Preparing For The Holidays...

Last night as I sat working on my calendar for the week and our weekly lesson plans I came across a section in my Well Planned Day Planner that helps me plan for the holidays.

We have been in San Antonio for 3 months now and November is my favorite month for a couple of reasons. Number one being it is my birthday this month! I am turning 40 on Sunday and I am really looking forward to this stage of my life!
Number two being the beginning of the "Holiday Season."

I have always been a planner. I am not very organized but I am a planner! *chuckle to myself* I know odd right? Well I am, what can I say! So as I start putting things down in this section of my planner I came across a page that  has a list of who to buy for, what you want to buy, where to buy it from, and how much you spend or spent. Now I'm NOT that organized! LOL However I do have a plan on what I want to buy for my husband and daughter, and this year I plan to do just that!

Previously for the past 3 years we have struggled financially and now that we are back in the city I love I am earning a livable wage for the first time since we left here 8 years ago! I get to be at home with by baby girl all day and teach her lessons, I get to make dinner for my family and I get to get out of the house for a few hours at night and have adult conversations, meet new people and explore my city! I LOVE IT!

Driving for Uber has been the best decision I've ever made! I'm getting to save to help build my travel business which will eventually tie into my Uber business! I"m feeling a little more independent. It felt nice to know that the groceries we bought this weekend came from my earnings and that I was able to contribute to our house hold once again. I've never felt that I had no value but I always have had some tiny amount of guilt that my husband has been the primary bread winner in our family for almost our entire marriage. I've done things here and there but my income has always been paltry until the first time we moved here. I worked full time and a health insurance agent and I love my work then as well. However since the birth and adoption of our daughter my sole focus has been raising her. (Something we discussed and were 100% willing to make a sacrifice for)

Now she is going to be 8 in December and she gets to have alone time with her daddy each evening and I get to help contribute to the betterment of our family!

So, Now that I've rambled on about me contributing financially, let me get back to the point.
I sat looking at this planner, and I thought to myself what to I want to buy my family for Christmas this year? I want to buy them some surprises!
So I'm getting our usual, Christmas Pj's and we will need new stockings this year as well as a tree skirt and lights for our new tree. This year will be our first San Antonio Christmas as a family!
Hubby and I spent 2 Christmases here just the two of us, now it is good to have our baby girl here in the our city! 💖

I got a few things written down but I am still trying to decide what to do for her Christmas gift. She has mentioned wanting several things and it all boils down to two things... she has too many toys she doesn't play with now and doesn't want to give away, AND she needs more options for storage in her room and closet and storage makes for a bad gift for an 8 year old!

Hubby is not any easier to buy for but I do know he would like a couple of things and I'll let her buy him something and I'll buy him something and then of course they will have to go shopping on their own for me ( like they always do).  I love these two. They always try to do something they know I'd like! 😍

Well I've got some school work that could stand to get done and I need to take a nap so I can work tonight.

Tell me how you plan for your holidays! I'd love to hear how other people plan, prepare ect..

God Bless,
G

Learning From Our Failures

On the 3rd of this month my husband and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary. We didn't do anything ostentatious, just dinner out the weekend before and a quiet dinner at home with our daughter the day of because it was in the middle of the work week. We are usually pretty low key on "non-milestone" years. So that means about once every 5 years we celebrate with a party of some sort.  

Over the years I have often felt like I was not good enough to deserve the life I have been blessed with. I have felt inadequate, lazy, sloppy and down right depressed about how I behaved as a wife and mother.  I have struggled with depression since I was a teen and have had a long road sometimes and over the years have learned how to "pull myself up by the boot straps" and move forward. 

I have utilized anti depressants in the past (before our daughter was born) and since she has been in my life I have struggled tremendously.  What makes it even worse it that I feel bad for being depressed! I feel like I should be a better mommy, be more fun and more playful. You see I was 32 when she was born. I've always been over-weight and I keep saying I'm going to loose the weight to be a better more fun mommy but I keep going back to the same old patterns. 

