Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Two Years in Kentucky

This week marks two years since our arrival here in the great state of KY.

Whenever I mark time, my first inclination is to always lament how much I haven't yet accomplished.

Today, however, I couldn't help but see the amazing feats we HAVE accomplished in a very short time.

Brytin has played two seasons of very successful football.
We have spent many hours in nature at various parkland in and around Louisville, looking at foliage, watching wildlife and throwing rocks into ponds.
Daelen and Brytin have learned to swim well and very much enjoy all waterplay.
We have completely changed our diet.
I have finally started losing some of that lingering baby weight.
Chris made First Class, solidifying our financial security for the next six years.
We have had a total paradigm shift regarding material things - what we want and what we need.
Our children have experienced a life entirely different from what they had previously encountered in SoCal.
We both have cars we absolutely love.
We have developed a fantastic plan for the next six years, that Lord-willing, will help us transition into Chris's retirement from the US Navy.
We have spent countless hours together, just the four of us, hanging out together, exploring our world, and strengthening our family unit.
I enrolled in college, and am about halfway to obtaining an Associate's Degree in Accounting.
For the first time in my life, I am donating money to causes I care about greatly.
We were able to support my sister-in-law at her bootcamp graduation in South Carolina.
I returned to work full-time with a job that is a perfect fit for me.
We've seen great cities like St Louis, Missouri and Cincinnati, Ohio and Santa Claus, Indiana. We even saw Leslie County, Kentucky :)

Our last two years have been a time of phenomenal skyrocketing growth - physically, emotionally, mentally and even spiritually.

One more year in Kentucky gives us just enough time to finish up a few things. I will finish my degree. We will pay off all our debts. Chris will ride in a racecar on a NASCAR track. Brytin will finish elementary school. Daelen will prepare himself for kindergarten. We will take a family vacation to relax and enjoy nature.

Our time in Kentucky has truly been some of the greatest years of my life.

posted from Bloggeroid

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Easter 2014

Easter is just no big deal to me. I think it's the confusion between the bunny and Jesus. I think it is all the people who go to church this Sunday morning out of duty. I think it's the focus placed on candy and stuff. I think it's the human error in the celebrations of Lent and Passover and churches having Easter egg hunts. I think it's the culmination of all these things that makes Easter a non-issue on the holiday scale for me. My kids don't color eggs, they don't participate in egg hunts, they don't get buckets of candy, and we also don't go to church on Easter.

Make no mistake, I am a Christian. I love Jesus Christ with all my heart, soul, breath and strength.

But I do not go to church on Easter Sunday. No. I refuse.

Today, I think, I will make my family a healthy, energizing breakfast, and then we will go hiking...

Romans 1:20 "For since the Creation of the world, His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse."
posted from Bloggeroid

Friday, April 11, 2014

Inside vs. Outside

I recently read a very timely blog posting about "These Hard Economic Times."  I was actually scheduled to visit the dentist for the first time in many moons, and there was a sentence in said blog posting that opened my eyes.

Americans spend 500 million dollars a year to have their teeth whitened -- not cleaned, just whitened to look nice.

500 million dollars a year on WHITENING?!! How many teeth are rotting inside and gleaming on the outside?!

Like many Americans, I haven't been diligent with maintenance - on my teeth, my skin, my car. Our disposable economy has paved a very nasty road that allows simple maintenance to be overlooked and replacement to happen whenever something shows signs of wear. But yet, we try to keep up an APPEARANCE of new.

Watching Rehab Addict with Nicole Curtis has reminded me of the value in maintaining and restoring rather than replacing. If each of us could think to spend the money on a little prevention, we could improve our culture, society, environment and even our bank accounts.

And what about the bigger picture? Not just our teeth, but our lives?

Money – how many are living the high life, but drowning in debt? Faith – how many souls are gleaming on the outside and rotting on the inside? Parenting, Working, Relationships -- all have very real implications when you think of the truth inside versus what we display outside.

#ForYourConsideration #MusingsofaBroussard #InsideversusOutside #Ruminating #LesliesLeftBrain