Since I have been a stranger....

This will be short, for now, but wow. I cant believe its been a month or so since I've blogged. I have felt as though I'm trapped in a "funk" lately - I'm not sure why...but I just dont feel like the same old ME.

Anyhow, I'm still smoke free. I'm very proud of myself and I'm thankful for the support I had from many sources. I am much happier smelling like one squirt of perfume instead of pack of cigarettes and 5 squirts to cover it up. :) I hope I have encouraged one person, as I was encouraged, to quit.

Cole is growing like a weed. Most of you know I buzzed his head completely bald....huge mistake. But, its growing back quickly. (Thank goodness!) He is getting 4 more teeth (at the same time, mind you) right now...all molars so the nights have been hard.

Otherwise, things are good. I thank the Lord for the blessings...each day he gives me and I know I shouldnt complain.

Have a good night, everyone.

E-Cig Correction and more random jumble..

Good afternoon friends!

I went to the mall today to ask why my e-cig didnt work. I was really having the cravings last night. Turns out, it was something stupid. Anyhow, I'm a happy camper today. I do have a correction to make...the website I was posting was wrong. If you'd like information about my e-cig and how I'm quitting..go to vitalvapers.com.

Today, I'm really feeling like I need church tomorrow. I'm not sure why, I just feel a little empty inside. I need to be uplifted. I am looking forward to it. We're having The Believers Quartet sing for us and having a lunch after. I pray my heart is full of His joy when I leave church in the morning. If you'd like to join us, visit our website at hillcrestsbc.com! We'd love to have you.

Also, I'd like to thank you for the prayers for my friend Lynn and her family. I just spoke with her and she made it to WV just fine. She said the roads were pretty clear and the only problem was heavy fog. She said she was "sitting on mama's front porch having coffee" and sounded like she was at peace. I hope to be able to make a trip to WV (its only 4 hours there, not too bad) for the service when its planned. Please continue to pray for this family. Lynn's father, Cecil, isnt well either. I feel like the loss of his wife (of almost 60 years) is going to make a huge impact and it saddens me. Thanks, again.

I'm off to clean up. I havent been "routine" today and need to get stuff done. I have lots of cooking and baking to do and a house to work on. 

I hope everyone has a blessed weekend. Have a safe celebration of the Superbowl tomorrow also! :)   

Random jumble..

Tonight I am saddened by loss. My good friend, Lynn, lost her mother tonight. I visited with her just an hour before her mother passed and she was so upset. I felt so helpless, there are no words you can say or actions you can do to make someone feel better in the loss of a loved one. All I did was witness to her and give her some encouraging words from my heart. I didnt want to leave as I knew the doctors hadnt given Freda much longer to live. Her time on earth ended at 8:44pm, but it was the beginning of her life in Heaven. Lynn always teased me that her and her mother just wanted to go buy new bodies. I told Lynn tonight that her mothers wish came true, however, she didnt have to buy it...the Lord gave it to her. No more pain and suffering there!! Please say a prayer for this family. 

In the midst of the stress of the above situation, I've been battling the cigarette craving again. I didnt give in, but came close. I know that its a mental craving also. As soon as I felt stressed when I found out about Lynn's mother (I forgot to add, she lives in WV and I was going to drive Lynn there tonight but the storm was bad and it was very snowy so I was slightly stressed!)...I felt like I wanted to smoke. I'm serious...this is the hardest thing I've done in a while. I would assume if you dont smoke, or havent gone through the quitting process, you may not understand. Or, maybe its just me and I really need to refocus myself. Needless to say, tomorrow marks one week of being semi cigarette free (semi? I cheated, remember LOL!). Also, tonight the e-cig that I'm using stopped working. I'm not sure why but luckily it has a lifetime warranty and I'm going to take it to the mall tomorrow. I told Evan that if I can go all night without it since its not working (oh but believe me, I'm trying everything to make it work! heehee!) why not just put it down all together? Eventually the mental cravings will get easier I guess.

Anyways, I hope everyone has a safe and happy weekend. Until next time...

-Kristin





  

Bad hair day...

You think you're having a bad hair day? Me too. Wait, I dont think your hair looks like crap, I'm saying..I'm having a bad hair day too! Why are you having a bad hair day? Your straightener wont get hot enough? Hair wont hold a curl? Ran out of mousse? Mine is simple. Its called Alopecia Areata.

