Thursday, January 17, 2013

"Stop Being Yourself." Yup, I said it.

As most people have noticed lately, the world is telling us to "just be ourselves" and "express yourself." Hmmm.

When I have an issue, and I'm in need of some work on my heart or attitude, the LAST person I need to consult is myself. I'm the problem in the first place!

Now I know that most of the reason behind the world's view on this is for people to not worry about how they "should be" compared to the rest of the world. That we should "feel good and comfortable in our own skin." We'll yeah, sure, we shouldn't conform ourselves for others.
But the Bible says to live our lives through and in Christ. So if that's how we are to live, but the world says live in our own (human, flesh, sinful,) self, then that would collide with acting stupidly. Like living under the abuse and addiction of drugs, alcohol, self image, homosexuality, ect. You cannot live a life of what YOU think is right and be under the image of Christ. You (I,) have to live in the image of Christ at all times. And if there's something I myself likes or wants to be or do or feel that does not agree with what God says in His Word, then I have to understand why I have to choose against it. Does that make any sense?

So many people today are saying "whatever is right for you, is right for you. And something else can be right for me." Oh my goodness, the millions of problems that leads to!

I guess I could continue down a whole road on that subject and go for miles. But I don't want to right now. I just wanted to get across a main point that I fear we are falling so deep into that is ruining our generation.

First, sure, look at yourself. See what you are and how dirty you are. And then TURN to Christ, and see what HE is. How perfect He is!
"And having been made perfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation," Hebrews 5:9 (NASB)
Let Him live in and through you. Living for yourself will never work, never feel complete and never give you the true full life you desire. It may feel good for a moment, but will lead you down an awful road.

"For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous." Romans 5:19 (NASB)

So, if you truly want your inner heart, your inner desires, and your whole self to be in the image of Christ, then please! Be yourself! But that's a hard place to stay, (because we are all still sinners.) So, I am going to use the personality traits God gave me, and express the woman He made me to be, but be like Christ. It's not easy! And I will fail. Time after time. We all will. Thank the Lord He already forgave us! But I'd choose that battle any day over being just like the rest of the world which will lie to you over and over again.

"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Romans 12:2 (NASB)

t.

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

My Top 5 Beauty Faves

My quick top 5 beauty "secrets"

I don't do a whole lot of research or devote a lot of my time to finding the best beauty options out there, but there's no argument when I come across something that I can honestly say "it's really does work!"

But we all have different bodies, skin, hair, shapes and sizes, not only our clothing size, but even our eye lids are all different. So I know not one thing could possibly work on every girl out there. But, for some ideas to try, (if you haven't already tried these,) keep reading:

1. Too Faced Shadow Insurance - Eye shadow primer that WORKS! I honestly have no idea how I wore eye shadow before I found this. If I skip a day, I always regret it, because my shadow seems to wear off and crease within an hour or so! With this stuff, it'll last the entire day and through!

2. Jergens Natural Glow Express, and Daily Moisturizer. For a copper toned head and fair skinned girl like me, this is the kind of tanning I can work with! I stay away from tanning beds and I'm very careful as too how much sun I allow my skin to absorb. My family has skin cancer history throughout, and I just don't want to play with fire. (No pun intended haha.) The Express is a good start when you need a quick tan. (You can apply once or twice and then continue with the moisturizer.) It's fairly easy to blend in, and though you do need to be careful about small streaks around your wrists or ankles, it's not hard to use and it won't make you look like an oompa loompa! The Daily Moisturizer is what you can use daily as a lotion, SPF 20 sun screen, and plus it's keeps up the good looking bronze! It doesn't stain your hands either. With either one, you can use it less or more depending on how much color YOU want. (Don't let a bottle decide for you how tan you need to be. He's normally wrong.)

3. Bikini Zone Anti Bumps Shaving Gel and Medicated Cream. No matter how you deal with it, taking care of that bikini area is an obnoxious pain. Bikini Zone products really are pretty nice. The gel is great for the shower and then applying the cream afterward actually does work. Let's be real, no one wants to see an embarrassing amount of red bumps lining those cute bathing suit bottoms! Not to mention, ouch!!

4. Loreal Infallible Plumping (that's a word?) Lipgloss. Now, I know not all of us are huge fans of gloss. It's sticky, wears off quickly, and sticks to your hair as soon as the wind slightly picks up. But I have to say, I like this gloss! It's more of a color with gloss anyway. It seems to really last too. Have I timed myself wearing it to see how long? No. But every time I do wear it, I'm pleasantly surprised to see how long it lasts before it wears off. I mean let's be real (again) here, The commercials tell us we can wear a certain lipstick for a whole eight hours while eating drinking, kissing our boyfriend, then a baby's forehead, and then some more drinks, and it's STILL NOT GONE! Yeah.... about that. I'm not sure that's even possible, unless you really stain your lips. So though you might need to fix 'em up a bit after you eat, I don't think it'll kill you. But for wanting your lips to last for more than a couple hours, try this one! Lots of greats shades to choose from too! My personal pick for an everyday look, is "806 Plumped Tawny."