Well today at church our pastor preached on how those patterns when we keep doing the change from being a bad habit to being a way of life! How God wants to sow His seeds in fertile soil so we can serve Him and live a blessed life but that those habits that become a way of life are separating us from God so that He cannot plant seeds. You see God won't plant seeds in ground that is not prepared. Pastor talked about how we need to prepare ourselves to receive the seeds God wants to plant so that we might bear fruit. 

God is committed to the fruitfulness of our futures. He is asking if you would commit to His commitment. 

John 15:4 says " Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and  you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me." 

John 15:8 " When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to the Father." 

John 15:16 "You didn't choose me, I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for using my name."  (emphasis mine) 

So you see the habits we have are sin and we all know that sin separates us from God. Pastor says we should Identify the "thorns" in our life. Boy that hit me right in the heart! My refusal to take care of my home and husband over the years has been me being disobedient to God. The bible says that God created me to be his Helpmeet. He works hard to provide for his family and I am supposed to be diligent here at home providing a haven for him. Teaching our child, making sure my family has food and clothing and are well respected. I am meant to HONOR ( aka RESPECT) my husband. I made that vow! 

The word goes on to say 

"Plow up the hard ground of your hearts! Do not waste your good seed among thorns." Jeremiah 4:3

Our prayer should be:

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offend you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life." Psalm 139:23-24

We should let the Holy Spirit filter us completely. I sat in church with tears streaming as I hear the spirit speaking to me. 'You have strayed daughter, you don't spend time in My word anymore, You only come to church, but you forget to hear with you whole heart.' I was truly and fully chastised. 

As I prayed and cried and repented of my obvious sin. I begged God to give me a renewed vigor and hunger for His word and for teaching my daughter how to live according to Proverbs 31. I had wanted that for us since before she was born. I always wanted to teach my daughters how God intended us to live. 

My 7 year old struggles to accomplish any one task because I have allowed her to become slothful, like me. So tonight after my husband went to work (he's on nights for a few weeks). I sat down with my bible and my little princess and I apologized to her for neglecting to teach her what I knew in my heart God had instructed ME to teach her. I showed the the biblical characteristics of a wife and mother. I explained to her that this week we are going to focus on a different one each day and possibly extend it to one week on each Character trait. 

I prayed and asked to God to forgive me and to guide my steps as I step up to the challenge of working through the pain ( because with significant change comes pain {mental and/or physical}) . 

Starting tomorrow I'm getting dressed to my tennis shoes, and taking my daughter and dog for a nice long walk. We are going to get active every morning and then crack the books starting with bible study. So I'm asking for any and all of my mommy friends to help me stay accountable! 

We are going to have a clean house daily, a clean kitchen before bed each night and fight the war on clutter. I have a week planned including the evening meal! 

Well If you have made it this far thank you. I knew earlier I was going to make this post and I was asking God what to say and I felt that I needed to just share the ugly truth. 

I would love you feedback, especially if you have tips on how to stay motivated to keep your home tidy! 

I want to be organized even though I was not born that way! 

Be Blessed! 

G...

Family Bonding Time...and Good News!!!

We have spent the better part of two days watching movies as a family. I love that we have been able to spend all this quality time together. We watched a movie Hubby and I have been wanting to see since November. Mockingjay Part 1, the 3rd installment in the Hunger Games series. We have been keeping up with all of them as we did with the Twilight Saga. I just need the last two of those to complete my DVD Collection. Now as for the Hunger Games I have not purchased any of them. We will eventually....We also watched Gardians of the Galaxy, wich was pretty good and Dracula Undone which i really enjoyed. It portrayed a more human and probable version of the story and how it could be possible for the ledgends to be passed on.

So today we came to the library to watch Big Hero 6 because Niki was wanting to see it. We all enjoyed it and she has asked to buy it, so we will. It is a great family film and something that we could watch over again.

We are a family who enjoys movies, cinema, films, whatever  you want to call them. We love talking about them and enjoy the time we get to spend together as a family watching them.

