World Domination and Goals


I dropped Logan off at School for Little People for his 1st day of Preschool!!! It feels so weird being here at home by myself. I know the kids are doing great but what do I do? That is the question I have been asking myself alot here lately. There are so many things I want to do in and with my life.

I do know for thing that is for sure. I want to be there for my children. I love that I can be readily available for the kids if and when they need me. I was Kendra's homeroom mom last year and I loved it. I signed up to be homeroom mom for Logan's class this year. I like the idea of giving the kids their space while I can still be involved with them during the day. I want to be around them as long as I can before they start to get tired of me. On the flip side, the day is going to come when Im gonna have to branch off on my own.

I have been debating with the idea of having another kid but I dont think my reasons behind that idea are smart. It seems like all my friends are pregnant or having babies. Maybe I should get in on that action. But Im so busy with the two how could I possibly make time for another child?

Ive also been thinking about going back to school. Which is never a bad choice. Just in our situation, I would need a job that would allow me to work the same hours the kids are in school but would pay me enough to make it worth my wild. I am currently one credit away from applying to the nursing program. But whats gonna happen when all is said and done? What are the hours gonna be like? Am I gonna be able to work part time? Will I have help with the kids?

I spoke with my dad this morning. He and I have had a very colorful relationship to say the least. He encourged me to just be a stay at home mom and wife for the time being. He said I should be ok with the idea that the kids are growing up and its ok to take a little time for myself every now and then.

I think he might actually be right on this one.

Bottom line, I want to be the best wife and mother I can be to my family. Right now just might be the time when I have to throw out all the ideas of world domination and just take a little time for myself. Laundry, dirty dishes, dirty bathrooms, breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything else in between that I have the privilage of taking care of will still need my attention.


Thanks dad.

We got the kids pics taken this past Saturday at Portrait Innovations. Everyday that passes, I find it harder to believe that they are as old as they are. Here are some of my favorites.

Aaron and I recently spent some time in Sin City Las Vegas. We had a blast as we celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary. We are not the gambling and drinking til 6am couple. We enjoyed the sites and I went back home with some nasty blisters. Nonetheless, we would go back in a heart beat. Here are some pics we took.

My sweet Kendra (1st Grader)

Today is August 23, 2010. It is the first day of 1st grade for Kendra. Walking her to class this morning was a surreal moment for me. I can not believe I have a 1st grader. It really does seem like yesterday that we brought her home from the hospital. Walking down the hall reminded me that time passes by in the blink of an eye.

With Logan starting preschool next week, I have been dealing with the question, What am I going to do while they are gone? Someone once told me that we grow the most when we experience change. I completely agree. I dont know what this school year is going to have in store for us. But for some reason I have a very good feeling about all of us growing and changing and thriving in new a amazing ways. Im so excited about this year!

Summer has been flying by. The kids and I spent the later part of the week with my dad in Corpus. We had a great time! We went to The Texas State Aquarium and the USS Lexington. The kids had a blast. They had more fun on the Lexington. I couldnt believe that. And so it is. My dad and Joan were nice enough to watch the kids for me while I went out with an old freind. It was so great catching up with Jodi. Hadnt visited with her (other than saying hi in El Pato for like 30 sec) in almost nine years. Crazy how time flys. It seemed like yesterday I was rooming with her in SA. I will post pics later. For now, Im off to the grocery store.

Ten Words Of The Day

1. Coffee
2. Wal-Mart
3. Target
4. enchildas
5. movie
6. telephone
7. cleaning
8. park
9. dinner
10. showers

**Im getting into the habit of drinking my coffee while reading my bible and studying for my recent bible study on Galatians. Im loving it! I totally believe starting my day off with the word of GOD puts my mind in the right place thru out the whole day.

More thoughts on Marriage

Isaiah 54:5

"For your Maker is your husband-the Lord Almighty is his name-the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer."

Jeremiah 3:14

"Return, faithless people:, declares the Lord, "for I am your husband."

Hosea 2:19,20

"I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the Lord."

Matthew 2:2

"The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son."

Matthew 25:10

"But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut."

