Big Brother!

Last week my brother, Jason, and his family came to visit for a day as they get ready to move to a new state! J is in the army and has been for awhile so seeing him, my sister-in-law and my nephew is always a special treat :) I was SO excited to have them come that I was up until 2AM the morning they came in. But, it was totally worth it.

The best part was surprising my mom (talk about an easy birthday/Mother's day gift!) haha. My mom had no idea they were coming. As far as she knew, our friends were coming to visit. She screamed when she saw them! It was pretty fun!

It was REALLY awesome and such a blessing to be able to spend some time with my brother, SIL, and nephew. :D I wish it could happen more often, but I'll take what I can get!

You Would Have Thought Someone Had Died

I "deactivated" my Twitter and Facebook accounts the yesterday and the amount of text messages I got from people regarding that was surprising. I appreciate your concern, but I totally got a kick out of how serious everyone thought this was. Granted, I am kinda of attached to the FB so I get why this was a shock and I can understand why I was flooded with text messages like this: "No FB?? Are you ok? What's going on?", "Hey, I just saw you're not on FB, did something happen?", "Do you need to talk? Why aren't you on Facebook anymore?"

So here are the reasons I am sharing:
1) Do you know how much time I waste on that?
2) I was tired of hearing people complain about their lives.
3) Some posts just made me really sad.
4) Some posts made me think I'm not where I should be or that I'm missing out on things.


So what have I done since I deactivated my facebook account?
Well - I have...

• Vacuumed... a lot
• Decided I'm going to build a bay window seat
• Decided I'm going to build an entry way table
• Decided I'm going to make ruffly curtains for the craft room
• Organized the office

• Reorganized the linen closet
• Moved and reorganized the bookshelf

• Reorganized the craft room
• Dishes
• Unsubscribed to a bunch of junk e-mail (that I still seem to be getting)
• Laundry
• Played with the puppy
• Cleaned the bunnies' room - although it's now no longer theirs
• Went to Costco
• Hung out with my in-laws 
• Balanced the pool chemicals
• Gardened... I GARDENED!
• Took the puppy on walks 
• Bathed the puppy
• Painted the craft room

and still had time to slack off, browse Pinterest and watch way too much 7th Heaven.

romans 8 is very comforting tonight.

"Pinterest Perfect", Keeping Centered on the Creator for Contentment.

Let's be honest here - keeping a house clean is a LOT of hard work! I generally can at least keep the house tidy - but between church activities, a couple quick California trips, work, being slightly depressed (it happens from time to time, no need to worry), the opening of Anthony's studio salon and wanting to spend time with my husband instead of cleaning I feel like our house has turned into this:

But I'm dramatic and emotional and it' probably not THAT bad. However, the dog likes to take the toilet paper and run it around the house when we forget to close the bathroom doors. So that's awesome and totally helps. Hahhaha. But I'll get back into the swing of things and feel like I'm being productive.
Oh the joys of having a puppy :) He's just preparing us for whenever God decides to bless us with munchkins. Hahaha.

But the cool thing about being busy and having a messy house is that it really makes you appreciative of all the things you have and all the things you have to do. I'm thankful that I have a job, that Anthony has been able to open his own studio salon, that we've had the means to take trips back to Cali and visit friends and family, that we have small groups to lead and be a part of and people to do life with. If I didn't have all of those things, my house would be immaculate and all the painting would probably be done a few months ago instead of being almost 9 months since we moved in and it not being done yet. 

While I wish I could have "pinterest perfect" house all the time, I have an "us perfect" house and that's what's important. There are so many people who get bogged down by the pressure of to be "Pinterest Perfect" and quite frankly, I don't get it. I think Pinterest has a lot of things on it that have to do with having pretty things, making pretty things, having an immaculate house and a family that is always picture perfect, but I view it more as a magazine-type thing. I don't think I have to have a house that looks like that to be content or feel like I've succeeded at being a good wife. I think it's a tricky business though - balancing the fantasy of pinterest or magazines or the movies or even the lives of your friends - with reality. Can we do that? Can we look at things on the internet, movies or magazines that appear to be perfect and realize that that is not the life God has for us right at this point? Can we look at it and see that even though something looks perfect that doesn't mean it IS perfect? Can we look at things and not feel pressure? Can we see the pins and posts about keeping your house clean or making the garden look beautiful and take it as something we can learn from instead of something that is expected? My life is never going to be pinterest perfect, but I can learn a lot from the posts and blogs on how to stay organized (though not all the time) and how to save money and keep a better budget, etc. while keeping my focus on reality. As long as I know that the one I am worshiping is Jesus, my heart shall be content in what I have and what I don't. As long as I can keep my heart centered on my Creator instead of His creation, my heart will be content.    And that's what I hope you all can do as well. We shouldn't let pinterest or people we know or magazines or movies make us feel bad about being imperfect and not having it all together. Keep centered on Jesus - on the Cross - on what He did for you. Keep centered on the Creator and be thankful for His creation.  If you keep your life center on God - on what His plan has been and is - keep centered on the fact that He created the world perfectly, then Adam and Eve chose to be disobedient and brought sin into the world, that we were then alienated from God, that He loved us so much and wanted to be in communion with us that He brought Jesus, our Savior, into the world that the sin issue could be resolved and that we could have Jesus' righteousness covering us through His crucifixion and his ressurrection - if we can keep centered on that - no matter what pinterest or magazines or the world throws at us to try and breed discontentment in us - we can remain content in God's good and perfect will for our lives.

