I no longer wish to buy my children Christmas presents.

I no longer wish to buy my children Christmas presents...and here's why. Society has totally perverted the true meaning of Christmas.  Yes, I know Jesus wasn't born during the winter and December 25th is probably not even close to His real birthday. However, that's the day marked on our calendar that we celebrate it. If you chose to celebrate your birthday on some other day every single year, it would still be just as special as your actual birthday. Every year parents ( or at least we do) feel the pressure of buying gifts for their children for Christmas. There are big ticket items on their lists as well as small ones, but having three children it adds up really quickly. Then the true meaning behind the celebration is long forgotten midst the hustle and bustle of the season, crazy black Friday shoppers, and frustration of everything online being sold out. I had an idea this year that I am certain we may implement in the near future. Why not give them the gifts you were going to buy them throughout the year and save the celebration of Jesus just for Christmas? We have reason to celebrate it everyday of the year but especially hold sacred His birth. This would keep from spending all at once, give them things during the year and keep Christ in Christmas. Just enjoy celebrating Jesus and being with family during this time would mean so much more to me than anything put under a tree or inside a stocking. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing my children happy and excited about the season. But, I would be happier seeing them happy about Jesus and family. Their big items on the list would be reserved for Birthdays and the smaller gifts given during the year as rewards for good grades, good behavior, etc. I am not suggesting everyone should do this, I am saying that I feel the need to do it for my family. I realize everyone has their own way of celebrating and I hope it does include honoring our Savior. So much mercy and grace was involved in His birth because it was designed to lead to his death, for us. Everyone. Not just some but anyone who chooses to trust in Him. What a great gift, it's free, not earned, not deserved, but FREE. I don't know of a better reason to celebrate. Not much else in the world is free, or at least not anything worth having. 

May you have a very blessed Christmas and Joy throughout the coming year!!

The couple that DIY's together

We are currently in the midst of a deck remodel. It's been a long time coming. 8 years to be exact. It needed doing when we moved here but it was one of those things that got put on the back burner. A couple hap-hazard slung coats of paint here and there have just not cut it anymore, so time for major over haul. Anyway, it all got me to thinking.

I was doing all the sanding...hubster has asthma and the dust really gets to him. It made me realize that every project in this house whether it's been painting a room, cutting a new door way to join the kitchen and dining room, or just building a bench seating frame, it's all been done together. Every blood drop, tear drop and sweat drop ( and there have been several of each) have all been from a joint team effort. There is nothing I love more. While I was working with the sander, I couldn't see him but I knew he was there underneath working on the structure. Much as he's the structure of the family, the strong hold. While he added new support beams and repaired existing ones I worked above. Each complimenting the other with the work. I can't climb the ladders and do the repair work. Well, I could but I'd 1. fall and break something and 2. the repairs I made would probably end with the deck actually crashing down and us all breaking something. And of course the whole asthma and sanding thing don't exactly mesh well either. So, we each have tasks that get accomplished separate yet together working simultaneously like a well oiled machine. We've been doing these things together long enough we should know each other's quirks by now ;) Married 14 years, together 18.

I love that we can look back years from now at all the changes we've made here and associate memories with the projects. Usually at some point during the activities there's at least one fiasco, like today it was a run in with a guinea wasp nest. Of course that wasn't very funny to the one getting stung but it sounded like a herd of wildebeast fighting them off under there. Don't worry I helped him and ran for the Benadryl and some killing spray- for the wasp not the husband.

All these things just make my soul smile. I love him and I love our boys.

Completeness

Generally when things are on my mind I have to get them out or they keep bugging me and I can't move on so this is me getting one of those things out. Today I read something on one of those marriage pages that got me thinking and I really didn't stop thinking about it the whole day. Often times you hear the saying that people are either looking for or have found someone that "completes them" meaning this in the form of a significant other. This couldn't be more of a line of garbage if I ever heard one. Oh, I am guilty of saying it too I'm sure but true, it's just garbage. The only relationship that can complete me is my relationship with Christ. All others will fail considerably. Now, on the other hand, my relationship with my husband can be perfectly complementary. That statement I rather like. So many marriages fail these days and I just can't help but think it's because of expectations that we ourselves place on our relationships that just aren't realistic. If we go into a relationship thinking we can find someone that actually completes us we are just setting that relationship up for failure from the beginning. It's based on unrealistic expectation. I can't think of the person that said it but we have expectation and reality and everything in between is just disappointment. Our relationship with Christ is designed to complete us and give us everything we need out of a relationship. He said himself "My Grace is sufficient". We have our relationship with our spouse as a compliment to that not as a replacement. The question that got me to thinking about all this was something along the lines of we should constantly be in the giving mode for our spouse and be doing for them and not worrying about ourselves. But it's all about perspective and if your heart is completely seeking Him, He will supply all your needs and you won't be left wanting and those selfish me,me, me, attitudes won't be there wondering well what about my feelings and this and that. I have lost my train of thought and where I was really going with that but anyway. There is a really good book called Fierce Women by Kimberly Wagner. I highly recommend this book. I do challenge you as I was challenged if you read it, give it away when you are done. It's life changing and will alter your marriage and the way you see yourself as a wife. It's great biblical perspective on how we as wives are to support our husbands and how we can unknowingly be harming them as well. 

