Being Content

Being content.  This is an area in my life where God is working on me.  You know how sometimes you realize an area of weakness in your life?  Well, I have had that realization lately.  I'm a very driven person.  I like to move forward, always looking ahead.  This is a good trait, but it can also be detrimental.  Propelling yourself forward can have benefits.  It can help you elevate your career, reach goals, and grow personally and spiritually; however, it can also cause discontent in life.  When I become so focused on the next thing I can become blind to the multitude of blessings the Lord has placed in front of my face.  For instance, I think about moving somewhere different or getting a second dog or buying a new car and on and on it goes.  You see what I mean?  I no longer give thanks  for my wonderful life, but instead of become discouraged and frustrated with my current status.  

I think about a sermon I heard by Christine Caine called Embrace Your Place.  God has placed each of us in a certain set of circumstances through which He intends to move through.  The only problem is, we as idiots, get bored and grow restless.  When I grow restless I become negative and complain instead of giving praise.  When I look around I see an amazing husband and family, an adorable dog that steals my heart, a perfect job, an emerging new group of friends, the Lord's provision abounds.  I do not notice.  I want to learn to embrace my place, to see the abundant amount of blessing that surrounds because this is the place the Lord has given me and I will be content with that.      

 

Liebster

I am so excited and grateful to share that I have been chosen to receive the Liebster Award.  My sweet friend Megan over at and today was a fairy tale chose to share this award with me.  I have found such a niche with blogging, especially being able to meet such beautiful women who I would never have the opportunity to meet otherwise.  Megan is one of the first bloggers that I connected with.  Her blog is so full of passion and her faith always shines through.  Plus, she lives in Florida near the beach which is pretty awesome and totally my lifelong dream :).  I love being able to share my life with you all, as small as it may be.  Being able to have this space and to receive daily encouragement is a complete blessing in my life.  So without further ado here is all the information you need to know about the Liebster award.  

1. choose five up and coming blogs to give the award to. blogs must have less than 200 followers.
2. show your thanks to the blogger who gave the award to you by linking back to their page.
3. post the award on your blog.
4. list the bloggers you gave the award to with links to their blogs, and leave a comment on their blogs to let them they received the award.
5. share five random facts about yourself.

Here are the five amazing women I would like to give this award to:
*Leslie over at The Dearmans-  Leslie is one of dear friends.  We met in college while studying in Peru.  Her sweet little family is precious to me and I love reading about her adventures through motherhood.  


*Allison at Nestful of Love-  Allison is always posting awesome recipe and cute craftiness. I also love that she married her high school sweetheart, just like me.


*Amy at Fit New Mama-  Amy is also an NC State girl with an adorable new baby boy.  Her fitness tips and post-pregnancy stories are so inspirational.  She makes me want to get in shape, seriously.

*Tamara at T Times 3- Tamara is a sweet southern girl sharing her life with her new hubby and furbabies.  I love reading about her adventures in Raleigh since that is where I lived for 4 years during college.  

*Breanne at My World Resting on Your Love-  I love reading Breanne's blog simply because her faith in the Lord is palpable.  She is a great inspiration in faith and I love that she and her husband have a heart for missions, so adorable. 


Now for my five facts about myself.  
1. I love ricotta cheese, yum!
2. I hate driving, especially parking.
3. I have extremely large feet.
4. I love reality tv, especially The Bachelor/Bachelorette
5. I hate scary movies and refuse to watch them, romantic comedies or bust!


Now that you know a little more about me, go check out the 5 blogs above and learn about them.  You won't be disappointed. 

Honeymoon Link Up

Today I am joining Jena over at Recently Roached for a fun Honeymoon Link Up.  Whenever I think about my honeymoon I get so happy.  It was an amazing week with my new husband.  We wanted to take a memorable trip and decided on St. Lucia.  We stayed at the Sandals Grande resort and it was incredible.  Every time I look at the photos I cannot believe how relaxed and happy we look.  It was the perfect way to relax after the wedding and enjoy our first week of marriage.  It is a beautiful island full of adventurous activities, beautiful beaches that promote laziness, and service at your fingertips.  I cannot wait to go back one day.

 

Ziplining with George of the Jungle

Top of Pigeon Island.  Caribbean Sea to the right, Atlantic to the Left.

Drive in Volcano Tour

Mud Bath with the mud from the volcano

Botanical Garden, Diamond Falls

Town of Soufriere and the Piton Mountain

Sad to leave

Will Power

Lately Brandon and I have been working on getting back into shape and eating right.  We have been making a conscientious effort to cut calories, go to the gym more often, and encourage each other in the area of physical health.  As a married couple we encourage each other emotionally, spiritually, and mentally, but not so much in the area of taking care of our bodies.  Brandon just completed an 8 week fitness challenge at our local YMCA and he did a amazing job.  The challenge was to go to the gym 4 times a week and try a new activities at least once a week.  I was so proud of him and he definitely saw the results.  He lost 8 lbs., cut 10% of his body fat, and added 20 lbs of lean muscle.  It has been amazing to see him so dedicated and it has definitely served as motivation to me.  I didn't officially take part in the challenge, but I did tag along with him unofficially. 

