My Life Being Renewed: August 2013

The book that changed my life...

August 29, 2013


I Declare by Joel Osteen–31 daily inspirations by my favorite religious teacher. I Declare helps you to step into your greatness one day at a time with his short, inspirational and uplifting daily mantras, to manifest all you are meant to be. - See more at: http://tobifairley.com



a touch of God's favor can change everything...



I declare by Joel Osteen


I know that title sounds dramatic, but it's so true! This book is exactly what I needed- going through all of the issues with our dog, Roscoe, it is so easy to speak negative at times and reading this book has taught me to speak positive over ALL of my situations- no matter how negative they are! In every situation, GOD has a bigger plan that we can't see. Honestly, this book helped lift  me up and pray stronger than I have ever before and I know that great things are coming for me and my family!!

If you haven't read this book, do yourself a favor, go RUN to your local library (I had to reserve mine online) and pick it up-I kind of want my own copy though, just to refer back to it whenever I like.

Hope you are all having a fabulous week, wherever you are- so happy that tomorrow is Friday!!
 

1 Year Blog Anniversary!!

August 28, 2013


Monday was my 1 year Anniversary of "My Life Being Renewed". I can't believe I started this new blog 1 year ago already! I am excited to share more of my journey- so much more has been happening lately and I will share with you guys soon- some good, some bad- but God is working it all out in his divine plan and I am putting it all in his hands and trusting in Him through it all!

Hope you are all having a fabulous week wherever you are!




Getting back into Journaling..

August 15, 2013




Lately,
I have been getting back into journaling- it's something that I have been doing since I was a teenager and I used to journal everyday. I have journals from 12 years ago to prove it!! As with everything in life, we all stop doing things because of not having enough time, but I have been squeezing in extra minutes on my lunch break to make time to journal.


Mostly, I write about dreams that I have- sometimes the meaning is crystal clear and other times, I don't understand it so I write it down. I also like to journal about my goals and prayers-for me writing things down has always been very therapeutic for me- you could say I have a tiny ridiculous obsession with writing goals lists. It helps me to see what I have accomplished and what I have left that I want to do and setting small steps in getting there.


I am going to be writing a blog post soon about how several years ago I made a list of goals and how I got to where I am now and what was accomplished- obviously, only with the help of GOD! But, WE also have to do something on our own in order to get there. We have to first make the decision that we want our lives to get better and then go from there. I will blog more in detail about this later.




I hope that this has encouraged you to journal more- I personally find it to be very therapeutic and freeing to write how I feel and any ideas that I may have. I think alot of that has to do with the fact that I am a private person and I don't share most of my feelings, so writing has been an amazing outlet for me.

Do you journal and if so, what do you journal about?




Forgiveness...

August 12, 2013




Today, I want to talk about Forgiveness... I have always been a person that is quick to forgive when someone wrongs me, but if I am being totally honest, there are some hurtful instances that I still hold onto and haven't seem to be able to let go of yet. Lately, I've been thinking about how much time I spend thinking, talking about and crying over these hurts- basically, I am in an emotional prison, while the other person is living their life.

Lately, I have been thinking about what Jesus went through and how he did nothing wrong to anyone- He healed the blind, made the lame to walk, rose the dead, healed the broken - he went around doing good. Regardless of all of the good things that he did, people still mistreated him- they put him on the cross, put nails through his hand and feet, spit on him, gave him vinegar to drink- and do you know what he did through all of that? Can you believe that he forgave them!! So, today I am letting go and I am forgiving all those who have hurt me and the ones that continue to hurt me, and you know what I am going to do? I am going to turn the other cheek and I am going to pray for them and continue to love them, because that is what Jesus did!

I am not saying it's easy to forgive when someone keeps being unkind, it does take praying (sometimes it takes forgiving them over and over) and sometimes walking away or saying something kind back (if possible). For me, I am just so tired of being angry at those who have hurt me and continue to hurt me- I need to pray for them, because anyone that hurts or belittles others for no reason, they must be hurting or insecure and they need Jesus.

Luke 6: “If you love only those who love you, why should you get credit for that? Even sinners love those who love them! And if you do good only to those who do good to you, why should you get credit? Even sinners do that much!
“Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great. You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.
Who has hurt you that are having a hard time forgiving?

What my weekend looked like..

August 10, 2013

Saturday, we went downtown to do some shopping and have lunch with my MIL and her friends from out of town- unfortunately I didn't take very many pictures at all. These are taken with my iphone- I brought my nice camera but decided at the last minute not to bring my huge camera with me since we would be doing lots of walking.






My handsome husband & his Mom

 


 

I think they had a great time -- they were worn out by the time we finished shopping & walking!

 

 
We had Creme Brulee in memory of my FIL - he always loved it:)


 



Sunday was spent sleeping in until 10:00 a.m (finally!!). We decided to stay home and the hubby worked on our house plan details and I cleaned all day, including doing dishes, cleaning the fridge and putting up laundry. I also did some juicing (I now have 2 pitchers of watermelon juice to drink) and dehydrated some kale chips.

 


We also enjoyed some of the cheese & salami that we picked up at Sweet Grass Dairy Cheese Shop for lunch today. This stuff is amazing!! They make it here in our town, but it's also sold at Whole Foods and Health food stores.


This afternoon, we are going to go walking and enjoy the afternoon before a new work week arrives. Hope all of you are having a lovely weekend!!






Favorite snapshots of the week..

August 8, 2013


 




























Thankful Thursday..


Hi Lovelies! Hope you are all having a fabulous week!!!




I am thankful that our new Tablet finally came in!! This thing should have it's own passport- it went through China and Puerto Rico- what is going on with our Postal Service these days???? It was actually for the hubby's birthday and he has been so kind to share it with me:)  I am excited to play with it more- I plan on using it by the pool to play on Pinterest and hopefully read some books when I get time.


