root root rooting...

what about those giants?? we've had an exciting two games...i have to say...i've been on the edge of my seat...i really thought the runs & scores would be a lot more tight...but...well...that surely hasn't been the case...as the giants have been kicking some serious bootay...rangers bootay to be exact...

i do have to admit though...i was feeling a bit sad for the rangers...they looked so sad and defeated...i mean i am sure they were just as thrilled to be in this dream come true moment...

but...i'm root root rooting for the giants...

may this be their year! it is truly like a cinderella story...and personally...i like the fact that this team has really rallied together...no big star standing out...just a team working together...which goes to show you...when teamwork is done right...the wonderful things that come out of that...

have a fabulous weekend!

stay safe!

only you...

i have never wanted to be famous...i have seen fame steal...kill and destroy people...relationships and lives...and the sad part...is that i have witnessed this MORE in the “christian” or "church" circles then anywhere else...it has always been my desire to just be me...to write about my journey and share them in hopes that someone will find healing in them...that was MY plan...it hasn’t dawned on me until recently to ask God what His plan was for me and for the gifts He’s given me... =)

maybe your goal is to write a song that’s so catchy it will pay your bills for the rest of your life...maybe you want the world to hear you sing or see you dance because you’re so much better than “so and so”...maybe you want to design the best website because you have something to prove...

the thing is...there will ALWAYS be someone who sings better...dances better...designs better...writes better...but there will NEVER be another YOU...only YOU can do YOU...

only you can be that kind of friend...only you can love those kids that call you mom or dad and think you hung the moon...only you can worship through the way you love...homeschool...serve...work...write...and give...

if I never play another note or sing another melody...or write another post...i want to know that my life was worship and that it was enough...that my success came simply because He loves me and i love Him...and everything else He lets me do is just spilled out because of that love...

stop comparing...stop criticizing...let them be them and learn to be ok with YOU...

no more denial...

ok...i have been in denial long enough...refusing to put the heater on...as if by some chance that would make the weather turn back to summer? =) i know...crazy...and i do this every year...but today was the day...i turned the heater on...

well...it still works...after a year of not being on...i guess that is good...i must focus on all the beautiful fall clothes that i love to wear...and the beautiful fall leaves in the neighborhood...

the cold...well...i guess that comes with the season...and without it...the holidays wouldn't be near...

and well...summer...won't it be here before i know it? maybe a part of me is still in denial...

my model...

i am always loving the look of mixing patterns...some of my clients are definately willing to try it...some...maybe...but in baby steps...and some just flat out don't get it...and that is ok...me personally...the more mixing the better...

i have had an enormous burst of clients bringing over clothes for the consignment store...so with that comes a living room full of lots of clothes...and lots of shopping bags...

can you imagine my delight when my little one eyed wonder sasha...chose this shopping bag to sit in? could my love of mixing patterns be rubbing off on him? =)
how can you not want to squish him??

waiting on direction...

do you pray for direction...and then hear nothing? do you wonder if God even heard your prayers? if so...you are not alone...often i come before God...pouring out my heart in prayer...seeking His will for different areas in my life...then i hear nothing...He is silent...not wanting to wait...i forge ahead on my own...in my busyness...i fail to sit and wait...no time...i say...because someone is waiting for an answer...no time...i say...because i need to act now...

yet...when i read the scriptures...God consistently teaches: sit, pray, and wait...oh so hard to do sometimes...well...at least for me... =) yet when i look to the life of Jesus for direction...i see a clear sense of this...sit, pray, and wait...Jesus began His ministry by fasting forty days alone in the wilderness...He spent an entire night alone in prayer before choosing His twelve disciples...

and there are others...

esther fasted and prayed for three days before she took the bold and courageous step of going before the king on behalf of her people...knowing it could mean her death...

elijah went into the wilderness for forty days to hear the "still small voice..."

i'm seeing a pattern here...no?

what do these great people of faith teach us? to know God's leading...to hear His voice...we must listen and wait...maybe we think God is silent because we never take the time to sit in God's Word and wait...when we do...He promises it will penetrate us to the marrow of our bones...to the deepest places in our heart...in hebrews...it says His word is living and active and "sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow..."

when we choose to get alone with God...He promises to meet us there...one of my favorite verses...jeremiah 29:13-14 says..."you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart...I will be found by you.." i have really been challenged lately to meet Him in His word...

do you want direction? these are the steps i am taking...