My Amazing

...because I am criticized by friends because I don't share my writings and am encouraged in that criticism. I wrote this at church on Sunday (when I should have been listening...but sometimes I get inspired - even if it's not that great - and just have to write.)  I'm also terrified of sharing my poems because they're a part of my heart...and it's been such an incredibly long time since I've written anything that I've even liked. So anyways, here's a private little piece of my heart.

My Amazing
How amazing is my God
that He would love my wretched soul
that He would take my broken heart
and mend me back, way more than whole.
Oh how amazing is my Lord
that He would give eternal life
that I may love and honor Him
and lead me far away from strife.
Oh how amazing is my King
that He would royally bless me
that He will call me home one day
His holy, shining face I'll see.
Oh my amazing Father God
He loves me more than I deserve
that even when I'm falling short
He still grants my heart to serve.
(c) Sara Colello

The Bunnies Are Mad...

This is the story of Charger - because I personally find it to be funny...and other people have to. You may not, but that's ok - you're choosing to read this.

Three weeks ago I started my job and got the flu on my first day. I spent the rest of the week with a fever, feeling terrible and trying to get over it because, really, no one tries to keep the flu. They just don't. Friday morning, still recovering from a fever and refusing to wear anything other than jammies, I staggered down the stairs and promptly made my bed on the couch. At least I left my room, right. Anthony came downstairs, looks at me and says, "Let's get a pig!" Seriously, husband. I don't have time for this. I have a fever. I just want to go back to sleep.
"No."
And then it continues, "Let's get a pig. A micro mini pig. They stay small... how cool would that be to have a little pig...let's get a pig."
"...No."
"No, they stay small."
"No."
This goes on. Some how he ended up going on the internet to do research on getting a micro mini pig. In all seriousness, he was probably doing legitimate research on where to get a pig, how much they cost, what they eat, etc. We're impulsive people. Pets are not excluded from the list of things we tend to be impulsive on. I should make a list of things we are impulsive on...okay, moving on.
"Oh. They can't actually guarantee they stay small. They can get up to 50-100 pounds."
"NO. There will NOT be a pig in my house." Again, let's not forget now that I have a fever.
"We should get a dog."
"ugh..nooooooo." And so it continues until my love left for work. I spent the rest of the day on the couch, feeling quite awful with random, small conversations with Anthony throughout the day involving this dog issue. And then there was a period of time where there was silence, he was working, I had a fever - there was no communication and then it came to me (and this is probably the entire reason why we now have a dog)... if I go along with this, he will realize this is a bad idea. If I just submit to this, it will totally work as reverse psychology. So still having a fever, I called my husband and told him that we should go look at puppies when he gets home. And we did. We went to a pet shop and looked at the dogs and determined that they were all way TOO expensive and that we shouldn't get a dog....well, I thought it meant we shouldn't get a dog. Apparently it just meant that we shouldn't get a dog from a pet store.
I wake up on Saturday and before Anthony leaves for work he tells me that I have one job. "Find me a Goldendoodle in this price range..." hah. Honestly, I didn't think it was going to happen. I've shown dogs, I've known breeders, I bought a dog before. The price range was pretty much impossible. It was awesome we weren't getting a dog. I researched breeders in the area, found numbers, called and texted, and got no responses...that is, until I got a response.
As we were talking, the breeder quoted me based on my California area code and them needed to deliver the dog (they don't ship) to California. When I told her that we were in her area, she dropped the price. She dropped the price to the exact number that Anthony had told me. And we could go look at him that night.
So...a few hours later, we got in the car and drove an hour to look at this puppy. And then we came home with him.

