Getting it Right

Have you ever wondered why when you need a breakthrough and are praying for help and guidance, nothing seems to happen?
Oftentimes it is because we are holding a grudge against someone or are withholding forgiveness.
You cannot  receive God's best, His blessings, His favor until you make things right with whomever you are having issues with.
Go to that person and either seek forgiveness or give forgiveness.
Then after that can you go to God with a clearness & receive what He has for you.

Valentine's Day!

So what did you do for Valentine's Day, if you did anything?

I heard so many women say they had no Valentine or were sad because the guy they thought they were with, they really wasn't? Why is it that people use holidays to define their relationships? Think about it. We say "okay, he must be serious about her if he spent the holidays with her." But what about the other days of the year? If we make a person feel special all the time, then Valentine's Day wouldn't be such a big deal, because that person would know where they stood in their relationship. For me, my hubby makes me feel special on a regular basis. So Valentine's Day was just another day but with a few extras here & there.

I would really like for people to move away from doing special things only on holidays. Send flowers "just because I'm thinking of you!" Leave a love note just because. Take her out to dinner somewhere nice, just say I appreciate you. So then when the holidays come around, you'd have no reason to question where your relationship stands.

My Valentine's Day was wonderful, I got to sleep as much as I wanted (great thing to a pregnant lady!). And I got to eat exactly what I was craving, no shortcuts! To me that meant more than anything else. TO have my hubby come home early just to spend extra quality time means more to me than gifts. But then again, anyone around me would tell you I'm the most non-materialistic person they've ever met. I'm emotionally spoiled...I need the hugs, the special attention ALL the time, not just on holidays. :-)

Hope you had a very loving Valentine's Day!

{Our daughter, Kaylee Gabriella!}

{My husband & I... Mr & Mrs Bush}

Great News

Today I received confirmation that I have been selected as a contributing writer for SHE Agency! For me that's a great accomplishment. To be a featured writer, with a broader audience. I hope many of you get a chance to check out SHE Agency! Very soon you will be able to see my info up there as a part of their staff!
Once again I am truly honored! And thankful to God for providing me with this opportunity.

Their website is www.sheagency.com

Quick Thoughts

Claim, receive and be thankful. 

Everyday we sit and we talk, sometimes positive and sometimes negative. I challenge you to reshape your reality by claiming what you want in life, then thank God for allowing you to have it (if it is in His Will) and the receive it (have faith that you will receive it)!

Many of us say "one day I'll have this or that." No say I am going to this/that very soon, it may not be here today but it will be here soon and God I thank you for it!

That's the point of the vision board, to visualize the things you are claiming. 

Even Jesus himself said "ask and it will be given to you, search and you will find, knock and the door will be opened unto you." That applies in every area of life. If you search for God, you will most definitely find Him. If you knock on the door of opportunity, the door will be opened. 

Now be very careful to remember that God works on His time and not ours. So when He's ready for us to receive our blessings, our blessings will come!

Now go claim what you want! Thank God for it! And have faith!

Guest Blogging

I did my first guest blog this week! I am beyond excited! Its for a fellow blogger who I also follow on twitter. She's a teacher. I love her tweets & blog. So when she decided to try it I definitely jumped on the bandwagon! I read my post a few minutes ago and was happy with my guest blogging. I hope she is as pleased and her readers as well, since her blog has a very nice flow of readers.

If any of you would like to check it out, please do so at:
Adivamomsjourney.blogspot.com

It's absolutely fabulous! I hope to one day get to have the audience (diverse & amount of readers) that she does!

Happy Thursday! Stay blessed!

Smile

What are your things to smile about? I ask because I see so many people frowning everyday. And then I read people's tweets and Facebook posts about their problems and issues. I know everyone has a reason to smile. Even if you think you don't, you do!
Think about it. You woke up this morning, right? That's a reason to smile because God breathed breath into your body!
Do you have children? That's a reason to smile because you have someone who loves you unconditionally that you are responsible for that smiles for reason. My daughter makes me smile everyday and so does my unborn son. Just the thought that I am their mother, I am allowed to teach them everything they will need to know in life and as well as provide for them. But I also get to watch them grow, get to hear their laughter and play with them.
Are you married? That's a reason to smile because someone loves you enough to want to spend the rest of their life with you! Yes, every marriage has their ups and downs but as long as you make it through those bumps then you're okay. There will be storms, trust me I know. But the best part is making to see your sunshine and rainbow in the sky! So smile and tell your spouse to smile too! Come up with ways to make each other smile. From a joke to making breakfast. Or go buy her flowers just because. Give him a back massage just because. Those will make you all smile!
Did you hear a bird chirp this morning? Smile, that's evidence of God's creation!
You can read this, right?! Smile, you have a computer or are able to get to one, that's a blessing!
You have food, lights, a warm place to sleep at night? Those are major reasons to smile because you have been blessed to not go without!


