Your B12 Shot

This week was a tough one, yet very rewarding.  In fact, it may have been one of the toughest weeks I've had in a while, yet I've received some of the greatest rewards.  I like to think of myself as a positve person, and an encourager.  But sometimes the encourager needs encouragement, and that is exactly what I received, and it was from unexpected sources.  (Side note: It's funny that everything we are looking for, everything we need and want, is usually right in front of us.)

As an encourager and a giver, I find myself growing weary at times.  There are times when I feel totally drained, totally out of it and ready to check out.  At those exact moments, God always gives me some type of good news.  I'll never forget, when my daughters were born, they stayed in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) for 8 days because they came 6 weeks early.  Those were the hardest 8 days.  It was so difficult for me to leave them there.  So I visited throughout the day.  When they were about 3 or 4 days old, they were put in an incubator.  This was the first time they had been put an incubator.  They were maintaining their body temperature pretty well, so I thought, "Why now?!  Is there something wrong with them?!"  I wanted them to come home.  After that visit, I cried for a while.  My mom had to almost carry me out of the hospital.  (Post-partum hormones weren't helping either lol).  While I was crying in the car with my mother, I got a phone call, it was my doctor's office, they had the results of our daughters' blood tests.  This test would confirm if they were identical or fraternal twins.  The nurse delivered the news, "Your girls are identical.  Congratulations!"

I thought to myself, WOW!  Our babies are identical!  How often does that happen?!  How blessed are we?!  HOW BLESSED AM I?!  Needless-to-say, that call was delivered at exactly the right moment.  At that specific moment, I felt so depleted, so worried, so distressed, and God gave me my B12 shot.  He gave me what I needed to get through the next few days.  They were born when I was 34 weeks, and were expected to stay in the hospital for 4 weeks, I believe.  Those strong little girls came home in 8 days.  8 DAYS!!!  They ate well (and still do lol) and maintained their body temperature with no assistance.  They are strong, independent little Queens and I can't wait to see them become the trailblazers of their time.

I wrote this tonight, so that you can give yourself a B12 shot.  The holidays are a very joyous time, but the hype of it all, can make some people feel a little down.  As long as you're doing the right thing, believe that God will give you what you need right when you need it.  He will send something or someone your way to encourage you, and remind you of all you have overcome, and remind you of who you are.  Each one of us has power within us that is so strong, it simply cannot be measured.  Our hearts are remarkably resilient.  When you feel depleted, when you feel like you have nothing left to give, be still and wait for the blessing, because it's already been given to you, you have already received your advancement, God is just waiting to deliver it at the exact... right... moment.

Believe it and Receive it!

Love you all!

Dasha

BOLD AS A LION

As I sat and relaxed this evening after a fun and eventful day (my son celebrated his 9th birthday!!), I opened the Bible to book of Proverbs.  Now, I have to be honest, I haven't opened the Bible and just read in a long time.  (I definitely need to get better)  I have a forever growing relationship with Him, and when He speaks to me, sometimes it's so bold and so clear.  Tonight, when I opened the Bible, and was led to Proverbs 28:1:

The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

It immediately gave me so many answers on so many different levels.  How many situations do we avoid because we just don't want to deal with it?  When God said we have the power to move mountains, IT WAS NOT A LIE.  Within us, we have an amazing ability to transcend every situation we have ever faced and will face in our lives.  Speak LIFE into your spirit and encourage yourself.  As it's been said before, we were fearfully and wonderfully made.  We were not created to run, we were not created to be cowards . . . we were created to rule, to govern, to reign.  It's time to take control of your thoughts, take control of your emotions, let faith, logic, and His wisdom guide you.  When you feel like running away, BE AS BOLD AS A LION. 

Now I don't live in the wild, and don't have too much experience with lions lol... but when have you ever seen a lion run away?  When have you ever seen a lion get too emtional and not be able to protect his pride?  Never . . . as a matter of fact, a lion will fight until death to protect its pride.  That is an interesting word . . . pride.  In the same way a lion protects his pride (his family), we have to protect our pride (our confidence).  As C.S. Lewis has written, too much pride is the greatest sin.  So we have to be careful with this.  We must always remember to keep ourselves humble as well.  However, I believe too little pride and little faith could also be the greatest sin.  Believe in yourself, and believen in your GOD.  I tell you this, and tell myself, BE AS BOLD AS A LION.

Dasha

Limitless

Long awaited and much anticipated ... IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME!  This my friends is truly a blog I wrote today lol....