Alopecia areata (AA) is a medical condition in which hair is lost from some or all areas of the body, usually from the scalp.^[1][2] Because it causes bald spots on the scalp, especially in the first stages, it is sometimes called spot baldness. In 1%–2% of cases, the condition can spread to the entire scalp (Alopecia totalis) or to the entire epidermis (Alopecia universalis). Conditions resembling AA, and having a similar cause, occur also in other species. (-- Copied from Wikipedia)

I dont know what compelled me to write this blog expect the fact that I just 'did my hair' for the day. You dont hear this topic talked about much but today I'm opening up a little. I have had AA (instead of typing Alopecia Areata 100 times..we'll call it AA.) since I was young. My father died when I was 8, in 1992, and since then I've lived with AA. I'm now 27 years old and quite frankly, I hate doing my hair everyday. I dont want pity, I want to educate. I dont see many people who have AA but when I do, it sorta (in a good way) excites me. I think "wow, they're like me!"...then...I feel sad for them. I am very fortunate that I can cover my balding spots, but at one point in my life, there was no way to do that and my head was almost entirely bald. I keep about the same hair-do everyday b/c there is only so much you can do with so little hair. If you've seen pictures, close up, you'll also wonder why I "draw" my eyebrows on! Well, that's just me and my AA.

I am comfortable with myself, I do go out in public..but deep down inside, of course it bothers me. I wonder sometimes what other people are thinking. Maybe that's why I want to say my thoughs on AA. I have tried several treatment options but nothing seems to work. I think I've just learned to accept that this is who I am. This is the way God intended for me to be. And, that's fine with me. I'm no different of a person at heart just because of the hair on my head :)

Well, I said I wanted to educate. I'm going to leave you with the link to the Wikipedia information. Its pretty interesting actually. I hope you will take the time to read it and thanks for reading my rants! :)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alopecia_areata

Day 3: Shame on me. :(

Day 3 is here. No smoking...well, not exactly. This is the hardest thing I've done in a long time. I woke up this morning feeling quite fuzzy-headed, dizzy and like my brain couldnt catch up to my eyes as I was looking around. I was slightly more tired than usual until I got up and moving. I was fighting the urge to go smoke a 'real' cigarette so hard. Around 10am, I gave in. I lit it like I had for the past 12 years and took one drag. GROSS! When I inhaled, the junk hit my lungs like a ton of bricks. My chest hurt. It tasted like I licked an ashtray. A few minutes later, I thought, let me try again. I lit another. GROSS, again. Above all this, you want to know what hurt the most? Guilt. What had I just done? I thought that couple real puffs wouldnt hurt me...and I'm glad it didnt work out between us because I couldnt imagine telling my husband (who's begged me to quit since we've been married..6 years!) that I started again. I thumped the cigarette to the road and left it there. So, I admit to weakness, but in a way I'm glad that I lit those two cigarettes...now I know that after 12 years, its not worth it. I think you just get used to the taste (wow, its nasty now!!) and the way it feels when the junk hits your lungs and after a while, its no big deal. Even after just 3 days, its a big deal to me. Lisa, my sister in law, has also quit. However, she's quit even the E-Cig. (Let me say again how proud I am of her and her husband for quitting...they're really the inspiration for me!) She was telling me this morning that when you smoke, the chemicals paralyze parts of your lungs called cilia (that might not be spelled right!) and those things are used to flush the crap from your lungs. So, when I analyzed it, that means that for 12 years my lungs havent been able to flush themselves. Yuck! I'm sure I'm at the beginning stages of withdrawls, which is normal, I just pray its not any worse than this. There is such a thing called "quitters flu"...and I know I dont want that. I'll take fuzziness anyday! :)

Thank you all for reading and for your encouragement here and on Facebook. I hope I can be an inspiration to other smokers to quit as my family has been to me. If you'd like details on the product I'm using to assist in quitting, go to http://www.smoke51.com/ or ask me and I'll gladly explain.

Have a great night. God Bless.

Its a hard habit to break...

...BUT THIS GIRL IS DOING IT! Some of you know, and some may be shocked to find out, I'm a smoker...since I was 15, to be exact. Today I started quitting with the help of the electronic cigarette. (Thanks, Lisa, for letting me use yours, and I'm proud of you for quitting!!) The electronic cigarette doesnt contain any chemicals, or crap, they put in a regular cigarette. Its simply nicotene to curb the craving. After 3 weeks, my sister in law quit, and I'm hoping for the same. I'm asking each of you to please pray for me as I start this adventure. My drive is my family. I want to be able to play with my son without being out of breath. I want to be healthy, for myself. I want to start walking again, without being completely out of breath by lap one. I just want to quit...period. With prayer, encouragement and strong will power, I know I can do it.

If anyone wants to research the product I'm using, its called Fifty One. They have a website: smoke51.com.

Thanks for reading. Have a nice weekend!!