Well, we went to Target first because we now had a dog and nothing for the dog. So I waited in the car while Anthony got the basics: food/water bowl, food, a toy, puppy shampoo (which we think the puppy is allergic to), a collar and a leash. We called my in-laws to pick up a crate, as Target apparently doesn't carry them for impulsive people like us. So now we have a dog. And then Anthony decided to go on a business trip THE NEXT day. Seriously. We had the dog for about 18 hours and then he went on a business trip. Thankfully, that won't happen again...EVER.
But anyways, the bunnies are mad about this. They're like REALLY mad about this. We've had to rearrange the living situations for the moment. The bunnies have been moved to the other side of our baby gate.. into the room we've been trying to keep them out of. They are in the room that is the reason we got the baby gate in the first place. This is ridiculous.  But we're hopeful that we can train the puppy to be with the bunnies and not hurt them. Because really, Charger is a sweetheart. He's crazy. He drives me nuts, but then he's so mellow and sweet.

And the best part about this... Anthony wanted a medium sized dog. A week later, I hear "OH SHOOT!" coming from another room. It was Anthony. He was doing research on Goldendoodles and he had just found out that they can 50-80 pounds. This is not a medium-sized dog. He's doubled in size in 3 weeks. So...that's fun. :)

Praise God!

In life, we are all faced with suffering; momentary affliction. We are constantly being told by society that we deserve the best, we deserve to be happy on our terms, we deserve to do what we want, we deserve the world and, for whatever reason, the world owes us. So we hit suffering, but lash out because we think we don't deserve it - it isn't fair.  But the Bible promises us suffering [Acts 14:22, John 15:20, 1 Peter 4:12, 2 Timothy 3:12]; it promises us that this life will be difficult - because this world has been infiltrated with sin and we don't necessarily belong here. We belong with our Heavenly Father in the New Jerusalem. We must remember that God works all things together for the good of His purpose (Romans 8:28) and that no matter what we are going through it will never overpower or out weigh God's glory. It will never trump His mercy and grace that He showed us at Calvary, where He gave His only Son who knew no sin, to be sin that we could be completely reconciled to God [2 Corinthians 5:21]-- That we could have a right relationship with Him. Christ suffered in ways that we will never suffer - He suffered for the wicked though He is completely innocent. In a way, he was framed - put on trial and received the death penalty while the real criminal got away with murder. Christ suffered, that we can have eternal life - and so we rejoice and praise God. BUT we need to remember that everything we suffer here is momentary; and in suffering unjustly [not just justly], we are given more of an understanding (though not a complete understanding) of what Christ did for us. We need to remember that God has a purpose for all things - and that we are but a miniscule part of a bigger picture, the faintest brush stroke. We need to remember to praise God in ALL circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18); praise Him in suffering as well as times of comfort. We're here for a much bigger purpose. We're here to glorify our Jesus until He returns and brings us home. So praise God at your lowest, praise God for circumstances that you don't understand, praise God for the ways He is growing you in faith, praise God in the sad times and praise Him in the happy times. Praise God for redeeming your soul; for pulling you out of eternal damnation to bring you into eternal life. Praise God. (1 Peter 4:12-19). How great it is to know that our suffering is worth it; that it serves a good purpose.

I leave this post with my go-to verse in times of trial.
Romans 8:18 " For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I hope that you've all had a wonderful holiday celebrating with family and friends. I hope that it was safe. I've realized this past New Year's Eve how silly and responsible we can be. We left our friends' house early, were home by 10 and then started putting away laundry. I know you're jealous of how crazy we can get! It's almost like we're adults....oh wait, that already happened.

So Happy New Year. New Year. New Beginning. But is it really a new beginning? Or do we just make it out to be. It always seems to give us this feeling of a fresh start from our "old ways". A fresh start from the day-to-day routine we fall into that may or may not become monotonous and boring and just plain uninteresting. I feel like it shouldn't be a new beginning, and yet I woke up this morning feeling fresh and ready to conquer. Conquer the laundry that never ends (and we don't even have kids yet!), conquer the dishes, conquer my laziness, conquer my insecurities, conquer the job hunt, conquer the world... Ok - maybe not the world (I may be ambitious, but that's a little too ambitious if you ask me).

Before I go on and make a public declaration of what I intend to do (with God's guidance, mercy, grace, help, and re-direction if He doesn't want them to happen), here's a quick "top 10" things that we experienced in 2012. (well, more like the first 10 happy things I could think of that happened in 2012).

