Disclosure: I have played with this one in my mind for weeks now! Maybe I should really, and I mean really, stop following Nancy Grace on Facebook or go live in a cave but here goes…

People when are we going to stop beating our spouses, boyfriends, girlfriends, whatever you want to call them?! I mean really?! Countless men and women have lost their self respect, dignity, and even lives at the hands to the ones that are suppose to love them the most. Not to mention your children, as a lot of people have, are caught in the middle- why isn’t people always forget about them.

• I can remember laying in bed countless nights wondering when the screaming was going to stop…
• I can remember standing at the door holding it open after good ol Javier chased my mom down the street with a butcher knife and she escaped into someones house while my sister and I were inside our house with him (in which he later did time for)…
• I can remember locking ourselves inside of a room more than once for fear one of my mom’s crazy men were going to come in there and kill us all…
• I can remember going to neighbors’ houses countless times at 2, 3, all crazy hours of the night to call 911 because one of her crazy men was in the house beating her up…
• Not only that but I can remember the day aftter it happened they were right back in the house!!!

Is this what you want your children to do when they grow up?! Have to write this exact post?! Some of you reading it are thinking dang I could have easily written this myself. 

It’s no wonder kids these days are so messed up, having to live in households where it’s a common occurance. Children have to grow up wondering whether or not their mommy or daddy are going to make it another day- both physically and mentally. They’re scared to come home becasue they don’t know what the night holds, and quite honestly they don’t want to have to listen to or see whatever it is they’re going to that night.

Statistics have shown time and time again you reinact what you see, especially with children. If you grow up seeing your mommy or daddy beating on the other one it’s what you’re going to think is normal and that’s how you’ll react when older. I don’t exactly think that’s what I want for my kids, to be forever known as a wife beater or a man beater. How about you?!

Maybe in your house it’s not actually physical abuse, refer to the first bullet point. It doesn’t matter physical or emotional you are drowning your kids emotionally. I can promise you that they will forever keep everyone at an arms length. They will more than likely never have anyone they fully trust without lots and lots of therapy, unless they’re one of the lucky ones.  And by lucky I mean they just supress everything, one day it will come back up and when it does LOOK OUT!!!! They’ll be out for your blood for making them live through that, for their horrible childhood they had.

Even these poor kids lives now that they’re living in it, most of the time the kids are all messed up now. Actin out, throwin tantrems. I only wish parents could see this stuff. I only wish other people would see it and step in and rescue these kids!

Yes, I fully believe it’s a great thing to see parents disagree on some things and I don’t mean everyday either; but at the  end of the day they have to know that you still love each other and that their foundation is still safe.  I fully believe children should know a marriage isn’t all “Leave it to Beaver” like, marriage isn’t all cupcakes and candy bars… I get that! Mine isn’t always! I’m sure my kids know that too, but at the end of the day they know Mr. IT and I still love each other and will deal with whatever it is we don’t agree on.

If you want to walk around like a bunch of 2 year olds fighting and screaming- because let’s face it that’s really what you’re doing; that’s how a 2 year old acts- all the time fine so be it, but be a better person and let your kids go. Give them to someone that carees for them until you can do it again. I can promise you they’d be better off for the sake of their emotional well being in the long run to go through whatever it is. Make your children a priority!!!!

If you want to be a wife or man beater so be it but get rid of your kids first…

There ya have it ladies and gentlemen my PSA for the… well we’ll see when I need some theraputic release again.

Congratulations Hallmark you have done it again!

What did they do you ask?! Well, have you checked out the Valentines aisle at your local WalMart or dealt with your local florist? Have you seen the 290384032 men running around like a maniac for fear their wives or girlfriends will leave them should they not produce the exact gift they want.

Ahh yes, love is in the air. The one day of the year we feel the overwhelming need to be loving an affectionate to them just because some crazy person invented Valentines Day.

The day when  your husband will bring home yet another card with a picture of Homer Simpson on it that you’ll either need to hide or dispose of before your children read it, and then they’ll still find it and so you’ll spend the next 20 minutes trying to avoid a conversation they really want to have and you don’t about what it says. (Ask me how I know this, I only wish I could find it now to remember exactly what it said.)

Instead of buying her another card to dispose or some flowers that will die in 2 days try loading the dishwasher or taking out the trash before she asks and it’s running so far over she’s gonna do it herself.  Try taking the kids out so she can take a nap. Or show her that you love her everyday, not just the one day of the year that Hallmark says you must.

What about small and simple? My favorite gift he ever got me was truly thought out… an M&M McFlurry and some fries from McD’s. I think there may have been a card too but all I cared about was that he actually put some thought into it.

(Now Mr. IT if you came home with a pair of blingy booty jeans or some sparkly TOMS I surely wouldn’t turn them away)

I saw this on Facebook today from Annie @ MamaDweeb:

My creed today: I didn’t make Valentine’s day crafts, I didn’t make a special V-day breakfast. Our lunch is the same as everyday and my daughter took normal punch-out cards to school. I didn’t get flowers or chocolates or a card. Today my children are laughing in a warm, clean home and I get to eat chips & dip with my hubby on our casual date tonight. Love is in our hearts, just not expressed in a way that is “perfectly pinterest-able.” And that is ok!