So with all that I hope you have The One who completes you as well as the one who complements you!!

What better way to re appear on the blogging scene than with a review??!! So here goes. Today I got my first Ipsy Glam Bag in the mail. I was super excited to see that bright pink bag in my mailbox.

So, here are the contents:

Mirabella Prime face and eye primer full size (retail $29)
Mai Couture  highlighter papier St Barts 25 sheets (retail $28 for 50)
Urban Decay 24/7 Glide on eye pencil in zero ( I could only find this color in sets ranging from $12 to $19)
NYX Ultra Pearl Mania eye shadow not sure of color ( $2.50).
Be a Bombshell lip gloss in hot mess ($14)

So, I love all these products. The primer was not heavy and didn't make it feel like my foundation was sliding off my face like ones I have used before. I loved the shimmer and brightness of the highlighting papers. I hate putting blush and other pressed powders in my make up bag because they always seem to crumble and spill over everything. This would eliminate that. The eyeliner went on smooth and did not smear and the eyeshadow is pearly without being glittery (which I hate). The lipgloss is quite red and I may not have chosen this shade for myself off the shelf but it's a great thing for "wearing red beginners". It is a sheer red. I have very fair skin and was never able to find a suitable shade of red but this is probably the only thing I would dare wear out in public.

So all in all I would recommend this to a friend and I am so glad I signed up. I was not let down in any way.

Total retail value $71.50 ( I used $14 for the papers since there were only 25)
My cost $10

BONUS it arrives in a bright metallic bubble wrap package that I will be reusing to send someone  a "glam package" next time I need to mail something. Oh and it comes in this really cute little zip bag that would be great for carrying necessities in your purse.

So, if you are interested in signing up click here. Shipping is also free.

**disclaimer** I was in no way compensated by Ipsy, Glambag, or any affiliates and these statements are my opinion only***

I do exist!!

Well, hello there from your neglectful bloggess.  My family and I are fantastic and I have some new DIY posts I am working on that I hope you will enjoy.  I am hoping to be able to devote some of my time back to blogging in the near future.  Until then, have a great weekend!

Whole Hearts Needs YOUR Help!!

Pepsi is giving away $50K grants to causes. The catch? They need your votes.  Voting ends this week.  Matt Hammitt, of Sanctus Real, and his wife Sarah, have started a foundation called Whole Hearts. Their son, Bowen was born with HLHS. This foundation is geared toward helping families financially and spiritually whose children are suffering from congenital heart defects.  The statistics show that 1in100 children are born with some type of heart defect, many are undetected. Right now, my little buddy, Annabelle is back in the hospital. If you visit her mothers blog by clicking the link, you can see first hand just what a monster CHDs are.  So, help out and vote!!

There are three ways you can vote:
1. go to www.refresheverything.com/wholehearts
2. Text 107706 to 73774
or most importantly ( because you get extra votes)
3. Look under bottle caps or cartons of specially marked boxes of Pepsi for "Power Votes"  you do have to register online with Pepsi to use the power votes but if you don't wish to do that, you can email me your power vote codes and I will use them. Stephaniegfas@yahoo.com

So please take 3 seconds to vote, it could make a lifetime of difference.

One Day 40 Years Ago

My life was changed over the course of one day forty years go.  My mother was 11 years old and I ws probably only a mere idea that popped in her head every now and then when she wondered about children she may have in the future.  But this particular event involved my sister-in-law. On that October day, forty years ago, she was being born.  Her name is Tammie. She was born three months early and also had hydrocephalus.  The technology wasn't yet perfected to save her and she lived one day.  As anyone would be, they were devastated at the loss of their little girl.


But in the midst of all our pain, great as it may be, God still has a plan.  A perfect plan.  I am sure there were times that they wondered what good could possibly ever come from God taking their daughter. Those thoughts more than likely consumed them.  And as it turned out at their 6 week check up, she learned she was already expecting another baby. This in no way replaced Tammie, but it did help her heal.


Tammie's one little day of life completely changed mine.  See there is always good in a situation.  Even though at the time, I am sure she saw no good in her situation at all there was good waiting down the road. Had Tammie had lived, I wouldn't have my husband, or the children, or really even the life I have now.  My husband is my soul mate.  I love him in a way I could never love any other man.  My children are my world.  So my husband is here because she only lived one day.  And it doesn't really stop there, it will continue with my grandchildren and their children and so forth on down the line.  I honor her for the one day she was here because that one day changed so much.  My life is complete with my husband and my children all because of that tiny little life, forty years ago.