!!!!!! VOTE!!!!!

VOTE!!!! Vote for my friend Laleanne for the tv show GLEE!! She is the cutest thing EVER and must be on this show.

checked out Laleanne @Glee

☼ Summertime.....Think SKINNY ☼

Summer is almost here! For guys it seems like summer planning begins late May...early June. For girls, we have to start thinking summer about 6 month before it's even here. About this time, late April, it’s now CRUNCH time. Think skinny, think skinny, think skinny! Summer Fashion is simply a bikini. We have to prepare our bodies, hit the gym, diet (or starve yourself for some), and mark our calenders for the first day that we will need to be in a bikini....with people! My calender is set for May 7th that is 3 weeks away..EEKS! So, now that winter is gone, cute layers of clothing is a "no no", especially to Sunday brunch with friends, did I mention 78 degrees out. Time to pack away the cute sweaters, scarves, long sleeve tops, and some of those boots. And time to bring out the cute skirts, Maxi dresses, sandals, and BIKINI’s. Summer is officially here….for us girls anyway.

Helpful “Summer Crunch” Tips:
An average adult can eat about 1,500 to 1,600 calories per day without gaining weight. However, if you intake between 1,200 and 1,300, you can lose weight without changing your daily activity level. Change your eating habits from 3 big meals to 5 smaller meals a day. Also keep in mind your breakfast; this will help you boost your metabolism and keep you energized, especially when hitting the gym!

~ Goals & Dreams ~

I have found that way too often close people to me, my friends, co-workers, family, or someone I just might have met, get really down on themselves. Whether it’s trying to accomplish a goal or making a dream become a reality. We (and by we, I really mean me) don’t sit back and just enjoy the journey – we focus too much on the end result. What happened to here…..and now?

Goals take time, sometimes longer than we anticipate or planned. Remind yourself there is a reason for that. Whether it's in our control (so fix that) or out of our control, which will happen as it should then. Success takes time. If it didn't -- then we would not appreciate it so much and perhaps push ourselves as hard.

Instead of focusing so much about what goals or dreams you haven't reached YET... take a look at the past year (or even 6 months) and look at how much you HAVE accomplished, done for YOU. Though you might not be quite where you envisioned, hoped, wanted (etc. etc. etc.) to be at this time... look at all the amazing steps you have taken (what’s important) -- and to feel Proud because that is the reward.

Just think, when you finally do achieve your goals and dreams, you can say “wow I did it,” and what it took to get here. How many sacrifices you made? At the time of doing so, it might not seem worth it, or it will never happen, or the worst thought “is all this really worth it?” But…..IT IS. It has to be right? Life is about no regrets, don’t have the what-if’s, and the maybe’s (sure always easier said than done), but I have to keep telling myself that. It is what you make it.

I know it will be awesome. So, to my friends, family, or if I don’t know you... and to me -- I'm saying: Don't be so hard on yourself. There is so much left in this world to conquer, you have a lot to be thankful for, and maybe a lot of steps (that equal days, weeks, months, and so forth) that you should be extremely proud of. Have a little faith in yourself. Remember to enjoy the journey, make memories, learn from any mistakes along the way because there will be some. You and I WILL reach our destination. Good luck!

“Only as high as I reach can I grow, only as far as I seek can I go, only as deep as I look can I see, only as much as I dream can I be.” –Karen Raven

Quote to live by......

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.
- Melody Beattie

Marriage

I wanted to share something I read this morning from a friend. It makes you think about some things....made me think!
Well here I am trying to think about what I can share with all of you tonight and the first thing that jumped out at me was my marriage. It's been about two months now for Courtney and I since we said "I do" and God has revealed so much about myself in that time. The most beautiful thing about marriage is that God created it and has given us all the guidelines for a successful marriage. Now it's been almost 10 years since I gave my life to Christ and the same reminder keeps popping up again and again... Serve God first. That will never change! It takes me some time to get back to that because I can mess it up pretty quickly but if our hearts and our eyes are constantly fixed on Jesus, all aspects of our life will be easier. Sure, we have some ruff patches. We all have. But God has promised us that he disciplines those that he loves! So don't worry.

"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." - Hebrews 12

God also commands us to, 'love your wife just as He loved the church.' Wow! John Piper sums it up in his book Desiring God. He says, "Husbands should devote the same energy and time and creativity to making their wives happy that they devote naturally to making themselves happy. The result will be that in doing this, they will make themselves happy as well. For he who loves his wife loves himself. Since the wife is one flesh with her husband, the same applies to her love for him." Throughout the bible God reveals to us how important it is for us to serve one another. Not for recognition but for the pure joy of knowing that you are pleasing God. It's not about tallying up points and earning favor because God doesn't work that way. I'm talking about a pure heart and pure motives people!!! Pray for that. Strive for that. Jesus lived it, and we can also learn how to walk like He did if we follow Him closely. He reminds me of that everyday in my marriage. When things are great and she's happy, I'm doing my part. That brings me joy! Thanks for reading this today and I pray that God will continue to reach hearts and minds through this ministry. God has no limits, He loves you all and wants all of you. Give it to Him.

I think this would work great for not only any marriage, but any relationship as well. I strongly believe that when you make the effort to make others happy you will find happiness within yourself.
-xoxo