For me, it is more about being healthy.  Yes, I want to lose the weight and feel good about myself, but more than that I want my heart and soul to be healthy for years to come.  I also find this an exercise in will power.  The Lord created our bodies as a temple, but He also gives us free will to choose.  Normally, if I'm not going to a group exercise class, I find it extremely difficult to workout on my own in a vigorous manner that really makes a difference.  I am quickly finding that I need to push myself.  As a sit here in a sweaty stupor I reflect on what I just did.  I just finished running 3 miles straight and I never thought I would be able to run that far on my own will power.  The Lord has given us amazing bodies that we can decide to push.  It's all mental folks.  Your body can do so much more than you think it can.  It is overcoming your mental blocks to reach that potential.  As I continue to run and my legs start to ache I have to tell myself just one more minute.  Then I reach the minute and pick a new goal.  As Christ believes in us and sees our potential, we too need to see the potential in ourselves.  Not only is this about encouraging one another to stay fit, but it is an exercise in spiritual health.  Every day I have a new appreciation for these amazing bodies the Lord has equipped us with.  Now we just have to learn their true capabilities. 

Strawberry Pickin'

Today my sweet husband came up with the brilliant idea to go strawberry picking.  He is so sweet because he knows how easily I get bored and he tries to come up with ways to entertain me.  Since strawberry season came early this year, we were able to go.  We headed out to a small town nearby in South Carolina.  Before going to the farm we ate lunch at my favorite deli, which I never get to go to because it is about 35 minutes from our house, but since it was near the strawberry farm I got to treat myself.  Needless to say, my tummy was very happy.  After a delicious lunch we drove over to the farm.  It was only $10 to pick an entire gallon of strawberries.  It was so much fun to pick the sweet fruit and I had to restrain myself from eating them straight off the plant.  The smell was incredible.  By the way, a gallon strawberries is a TON of strawberries.  We are going to be eating strawberries with every meal for the next week at least.  

 

Once we finished picking our gallon of berries we headed back to the little farmer's market that the farm owns and got some homemade strawberry ice cream.  It was divine.  It was a great day spent in the sunshine with my love.  Much better than sitting on the couch or playing Draw Something on the phone for hours on end.  Now I just need to find some yummy strawberry recipes, Pinterest here I come! 

Spending Time

This weekend the hubs and I headed off for a weekend for just the two of us.  Being married you see each other all of the time, yet you don't always spend quality time with one another.  The daily routine, work, cooking dinner, meeting obligations, and keeping up a home quickly interfere with the puppydog love, honeymoon phase of a marriage.  It is crucial that you invest in your spouse, take time to just be with one another and to enjoy life together.  It's often difficult to carve out this special time for one another and you get entranced in the rhythm of life that you don't take time each day to grow your relationships.  I was definitely starting to feel this way and it was time to get out of town for some QT, so we headed down to the ATL. 

We have always wanted to take a weekend trip to Hotlanta, but have never planned one.  Being that my school is on Spring Break, we took the opportunity to pack up our bags and head out for a weekend of fun.  I can tell you, it was so refreshing!  Just being in a new city was invigorating.  I love spending time with Brandon.  I mean really spending time together.  This probably resulted in me being a bad blogger because I didn't take pictures of every moment, but hey there are a few.  We ate candy, cuddled in a king size bed, and visited the many attractions that Atlanta has to offer. 

First we stuffed our faces at the original Chick-fil-a.  It was a Dwarf House, so they serve not only traditional Chick-fil-a dishes, but also other foods like mac n' cheese and cornbread.  It was so delicious!  

Then we checked into our wonderful hotel in midtown, which we booked off Priceline.  A 4-star hotel for cheap!  We changed clothes, and headed to Stone Mountain for some hiking and to enjoy the laser show.  Stone Mountain is a beautiful park with lots of activities.  We hiked to the top of the mountain and let me tell you, it was not an easy hike, but Brandon is an awesome motivator.  It was a really cool experience.  Once you make it to the top it is a 360 view of Atlanta and surrounding areas.   Then we checked out the laser show, which they project onto the side of the mountain while cuddling on a picnic blanket.
  

After a full day we were exhausted and headed back to rest up for a fun filled Sunday.  On Sunday, we headed to the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coca-Cola.  The aquarium was amazing!  We saw the dolphin show where we got to sit on the second row of the auditorium.  Those creatures are incredible.  The aquarium is huge and it took us almost 4 hours to get through it all.  They have whale sharks, beluga whales, penguins, otters, and all kinds of sea animals.  We thoroughly enjoyed it.  The World of Coke was also fun and we got a bottle of coke that was bottled right before our eyes.  We also got to try different coke products from around the world.  They even had Inca Cola from Peru, which took me back to the summer I studied there.  It was a great day!

It was a wonderful weekend, but my favorite part was spending it with my love.  Finding those moments to experience new things together and to nurture your marriage are so important and uplifting.  Even if you can't go on a mini vacay, find small ways to spend time together.  It will do wonders for you!