Before it's here it changes your life

I am so excited to be prego! I tell you what, it has changed my life already and baby Madison isn't even here yet. (Every time I say baby Madison I think people are going to think we are naming the baby Madison, but then it would be Madison Madison and we are just not that crazy). He or she is due at the end of June or beginning of July, which seems so far away and yet so close. I think until I develop a belly the reality of what is happening has not set in yet. I am 11 weeks and going in for my first ultrasound next Tuesday. That will be an amazing moment to finally see a baby in my belly.

BUT, I am definitely having those lovely prego symptoms:
- Sick
- Tired
- Forgetful
- Clumsy ( I am telling you this child has already taken my brain)
- Did I mention TIRED
- Headaches

I am sure I am forgetting something, but you get the gist. As much as those things might be an inconvenience I am still so excited to be pregnant. It changes your life instantly. I have to take more vitamins, be careful of how I exercise, getting rest, what I eat. I am already responsible for another life before they are even actually here.

It is quite amazing to think that I am as we speak forming a new life. God is knitting together a child in His image for Steve and I to care for and raise up as a fully devoted follower of Christ. An independent, kind and compassionate person who contributes to society and to others (well that is of course what I pray). It really is amazing, that God has blessed us with this child. I can say that I did not know when He would allow this in our lives. I knew He promised it to us, I knew we were meant to be parents, but you just never know when God will unveil His promises.

That has been the greatest miracle to me. Go told us that a child was in our future. He spoke this to me in my prayers and in the moments I watched other become parents and rejoiced with them while inside wishing for that in my own life. What I do know about God is that He knows when we are ready when we may not. We are ready now (as ready as you can be to be a parent), and he has placed each step needed in front of us by His grace. I still feel undeserving.

On another note...I would say my best prego moment so far is dumping a can of beans in the blender (including the lid) and turning it on. Ah, the sound of blended metal :) I thought in my head I may have dropped the lid in and the normal Laura would have looked, yet prego Laura just let it slide... And knives, just take them away, I have the motor skills of a 2 year old :)

The second best part about being pregnant is being 8 weeks behind my sister. It is her first child and I am excited to share the experience with her!
- Cravings (Luckily this doesn't happen to often, but when it does, watch out!)

Right about now is about that time

So I am moving back to part-time in my job starting in September ( possibly no time, but we will see) and I am really excited! The hours I have been working are getting overwhelming and the limited time I have for my health and home have started to wear on me. You could say I am wanting to nest (except I'm not pregnant). I know nesting is supposed to happen when you are pregnant, but maybe it's because I am hoping to be pregnant this year and I am just getting a head start!

It has been fun to watch my friends have kids, to walk with friends that are trying and some that are pregnant now. There is joy in all of it and some sorrow, but mostly joy. A baby is such a blessing from God and I can't wait to be a part of the prego community one day! (Whenever God thinks we are ready)

It's fun to dream about and talk about with Steve, every time we get in the car for more that 10 minutes we are always talking about names. Good names, bad names, names that mean something to us. He is going to be a great daddy one day. I really can't wait to see him with our kids, he's so much fun to watch with everyone else's kids I can't imagine when it is ours.

Anyway...enough on that, time to get back to work, lunch is over :)

10 years, what has changed????

Our 10 year high school reunion is being planned, and I can't believe it has been 10 years to be honest. I sat looking at my senior yearbook and reminiscing about who I was, the choices I made and where I am now.

I still remember so many of the little things, being a gym assistant during my study hall, which if you didn't do this you missed out, chocolate milk and mac n cheese ( all the things they are taking out of schools now), the sound system in the HUGE guys locker room while female athelets got a much smaller pitful locker room with a portable boombox ( if we brought one), all of the dances and the fear of finding a date :)

I smiled at how we all looked, dressed, and at the though of who was "popular" and the kids who could do nothing but be mean and obnoxious to most for whatever reason. Maybe they were acting out because of their home, maybe it's because they didn't know how else to act, maybe it's because they were not taught how to treat people or maybe they just wanted to fit in... I realize how that could be intimidating at times, but now I just look back and am sad that I never stood up for myself or others watching the already fragile confidence of any high school student torn down a bit more.

I tried to fit in or at least blend in, but always felt out until I eventually found Christ the summer before my junior year. At that point I wasn't scared, and I didn't care because I knew that they could not affect my life unless I let them. I had my friends, my sports, my activites and my family and beyond that it just didn't matter. I made alot of mistakes during high scool, but I guess that is how we learn and grow.