Much has changed, as it should, and I have embraced each change in my life with open arms.  This Thanksgiving weekend has been so special, partially because it's my favorite holiday, but mostly because I got to spend this time with my husband and kids without waking up super early and going to work (YAYYY!!!)

While enjoying our rest and relaxation, we watched a movie, Limitless... starring Bradley Cooper (recently deemed the 'sexiest man alive' - I THINK NOT LOL).  The plot was amazing, and the movie offers an intriguing idea... what if we could take a pill that accessed the other 90% of our brain, which would in turn, increase our mental focus, and make us rich and powerful.  Most people would immediately say, 'sign me up son!'  But what if.... we didn't need a pill for that and it would still be possible? 

I recently finished a book by Dr. Cherie Carter-Scott, Ph.D. called If Life is a Game: These are the Rules.  Dr. Carter-Scott also offered an intriguing idea... the idea that everything we need to be successful, everything we need to fulfill our destiny is already within us.  All we have to do is tap into it.  I thought to myself, 'well what button do I push and where the heck is it?!' LOL!

If I gave you a pill, and told you this tiny clear pill can make you so focused, that you could write an entire novel in 1 week, or learn how to play the piano, then you would probably take it.  Now what if that pill was simply a vitamin B pill, all natural, nothing special about it.  But while I was talking, you had already convinced yourself that you would be focused right after you took the pill (not knowing what it was), and indeed you were.

The mind is powerful folks.  Our ability to focus is there, we just have to remove the distractions.  We can't let negative thoughts set limits on our lives.  Our what ifs should sound more like, "What if Oprah came out of retirement, just to interview me and talk about my books?  Or what if she invited me to a gathering of world leaders, philanthropist, and what I like to call 'game changers'?" Okay, okay... you caught me, that was a thought of mine, that I like to think of... often lol.  The point is, our 'what ifs' shouldn't be negative, or fearful, or 'what ifs' should be LIMITLESS!

LOVE YOU ALL!

Dasha

Pivotal Moments...

This is also an old post that I never published (what was my deal?! lol)... oh well... here it is:




It's been a while since I've blogged, did ya miss me?! lol ;-)  I can honestly say I missed it...  And I'm happy life slowed me down a bit so I could reflect on the last 5 months.  In the process of working, taking care of a family, going to school, and planning a most fabulous wedding, I have managed to catch a cold that knocked me down for going on 5 days now. 
My problem is I do not know how to be still.  Boredom drives me crazy, and I hate wasting time.  I have 'busy-body syndrome' lol.... yeah I just made that up.  Everytime I get sick, I always know it's because I need to stop, and get back in touch with what matters the most.  It's not my job that matters, it's not money that matters, it's not anything materialistic... what matters the most is my family and my spiritual health. 

I relate my spiritual health to my physical health a lot because I believe, what is within, shows itself in our physical health.  This is not the case all the time, but for me, it is the case most of the time.  I get these things called cluster headaches, and if you don't know what they are, all you need to know is that you never want to have them lol.  The entire time I dealt with this, I kept asking God to take the pain away, I mean like really attempting to bargain with God.  Make a long story short... It didn't go away when I asked it to, the attack ran its course. 

This couldn't have happened at a better time... I was less than 2 months away from my wedding date!!  At the time, I wondered if the attack would last until June.  What if I can't walk down the aisle?  What if my dress doesn't fit anymore?  What if... what if... what if.  Then I heard... 'You'll still get married.'  It didn't matter if I couldn't walk down the aisle, my dress didn't matter, the flowers didn't matter, none of it mattered... because I was still getting married.  The only thing that mattered was me pledging my love for the man God created for me, and joyously accepting my role as the woman God created for him.  We were fearfully and wonderfully made ... and instead of focusing on the pain, I focused on the love I felt from my family and the beautiful life ahead of us. 

*SPOILER ALERT* (LOL)  Our wedding day was perfect.  When I woke up that morning, I could feel something big happening spiritually, I could feel that I was forming a bond that was sent by God, and that would always be led by God.  I'm so thankful and could not have asked for a better husband.  I love that man with all my heart and soul, and don't plan on changing that!

Hold Em or Fold Em

I wrote this a loooonnnggg time ago and never posted it.  I added a little bit to it ;-)


I am slowly being sucked into an interest for poker (thanks to my wonderful fiance lol).  The game is all about strategy- knowing when to play a hand by calculating risk, knowing your opponent, anticipating what cards will come on the flop (Yes, I'm getting pretty good at my poker lingo).  The more I learn about it- the more I see poker can be related to the choices we make in our lives. 