Revelation 19:7

"Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the lamb has come, and his bride had made herself ready."

The verses mentioned above are references to the oneness (marriage) between us and Christ (church). In my last blog, I said The Lord "COMMANDED us not to marry." I apologize. I was incorrect in saying that.

The kids and I went to visit my mom last week. For whatever the reason, we started to discuss this situation.

Genesis 2:18 - "The Lord God said, 'It is NOT good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him.'"

Bare with me on this. If we look at Adam's situation, he was completely alone in the world. NO other human being around. When Adam found no helper, God put him to sleep, removed a rib from him and made woman. How awesome is our GOD!!

Genesis 3:24 - "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh."

What about today? Unfortunately we do not live in that time. These days, if we can teach our children to use protection during sex, we feel accomplished. What about waiting until they are married? That seems like such an old tradition. Have we become such a sexually obsessed society that we marry just because we can not save ourselves for marriage? I will be the first one to admit I was.

People associate marriage with sex. While there is sex involved, there is so much more that goes into making up a marriage. What happens if you cant make the marriage work? Do you give up? Do you seek counseling? Do you do nothing about it and turn the other cheek? Today is not as simple, when society (your family, friends, co-workers) tells you to give up.

Marriage is not to be taken lightly. As a Christian, we have the duty to spread God's word first and foremost. Temptation is extremely difficult, but you shouldn't rush into marriage with the first person you come across just so you can give into your temptation justifiably.

Matthew 6:33,34 - "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

God has a will for each and every one of us. I have a wonderful friend that is 35 and NOT married. He has no ill feelings about NOT being married. He is already married to the most perfect person. Jesus Christ. He can not be left, hurt or lead astray. I cherish all the young people in our church. Grow in your faith first. Let Christ guide you and be your only provider. He will give you a mate in HIS perfect timing. When it feels it is not enough, take a moment to sit back and reflect on your decision to follow Christ.

Marriage?

What does the Lord say about marriage?

Lets look at 1 Corinthians 7:1-9
1 Now for the matters you wrote about: it is good for a man NOT to marry.
2 But since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband.
3 His husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the woman to her husband.
4 The wife's body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.
5 Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and only for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
6 I say to your concession, not as a command.
7 I WISH ALL MEN WERE AS I. But each man has his own gift from God, one has this gift another has that gift.

8 NOW TO THE UNMARRIED AND WIDOWS I SAY: IT IS GOOD FOR THEM TO STAY UNMARRIED AS I AM.
9 BUT IF THEY CAN NOT CONTROL THEMSELVES, THEY SHOULD MARRY, FOR IT IS BETTER TO MARRY THAN TO BURN WITH PASSION.

I was on a conference call tonight with some of THE most wonderful Christian women I know. One of the girls (whom I assume is younger than me because she looks younger than me) talked about starting up a blog for "older women" (again, Im 27 and she looks younger than me) and how they can still serve God while NOT being married.

I cant understand why these girls desire to be married so badly. Is it because they think they are doing the Lord's work by BEING married and having children? God's word clearly states, we are to stay unmarried as he was.

I dont want to sound like a hypocrite since I married when I was 20. There was no doubt that I lacked self-control in the immorality department. But why these girls would be concerned about not being married is beyond me.

It is only my opinion, but I would think they could do so much more and spread the gospel to so many more people than I could ever dream of because of the simple fact, THEY HAVE NO OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES. For example, they could move to third world countries and do missionary work. As much as I feel the need to preach the word to more people, I simply cant due to my children's age. Im sure as they get older and more independant, I will be able to do more missionary work but right now, my focus is on the needs here in the home.

Maybe thats what they want. I dont know. But the way I see it, we are not to marry unless we can NOT control ourselves. Since we can not control ourselves, we get married. What happens when you get married? You have children. When we are blessed with our children, we open up a whole new can of worms to deal with.

Interesting Tweet

Aaron and I read an interesting tweet. "Mom, why is Jesus in my heart? No idea how to get my 2 yr old to understand when I dont even understand how he could be in MY heart"

Reading that got the wheels in my brain turning. Aaron and I talked about it. What would we tell out own children? We would tell them that Jesus does not lives in their hearts because physically he physically cant. Christ was physically resurrected and is sitting on the right hand of GOD.

