Shape up!

In the common season where I realize, "oh man! it's time to shape up!" I always reach for two of my favorite DVDs to tone up and lose some inches. It's perfect for someone like me who doesn't want to pay for a gym membership and who has a little one around.

This first DVD is the 10 Minute Solution Pilates. It has a menu consisting of "Abs," "Buns and Thighs," "Flexibility," "Pilates Burn," and "Arms/Upper Body." Each segment is ten minutes and you can customize your workout so that it will play them in any order you desire! I usually start with flexibilty followed by two other segments.

 

The second DVD set I reach for is (ok dont laugh at me!) "Core Rhythms."



I got the set at Target a few years ago and it has been such a great and fun way to work out! There are 4 or 5 different dance styles including 45 minute routines to each. I absolutely love it and it makes working out challenging yet fun (especially if you get your very graceful husband to do it with you! ;) )

With both programs I can tell in just a few days that I'm melting away! Even Joseph who does P90X has joined me for both workouts and says it is a challenge!

Direction

This morning I was reminded of how blessed we are that we are given specific direction and encouragement on how to live our lives. In a world where most things are considered to be relative and are clouded by emotion, we have the very word of God to straighten us out and wake us up as to say, "hello!? I'm here with the answers to your life! I'm trying to show you what to do to have complete peace and direction!" God's Word gives us purpose with its direction. We are not meant to live lives of confusion and desperation, but of security and peace. Here is a passage that I have read a million times, but it is so applicable and extremely fundamental to our EVERY DAY and EVERY MOMENT lives. The God who created you says:

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves, not looking to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."

What a practicality. Have an opportunity to choose to say, "It doesn't matter how I feel or what I really want, what you would like or desire is more important?" What a difficult realization! We decide to fulfill others' interests above our own. This triumphs every area of our lives whether it be deciding what should be for dinner or who should take out the trash. This is all in an effort to create unity, but why is unity so important? Because we are to have the mindset of Christ Jesus to fulfill his good purpose for our lives.

I love God's direction on this issue because not only does He direct us on a practical level, and then show us WHY we are to fulfill this command, but He shows us HOW.

So HOW are we to be humble in fulfilling verse 3? The answer lies within the following verses:

Remember Christ.

"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself  by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!"

I'm not sure about you, but if the very God of the universe humbled Himself to become the lowest of low, I should not have a problem yielding to the interests of others no matter how vital or flippant the subject or issue.

Empowerment to live our lives the way Christ intends not only comes with freedom and fulfillment, but it keeps our focus off the things of this world and on the cross. .

The glorious cross



Picasa Collage

I absolutely love Picasa. Picasa is Google's free photo editing and organization program. There are so many neat things you can do with your pictures! Here is a cute little collage I threw together last night!

Sleep Time~our little cuddle bug

Inslee is in love with dolls and stuffed animals! She loves to pull all of her friends in for a good snuggle at nap time!

As we are starting to nail down Inslee's sleep schedule, our favorite lullaby is, "Goodnight, My Love."

Cousins :)

We are so excited that we have been able to spend time with Evan, my sister, Haley and her husband, Richard's son! He is such a cutie and finally slowed down to love on some Inslee Bear!

I think that they'll be best friends fo-eva! :)

A first time meet!

Here is my Dad, Mark and his wife, Karen in Jacksonville this past weekend as they met for the first time Ins :) I had to wake her up and as you can probably tell, she was on a bit of an emotional rollercoaster!

 :)

Lately

Since my last post we have been extremely busy adoring our little Inslee Bear as she grows SO quickly, traveling all over the place with Joseph's job, Best Quest (like it here --> http://www.facebook.com/BestQuestTeaching?ref=ts&sk=app_14167664298), and have been able to spend time with a lot of our family in Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, and Tennessee! We have had such a wonderful time of fellowship with all of them and have some great pictures of our adventures!

Inslee with her "Pop!"

Our sweet girl posing for the very talented Mary Melinda :)

true love :)

Knowing that we were going to be on the road for an EXTENSIVE amount of time, our mentors gave Joseph and me the audio discs to the Love and Respect series. Dr. Emerson Eggerichs and his wife have put together a fantastic study and seminar based on Ephesians 5:33 which encourages us with "Each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." We highly recommend for other married couples to listen (or watch the DVD) together. We learned so much about one another and how to take God's plan for His creation and make the most of it in our marriage.

More of Memorial Day Weekend

Me and my Love :) <3

GRACE!

Our boo bear getting some rays!

Finally, the best part of Tellico time is this. Sitting around laughing and sharing with one another :)

Our nephew, Evan is in town this week so pictures to come with him and his cousin "Tinslee!"