SSMT - Adventures in scriptures

On January 1st, 2015, I joined Beth Moore and Living Proof Ministries in a 12 month Scripture Memory challenge, AKA Siesta Scripture Memory Team (SSMT). The goal is to memorize 24 scriptures in 12 months - just two a month! I'm very excited for this endeavor because every person chooses a scripture that is meaningful to them in their stage of life and because this will help me to get in the Bible to search the scriptures, to dwell on them and to hide them in my heart. To learn more about this adventure, check out the initial blog post from Beth Moore: http://blog.lproof.org/2015/01/siesta-scripture-memory-team-2015-verse-1.html



For my first scripture I have chosen:
"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."
Romans 12:12 NIV 

I found this beautiful printable on Pinterest that another blogger had posted, if you would like to download it, check out her blog here.

I am looking forward to the amazing things to come for my future in 2015!

Kathrinka thinks...

...we need more JOY in our lives! 

Do you ever feel like this: 

Yeah...me too sometimes. But it doesn't have to be that way, we make the decision to be joyful. It's even found in the Bible:

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" (Philippians 4:4 NIV)

So, next time you feel down, REJOICE in The Lord! He has given you life! Enjoy every moment of it! Today I will rejoice because:

- I have breath for another day!

- I have a God who loves me unconditionally!

- My husband is a great man who I highly respect!

- I have a home (a 552 sq ft "square" room, but it's our home that we've been blessed with for the time being!) 

- I have a great job!

- My family is awesome, supportive, and loving!

- I have five beautiful nieces!!

- My church family is just as awesome as my biological family! 

- I am blessed with wonderful friends!!

We are called to be like Christ. I encourage you to find out who Jesus Christ is, how he shared love with people, how he sacrificed so that we may have eternal joy, how he loves unconditionally and how he helps people. 

"Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus..." (Philippians 2:1-5 NIV)

Let's look to the needs of others, express your joy today in what you're thankful for and then seek out how you can attend to the interests of others. Be a blessing to someone else today! 

Here's a little handmade token from me as a reminder to find the joy in your life today...

Aaaannnnddd something cute to make you smile. :) This photo is of me and my brothers when we were young. Enjoy your day today! 

I am a pro-procrastinator!

I am a pro-procrastinator! 

Procrastinator confession: I wrote this post yesterday and told myself I would post it tomorrow! 

I started this blog, to the day, 5 years ago. May 29, 2009. I blogged off an on for a little while, quit completely for a while and then blogged again about my food adventures...but quit again a little while later. 

I have such great ideas, plans, dreams...but I just can't quite seem to get them off the ground. My goal at the beginning of 2014 was to start blogging again. Well...Here we are almost halfway through 2014, and I just keep thinking about it and never doing it! 

Oh believe you me, I've come up with excuses:

• I can't commit to even one post a month

• My pictures aren't pretty enough

• I ramble too much 

• No one is really gonna want to follow my blog anyway 

• ...I need to go cook dinner

• I should be working on my budget right now

• Laundry, laundry, laundry

• It's midnight already...

• I'm not interesting enough

• Work takes up all my time

• I don't have time to blog

And yet I keep coming back to a desire to blog! I want to share exciting experiences. 

I want to show the young, newly married woman that you CAN learn to cook! (I thought I was gonna be the biggest failure of a wife/cook/housekeeper...don't get me wrong, I'm still learning, but that's the point! You CAN learn to do what you really want to do!) 

I want to share my love of the color yellow. 

I want to enrich people's lives with beautiful photography. 

I want to help people live healthier lives by introducing them to the multitudes of benefits that Young Living Essential Oils has given to me. 

I want to encourage the depressed, to share the Love that my God so generously shares with me. 

I want to share how awesome marriage can be. 

I want to be adventurous!

I want to share my adventures in cooking, life and love! 

SO... here's to the end of procrastination and the beginning of adventures! 