When we believe the gospel, we are called to repent (ask for forgiveness), be baptised (being submerged under water representing being buried with him. Then when we rise out of the water symbolizing being raised from the dead (a sinful life) leaving our old sinful life behind to walk in newness of life) and follow him.

We want his words to be written on our hearts. Now, does that mean literally? NO. It means, it is written in our souls our spirits. And our minds. Meaning in everything we do, we are to be thinking of him and acting like him at all times.

I thought this was such an interesting comment. I want to study more on this. I want to know the right thing to say.

Doctor's Visit for Logan


My poor little man. He always seems to be sick. The last thing I want is to be "that mom" that takes her kid in for every thing sneeze and cough. But I think I have waited it out long enough. Logan has been coughing so bad at night that he cant sleep. Aaron, myself and Logan just went through our second night with no sleep. Poor Aaron, he has to go to work. At least I can stay home.

I recently went to the ENT doctor and he said I was deathly allergic to ALL air-borne mold. What?! Everything has mold!! He suggested that we move. Logan's doctor believes he has sinuses issues as well. Poor Logan has had 5 double ear infections with pink eye since Christmas. Its my understanding that Pediatricians are split right down the middle on sinus infections. I think if they saw Logan they would no longer be on the fence about it. I just finished my first rounds of allergy shots and Im hoping Logan wont have to go through the same thing. It is painful. I would hate to see that.

Kendra just keeps on trucking. I dont think her allergies are as bad. She is alot like Aaron is that sense. Although Aaron needs to go to just to get checked. We will be heading to the beach next week. Maybe GOD is telling our bodies that we need a good dose of the beach weather. At least thats what I would like to think.

Ten Words of the day

Coffee
friends
doctor
pharmacy
lunch
BeautiControl
dinner
wall
hospital
bath

Today has been a crazy kind of day.

Recent reads

I have been following this blogger recently. Sometimes what she says makes sense but other times, I find myself confused. One of her recent posts was about taking a one month no make-up break. She commented on how she felt when she left the house and would reach for her make-up bag. She also commented on how a few "certain girls" would make her feel less then worthy, I guess.

I really feel sorry for this person. Since her blog is mostly a blog for religious readers, she usually has good stuff. When I read this, I felt like she was crying out for help. I think she has been made to feel mad by a few people and wants other women to feel bad about their outward appearance like she did. Thank goodness, I wont be falling for that. This coming from a girl that wears make-up ONE day of the week. I has taken me a long time to get to the point where I refuse to waste my time on what people think of me and my less than perfect look.

I did agree with her when she mentioned that society in general thinks less of people with a more modest house or non designer label tages or driving a paid of car that happens to be a few years older.

I try to live by this verse - "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ?"
Matthew 6:26-28

I would say to the author of the blog, true friends wont do that to each other. Non-judgemental people (which we are suppose to be as Christians) will not have a thought in their head about how much make-up you are or arent wearing etc.

Logan's 3rd Birthday

We celebrated Logan's 3rd birthday Saturday! I cant believe my little boy is frowing up so fast. His first birthday he got sick. He second birthday was overshadowed by our move. So this year, we made it a big deal. We went camping with my dad and his wife. My sister and a friend of hers showed up. My uncle Larry was there also. Needless to say, Logan had a great time. We love our little man so very much. Aaron and I are so blessed to have the amazing children that we do. We only have GOD to thank. We wanted to share a few pictures. God Bless.

The Division of the Covenants II

Its been awhile but Im finally get around to finishing Scott's lesson on the Division of The Covenants.

Forgive me. I dont remember where I left off. Under the old law, there was no forgiveness without the shedding of an animal sacrifice.

Hebrews 9:22-27 (King James Version)

22And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

23It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.

24For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

25Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;

26For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

27And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

28So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

Characteristics of the new covenant:

1. Everyone can partake of the promises from GOD unlike the new covenant.
1 Tim 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth
Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

2. This is the final covenant. Nothing will ever replace it.

3. This is the covenant bound by spitual things, not fleshly things like in the old covenant.

Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

3For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

4That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

4. Under the new covenant, we have a new and better high priest than the old testament. Hebrews 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. NOW we pray to GOD through Christ.

