Thanks!

     Holy Cow! As I sit and think of all that has happened in the past year and where God has taken me, through storms, trials, highs and lows all I can do is bow my head and Thank the Lord. A year ago I was a 21- year old girl so unsure of where I was going, what I was doing and who I wanted to become. Had God not placed AMAZING people in my life, having FAITH in me and just LOVING me I know I'd still be searching for the direction I were to go with my life. After making some major life decisions and ridding my life of those things leading me astray, I knew it was going to be hard but like I've always said "A life worth livin' ain't easy." Some pretty incredible things have happened this past year or have continued to be awesome such as;

1.  My boyfriend, best friend and a Godly relationship.
           If you would of asked me in January of 2010 if I would be in a relationship this year I would of laughed. Well things change fast and I've been blessed with an awesome guy in my life. It's been almost ten months and the best days of my life! Thank You Andrew!

2.  My School
        Who would think I'd be thankful for such a thing? I absolutely enjoy my school partially because we get do hair and paint nails and partially because the people brighten my day and inspire me! It was voted 'Best School Culture' in America recently, it's truly an honor and privilege to go to such an awesome school.  It's been a dream to attend cosmetology school for many years now and until this point in my life it has been put on hold. I am finally doing something I know that with 100 percent certainty I am made to do. It has been incredible!

3. Friends
      Both old and new friends have been such an integral part of my life more than ever the past three years since moving 2,000 miles from where I spent the first 19 years of my life where my beautiful family resides. They have been real, and told me what I needed to hear instead of what I wanted to hear. The women I have been blessed to have in my life are the greatest ladies I could ever ask for. They inspire me, and make me want to be selfless, loving and courageous. They display a kind of love I thought was only possibly from a mother. They broke every premonition I had about girls and have shown me what real women are. I would not be living here following the desires of my heart had these ladies not reached out and shown me they cared for me.

4. My Mom
      Everyday I thank God for the mother who raised me. She taught me what it looks like to not quit and work hard for everything. She showed me that life is what you make it to be, that it's not about being perfect but having fun with what you are given. She believed in me and I am ever thankful for that. She shows me what it looks like to love Jesus with all your heart.

This is from August 2008 I believe but you get the idea ha :)

5. My Body
     After beating up, depriving and abusing my body I have realized more than anything I'm so blessed and thankful for it! It doesn't need to be my enemy but how awesome is it that the more respect I give it, the more it gives back.

Most of all I am thankful for ALL of you, each making a mark on my life!

the REAL DEAL

Alright here's one straight from the heart. We have our bodies for the rest of our lives and we are blessed to be on this Earth with them. I personally and I feel as though it's a common theme throughout our society and age group to forget that our bodies are more than just physical appeal and actually require time and work so we are the most beneficial here on Earth. Lately with being on my feet for 12-14 hours a day I will forget to eat or drink water, and load up on the coffee. It's actually really selfish for us (women especially do this) to forget of purposefully not eat. We can't expect to serve anyone, let alone be a good daughter, mother, worker, friend if we can't even take care of the very thing that allows us to serve others.

IT IS MORE THAN JUST AN OBJECT OF BEAUTY. It is a gift from GOD to be used to further his kingdom and show others LOVE. Where have we lost sight of that? Maybe somewhere between media shoving films with skinny girls eating junk as their primary source of fuel and magazines telling us how many calories to eat. EXCUSE me but there is not a single person who requires the exact same requirements nutritionally or physically. There are people COUNTING on YOU. Don't do it to your body, don't ruin it day by day, little by little eating away at it.

This is coming from a heart that finally realized the implications of my actions tonight. I FORGOT to eat at work and my blood sugar was so low I was dilusional and couldn't even function. It struck me how my actions are selfish. Ok sure, maybe I forgot to eat but what if my body just forgot to start working one day?  I'd be devastated.  I was blessed with a body and I need to treat it like I care.

It's time to live beautifully, caring for our bodies and those who we will love and care for with them!

