I Have to Do What?!

Part of growing up is learning to do what you need to do as opposed to doing what you want to do.  It is not an easy concept to grasp and people learn to be selective with it.  It is easy to do what we need to do at work or school because we know we are expected to do so.  However, we may not always do the right thing when it comes to other people because we feel as if we are not expected to do so.  The truth of the matter is that in order to have growth as a person, you have to learn to do what has to be done and discern what exactly that entails.  Sometimes doing the right thing takes much courage and patience.  And most of the time we find an abundant amount of excuses as to why we cannot do the right thing. 

Let me tell you the story of a young stubborn young lady who always held a grudge.  When someone hurt her feelings, insulted her, or put her down, she would replay the scenario over and over in her head.  It became such a big problem that it made her stress level go through the ruff.  She wanted to let go of those not so great memories and focus her attention on the people who brought good things to her life.  One day she felt God tugging at her heart and He said to her: “you need to forgive and really forget.”  She thought “I really have to forget?!”   

Not forgetting those negative events in your past is a defense mechanism and we all do it in order to protect ourselves from what we think could possibly happen again.  Throughout my personal growth I have learned from experience that doing the right thing requires me to have amnesia about the events that have hurt me in the past.  I have to do what?!  I have to learn to really forget negative things and move forward.  Ultimately it is not up to me to fix other people’s mistakes; I can only do that for my own shortcomings. 

 

There are a few things that I personally do to help me move past hard times in my life and to help me with what I NEED to do.  First, I look at a clock and remind myself of how precious and short my time is here with my loved ones.  Second, I write out exactly what is bothering me, this helps me understand why exactly I feel the way I do.  Also, I remember that “forgiveness is a gift to the other person” and “forgetting is a gift to myself.”  At the end of the day we are all called to do different things that may scare us, but that might just be the opportunity to help you grow in your personal life and that will spill over into all other areas of your life.  By the way, the young stubborn lady above is me and she is a work in progress day in and day out.  

Mally Beauty: Evercolor Eyeshadow Stick

Everyone who knows me well is fully aware of my make-up obsession.  Make-up is something I love to do to release stress.  I am a full believer that make-up cannot fix problems, but can it boost your confidence & your day!  I have been experimenting, learning and practicing with make-up and God bless my friends for allowing me to use them as my dolls.

If you are not aware of who Mally Roncal is, please go google her!  She is much more than a make-up artist, she is a beautiful soul!  Mally has created an amazing make-up empire called Mally Beauty.  I first learned about her on QVC and her personality drew me in & I ordered her products to give them a try.  I have been hooked ever since!  I have been wanting to write a review about my favorite Mally products and I will do that in a different post, however, today I am going to tell you about the Evercolor Eye Shadow Stick.

A couple of weeks ago, Mally had a Twitter give away & by the grace of God I was one of the winners!  My prize: my choice of an evercolor eye shadow stick.  I decided to try Mally's "deep plum" shadow stick.  Plum is a beautiful color and I fully intend on using it for my fall smokey eyes.  The eye shadow sticks are amazing because they have primer in the product already and it gives you a long-lasting effect for an all day wear.  The best part is that you don't have to have great make-up artist tips in order to
obtain a beautiful eye look; you just apply it on your lid & you go!

 The deep plum is amazing for a smokey eye and so I tried it (on my friend) and I wanted it to look darker and smokier. The shadow stick also serves as an under eye liner which gives it an even smokier effect!  For this look I also used Mally's eye primer and her volumizing mascara. This was the first time I used a deep plum for a smokey eye and the first time I used a shadow stick to do so!  I love the finished product and I will definitely be practicing it more & more for my fall looks!




Mally's Evercolor Eye Shadow sticks come in a variety of colors. My favorites are: saddle shimmer (my all time favorite shadow!), violet, copper rose & this deep plum!






Xo~God Bless!

SUMMER FUN

Well, we are almost through with summer time.  I love everything about summer: the weather, parties, free time & all the fun that comes along with this season.  This summer has been interesting and definitely a time of preparation for the changes that are rapidly approaching in the Fall.  It has been raining so much, which in Florida means two things: it's hurricane season & Fall is around the corner.  So before it is officially time to say Adios to summer, I wanted to take a stroll down memory lane & relive all the goodies summer brought!

I made a delicious and not so healthy summer dessert in a jar!  What could be better than s'mores & cheesecake in a mason jar?!  They were the perfect size and now it is one of my staple summer desserts. 




Party time! I attended a birthday party in which we had to dress up as if you were in your favorite era.  It was interesting to say the least, but so much fun.  My friends are so creative & they rocked their eras.  
My outfit was "recycled" and I actually cut part of my sleeve so that I could have a matching head band.

One of the best events of this past summer was the Rendezvous Conference in South Beach.  This was the third year I attended and it was unbelievable.  Part of being a Christian is always feeding your spirit through different outlets and conferences is a great way to do so. Israel Houghton & the New Breed performed and there were various pastors who preached amazing words.  I love that my friends share the same interests when it comes to our Christian walk. ~Surround yourself with those who lift you up!~


 My hunny & I went on a little adventure to Pikes Peak in Colorado.  It was beautiful and it took a lot of faith for me to go on such a scary drive. When we reached the top it was snowing & it was a beautiful scene. God is definitely a talented artist! 
                                         *Apparently BIG FOOT lives on that peak! Yikes*

Stay tuned for upcoming blogs by subscribing.  Feel free to leave me comments (you must have a gmail or blogger account.)  Hope YOU had summer fun! Xo 

A Life of Hopes, Dreams & Endurance

Being a Christian does not mean that life will be perfect or that you won't go through tough times; it simply means that you have encouragement and love because you believe Christ died on the cross for your sins.  It is a life of hopes, dreams and endurance.  You get endurance when you overcome the hardships of this world. But this cannot be done on your own; because if you it alone then you will feel overwhelmed which can lead to looking for comfort and peace in the wrong places: alcohol, drugs, anger, etc... 
I personally have chosen my Christian walk to guide me through my life, whether it is a good or bad situation.  God is the only being who has always been there, continues to be there and will always be with me. I choose a life of hopes, dreams & endurance...what will you choose?