5. We have the opprotunity to become new and clean. 2 Corninthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. * This is the complete opposite of the old covenant, where wrongs were carried over.

6. We were crucified with Christ. Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

7. The New Covenant is superior to the old covenant in so many ways.

Colossians 2:14-17 (King James Version)

14Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

15And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

16Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

17Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

* Christ freed us from a law that was impossible to live up to. Much of the New Testament was written to discourage Jews from resorting to the old law or from teaching Gentiles that they must obey the old law as well.

We are not to disregard the Old Testament. It is there for our learning. In fact 9 out of the 10 commandments are given in the New Testament but intensified.

1. John 15:12 (King James Version)

12This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.

2. Matthew 5:27 (King James Version)

27Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:

Are the Ten Commandments still in effect? In principle they are. Jesus is now mediator.

Because the New Testament is written in our hearts, doesnt mean we are free to do whatever we want in our like and our worship. If that were the case then we could stil cling to the old law. The New Testament gives us very specific expectations for the way we worship and the way we live our lives. We CAN NOT just do whatever feels right in our hearts. We still live by GOD's standards. The Covenant is conditional upon the obedience of men to the Gospel of the Lord.

Matthew 7:21 (King James Version)

21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven

22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

The covenant obliges God to forgive the sins of the baptized, repentant believer, to have fellowship with all such Christians, and to provide eternal life to all Christians after the resurrection.

Romans 10:9-10 (King James Version)

9That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

10For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (King James Version)

24Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.

25And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

26I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:

27But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

The New Covenant obliges Christians to follow their Lord and obey him, repenting and petitioning their Lord for forgiveness whey they stumble.

1 Corinthians 11:1-2 (King James Version)

1Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

2Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.

If we were free to live our lives the way we want or worship however we want, why would we have to ask for forgiveness? Christ came to fulfill the old law. After his resurrection, Jesus says the following to HIS disciples in Luke 24:44
And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

Jesus did fulfill the law, leaving a better law for us. Jesus Christ through fulfilling the law was able to replace the covenant between God and Israel with a better covenant based on better promises, forgiveness, love, an everlasting spiritual kingdom open to all who obey: this was the eternal purpose of God in Christ Jesus. No more slaves to this law, but adopted sons and daughters.

Galatians 4:5-6 (King James Version)

5To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

6And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

Hebrews 8:7-12 (King James Version)

7For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.

8For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:

9Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.

10For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

11And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

12For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

The New Covenant - Part 1

First off, I have to thank Scott Faulk. He had a lesson over the two covenants a couple of months ago and it struck a cord with me. I asked him to email me his notes so I could pick his brain and do my own studying. Its been a great lesson for me. Im starting off with some verses from Romans. Hope to have more up soon.


Romans 8
1There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

2For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

3For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

4That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.


Scott made a good point in mentioning that most people identify the New Testament with the first four gospels (it starts with the life of Christ). While that is true, the first four gospels are NOT the New Testament. It is one of the most common made mistakes among Christians. "Not identifying the New Covenant is a trap that Satan has used to keep us ignorant".

The New Covenant was to be written on the hearts of men not on tabs of stone.

Kendra

Kendra turned 6 last weekend! I cant believe she is 6 years old! Its so cheesy to say, but I feel like i just brought her home yesterday. Wasnt it yesterday? Kendra has grown so much and so fast. There are those days when I wish she I could wrap her up in her blanket and hold her close to me. Most days, she wants to run, jump, skip or ride her bike right past me. As much as I would love to keep her a baby forever, I know thats impossible and would be an injustice to her. I love watching her learn and grow to this amazingly breath-taking little lady. Thank you Lord for my sweet baby angel.