New Name, New Game

Hello Y'all!
  I've been brainstorming and today I decided I need to revamp and focus more on what is rocking my world right now and giving me JOY to the utmost or should I say what I have been blessed to be able to do, HAIR, beauty and all that are involved in that realm of my life. I started Cosmetology school in September 2010 and I currently about one-fifth of the way completed, but feel like I have been doing it for years and couldn't be happier! I feel selfish keeping all that I'm learning and all that is going on to myself so I am making a promise to myself and anyone who reads this that I will update, post pictures and quirky little moments, facts I learn on here! Not only have I learned cosmetology, beauty industry, Bumble and Bumble PK (product knowledge) but I have learned more than ever about communication, myself, how people react and interact and how to suck it up and get through the hard stuff. I can say I could not have done this without first and foremost, God and his constant blessings and peace, my mother who has encouraged and supported me all the while, my boyfriend who keeps me focused and encourages me, my beautiful sisters (you know who you are) who keep me on my toes and understand that I am not neglecting our friendships but have a purpose and goal to fulfill and everyone else who are the reason I am going into this field, to serve them and bring joy and hope to their lives.

I will be updating this with my first real post shortly and can't wait to get back into this!

Love you all!

quick fix

Goodness gracious how my heart remembers the days of blogging consistently where life guaranteed at least a few open hours a night and things could be planned last minute. Well seasons come and go and we will call the current season: FULL FORCE. Between starting cosmetology school, moving, working, weddings, running, and everything in between blogging kind of gets lost in the shuffle. I have learned more the past two months than probably my entire life; showing me what I need to work on and what I'm rockin at. More than anything I'm learning what I really need to get anywhere in life- who I need. There is so much I want to share and will indefinitely when I get a chance, which I will make sure is soon.

Overall I have learned that it is so easy to settle and walk with the rest of the world. Most days its what I want to do but to really make a mark and speak truth takes work, its draining and some days really tough but the only way to truly LIVE and experience what God designed for us.

Love & prayers your way.

Pesudo-Entitlement.

Is it just me or is September an awesome month?! Not too cold (for those that live in the north) but not too hot (for those that live in the South), not to mention that there are birthday's galore! I think the autumn leaves are stunning too, since I live in a desert now my desktop background serves that purpose and does a dang good job! Well this post is going to be a record breaking quicky but maybe that's for the better of everyone.

Minnesota Autumn-ness

I often find myself frustrated and angry over a way I was treated or not treated. I will pour my heart out into the well being of others to help them and get nothing in return. I wonder if what I am doing by helping people is right or even beneficial to them at all? This morning it struck me we were not made to be served but to serve others. I am not made to be treated any certain way, rather that is a byproduct of how we live and treat others. We are served every single day by a God who does a whole lot more than help a friend out every now and then. Yea that lady just cut me off and that sales rep was a complete jerk but suck it up and MOVE ALONG. To truly serve is to live to give expecting nothing tangible in return. Having a servants heart produces blessings and joy far greater than any self-served act.

On a health front, Vitamins are amazing! A few weeks ago I stopped taking this bad-boy briefly because I ran out:

OH MY GOSH! They have made me feel so much better and made my skin

glowing again!

Caution: They do make you FIERCE.

²⁶ But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, ²⁷ and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. ²⁸ For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

-Matthew 20:26-28 (New Living Translation)

You Do It Right

Doesn't it always seem August goes about Mach 10? If I said a lot has been happening lately It'd be an understatement. I have been yearning for a good write and today even though the to-do list just keeps getting longer I gave in. In the past few weeks I have finally decided on a cosmetology school and will be starting in 2 weeks, gained a roomie/sista!!!, bought a new car (only my 2nd car ever and I'm almost 22), found a new place to live at in a month for us 3 ladies (they are my sistas and I could not ask for better roomies) and numerous other small things that have been fun but keeping this gal busy! That is not a complaint by any means as I'm wired to be a buy bee but it's just undermining the fact that organization is the key to success and the only way I will not lose my marbles is staying focused on what matters most and not doing it all!