- read God's word: 2 timothy 3:16-17 says, "all scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the [woman] of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work..." there is something about knowing that God was actively involved in the writing of scripture...what better way to speak truth into your life?

- study God's word: 2 timothy 2:15 says, "do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth..." when you study His word...He plants it deep within your heart...bends your heart...enabling you to hear His voice.

- pray God's word: isaiah 55:11 says, "...so is My word that goes out from My mouth: it will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purposes for which I sent it..." prayer is God's living word spoken out of your mouth...when you pray in faith...you hold God's word up to Him in prayer... you put Him in remembrance of His word...and His promise is that word will not return void...and most importantly...it shall accomplish that which He purposes and pleases...

so what happens when we apply God's word to the circumstances in our lives? we can rest assured that when we do...God promises to do abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine...i for one...want that more then anything...how about you?

what i know is that i need direction in my life today...and right now...God seems distant and silent...yet i know that He is not because He promises to never leave me or forsake me...today...i commit to search the word...and in that...i know that my eyes will be open that i may see the wonderful things in His word...

Lord...give me eyes to see and ears to hear Your direction in my circumstances...thank you...Lord...that in my seeking...You will meet me...and as i trust in You completely...You will lead me down Your paths...

rain??

ok...it is quite obvi that i am still in mazatlan mode...but not only me...in my head...but my body...i have been freezing all week! and now...what is this i see? rain...sheesh...mazatlan...can i come back to you?? sigh...

but dispite this yucky weather...this weekend is looking to be full of some fun events including our family annual cousins party...crazy family = crazy times... =)

so...stay dry...and enjoy your weekend!!

psalm 23 at the work place...

therefore...NO condemnation...

one of my favorite verses...therefore, there is now NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." romans 8:1

and yet...sometimes...i still need reminding of this incredible truth...it has comforted me many times in my life...it gives us freedom from the condemnation we often project on ourselves...if God promises freedom...then why is it so hard for us to believe, feel and grasp the fact that there is indeed "no condemnation" for christians?

self-condemnation just comes natural to me...and to alot of people...if i didn't purposefully keep my eyes fixed on Jesus and remind myself of who i am in Christ...i'd beat myself to pieces with condemning thoughts and words...how about you?

the Lord has the neatest ways of reminding me there is no condemnation as His child...just this morning God spoke to me directly through a devotion i read...i felt as if the author had been following me around and knew exactly what i needed to hear...actually i knew it was God who knew exactly what i needed to hear...it read... "do not listen to voices of accusation for they are not from Me..."

hello Lord...are you talking to me? You know that i sometimes feel down and disappointed in myself...You knew my feelings had been hurt by someone's comments...i hear You telling me not to listen to the voices of accusation...thank you for that reminder right when i needed it...

the devotion continued..."pause before responding to people or situations...giving My Spirit space to act through you...hasty words and actions leave no room for Me..."

Lord...is that You again? You know that i spoke hastily to my mom a few days ago and You reminded me to "pause before responding..." thank you Lord for bringing me these words as a reminder of what You want from me...i needed these today...right now...

i get so excited and amazed when this happens...it just affirms that God cares about me...He loves me...He is real in my life today...have you ever had a "God moment" like this?

if left to defend myself from self-condemnation and condemnation from others...i'd be defeated every time...fortunately we don't have to defend ourselves...in fact..."the Lord Himself will fight for you" (exodus 14:13-14)...we have the greatest defender in God and His word...as we take the time to listen to Him...He can remind us that He is with us...He loves us...and it's true..."there is NO CONDEMNATION in Christ Jesus!"

so...Lord...when i forget...please remind me that i am not condemned...help me to see the difference between conviction and condemnation and keep my eyes and thoughts on You...

back to reality...

this was my lovely view every morning for the last 7 days...les sigh...now it is back to reality...i accomplished what i set out to do in mexico...and that was to...relax...read...relax...read...and i did! i read three books...lounged by the pool...dipped my toes in the ocean...and soaked up a lot of sun...and most of all...relaxed like i didn't have a care in the world...

so thankful to my parents for giving me this trip at such a much needed time...it was just what the doctor ordered...ok...maybe not...but close... =)

grabbing my books...

