Smash Book Journal

Just got in from working out and boy do I feel my muscles aching (in a good way) from the work the work out. Now that I am home I can relax a bit and possibly try this some what similar to scrapbooking idea that I have came across. It is called Smash Book. Instead of waiting to put together a good scrapbook page of a theme from Christmas with all the right decorative papers, stickers, labels etc that are related to christmas, this Smash Book is made to hold all of ephemera from your everyday life such as: Ticket stubs, receipts, photos, clippings doodles etc. It is like scrapbooking on the go, with out all the fuss and hassle of putting together a themed page, like I said earlier. You can also jot down funny quotes, or things your kid has said, pretty much whatever you want to put in it that has made your day. Any sort of a memento.
Although, this book is $15 and I am a frugal Mom and don't like paying that amount for such a thing. So I googled and researched online and found some alternatives, which apparently a good old composition book from the dollar store is just as good. And some girls even take patterned duct tape to decorate the front and back covers. Some people still buy the other things that go with the smash journal book like tape, stamps, papers, but it you're like me. Than I will be fine with dollar store items, along with getting cheap deals that I receive in my e-mails for coupons at Michaels craft store. Which I am happier to save my money than to splurge on ridiculous high priced items.
So, if I seem to like this way of quick scrapbooking on the go and at least fill up a whole book, then I will take a few pictures and share what I've done.

Mind Boggling Exhaustion

Sitting here right now feeling kind of sluggish. For the last 15 minutes I sat here and stared at my laptop's screen absentmindedly, yet can't seem to get myself out of whatever it is I am going into. I am sleep deprived for one I know that is one of the main causes. I went to bed at 1 am and got up at 7:30. I so use to being in bed by 10:30 pm. Jonathan and I ran around all day and he was so tired he left me to do all the grocery shopping, which is odd for me because I hate him coming because he nags me to hurry up the whole time. But this time I was so tired that I couldn't even think straight as what to put in the cart. I felt like I was going to fall asleep pushing my cart. I like when Jonathan goes down aisle ahead of me and grabs the necessities while I am slowly and carefully watching for items that are usually pricey to be on sale or half price or even 99 cents.
Maybe my lack of work out the past two days. I have been going regularly, but when I don't work out I feel like a bump on a log. Or is a lump on a bog? See I am extremely exhausted that I am not quite sure which one is the right saying. Well I am going to go before I make this blog sound senseless, although I am sure I already have.
Going to go get some reading into me to help me think straight/better.

Back In Shape

So Jonathan and I have decided to get back into shape. Which is well over due, because we keep saying it, but never really do anything about it. I have previously joined Golds Gym. Which is a good gym and I work out regularly, a lot more than I did before. We also changed our eating habits, and started to not eat late at night and if we are hungry at night, we eat things like baby carrots, broccoli etc.
We are also trying to make it more fun to do this, by competing with each other. So we weighed ourselves this morning and decided for the next three months to change our life style and cross off the main choices off our grocery list, to help refrain from habitual junk food eating out of boredom.
When I weighed myself in I am whopping 161 pounds. So, my goal is to be as skinny as my body will allow me to be after having Aaliyah, now I don't expect to be 110 pounds again, but if I could get to 130 to 135 pounds, I will be happy. I will be at a healthy weight for myself. As for Jonathan I can't disclose his weight, as he is really embarrassed of his weight, since this is the highest in weight he has ever weighed.
So, we are thinking maybe a before picture starting now, and after three months an after picture. So, if we have improved anything at all. Here's to hoping! It is all really about eating right, because to be honest with you. Before I got pregnant with Aaliyah, I ate very healthy and was 110 pounds for most of my teen years up until I got pregnant. Then I got into bad eating habits during pregnancy and didn't realize it would hurt my figure later. I was listening to people telling to me eat at every moment, I had a hunger pang, because it is good for the baby. But in reality my doctor told me to eat normal like I usually do, but in between meals have little snacks.
I was always a skinny mini so I know if I start eating the way I use to, not only will that help, but having a work out routine will help out as well.
So, here's to hoping for pounds to shed, but in a healthy way.

Merry Christmas; Missing my family

Well it is Christmas and people are being all full of joy and merriment. Which is nice, but all I want for Christmas is to be home in Saint John with the rest of my family. This is officially my first year without my parents and baby brother Joel. And being here on this night without them is really making me miss them. It is not the same without them. I have grown up doing certain things with  my family for Christmas.

