LIFE UNEXPECTED, AS GOD INTENDED

SHE IS by Katherine Arriagada

2012-02-29T17:19:00.000-08:00

She is graced with the fanciest lace

And devoured in delectable taste

Her face glowing with amazing wonder

From the dip of her neck to the

Curve of her back

She is beautiful

God has perfected her in every way

And in everyday of her life she is

Grateful to live, laugh and love

To wake up with the rising sun

And sing to the heavens above

She is the most desired

And highly favored

She is as God created and well intended

Just the way He made it

Thank you to Ms. Katherine Arriagada.

Bringing Sexy Back

2012-02-27T12:50:00.000-08:00

Dedicated to my sweet buns...... lol

New relationships are exciting and invigorating that’s allpart of the fun of courtship. Lastweek my husband told I don’t get dolled up for him like I use to. Which got me to thinking, do we get sorelaxed in our daily lives that we forget to keep it special for our specialsomeone, in my case I think I just got so busy that I forgot how to keep itsexy.

So this week I’m bringing sexy back. Lol.

Since we’ve implemented date night we haven’t been able totake advantage of it. So the firststep is getting out of this house together. Enjoying so alone/ adult time.

When we were dating we text each other all day long withsweet nothings, we still text each other all day but now it’s about what’s fordinner or the kids or the bills with a few kisses thrown in. So I’m bringing back sweet nothingstoo. Whispering sexy words in hisphone throughout the day. I evenuse to send poetry and he use to send me love quotes. Time to stop referring to these things in the past. Like I said I’m bringing the sexy back.

What do you do the keep, or bring the sexy back in yourrelationship?

'Is he yours"

2012-02-08T08:58:00.000-08:00

Today on Babycenter.com, there is an article posted called“is he or she yours” While reading the article this paragraph struck me “Thediscussion which starts by wondering if “is she/he yours” is asked especiallyof parents of biracial children quickly makes it clear almost everyone getsthis question. Adoptive moms,older moms, moms who simply have different hair color or eye color from theirkids.”

One dad expressed how annoyed he gets when people makecomments about his son who is very pale like his Spanish mom and looks nothinglike his dark complexion. He sayshe gets comments like “he’s the mailman’s kid”.

I can understand this dad’s frustration; neither of my sonor my daughter have more than 1 facial feature that I could say looks likeme. And the comment that I hearmore than I need to is “she looks nothing like you”. I’m actually very use to it by now and it really doesn’tbother me much, I’ve had 9 months of aches, pains, stretch marks and the csection scar, so I know their mine. However it is annoying to think that people can sometimes be soinsensitive not to think of mom or dad’s feeling before making statements likethese.

What do you think? Have you received comments like these while out with your children? Or have you been on the giving end ofany of these statements, has this post changed what you may say in the future?

WHAT ARE WE STRESSING ABOUT?

2012-01-31T10:34:00.000-08:00

How stressed are you these days, between your home life,school life, family life, personal life, it can all take a toll on your mentaland physical health. Today I feltthe need to de-stress. I felt irritatedand agitated, for only God knows the reason why. But I went for a 30 min run while my clothes were in thedryer, something as little as that is perfect for me. Running for me is the perfect workout for my body and mymind. So I looked up America’smost stressful cities thinking for sure NYC would be in the top five, surprisinglynot. But I did find that 3 of the top 5 are in FL. Weird huh? Infact 5 out of the top 10 are Florida cities. With so much sun and sand what’s there to stress about,right? Well check it out,apparently there’s a lot. Sotell me, what do you do to de-stress, what is your “THING”?

5. Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Michigan

Divorced: 11.4%

Unemployment: 15.7%

The Detroit metropolitan area is in the 100th percentile forviolent crime and property crime. It also ranks in the 97th percentile for poormental health days per month, though it is in the second percentile for alcoholconsumption per month.

4. Jacksonville, Florida

Divorced: 12.3%

Unemployment: 10.4%

Jacksonville is in the 95th percentile for divorces.

3. Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida

Divorced: 11.5%

Unemployment: 12.5%

Miami is in the 97th percentile for property crime, and 95thpercentile for violent crime, but is in the fourth percentile for alcoholconsumption.

2. Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada

Divorced: 13.2%

Unemployment: 14%

Las Vegas-Paradise is in the 100th percentile for divorces,but it had the least cloudy days of the 50 cities analyzed.

1. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida

Divorced: 12.3%

Unemployment: 11.2%

Tampa is in the 97th percentile for suicides.

From: our "kids korner"

2012-01-31T10:08:00.001-08:00

Prayer of a Parent:

Dear God, help me honor you by raising my children to loveand praise you and by teaching them what you would have them know.

Help me praise often and criticize seldom, so I will model alife worthy of their love and imitation.

Help me be consistent in my discipline and the boundaries Iset, while keeping me from ever punishing them in anger or frustration.