\I am thankful that today is Thursday!!! As much as I love my job, Roscoe does wear me out during the week and sometimes a girl just needs to sleep in..


\I am thankful for my boss, Dale, who is always so compassionate and understanding and such a great boss!! His wife, Rhonda is pretty amazing too- God definitely had a big hand in me getting this job..


\I am thankful for coffee & makeup because without those two things (especially in the a.m.) I would be a hot mess!!

\I am thankful for my MIL who is always thinking of us when she goes shopping- the other day she found Starbucks coffee on sale and bought me 9 bags- a girl can never have too much Starbucks- especially>>> this girl!!

\I am thankful that I have a new home to look forward to this year- especially a walk-in closet!!

\I am thankful for all of the wonderful people that I work with at my office- everyone is so amazing and friendly- I have had so many previous jobs where there was so much negativity and it feels great to come in to work and not feel dread..

\I am thankful that the new bed that the hubby built for Roscoe is working out so well- this is going on the third week and it has been so much better- I definitely see the silver lining..

\Last, but definitely not least, I am thankful that God has blessed Roscoe to be with us still today- I am amazed every day when I get home that he is still alive and well and I thank God for that!!


What are you thankful for today?



August Goals!

August 7, 2013

starting fresh.

I don't know about you guys, but I can't believe that August is already here!! The Summer is flying by and I still haven't made it to the beach, but I plan on going before it's too late- I really want to take Roscoe so that he can enjoy it. I thought it would be fun to post an August Goals List and then check back to see what all actually gets accomplished- so here goes..


---> Submit House Plans to builders & decide on a builder

---> By the end of August, have walls up on new home!

---> Go to the Beach!!!

---> Celebrate our 14th Wedding Anniversary!

---> Organize/start packing House things

---> Hopefully, lose 3-5 lbs


What are your  some of your goals for August?



 

You Might be Exhausted if.....

August 6, 2013


He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3). Aren’t you glad that God is a healer! It doesn’t matter what is “broken” in your life today, God’s nature is to bring you complete...

You might be exhausted if....

You burn boiling pasta...

You put chicken on the grill for the dog and don't remember it until the next day...

You run out of the house & remember you forgot your phone charger, and oh yeah your iPhone too..

You forget to make your husband dinner (sorry honey!)...

You go to bed thinking you get to sleep in since tomorrow is Saturday, but then wake up later remembering that tomorrow is Friday and you still have to go to work!!

You text your husband "I love you honey, see you soon", then later find out you actually just texted this to the new friend that you just met...

On Monday, you are already ready for Friday to get here...

You have become a zombie because of the fact that your helpless/sick dog wakes you up 5-9 times per night...

Your daily lunch consists of canned soups and veggie sticks...

You drink coffee all day and you still have to take B12 for energy...

You have gone through so much Visine in the last few months, that you should own stock in the company...

On the ride to work, you put on your makeup and deodorant and also eat breakfast, which consists of a banana...

Your eyes literally look like you have suitcases under them, there is so much baggage..

You feel like if anyone even looks at you wrong, you might scream....


Even though I am trying to make light of my situation- I truly am extremely exhausted and worn out from dealing with Roscoe's sickness for over 5 months now, but I am trying to laugh, if I don't laugh then I will cry:) I literally want to go home and crawl into bed and just sleep...

This experience has definitely made me rethink ever having another pet or even having a child- especially, trying to juggle a full time job and take care of someone, especially being physically handicapped- for me, it's just too much, physically and emotionally. Right now, I am leaning on God and praying everyday- I can't go much longer like this..

What do you do to de-stress when you are extremely exhausted?




Power of Prayer!

August 5, 2013


This morning, I received an email about how when two or more people pray, that God is in the midst. So I had this great idea that my co-worker & friend, Alexa, swap out prayer lists so that we can pray for each other! Just think how much fun it will be to go back over our lists together and see what prayers God has answered!
Pray
 
My Prayer List

Pray for God to restore 7-fold the things that Satan has stolen from us: Time, Youth, Money and Love.

Pray for God to send us honest, Christian, hard-working people to work on our new home construction. Pray for God to put it on their hearts to give us really fair pricing on the labor/materials. Pray for our house to not take too long to build and that we will enjoy the process and not be stressed.

Pray for God's will in our situation for Roscoe. Pray for Roscoe's legs to heal, Pray for his anxiety so that we can get some sleep and get things done. Pray for Roscoe to be at peace every day.

Pray for our future and our finances- school & husband's career for him to get a permanent job with great pay and benefits. Pray for us to be the head and not the tail and to be successful in everything we put our hand to.

Pray for the husband and I to meet good, Christian people who are positive role models. Pray for us to find a good church.

Pray for God to bring healing/restoration to my family and that we love one another instead of hurting each other. Pray for God to heal all of the hurts that I have and for me to let it go so that I will stop reliving the hurts over and over.

Pray for me to be the best Legal Assistant that I can be and to learn everything that I need to know so that I can do my job to the best of my ability.

Pray for me to be healed/delivered of my social anxiety/fear of large crowds and fear of rejection from others. Pray for me to learn how to love myself fully.


Do you have a prayer list and if so, what prayer has God answered for you?

It's the Weekend!!!

August 2, 2013

 
 
 
Love my new necklace from T&J Designs!!


Hi Lovelies!! Who else is excited for the weekend??

Here are my weekend plans:

------>  Organize/Pack/Clean

-------> Tan/Swim/Read some books

-------> Dinner- celebrate 14 year wedding anniversary!

-------> Hubby is going to finish up the house plan details so that we can call some builders!!

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!!