Save me {Mess:Past}

Goooood morning!

So you may or may not have seen this article trending on the internet, if not, give it a read because it's beautiful and shows the gospel so well!

When reading it, I could totally relate- no, not because my husband was wild in high school, but because I was and many of the moments captured in the above article I experienced with my now-husband. If you met me now you wouldn't recognize the girl I was in high school- I drank, a lot, partied, serial dated, and had very little self respect (among many other things). My senior superlative in high school was "party animal" enough said. My husband I have joked many times about how much we would have dislikes the other in high school, we were so different from each other and from who we are now.

I cringe thinking about some of the decisions I made and for a long time I carried a lot of the guilt and shame associated, but that's the beauty of The Gospel, my sin and shame is covered, washed away, and I'm left sparkling and beautiful. For years I had to battle my old self, I had to overcome the temptation to slip into my old ways, I had to find my identity in Christ and not in who I used to be.

Yeah, I was tan. Also, my friend did my eyebrows so don't judge.

One of the hardest parts of my reckless decisions wasn't how it wrecked me, but how I saw it break my husband's heart. My husband is truly amazing and a great man of God, so when it came time for me to share my past with him (before we were married, or engaged), I could do so without fear- though I could tell it hurt him, never once did he look at me differently. As a couple we had to battle some of the pain that was brought upon us, but we couldn't have done that without The Lord's strength and guidance.

Ultimately I had to remember that my life before my husband was also my life before Jesus.

Often I reflect on my life and wish that my parents had lead me more to The Lord, not that I'm blaming them for their decisions because they were wonderful parents, but sometimes I feel as if I could have saved myself from a lot of grief if I had known Jesus sooner in life, but thinking like that is terrible. God has a perfect plan, and though He wills for us to do good, so frequently our free will allows us to learn lessons, however painful they may be. Without my past life I wouldn't know the redeeming power of The Gospel to the extent that I do, I wouldn't be able to share my story with others, and I wouldn't be who I am today.

So thankful for this sweet guy-- almost 5 years ago!

While I'm not proud of the things I've done, I'm thankful for what I've learned and I'm ever more thankful for Jesus, because through Him I can let go of it all.



Xx,

LG

Holistic Health.

Good morning babes!

Growing up my mom integrated a good amount of holistic treatments, as a kid I thought she was being silly- I thought that that taking things like Echinacea wouldn't do anything to me, but as I come into my adult years I find myself aligning more with my mom's approach. Now, let me start by saying that I am not an expert, and I'm also not someone who only uses holistic medicine- actually I feel as if I balance modern/western medicine and homeopathic remedies pretty well. God gave us herbs and God gave us medicine, let's use what God has given us and create a healing cocktail!

With that being said, I want to share with you some of the "natural" remedies that have worked for me!

1. Oil pulling. Okay, so swishing oil around in your mouth may seem like cuckoo crazy to you, but it doesn't cause any adverse side effects and it doesn't take much effort, so why not give it a shot? I have noticed that my teeth feel and look better, and my skin looks better! Here's a little blip about oil pulling that I found on Pinterest-- check out the link if the image is too small for you to read.

2. Supplements. I've taken these off and on for years, but I notice a difference with a few that I take regularly. And for those of you who don't think they have any effect, I once took evening primrose oil for a few weeks and I didn't get my "cycle" for 2 months (it's an estrogen stabilizer), so they clearly have effects. Look into what's best for you, but I take biotin (it really makes my hair grow), flax seed, evening primrose, and others depending on what my body needs!

3. Chiropractic care. No, chiropractors are not crazy witch doctors, but definitely do your research before you go see one- there are different types of chiropractic and not all of them are going to work for you.

4. Natural beauty products. Seriously y'all, some of the stuff I've tried works much better than store-bought-chemical-laden nonsense. Check out pinterest for ideas, but I've tried coffee grounds for acne treatment (works swimmingly), coconut oil as facial moisturizer (this is actually all I use), essential oils for scarring (tea tree oil, enough said), and a few others- give it a go!