Help me gain insight when granting wishes, and give me thewisdom and courage to deny any desires that place them in harm’s way.

Help me encourage their creativity and not stifle theircuriosity, so they can discover the world you have created and learn of itsendless possibilities.

Help me to turn off the TV or video game, so I can help themsee you and your awesome power through the wonder and beauty of nature.

Help me resist the temptation to shower my children withmaterial things and to teach them to be grateful for the many blessings wehave.

Help me not to be harsh or insensitive to my children withmy words or gestures, but always show them respect and kindness, so they willknow how to treat others.

Help me to acknowledge my mistakes and give me the courageto admit when I’m wrong, so I can set an example in asking for forgiveness.

Help me teach my children to never look down on anyone else,but to respect our differences, because every person is equally cherished inyour eyes.

Help me remember to tell my children each and every day howmuch I love them, so they will never have any doubt.

Lord, help me remember that the world’s value system is notyours, so I will give them the one thing no amount of money can buy….. ME….Amen!

"The Simple Act of Gratitude"

2012-01-23T07:48:00.000-08:00

“If the only prayer you said in your entire life was Thankyou, that would be suffice - Meister Eckhart

When I start to pray if I’m goingblank and nothing is coming to me, the first thing that I do is thank God, forlife, love, my family and friends, peace of mind and for supplying my everyneed. But how often do we showgratitude to the people in our lives for the little things that they do. Do the people that matter to you knowthey matter? Do they know they areappreciated? Starting with asimple thank you to those in your life for the big things as well as the smallcan go a long way. You begin to feel more at ease with who you are, and youwill begin to receive that same kindness you are giving out to the world. A simple phone call, an email, oreven a hand written note dropped in the mail. It costs nothing and can make abig difference in someone’s life or just make them happy.

This got me thinking about my ownact of gratitude, when was the last time I thanked my mom for occasionallytaking Jordan to school for me. Oron the days I take him to school for watching Mariah for me so I don’t have totake her out in the cold. Orthanking my husband for getting up early every morning when I know he doesn’twant to. To head off to work so I can have a chance to stay home and take careof my family for a while. Or tosay thank you to my home-girls Toya, Tracy & Leah for having my backthrough the years, good and bad times. Regardless of where our relationship stands today, I say thank you forthose days. And there are so manyothers that I intend to thank as this year goes on. THIS WILL BE MY YEAR OF GRATITUDE, HOW ABOUT YOU?

Be Thankful

Be thankful that you don’t already have everythingyou desire,

If you did, what would there be to look forwardto?

Be thankful when you don’t knowsomething

For it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficulttimes.

During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations

Because they give you opportunities forimprovement.

Be thankful for each new challenge

Because it will build your strength andcharacter.

Be thankful for your mistakes

They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you’re tired andweary

Because it means you’ve made a difference.

It is easy to be thankful for thegood things.

A life of rich fulfillment comes to those whoare

Also thankful for the setbacks.

GRATITUDE can turn a negative intoa positive.

Find a way to be thankful for your troubles

And they can become your blessings.

~ Author Unknown ~

"THE MALE PERSPECTIVE"

2012-01-20T07:17:00.000-08:00

HEAD OF HOUSE by Gabriel Fuentes

As promised by Mrs. Fuentes, this is the "Man'sPerspective" installment for L.U.A.G.I. And so we're all clear I'm givingMY perspective as a man and by no means intend or pretend to represent allmen. First things first, myperspective is a biased one. As a Christian man I have made a choice to seethings God’s way because I know from experience my way not only doesn’t work,it can be destructive. Clarification: choosing to see things God’s way doesn’t mean I’ve alwaysacted godly. What it does mean isthat our sovereign Lord holds me to the highest standard of behavior andthought. PRESSURE!! ;)

Topic: Head of House

Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, evenas Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body.

I feel like a lot of women today would be uncomfortable or even takeoffense at the notion that the husband is “the head of the wife”. With the normalcy of single parenthouseholds in this day and age predominantly with moms being the master and chiefof the home, its easy to see that Ephesians 5:23 would make some women rolltheir eyes and cringe. Having todo it on their own, many women, through necessity, have become so independentthat the idea of “needing” a manhas become almost distasteful. This was not however, God’s intention. We were made for each other and ourchildren need both their father and their mother. If you think this isidealistic then you have intentionally or unintentionally taken God’s word andmade it conditional.

To reassure readers that my point of view is not a narrow one, my oldersister and I were raised by a single mom (who did an outstanding job, no doubther prayers have brought me to Christ), I have a 14 yr old son from a previousrelationship, a 6 yr old step son and a 7 month old daughter with my wife, somy position is definitely not “holier than thou”. Quite the contrary, for mostof what I will speak on, I have a personal frame of reference.

