Embracing Beauty

Netflix Introduces New Kids Programs #NetflixKids

May 25, 2013 6 Comments

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of NETFLIX.

I don’t really like for my daughter to be in front of the TV too much. We didn’t allow her to watch TV at all until she was 18 months old. Since then she’s watched it on a limited basis but she does have favorite TV shows. Because her favorite shows aren’t on constantly we looked to Netflix. Netflix streams kids videos and TV shows 24/7. It’s such a life saver!

Netflix is great for cuddle time!

I usually watch a 30 minute show with my little one in the morning while I wait for my meds and coffee to kick in. After that we play and don’t go back to the TV until the next morning. Occasionally, I’ll use it as a babysitter but only briefly! For instance, today I had to work in the kitchen, running back and forth, with the oven door open and I didn’t want to chance her coming in. It worked wonders and as soon as I was finished we turned it off and went to playing with her kitchen.

The Netflix app would be great to rescue kids from the boredom of long road trips!

We’ve had a Netflix subscription since a few months after we were married. We love it and use it daily! We have our favorite TV show reruns we’ll watch like Psych, whole series’ like 24, old Jimmy Stewart movies, new action flicks, and, of course, now that we have a little one in the house we’re partial to the cartoons on demand and the Disney movies!

Netflix has recently added new content from Hasbro, Disney Jr. and Cartoon Network. Explore the TV shows and movies available from these networks and find your family favorite from the list below:

My Little Pony
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Road Rally
Cars Toons: Mater’s Tall Takes
101 Dalmatians
Batman and Beyond
Transformers Prime
Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue
The Aristocats
Pocahontas
Angelina Ballerina
Tron: Uprising
Powerpuff Girls
Thomas & Friends: Go Go Thomas
Pingu
Justin Time
Jake and the Never Land Pirates
The Adventures of Tintin
Curious George
H2O: Just Add Water
Caillou
Sesame Street
Johnny Test
Suite Life of Zack & Cody
Curious George
ParaNorman

A little evening cuddle with Netflix and Daddy! What could be better?

What are you watching on TV with your family? Netflix has family favorites from Disney, Disney Jr., Hasbro, Cartoon Network and Dreamworks that are available to stream anytime, anywhere.

And streaming is easier than you think! Download the free app on your iPad, click on the Netflix app on any gaming device, go to the website on your computer – and you’re in business. Check it out here!

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of NETFLIX.

Filed Under: True Beauty Tagged With: kids, Movies, Netflix, TV

Dreaming of Hawaii

August 16, 2012 2 Comments

Are you thinking about planning a trip to Hawaii in the future? What about, wanting to go but thinking that there is no way you could possibly afford it? That’s probably where I’m at.

My friend spent a few years in Hawaii with her husband and I just love to see their pictures on Facebook. It’s gorgeous there! One thing I’ve always want to do is swim in a crystal clear blue ocean. I guess you could say that it’s on my bucket list. While browsing around on Pinterest I kept finding beautiful pictures tagged with the name Aqua Resorts. I ran into it so many times that I decided to check it out. I don’t think that was a good thing to do. This place looks like paradise AND they have affordable options. Seriously! Of course I would still have to buy airfare but I’ll try not to think about that right now.

As I sit here dreaming about day dreaming on the shore side I’ll share some of Aqua Resorts’ coupons/deals with you. Who knows? Maybe you can send me a picture of you there!

From the Aqua Resort website:

Help save a vet & save on rates! Write a thank you card to a veteran and enjoy 10% off our best available rates at all participating Aqua Hotels. Plus, when you book the Mahalo To Our Veterans rate, a portion from every sale goes to support the U.S. Veterans Initiative, Hawaii Chapter, Barbers Point Homeless Veterans Program.
Aqua is celebrating local style with Hawaii’s favorite footwear, and we invite you to go local and slip into savings! Book the Slip into Savings rate, show us your slippers (flip flops) and save 10% off at participating Aqua Hotels on Oahu, Maui, Kauai, Molokai.
In conjunction with the remake of the classic hit TV show, Aqua Hotels & Resorts is offering an “Aqua Five-O Special” at its 12 hotels in beautiful Waikiki. Only $50 for the first night in Waikiki.
Book* at least 60 days in advance and save 15% on your next Hawaii vacation. Call866-971-2782 for details. *Full prepayment required at time of booking. Non-cancelable or refundable.