That's my Logan

So much has been going on. I will be glad when I can breathe again. It started last Wednesday. I dont get to work out much but when I do, Ive noticed the kids act their worst. I kept telling Logan, "dont stick your finger in the treadmill. Dont stick your finger in the treadmill!" So what does he do? He sticks not one but all his fingers in the treadmill! I had to pull the emergency stop and try to get his fingers out. After I examined him head to toe - he was fine - I about died from embarrassment. It just so happen that that day the rec room was full. Im sure everyone thought I was the worse mom ever. We got back to the apt and bandaged him up.

Friday night after Kendra's dance rehearsal we went out to eat for dinner. The kids were wonderful. That should have been my first cue that something was going to happen. As the server was bring out our check, Logan started to climb up the back of his high chair. I guess it got top heavy and he went tumbling back. Somehow, he got his feet stuck in the gap of the high chair and when he landed, the back of his head hit the ground. That wasnt the worse part. As he landed, the high chair smacked him in the face. I thought we were going to have to rush him to the hospital. His forehead swelled instantly. After a couple of hours he showed no signs or symptoms of a concussion. Praise the Lord.
Saturday after the recital, Logan was running across the lawn to meet a friend. Now, when Logan runs his head is down. Well Logan ran right smack into a tree and cut up his already injured forehead.

Sunday morning Kendra and Logan were playing. What else could happen but Logan gets a head to the cheek. Logan jumped on Kendra's back and when he did that, Kendra's head came up and whacked him in the cheek.

Im so thankful that someone has not reported me to CPS. My poor son. His injuries were so bad, I didnt want to take pictures because they were so bad.

We have Kendra's birthday party coming up this weekend. Its a pool party. So we went out and got him a full body life suit. Im gonna keep that kid in a bubble this weekend.

Great Friends

As usual, life has been crazy around here. I recently returned from Los Angeles, California to celebrate my best friend, Ashley, 27th birthday. I had such a great time!! Being a mom for the past (almost) 7 years was really weighing on my heart. I didn't want my single friends thinking I was no fun anymore. Come 10pm I was rip-roarin and ready to head out the door. My dear friends still had not picked out their clothes. Or applied their make up or had their hair done. We didn't end up leaving until almost midnight. I have to admit, that drove me a little bonkers, but something did happen that I will always cherish. The amazing conversations we had while they were getting ready. That will be something that will play back in my mind till the end. The laughing, the great music, and the great "What to wear" debate. I loved being in that moment. My head was instantly flooded with old memories hanging out in Ashley's room getting ready to party on another Friday night after the football game. It was as if we never missed a Friday night. Ashley and Monica have been so supportive of my decision to marry young and have children. Although, they like to remind me that I was suppose to be the last one in the group to accomplish those tasks. How Ive missed these ladies being in my everyday life. Plus, I would be lying if I said I didn't get a kick out of every time they called me a MILF. They reminded me I can still be married with children and be a hot twenty something living it up in LA.

I cant leave out my dearest friend Thomas. Thomas has been that one constant friend in my life that I could call and spill my guts and he would be right there with a comforting word or a ride home. I could just sit and listen and hang on every word that comes out of his mouth. He is the kind of smart that words cant describe. He brings a smile to my face every time he is around and I love him for so many reasons. I would like to say "poor guy", but really? I don't think so. He was defiantly the Cool Guy the whole trip. What guy wouldn't be jealous of another guy with three hot chicks on his arm?

Running back and forth from Ashley's room to the living room where Thomas was, kept my energy going leading me to believe I Could hang with my friends. It was a great and memorable trip! Those three people (Ashley, Mona and Thomas) have been the fibers in the fabric of my life (chessy I know but needed to be said). However old we get, these are the people that I know will be right by my side.

Strawberry Blueberry Speeding Ticket

How silly was I to think today was going to be a good day. For once, I got Kendra off to school with time to kill. It wasnt until I noticed the police officer was pulling me over that my heart sang. He said he got me going 29 in a 20 school zone. Ive have decided to fight it. I was coming around a corner where the speed limit is 30. Naturally I started slowing down when the saw the bliking yellow lights flashing, indicating a school zone. Not only did I slow down but I had to come to a complete stop to let kids cross the street followed by another car turning right. Not only did he follow me into the school parking lot but the guy was blowing his siren!! AWWW!!!!!! I pulled over (did not want to be accused of not coperrating). He came up to the window and asked for my driver's license (at which time, I handed him my debt card by accident). I still had Kendra in the car with me. I asked him if she could go on the class so she wasnt late. He said that was fine, but I had to stay to finish up with the ticket. Kendra had to walk to rest of the school parking lot by herself. That pissed me off!! There were so many cars, I could just see her getting hit. Court is in 10 days.