Pay It Forward

Ever since receiving a Pay It Forward Day invitation on Facebook and researching exactly what this meant (no folks, I havent seen the movie!), its been dear to my heart. I've definitely paid more attention to my actions. Random acts of kindness do not have to be monetary. Matter of fact, quite often there's nothing to do with money. I smile at a stranger, hold the door, strike up conversation or just give someone a hug. I didnt realize the impact I had on people until I really analyzed what I was (or wasnt) doing. I have certainly given it more effort lately and it makes my heart sing! There's nothing like making someone smile. You never know what battle they are fighting, and chances are, its worse than your own. Your kindness can make or break the day. Now, please dont get me wrong, I do not do kind acts for anyone with ANY intention of receiving...however, I have noticed that the way you treat people will eventually come back around to you. In other words, when you help someone, they will help you. Maybe not the same day, or tomorrow...but they will. This happened to me today and made me realize just how grateful I am AND how willingly I should give myself to others.

I have a few simple ideas here that I thought I'd share. There's no limit to what we can do for others!


Send someone a hand written note of thanks.
Make a card at home and send it to a friend for no reason.
Put some coins in someone else’s parking meter.
Cut your neighbour’s hedge.
Walk your friend’s dog.
Give a compliment about your waiter / waitress to his / her manager.
Send someone a small gift anonymously.
Stop and help someone replace their flat tire.
Pay for the drinks on the next table at a café.
Treat a friend to the movies for no reason.
Give a huge tip to someone when they least expect it.
Give up your seat for someone, not just an elderly person.
Write notes of appreciation at least once a week.
Talk to a homeless person and have a “normal” conversation.
Pick up some rubbish in the road which would otherwise be lying around.
Compliment a work colleague for their excellence.
Give another driver your parking spot.
Help an elderly neighbor carry the rubbish out.
Tell all your family members how much your appreciate them.
Buy an inspirational book for a friend.
Send a thank you note to a person who has helped you in the past.
Smile a lot.
(Copied from lifehack.org)



"It is not the magnitude of our actions but the amount of love that is put into them that matters." ~Mother Teresa

Have a blessed night, my friends!

Maybe I do have something else to say! I have to admit, blogging is exciting! :)

Evan and I have been thinking about selling his truck. We've contemplated this for a couple months and cant make a decision because we dont know how big, or little, of an impact it will make in our day to day needs. Our finances tell us we've got to forfeit somethings. If we sell the truck, we will be left with one car. Its a small ride, but its comfy enough and big enough for our 3 person household. I've tried to weigh out the pros and cons, but I'm still not settled on a decision. One HUGE pro is that we will no longer have a couple hundred dollar truck payment and it will reduce the amount we pay for car insurance. This, my friends, is what makes me say SELL SELL SELL!!! On the other hand, that leaves me taking Evan to work on the days that I would need the car (or everyday?) and on the days that he takes the car, it leaves me without transportation. I usually dont run the roads regularly, I try to conserve as much gas as possible. Evan has been driving my car to and from because its amazing on gas mileage. Therefore, I'm trying to leave the truck (definitely more of a gas guzzler!) parked. I dont want to impose on others if I need to go somewhere...although I do know my family would help. A big con of not having a car is the 'what ifs'. What if there was an emergency? I just cant seem to come to a solid decision. AND, what if we sell the truck and end up wanting another car...are we going to find a payment as cheap as his truck? (Its cheaper than my car payment but not cheap enough when we're talking budgets!) Credit has changed, finances have surely changed since I'm not employed..am I going to be worse than before if we decide we need another car after selling?

What do you think about one car families? What would you do? I'm open to suggestions! :) Thanks for reading..

Remember the feeling on your first day of school?

...that's how I feel today. You know, when you walk into class on the first day and you feel like you've got 20 something sets of eyes staring at only you? This is going to be an adventure, but, I've been inspired by a few friends to start a new blog. I feel I need to, maybe just to be able to tell my day to day thoughts that seem to be cooped up inside. (And, I type faster than I can write, makes sense!) But why am I nervous about blogging? I know as soon as I click "publish post", I've opened up to the world. Anyone can read my thoughts and feelings. Dont call me a hypocrite just yet. I'm also excited about it. I made the choice to do this, I'm going to see if it helps me. When I was a teenager, I kept a diary...more like a notebook...and over time, I felt like weight was lifted. Then I stopped, and this many years later, here I am again...a virtual diary...sorta.

Anyhow, today has been a good day so far. Cole has been well behaved, all except rummaging through the stack of paperwork I had organized this morning. I've managed to get quite a bit done at home, too. I love those days. I feel good when I can be productive! I dont have much else to say, except hello world.

Until next time...