A Fresh Path

My friend Cheski's blog was entitled, "I feel Pretty." It inspired me to post the video.

Unfortunately, I haven't felt pretty in quite a while. Well, not pretty like the Maria in the video feels.

ALTHOUGH, I bought $26 worth of fun, warm and somewhat stylish clothes at Goodwill.
Forgive all the leggy shots. I got 3 "sweaters." A long black knit one (left picture), white one (which is really pretty, but couldn't get a cute front shot), and the poncho green one (far right). I also got two pairs of pants. 1 pair of jeans, featured in 3/4 pictures and my cute new steel gray trousers. I also got boots (which I am unsure about, but was trying to be stylish). All for $26!!! I could barely get 1 pair of jeans for that retail. mmm hmmm, I'm sold on Goodwill.

**It did, however, take 2 hours of shopping. My arms were actually sore afterwards from carrying all the clothes around, I tried on probably 12 pairs of jeans.

Anyways, while I was uploading my new clothes pictures, I played around in Scrapblog with this one where I was wearing my green poncho. I feel like this is my new, "I feel pretty" picture for the moment.

I feel like I look older in this photo, more serious and more worn.

That's how I feel. I feel like I've made some not so great choices lately. I've just been living, been letting time pass and move forward. **I also feel like I'm rambling, please stop reading at any point.** Continuing... I want to start on a fresh path.

At one point I feel like I was a success. I want to be a success again. I don't want to be ok with being average or living up to less than my potential. And I don't want to feel like a failure.

On that note, I have taken a new job. After some prayer for direction, I was approached with an offer from a new company that could be very promising in terms of my career growth. They are not just hiring me on at a higher salary, but as someone they want to promote. Interesting, right? They said they might promote me within a month, depending on my job performance.

Anyways, that starts March 12th. Hopefully, it will be a good thing. I am leaving three amazing kids behind and a reliable and consistent 40 hours a week with a company that has been good to me. Faith!! I am praying this will be a good thing in our lives.

Other news.... I'm trying to start a new blog to actually host giveaways (instead of just enter them). It has been a lot of fun setting it up.

Hopefully, a year from now, it will be successful enough so that I can get some free baby products. If you want, check it out at: http://jotgiveaways.blogspot.com

mmmm. what else? There is more, but not for now. Maybe I'll share later.

Sending love to my very small audience, who hopefully has some love coming back for me.

Here's some more West Side Story. I loved this play when I was little. I saw my first performance at Christian Community Center in San Diego and cried my eyes out at the end. I then proceeded to get the CD and listen to it over and over and over again.
Stay Cool ~~

Too Good to Forget

**This is what I needed. I feel so blessed that it is what was my next assigned reading task in the Bible. I know I've posted it here before and I think worry really defines my lack of faith. It is a big problem for me. Enjoy these luscious words!!

Matthew 6:25-7:14

Do Not Worry

²⁵"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^a]">[a]?

²⁸"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' ³²For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Almost Monthly Update?

My life is about to change!

That's right.

I guess it always changes every day, but I made a big change/decision. It required some faith and I hope it all works out well.

The change takes place mid March, so I'll tell you a bit more about it then. Or you can always email/call me and I'll give details.


Anyways, I've slacked big time on our updates. So I'll go real quickly.

1/25-2/1 - That weekend we went down to San Marcos for Saturday only. We had a surprise party for Oscar's Uncle and went to Dave & Buster's for David's 26th birthday. It was a wonderful weekend. I also got to spend some time with my sister and Mom which was really nice!!

2/2-2/8 - hmmm, who KNOWS what happened that weekend??? hmmmm. ok, I remember. That was Superbowl weekend!! Friday, our good friend Edith has an early Valentine's Day party. She catered it and had lots of sweets. We went straight from work, so I brought my dress, shoes, coat and all and changed in the car on the way there. This girl is so funny, she wanted to wait until everyone arrived, so we didn't eat until past 10pm. She is beautiful though and decorated her apartment wonderfully. It was a lot of fun and I got home after 1am. The next day Ravi and Eric and Oscar went to the mall (mmm, hmm) then came back and we hung out and played Monopoly. They stayed till the wee hours of the morning. Then left, only to come back the next day for the super bowl. It was fun! Oh and we went to church again which made me happy.

