Time for Change....

Hi everyone! It feels like it's been an eternity since I last posted! I made a commitment to myself to spend LESS time online and MORE time playing with Brenlee and Cadence. It's the BEST decision ever for me, but unfortunately, not for those of you out of towners who log on daily/hourly to see updates on the girls. I'm reading the book, Live a Thousand Years by Giovanni Livera. It's taking me a while to read it, as I am living it...and I can only change so much at any given moment! Here are the things I've taken from the book so far:
1. Your time is NOW. Don't dwell on the past and don't worry a whole lot about tomorrow.

2. I must take care of myself physically, spiritually, and mentally----The longer I live, the more opportunities I have to gain experience. I am changing my thoughts of feeling like I "have" to do things, to I "get" to do things. Everything I do is worth enjoying.

3. No matter where I am in my life, I have two options. The negative one and the positive one and once I start making positive choices with a positive attitude, this life journey becomes easier. This even reads true to feeding time with the girls!!!! (Which was not fun at all about a  month ago!) 

4. I can share my Treasures, my Talent and my Time. I can measure success by what I give rather than what I have. 

5. With strong Faith in God, all of my relationships with grow. I've always felt that all things happen for a reason and now I'm understanding that  the people we let into our lives become a part of us, they make us who we are. Livera writes, "Four relationships to cherish and kindle are you creator, your family, your friends, and your fellow man." So, I'm going to invest time into relationships that are important to me.

I'm about half way through the book.....and my dad couldn't have gifted this book to me at any better time.....refer back to the 5th lesson learned.....it came into my life at just the right moment for a reason! 

As most of my close family and friends know, it has been very challenging the past year. There have been days that I just want to give up and send my girls to daycare and go back to work. Work was much easier. Along with financial stress of dropping my income and adding the expense of two babies, I've come very, very close. About a month ago, before I started reading this book,  I started applying for jobs. Teaching, daycare positions, work-from-home jobs, etc. I've been crunching numbers and freaking out about going in the hole financially. Then it hit me. I will NEVER get this time back. EVER. Once it's gone, it's gone. The girls are growing up at an exponential rate and will start Kindergarten in just 4 more years. If we opt for Pre-Kindergarten, then I just have 3 more precious years with them at home with me. I will do what I have to do and everything does happen for a reason. It won't kill me to put the girls into a day program and go back to work and if that's what God has planned, I'll go at it with a positive attitude....but so far, no door has been opened up in the realm of a job for me. So, I'm feeling comforted knowing that He will provide for our family as long as I accept and trust Him. 

Refer back to the 5th thing I learned, again. Brent started a new job back in August 2011.  Well, one of his close coworkers invited us to go to his church this weekend. We've been looking for a home church for a long time now. We had just decided to go back to a church that we attended when we first moved to Irving, although we didn't just love the pastor when we were attending. Remember how people are put into your life at just the right time? I'm looking forward to it, it's on Saturday evening. They provide Nursery care/School for Brenlee and Cadence, as well. It'll be their 1st time being in the hands of complete strangers without Momma or Daddy around. Yes, I'm a bit nervous, and please pray with me that it goes smoothly. They will get to sing, dance, praise and worship, play instruments, do bible lessons, and make new friends while Brent and I get to draw closer to God together though sermons. 

The girls will be waking soon from their morning nap, and the house is still a HUGE mess....it's an obstacle course of pillow pets, blocks, books and other random toys that they love to string though out the hallway! BUT I sure ain't gonna clean while they're awake, as that'd be a WASTE of precious time! Bahaha......ya'll know I hate cleaning, so this book gives me a reason not to feel so guilty about a messy house! Oh, and the Banana Nut/ Blueberry Bread I'm baking is smelling done!

Stay tuned for more blogs about the work God does in our lives!

Question for you:
How do you make the most of your time???

They belong to the Kingdom.

Jesus said, "Don't stop children from coming to me! Children like these are part of the kingdom of God."-Matthew 19:14

Thank you, Jesus, for allowing me to love and care for two of your greatest miracles unconditionally. 

Lucky or Blessed?

Some people consider themselves lucky when things are going their way. I used to feel that way, too. Until recently, I really understand that I could have all the luck in the world and it wouldn't mean a thing! Seriously, I'm not lucky that Brent and I have a great relationship. I'm not lucky that I got the twins that I'd been wanting for 10 years. I'm not lucky that they are great sleepers. I'm not lucky that they are healthy. I'm blessed by God beyond measure! I'm favored by Him  :) Remember how it felt to be the "favorite" by one of your teachers? Well, multiply that by a billion. That's what it feels like! My prayer for you, if you're reading this, is for you to feel favored by God. It feels so good that it hurts :)
Question for you: How do you know that you're favored by God?

Half

Half-One of two equal parts.
Many things can be halved.  Consider the moon, isn't it mind boggling to see just half of it? Most of us have a "better half" and may be living a half dream kinda life. The half dollar is a collectible, now and most teachers frequently visit Half Priced Books. Druggies go to a Half Way House and some people offer halfhearted condolences. Is your glass half empty or half full?

In answering this age old question, I answer half full! If you'd have asked me this same question half a year ago, my answer might have been a bit different. Exactly half a year ago, Brenlee and Cadence were born. Since Brent and I married at 18, we had always talked about when and how many kids we wanted. We decided two was best. Jokingly, we always said, "If we can just have twins, it'll kill two birds with one stone!" God does take some things very literally, so watch out what you ask for.We said we'd start thinking about having a baby "when we got settled." I felt settled when we bought a house and both had good jobs. It took me half the time it did Brent to get used to the idea of "settling down." Well, our first pregnancy didn't work out. I miscarried before I hit 9 weeks pregnant. If I'd have had just ONE at a time, it'd be half the work...and I'm an overachiever by nature.....God knew best! Oh, and another thing that Brent and I have recently discussed is this: If we would have had one baby, we wouldn't have wanted anymore since both of us were stressed out about how to take care of screaming newborns. We'd have ended at 1 and that was NEVER in our plans! So here we are, half a year later. We have made it! The last 6 months have been quite a fog, I'm glad I've been taking pictures and keeping a journal-otherwise I guess it'd just all be lost!

At 6 Months, Brenlee Faith weighs 14 lbs 11 ounces and Cadence weighs 15 lbs 2 ounces. Brenlee is 27" long and Cadence is 27.2 inches. They both fall in the 80% for height, 50% for weight and 10th percentile for head circumference....sorry BECKS, they got my head! :-) Anyhow, they are both healthy little troopers and I  look forward to the next half of this year! Things are just now starting to get fun!! Keep in touch, our next appointment is November 3rd, later gators!

Question for you: Is your glass half empty or half full?