Filed Under: Tips, True Beauty Tagged With: Aqua Resorts, Hawaii, Travel, Vacations

My 10 Favorite Quotes About Mothers

May 13, 2012 7 Comments

Here are my 10 favorite quotes about mothers. I hope they bring a smile to your face! : )

1. “My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.”
– Mark Twain

2. ”I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.”
– Abraham Lincoln

3. ”If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands?”

– Milton Berle

4. “A mother is she who can take the place of all others but whose place no one else can take.”

– Cardinal Mermillod

5. “Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother.”
– Lin Yutang

6. ”When I was a child, my mother said to me, ‘If you become a soldier, you’ll be a general. If you become a monk you’ll end up as the pope.’ Instead I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”
– Pablo Picasso

7. “The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother.”
– Theodore Hesburgh

8. “The phrase “working mother” is redundant.”
– Jane Sellman

9. “You do not really understand something unless you can explain it to your grandmother.”
– Albert Einstein

10. “A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.”

– Tenneva Jordan

Filed Under: Live Simply, True Beauty Tagged With: Live Simply, Mother's Day, Mothers, Quotes, True Beauty

Peace

March 6, 2012 3 Comments

Today I’m pleased to share with you a guest post from one of my very dear friends, Jessica. I trust this will be a blessing to you as it was to me.

Peace. What a lovely word. Take a deeeeeeep breath and just sit there for a moment and imagine what it would feel like to have complete and total peace…not to be in a rush…not to have regrets…to just sit there, and be…. and to be at rest, both physically, and deep in your soul.

I don’t know about you, but much to my shame, my life is not usually categorized by that word. This year, I decided to take a challenge given by Ashley on EmbracingBeauty.com, and come up with a theme word for 2012. My theme word is peace. While it’s still early on in my journey, I’d like to share a small portion of what God has been showing me.

I used to believe that if only I could get caught up on all the housework, and learn to play the piano, and organize all my pictures, and lose weight, and start extreme couponing , and memorize 1000 bible verses, and…and…and…(you fill in the rest of the blanks) and basically all life’s circumstances would cooperate with me and go the way they are SUPPOSED to, I would be at peace. Maybe you’ve thought the same thing. As I’m sure you’ve found out, life just doesn’t work that way. Unexpected company arrives, and always on that day that you’re way behind on housework and decided not to take off your pjs until noon. A slow moving utility truck pulls out in front of you, and of course it’s when you’re running really, really late. A neighbor’s dog gets in the trash and it ends up from one end of your yard to the other…and inevitably when it’s pouring the rain. So should we just forfeit the hope of peace altogether? How can a girl have peace when things don’t go her way?

There is a verse that flashes in my mind multiple times a day that answers this question very simply: Isaiah 26:3. “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee.”

Wow.

Not, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose house is sparkling clean.” Or “…whose children obey without whining.” or “…who’s got it all together.” No, instead the verse says God will keep me in perfect peace, if I keep my mind on Him because I trust in Him.

Too often I get caught up in worrying about things that won’t matter at all after today, let alone in eternity. I’ve discovered that if my perspective on life’s interruptions has God at the center, then company seeing a pile of dirty clothes or crumbs on the counter doesn’t really matter so much. Perspective makes all the difference.

Today, I challenge you to pay attention to your “peace level.” How do you react when things don’t go your way? Are you constantly uptight? Do your husband and children dread being around you after a long day? Do you believe that if you could just “get it together,” you’d be able to have peace? If so, remember that life will never be predictable. Never. So basing your peace on circumstances will end in a lot of unnecessary stress and frustration.

Instead of falling apart when the unexpected happens, look at those interruptions as from the Lord. Instead of focusing on the fact that you look terrible or your house is a mess when that unexpected company shows up, change your focus to what their needs might be. Maybe the Lord sent them to you today so you could encourage them or even witness to them. Use those extra minutes behind that slow truck to praise the Lord that you have a vehicle to drive and the ability to drive it, and maybe even say a prayer for the driver of the truck in front of you. Make a game of picking up the trash with your kids in the rain, then go puddle-jumping with them. Life is 10% what happens to us, and 90% what we make of it. Make a choice today to cast all of your cares on the Lord, “…for He careth for you” (1 Peter 5:7b).

This quote does a good job at summarizing what a woman of peace looks like:

“A woman of true beauty is a woman who in the depths of her soul is at rest, trusting God because she has come to know him to be worthy of her trust. She exudes a sense of calm, a sense of rest, and invites those around her to rest as well. She speaks comfort; she knows that we live a world at war, that we have a vicious enemy, and our journey is through a broken world. But she also knows that because of God all is well, that all will be well…In her presence, we can release the tension and pressure that so often grip our hearts…” from Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge

Lord, starting today, teach me to be this kind of woman.