It is sad now to see people commenting on our reunion with the same bitterness and sadness now, feeling that they are not liked and not appreciated as a person. I'm sure there are still a few that will bring on the jokes and the put downs, (though I would love to be wrong on this assumption), but it's only because they still don't know how to communicate and just get to know people. I hope that whoever does go to the reunion has fun and can put high school issues to rest. It's supposed to be a time to see how far we've come and to reconnect with old friends and maybe make some new ones :)

I think about all of the drama that was high school and that for me it is gone. I love keeping in touch with the few AW grad's that I appreciate and I love the life in Atlanta and the wonderful husband I now have. I can look at high school and smile about it, which is the way it should be...

Taking the BIG leap...

By next Saturday my dear sister will be getting married, which is hard for me to believe. She is not old enough! (Ok, maybe she is, but I'll never believe it). She has grown up into a strong independent woman that I am very proud of. There has been so much on her plate and she is getting through it, with some stress, but yet smiling and remembering to breath.

She is marrying my soon to be brother in-law Gordon, who I also think has so much potential. I don't get to spend as much time around him being so far away, but I do know he works hard and truly cares for Sam. So here are some words of wisdom from my whopping 4 years of marriage for them...

- Let God be the center of your marriage, moving closer to HIM is the way to move closer to each other.

- Marriage is about change and compromise. Be willing to change and adapt as you are blending two worlds together into one. You will find out that the way you two were raised and how you like things done may have to be modified to fit your new family. My hubby has a great illustration:

Think of it as a house. You will each bring furniture from your separate houses, some of his will fit and some of hers will fit, but in some spaces nothing will fit and you get to pick out NEW furniture together :) Which can be lots of fun!!!

It is that same with each day, you will start new traditions and modify old ones.

- COMMUNICATE, I mean over communicate, communicate until you think the other person is tired of you communicating. Talk with each other and get in the habit of making decisions together and talking openly about how you feel and what's going on. If you can't be open and honest with your spouse you will never get to the marriage God has for you. Give all of yourself to each other, though it may take time to get there keep fighting for it.

- Pay attention to your unrealistic expectations. There are things you both think the other person should be doing or saying, but they may not have a clue that you feel that way. It is even possible to have those expectations subconsciously and not realize why we are upset with the other person or feeling hurt and let down. Assess your feelings and hurts before deciding you are angry.

- Don't spend time being annoyed with what you don't like about your spouse or how he folds the towels, or washed the dishes, they are just not worth it. Have patience and grace with one another and remember to lift each other up with your words and actions, because that breeds a positive healthy marriage.

- Do not disprespect each other in front of others, it will make a woman feel unloved and embarrassed and make a man feel disrespected.

- Finally, though there are so many other things I could write about, just laugh together each day, have fun, be in love and never give up fighting for a better marriage, it never ends, but the results of the hardwork are worth every moment!

And Sam, enjoy your kittens (yes Gordon you are marrying the cat lady!)

Candida, think you don't have it, you may...

I started juicing to fix my candida and parasite problems, which are now back to candida, parasites are gone! ( that was a 2 year process) I am getting ready to order the book: The Juice Ladies Guide to Juicing for Health by Cherie Calbom.

She herself was sick for years and doctors just couldn't help, and so she began juicing and saved her own life. It's a very informative cook book about all types of illnesses and ailments that truly help the body fight without medicine. I know it can take more time and planning, but like with anything else, once you get the hang of it, it becomes much easier. The hard things are never quick, but usually the most beneficial.

So you ask what is Candida??? It is yeast that occurs naturally in the digestive tract, it is harmless in small amounts, but when we eat to much in the way of breads, sugars, fruits, etc... we can allow the yeast to grow and take over our bodies causing, rashes, allergies, aching joints, headaches, weight gain, mood swings, anxiety, gas, flatulence, bloating, dizziness, food cravings, and even more painful PMS symptoms for women (you get the picture). It doesn't do anything good for our bodies. The list of problems can go on for days.

You would be amazed at how many people suffer from this and don't realize it. But think about how we eat... We have fast food, everything processed and full of sugars that our body was never made to process correctly. The candida grows and attached to organs, flows through our blood stream and begins to shut down the body and the immune system is compromised.

I grew up eating meat and potatoes, with some sort of bread at dinner most nights. Also, processed snacks and not enough living foods. The only place we should shop in the grocery store is the outside of the store. it is where all the living whole foods are, while the processed food fill up the other 85% of the store.

So how can you tell if you have it? If you go to a more comprehensive website and see that you have many of these symptoms, change your diet for 2 weeks and see how you feel. Changing your diet means cutting out all things that turn to sugar in the body. You may have uncomfortable die off symptoms (possibly flu like symptoms), but it's OK, it means you are ridding yourself of the excess candida. If you don't feed the candida it cannot survive and will leave the body.