1. We bought our first house!
2. And we learned that appliances break...most of them.
3. We adopted Hershey, our second bunny.
4. Anthony went back to school :)
5. We learned how to balance a pool without a pool guy (thanks to procrastination AND impatience)
6. I made it to my annual ER visit (don't worry - nothing was serious... but I'm getting a good track record on this "once a year ER visit" deal).
7. We learned we will be welcoming another niece into the world in 2013!
8. A's parents moved out here.
9. My momma moved out here.
10. We learned a lot about God's blessings, humility, mercy, love, abundance, care, protection and provision...and that is precious.

And as for the things I intend on doing this year that can only be accomplished WITH God's help, because I am far too lazy and get far too distracted way too easily (oh look, there goes a bunny running up our stairs!).

1. Get closer to God//develop a stronger relationship with my Savior.
2. Read my bible daily//read the entire bible this year
3. Work hard to be a more Proverbs 21 wife//friend/daughter/sister/woman
4. Pray more
5. Love more
6. Finish painting the house
7. Read all 7 HP's.
8. Read more.
9. Make an effort to exercise.
10. Find a job since I'm out of one come Saturday.
11. Visit Ken, Maya, Ryan and Megan.
12. Organize the house.
13. Be more disciplined in ALL areas of my life.
14. See opportunities to serve others more AND be grateful for them.
15. Keep a positive attitude regardless of how I feel.

SO there are serious and important things (like #1 -5) and fun things (#6,11) and things that really don't matter other than they seem fun (#7).  The most important things are at the top, cause let's face it - there's always room for more Jesus and having my life centered on Him more and more will make all other areas that much more attainable; it'll make all other areas that much better, that much sweeter, that much more rewarding, that much more joyful.

SO here's to a fresh start - to a year of focusing on getting close to my Jesus and growing in Him and becoming a better wife for my husband, a better daughter for my moms, a better sister for my siblings, a better friend for my friends, a better woman for anyone I may come in contact with - that they will see Jesus in me and not me in me; that they will see His purpose and not mine; that they will see me and want to get closer to Him. That my life would be just for Him more and more this year. SO here's to a year of new beginnings, that you will be disciplined and work hard to accomplish the things you're working towards, that you would have a year of love and learning and laughter and accomplishments, that you would look back and not think that you've wasted your year, that you would look back and rejoice in the things that occurred. Happy fresh start.
May your joy be found in Jesus, the one who gave His life that we may have a relationship with God and live eternally.
Love to you all,
S

Chistmas and a bad attitude

I'll be the first to admit that I've had a bad attitude - horrible actually. I've been sad and I've been selfish and I haven't been looking forward to Christmas and it's not fun and it's not worth it. Christmas is supposed to be all about celebrating the birth of my (and our) Lord, King, and Savior Jesus Christ. The birth of the God's son who came into this world humbly and beautifully so that He could save my soul and your soul and many others' souls years later - that God would look upon us and see us as perfect as His Son is. And yet here I've been, being upset and sad because I feel like I've had to give up things I don't want to. How merciful my God is that He would humble me in this. Humbled so I can see how selfish I've been in light of the most selfless birth ever to grace our universe. To everyone I've been mopey around and sad around and not very chatty too (though that's probably a perk), I'm so sorry for being selfish and for stealing the joy of the celebration of the most miraculous, wonderful birth ever in the history of eternity. So what if I have to put aside what I want for the benefit of others. I should be gracious and honored to have the privilege to do so.

So now, thankful for the mercy and grace God, Jesus, my family and friends have shown me - I am able to enter this week in thanksgiving. Thankful that I have the honor to celebrate the virgin birth of my King. Thankful that I have things to give up. Thankful that I have family to be with. Thankful that I have time off of work. Thankful that I have the ability to bless others. Thankful that I can be humbled. Thankful that I can be thankful. Thankful that I can learn. Thankful that God is never giving up on me, even when I do. Thankful that God would send His Son through Mary to be born a virgin birth that He would save a heart like mine that so often loses sight of the big picture. Just thankful.

Again, I'm so sorry for my bad attitude and I hope that you can learn from me that it's really not worth it to be selfish, especially when we have the Savior of our souls to celebrate. <3

Peace, love and joy to you. May you have the merriest of all Christmases celebrating our Jesus who loves you so much!

S

JOY Pillows!

Another Christmas Project- inspired by my mother in law (AKA Moms) - because I couldn't sleep as much as I wanted to.

JOY Pillows - front side is grey and yellow and sparkle snowflakes (matches our color scheme), back side is yellow. I know the J is funky - but have you ever tried to do the curves on a sewing machine? Plus I'm new to this whole sewing thing. And anyways, things that don't look store bought are mo' bettah'. ;)

And it's my Grampa's birthday today - so Happy Birthday Grampa :) I love you & hope you have a wonderful day!