The rest of day went considerably well. It wasnt until after we picked up Kendra and came home. I made strawberry, blueberry and banana smoothies for snack. I told Logan 1000 times, "DONT SPILL IT! DONT SPILL IT!" I dont think he heard me. Now, I have a HUGE stain in the middle of my carpet. Well,....not my carpet but the apartment that we live in. GREAT! I can kiss the deposit good bye.

Aaron is out of town tonight. Again. Im trying to regain the confidence to take them to this open house for a school in town. Oh LORD give me strength.

Proverbs

Aaron suggested the easiest way for me to always be reading GOD's word is to read 1 Proverb a day. The following verses are ones that stood out to me from each chapter. Im hoping to be able to list one every day.

'Listen, my son, to your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching. They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.' Proverbs 1:8-9

'My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of GOD.' Proverbs 2:1-5

'The wise inherit Honor, but fools he holds up to shame.' Proverbs 3:35

'Above all else, guard you heart, for it is the wellspring of life.' Proverbs 4:23

Getting ready for Recital

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrWMBC6yoME


This is the song that Kendra will be dancing to in her first ballet recital. Im so excited to watch her dance! She loves dancing and is a natural at it. I know it is still a few weeks away but she is practicing every day.

I can not believe that one day my daughter will be gone from our home. I hope and pray that it wont be for a while. I will record the performance and post it for you to see.

SEX

HA! Gotcha ya! Do I have your attention now? Funny how that this little 3 letter word can cause such a huge uproar with so many people. Its just a word for goodness sake. Right?

Whats so crazy about this word is the amount of discussion there is on it. You can find a wide range of topics that cover sex and health, sex and marriage, and sex and religion. Did you read that last one? Sex and Religion. That's right. I think most people, whether in the church or not, don't think that the two can go hand and hand.

I'm reading a new book called "Intimate Issues. 21 Questions Christian Women Ask About Sex" by Linda Dillow and Lorraine Pintus. Normally, I wouldn't read anything like this, but when my Saint of a sister-in-law, Jennifer, said it was a good read, I grabbed it. Its taken me awhile to get around to reading it but I'm so glad I have finally started it.

You should know starting out, whatever I read Aaron gets a full report. I love listening to his feed back because he always has great comments and gets me thinking. Sometimes more than the book does.

The book starts off giving 6 reasons why GOD gave us the gift of sex. 1. So that we may create life. 2. For intimate oneness. 3. For knowledge. 4. For pleasure. 5. A defense against Temptation. 6. For comfort.

I would like to start of with the first reason, "So that we may create life". The writers give us the scripture Genesis 1:28 (be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth). As Christian women, we've all heard that one. For such a long time, I hated this statement. I thought, "Oh no! Now, that I'm a Christian, all I'm good for is making babies." It goes onto saying in Genesis 2:28-29 "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and they will become one flesh. The man and the woman were both naked and they felt no shame." You know they got to know one another because Eve gave birth to Cain and Abel. So you see, babies are the outcome of the sex. And the physical act of child birth was women's punishment for eating the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3:16a). Your DESIRE will be for your husband (Genesis 3:16b).

If we keep reading Genesis, you will find in chapter 4, Cain found a wife from NOD. NOD was east of Eden. Did Eve have girls? NO. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but Cain and Abel are the only children that Eve bore. Just because we are women does not mean that the only time we can have sex with our husbands is just to get pregnant.

Move to 1 Corinthians 7:4-5 "the wife's body does not belong to her alone but also the husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife." Here is the kicker (verse 5) "DO NOT deprive each other except by mutual consent and only for a time, so that you can devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control."