Back to the topic. One ofthe first things that stuck me about scripture regarding my role is that I amto love my wife as Christ loved the church. How did Christ love the church? He served the church, nurtured the church, led the church,He died for the church. So in nouncertain terms I am to serve my wife, nurture my wife, lead my wifespiritually, and if necessary, die for her. Not such a bad deal fa she. Christ came to serve, not to be served. Likewise, I am to serve, not to beserved as some people might misinterpret. As I see it, I am to provide for my wife and family (ie go towork). This also means thatultimately, decisions that affect my home are up to me. Mind you, no decisions are made withoutthe counsel of my wife. But when it comes down to it, I must be responsible forthe final yes or no. Which alsomeans I’m responsible for the outcomes of my decisions.

Most ofus are used to our moms being the “praying parent”. She leads our grace before meals, goes to church, we see herreading the bible, however, “It is the man's responsibility to make sure thathis household understands the spiritual truths of God's holy word”. It is my duty to feed my familyspiritual truths and principles as the Holy Spirit leads me. Primarily by the way I live mylife. For my wife, as I mentioned,I am to love her as Christ loved the church. With grace, gentleness, kindness,compassion and passion. For mysons, I am to model the kind of men and husbands they are to be. For my daughter, I am to model the typeof husband she is to have. “I cando all things through Christ who strengthens me”.

I hope my little installment has helped to make you think and hopefullyrefer to God’s word knowing that HE knows best, He makes no errors, HIS wordcan be trusted.

God bless you all.

Any comments, questions, differences ofopinion or anything to add, I remain teachable and I love a good-heartedargument!!! Ily.

HEAD OF HOUSE by Gabriel Fuentes

What's in a Name

2012-01-14T12:21:00.000-08:00

What is in a Name:

Do you think your name represents you well? Or do you think You make your name notthe other way around. How aboutyour child’s name? Did you go withwhatever was popular at the time, or was there much thought put into namingyour child.

This column was a brainchild of mine once I heard the nameof Beyonce’s newborn baby girl “Blue Ivy”. Now is it just me or does that sound like the name of herdaughter’s debut album in a couple of years. Which got me to thinking do some people name their childrenbased on what they would like them to become. Celebrities for instance I find name their children strangenames, but names that would fit in with Hollywood. They usually choose names that draw attention.

I on the other hand went for a more subtle approach, I wentto the bible. I wanted peaceful,calm names to represent my children. My boy is named after the river Jordan, my girl Mariah, is a variation of thebiblical name Mary. But did I playit too safe, does that mean my children are not meant for stardom? I think I am ok with the choices we made. My children’s names will not representthem, but my children will become more than their names. They will become the design of God’sperfect plan.

Amen!!!

What’s behind your child’s name? Is there a meaning, a definition you’d like to share.

WEEKLY ENTRIES

2012-01-11T13:26:00.000-08:00

Hello Guests,

Be sure to check out weekly posts under the other pages, Kids Korner, Bible study, Marriage is my ministry and Hit or Miss.

Feel free to post or comment, this is your blog as much as it is mine....

WELCOME!!!!!

Welcome, to Life Unexpected as God Intended

2012-01-11T07:57:00.000-08:00

As the new year rolls in, I find myself reflecting about the life I've led and how my life has changed tremendously in such a short period of time. All this reflecting has led me to my next endeavor "Life unexpected as God intended" doesn't that just say it all. Amen!

From a very young age I accepted the lord as my personal Savior and was baptized at 16. But I was very young and the world sucked me in. But I must say this, he has never EVER left my side. Through all the things I have done and all my experiences God has always had a path intended for me.

Just two years ago I was a single mother to my prince, working a full time job, dropping him off at 8am and rushing to make it on time to pick him up by 7pm. Is that the way I wanted things to be "no" but that's the way it was and I came to terms with that. My thinking was God has blessed me with this child and I was going to do everything I need to give him the best life possible. Therefore I have so much respect for single moms. You do what you have to by the Grace of God not necessarily what you want to.

Two years later unexpectedly I find myself Blessed again but in very unfamiliar waters, I am a married woman and now the mother of two, trying daily to be a devoted Christian, a proverbs 31 wife to the greatest man I know while trying to find my own niche in this crazy world.

I now have a new definition of the word full time, I am now a full time care giver, full time teacher, full time cook, and house cleaner. All of the things I use to do part time now consume my days, but I would not want it any other way.

I am hoping that this blog will be my way of becoming better in all aspects of my life with your help. Being a Christian woman, wife, mother including all the parts that somethings gets put on the back burner not by choice, being a sister, daughter and friend and even taking care of myself. This is my way of finding time for me and I'm hoping you will join me.

So lets make some time for ourselves while helping each other become our better selves. Amen!

Please feel free to introduce yourself and share your Life unexpected as God intended story, you never know who will be reading and learning. 2012 is the year of the unexpected, be ready and open to what God has in store.

Spanxs for listening
OFuentes