rockabyerestoration,I have realized that my food over eating is a sin...I actually knew it the entire time, I just didnt want to admit it. So, IM ADMITTING IT!
Today when I had a chicken salad sandwich for lunch, I used one piece of bread instead of two. I have also been drinking water. I wasnt great for breakfast (two muffins) but its baby steps right?
Here are some more before (fat) pictures of me. Angie my niece is in them with me! We went to Taylor Swift together! By far the best concert I have ever been to. She is such a performer!
So day one of no shopping/losing weight was yesterday. It didnt go all that well. I ate a lot. I have realized that I am a slave to food. It's not because I have some issue. (or maybe it is and I dont realize it) I think its just that I like food. But after reading my friends blog rockabyerestoration,I have realized that my food over eating is a sin...I actually knew it the entire time, I just didnt want to admit it. So, IM ADMITTING IT!
Today when I had a chicken salad sandwich for lunch, I used one piece of bread instead of two. I have also been drinking water. I wasnt great for breakfast (two muffins) but its baby steps right?
Here are some more before (fat) pictures of me. Angie my niece is in them with me! We went to Taylor Swift together! By far the best concert I have ever been to. She is such a performer!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
I Have Been iNsPiReD!
My cousin Jennifer (check out her blog at "Nothings and Notions") decided one day that she had enough clothes and was not going to shop for a year. She did it! I don't know about anybody else, but I cannot comprehend the idea of not shopping for a year which is really sad..but true. I have two closets FULL of clothes. An example of what one of my closets looks like 
So, like I was saying, I cannot imagine what it would be like to not shop for an entire year, and I honestly don't think I could do it. I kept thinking of all the reasons I might need to buy something. "What if I lose weight? I will need some different clothes." That was my first and only good thought I could come up with. So, I decided that instead of not shopping for an entire year....starting today, I will not buy myself one article of clothing until I lose 20 lbs. Once I lose 20 lbs, I will buy myself $100 worth of clothes (not all at one time. Just $100 total and no more than that) and then will not allow myself to buy anything else until I have lost another 10 lbs. My current weight is...well its not important because there is no way in the world I'm going to tell you anyway. Y'all will just have to trust me. I think I need a before picture....
Here is my before picture (doesn't do my fat justice...I don't look half bad in this pic)
I figure either way this is going to be good for my body or my wallet. Its a win/win. More to come on how in the heck I am going to lose this 30 lbs...
(blogger is still allowed to purchase shoes, scarves, jewelry, swim suits, purses, and sunglasses. These are exceptions to the new rules...JK:) )
So, like I was saying, I cannot imagine what it would be like to not shop for an entire year, and I honestly don't think I could do it. I kept thinking of all the reasons I might need to buy something. "What if I lose weight? I will need some different clothes." That was my first and only good thought I could come up with. So, I decided that instead of not shopping for an entire year....starting today, I will not buy myself one article of clothing until I lose 20 lbs. Once I lose 20 lbs, I will buy myself $100 worth of clothes (not all at one time. Just $100 total and no more than that) and then will not allow myself to buy anything else until I have lost another 10 lbs. My current weight is...well its not important because there is no way in the world I'm going to tell you anyway. Y'all will just have to trust me. I think I need a before picture....
Here is my before picture (doesn't do my fat justice...I don't look half bad in this pic)
I figure either way this is going to be good for my body or my wallet. Its a win/win. More to come on how in the heck I am going to lose this 30 lbs...
(blogger is still allowed to purchase shoes, scarves, jewelry, swim suits, purses, and sunglasses. These are exceptions to the new rules...JK:) )
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