i have always been an avid reader...usually 2 books a week...minimum one for sure...but lately...not so much..just so much going on...so tomorrow morning when i board the plane for a week in mazatlan...my books are coming with me...i'm taking 4...i hope that is enough =) and various magazines...for a nice variety...i am so looking forward to sitting on the beach...or by the pool (so many options...can you stand it?) and reading reading reading...

talk about the ultimate relaxation...i'll be gone till next week!

fall leaves...

i saw my first fall leaf...although it looked NOTHING like the picture below...fall is definately in the air...well...almost...not quite...i'm sure people wonder at times how nothing of what i say makes sense...but it does to me...for example...i am clinging to the warm weather...don't want it to go away...at all...and on a side note...we have probably had some of our best "summer" weather this last week...

but on the other hand...i so long for fall days...but only because my favorite clothing season is fall...love the rich colors...the greens, oranges...so what's a girl to do? can't have both at the same time...so when i saw my first fall leaf...i thought...ok...maybe i'm ready to let go of the warm weather...until i stepped outside early this morning and got a gust of cool morning air...=)

i know i know...it's quite the dilemma...i guess whatever comes will come...being that i don't control the weather...and THAT is probably a good thing...so i will continue to look for the beautiful fall leaves...all 5 of them that spring up in the bay area...wouldn't it be wild to have fall look like it does in the east coast? talk about a vibrant fall!!

enjoy your weekend looking for those fall leaves...

surprises like that...

yesterday was the last day of "the savvy chic event" in our new boutique...getting close to closing time...adena & i were already packing up some of the merchandise to send back to the vendors...i was just telling adena a few hours before how i was looking forward to my skype date with my niece who is in the east coast attending college...

so we are packing up the boxes...when the door opens up...and we see a girl standing there...i'm looking at her...thinking...why does she look so familiar...while at the same time thinking...a customer...now? we are tearing down...it literally took me a few moments for it to register...that standing there at the door was my lovely niece...from the east coast...that should explain how exhausted i was at this point =)

what a surprise...sneaky thing that she is...she knew all along that she was flying in...so she planned the skype date...looked up the boutique hours...etc...and here she was...

we went out for dinner...got some catching up done...she is here for a short time...but back for thanksgiving...i have to tell you...as much as i love our skype dates...nothing compares to sitting across the table from her...chit chatting away...

gotta love surprises like that...

God's phone number...

Hello God, I called tonight
To talk a little while
I need a friend who'll listen
To my anxiety and trial.

You see, I can't quite make it
Through a day just on my own...
I need your love to guide me,
So I'll never feel alone.

I want to ask you please to keep,
My family safe and sound.
Come and fill their lives with confidence
For whatever fate they're bound.

Give me faith, dear God, to face
Each hour throughout the day,
And not to worry over things
I can't change in any way.

I thank you God, for being home
And listening to my call,
For giving me such good advice
When I stumble and fall..

Your number, God, is the only one
That answers every time.
I never get a busy signal,
Never had to pay a dime.

So thank you, God, for listening
To my troubles and my sorrow.
Good night, God, I love You, too,
And I'll call again tomorrow!

P.S. Please bless all my friends and family too.

longest password ever...

During a recent password audit, it was found that a
blonde was using the following password:

"MickeyMinniePlutoHueyLouieDeweyDonaldGoofySacramento"

When asked why she had such a long password, she said
she was told that it had to be at least 8 characters
long and include at least one capital.

tee-hee...

hello...it's me...

i feel like i have been gone forever! but it has only been a week...actually a little less then a week...so much is going on...grand opening of my store was a huge success...we are open for three more days...and then we close till the next event...i am amazed at all that was done in such a short amount of time...adena (my business partner & good friend) and i really are a great team...we work well together...the best part...really...is that we think a lot alike...when we need to...when making decisions...and then we work well in brainstorming...in thinking up new things...new ideas...new stratgies...

we've been working hard...but in it all...it has been really fun...we've had some great customers come by...and got great reviews on our concept...

what else...what else...we are now in october...when did that happen?? my mamacita had her birthday...still up in the air if i'm going to mexico next week...haven't quite decided...have you noticed all my last minute trips lately? really not my style of traveling...but i'm adapting...

well...i just wanted to post an update...so there it is...i'll check in soon...unless i'm sunning in mexico =)...which at this point sounds kind of...well...REALLY inviting...

we shall see...