I know this sounds like no fun (which at times it isn't), but once I have it under control, I can have different foods and desserts once in a while with no problems, so don worry :)

PS. Another discovery that was interesting, you know those floaters you get in your eye sometimes that the doctor says have to go away on their own and there is nothing they can do about it??? It could be due to candida build up in the body!

Juicing!!!

Today I bought myself a juicer. (Thank you Kohl's discounts and Cassie!) Why you ask??? I have had health issues for years and I am finally winning my health back and this is the next step to the nutrients my body needs and desires. Today I tried my first juicing recipe, which includes the following:

Liver and Gallbladder Rejuvenator: Organic when possible*

- 3-4 carrots (tops and ends cut off and washed well)
- 1 lemon (seeds removed)
- 1/2 beet with stems and leaves (washed well)
- 1/2 granny smith apple
- 1 inch piece of ginger


I have to admit I was nervous to drink it, I mean it could be gross, but it actually had a nice ZING from the lemon and ginger and hasn't been to bad.


It is actually hard to drink the whole glass as it is very filling, but I am hoping for results similar to my mom who has also entered the world of juicing! She is feeling great and energized!

I think this is that last leg of my journey and I get to move on with life and so I am ready and excited!

On another note... I can NOT believe my sister Sam will be a wife in just 3 short weeks! Looking forward to a week of family time!

Pineapple diet, what??????

Yes, I have been on a pineapple diet for 6 days now, 4 more to go and it has been the MOST amazing thing I have donein a very long time. Now I know it sounds crazy to think that eating only pineapple and drinking water for days, but I have removed all sorts of toxins and parasites from my aching body. I am more flexible, my skin feels like butta ( that's slang for butter, hehe) and I couldn't be happier. I know you are dying to know ALL the benefits, results and how it actually works, so stop the worrying and keep reading....

First before you want to know WHY you should do it, of course we all like to know how it will benefit us... It regenerated elasticity in the lungs, lowers blood pressure, increases flexibility, expells parasites, cleanses the colon, liver, etc, helps with gout, improves the skin, helps you loose weight and so much more! What is amazing is this is something God gave us to naturally improve our body and NOT spend a fortune doing it!!!!

So how it works is simple... Eat Pineapple, as MUCH as you want each day and drink plenty of water. make sure it is fresh pineapple only, then juice it, cut it blend it whatever you liek, get creative. This fast should last 3-10 days, no less no longer. At least 3 pineapples should be consumed in the 3 days and obviously more if you continue.

I'm sure you are worried about the acidity of pineapples, so here are some tips for that. First, a ripe pineapple will be sweet. We are not used to that because pineapples are never left growing until they are ripe and sweet because by the time they were shipped to stores they would rot, and so we get them early. If they are ripe they will not hurt your mouth. Also, juicing them or making them a smoothie allows them to more quickly pass the mouth also helping with the fear of sores and pain.

I have been amazed, simply, amazed at how this has worked and started improving my health... It is worth it!

Brain Dump For Your Thoughts.....

Sometimes I wish I was able to write my thoughts more clearly, I think I used to be able to do that, but as with any other skill you have to practice to keep it up.

Tis' the season of life to watch everyone around me having babies, and i love it and love to watch every precious child brought into this world and see how it changes lives every moment of every day.

I, am ready for this journey in my life, yet the timing is not here. I see how ready Steve is, yet how patient he can be knowing that it is not time yet. Sometimes I feel like I will never be healthy and it will never be the right time, but then I realize that this is Satan putting lies in my head. I KNOW that God has called me to be a mother and so I come back to that always.

A few weeks ago, God clearly told me that He will bless me with a child when I return to Him in a devoted way that I have not felt for so long. Now this seems like a no-brainer, but it has been a push and a shove back. Everyday I have to make a CHOICE to be near God. Every day You have to make a choice to be near to God. It is the only choice that can truly change our lives in the most beautiful way.

I am in a group of young married leaders, wonderful women whom I am pleased to be walking with this year and we talked about journaling and writing what we think God would say to us. I tried that yesterday and wanted to share what he had to say to me because I think He wants others to hear and know this too.

"My sweet Laura. I love you and I miss you. I have great plans for your life, just let me in to cover you with love, confidence, joy, peace, patience and kindness. I don't know why you won't stop ignoring me. You have ALL the time in the world, but you act like you don't. Come to me and I will heal you. I want you to have kids and grow them in my ways. I want you to love your husband selflessly. Let you inhibitions go."

I have so much work to bear fruit, but I know that if God says He will do something He will as long as we seek Him with all our heart!