I pray that there are many, many families that take time to spend time together. I hope to pass a love of film and cinema along to my daughter, as well as music. My husband and I both love many different generas of music and she is starting develop her own taste in music and that is fun to experience!

We learned yesterday that we are officially Great Aunt and Uncle! Our niece gave birth to her daughter Piper Isabelle Corigliano at 2:38pm she weighed 7lbs 12oz and 20in long.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY PIPER!


Well I've got to go get prepared for Sunday School tomorrow. We are starting a new unit the life of Christ.

May God Bless You and Keep You!

Mrs. G

Change is coming once again!

I have never really feared change. I welcome it most times. This is going to be a challenge for the three of us. Our oldest daughter Holly is coming home and she is pregnant with Twins. She needs her family now more than ever and with us having a two year old who has never met her sister I hope and pray that they will be close even though Holly will soon become a mother and have a focus other than her little sister.
                                                                                                                                                           
The twins are supposed to be a boy and a girl and that will be fun! :o) I never thought I'd be looking forward to having grandchildren but I kind of am! I can't wait to take them to my Grandmother and have pictures of the babies with her! I want to have a 5 generation picture! That will be so much fun! I've got a 4 generation picture of Me, my mom, NikiRhe and my Grandma so now we need Holly and the babies and it will feel complete!

I love my family and I will be so thankful and happy when we can get moved into our new place and start getting ready for the babies to come!

Taking time to spend quiet time with my daughter.

I love it! Having quiet moments with her is so important. We've been consistent in our daily bible study thus far and I'm determined to not let anything keep us from doing it everyday. 

She loves to play games and is very imaginative!

here is has created a hammock and is playing. She's so much fun!

A camera ham!

She wouldn't be still for anything! LOL 

Cuddling with "rie" Marie from Disney's  Aristocats

Snuggle time with momma. She loves this picture and every time she sees it she says" Momma, momma, ---Nini, nini...look momma...NINI!! lol She calls herself Nini because she can't say her K's yet. 

I just took this one and the first one today. She is such a sweetheart. Thank you Lord for knowing what we needed in a child! She is my heart!

Conquering the Day

Today we will set out to accomplish a few things that need to be taken care of. NikiRhe and I will start out with some bible study and breakfast then off to the market and bank. We will have an extra person with us today as I'm trying out a young lady who wants to be our nanny. I'm still not sure I really need a nanny per se, I mostly need someone who can come give me a hand with the housework so that I can try and get some work done.

She did a good job yesterday and she did help get the main things cleaned up yesterday. She is going to be tagging along with us today to see how I do things. I am going to have to have a chat with her about her attire around my house however. I prefer that she not dress like a slob and she has very large breasts and doesn't wear a bra..THAT drives me NUTS!!! Well anyhow...

I think I'm going to take some time for ME in our room and just rest and maybe read.

Have a Blessed day!
~G~

Feelings of Frustration

I love my beautiful daughter with all my heart. However I've been trying to study and get my continuing education hours completed so I'm a little behind on the housework. 


I LOVE that she loves me and wants to be with me at all times including when I'm in the bathroom, cleaning, or studying, or trying to load the dishwasher. What frustrates me is that she wants to close the dishwasher and she wants to play literally under my feet. I can't seem to make her understand that our very small kitchen doesn't have enough room for her to play safely in there while i'm trying to clean. 


I've read about some mom's putting their children in a play pen while they are cleaning and I've considered doing that, but I honestly don't want to hear her screaming the ENTIRE time I'm trying to do a task. I certainly can not put her in one and have her screaming while I'm trying to work or study. 


Today I have her watching her Your Baby Can Read dvd and have been afforded enough time to sit and compose this blog. I Refuse to allow the TV to be a baby sitter and I know that God will help me figure out what works best for baby and I.

Lord, please show me how to teach my daughter at this young age. Help me to not loose my temper with her or to raise my voice. Help me to be her mentor, and mother not her friend. Help me to show her your love and mercy and to provide her with solid teachings. In Jesus Name. Amen