Thursday, August 29, 2013

He will work it out for your good.


             Mistakes are often your best educator. As long as you don’t quit, you will never lose.
                                                          -Paula White.

Dearest friends, Today don't let your past mistakes hinder you, don't let them define who you are.. But instead learn from your mistakes, remember that it is only Jesus who defines who you really are and let Him take your circumstances and use it for His glory as a testimony that will blow others away. 


And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. - Romans 8:29




Hey ladies, I am also co-hosting over Hannah's awesome blog hop. 
Go check it out and meet some new mama's :)

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Wednesday, August 28, 2013

You're beautiful!

Women with curves and tats
  "Who are they to tell you that you are ugly when God has already spoken that you are beautiful? -Heather leigh


Happy Wednesday  lovelies, Today I want to talk with you about something that has burdened my heart.

When you ladies get up in the morning and  look in the  mirror do you ever feel instant insecurity about your appearance?

Or when you look at the cover of a magazine about the sexiest women alive or something like that? Do you feel not as pretty?

Do you know where those lies are coming from? The enemy. The king of lies.

You see, those are lies I heard so much during my teenage years. So much that I started to believe them and claimed them as my own. 

I thought I was ugly, I thought I was fat and I thought I was stupid..

All this because of a little lie.... A little lie that I let have a bigger impact on my teenage life  then it should have.

I'm honestly not sure if I actually had a minor eating disorder or not.. But regardless, the mindset I had wasn't healthy.  There were days where I skipped meals, went a day without eating and took weight loss pills.. Healthy right?? Nope.. 

I was such a people pleaser and so focused on fitting into smaller jeans I was desperate..

I actually still have to remind myself to eat to this day. Not for the sake of loosing weight but I'm just not a huge eater.. One thing I have learned though about focusing too much on outer appearances though is that whether you are overweight, curvy or on the thin side people will always have a negative side. Kinda just like pregnancy.

"You're too skinny to be 30 weeks pregnant"    "Are you eating enough"  "You need to like go home and eat now!"

When I was in my early stages of pregnancy I was really sick. I couldn't hold nothing down as much as I tried. Not even water. And ended loosing 20 pounds from the whole experience. And because of my long torso it made me look even skinnier.. Though people may have meant for those comments to be considered as compliments it was hard for me not to take them as a slap in the face.. Especially when this one lady asked me if I was eating enough. I was so upset about that due to my earlier years..

Continuing in my pregnancy it was very rare when I got a "You look great!"  (Which is a comment I'd prefer. and it makes the comment a lot less awkward!

After I gave birth to my darling baby girl.. I was able to get back into my pre pregnancy clothes within a few weeks and then they ended up being too big for me. I guess with the weight I already lost from morning sickness and the weight loss from constant nursing made me underweight. Leaving me a little insecure once again.. And the comments I received seriously made me feel worse..

"You're so skinny."  Where did your butt go?"  "Man, I'm so jealous"? "You don't even look like you had a baby!" "Girl, you lost your curves, you looked so much better with curves."

How do you respond to those kinda comments? To me it makes the conversation totally awkward. "Thanks?"   I feel like if I were to say thanks it would  make me sound vain or if I were to say nothing at all I feel like I'd be rude..


I'm telling you these things not because I'm complaining about my physical body. Because I finally love my physical body. Do you know why? Because it's no longer my focus.

I have realized  that body type is such an obsession these days where being skinny is dangerously desired  and to some who aren't skinny either don't think their pretty or they believe their prettier than thinner women..

I read this quote the other day that I didn't take fancy of at all..

 "Real women aren't a size 4 ladies, Real women have curves".
I know and understand that this quote is meant for the media's models and all but seriously? Do we have to go as far as calling them fake women? The only thing fake about them is their body on the magazine what was Photoshopped...  And you know some girl's can't help the fact that they are size 0's 4's 6's 24's  Some women can't help their size due to circumstances or it's just the way they were created. Beautifully.  
Darlings.. Whether you are overweight, underweight, curvy or thin.  I just want to tell you that you are beautiful. Maybe the media would disagree because of the zit on your face or the stretch marks, or the freckles but you know what. Who cares what they think?  My question to you is "Who are they to tell you that you are ugly when God has already spoken that you are beautiful? After all,  He created you perfectly and completed you with His Son Jesus who defines your beauty.

So sisters, let today be the last day that we agree with the lie that was told.. The lie that told us we are not worthy, that we are ugly, that we are fat, that we are skinny. But instead let us believe the truth that will set us free. We are beautiful! Not because of who we are but who Our Beloved Jesus is in us..

Lets stop with these worldly desires to lose or gain weight just to fit in with the media's  Photoshopped beauty. And desire only to be healthy. The way it's meant to be!

And please... Can we stop identifying and labeling people as skinny or curvy.. A "You're beautiful" would be perfect and even more perfect is "Your heart is beautiful!" 



                                   Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
                           But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

                                                     -Proverbs 31:30

                                             Love you, beauties!! XOXO  -Heather



Monday, August 26, 2013

Are they admirable?

Well... You were gonna see a post today called "Skinny Obsession" or something like that. However, this post took a right turn right after seeing what these poor folks had to see in person!
 
Leon and I don't have cable so we didn't watch it live.. And honestly I think deciding to  let cable in our house hold is a pretty darn good decision. I mean, I don't want porn to be at my child's reach.  And it's sad that the world has come to that. Honestly, these days you can find porn without looking for it. I certainly wasn't.

I've been meaning to write a post about this for some time now. And after being twerked at by Miley Cyrus and practically mooned by Lady Gaga I thought now was a proper time to say something.