In Texas Hold Em- each player is dealt 2 cards.  Some players end up with better cards than others.   In a deck of cards, there are far more weak cards (numbered cards) than strong cards (face cards).  Similar to life, where very few of us our dealt face cards in the very beginning.  Some of us were born in poverty, while others were born into wealth.

But whether you were dealt a horrible hand or a great hand, winning the game is about patience, risk, and knowing when to hold onto the cards that you need, and when to throw away the cards that you don't need.  If we all had the ability to throw away the memories that hold us back, and keep the ones that made us stronger, we would all be in a place of peace and continuous positive growth.

I'm challenging you to think about the situations and/or the people that hurt you in the past.  Ask yourself why it bothers you so much, what is it exactly that hurt you so much.  If you need to scream while you're doing this, then do it, if you need to cry while you're doing this, then do that, but what I don't want you to do, is feel sorry for yourself.  As you stir up these emotions, thank God for them.  I know that may sound crazy, but those people who hurt you, those situations that almost got the best of you, were all placed there to push you toward your destiny.

If you're familiar with the story of Judas, then you know that Judas betrayed Jesus, and this betrayal pushed Jesus toward His destiny.  Jesus had to face rejection in order for you and I to be saved.  What makes us better than Jesus?  Who said we wouldn't have to face it ourselves at some point, no matter how painful? 

In other words, we all need a Judas... or 2 ... or 3 ... maybe even 4!  Those people drive us toward the greatness we have within.  So get out all those past emotions that still bring tears to your eyes, that still make your heart ache, don't hold onto them, put closure on those situations by yelling or writing out exactly what you want those people to know.  Then rip up the paper... let it go... fold the memories of betrayal, throw those cards back, and hold onto the cards that will increase your chip count (in life terms, increase your peace).  Focus on your VICTORY!

EXPOSED

Although it's only been a few weeks, 26 has been pretty good so far. I feel like I've learned something new about myself every day. I've learned things about myself that I don't like so much, and I've learned things that I love. I have many talents and strengths. However, among those strengths are many weaknesses. In learning my weaknesses, I can't help but to feel a bit appalled. I've taken various behavioral and personality assessments at work and for class. All in an effort to help learn myself and "work well with others". But with many of these tests, I find I can also use the results in my personal life.

My results were predictable. I know I'm competitive... I can empathize well... I'm organized for the most part. What shocked me were my weaknesses, or should I say... opportunities for growth. Among these opportunities for improvement were: I am very critical of myself and others (TRUE), and I can be fussy/picky (TRUE). Ok, ok... so I'll admit, my own best friend just told me a couple weeks ago "I am my own worst enemy", but... Am I just as critical of others? Can I be picky? I do fuss a lot. But wait a second... Is this me? Is this how I am? And... have I just been EXPOSED in front of my colleagues, my classmates? Now keep in mind, I am very critical of myself, which in other words means, I over-analyze everything.

Over the last week or so, I've thought a little about those behavioral tendencies and personality assessments. In a way, I was EXPOSED to myself. The way we see ourselves, is much different than the way others perceive us. For example, you may see yourself as a very easy-going person, but most people see you as... well... not so easy-going. Now don't get me wrong here, I don't take those assessment results completely literal and I don't believe we should walk around trying to please everyone. However, I do believe there is a lot of truth in them, and I do believe, as a culture, we need to check ourselves and do some self-inventory a lot more often than we do.

When I say self-inventory, I mean look at ourselves. I mean really dig deep. Be honest with ourselves. No one is perfect, we all have things we need to work on. For the majority of us, that one thing we need to work on is the negative energy we hold inside ourselves and the negative energy we give off to the people we come in contact with everyday. I am guilty of taking a bad attitude out on an innocent bystander or two... or three... you know what I'm trying to say. So my goal is to get to the root of any negative energy I have on any day. Negative energy comes from every where, our commute to work (road rage), a company giving bad customer service, co-workers, family, no one is exempt.

Today I was watching the rescue efforts of the 33 men in Chile who were trapped in a mine more than 1/2 mile underground. They showed footage of each man emerging from the earth running to their wives and family, kissing and hugging. One man emerged and kneeled down on both knees pressing his hands together in prayer and celebration. The President of Chile appeared on our screen and explained the various efforts of the government, who took over and got other countries involved to help in the rescue. For a moment, I though to myself... wow... America has been EXPOSED. The Chilean government responded so quickly to this possible tragedy, they utilized all the resources they had available to help their people.... our government could take a lesson or two.

