Isn’t it funny how we would cry for days because our 6th grade boyfriend broke our heart for the girl with the training bra?

Isn’t it funny how we would stress out about that test in college that was going to make or break our future?

Isn’t it funny how we would have that HUGE fight with our parents in high school? And declared we would never speak to them again. ever.

…Only to look back years later and realize how silly it all was. 

RIGHT?

Wrong I say.  Although those things seem so silly now, and we look back and think how funny it is that it was such a HUGE ordeal at the time.  But it was a huge ordeal.  It’s those little things that made you the person you are today. 

It’s that brokenheart that made you learn and grow and become the person you want to be in your marriage today.  Ok, maybe not the 6th Grade “heartbreak” so much, but you get the point.  It’s that huge test that made you learn and stretch.  It’s that fight with your parents that made you thankful for them now and will help you be the best parent you can be. 

So, no matter how funny it is, God really does use everything for His good.  Nothing is insignifigant to Him.  Be thankful for the trials, tests, brokenhearts and lessons you learn along the way.  They make you the person you are today. 

My blog has a new home…

www.karakaejames.com

Update your links, tell your friends, or completely ignore me.  Whichever.

Have a Happy Saturday!! That’s all I got, the beach is calling my name.

Life has been very busy lately, lots going on.  I thought I would give a quick update!

• We finally got Rosa (my car) back from the car spa (mechanic) on Wednesday.  She is running GREAT now, and I’m so thankful to have her back.  After shipping her back to Vegas, the mechanics there fixed her right up…for the second time.  Brook flew out to Vegas on Wednesday and brought her back to me.  I’m a happy girl. 

• Oh the diet.  We are really watching the calories and attempting to drop some of this “first year of marriage” weight we’ve put on.  I still blame the chocolate chip cookies.  Funny thing is, Brook has dropped over 20 pounds and I’ve barely lost a measly 6.  Gotta love how that works.   He looks great though!!

• We are in the beginning stages of something new and exciting to us.  We haven’t decided yet when we’re going to announce what that is, so keep on guessing:)

• We’re coming to Oklahoma next week!!! That’s right!!! It’s been 6 months, and I’m VERY excited to come visit.  Chris & Randi are getting married, we are spending lots of time with fam, seeing Reg’s play, seeing my sister-in-law’s cute belly (she pregnant, I’m not just weirdly obsessed with her stomach).  Lots to do in 4 days!! Can’t wait!

• Work is great! I’m staying extremely busy, and it’s such a great learning experience and fun time for me! WOO!

• We are well into year number two of marriage.  We have goals, we have plans, and we are taking it one day at a time.  We love each other, and we love being married!! Nothing beats it.  We are working every single day at making one another happy, and have the best marriage possible!

Thank you to everyone for your support and prayers on this new adventure in our life.  Keep ‘em coming!! Have a very Happy Friday!!

I’m a woman.  Shocking, I know.  My husband doesn’t understand how I work.  He doesn’t understand that I have ‘cute days’ and ‘fat days’.  He just has ‘days’.  But as a woman, I have emotions.  And they change a lot.  The hormones can be all over the place, and that little voice in my head can really try to tell me lies.  It’s so difficult not to listen. 

I so badly want to ALWAYS be a confident woman, content in who God created me to be.  But, He created me as a woman so unfortunately it doesn’t work that way.  I have fat days, and skinny days.  I have days where I feel confident and nothing can get me down.  I have days where everything feels as if it could go wrong and I won’t fit through the door frame.  Ouch.

Today, I’m having a confident day.  I’m working on being confident and loving myself the way God made me to be.  I look cute today! I know it’s not about outward appearances.  But there is something about jeans that fit well, high heels and cute dangly earrings that just help make any woman feel better. 

But even better…there’s something about feeling beautiful from the inside out because of the person God made me to be!!

1 Peter 3:3-4  ‘Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyle, expensive jewelry or beautiful clothes.  You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. ‘

The hubby and I are in an interesting season in our life and our ministry.  A lot has changed for us in the past year, and we feel like God is really doing something in our lives.  A lot of that we are very unsure of, and still praying through what it means.  We are learning about the different seasons we face in life. 

I enjoy reading this blog, written by the pastors at LifeChurch.tv (where we used to work).  Check out his thoughts on seasons in ministry.  This really got my wheels spinning even more about where God has us, and learning about this season we’re in. 

It’s important to embrace the season you’re in.  Sometimes this is not easy, but I feel like I learn way more by embracing it and not wishing for the next.

What season are you in?

As long as the earth remains, there will be springtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, day and night.  Genesis 8:22  (NLT)

A question that gets asked often around our house.  I have tried to make it a habit to consistently ask my husband what I can do for him throughout the week to make his life easier.  I made a promise to him to be there with him through life, and to always support him in everything.  Whatever that may mean!  One way I found to do this was to ask.  I can’t always know what he wants me to do for him, or how I can help him.  But I can know if I ask him!