Here is a pic of a fun night with one of my awesome roomstas!

D-backs won 4-3 in 10th inning!

Lifting is beginning to show it's work (since I had virtually NO muscle) and my appetite is that of a monster. I usually go the gym 2-3 (about 30 minutes each) times a week and run whenever I can since running is my alone time and keeps my sanity most days! It's really about balance, there is not perfect formula as to what is best. It's personal and I have to remind myself of that when I feel like I should be doing more or less of a exercise or eating how so& so does, just as our needs change mentally and emotionally and are different to those around us, same goes for our physical and physiological needs. With that being said I do believe physical and emotional are connected and if running or going to the gym evoke stress and negativity then find something else!

Being at the gym too much or too long gives me a judgmental spirit and I've noticed this in the past month. I noticed I had started to think negative thoughts about others that did not reflect the person I am or want to be. Sure maybe others are not in the best shape or what have you but then again who is? Who determines what is ideal?

For me being for a prolonged period of time in an environment where a concentrated group of body-conscious individuals reside I develop unrealistic expectations for real people. Since I am a visual thinker and observe and take in every detail this way, for me it has meant going to the gym with an intentional mindset. Not comparing or critiquing anyone else and if I do reminding myself we are all made differently and beautifully in God's image.

We need to do what is right for us and not anyone else. We rock at who we are, how much more encouraging can that be?! No matter how bad we think we do we still rock at our lives! There is only ONE of you. We get to paint where and what we'd like our our beautiful canvas created by a beautiful creator!

Here is a photo that an awesome lady and friend took of some sweet gals and I!

Love you all so much and praying that you will never doubt who you are and how you go about it!

² Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. -Romans 12:2 NLT

Seemingly Sporadic

The past few weeks have been exciting and spontaneous. I live for spontaneity and have no problems with it but this has taken it to a whole new level. Also I have began trying to incorporate more strength training into my life and though at first I was way disliking it, but I have finally found a good balance of what works for me. The trainer at the gym helped a lot also, he gave me an "endurance training" workout and I have been using it and enjoying it! Its basically doing each machine and/or exercise at a comfortable yet resistant weight doing about three reps of 15. Each person is different but I've just been hitting pretty much every muscle group and doing it quick, it's given me good results and takes me about 30 minutes and I usually do it 2-3 times a week. I have been SUPER hungry though which I was fighting at first then figured out I just needed to fuel with the right foods aka more protein.

Saturday was the Mr. Awesome and I's six month anniversary and wow! Talk about life in the fast lane. The past six months have flown by and have brought so much JOY. He put flowers and my favorite clif bar outside my door and later picked me up and we went up north to SEDONA, one of the most beautiful places on Earth!!! We ate at an AMAZING Mexican restaurant there.

Good stuff

and ate this:

Homemade Corn chips, salsa, carnitas (him)

&

chicken enchiladas with rice and beans!

followed by this:

Chocolate Mexican Ice Cream with raspberries.

Classic b&w

We walked around the town and enjoyed the 20 degree temperature drop and GREENERY!

Sunday at church Dr. Wayne Grudem spoke as was discussing Proverbs 4:23 "Guard your heart for it is the wellspring of life". This has been one of my favorite verses since around my freshman year after I began re-committing my life to Jesus! He talked about how our heart is our whole inner moral, spiritual life and our deepest convictions. He said something that I have been struggling with lately and that is that there may be times when we need to let go of good things because it is not part of our greater life plan. I was also reminded of how easily my heart can be deceived. Yes it is good but that doesn't mean there isn't room for any world influences to seep in and deceive us.

Though life can often seem sporadic and unorganized. That is what makes it so beautiful. God has a much more intricate, alluring piece of art painted for my life than any figment of my imagination. Yes, even that flat tire on my way to work is another colorful stroke to the masterpiece!