Then suddenly, in the middle of my thought, a commercial break began. The local news did their regular weather updates, crimes in the area, etc. Then they ended it with, "33 men rescued in Chile- watch tonight at 10pm to find out the health risks they will now face from being trapped in the mine AND the love triangle drama that awaited one of the 33 men as he emerged." ARE YOU SERIOUS? Watching the scene of all these men reunited with their families, most of them probably thought they may never see them again!  Quite frankly, it almost had me in tears!  But leave it to some negative people to throw the drama in the story.  Why must we focus on the negative?! I mean it's everywhere!  Sheesh!

So my best advice this week is get to the root of our issues. Dig deep into ourselves, find out why we are the way we are. Find out what makes us tick, and what ticks us off.  We may think we know, but we need to know better.  Ask someone to be honest with you about yourself, don't penalize them for their responses.  Applaud their efforts.  Only those who truly love you will be honest with you, even if you don't like what you hear.  Stay away from negativity, figure out a way to turn away from it when it does present itself.  Accept the fact that we're not perfect, accept the fact that we are all flawed, and hopefully that will make it easier to cope with one another in difficult times.  Focus on the positive, love YOUrself, recognize your flaws and work on them when you can :-)  

BE BLESSED!



Riding the Wave

Well folks... I just celebrated another birthday.  I am now the big...

 I must admit 25 was the year of lots of great change in my life.  I'm not sure if 26 can top 25, but I sure am looking forward to finding out!  During the last year, I learned a lot things.  Here are a few that stood out to me the most:

   My metabolism is slowing down to what seems to be a screeching halt!  I need a little less Japanese steakhouse dinners and a little more of this...



hahahahaha!

I also learned...

Only wear one hat a time

While planning a wedding, taking care of a family, going to school, and working.  I get pretty confused as to what role to play and when.  25 taught me to only wear one hat a time, or I would literally go crazy.  Some hats do top others, for example I always have on my 'parent hat' no matter where I am.  But I have learned to take off my 'work hat' when leaving work.  Although this is still something I struggle with from time to time, I am getting better at leaving work... well... at work.  The newest hat I'm learning is my 'wife hat', which I'm pretty excited to get really comfortable in :-))

The last thing I learned at 25 may be the most important...

  

I have learned to 'Ride the Wave'

Every day has its own excitement, disappointments, happiness, and sadness.  When we wake up, we have no idea what that day has in store for us.  At 26 years old, I've learned to accept whatever life has in store.  Although my faith is not where I want it to be yet, I do trust that everyday I am moving toward a great destiny.  I've gotten a lot more comfortable admitting my mistakes (although it's still not that easy), and I've gotten a lot more comfortable forgiving. 

I've realized there will be great days, bad days, ok days, and days where I just don't know what kind of day it was because I was just too busy to stop and wonder LOL.  All these ups and downs can only be described as a wave.  The best waves are the biggest, and are the most sought after by surfers.  However, they don't always get the biggest waves, but they learn to ride and enjoy the ones they get hoping to catch a big one soon.  Our days and weeks throw us a lot of waves, some are dull and some are the best!  So what I've done is something similar to the surfers, I've accepted the dull in complete faith that a great one is coming soon.  I've been introduced to the art of 'Riding the Wave'.

Here's a poem that I really enjoyed and thought I would share.  The author is unknown.  I hope you all enjoy it!

“She came tonight as I sat alone, the girl I used to be…
And she gazed at me with her earnest eye and questioned reproachfully;

Have you forgotten the many plans and hopes that I had for you?
The career, the splendid fame, and all the wonderful things to do?
Where is the mansion of stately height with all of its gardens rare?
The silken robes that I dreamed for you and the jewels in your hair?

And as she spoke, I was very sad for I wanted her to be pleased with me…
This slender girl from the shadowy past the girl that I used to be
So gently rising, I took her hand, and guided her up the stair
Where peacefully sleeping, my babies lay innocent, sweet, and fair.

And I told her that these are my only gems, and precious they are to me;
That silken robe is my motherhood of costly simplicity.
And my mansion of stately height is love, and the only career I know
Is serving each day in these sheltered walls for the dear ones who come and go.

And as I spoke to my shadowy guest, she smiled through her tears at me.
And I saw that the woman that I am now, pleased the girl I used to be."

The success I've seen in my 26 years of living isn't based on what kind of house I have, what kind of car I drive, or the numbers on my W2s.  My success is based on my growth mentally and spiritually.  Therefore, I am proud to say I am successful because GOD IS MY SUCCESS!

 (courtesy of RevRunWisdom)

Be Blessed All!