And we are not together to do any of it together. We always have a hot chocolate on Christmas Eve and as boring as my father finds the Christmas fire place channel we put that on and then play some Christmas music in the back ground lightly while we all unwrap that one Christmas eve gift and sometimes Mom and I sing some songs and do some duet version of the classic songs together. What I really think of when I think of my family right now is this song. Which I am going to share with you, to get the feeling I feel when around my family.
So there it is! A nice song we always sing together every year. My Mom and I sing this in such beautiful harmony it is breath taking. We always do a good job together. As much as I always feel frustrated at my Mom for things I do miss her lots. Especially now, and also my father, he is my rock and is the glue to our family. I wouldn't know what to do without him. He holds the family together and if something ever happened to him I know my family would fall apart.
Well I better get going for now, I can't seem to type right now with myself getting all sentimental and tearing up is not helping me able to see what I am typing.
So Merry Christmas to you all.

On The Down Side

Today I am feeling a little on the down side. My parents and brother originally moved to Edmonton Alberta with Jonathan, Aaliyah and myself. But due to my brother Joel's autism, he couldn't handle the change which things such as this are hard on autistic children. So they moved back to Saint John NB after our year lease at the town house was up.
This is my first Christmas away from home. Without my family. I know that I have Jonathan and Aaliyah, but there was always a tradition in the Israel home with my parents and brother. Dad always strung the lights around the tree, while Joel and myself did the rest. As Joel and I got older we always decorated the tree and my Mom let us do it as she watched.
I am realizing I miss all of that, because I did the tree by myself and I couldn't get Jonathan to help me at all and well Aaliyah is still a baby and doesn't understand how to decorate yet. It is almost like Jonathan doesn't care much for doing things as a family. No matter how hard I try to get him involved.
I don't know about his upbringing as a kid for Christmas. But I am getting the idea that he never took part in it.
I don't even have a manger/nativity scene either. The one we always used all my life was my parents and I have been looking around for one and can't seem to find anything old and rustic. I don't like the modern pieces. I am just not feeling it this year. Probably because I am not a kid anymore either and not being around family that you're use to is not around. I feel like I have been left alone in this. I know Jonathan bought me gifts, but his lack of enthusiasm for family things during this month is not very encouraging. I am still a little girl in my own way and all I want is my Mom and Dad and brother.

Can't Escape The Mayans

It seems as though no matter who I am talking to or what I am logged into on the internet people are going on about the non sense of the mayan 'prophecy'. UGH spare me really. I don't care for one. Everyone's facebook status' are just simply annoying talking about it.
I can't even watch television with out talk shows talking about it and now there is a big thing about it on the history channel for goodness sakes!
So here are my two cents worth. What makes them idiotic mayans think they can predict the future. It states in the bible that 'No man will know the day or the hour' of the end of the world. And this isn't the first thing about people trying to predict the end of the world.
The end of the world was supposively the Y2K, then following that the 9/11, then following that the haiti earth quake and so on and so forth all bad disasters that take place everyone is crying doomsday.
Just give me a break already. I am tired of all these so called predictions, when ever the end of the world happens something really traumatic will most likely happen and not effecting one country, but effecting all living beings. Something unspeakable will happen when ever the real doomsday happens.
I seriously think people go on about this stuff to get some form of attention to be honest. And it is sickening if you ask me.
Well I am going to go for now and enjoy the not so end of the world day today.
Oh and just for laughs because I saw a post on facebook saying for me to do so if the world did not end to say this out loud on my status or blog so here it is.
GOKU saved the world once again!

