My Life

Words

 

It’s bound to happen….someone says something hurtful to you and the words cut like a knife. It may have been in your childhood, or quite possibly even a few days ago. Whether it be a sibling, spouse, parent or friend, just about all of us have encountered this sometime in our life.

This happened recently to me. I won’t go into all the details, but this is far from the first time this has occurred in my life. In the past, when this has happened, I’ve been able to forgive the person who wronged me and moved on. Granted, I may have forgiven the people, but that doesn’t mean their words don’t still replay in my mind.

I’m the type of person that takes things to heart. Yes, I have a sense of humor and can take jokes- I dish them out, so I can take them. However, when things are said about my character, or lack thereof, those are the things that get me thinking. Granted, the person who said them may have apologized (or sometimes they don’t), but I still think about the things that were said. That’s where I am right now….

The most recent hurtful remarks happened seven days ago. The things said have made me reevaluate some of the most important things in my life. If this happens over and over again, am I being a pushover if I continue to allow it to happen?

*sigh* Not going to lie, this is a tough place to be.  You know I value your thoughts and opinions- please feel free to leave a comment.

Thanks for letting me spill and ask for advice. You guys are awesome. :)

Life is like a book…

The phrase above pretty much sums up my life right now.  There is a chapter that has ended, but I know that there are new chapters ahead. My personality naturally gets timid and scared when new things come, but I am consciously trying my hardest not to let this happen.

I’ve heard the saying “you have to just take it by the horns”, but honestly, does that really work for anyone? I tend to think that some new chapters call for “baby steps”. I’m currently taking this approach, but if you all have other suggestions, pass them along! :)

I hope your current chapter in life is a pleasant one. If you feel up for it, I’d love to hear about it! Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email (click the envie on the right side).

Have a great Wednesday. Until next time….

New Craft Studio

Good morning!

I recently posted that I have a new craft studio area. Oh my, I am still in awe of this beautiful new area of the house that I get to devote to everything crafty! My parents know that I spend quite a bit of time in this area, and since it also doubles up for work, I got an extra large area.

I’m still far from having this area completed, but I thought I would post a quick picture of the area and then a before and after picture of my new Copic storage.

Like I said, this area still has a lot of work that needs to be done. I’m still looking for storage for more supplies, but want to wait for the perfect solution. After all, once I get everything together,  I don’t plan on doing it again anytime soon. :)  {I’m planning on posting more detailed pictures once I have everything organized}  

Here’s the new Copic storage I have. I got this little treasure at Goodwill for $3 and once I saw it, I knew I had to use it somewhere in my studio. I got some white paint and found it to be perfect for my Copics. The best thing? There’s still room for some more!

That’s going to wrap up this blog post. Thanks for stopping by!

Dream Big

Recently I’ve heard a saying that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. “If your dreams don’t scare you they aren’t big enough”. When I first heard it, I dismissed it. Of course I have big dreams! Then I got to thinking, what ARE my dreams? What are my goals in life? Hmm, this question was a lot bigger than I had originally thought.

{pondering for a few weeks}

Of course I have the usual dreams of getting married and possibly having kids (which kind of terrifies me, if I’m being honest), but what are my other dreams? Yes, I had some other ones, but only a couple truly scared me. I suppose that’s a start….

Do you all have dreams, or maybe you’d rather call them goals? If so, I would love to hear them if you’re willing to share.

In closing, I want to encourage all of us to dream big. Our time on earth is short, we should make the most of it. :)

Have an awesome rest of your Wednesday. I’ll talk with you all later!

Grace

Hello and Happy Monday!

Oh my, this weekend here in Washington we had GORGEOUS weather. The sun was shining, it was fairly warm and I got to spend time with friends. Definitely a win-win-win in my book.

Recently, at youth church (where I’m a leader), we have been doing a “Truth Is… series”. It’s been such a good series. The first week the title was Truth Is…that fair is a fairytale. The second week it was Truth Is…people do change. And last week it was Truth Is…It’s Free not cheap (referencing God’s grace).

The whole concept of God’s grace on us still baffles me. How could someone love me enough to die on the cross for MY sins? In my selfish, sinful being, this is such a hard concept for me to grasp. In the past, I definitely took His grace for granted. If I made a mistake, it was easy for me to think “oh, God will forgive me” no matter what I do. Yes, this is true, but I want to make sure I’m not abusing this special gift of grace He has given.

In the same way, I’ve been thinking a lot about grace is general. Over the years, it’s been easy for me withhold grace to certain people if they “didn’t deserve it” in my book. Then I’m reminded, if God could pour out His grace on a sinner like me, I need to do the same to those around me. Granted, I’m not going to let people walk all over me, but I need to be more gracious and willing to forgive and move on.

It’s definitely not an easy thing to do, but I know this is something I need to work on. I know it’ll be a process, but that’s what our time on earth is, right?

You Are Beautiful

Before I start with my post, I want to say thanks to those who left a comment on my last post. You all were so real and honest and I truly appreciate that. I know that some may be okay with putting on a show, but those days are behind me. I want to be REAL and not always “sugar coat” everything. Granted, there’s a time and place to say things, and sometimes it’s not appropriate to be completely blunt, but there are times when that is okay. :)

Okay, now we’re going to get personal. Pretty personal, in fact…..

I have suffered from low self esteem pretty much all my life. It may be the perfectionist in me, but I never really thought I “measured up” and reached my full potential in a lot of aspects of my life. When I moved out a few years back, it got even worse.

As many of you who have read my fitness blog know, I gained a whopping 60 pounds in a year. This in itself made me feel not attractive, even though people still said I was. However, there were a few people that started saying really mean things that really got in my head. My fiance at the time (one of the worst ideas ever) had some friends that started to get pretty vocal about my weight gain. To make matters worse, they said it on MySpace. (Remember that site?) They would say I was ugly and fat, that I looked like a man, he was better off without me…. I saw these things and they started to really affect my thinking, and still do to this day.

I know in my head that I shouldn’t seek self worth in people, but in God, but it is definitely not easy. My mom and boyfriend are constantly telling me “you are beautiful”, but I still struggle with believing them.

I don’t really know the point of this post. It might be just to let you in on a little piece of my life, or how I think, or it might be to say that words can definitely be hurtful (and stay with people even six years later). You can take whatever you want from it.

Thanks for stopping by today. Have a wonderful rest of your day.