Promises

This week we found out that Riley is going to Florida for 6 months for a training opportunity with the Air Force. Now don't get me wrong. This is NOT an "Oh poor Bri" post. I have friends who are military wives, they have children and their husbands have been gone for almost a year in another country. These women wouldn't want you to feel sorry for them either. It's what they do, they are brave and I admire them. Riley will ONLY be gone for 6 months, he will ONLY be in Florida, and I can talk to him EVERY day. I am blessed.

That being said I am scared. I'm kinda freaking out a little bit, and I know in the long run this will be a good thing, and its a great opportunity for him, and for me. I can dive into school and graduate in December. I can save money, I can get an extra job, I can test my independence, which I am sure at some point I will be thankful for. I am just having a hard time wrapping my head around my rock being gone. I know when you marry a man in the military these things are bound to happen, and people will say "You knew this could happen when you married him" yes I did. It doesn't make it any easier. I just want to say also, you don't marry someone based on convenience, or their profession, you marry someone because you love them. Simple and complicated as that.

This has been and will continue to be a faith tester. I was thinking /praying about all this yesterday and I thought, I always promised Riley I would back him up and support him if this where to happen. Now here I am, and God is saying "Bri, you have to back up your promise." I know their will be times when I am sad and lonely. I love my husband and being apart is hard for any couple. He keeps me sane, and I am not sure how to do that by myself. I have never really had too. By getting married young I was able to go from have my wonderful parents who helped me keep my life in check, to Riley who has done the same. This will be a test of how much I've grown up and what I am capable of.

I am sharing this because I am not too pride to not ask for help. I will need help. I will need lifted up in prayer and Ill need friends and family around as much as possible. It will be hard at times, but I have faith that God will open doors and their will be ways to make this a good thing, for both me and Riley. <3

Homemade Shaving Cream

    Today was one of those days where its raining and just don't have much motivation. So I thought it would be a good day to try and make this homemade shaving cream recipe that I found on Pinterest. (http://everydayroots.com/homemade-shaving-cream) It seemed simple enough. Coconut oil, shea butter, olive oil, baking soda and essential oils ( if you have some). I used Sweet Orange. If your making it for the man in your life peppermint would be a great choice. So lets get started.

                                                                              I was inspired to make homemade shave cream because I have been trying to change up my personal care. No more shampoo and conditioner ( baking soda and apple cider vinegar, Ill post about that soon) and changed my body wash over to the Honest Company Brand( https://www.honest.com/ a great company that has a lot of wonderful products. Highly recommend). So Shaving was one of those last things especially because my legs look like the picture after shaving with store bought brand the other day (no rhyme or reason just random razor burn). Thus my inspiration!

Ingredients:
2/3 cup coconut oil
2/3 cup of shea nut oil or shea butter ( I used closer to 1/3 of a cup of shea butter because it was kinda pricey)
1/4 cup of olive oil or grape-seed oil (I used olive)
10-20 drops of your favorite essential oil (I used sweet orange, but essential oil is not necessary)
2 Tb of baking soda

Firstly you combine your coconut oil and shea butter in a small pot and bring to medium heat. Once combination is melted add your olive oil and your essential oil. it should look like this.

Give your oils a few stirs then pour them into a small container and place in your fridge. Mine took about 2 hours to set up, so if you did this part in the morning then came back later on and set it out for a bit that should be fine too!

Once your oils have set up they should look like this --->


It doesn't look like much but it fluffs up pretty nicely! At this stage you use your standing mixer or your hand held mixer and start you fluff! This is also when you add your 2 Tb's of baking soda.




This is your final product!


   Looks good enough to eat right!?

I have no used the product yet. I plan on it tomorrow, so I will post in the comments below about how that goes. It was fun and easy to make. If you decide to make your own, let me know. I would love to hear what oils you choose and how it turns out!

I know, I know, long time no blog.

 

      Hey guys! I know it has been forever! I got busy, and then struggled a little bit about what to share with all you lovely people. Do I talk about myself and my issues, or should I be sharing things I'm interested in, I guess a little of both. My plan is to keep this up on Wednesdays (even though today is Thursday). So lets get started =)



     As many of you may know over the past few months I have been interested in learning about food, and getting away from chemicals. I watched a documentary called Food Inc.(You can find it on Netflix and Amazon Prime) about two years ago and it seriously rocked my world. I found out things about food that stuck me to my core and I felt like I had to do something. The documentary goes behind the scenes of our food industry looking at how animals are treated and what chemicals are being put into out food. It also goes into talking about GMO's (genetically modified organism) that at not labeled here in the US ( but it is in Europe, Australia and even China). Scary stuff. So after watching this documentary I have kinda been thirsty for knowledge about whats really out there and what brands I can trust to do the right thing. 

    I have found that the only way to know that GMO's are not being used is to buy USDA organic foods.I have been motivated by this documentary and the fact that I struggle with eczema that can be miserable. I wanted to find things that where good for the world and good for me.This whole health food journey has brought me down many avenues. Some are too extreme or expensive for me, but to each there own. I am a no judgement kind of gal. I am all about everyone doing what works for them. If you are confident in that, that's awesome. I am working on the same thing. Figuring out my values and convictions and finding my own path. My husband has been telling me I am becoming "hippie" and "crunchy" haha! I think that's okay! I guess that's who I am. Lucky for him He is along for the ride, and honestly he's a great sport. I am looking forward to do more blog posts about things like, the "no poo" tread, meaning no shampoo, just washing your hair with baking soda and vinegar ( I am on day 4). Also things like oil pulling, meaning you swish olive oil or coconut oil in your mouth for a about 15 minutes and it supposed to help your oral health. I know, gross right, but I've done it a few times and it has made my teeth whiter. I am also working on cleaning without chemicals and probably many more.

    If this a little too "crunchy" for you. I get it. Its a little weird, and not what we are used to. Its a learning experience that I am having so much fun with!  So if you are interested I would love to chat. e-mail me at bricarper0313@gmail.com or find me of facebook.  I can't wait to share this journey with you all.

Let it Go

I woke up the other morning with a feeling like something was different. Like my life had a new lightness about it. A burden had been lifted in my sleep. I suddenly didn't have this heart ache that I have felt for months.I was okay with not being a mom right now. I felt whole. 

As easy as it may be for outsiders to look at you and say "Just stop trying it will happen when its supposed to." that is a heart issue and not something you can just "decide" to do. God had to work His way into my spirit and change my perspective. It had been a mix of things that allowed me to let this go. I finally got fed up with thinking their was something wrong with me. It didn't feel right in my spirit that I had a problem causing me not to get pregnant. I knew deep down I think, it just wasn't time. I just wasn't ready to admit that to myself.I was using the idea of being a mom as distraction from everyday life. Things I needed to accomplish were put aside so I could indulge in ideas of the future. I was being unfair to my husband, and to myself by not living in the present. I had to wake up and understand that this was a habit I had done for years with many many things. I had day dreamed of growing up, or graduating, or getting married , and buying a house and I have done all these things. I had control over these things. I got to decide when I was going to get married and I had input on when we would buy a house, but a baby....I have no say in that. I had to let it go and give it to God and just allow Him to refocus my heart and my mind on things of the present. 

It might sound easy, but it isn't. It can be near impossible to give up control (even when you didn't really have it to begin with). I can say now, that I am content in my life. It is important to have goals, but only goals you can control. Being a mom is something I know I want but it is something that is in Gods hands. I have to have faith that it will happen, and when it does the timing will be perfect and I will look back and be thankful that it didn't happen when I wanted it to. 

Validation and Vulnerability

These two words haunt me, they chase me and it is only through the love of Jesus that I rise above them daily. 

First I am going to talk about Vulnerability, the picture you see above is me being vulnerable to you. I have no make up on, I'm sun-burnt, and I can see my belly pudge sticking out. I am giving you ammo to talk about me, to call me names and put me down and it terrifies me. I am writing this because the only way to defeat fear is to face it head on, plus its kinda like that movie Pitch Perfect when Rebel Wilson's character calls herself "Fat Amy" so "Bitches" don't do it behind her back haha! I am imperfect, I have flaws, boy do I have flaws. I am sensitive, unmotivated, clingy, unorganized, selfish and that's just to name a few.  I struggle with my food habits and working out. I have the best intentions but it is so hard for me to MAKE myself do things. I am flawed. Don't get my wrong, their are things about myself that I am proud of, and thankful for. Parts of my body, mind and spirit that I feel like I "Got it right" and thats a wonderful feeling. This is be being real with you. This is who I am. Who you are may be completely different, your flaws are not my flaws and  your strengths are not my strengths . Thank God we are different. =) 

Really when you think about it, the who go hand in hand. I need validation so I don't feel so vulnerable.I have always looked for validation in things I do. From the time I was in Elementary school I wanted my teachers to tell me "Good Job Brianne!" I wanted my family to tell me how proud they where of me, and I wanted my friends to tell me what a great friend I am. How selfish of me, to think that all these peoples thoughts and actions revolved around me! I am getting better at this, it has taken time for me realize that the only validation I NEED is from God, and from myself. Its not easy, its really really hard, and its something I have to conscious of everyday. 

The best way for me to get over this hurdle, is to set small goals to make myself stronger, physically  mentally and spiritually. 

Goal #1 is to run a 5k this May. I have to start holding myself accountable.

Goal # 2 find a church (this has been so hard for me, but thats a another post for another day) 

Goal #3 Graduate with my Education Associates degree in December.

I'm putting this out there to hold myself accountable, its out in the world now and I know you guys will hold me to it =) 

Joy vs. Happiness

I have always felt that their is a difference in joy and happiness. Joy comes from God. In my life joy is down deep in my soul and it is what makes me get up every morning it is what drives me. Joy is consistent in my life. The minute I feel my joy is gone that is when we have a problem. Happiness though is a bit more difficult at times. Happiness for me is found when I have go out to a movie with Riley, or when I get to come to WV and spend time with my family. I find happiness in my relationships with others. Some may find it in time alone, me not so much. Happiness is different for all of us, but Joy is universal. 

So here are some things that make me happy: Cuddling with my dogs, going out to eat, being outside on a sunny day, having a clean house, cooking a meal from scratch, window shopping (real shopping makes me very happy), doing almost anything with Riley, spending time with my nieces, talking with my family, talking a hot bath, reading a good book, watching my favorite tv shows and lots of other things that I can't think of at the moment. 

What makes you happy? Do you agree or disagree that joy and happiness are different? I would love to hear from you guys! Have a Happy Monday =) 

Sun Rise

     

      For the past six months I have been spending two days a week with an Autistic boy, lets call him Sam. Sam is six years old, he is non verbal, and severely autistic. He loves to rip paper, and jump on his little trampoline. He is pretty amazing. During my time with Sam we follow a curriculum called "Sun Rise" created by a man named Berry Kaufman, his son Raun was autistic, Berry and his wife Samahria just wanted to find a way to communicate with their son. Sun Rise is different from any other autistic curriculum I have been around, it encourages us (the workers, or parents) to allow the child to stimulate (yell, wave hands, jump up and down) in fact we should join them! Let them know "Hey, I am with you, I want to be in your world." Pretty exciting and ground breaking if you ask me. This is just a part of what I do with Sam, but I do spend a lot of time ripping paper, or bouncing on a ball yelling at the top of my lungs.It is pretty liberating really. I have found the more I do this, the more I enter his world, he begins to let me in. He will look at me and smile! There really is no greater feeling.

   I know you might be thinking why would I choose to blog about something like this. I'm not a teacher yet, this is all just volunteer. It is something I am passionate about, something I want to share with the world. It has been something that grounds me, and helps me to be thankful for every child in every circumstance in life. Sometimes we all need to remember to meet kids where they are, and regardless if they are autistic or not, they will meet you. Acceptance is something we can all learn  

This is a 4 minute video is a girl named Laura. Her story is pretty amazing. Hope you guys watch and let me know what you think!