So think about YOUR reasons to smile and SMILE!!!

Snow Days

So I live in this wonderful city of Chicago, where we were engulfed in a snow storm/blizzard that left us in a state of emergency because most people we snowed in starting Tuesday evening going through to Thursday. Or if you were like myself, that lived in a neighborhood that just recently (as in today) got plowed, you were snowed in until today (Friday).
Now I must admit, I am very angry. Over a few things in fact. The entire city was given advance notice of this snow storm and what the results would be, so why were we poorly prepared? Why was it that apartment complex managers scrambling to get their tenants plowed out? And furthermore why has the city of Chicago done such a piss-poor job of plowing the streets and have made a statement that they wouldn't be plowing alleys?
Think about this, if alleys in Chicago are not plowed, the garbage trucks will not go through the alleys to pick up the trash, which will lead to a back up in trash throughout the city, which will end up a big problem.
That's like my apartment complex, they decided to wait until TODAY to have our parking lots plowed. The snowing stopped Wednesday so why wait until Friday to start plowing? They could have started first thing Thursday morning but of course as usual they were very unprepared and unprofessional. In some ways, I am suffering on my own merit because I could have been moved, but like any Chicago native knows, affordable housing is very limited. And I, preferably, do not like to move constantly. I must be stable and provide a stable home for my children.

I have been praying very hard today because I have been seeing people walk to stores and gas stations, with their children and its very heartbreaking. And what's even worse is how selfish people are. Many people will only shovel their driveway, their walk path, but what about your neighbor? Who may need some type of help?

We as a people, as a whole, need to do better. A crisis like this should pull us together versus making us more "me minded."

The good that came out of these snow days, is the quality time I was able to spend with my husband, our three year old daughter and our unborn son. Majority of the time we (and by we I mean them) are constantly on the move, so to have the time to be able to spend with them uninterrupted was bliss.
But now back to our regular schedule. LOL :-)

Pregnancy Pact

Today I watched the movie Pregnancy Pact, from beginning to end. And I mean REALLY watched it, payed attention to the message it was sending. And then I went to research the movie and get a general idea of the public's view of teen pregnancy and how they felt the movie portrayed teenage girls.

One thing I have realized is that some people are completely disillusioned as the people in Glouchester, Mass. who honestly believe their was no pregnancy pact or at least an agreement or a mutual desire between those girls to all get pregnant. I'm a mother I have a three year old and I'm pregnant with my second. So I can tell you the envious stares and comments I received when I pregnant with my first when I was 19-20 years old. If my 17 year old god-sister can say "you're so lucky to be having a baby. I've been trying for years to get pregnant", then what does that tell you about our society and how young girls view pregnancy. Granted Hollywood does glamorize pregnancy through its movies, for instance there's Knocked Up w/ Katherine Heigl and The Back Up Plan w/ Jennifer Lopez. But guess what, as parents it's our jobs to point out the fact that these women are ADULTS, with JOBS, and are completely old enough to decide to become parents. They at 14, 15, 16, 17 are NOT. It's our job to be actual parents, rather than trying to be their friends. 

Many parents have the mistaken notion that they need to be their child's friend. No you do NOT. How can they ever take you seriously if your are trying too hard to be their friend, rather than teaching them and discipling them as their mother or father. 

Another thing I have noticed is the focus on the girls. Yes they are the ones pregnant, but the didn't get pregnant alone. Boys need to understand, that the moment you lay down and have sex with a girl, you run the risk of getting her pregnant. If you have aspirations for college and goals to be an professional athlete then you need to either practice abstinence (preferably) or at least practice safe sex. Boys need to understand that the babies, these girls are getting pregnant with are their babies too! So stop thinking its "her problem, nobody told her to get pregnant." No its YOUR problem too, you had sex with her! You took that risk for pleasure so now, take responsibility. The same way you would if you got into a car accident or failed a class in school.

Another thing I have noticed, is that many people wait until its too late to address an issue. No, address that issue the first time you have an inkling it could happen or be happening. 

Granted we do not want to encourage pre-marital sex however we cannot turn a blind eye to it either. I would rather prepare my teenager than to have to face the consequences of an unplanned teen pregnancy or worse them getting an STD. We need to be sure if there's a chance our children are having sex, start educating them on it, the pros the cons, the implications. Educate them on the consequences. Educate them on the STDs they could contract. That's our jobs as parents, as caregivers, even as professional teachers.

WE owe it to ourselves to prepare teens for what lies beyond high school. There's an entire life to live after that. Eventually many of them will be someone's wife/husband mom/dad and we want them to be productive members of society.

The point is to educate. To be better role models. To show the younger generation, there's so much more to life than the now. There's a much bigger picture. They need to know about kids in other countries who are starving and dying. If they want a kid, try sending money to those kids! They would definitely appreciate the generosity.