The Taste of the Apple

 Hi HO! Hi Ho! It is off to work we go! I could dare to guess if you have young girls you have watched your fair share of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  We all know the story. A beautiful princess runs away lives in a cottage taking care of the Seven Dwarfs. While at the same time there is an evil queen who wants to be the fairest of them all. Yet is told that there is none sweeter or purer than Snow White the jealously and anger begins to plot. The queen makes it her mission to hunt down Snow White and kill her.  The queen represents herself as something old and innocent and offers Snow White a taste of an apple. Despite Snow Whites ‘ gut feeling and hesitations she bites into the apple and is sent to her death.  Until her prince comes and wakes her with a kiss of life.

 The sweet taste of desire comes in so many ways for all of us.   We have an enemy whispering thoughts and lies to us all the time.  Sadly enough because we have a head knowledge of the word and are not actively in it we end up taking the bait out of selfish desires. We are no different from Adam and Eve in the garden when they bought into the lie that God was keeping them from the knowledge of “Good and Evil”.  Trust me I have taking time to slice the apple dip it in caramel and eat a big ole bite and even savor the taste only to wake up to disappointment hurt and ciaos with lifetime wounds.  

 Despite what you think at the time, I can guarantee they never turned out to be quite as delicious as you fantasized about.  Resentment and pain will grasp you faster than you can imagine to the point that you’re breath is striped and something is wrapped around your neck. What I thought would bring Freedom brought chains that would wrap my mind with chains and make bitterness rush and flow through my veins.  As far the taste it was more like biting into a grapefruit minus the pile of sugar.  

Unfortunately sometime our apple bites come from others taking a bite without consulting us on if we wanted that bit. I can speak to you that in my past I have had to walk this out and  the feelings of bitterness and unbelief and betrayal are what will try to paralyze you. That type of betrayal is the worst. Most of us can handle it when we mess up but it is a whole new level when we have to deal with the decisions that impact us that others made. However, God never gives you what you can’t handle.

So what do we do after the taste testing is over?  Do we set there and wrestle with the pain, and bitterness of beating ourselves up for the wrong thing, or the things others do?  Sure we do! Well at least I do!  But the thing I am learning is that bottom line when we ask for forgiveness we do not have to carry the weight of who we have been, or if others ask for forgiveness we have to give them the grace they need.  We might feel like we do not measure up to much in this life, but I can promise you that we are precious treasures in the arms of Christ.

So how do we come against our very real evil queen who is better known as Satan in our lives?  I think we have to approach each situation we are faced with this thought. My feelings and emotions are not necessarily the truth.  Allowing our emotions and feelings to rule us hurts all of us. To be true oxygen in situations you are facing despite that you feel hope has passed you by.  The bottom line is you have to find a way to speak the TRUTH so you can get the pain away. I have learned that sometimes God is more interested in your growth than what you are going through.  The living Truth is your Word your scriptures.  You can know that when your heart is breaking you never leave God’s hands, when your world is shaking Heaven is steady.    

Sure you can feel these things but know the truth…

You can feel Fear.. yet have confidence that God has you in His arms. 

You can feel Anger… yet know Perfect Love Cast out Fear

You can feel Guilt and Shame…. Yet know You are a NEW CREATION IN HIM BEHOLD OLD THINGS HAVE PAST AWAY!

So today when you get presented an apple that is disguised as you deserve this you have been good, if no one knows it can’t hurt them, What is one more bite of the food, whatever your struggle is...

 Know that you have to stand firm and your GOD‘s word never fails and God will make away for escape you just have to be willing to stand up and know I have to turn away and seek Bread not fruit. Jesus is our Daily bread through his word. 

I think it is  funny how Satan tempts and presents the “so-call” good stuff as so sweet; yet it leaves nothing but bitterness. While Jesus presented and showed us to seek and pray  for Daily Bread not fruit.  That type of bread give us that feeling of being fullness.  While the fruit gives us emptiness. Don’t get me wrong I am not saying fruit is wrong! I am enjoying a bowl of grapes while righting this! 

My prayer for each of us today is: 

Father God, give each of us our Daily Bread so we can withstand the sneaky plans of the enemy so we aren't  like Snow White and face death with the bite of our apple, but can leave a long a prosperous life! Show us how to be the mom's, wives, and friends others need. Allow us to not come consumed with ourselves and our feelings but be consumed with your word so we can shine for you! Help us to Trust in you with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding so you can do your will. We know your ways are higher than ours. We don't have to understand it just be on board with you! 

My two cent's today is:   God is bigger than any apples you have taste! Don't let the enemy eat you up with Shame and Lies! 

Tiffany 

Cook like Martha, but in a fraction of the TIME!

OK Ladies! So just because we are  busy working moms, or  stay-at-home moms with babies on your knees running to and from the soccer fields to the golf course and back home. Leaves no room for us to say we have no time to eat right. I mean we are the very heartbeat of our families it is up to us to pour into our families and help them have "HEALTHY TEMPLES" aka bodies. Basically, I am challenging  both you and I to step into operating as  Proverb 31 women. It is just going to take a little planning on our part, BUT GIRLS WE SO GOT THIS!!!!