5. Juicing/Diet. Food is both the greatest poison and greatest medicine we have. I can clearly see changes in my body based on what I eat- when I was having gallbladder problems, I switched my diet around and was able to manage my symptoms without having surgery! Chances are that there are easy dietary changes you can make to alleviate a multitude of symptoms. If you're interested, check out "The Diet Cure" by Julia Ross, she goes over a lot of great information, and shares years worth of clinical research.

Have you tried any home remedies? If so, what works for you??

When all else fails {Dealing with Stress}

G'Day lovelies!

How was everyone's Easter weekend? Wonderful I hope!

Today I want to talk a little bit about what to do when life sort of explodes, the list of things to do gets piled up, time runs short, and you start to run out of steam. For me that has been my life for the past month or so, I feel like I can't catch my breath! I've been juggling a move (packing, cleaning, etc.), family nonsense, the death of my grandmother, work, school, and marketing my horse to be leased. I'm sure that I'm forgetting a few things but you get this jist.

When I was in college (undergrad) I learned how to prioritize, schedule, and get stuff done! There were many all-nighters and 4 o'clock in the morning bedtimes for me but somehow I managed to get it done. Since I have to be slightly for socially functional in my life after college (leggings aren't appropriate on the daily) I have to get to bed at a reasonable hour- so here are a few things that I do to relieve stress and get things done!

1. Write it down. It helps me if I have a list of everything coming up, if it isn't scheduled into my day I have a hard time making it fit.

2. Prioritize. Is getting your haircut #1 on the list, or are there a few things that can wait? Make those decisions and get cracking on the super important stuff.

3. Take a few minutes to unwind. If I run myself at full capacity without slowing down, even for just 30 minutes, I get pretty ragged and anxious- it helps to take a short period of time to just decompress. For me that includes going to the gym, reading my Bible on our patio, or watching an episode of my favorite TV show.

4. Get sleep. As impossible as it may seem, you need to make sleep happen! Your body needs that time to recharge, so get as much as possible.

5. Eat. This usually isn't a problem for me since my life practically revolves around food, but don't skip meals! Take a few minutes at the beginning of the week to plan a few easy, quick meals to keep you running.

And if all else fails...

6. Have a meltdown. Sometimes you just need to cry it out, it's hard holding it in 100% of the time, so have a good crying session, then pull yourself back together.

Xx,

LG

Because of Jesus.

Happy Good Friday!!

What a bittersweet day it is! Can we talk about how difficult it must have been for Mary, and all the followers of Jesus to witness him dying? Or how about how difficult it was for Jesus to bear the weight of our sins and shame so that we can be made clean? Yet he did it with beauty and grace. Talk about amazing.

In this season we are particularly reminded of everything that Jesus did for us on the cross-- I know that my heart feels so full knowing how loved and precious I am, and you are too!

Because of Jesus I can:

-Face tomorrow knowing my eternal fate is sealed

-Forgive myself for the past, and for the future mistakes I'm inevitably going to make

-Love others regardless of their sin, because they're forgiven too

-Stop striving to be perfect

-Have faith that my marriage will be for the long haul

-Face my fears and those who persecute me

-Celebrate life!

I hope that all of you are having a wonderful week, happy Easter weekend friends!!

Xx,

LG

Hiatus and Hurting

Good morning beautiful babes!!

I can't believe I've been gone from blogging for so long! It has been a rough couple of weeks for me and the time has just slipped away. I have a few posts coming that will go into detail, but in the past 3 weeks I've been swamped with school, managed to pack and move 99% of our apartment, and mourned the loss of my darling Grandmother.

So for now, here's a little mid-week inspiration!

Source: pinterest

Xx,

LG

New home: New Adventure.

Good morning, snow bunnies!

Well, it's moving week, a time we've anticipated since settling in our first apartment. Our first home together was not what I would have envisioned. We had absolutely zero closet space (I mean that literally), a portable washer/dryer unit (yes friends, portable) sketchy neighbors to-boot, barely functioning appliances (did I mention that I broil everything because our oven coil is broken?), outdated everything, and old carpet that sort of grosses me out.