I ask you? Why are there women in the world that are not physically able to bare children? Does GOD not love them? Absolutely not! GOD gave us sex so that we may share ourselves with our spouse in the most intimate way possible. Like the example in Ephesians 5:29-32, "After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church. For we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This is a profound mystery - but I am talking about Christ and the church."

I guess what Im getting to would be sex was created for husband and wife's ENJOYMENT with each other. Just read Song of Soloman. There is NO mention of birth control in the BIBLE. But that doesnt mean we shouldn't use it. The LABOR of child birth is our punishment for eating the forbidden fruit. Not the act of having sex. It is a great privilege being a woman. Lets celebrate that! With our husbands!

Grace

So Im reading this book on Grace based parenting. I dont know if Im learning things for myself or for the kids. In one of the chapters, Dr. Kimmel uses this verse; "If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, you could not stand. But with you there is forgiveness: THEREFORE you are FEARED." (Psalms 130: 3-4) How absolutely beautiful is that?!

Its just my personal believe that you should follow that up with Paul's writings in Romans 7. Starting in verse 15: "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. (picking up in verse 24) What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to GOD - through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Now it could just be me, but this should explain so many of our mistakes. While we are to live in the world but not be of the world, sometimes, we fall off that band wagon and screw up. If it were not for GOD forgiving us and letting us live with Grace, knowing that we are simple stupid humans, humanity as a whole would perish. I want to do the good or right thing all the time but in my feeble attempts, I mess up. Im learning each and every day that it is a new day every day and that being apart of the family of GOD, I get a second chance every day.

Tattoo agrument

Im reading this book written by Dr. Tim Kimmel. So far it has been a good book. Then I came up to this particular argument. Directions regarding "why" kids want to get tattoos. Dr. Kimmel starts off by saying, "we dont use the Bible to put words in GOD's mouth that he didnt say." He starts off this discussion with Leviticus 19:28. (THE NEXT COUPLE OF PARAGRAGHS ARE DR. TIM KIMMEL'S WORDS. NOT MINE.)

Leviticus 19:28 - Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.

Thats pretty clear- that is, if we believe we can use a Bible verse without any regard for the context in which it appears. Many peope use verses out of context to win selfish arguments and justify what they selfishly want. Using GOD'S word out of context to win your argument is a variation of taking GOD's name in vain - something strictly forbidden in the Ten Commandments. Obviously, a person that respects GOD's word would desire to use it properly, especially when trying to direct a child throught the maze of childhood.

If we study Leviticus 19:28 in its context, we see that it isnt talking about tattoos in general, but tattoos that identify a person with a pagan deity or pagan practice. Two verses before, it forbids the eating of meat with blood in it. Does this mean you cant eat your steaks rare? Not at all. This is talking specifically about the meat that was being offered as a sacrifice for their sin, not an evening out at Morton's. The verse directly before the verse on tattoos condems men cutting their hair on the side or trimming their beards. Does that mean men cant get haircuts or go around clean-shaven? Of corse not. In that culture, men wore their hair long and their beards untrimmed. Pagans trimmed the sides of their heads and the edges of their beards in such a way that it identified them with a specific heathen god or a specific heathen practice. Thats not why men trim their hair or go clean-shaven today. When men get their hair cut, they dont light candles to some dark deity - at least not at my barbershop. They might light up a cigar, but there is nothing about that process that is n deference to a pagan deity.

Which brings us back to Leviticus 19:28. It says first that we are not to "cut our bodies for the dead." This refers to distinctive marks on the face that anyone could look at and know we are part of a pagan ritual. GOD didnt want them giving credence to the false beliefs that attributed power or influence to the dead. In the next breath, the verse says, "or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord." Folowing down the contextual line, Moses is referring to distinctive tattoos that identified a person as a follower of a particular pagan deity. Moses writes that they are to make sure they dont make permanent marks on their bodies (cutting or writting) that give credence to a pagan ritual or god in a specitic way.

*** Aaron nor I have a tattoo or are thinking about getting one, but this is a touchy subject. I, personally, dont see anything wrong with tattoos but a friend of mine told me, its not what I think. Its what GOD's words says. I would like to hear some thoughts on this.

