Eat Up!

I had just told Sarah that I hardly ever got the stomach flu. I obviously forgot to knock on wood!

Being sick is no fun, being naseous is the worst. I don't think I will ever be able to handle morning sickness, so props to all you moms out there. Finally though, I am starting to feel like the old me again. At least I've gotten to hang out somewhere besides with my head in a trashcan.

Thanksgiving is next week! Here's to turkey, dressing, and pumpkin pie! I hope I don't end up looking like a stuffed turkey after it's all said and done though. HA! Seriously, on the Today Show this morning they gave tips on how to not eat too much on the holidays. Like eating raw veggies, yogurt, or nuts before the meal and then being able to pass on all the bad stuff. REALLY? The holidays should be the one time people just relax and enjoy some food and family. I'm all for trying to be a healthy eater/person, but not to that extreme. Live a little, people.

So this Thanksgiving, eat up. You are beautiful the way you are. You can run it off the next day if you are that worried about it LOL. Because if I died on Black Friday I'd sure be glad I ate that last piece of pumpkin pie. No regrets!

Cravings

I had such a refreshing weekend at Women of Faith Conference in Oklahoma City. I learned a lot, and I would like to share a few..

First, was worship. WOW! A stadium full of women all standing and singing "Great is Thy Faithfulness". Women of all ages, ones that could sing with experience and ones that only had seen the beginning of the faithfulness of God. It was so neat. Not to mention a tiny glimpse of what heaven might be like!

And then a message that spoke to me:

God has placed eternity in our hearts.

Ecclesiates 3:11 ...He has also set eternity in the hearts of men.

I too often run into the problem of craving more. "Well I'd just be happier if I had newer clothes, or if we put down new flooring in the house, or if Ryan took me on fancier dates, or if he did this or that, or if I was just a wee bit skinnier". Not every day do I battle this, but I do have those days when I'm just in a crummy mood soley because of cravings. Too often we think it's those world things that cause us to long for more, but really it's something that wordly things can never satisfy. God has placed eternity in our hearts, and our heart will never be completely satisfied until it finds rest in Him, in heaven. This isn't our home and this world will never be enough.... but He will.

So ultimately I learned that as a human I will always be craving until I get to heaven, because that's what my heart is longing for! But I also know that instead of focusing on these worldly cravings, when they happen if I can seek the Lord and begin craving His word and peace in my life, I will be much closer to finding true fulfillment and satisfaction. It's not really the clothes or the flooring or the extra attention from my husband or being stick thin, it's the peace and joy and love and comfort I find when I seek what my heart is really longing for-
my Heavenly Father.

I feel like if more people would act on this, and when they found themselves longing for more they would turn to the Lord, for that unfailing love they are truly craving. I believe there would be fewer broken relationships, divorce, etc.

That was a good lesson I learned that I want to begin applying to my life. And let me tell you, this morning on my way to clinicals I was nervous and dreading it and scared of being inadequate. And I spent the drive in praying and spending time with the Lord, reflecting on His promises to me. And I was more confident today- not necessarily better, just more secure that I am enough and that He isn't going to leave me high and dry.

(being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. -Philippians 1:6)

I wish I had time to share everything the ladies talked about this weekend, but I'll save them for posts to come!

2 Years Down, 100 To Go!

Whew. Time to catch up.

First off, I'm hungry. So this post may be cut short LOL. I'm craving one of our new fav dinners! Chipotle Raspberry BBQ (light) Ranch Chicken pizza on whole wheat crust topped with red onions, green peppers, and mozzerella. (My mouth watered just at the thought of this delicous dish). And I fully intend on cooking it AS SOON AS I GET HOME.

I'm on a kick this week. I've done perfect on my eating and exercise. I spent a little too much on groceries this week, but it costs more to eat healthy and I've been coming up with some super healthy dishes! This excites me. I have to be in the mood to cook and lately it's all I've wanted to do! I'm also going to make "kale chips tonight" so we'll see how that turns out. I may have to share the recipe if they turn out alright-- I've seen them in stores and they are amazingly good for you and supposedly a yummy alternative for potato chips.

Ok, enough about that! I've been dying to share about my 2 year anniversary surprise...
Ry got home and we headed up to Branson where he wouldn't tell me anything except to dress nice. He had reservations at Olive Garden (my fav) where we demolished some salad and bread sticks and pasta! Then he drove on down the strip without telling me where we were going, and surprised me by taking me to a show!!! It was the beginning of their Christmas show and I was so excited!!! We love going to the Branson shows like two little old people, but it's something we've always enjoyed together :) Afterwards we hit up Andys for custard and then got a hotel for the night. The next morning we enjoyed breakfast and mochas/lattes at Starbucks and headed on to the Landing to shop. I enjoyed myself so much.... and it was SOOO cute to see how proud Ryan was of himself for planning it all. He didn't say it, but I could tell and it just melted my heart LOL ok, enough with the mushy stuff. sorry guys! But just having a weekend totally focused on each other, good conversation, and lots of laughs does the heart good =]

I am so thankful for these 2 years. God has given me a wonderful gift in Ryan.

I think I'm going to the Women of Faith Conference in Oklahoma City tomorrow. I didn't think I was going to get to at first, but looks like its working out. I pray that God uses the speakers/musicians to speak to us women! I am excited to be uplifted and brought closer to my Lord! I'll definitely share about it when I get back!

peppermint mocha pandora days

ahhh, it's NOVEMBER people!

There are more than one reasons why I love this month:

• Our anniversary is the 7th! 2 years with my wonderful husband= celebration!!


• Thanksgiving! The one day it's totally OKAY to eat allll day long & not feel guilty.


• Beautiful weather & gorgeous trees/leaves that make me see God all around me


• The yummy coffee creamers that come out. Hello Pumpkin Spice Latte, Gingerbread, Peppermint Mocha, etc. (I could go on)


• We get to start using our cute little fireplace= coziness


• The Christmas prepartation begins! Music, decorations, cocoa, parties, etc!

So, you get the point! It's a good month if I say so myself. I've seen a lot of people posting about THANKFULNESS this month, which is awesome. We have so much to be thankful for!!! Today, I am thankful for discovering the Christy Nockels station on Pandora. Ryan's mechanics sometimes walk in and I'm belting some crazy high note. Embarassing, but good stuff nonetheless. It's neat to me that God wants our worship wherever we are, and lets us experience that even if we're in a greasy truck shop =]

Anyways, I needed to use the computer for a bit so I decided to run from my house over here to Ryan's shop... about a mile OF HILLS. I barely made it up the last hill to his shop, his grandpa was on the porch laughing at me. I must have been a funny site gasping for air "running" up the hill red as a beet. This saddens me so much, at one point in my life I could run 6 miles. Oh well, I ran today. And that's better than most days for me LOL! The only part I didn't fully consider was the getting back home part. Oh dear...