Joy to the world the Lord has come!

I know that everyone can agree to the fact that every time we turn around, we hear all kinds of bad news going on all over the world!   but, if you read this post today, you will hear the good news of Jesus Christ .  The good new of Jesus Christ says, " Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid , If you believe in God, believe also in me." I'm reminded of a few songs that gives my heart and mind peace, strength, and joy, and these songs  are Hark the Herald angel sing, glory to the new born king, and Joy to the world.  I hope they bless you as much as they  bless me..

Joy to the world

the Lord is come

let earth receive her king

let every hear,

prepare him room,

and heaven and nature sing,

and heaven and 

and heaven, heaven, nature sing.

He rules the world,

with truth and grace,

 and made the nations prove,

the glory of,

 his righteousness 

and wonders of his love

and wonders of his love

and wonder -of -his- love

Hark the Herald angel sing, 

glory to the new born king,

peace on earth

and mercy mild,

god and sinners reconciled,

Joyful all ye nations rise,

Join the triumph

in the skies;

with angelic hosts proclaim

Christ is born in Bethlehem.

Hark the Herald angels sing

glory to the new-born king.

,

Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a happy New Year!

Merry Christmas to All, How will you celebrate Christ's Birthday!

I want to take a moment to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!  In case you don’t already know, this month is our Lord and savior Jesus Christ’s birthday! Hallelujah to the king of kings and lord of lords!   As I was sitting on my bed this morning, a thought came to my mind, and the thought was, how will you celebrate Christ’s Birthday this year?  Before answering the question in my mind, I began to think long and hard about it because as a Christian, you Want to do what’s pleasing to the Lord and not yourself.  I started thinking back about how our parents taught us to celebrate Christmas.  Ever since I was small, our parents celebrated Christmas with a decorated tree, lots of food, and gift giving to loved ones.   As I got older, I discovered others celebrate it pretty much the same way, and yet; some don’t celebrate it at all.   I was bought up with the belief that birthdays (especially Christ’s) are special and ought to be celebrated, so most of the time, each of us was given a birthday party which included a cake, ice cream, friends, family, and a few presents if we were lucky, but I guess the most important point that I want to make is that what they did for us made our birthdays a special event or day to remember!   Birthdays are tangible, and Christ is a spirit, so do not see how celebrating his birthday would get him excited or even necessary.  I believe that Christ gets more excited as well as honored when we worship him, lead others to Christ, and share his goodness with others!  Let us celebrate eternal life.  St. John 3:16 that says, For God so loved the world that he sent us his one and only son to die, that whosoever believe on him should not perish, but they should have everlasting life.  

So, I conclude that celebrating Christ’s birthday with tangible things are not exciting him. What excites him is when we as believers lead others to him and tell of his goodness to everyone who want to hear of it.  To God be the glory for the things he has done, for he has done great things.  He’s still healing the sick, and raising those who are spiritually dead, Amen.

Give and it shall be given unto you

This is the season of giving, and the bible declares that when we give, it will be given unto us, good measures, pressed down, shaken together, and running over shall men give unto us.  Whether or not it's the season of giving, I am a person who always give something of value away to someone in need.  I give because it's my nature and because it makes me feel good to be able to lend a helping hand, so when I give something away, I'm not looking for anything in return, but I always, get blessed right back with something of equal value or  more than equal  in return.  His word is very much alive today as it was over two-thousand years ago!
A lot of believers feel that they will be blessed more, or God will honor their giving more when they give to their church home, but from experience, I came to find out that God honors our giving be it at our local church or if we give it to someone in need.  So, when the spirit leads you to   be a blessing to someone, give it freely and cheerfully.  As a matter of fact, it's always good to intentionally be  listening to the voice of the  holy spirit   and it will guide you as to who to give to.  I have a few testimonies to share.  Lately here, I've been lead to bless this sister with finances to keep her going, and no longer than twenty-four hours, I get the funds right back.  Lately, God has been blessing us with great household furniture and accessories for the house at a super low price!  We were planning to buy a brand new television for four or five hundred dollars, and ran across one in great condition for only one-hundred dollars! Everything we needed and was planning to buy new, we were able to find it for a reasonable price and all of it is well taken care of, so I bless the name of the Lord for keeping all of his promises, and for strengthening my faith in what he can and wants to do in me and through me.  If this message has inspired you in some way, please share it, tweet it, plus it, and like it across your social media networks, and thanks in advance!  That's all I have for now, may God bless you and your family each and everyday, and in every way.

                                                           

The importance of cultivating a heart of thankfulness in our kids

Right here on this post, you will learn the importance of cultivating a thankful heart in our kids/children as well as why it's important to raise kids who show appreciation for acts of kindnesses to others.  Very often, I see little children as well as older children growing up not being thankful for the nice things others do for them, and this disturbed me to the point to want to write as well as pray about it, so this is why I'm writing about the matter.  I don't fault the kids/children for not showing thankfulness for good deeds done to them by others. I don't even blame the parents because I believe that most parents want their kid/kids to show thankfulness, but many parents just don't know how to go about it, or they weren't raised to be thankful or grateful, so they need to learn how to be thankful and grateful.   Here are a few scriptures that sheds light about giving thanks to God.


COLOSSIANS 3:7
and whatever you do, whether in words or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus giving
thanks to God the father through him.


1 chronicles 16:8
Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.

When we give thanks to God,  It makes him want to do more for us because we are showing him how thankful and grateful for what he's done, doing, and going to do for us, with us, and through us.  It's the same way for people.  When we go out of our way to do something nice for someone out of the goodness of our hearts, we, at least, want a word of appreciation, I no I do. 

Because we wanted our child and grandchildren to grow up with an heart of thankfulness, we purposely modeled thankfulness in front of them, and I'll tell you how I did it.  Whenever my husband gave me something no matter how large or small, I purposely had my husband to give it to me so I could tell him thank you for being nice, and my husband and I purposely modeled thankfulness daily, and our son caught on, and I'm happy to say that he says thanks to us as well as others when we show him kindnesses.  Praying in front of a child is also teaching him or her to pray, and the list goes on and on, so, now we know the importance of cultivating a heart of thankfulness  and how to teach them to be thankful among other behaviors.  I want to wish all of my reader a Happy Thanksgiving  season and many more to come.

FIVE THINGS YOU CAN DO TO KEEP YOUR KIDS SAFE THIS HALLOWEEN

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! 2015
CHECK OUT THESE 5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO KEEP YOUR KIDS SAFE ON THIS HALLOWEEN

 HALLOWEEN DAY CAN BE A LOT OF FUN FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY IF WE TAKE DRASTIC MEASURES TO KEEP OUR KIDS SAFE.  I HAVE INCLUDED 5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO KEEP YOUR KID OR KIDS SAFE THIS TRICK OR TREAT NIGHT.

1. INSTEAD OF ALLOWING YOUR KIDS TO GO TRICK OR TREATING AT NIGHT, YOU CAN FIND THE LOCAL FALL FESTIVALS WHICH ARE SO MUCH MORE FUN BECAUSE NOT ONLY DO THE KIDS GET CANDY, THEY GET TO ENJOY ALL OF THE ACTIVITIES AT THE FESTIVAL.
2. YOU CAN TAKE YOUR KIDS TO LOCAL CHURCHES.  A LOT OF CHURCHES ARE HAVING CANDY FOR KIDS AT CHURCHES NOW A DAYS.
3. YOU CAN TAKE YOUR KIDS AROUND TO LOCAL STORES WITH THEIR COSTUMES ON WITH THEIR TREAT BAGS TO BE FILLED WITH GOODIES!
4. IF YOU'RE GOING TO ALLOW YOUR TEENAGER TO GO TRICK OR TREATING, DON'T ALLOW THEM TO GO ALONE. GROUPS ARE SAFER AND FUN AS WELL.
5. LASTLY, IT'S ALWAYS A GREAT IDEA TO WAIT UNTIL YOUR KIDS GET HOME TO ALLOW THEM TO EAT THEIR CANDY, AND YOU  WILL BE ABLE TO CONTROL WHAT THEY EAT AS WELL AS HOW MUCH.  HERE'S A TIP.  INSTEAD OF LETTING KIDS EAT AS MUCH CANDY AS THEY CAN ON HALLOWEEN, COLLECT THE CANDY AND USE IT AS AN INCENTIVE.

I WANT TO WISH EVERYONE A HAPPY AND SAFE HALLOWEEN DAY!

Overcoming fear

 This post will show you how I got the victory over  fear.  Thinking back over the years,

I don't know why I was so fearful, but as far as I can remember, I was always fearful of speaking in front of others, at church and everywhere which left me feeling guilty and less than others!    Even during bible teaching when the crowd was small, I was afraid to speak my thoughts.  At work, I had to say a few words before others and fear caused me to get nervous and my words didn't come our right.  It wasn't that I didn't have anything good to say, because most of the time, I did have good points to make, but I was always afraid my words wouldn't come out right, and usually, they didn't. Finally, I got tired of being defeated by fear and started sincerely praying to God and asking him to deliver me from the spirit of fear, and I began to read scriptures related to fear and where it originated and how to overcome it.  Praise the Lord because my strategies worked for me and I'm confident they'll work for you as well. 

Here's a short prayer that  helps to overcome fear
I will not be intimidated by anything of this world. I renounce all fear of intimidation and control, in the name of Jesus Amen.

HERE IS A LIST OF SCRIPTURES THAT HELPS TO OVERCOME FEAR

2 Timothy 1:7 says, "God has not given us the spirit of fear  but of power, love, and a sound mind." 
the acronym for fear is F= false E = evidence A=appearing R=real, false evidence appearing real. 
Psalms 27:1 says, " The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear?  The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?" So, I was aware that fear is from the devil, but I believe that something happened in my childhood that caused me to have such fear of failure.  Prayer, reading the scriptures and reminding yourself daily of the scriptures and reminding yourself daily that being afraid of things going wrong, isn't the way to make things right. 

THE FIVE LITTLE PUMPKINS A HALLOWEEN TEACHABLE SONG FOR YOUNGSTERS

I like teaching my children this finger play because children can learn a lot of skills from it PLUS, they have fun while learning

1. You can teach them to count to five
2. You can teach them the color orange
3. You can teach them about different faces and what each one means
4. They can learn how to make  pumpkins. Here are some ways to make them. I've seen people use pumpkin cutters to cut out pumpkin cookies or brownies. I've seen people cut them out from craft paper.  I've seen people use play dough to make them, and those are just a few.
5. Depending on how you want to make them, children can learn how to cut, and glue. (me personally, I love art period because it allows you to be creative and it gets my mind off everything around  me.)
6. You can also teach a child the life cycle of a pumpkin. In fact, you could use a whole week to learn about pumpkins and make it fun and exciting. 

So, to add to your pumpkin lesson, I have shared with you this fun, fun, song and finger play called the "Five Little Pumpkins Sitting On A Gate"

FIVE LITTLE PUMPKINS SITTING ON A GATE. 
THE FIRST ONE SAID, OH MY, IT'S GETTINGLATE!
THE SECOND ONE SAID, THERE ARE WITCHES IN THE AIR!
THE THIRD ONE SAID, WE DON'T CARE!
THE FOURTH ONE SAID, LET'S RUN, LET'S RUN!
THE FIFTH ONE SAID, IT'S HALLOWEEN FUN!
WOOOOO! WENT THE WIND,
AND OUT WENT THE LIGHTS!, THE FIVE LITTLE PUMPKINS
RAN FAST OUT OF SIGHT!


Can you think of more fun lessons using pumpkins? I would love to hear of them.
Have fun with your little ones!







October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is breast cancer awareness month.  This subject is so touchy for me because I lost a good friend and sister in the lord a few years ago to breast cancer and this is why I encourage all females young and old to get your breasts checkups this month and the months to come.  Loving yourself is taking care of yourself, and you have only one life to live, so live it wisely.  We, as women, is  always taking care of others in our lives, but often times, we neglect to pamper and care for ourselves as we should!  No one else is going to do it for us, so we need to make time each and every month and at least once a week, to take a me time.  Go to the mall, get a nice hair do, buy yourself a new outfit, or a new pair of shoes, and take yourself out to dinner, and always make time for your heavenly father by meditating, praying, reading a spiritual book, or listening to a spiritual song, sermon, or video to build up your most holy faith because when we nurture our inner and outer man.  What's your biggest me time?  Going to church is one of my biggest me time to get refreshed, motivated, encouraged, and spiritually and emotionally charged up.  Thanks for reading my post, and I wish everyone a Happy October!

 

Several fun and inexpensive summer activities for the family to enjoy

There's nothing better than a little family time on the home front.  Here are some classics you'll want to enjoy before the summer ends. 

1. Camp in the backyard and make Smores . To make it extra special, make Smores with your favorite candy bar. I like mine with a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup
2. Have a water balloon fight!  Why not make a parents vs. kids and show the youngsters how it's done.  I think older kids will definitely get a kick out of this activity! 
3. Make a tent out of cardboard boxes and sheets! 
4. Have a picnic on the beach , and bring sand molds, and buckets for the youngsters to play with and watch them fill and dump the buckets, and make sand moles, and don't forget to bring the camera for lasting memories. 

The Family Pet

I've always made sure that our son and family had a pet because for me, it's nothing like seeing a child and a pet grow together and evolving into  a loving relationship!  In this post, I will share the benefits and joy of having a family pet. First of all If you have one child a pet can be a huge deal!  I only had one child who's a boy, and boys love puppies and dogs.  Out of respect, we asked our six year old son what kind of pet he wanted, and he quickly replied, a puppy! So our son's cousin gave him a little girl puppy and he named her diamond. In his eyes, diamond was special. I loved to see him come home from school and they would hug and hug and play together.  At last, our son wasn't lonely anymore!  Some may say, well, why didn't you have him a brother or sister?  Well, I'll have to say, I tried but was not successful.  So, in my conclusion, I encourage parents to get a family pet of your child's choice because of all the reasons I'll share below.

1. a pet can be a child's best friend
2. a pet can bring joy to a child
3. a pet can be like a brother or sister to a child
4. a pet can be something they can love
5. a pet can be something a child can play with
6. a pet can be something a child can care for
7. a pet can be something to keep a child company
8. a pet can help a child feel protected

Can you think of any other benefits to add to this list?

WEEKLY LINKUPS, BLOG HOPS, AND LINK PARTIES TO JOIN

WEEKLY LINKUPS/BLOGHOPS/ AND LINK PARTIES TO JOIN


SUNDAY LINK PARTIES

1. TOT SCHOOL
2. TOTS AT PLAY
3. BE'WITCHIN PROJECTS LINKY
4. Sunday's Best Linkup

MONDAY

1. MOTIVATION MONDAY LINKY
2. THOUGHTFUL SPOT LINKY
3. MONTISSORI MONDAY LINKY
4. INSPIRE ME MONDAY LINKY

TUESDAY

1. GOOD TIPS TUESDAY
2. LAUGH AND LEARN LINUP
3. TUESDAY TALK LINKUP
4. TURN IT UP TUESDAY LINKUP

WEDNESDAY

1. MOMMY AND CLLUB LINKUP
2. MOM'S LIBRARY LINKUP
3. EVERYTHING EARLY CHILDHOOD LINKUP
4. THE MOMMY CLUB LINKUP
5. A LITTLE BIRD TOLD ME LINKUP
6. WONDERFUL WEDNESDY LINKUP
7. WHAT KIDS EAT  WEDNESDAY LINKUP
8. WAKEUP WEDNESDAY LINKUP

THURSDAY
FRUGAL FAMILY LINKY
LEARNING KIDS LINKUP


HI THERE, IF YOUR LINK IS NOT LISTED AND YOU WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ME LIST IT, PLEASE LEAVE ME A MESSSAGE. THANKS

The Beauty and Woes of adoption

I want to share this post to shed some personal light on adoption.  I wasn't adopted, but my father was adopted when he was only five or six years of age, I asked him to share his adoption experiences with me so that I can get an understanding of his up bringing.  Let me back up  a little bit.  I wasn't raised by my father but we united when I was around forty-three years old.  After we united, we began talking and sharing our life experiences with each other, and he told me he was adopted, so me being me, I wanted to know the whole story the good and the ugly.  He told me that he was adopted at the age of five or six and he had two other siblings and couldn't remember their names because he was too young to remember. I felt really sad for him.  He told me that they all were adopted by different families and he wanted to try to find them and his mother and father.  He told me about the harrow of being raised by strangers! He even remembered his first day with his adopted family and how they all starred at him when he came inside and how scared he was because he was with people he didn't know. He told me that when he god older, he got spankings every single day because he would break the rules.  Knowing what my father childhood was like naturally brought tears to my eyes, and I felt so bad for him.  Looking back at what he told me four years ago, may not have been as bad as it could have been. Had he stayed with his biological family,  who knows, it's possible that he could have had an even worse experience than what he had.  At least they cared enough to encourage him to finish high school. Adoption can be a beautiful thing for a child or children.  A lot of children have be shuffled around from foster home to foster home, and they just wish that someone would adopt them so that they wont be shifted from place to place like they're less than humans. Do you know someone who was adopted that would like to share their views on this subject? If so, I would love to hear what they have to say.
Minnie

Here are fifty positive words to use to help children feel loved and valued

Of course every parent wants their children to feel valued, but sometimes we don't know the exact words to say to make them feel valued and loved.  During my training as a preschool teacher, I learned some valuable lessons about helping a child feel valuable, respected, and loved unconditionally. During training, the instructor gave everyone a sheet of paper that names at least  fifty ways to help your child feel good about themselves, but remember, your comment to that child needs to be a  sincere one. I started purposely using some of these words instead of negative ones with my child and grandchildren, boy, I really get better results from them when I do.  I wanted to share them with all of you because one of our roles as parents is to build up our children and their sense of self value and self worth, and these words will be an investment that will be well worth the effort because we want to raise positive children, don't we?   Please feel free to leave comments to let me know of any more words that may help children feel valued and loved.

1. WOW
2. WAY TO GO
3. SUPER
4. YOU'RE SPECIAL
5. OUTSTANDING
6. EXCELLENT
7. GREAT
8. GOOD
9. NEAT
10. WELL DONE
11. REMARKABLE
12. I KNEW YOU COULD DO IT
13. I'M PROUD OF YOU
14. FANTASTIC
15. SUPERSTAR
16. NICE WORK
17. LOOKING GOOD
18. YOU'RE ON TOP OF I
19. BEAUTIFUL
20.  NOW YOU'RE FLYING
21. YOU'RE CATCHING ON
22. NO YOU'VE GOT IT
23.  YOU'RE INCREDIBLE
24. BRAVO
25. YOU'RE FANTASTIC
26. HURRAY FOR YOU
27. YOU'RE ON TARGET
28. YOU'RE ON YOUR WAY
29.  NOW NICE
30. HOW SMART
31. GOOD JOB
32. THAT'S INCREDIBLE
33. HOT DOG
34.  YOU'RE DYNAMITE
35. YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL
36. YOU'RE UNIQUE
37. NOTHING CAN STOP YOU NOW
38. GOOD FOR YOU
39. I LIKE YOU
40. YOU'RE DARLING
41. YOU'RE A WINNER
42. REMARKABLE JOB
43. BEAUTIFUL WORK
44. SPECTACULAR
45. YOU'RE SPECTACULAR
46. YOU'RE PRECIOUS
47. GREAT DISCOVERY
48. YOU'VE DISCOVERED THE SECRET
49. YOU FIGURED IT OUT
50. FANTASTIC JOB