Just a simple question of “what can I do for you today?” or “what can I do for you this week to help you out?”  I don’t always ask him daily, and frankly I think it would be a little annoying if I did, but I still try to at least some point during my week to ask what I can do for him.  Sometimes it’s things like laundry, grocery shopping, or helping him pick songs for Worship on Sundays.  Sometimes he needs prayer.  Sometimes he just needs me to love him. 

I love it when he asks me what he can do for me.  Those simple words show me that he truly cares, and really wants to help make my life easier.  I know that cleaning the house, doing laundry and giving Jack a bath are not his favorite things to do.  But he knows when I’m busy with work and want to come home to a clean house and clean dog.  So he does those things for me, and then I get to focus on spending time with him and not worry about the house.  Plus it’s a HUGE turn on when he does those things.  Try it out guys…I guarantee she’ll appreciate it

Sometimes this takes sacrificing what YOU want for what THEY want.  But this has been key to making our marriage THRIVE!!

What can you do for your spouse today? Ask them!

I’m spending the whole day with this character:

Yup, that’s my Mr. Right. I got VERY spoiled being out of a job for a while and getting to spend 24/7 with him.  If I didn’t have to work and could spend every moment with him, I totally would! Of course I would do that if someone was paying us to still get to live the way we do now. 

I sure do like him and love getting to sleep in, cook him breakfast, chill on the beach and just enjoy some quality time together! Can’t beat this time we have together!!

Love you baby.

Well as most of you likely know, March Madness is in full swing.  Which mostly consists of my husband sitting on the couch with one game on the big screen, one game on tv in the bedroom and another game on alex (the macbook).  Last year we had just been married a short 3 weeks when the madness began so that was interesting but I was well aware of the addiction my hubby has and prepared for several weeks of being 2nd  

However, I do enjoy me some march madness!  I can’t remember the last time I didn’t fill out a bracket! It’s fun now competing with Brook, and we usually seem to be very close in the runnings.  I don’t typically care about any teams (except for my Pokes of course!!!) but it’s fun to cheer on the teams I picked!

My Pokes are playing right now, and I’m sitting at work where I can’t watch the game.  My husband is likely at home surrounded by several different games.  I left him a “honey-do” list today and I’m interested to see how that goes!!

Happy March! Good luck with your brackets! Who did you pick to win?

5.6 to be exact.  Pounds that is.  Upon my mid 20’s rearing it’s ugly head, my body decided to freak out and allow things to settle into places I didn’t know I had.  Problem is, I’m addicted to all things chocolate.  And I really COULD live on bread alone.  However, my body isn’t breaking things down the way it used to and I’m getting my grown up body.  BOO.  I think a lot of factors weighed into this (no pun intended). 

1. The past year has been a stressful one, and I’m an emotional eater. 

2. I made it my goal to perfect my chocolate chip cookies.  I’m determined to be the mom that makes the best chocolate chip cookies! Goal reached, and pounds added. 

3.  My dad made me a cookbook of all of his “country cooking recipes”.   Not exactly low in calories, but definitely YUM!

4. I have attempted to be a decent wife and try to cook for my husband.  This means lots of mac & cheese, pasta and various fattening foods. 

I made it my goal this year to get the weight off, and get in baby making shape (getting my body ready to house a baby, not what you’re thinking Brook).  The problem is, I’m terrible at diets.  I’m quite possibly the pickiest eater ever and I eat like a 4 year old.  So I had to find something that worked for me.  That I did. 

Lose It!is a free iPhone app that tracks your daily calories and helps you lose weight by counting calories.  It keeps track of everything, and is very easy to use.  Helpful for me since my phone is always attached to my hand! So just by being more conscious of what I’m eating and seeing every thing I put in my body, it has helped me become a healthier eater, and I still get to treat myself sometimes here!

After only 4 weeks I’m down 5 pounds! So hopefully after another 12 weeks I will reach my goal!! Stay tuned…

Happy St. Patty’s Day! This day always brings back fun memories for me.  Growing up my dad (yes dad, mom was not the cook…no offense mom!) would make green pancakes and green milk for me and my big brother.  I loooved getting my green breakfast.  Apparently it didn’t gross me out then and didn’t seem as moldy as it does now.  I loved that day.  I loved that my mom would come pinch me first thing in the morning if I didn’t have my green on.  I love that my parents made a big deal out of the little things for me.  Probably why I love to as well!  I know this is a tradition I will most likely carry on to my own children.  So thanks mom and dad for making the silly days fun. 

Brook made a comment this morning about how odd it is that we have a holiday where everyone has to wear a certain color.  It is truly odd, but still fun.  This comes from the girl who woke up feeling not well and forgot it was St. Patrick’s Day until I was already dressed and off to work.  I do have on green-ish colored earrings though.  Sorry mom, I know you’d be disappointed but you would get to pinch me today!

So happy Green Day to everyone! Cyber pinches to all you scrooges out there!!