First off, I'm gonna say right now that I'm not a hater of any persons. Not of Miley, Taylor, Selena or even Demi. I seriously love them, enjoy listening to some of their music and if had the opportunity to have coffee with them in a coffee shop I certainly would because honestly, I have a lot I would like to pour my heart out to them about. I'd like to give them hugs, buy them coffee (Like they need me to, right?) and just share with them the love of Christ and leaving them with a love encounter they have never experienced before.. Who knows! I may one day have that opportunity, but for now I'm gonna get back to what I was saying.

When I first came across this shocking video so many things came through my mind.. Heartache, sickness, discussed and embarrassment on her part.. I was gagging for so many reasons and here's why.

1. The performance obviously  alluded to and referenced little girls.  
2. Over the extreme pornographic  & sexual.
3 The whole performance set a toxic,negative, damaging example for children and adults. Planting seeds in the minds of our younger generation.
4. I knew children were watching, young women were admiring, and young men were being influenced.

What's even more heartbreaking to me is that our children of this generation not only look up to these people but some are also encouraged to do so by their own parents.

When really the only thing these ladies are teaching is:
-Being a grown-up means to be a rebel. 
-Not caring about the welfare of others.
- Dancing pornographically without thinking twice about the circumstances   is okay and even mature and sexy.
- Sex outside of marriage is a way of expressing yourself and showing the other person that you love them.
- Not being in a relationship with a guy is lonely.
- Revenge is sweet.
  
And this is just some of the not so lovely messages that these ladies are getting out.  Again, I love these ladies, (some) of their music and I do believe some of their music is harmless. But Selena Gomez's "Come & get" And Miley Cyrus'  "We Can't  stop".   Isn't cool and in fact should not be listened to by young children nor looked up to with admiration. It's rubbish and it's not filling your mind with lovely things.

 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things. Philippians 4:8

Parents, It is our job to guard the hearts of our little darlings. By letting them watch that filth is planting lustful nature in their minds at a young age leaving their innocence to slowly fade away in the grey world we're living in. Before you support your child's admiration for someone. Do your research on them and apply it to Philippians 4:8.  If this singer isn't thinking about what is noble, lovely, right and pure will they be planting that in your child's head? 

Sisters, There are so many women in this world who are great role models especially in the Bible.  Who seriously need to be looked up too! These women the world often find beautiful have insecurity written all over them.  Darlings don't buy into the lie. You are beautiful and you were not made to feel insecurity but you were created to overcome just as your Heavenly Beloved did before you and is doing within you!


                                                        Love you guys! Xoxo Heather!



The best nine months of our lives.


I know I've said this way more times this week than I should have but I can't believe my sweet baby girl is nine months and will no longer be a baby soon!

I'm sure all of you mama's who are putting your babies in school this year want to slap me for saying this considering my baby is still practically a baby but, I seriously can't believe that she is already 9 months. I feel as though the time is just flying by! Time flies when you're having fun right? That, and running around the house to catch your laughing, fast crawling baby!
Words can't describe how thankful and blessed I am to be a stay at home mama! I praise God for giving me the desires of my heart and will forever be grateful to my beloved husband Leon for being super supportive and encouraging me to be at home with our daughter! My husband is amazing. Yes, we most definitely have to live inside our means and our budget is usually pretty tight right now. But when Evelynne wakes up every morning so excited to see me... Really, no money in the world could buy that kind of joy that brings a mama.

It may be hard for me to believe that time feels like it has flown by since I brought Evelynne into the world.. But I honestly don't feel like that's a sad thing.. I love all the new experience's and new adventures we have every day! From flipping, crawling, noticing the simple and beautiful  things of life. It's fun and exciting watching Evelynne grow up and experiencing the newness of things with her.


Evie's accomplishments at nine months:
Standing up all by herself// Walking like a pro with help// Very photogenic//
clapping her hands// waves//  Has two bottom teeth with four on the top coming in// dancing// taking three naps.

Food: Evelynne's favorite food right now is squash, applesauce and organic chicken lunch meat. She is eating solids three times a day and has snack time. She is also starting to try grownup food. She'll see us eating something and she'll want to try it!

Doc appointment: Her 9 month appointment is on Tuesday. Leon is off on Tuesday so, he'll be able to join us! :)

Weight and height: If I had to guess it would be 20 lbs but I won't know for sure until Tuesday :)

Favorite toys: She loves her loud toys especially her piano and her giraffe. She's also developing a special love for her teddy her daddy bought her.

Words: Nothing yet. She's just starting babbling more often. I'm hoping to get a "mama" soon!! ;)

Personality: All I can say is Evelynne has her own haha! She's such a joyful and happy little girl. She's def a morning person with such joy from The Lord. She sure is stubborn though. When she wants something she wants it right this second!.. She's even starting to throw tantrums! Like ones a two year old would throw. Hoping we're experiencing the terrible two's early.

Sleep: She's down to about 3 naps daily. And she naps anywhere from 30 minutes to an hr. Rarely I get an hour and thirty minutes. Bed time she's usually in bed by 7 and up around 6-6:30. For the most part she sleeps through the night but every once in a while she'll wake up around 12ish or 4ish.

Nursing: We are still nursing about 3 times a day and will officially stop at one year.

Mama's thoughts: So excited to be a mom for another month and the rest of the months to come! God is so amazing and I see His perfect gift in our daughter every day. She is such a blessing and I'm so glad He has anointed Leon and I to raise this sweet baby girl as The Lord continues to anoint her for the things He's got planned for her in days, months and years to come.

                                         Happy 9 Months Anointed one.
                                 Words cannot describe our love for you sweet girl.