I made New Years resolutions and this year I am actually doing a pretty good job of keeping them. Perhaps because I did not set super high expectations, but yet made some goals that would challenge myself. For instance, did you know that yoga is a great way to start the day :-)
One of the resolutions that I have made is to work my way through Pinterest. And if you don't know what Pinterest is ... well, you should. Check out this post for more info. Pinterest is awesome!
Thus far, I have tried 2 new recipes from Pinterest.
Along with yoga, the Green Monster Smoothie is an awesome way to get the day going:
Almond milk, peanut butter, flax seed, spinach, and banana. It may sound gross, but don't be fooled. This smoothie is incredible - and packed with goodness. Try it.
Another recipe that I have been enjoying is Cream of Spinach Soup:
In case you are curious, spinach happens to be my favorite vegetable. Actually, spinach is one of my favorite foods. It's possible that I may have been scolded by my mom a time or two for eating too much of her freshly washed spinach :-) Yep, I am a real trouble maker :-)
My smoothie and soup obsession resulted in purchasing mass quantities of spinach from Trader Joe's:
Eat your heart out Popeye :-)
What are some new recipes that you have been trying?
I have been thinking about the difference between being tired and being weary.
Tired is based on a lack of sleep. It can many times be fixed by a trip (or 3) to the local coffee shop. Latte, please :-)
But weary ... oh weary is a vicious animal. It is physical, emotional, and spiritual. It is fatigue deep into your innermost being. Weary begs you to give up. It tells you that you just can't go any further. 20 lattes won't fix weary.
There is only one answer for weary:
Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
A yoke is a beam that would be placed on the neck of two oxen, so that they could work together to carry a heavy load.
Jesus tells us to take His yoke upon us. Picture it if you will: Jesus walking right alongside you - linked to you - right in step with you - carrying the burden WITH you.
The burdens that we carry are just that - burdensome. But they are also precious cargo. We don't see them that way when we are going through it, but they are being used to mold and shape us for greatness which is a great gift (if we will accept it).
Seeing burdens in this light, helps me to keep a positive attitude. There is a helper, Who always has my very best interest at heart. There is peace in His presence, no matter what else is going on.
Can I just be honest? 2012 has not been very good to be so far. Without going into detail, let's just say that last week was rough - really really rough - like "where in the world is my life going" rough. The following song by All Sons and Daughters pretty much encapsulates how I was feeling:
I came across the song at the blog Julia's Poppies. The author Jamie, has great taste in music :-)
There are times in life when it can feel like the world is crashing in on us, when we feel like the carpet is pulled out from under us and we can be left wondering where in the world we went wrong. It may seem like God is absent as we search for where He is in the midst of our circumstances. But He is never absent. He can see everything at all times and there is nothing in the world that could ever change that.
In the midst of working through some of the stuff going on, I picked the guitar up and the other day I wrote a song. It all came together really quickly and I began to see that writing a song can be a bit like musical journaling. It has been good for me. I have never enjoyed playing the guitar as much as I have the last few days and it has never come as easily to me as it has the last few days. I think it's a God thing as playing has really been bringing some rest and peace to my soul.
I felt like sharing the words of the song that I wrote:
Cast Your Cares
At a point of great surrender In a lost and weary place He cries out amongst the darkness Saying, "I will light the way"
Oh, you can put your trust in Me Oh, I see things you do not see
When I cannot bear the heartache When the world is closing in He whispers with deep affection Saying, "Here's my peace. Now enter in."
Oh, you can put your trust in Me Oh, I see things you do not see
Cast your cares on me Cast your cares on me And I will carry you through the storm Cast your cares on me Cast your cares on me My child, I'll keep you safe from harm
Oh, you can put your trust in me Oh, I see things you do not see I see you ... and I am right by your side
Perhaps one day I will even be bold enough to record this song and share it ... and on that day we can also marvel at the pigs flying around in the sky :-)
I did not have any pictures of myself so I took my camera into the bathroom, used a shelf to put my camera on, and the shower curtain as the backdrop. It made me laugh, but since I was doing black and white, I figured that it would not matter :-)
I started with this:
After a few minor adjustments, I wound up printing off this:
And then there was my sister's photo. I emailed her and asked her to send me some pictures. The following is what she sent me:
Are you laughing?
Because I am :-)
While these photos are completely representative of my sister, they were not exactly what I was looking for to make a Christmas gift for my parents.
PS - isn't it funny what complete opposites my sister and I are :-) I love her so much!!!!!!
So, with not much to select from, I knew that I had to take matters into my own hands :-) and luckily Facebook saved the day. I just looked through the pics of my sis that others had posted and found this nice one from my mom:
After some cropping and minor tweaks, I had this:
Much more like what I was asking for :-)
I love you Demi ;-)
I followed the video and came up with this:
Not so bad for my first time doing a photo transfer - and my parents LOVED it. Yeah! Merry Christmas Mom and Dad.
If you will allow me liberties, it is about to get a little heartfelt up in here :-)
I cut off all my hair to donate to Locks of Love - an organization that makes wigs for children losing their hair to cancer treatments. If you want the truth of how I feel about this drastic cut of mine, here it comes. If you don't want the truth, you might want to stop reading now :-)
Truth be told, I am not a fan of this new haircut and really trying to not have regrets :-( My hair has never been this short. I don't even want to post a picture (but I will ... at the end). A little "whoops" moment, led to having to go a little bit shorter than anticipated and in the end I was a little shocked. Throughout the whole haircutting experience, I just kept saying (with a smile on my face), "Just do what you need to fix it." "It's ok." Laugh, laugh, smile, smile. I did not want the girl cutting my hair to feel bad.
But the honest truth is that I am struggling with the reflection in the mirror. It's shocking and I just keep telling myself that it will grow in to some normality in a month.
I try to reflect on the reason I decided to cut off all my hair - to help someone else. I don't have a lot to give, so it really does feel good to give what I have. A small gesture of taking scissors to my hair will help a child battling cancer and also bless a parent who just wants their child to feel special and normal.
As I don't like what I see in the mirror, I can't imagine what it must feel like to look in a mirror and have an absence of hair remind me of an illness that ravishes the body and takes away life.
It's amazing how much something as simple as a hairstyle can really effect self esteem. It is vicious lies that don't give an accurate representation of what is reflected in the mirror. As one who has always struggled with how she looks (and I know I am not alone there), this little hair incident gives me a greater opportunity to seek the truth of what looks back at me in the mirror.
What is the truth?
- I am created by a Master Artist and He has made me beautiful. I am a reflection of His glory, His love, and His beauty.
Song of Songs 7:6 - "How beautiful you are and how pleasing, O love, with your delights!"
Psalm 45:11 - "The king is enthralled with your beauty. Honor him for he is your lord."
In the past I have raved about my favorite book (which I will be re-reading in this season). I even gave one away. The book is called "God Loves Ugly" by Christa Black. It's actually out of print right now (but coming back in September 2012), so I am so grateful for my parents sending me another copy for Christmas :-)
Here is a video of Jordin Sparks singing the song from the book and sharing what it means to her:
Here is another song that I anticipate I will be listening to alot :-)
I know that I am not the only one that has these moments of struggling with what is in the mirror, so I write in this state of vulnerability knowing that there might be someone else who needs it too. I am not fishing for compliments, just sharing my heart and struggles - grateful for the journey because I know that in the end there is a precious gift of worth and value that God bestows on me :-)
Oh right, I promised a picture didn't I - well, here ya go:
