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About Me
- Maria
- God has blessed me tremendously with an amazing husband, Doug, and two gorgeous little boys, Gavin and Joey. It has always been a dream of mine to have a large family but God may have other plans. I had a series of 6 consecutive early miscarriages when trying for baby #2. We are currently trying for baby #3 after our 7th miscarriage. I am faithful that God's plan is perfect, even when I am not happy about it. I love comments and meeting new followers so please don't be shy!
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Sunday, September 4, 2011
Words of Wisdom
Needing some inspiration? I found these lines to be just what I needed and wanted to share.
~Maria
You never know how strong you really are until being strong is the only choice you have.
Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.
Never let success get to your head, and never let failure get to your heart.
Don’t be afraid to move out of your comfort zone. Some of your best life experiences and opportunities will transpire only after you dare to lose.
Not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of good luck.
What lies before us and behind us are tiny matters when compared to what lies within us.
Don’t pray when it rains if you don’t pray when the sun shines.
Mistakes teach you important lessons. Every time you make one, you’re one step closer to your goal. The only mistake that can truly hurt you is choosing to do nothing simply because you’re too scared to make a mistake.
It’s hard to tell just how close you are to success.
Even when you feel like you have nothing, someone else likely has far less. Find them and help them. You’ll see why.
You can press forward long after you can’t. It’s just a matter of wanting it bad enough.
Notice and cherish life’s surprises. Just because it’s not what you were expecting, doesn’t mean it’s not everything you’ve been waiting for.
In times of great stress, it’s always wise to keep busy, to plow your anger and frustration into something positive.
Everyone wants a perfect ending. But over the years I’ve learned that some of the best poems don’t rhyme, and many great stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, or end. Life is about not knowing, embracing change, and taking a moment and making the best of it without knowing what’s going to happen next.
~Maria
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Friday, September 2, 2011
Our Father's Love
Since I have been spending time on message boards and blogging, I have encountered so many women asking or venting about how angry they are at God for letting them miscarry or taking their baby. I know God seems like the one who could have prevented it, but as I laid in bed last night unable to sleep, I started thinking about God and pain.
I ask that if you don't yet have a child that you envision yourself with your future child for this post. When that baby is born you suddenly can't imagine life without them. You knew that that child is meant for you, and designed perfectly for you. In the first days of that child's life, you feel that immense powerful kind of love that just envelops every peice of your heart, mind, body, and soul. You spend every possible moment of your life protecting that child. You do whatever it takes to make sure that your child will grow into a responsible, healthy, faithful adult.
That immense love is the same love that God feels for us. He loves us so much. He will do whatever it takes to raise all of His children to be responsible, healthy, faithful adults. Right? So why is it that when we are hurting so badly, we want to turn our backs on God and blame him for the bumps and bruises we get in our lives.
Let's think back to our child. What does a child do when they fall down and scrape their knee? Do they get angry at their mothers or fathers? No. They reach their arms out to the ones that love them the most and seek comforting hugs and kisses. They want their parent to make the hurt go away and they trust their parent will do just that. They don't think that their mommy has stopped loving them because they hit their head on a table. They don't think their daddy is evil or hateful because they scraped their elbow learning to ride a bike.
As a parent, we certainly know how badly we hurt when our child hurts. When they cry, we sometimes ache so badly for them that we have to blink back our own tears. While we could probably prevent our child from ever getting hurt, we would limit their ability to learn about, live in, and experience their world. They would never be able to make a new friend on a playground. They would never be able to go for a walk outside to see all of the butterflies. While we risk a boo-boo here and there the overall benefits far outweigh the risks.
God does the same for us. He allows us to experience the world. That isn't without risk of a bump or a scrape along the way. Maybe even a heartache or utter devastation. But instead of turning and running away from God we should remember that we are God's children and that if we reach out for Him to comfort us, to make even the deepest of wounds feel better, He is sure to do it.
When our child falls off of a swing and those tears well up in their eyes, imagine how painful it would be if your child balled up their fists and ran screaming into the arms of a stranger. That is what we are doing to our Father when we turn away from Him and run straight into the arms of Satan for comfort.
God is our Father!
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Thursday, September 1, 2011
Winner of the Coach Bag is...
If you would like to see the Random.org winner selection you may find it HERE. It was comment number 336 that is the proud new owner of a gorgeous Coach Multifunction Tote!
Congratulations to Katie!!!
Check your email (...especially if your name is Katie)!
Kayce Jones Designs: Giveaway
A few months back I posted about some of the many ways we can memorialize out little angels. One of my favorites is still jewelry. I like that with jewelry you can always have it close to you. Like a wedding band becomes a part of you, so can these beautiful hand crafted pieces.When I came across Kayce Jones Designs on facebook, I just loved her work. She has so many products that can memorialize the babies we have lost, honor the ones that we have, or even remind us of hope we have for the future.
I ordered a ring from Kayce about a month ago and a very short time later, it arrived in the mail. Since my blog really honors everything that I feel is important in my life, I decided to ask Kayce to put LLAOTWM on my ring. When it arrived it was exactly as I had expected. It is charming, attractive, yet understated. She has graciously offered to make a 1" pendant like the one pictured to the right for one of you! You can ask for whatever lettering you wish, as long as it fits! She also has a variety of adorable charms, awareness ribbons, and birthstones to add to necklaces or charm bracelets.
The options are virtually endless. The good news is that no matter your style, Kayce Jones Designs has something that will make you smile. Psst... get your husbands for this. It's okay. I'll wait.... This jewelry would make a wonderful gift for any woman! If you want to enter to win a 1 inch pendant use form below. If you are ready to start shopping you can go to her page and tell her that Maria says,"Hi!" CLOSED!
Congratulations to Maria M. entry 6 chosen by Rafflecopter and Random.org.
Monday, August 29, 2011
God Will Provide
This weekend I finished my Red Clover project and was super excited about how easy it was, how fulfilling it was to feel like I was doing something as God wanted me to, and felt so close to God and nature. I was so happy about my finished product, I started looking online to see if anyone out there was selling it. Of course they were, but I could totally beat their prices! So, it was official! I was going to make as much of the tincture as I could and offer it for sale! Then, come Saturday night, Doug points out that it is very likely that the season for Red Clover could likely be coming to an end. That we might not be able to make a lot but we could certainly start in the spring and make as much as we wanted then. I was sort of disappointed since I was so excited about sharing this with those of you who were interested.
Yesterday afternoon, I decided that I was going to go for a hike and find as much as I could so that I could at least make one batch to sell, and also have enough to hopefully get me through the winter as well. I walked around outside hunting for clover blossoms. I found a few here and a few there, but looking at them in the big virtually empty bowl was borderline depressing. I searched and searched and could occassionally find one or two hiding under some taller grass. I was sweating between infrequent cool breezes but determined that I would at least fill my bowl once even if it meant walking to the neighboring property and asking to pick their clover. Then, as I was staring at the ground hoping for a splash of purple, I saw 3 or 4 blossoms right next to each other. The only problem was that they were on the other side of the electric fence that I was not a big fan of handling. But, there were several blossoms just out of my reach. As I reached for the handle on the electric fence to disconnect it and carefully step over, I was amazed.
I am not sure that I felt as close to God as I did yesterday. I am so thankful that God provides us everything that we need! As I gathered as much clover as I could fit into my bowl, I was thanking God. I was amazed and hopeful. I felt connected not only to God but the baby he will bless me with. I just know that He is with me in this journey!
After I came in and told Doug about all of the clover, he went out and brought back two more bowls full! And, tonight, he will be going out again to harvest some more! Do you know what this means?! This means that if you have any interest in buying some, I will have plenty on hand! If you are itching to start it as soon as possible, drop me an email! Otherwise, in the near future, I will be announcing the launch of my new herb website and blog. I have decided that, while the herbs and the trying to conceive things overlap, not everyone is interested in both. If you are, I hope very much to have you a part of both journeys!
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Red Clover Tincture Update
Since I am really just setting sail on this voyage with herbs, I will share with you the words of Susan Weed. She explains:
It's high vitamin content is especially useful for the uterus; its high protein content aids the entire body; its profuse and exceedingly absorbable calcium and magnesium relax the nervous system and promote fertility. Its high mineral content, including virtually every trace mineral needed by the glands, helps restore and balance hormonal functions. In addition, red clover alkalinizes the body and and may balance the acid/alkaline level of the vagina and uterus in favor of conception.
I was looking for natural alternatives to increase my fertility and this seems perfect! So a few weeks ago I harvested the flowers and put them in alcohol to soak. Since I had read initially that the jar should be kept in a dark place and shaken once daily that was my strategy at first. Susan Weed stated that she didn't feel that it was necessary to shake the jar or even keep it in a dark place. I compromised and kept it in a brown paper bag and shook it only when I thought about it which was a few times a week.
Then, using a funnel, I poured the tincture into blue 2 ounce tincture bottles with dropper lids.
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