Yep I do believe that about sums it up for me! So let’s skip what society says we must do and do it everyday, make everyday special for the ones we love. Surprises are nice too!

So Happy Hallmark Day everyone!!!

Adoption is one aspect that has always intrigued me, not really sure why but I find it an incredibly amazing situation an all accounts. God has grown a precious child in another mother’s womb with the soul purpose of it having completely different parents. He knew from the beginning of time that Mia wasn’t to be raised by her birth mother but Jennifer and David; the same is true for millions of children around the world.

In the book Love you More: The Divine Surprise of Adopting My Daughter Jennifer Grant discusses the ups and downs; the process that seems like it’s never going to end and their precious baby Mia will never come home forever. The incredible faith they had to hold onto knowing that one day they would finally have their baby undoubtedly had to stand strong.

That’s why it’s called faith. You don’t see it on this side, but you decide to believe. It’s not a feeling but an action, a choice.

I was very glad to see she didn’t paint it out to be all cupcakes and candy bars. She discusses that she had unrealistic expectations of how things would go when she got home and it wasn’t so; Jennifer later realized that how Mia was responding was the exact things her own children did as toddlers. Mia had been ripped from the only mother she knew for the first year of her life and she was allowed to have some time of uncertainty and missing what she once knew.

The measure of God’s love for us isn’t how well our lives are going or how happy or comfortable we are. The measure of God’s love is what Jesus did for us on the cross.

She made it clear that while we are to care for the orphans and the widows as Jesus has commanded us to do, that for everyone it doesn’t mean adopting. It may simply mean donating time or resources to organizations that support this sort of thing.

Overall this was a pretty good book. There were times I felt like I was getting a history lesson on Guatemala which I probably could have dealt without, maybe its because I am not that into that sort of thing but I do believe it enhanced the story to tell what likely happen to Mia’s birth mother as to why she made the choice she did. Anyone who is considering adoption or has been through the process would enjoy this as it isn’t full of it’s all cupcakes and candy bars.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising

Disney is just a magical location. The whole day is filled with things you’d never see and do anywhere else. Growing up the princesses are on the top of most little girls’ lists of things they want to see. Reading all the books, watching all of the movies it’s just something you always want to see. Seeing Mickey Mouse. Riding  the Tea Cups and Dumbo. Continue reading “A Day at Disney” »

Please come quick. At the ripe old age of 5 Beans has successfully pulled her first 2 teeth, each within about an hour of each other.

Love,

Mom Continue reading “Dear Toothfairy,” »

Growing up Kristen had what some would believe was a picture perfect life- friends, a family who loved her, and almost anything she wanted, good grades, she and her family went to church, just a great all-American family. Amongst all that perfectness was really pain. She had faced many hard times in her life that began with her grandmothers death and then a close friends death. Both of which she blamed herself for, if only she had spent more time with her grandma maybe she would have recovered from her stroke if only she had been more in touch with how her friend was really doing and he wouldn’t have killed himself. Then while at a party she was raped. The spiral continued until one day she laid down on the railroad tracks and attempted to take her own life.

God had greater and far better plans for her life. Not only did she live but while on her long and very painful road to recovery she came to know the Lord. Eventually she began speaking around the country sharing her testimony of how God had led her out of an incredibly dark time in her life. Than later staring her own foundation, Reaching You. Throughout it all she relied on God to get her through.

This was a story of Kristen’s incredible journey as she slowly found herself. One thing that really stood out was when she said she had always went to church and knew of God but she finally knew Him. That makes a person really examine their own life. This is a rather quick read, only took a couple of hours to finish, but worth spending a couple hours to see how He has used one girl, at the age of 17, and taken her from a failed suicide attempt to a might warrior of God sharing, speaking, and making it her goal in life to serve people and help them out of their dark places.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate my review no monetary compenstaion was exchanged. All thoughts and views expressed are my own and your’s may vary.

One of the best kept secrets in the Magic Kingdom is the Harmony Barber Shop. Did you know it was there?! Many people didn’t, in fact I didn’t until Kristi from Kristi’s Krazy Town was talking about it on a shopping trip one day. Tucked in a corner on Main Street USA is a fully functioning barber shop that will take you back in time with a splash of modern. Continue reading “One of Disney’s Best Kept Secrets: Harmony Barber Shop” »

Every little girl deserves the chance to be able to be treated like a princess at least once in her life, at least I think. Taking little girls to the Bibbidi Bobbidi boutique is the perfect place to do that. While it is a bit costly, it is so worth it! There are 2 locations to choose from one at Downtown Disney and the other inside of the castle at the Magic Kindgom. Continue reading “Pretty Pretty Princess” »

Have you heard of i.seeKissimmee? If not it is a total must check out for anyone heading to the Orlando/Kissimmee area! Each week a new guest blogger is featured and will tell you all about the fun things they discovered while they were there. They feature locals and travelers alike each with their own platform to tell readers just what they did on their vacation or staycation. Continue reading “i.seeKissimee” »