Filed Under: Bible Study, True Beauty Tagged With: Bible Study, Peace, True Beauty

“The Most Beautiful People…”

July 17, 2011 2 Comments

Image credit

Filed Under: Live Simply, Sunday Reflections, True Beauty Tagged With: beauty, True Beauty

Interview with CEO of Faithful Fish, Chelsea Eubank

March 22, 2011 Leave a Comment

A few days ago I was on a small conference Q and A call with Chelsea Eubank of Faithful Fish Clothing and I just want to share with you a little bit about her and her ministry. This amazing woman of 23 years has been featured in Chicken Soup for the Extraordinary Teens, a guest on the Dave Ramsey show (my dream!), featured on Fox & Friends, and numerous other TV and radio spots. I felt blessed to have the opportunity to talk with this passionate young woman! She has been through so many hardships in her life yet she has trusted God and grew because of her experiences. She is the CEO of her own Christian clothing line and recently she has started the Wear It Wednesday movement where more than 500,000 young people signed up! This is an amazing little idea that has grown wildly. I encourage you to check out Wear It Wednesday and her clothing line, Faithful Fish.

Chelsea with Tim Gunn from “Project Runway”

Here is a little interview I had with Chelsea after the conference call.

Where did you come up with the name faithful fish? Because Faithful Fish’s trademarked logo is such an iconic Christian logo I guess the word fish just had to be in the name. Then I was running and kept thinking of names that went with fish and the bible verse about “Fishers of Men” popped into my head, I could actually feel the light bulb go on. Now I can’t even imagine having another name.

What has been the hardest thing to overcome when starting your own business? The vision to provide a branded Christian logo’d clothing line that expresses the customers positive values and lifestyle doesn’t resonate with everyone and trying to market a Christian clothing line has been a big disadvantage in the retail store space. Stores are concerned that if they bring in a faithful line they will offend other customers. But I have a vision a BIG vision, a HUGE vision and I truly believe that we are ready to have a Christian clothing line that can compete with secular clothing lines like Ralph Lauren or a company like American Eagle. It just seems that we need a line that represents our positive values. So to actually answer your question just to keep being positive even when things aren’t going as quickly as you want them to.

What keeps you motivated to do what you do? It is so much fun and I also get to work with people who are just as jazzed as I am about being faithful. Faithful Fish also gives a portion of all sales to charities so that is a true motivator. I also believe that we are offering something that is not in the market place and Faithful Fish is meeting a need.

If you could tell my readers one thing what would that be? From my personal experience of losing my Dad on the phone with me when I was 17 and then losing 3 family members within 5 months of each other I know that God doesn’t do these bad or tragic things to us but that he helps us through these hard times. He held my heart when it was broken and didn’t let the pieces fall to the ground.

What is your favorite Bible verse? Fruit of the Spirit. I love that it talks about all of God’s positive values. So many people say that Christians don’t want this or don’t like that but The Fruit of The Spirit shows all of the positive values that God represents and wants for us. (Gal. 5:22-23)

Okay, and a question for me…what was it like to meet Dave Ramsey? : ) He is so very nice and a believer like us. After talking his “Financial Peace” course I also felt that he truly has a calling to help people in their lives in a very relevant way. He helps people become good stewards. To then be able to be on his TV show and his radio show really was a miracle.

Thank you again Chelsea for your time! God Bless!!

Filed Under: True Beauty Tagged With: Chelsea Eubank, Faithful Fish, Interview, Wear It Wednesday

A Beautiful Woman-Lessons from the Proverbs 31 Woman

September 25, 2010 13 Comments

First let’s look at the background, verse one; tells us that this chapter contains the words of King Lemuel’s mother. We don’t know much about King Lemuel, but he had a good Jewish mother who gave him some really good advice. Because he was royal, and because he was going to take a position of leadership, she told him some things he really needed to know. She gave a few pieces of advice about how to be a good king, how to be a great man, and (what occupied the length of her speech) how to find a good wife. Proverbs 31 paints a lovely portrait of an ideal woman. This woman is priceless. Her worth is far above jewels. King Lemuel’s mother goes on to describe this woman, both physically, mentally, morally, and spiritually.

different country with a different culture but this woman’s God-inspired character still shines brightly through the centuries. I hope you’ll read this list describing a woman who is beautiful in God’s eyes and be inspired. Becoming a Proverbs 31 woman is a life-long goal of mine, I hope it will be yours too!