2/9-2/15 - Last weekend I started to get a cold. :( I decided to be brave and took dayquill and ignored it completely. I worked on Saturday until about 2. Then Oscar took the car and went to a party in San Diego. He came back Valentine's morning at around 7am. He was so excited. He called me and said let's get ready, we're going hiking. He showed up and I was ready, but my nose was running and I'm sure I looked exhausted. (and felt). Oscar made the decision to skip the hike, but we sat outside with the kitties and (I think) had breakfast. Then he asked if I wanted to nap. Since, I was borderline sick I was extremely happy to. Unfortunately, we slept through church which I was sad about. But, we had a great 3 hour nap. We ended up going to see the Book of Eli and then to a nice restaurant near us that we had a gift card for. I had left my camera at Edith's, so no camera. It was kind of nice because he knew I was dressing not for the camera, but for HIM. We dressed up. And I had a nice time even though I was very tired throughout the night. He treated me like a princess.

2/16 - current: Monday, I was thinking wow, this is the coolest sickness I've ever had. I've never only been sick for two days!! I took dayquil, went to work and drank water. Monday, I had energy. Tuesday I was sooo drained, sleeping in the car any chance I got. Wednesday I was home sleeping throughout the day, Thursday, more sleep. And Friday, I'm back to work!! Finally!! The company did a good job of making sure my kids had subs. I don't feel amazing today, but soooo much better!!

Ok, that's a wrap. Plan for the weekend = get ALL the way better!

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

mmmm, so my new marriage book is on RESPECT or SURRENDERING to your husband. So far, I really like it. It makes me realize that I do a pretty good job with Oscar. But, there is still a LOT LOT more I can do....... Here are some quotes, from the book, about respecting that amazing man in our lives.

***Oh, and respect was not modeled in my home growing up, so I feel that I (like many of us) have to learn it organically.



"If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all" - Mom

"Some people find fault as if it were buried treasure." - Francis O'Walsh

"We all suffer from the preoccupation that there exists . . . in the loved one, perfection" - Sidney Poitier

"Respect a man, he will do the more." - James Howell, 1659.

"Men are born to succeed, not to fail." - Henry David Thoreau

"You see an awful lot of smart guys with dumb women, but you hardly ever see a smart women with a dumb guy." - Erica Jong

"Eating words has never given me indigestion." - Winston Churchill

"If a relationship is to evolve, it must go through a series of endings." - Lisa Moriyama

"Try to want what you have, instead of spending your strength trying to get what you want." - Abraham L. Feinberg

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi

"To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right." - Confucious

Numero Uno

Oh, Lot. Oh, Abram. Thanks so much for being the illustration of such a wonderful point.

Abram and Lot were too successful, their workers were feuding with each other. If they didn't separate their relationship would suffer.

Abram, gave Lot the choice. There was fertile ground, barren ground and an inbetween option (where the river could have been a divider.) Lot appraised the land and took the best deal. He was a stud at looking out for numero uno.

Abram was left with a barren land, filled with dust.

Lot moved into a tent to the edge of the city and then closer and closer and finally into the city for financial gain. He was upset by the sin of the city, but prospered financially, he ended up losing his possessions and his family.

Abram built a tent and altar in an empty land, his faith not on money, but on God. He inherited the promised land!

RELATION TO OTHER PASSAGES:

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God (Matthew 5:5,9 NIV).

LESSONS TO LEARN:

The world’s way of getting ahead is to look out for number one. That was Lot’s way, as well. God’s way to blessing is looking up to Number One, and looking out for others (cf. Matthew 22:36-40). Such a life can only be lived by faith. Such a life can only cause our faith in God to grow.



**Highly modified from THIS ARTICLE
Genesis 13:5-18