5. Dove Go Sleeveless. I just recently started using this, as I saw the add for it. It's supposed to be good for bumps and irritation. My under arms happen to have quite the problem with that, and I'm a shave-very-often girl. So I bought it. And so far, I like it. It does soften and reduce irritation. But I know some of you need more sweat protection, or something that smells fresh or fruity. This is fragrance free unfortunately. And since it's currently below freezing where I live, I haven't had much of a chance to see if it holds up to my sweat level yet. I'll wait for summer for that.

Ok, one more *bonus* product I want to share. 6. Clinique Moisture Surge, tinted Moisturizer SPF 15. I LOVE this stuff! I don't like to wear a liquid foundation every day. But I also need to even out my skin tones on my face, and liquid helps that more than anything. So, this stuff is my hero. It is a liquid, and it acts like a foundation, but it's not as heavy, not as thick, and it helps your skin at the same time! I use it a lot more often for a foundation. Plus, the SPF is good for summer when I'm headed to the lake for the day. :)


Well, those are just a few of my favorite beauty secrets, that aren't really secrets. ;)

If you have any you'd like to share, I'd love to hear them!

t.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Facebook: some good, some not so good.

So lately I've been thinking about Facebook: the pros and cons.

Is Facebook consuming the qualities we have to communicate with each other? Or even replace our inner heart's privacy?

I had a moment of realization though, tonight, about how years ago, when Facebook didn't exist, much less all things Internet, everyone did just fine. People would get together and actually talk about each others lives, and life itself. It was mystery or exciting.

Sure, with the Internet, there are many pros that come along with it, including staying in touch with friends and family who live miles away, even oceans away. And I'm grateful for it in that way!
But I feel as though everyone uses it as an excuse to spend their lives on it like everything depends on what Facebook says. Like its the only form of communication worth using anymore. When you read about each others lives on Facebook every day, when do you even just get together over coffee and talk like you don't already know what's going on?

People waste plenty of time scanning through, yes- some amusing or interesting, but just meaningless amounts of stuff; nothing that beats going outside in the fresh air and doing something more important with your life.

One thing I've noticed over the past few years is how people tend to "over-share." When someone is struggling, they'll post a prayer or religious thought for all their friends to see. But I wonder if they spend the same amount of time actually just talking with their Maker, or praying about the real matter in silence to the world? A lot of things just need to be kept between you and God. Sure, you can (and a lot of times need to) share with maybe a few trustworthy people who will be of true support or encouragement. But you don't need to outwardly secretly (figure that one out) share with your 500 "friends." Yes, of course there are a few times when you want to tell the whole world (i.e. you're free of cancer, you're engaged, ect.) but not EVERYTHING needs to be shared like that. Mostly to those whom you don't know or even care about. (Admit it, you don't care nearly as much about other people's Facebook info as what you hope others will see from yours)

Now obviously tons of Facebook is dedicated to businesses and artists alike. That's great! I'm just talking about the personal time and communication.

Anyway, like I said, I know there are pros- good and useless. But Facebook is not the only thing in life that matters.

t.

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Christmas Joy

Just some photos to share from my Christmas! Love my family!











































Sunday, December 23, 2012

Christmas Is Here.

Christmas time is here;
All who gather near,
To celebrate the birth,
Of Christ on this small earth.

We decorate the trees,
And place the gifts beneath,
With friends and family around,
We drink and dine and wine;

With toasts of good cheer,
Starting letters with dear,
We hug a little tighter,
And speak a little lighter.

When the clouds open up,
We watch the snow fall,
The world turns pure white,
And our hearts are full and bright;

So greetings we exchange,
To neighbors and to strangers;
We cook a lot of food,
And bake some cookies too.

But always on Christmas morning,
Before the ribbons fly,
We stop and sit in quite,
And listen to those fine lines;

On this day so long ago,
A baby boy was born;
Called a king born from a stable,
He came to be our Savior.

Never forget the true meaning of Christmas,
For He was too great for sinners,
But He loved us still,
And came until,
His life was taken thirty years later.
But because He came and relived again,
We have been given life through Him.

So thank the Lord for safety in this World,
And share with others the Gospel.
Then say a little prayer,
For all who draw near,
That Christmas time is (always) here.