New Idea

Was reading my book Grace Based Parenting my Dr. Tim Kimmel and came across a chapter that got met to thinking. He was going over a couple of articles he had clipped out of the paper in research for this book. He came across an article entitled "If I could do it over again". Now considering, this is a "parenting" book, he was talking about things that parents wish they could have done over with their children. Most of the comments were about how they raised them but the little things. Which, sometimes, can be HUGE!

I thought, how true that is! Whenever Ive had a hard day with Logan, how does it end up? Me screaming at him and making him cry. Over what? Dr. Kimmel's books is teaching me so much about Grace and how to implement it into our everyday lives. It seems like I learn something new every day.

I did not make a "New Year's Resolution" because I dont believe in them but, I think I will try to look back on each day and vow to "do things over" the next day. With Kendra in school, Im realizing, how fast time truly flys. I find myself having a hard time with that. I dont want to wake up one day and find Kendra and Logan 18 and out of the house and wondering what I ever did wrong.

Not going so well

The potty training is not going well at all!! I dont know what Im doing wrong! We've tried offering candy, toys, anything just to get Logan to even sit on the potty. He screams when I put him on it. I dont know if he is scared about something or what but I cant understand it. He use to tell me when he needed to go pee but now he wont even do that. I've tried using the timer and taking him every 20 minutes, but nothing ever comes out and as soon as I take him off the pot he peeps on the floor. Same results when I put him in "Big Boy" underwear. NOT Pull Ups. He runs around having fun then will just pee on the carpet. We live in an appartment and Im getting tired of all the cleaning. Nothing seems to be working with this kid. UGGGGG!

January update

Not much of anything had been happening lately. Looks like Aaron will be staying in Beaumont 3 days out of every week starting next week. Yeah :( Oh well, its what we signed up for right? I dont think it will to hard for me. Considering the time he gets home as it is and the time the kids go to bed. But it is totally going to suck not having anyone to talk to. I guess its going to be a lot of Tru Blood re-runs. That is until Season 2 comes out on ITunes.

We did not nominate Kendra for GT classes like I was hoping. Instead, her teacher and I thought it would be better for Kendra to start out in an Idea Group. That would be like a bridge program into GT classes. Kendra is doing very well in school and is capable but we dont want to push her to hard just to have it back fire on us. Which makes perfect sense. Glad I didnt push for it.

We are still working with Logan on his potty training. NO success yet. Well, at least with him pooping in the potty. I hoping for something to happen soon. I HATE buying diapers! I was reading an article eariler about how to potty train your kid in 3 days. It only cost $50. Now, I dont know if that is a good deal or not but I would gladly pay $50 to not continue wiping a poopy butt. I think I just talked myself into mentioning this to Aaron.

Kendra has started taking ballet lessons once a week for one hour. She is loving it! The instructor says, for not having any experience, she is doing really well. At first I didnt think they would let her preform in the recital but after just a few lessons, it looks like she is going to preform with the rest of her class. Yeah!!! She is a little nervous about getting up in front of a lot of people to preform but I know she will do awesome! Plus, Im sure it will help to have ALL her family there.

Aaron and I have been busting butt to get back into shape. We are watching what we are eating. No restricting calories but NO sugar! NO junk food in the house. Poor kids. NO more ice cream. More fruits and veggies. Less meat. Which I thought Aaron would have a big problem with but come to find out, less meat isnt really bothering him. He plays basketball one night a week on top of his work. Im doing some work out videos at home, but looking for a gym. Most of the gyms around here wont let you bring a child thats not potty trained.

Like I said, not much has been going on.

To MDO or Not

Should I feel guilty about wanting to put Logan in a Mother's Morning Out when I dont have a job?

I dont think I would have these feelings if Logan was a little bit more independant. It seems like all he wants to do is wrap himself around my leg. That would be fine but I cant get away to do anything. When I leave him to play by himself, he follows me just whinning and begging me to come back and play with him. People might think I never play with him the way he gets upset. At the end of the day, I always feel tired and get aggrevated with him. I hate that! I dont like getting upset with him. I guess Im struggling with trying to justify putting him a MDO.