LOL

Ugh! Christmas

This time of year is so awesome! Especially now we are less than a week away from Christmas. All the different versions of scruge cartoons are playing. I am watching the Flintstone version as of right now. And oh the childhood memories and how I use to feel all excited about Christmas and couldn't wait to open my presents up. I use to bug my parents to let me open mine early, it never did work with all my asking and bugging them. Although, I find the novelty of Christmas is wearing off over the years as I grow more in wisdom towards God and learning more about him.
The year I was 16 I couldn't wait and I already had an idea of what I was getting so I went to bed early Christmas eve at 7 or 8 and woke up at 3 am. Not looking at my alarm clock and woke my parents up and got them into the living room, until they looked at the clock on the wall they were kind of grumpy at me for waking them up, thinking I did it on purpose (which I didn't, in fact I wasn't even aware of the time). They both said in a stern voice get back to bed. They had a hard time getting my little baby brother back to bed after we woke him up, allowing him to think that we were going to  be opening the presents up. At the time I think he was 6 or 7 years old at the time. So they got him to climb into bed with them and they all fell asleep.
My parents abruptly woke me up at 9:30 am and I was exhausted and they were saying "don't you want to open your presents?" and to their surprise my response was "no." I was so exhausted from being up at 3 and when I went back to bed, I remember the last time I took a quick glance at my alarm clock in my room, it read 9:00 am. So really I only got 30 minutes of sleep and was not rested. Thankfully though when I am tired like I am, my father always brews a good batch of coffee in the morning and already had a cup of coffee in his hand and set at the edge of my bed and gave it to me. Let me sip on it a bit until I wasn't so grouchy then ushered me out of my bed and out of my bedroom to the living room.
Two couch pillows were on the floor with a very impatient little brother of mine Joel sitting on one and the other for me. He had been made to wait for me as usual every year, we wait for everyone to be awake.
I miss those days of getting all revved up and excited about Christmas. Watching cartoons of all versions of the scruge Bahumbug! And the old fashion rudolph movie which is not so much a cartoon, but not in real life either. I am sure you all know what I am talking about though, with the man Cornelius who enjoys throwing his ax into the air, and licking the snow off of it, thinking he can taste silver and gold. And he also fights the big abominable snow man. And followed with rudolph running away with the elf who doesn't want to make toys, but yet wants to be a dentist.
I love those memories, and I enjoy watching them with a nice cold glass of Christmas eggnog. I enjoy the tree as well all lit up and pretty.
But the best part of all is reading from the new testament in the bible from the book of Luke.
It is always good to remember the reason for the season. The birth of Jesus Christ. I may enjoy all those things, but Christmas wouldn't even be Christmas if Jesus wasn't born, because it is his birth that we are celebrating. I don't reflect enough on Jesus like I should, but thinking of it now as I am writing this. I need to learn more and know more. I only know the basics of Jesus to the point that even the nonbeliever could tell you about him. It says in his word for us to study to show ourselves approved. We need to know his word in order to know him and his heart and what he is all about. All this false merriment that you see people give out to one another during Christmas only, but not through out the year, it needs to be like that all year long. Anyone can get into the festivities of everything, but when it all comes down to it, I really need to focus on Jesus.
Sweet baby Jesus was born in a stable. Dirtiest place to ever been birthed, he deserved much more than that. No matter the good stuff that is played during Christmas time this is what is important to me the most. I haven't shown much of a Christian like attitude, but I need to change it for the betterment of myself and for Jesus, he deserves so much better than this, his father (God) created us for a purpose and to not try to get to know him and his word is like a slap in the face. Who in their right mind wouldn't want to know their creator? I want to know him more and more each day.
I got to not just try, but do it. Read his word, reflect on his word and live his word.
So nothing can make you happy in this world, all the presents at Christmas can't, it fills the void you have for a short period of time, but then that hole still exists until you reach out to God. Yes I love the Christmas movies too and the festivities, but until we get it right with God we won't be truly happy.
This year I sit there at my couch and stare at the tree and try to find the happiness and excitement I once use to feel about Christmas and it just isn't happening. And then I realized that I am not happy ever, never have been. The only times I remember being fully happy, is when I am 100% focused on Jesus Christ himself. Anytime my focus goes another route and I slowly put off a bible reading to another day and put off praying for another day, I get more miserable and wretched, but when I can crying at the feet of the Lord praying and crying out to him asking him to forgive me for forsaking him it feels better and his presence is there and you can feel it! There isn't anything better than his presence.
Don't get me started on Santa Claus. Yes I am aware of the Ole St.Nick tale, however, there are plenty of verses in the bible that talks about the idol that before worshipped over God which is called Molech or Moloch. It is spelled differently when you google it. The thing about Molech in the bible days B.C. It was a giant statued furnace in the shape a human body that had a giant huge belly with its arms stretched out as if it is holding something. What people would do in those days when they turned their back on God and decided to make an idol of their own, was heat the furnace and sacrifice their babies and young children, along with a list of all their wants of materialistic things. Sound familiar? Just like Santa Claus! Parents line up at the mall during this time of year and some kids are scared of Santa and scream and cry and yell and also have a 'list' of things they want. It so symbolic to the Molech offering. Don't you think?
I really don't think I will be telling my kid about Santa. First reason, it is a lie and your child trusts everything you say, then when you tell them at an older age that there is no such thing, they feel betrayed, because they were lied to. Also, think about it? This world is full of sin, because of a lie. Eve was betrayed by the lie from satan in the form of a snake. And then she lied to God when confronted. My second reason for not telling Aaliyah a word about Santa Claus is: I did the photo picture thing in the mall this year and she was petrified of him! I never saw a kid so scared in my life and the look in her eyes while looking at me standing by the camera trying to make her smile, it was like a look of betrayal. She didn't know why I was not saving her from something that scared her. She is use to me coming to her rescue for everything that I do on an everyday basis, but this one time I allowed her to live in a moment of fear with out calming and comfort. Thirdly, in the ten commandments we are commanded not to lie. Lying lips are an abomination to God. He hates it, and I want to honor him as much as I can.