Tuesday, December 18, 2012

31 Days | Dec. 9th-15th

"Glamour is a shooting star, it catches your eye, but fades away, beauty is the sun always brilliant day after day." ~Mike Dolan

Ok, so maybe I lost a little inspiration last week.. And it's taken me a little longer to put together "this week's" (last week's) post. Wait, am I not supposed to tell you that? Uh well.. just being honest ;)

Sunday: That Little Black Dress.

One of my favorite dresses I own. It's simple, all lace, with exposed zipper on the back.But when the air is on the lower side, I tend to layer up. So I wore black tights, and a black long sleeve top underneath the dress.

My necklace is silver and light blue, and quite spunky. Eye shadow shades of purple. Grey boots to the finish.




Monday, oh Monday.
Mixed up colors with green long sleeve and an almost plum thick sweater, and brown corduroy pants. A bronze charm necklace to add the sparkle.




Tuesday. Oh wait, I forgot. :P

Tuesday was a Christmas shopping day with my sister and mom. (Photo below.) So, I wore something easy and somewhat more comfortable to wear for the day going in and out of stores. But I didn't get a picture of what I wore. So instead, here's what I decided to do with my nails, and for a girl who really hates painting her nails (due to the stubborn work and pain in the butt it is,) it was somewhat impressive.. lol




Wednesday: Just a good ol outfit.

A couple of layered sweaters, jeans, and riding boots. Need I say more?




Thursday: Euro Style..?

Not sure what to call this piece, but I found it in an adorable little boutique on a side street in Barcelona Spain. (From a overseas trip I took a couple months ago.) It's kind of a mix of a pullover, jacket, sweatshirt... thingy.. Anyway, it's a thin layer of cotton, so not too hot or heavy, and is two toned with a forest green and lime green. Something different to add to my closet!




Friday:

I didn't catch a photo for this outfit. So I'll share something else, new, that I have. I found this cutie at the Loft, for just $29.99! I actually haven't worn it yet, but I have many ideas, just not the right day yet! I'll let ya know when I finally do ;)



Saturday: Snow!!

Yes, it was snowing, hence the crazy photo op. But I spent the day in my pinkish/corolish pants, stone boots, a leopard print top, a jean button up shirt, and a hand-put-together-by-me necklace with 4 vintage keys dangling.




Here's one last picture of the new nail color my friend and I found/bought last week. :)



Well, that's it for week 2!

Promise to do better this week! I just needed some inspiration ;)

Christmas is SO close! YAY!!

t.
"But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7

Friday, December 14, 2012

This is SO much more than just a disastrous assult...This goes deep down to the root.

Tragedy.

This morning marks the day in so many lives that will live in their hearts, tragically, forever.

Today was the day that a man decided to take the lives of an entire kindergarten class, plus others, in a small town in Connecticut, in what has become the second worst school shooting in history for the U.S.

So of course, people immediately start blaming, what? The gun(s). Yes, of course, the gun itself made the decision to make it's owner walk into a school and take out so many innocent lives.

Bull. (excuse my french thought)

No, this is NOT a gun control issue. This is a HEART issue. What have we done in the past couple of decades? We have totally taken God and truth (which are one in the same) out of our schools. (And many other places obviously.) But we are telling our children that they were just an accident. They have no purpose in life. No reason. No truth. Nop hope. What seems right or wrong to them, is just their truth. And we can all have our own truths to live by. HOW IS THAT SUPPOSED TO WORK?!?!?

I can barely write these words without getting so furious I want to throw my computer across the room.

And you think gun control will solve our problem? Let's see, drugs are illegal. Well, we still have tons of druggies.. People STILL find a way to get their drugs, or sell. Alcoholic drinking underage is illegal. Kids STILL find a way to drink before the proper age. Guns, if we were to make a gun control law, well guess what? People would STILL find a way to have guns, and they would STILL use them tragically! The only thing the law would do would be taking them away from law abiding citizens who actually use them for safety!

It's about the people who are using them for wrong. It's their hearts that are torn inside, and did not have a hope. Whether they are angry, depressed, or just mentally ill, they are still the ones that made the decision to do what they did. And sin has consequences.

Think about the lives that could be saved in the schools, movie theaters, malls, ect. if we were just able to defend ourselves..

Ok, I need to calm down. What's done is done. All we can do right now is PRAY for the families and loved ones affected by this absolute devastation. And PRAY for this nation!! Pray that this country would turn back to God, and realize HE is what we need!

To turn our faces away from Him is the true tragedy of this world.

t.

"God be gracious to us and bless us, And cause His face to shine upon us- Salah. That Your way may be known on the earth, Your salvation among all nations." Psalms 67:1-2