1. Faith - A Beautiful Woman actively pursues a relationship with Jesus Christ. She serves God with all of her heart, mind, and soul. She desires His will for her life. (Proverbs 31: 26, Proverbs 31: 29 – 31, Matthew 22: 37, John 14: 15, Psalm 119: 15

2. Marriage – A Beautiful Woman respects her husband. She loves, honors and greatly enriches his life. (Proverbs 31: 11- 12, Proverbs 31: 23, Proverbs 31: 28, 1 Peter 3, Ephesians 5, Genesis2: 18)

3. Mothering - A Beautiful Woman teaches her children the ways of her Father in heaven. She nurtures her children with the love of Christ, disciplines them with care and wisdom, and trains them in the way they should go. (Proverbs 31: 28, Proverbs 31: 26, Proverbs 22: 6, Deuteronomy 6, Luke 18: 16)

4. Health – A Beautiful Woman prepares healthy food for her family. (Proverbs 31: 14 – 15, 1 Corinthians 6: 19)

5. Service - A Beautiful Woman self-sacrificing. She gladly serves her husband, her family, her friends, and her neighbors with a loving spirit. (Proverbs 31: 12, Proverbs 31: 15, Proverbs 31: 20, 1 Corinthians 13: 13)

6. Finances - A Beautiful Woman saves and spends money wisely. She diligently manages the money God has entrusted her with. (Proverbs 31: 14, Proverbs 31: 16, Proverbs 31: 18)

7. Industry – A Beautiful Woman works hard and does not complain while completing her tasks. (Proverbs 31: 13, Proverbs 31: 16, Proverbs 31:18, Proverbs 31: 24, Proverbs 31:26, Proverbs 31: 31)

8. Homemaking – A Beautiful Woman is a homemaker. She creates an inviting atmosphere of warmth and love for her family and guests. She uses hospitality to minister to those around her. (Proverbs 31: 15, Proverbs 31: 20 – 22, Proverbs 31: 27, Titus 2: 5, Hebrews 13: 2,1 Peter 4: 9)

9. Time - A Beautiful Woman uses her time wisely. She works diligently to complete her daily tasks. She does not spend time dwelling on those things that displease the Lord. (Proverbs 31: 19, Proverbs 31: 27)

10. Beauty – A Beautiful Woman is a woman of worth and inner beauty that only comes from Christ. She adorns herself with kind speech and a sweet spirit. She clothed herself (& family) in attractive garments. (Proverbs 31: 10, Proverbs 31: 21 – 22)

Filed Under: Bible Study, Sunday Reflections, True Beauty

What is true beauty?

November 11, 2009 Leave a Comment

Do beauty pageants truly pinpoint authentic beauty? Of course not. I think we’d all agree that beauty, true beauty is found on the inside of a person and not the exterior. MomDot is challenging women to think about what beauty really is. Here’s what I believe it is:

I’m not against beauty pageants or trying to look attractive. I’ve even entered to be the Face of e.l.f. 2010 because I think it would be a fun opportunity to take a few pictures & make a little money. Having said that, I don’t believe being entered or even winning would make me beautiful. So what is beauty?

When we look at things that are authentic, true, & real they are always more favorable than things that are fake. A diamond ring far more valuable than a cubic zirconium. So what does it mean for us to be genuine?

I believe it’s being able to accept ourselves for who we are and be who we are created to be. It’s not important what others think about us or what others want us to be. It’s all about being who we are created to be!

I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. (Psalms 139:14 NASB -emphasis added by me)

We don’t allow ourselves to feel beautiful because too often we have a poor self image. When we think poorly of ourselves we’re often looking for a quick fix to cover up the outside but really we are beautiful just we way we are.

You are beautiful! Women, whether you are single or married, with children or without you are beautiful. God loves you just the way that you are.

Smile, hug your family, sing in the shower, love your life because this is your life and you are BEAUTIFUL!
Joy is the best makeup. -Anne Lamott

Filed Under: True Beauty

Netflix Introduces New Kids Programs #NetflixKids

Dreaming of Hawaii

My 10 Favorite Quotes About Mothers

Peace

“The Most Beautiful People…”

Interview with CEO of Faithful Fish, Chelsea Eubank

A Beautiful Woman-Lessons from the Proverbs 31 Woman

What is true beauty?

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