As much as I didn't love our apartment, things were starting to come together, from our living room gallery wall to the bathroom shelves, it was starting to feel...familiar.  Our new apartment is actually a place where my husband lived for the 2 years prior to our wedding, so I've been there plenty of times before- though as I was moving a few boxes over, it felt different, it was no longer his bachelor pad it was our new home! Unlike our current residence, the new place features a patio, backyard, walking trail to a creek, new appliances, a second bedroom, and NO carpet. Along with being spacious, it has approximately 5 closets. I'm in heaven. I can't wait to get settled in and decorate, hopefully I'll be able to post a few home tours on the blog for you lovely readers to see : )

Looking back on the past 11 months spent in our apartment, I almost feel sad leaving it behind. These walls have seen some of our best and worst moments as newlyweds, and just when it begins to feel like 'home' it's time for a new space, new memories, and another year of a wonderful marriage.

Xx,

LG

Giving thanks.

Good morning babes!

I seriously hope that everyone is having a great week! I feel like I've been all over the place this week, though I'm not totally sure why.

So. My birthday was last week, and that's not a cue for all of you to wish me a happy belated birthday, I just want to let some feelings go.

My birthdays aren't ever really anything special, for some reason it makes me uncomfortable to celebrate "me" and usually my friends forget that it's my birthday or don't really do anything. I think the last time I actually celebrated my birthday was when I was 10 years old and we went roller skating. Once, my husband tried to plan me a surprise party and no one showed up. I used to have some gems for friends.

This year all of that was different, this year I had such a genuine outpouring of love, I honestly didn't know what to do with myself. On Tuesday, two of my best friends took me downtown to walk around and take pictures, before heading off to dinner at one of my favorite spots.

As I walked in the door to the restaurant I heard a voice say "We're here for you!" and as I turned, a group of my friends were there to surprise me for  my birthday. My husband put the whole thing together, and quite honestly I almost cried.

My besties, Emily and Katie 

Of course Katie and Emily were involved in the whole setup as well, Katie actually helped pull off my engagement so she knows how to be sneaky : ) My friends and I grabbed a table while the husbands got a separate spot so they could do whatever it is that guys do. I enjoyed my favorite gluten free pizza and tiramisu. The night was perfect.

My beautiful friends, Emily, Lindsay, Danielle, Emily M, and Katie.

On my actual birthday, Katie swung by the apartment to bring me a gift and coffee. Seriously, I can't get enough of this girl and how well she knows me.

My hubs wanted to make my birthday special, so he decided to plan a day for us in Charlottesville. We had a fantastic lunch and hit up a few of my favorite stores (hello Trader Joe's). Though for some reason the day felt like it was missing something. Just the night before my heart had been so full from my dear friends, good food, and lovely gifts. What was wrong with me? As we went around Charlottesville, I realized that I had to snap out of the fantasy that my husband was going to take me Anthropologie or Kate Spade, and turn me loose, letting my buy the whole store. I felt myself becoming to discontent with all of the beautiful things I had, and wanting more, wanting new things that I don't already have. If being a newlywed doesn't do anything else for you, it most certainly will make you humble, at least it has been a humbling experience for me.

Once I woke up from my little self-pitying episode, I felt so convicted about how I had felt and acted. For starters, I'm sure I hadn't shown my loving husband just how grateful I was to spend the entire day with him, something that rarely ever happens because we work totally different hours, or the fact that I appreciated his thoughtfulness. No, I had been too busy being selfish to consider those things. The day after, I woke up feeling sad, mainly because of how materialistic and selfish I had been the day before.

After feeling wrecked and apologetic, I was able to bounce back. How? Because of Jesus. I may be a selfish wretch, but his beautiful, perfect love covers all of that. Life is sweet because I know I'm always restored and forgiven, and because my angel-of-a-husband loves me regardless of my sin. That friends, is love.

I hope everyone is having a great week!
Until next time!

Xx,

LG