Five years ago, I prayed this prayer and I'll continue to pray it: ((Lord, please give me your revelation to help guide me in my everyday walk, so that I can be the woman that I want to be. I pray for your guidance and direction, help me to be receptive to all you have to offer me. Give me clean hands and a pure heart so that everything I do will be done to the best of my ability. Thank you Jesus for all that you have given me already, and thank you for the days to come…Amen.)) 

May we all be reminded to pray: 

"Dear Jesus, give me revelation...I've got nothing without you."

my dream dog

my dream dog :)

My dream dog is a chocolate brown or "red" doberman pinscher. About a year and a half ago, I met one named Rhett. He was a puppy at the time, his owners had just docked his ears and he was the cutest thing ever!! Such a playful and fun little guy. Then about six months later he had grown up to be a huge puppy! I fell in love with the doberman pinscher breed the first night that I met Rhett. Since then I have met another...she is the sweetest dog one will ever meet.

Now I'm sure you are asking "A doberman pinscher? Sweet? Aren't they always the scary guard dogs in movies? Or aren't they the ones that are well known for being viscious?"

Well, I was also a little worried about that as well so I have done some research...

According to Wikipedia, Doberman Pinschers are among the most common of pet breeds, and the breed is well known as an intelligent, alert and loyal companion dog. They are the target of a mistaken stereotype of ferocity and agression. As a personal protection dog, the Doberman was originally bred for these traits: it had to be large intimidating, fearless and willing to defend its owner, but sufficiently obedient and restrained to only do so on command. Although these dogs are mistaken for their agression, they are extremely loyal. They can easily learn to 'Respect and Protect' their owners. In response, they are excellent guard dogs that protect the ones they love.

According to a study conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, one of the most important factors contributing to dog bites are related to the level of responsibility exercised by dog owners.

Also...according to Dogbreedinfo.com, the doberman is; versatile, highly intelligent and very easy to train. They are also determined, fearless, and assertive, but not vicious. They are noble, loyal and affectionate with the fmaily. It likes to be close to the family members...this is a very people oriented breed. Generally a dominant breed, the temperament of the doberman will vary greatly depending on how well the owners understand canine behavior. Some are even very submissive. Some individuals are family dogs, and some bond only to one person. The doberman has been bred to work with man, and he needs this interaction often. They must be with family and not abandoned to the backyard.

So, there you have it. They really are great dogs!! :)
My most recent doberman friend's owner informed me that it really depends on how the dog is raised and how they are socialized. So it really is up to the owner and how they will raise/train the dog. I am still doing plenty of research into this fascinating animal and it will be a while before I can have one for my own...but I wanted to share this news with my blogging friends! :)

life...again...

I apologize...
I was not too clear about the reason for writing my last post.

My sister Krystina and I were visiting on the ride home this weekend and she asked me what I wanted my life to be like in 5 years. "What kind of things do I want to have in 5 years?" I asked myself...Almost immediately things came to mind. Some things I had yet to voice because I have been so stressed about my future and my plans for life that I dared not even think about them. But it was so relieving to finally get to voice my wishes and dreams and ideas and plans and wants.

Thank you Krystina for visiting with me and letting me express my feelings. Thank you for allowing me to daydream and to hope for things...thank you for helping renew my excitement for the future.

life...in 5 years...

Krystina asked me about my ambitions for the next five years…and it really almost surprised me some of the things that came out of my mouth. I do of course want to be married to Jesse by then…but the other things I spouted off were –

- I hope that we will be buying a house by that time
- I want a job that is steady, but not “same ole, same ole”
- I want to have the ability to travel…to experience things outside of my ‘normal’ life
- I’d love to live in a city
- I want to have an office with a big window where I can see the sky/trees/pretty buildings
- I want a yard and a dog that we can take care of
- I would love to be financially stable enough to do whatever we wanted
- I want to go, go, go….
- …to do FUN things while we’re still young…
- I want to take long weekend trips
- I don’t want to be old and boring…
- I do NOT want to get stuck in Livingston
- I want a job that is exciting and that I really enjoy being a part of
- I want to take adventures
- I want to be the kind of person that other people really like to be around…

I want us to be able to enjoy the time that we have…and I want to keep that enthusiasm for years to come.