So the first thing I suggest we do is start cooking healthy, after we get this down we can add other areas.  I am going to share one of my NEW favorite EASY recipes with you. RED BEANS, Turkey Sausage over Rice in the Crock Pot.

Ingredients

• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped 
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 pound andouille sausage or turkey sausage, sliced
• 3 tablespoons Creole seasoning
• Hot cooked rice
• Garnish: sliced green onions and serve over rice. 

Preparation

1. Place first 8 ingredients in a 4-quart slow cooker.
2. Cook, covered, at HIGH 7 hours or until beans are tender. Serve with hot cooked rice. Garnish, if desired over rice.

ENJOY!

Days Go By... My Love will Grow

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Do I say Yes or NO.... That is the Question!

Today, I had a chance/ opportunity that would have been really good for me. Yet, in my heart I knew that the time associated with it would only pull me away from my focus- My Family.  Don’t get me wrong I came home trying to figure out how it would or could work because the opportunity is something that does not presences itself every day.  After giving myself a headache of what if’s or could this be it… questions. I called my husband.  With the wisdom of Solomon, he reminded me of our family goal, and I knew even though this was not a bad thing to be involved with it probably was something I was going to need to pass on so in the end I could say yes to the best. 

Sometimes, I think God gives us a chance to say no to something that is good so that later we can say yes to the best.   What I mean when I say that is….  As mom’s all of us sign up at the beginning of the year to be a part of the PTO. Then we sign our kids up for sports, dances, balancing work, being  involved in bible studies.  All of these things are great things to be involved with UNTIL they start taking time away from what should be our TOP priority our families. But we could even take this a step further, as women we think we can volunteer,  keep adding on more things for our families to do because this is what we do we get involved, and we keep this pace up until  we eventually wear ourselves out and our families. 

Kailee told me last week, Mommy our schedule is too busy we are not spending time as just a family. With the rain pouring down today. I am a little relieved that soccer got canceled because I am circling up the wagons and hunkering down for a night, I have a pot  of chili  cooking, and can't wait to tell the girls that we are going to be able to relax tonight.  Oh wait! Darn- I forgot Rielly has drama, that ends at 6:00 and then we can relax! :)   

 So my two cents today is this:

When something exciting presents itself to you whether it is to join a new club, go out with some girlfriends, or volunteering more at your child’s school. STOP! Truly evaluate what you are trying to accomplish as a family or even personally. Do you want see those goals  you desire to come forth in your life? If the answer is Yes, then it is time to take a hard look at what you are saying YES to.  WE cannot let our minds beat us up by saying, “You know you can do that!”  Instead, we must learn what is truly important and how we can protect our time to make sure we can accomplish it. Trust me here girls, I am preaching to the choir because I own the shirt and the front place parking sign with my name on it as OVER COM MITER! But with every new day I begin to learn more and hear more and understand that when I quickly jump in I rob another person from what is the BEST for them.  

My Two Cent’s of The Day:  Just because you are asked to do something. Does not mean you need to volunteer to do it!  Learn to say no to the good so you can say yes to the best!

Love y’all

Tiffany 

JUST LOVE

JUST LOVE.

Cort likes to joke around and call me Dr. Bethmann because anytime the kids or he is not feeling good I have some type of “advice or know what they need to do to feel better”. The saying goes something like this...What would “Tiffany” the expert  do? Now don’t get me wrong 8 out of 10 times I am right. I mean that is why they have to ask the "expert" But that is not the point.  Ok…. OK… So, I will admit it to you girls that I am wrong more than I would like to admit. But SHHHhhhh I do not want this to get back to Cort and the girls! I like being the "Family Expert" 

However tonight, I am filled with joy and tears all at the same time. Because when we meet people and love them where they are there is no need for advice and/or check off list.  I want to encourage each all of us chicks to keep stepping out in faith, and speak with compassion. Allowing the love of God to flow through you and meet people where they are at in life. Trust me! It is not an easy thing. Especially, if you are like me and you always think you have the answer, BUT you  can bet your bottom dollar that GOD WILL ALWAYS do something BIG! When WE get out’ the way!

  All God ask us to do is to JUST LOVE.  It does not take a rocket scientist to just love. When we truly show love to people through our words, and our actions, and we are staying out of the way then we are just loving, and allowing God to move in.  

 You know Nike was onto something in my opinion, when they launched one of the most recognized marketing slogans of all times- The Just Do IT slogan.  I do not know but I am thinking if we could take that little check mark and mark it down that we are going to JUST DO IT. We might see people opening new chapters in their lives and walking through to gain some of their promises.

 So I leave you with my two cent’s worth tonight…

Just Do It! Spread the LOVE, and mark it down that this little hillbilly chick loves you! 

Love y'all!

Tiffany 

Find Time To Flirt A Little!

Summertime always brings back memories of the pool and having the sunkisssed skin, and having those big blow ups to float around in the pool on. Back in the Summer of 1997, I met the most amazing hot sexy lifeguard with one glance my heart melted. I would rate it up there with watching the Top Gun volley ball scene. You know what I am talking about ladies! Those hot bodies  of Mavrick, Goose and Ice man on that hot summer day!   I had been  asked by my mom, but really with no other option but to do what she had asked to take my sister and some of our  friends to the pool. Of course, I was a little aggravated because like most women and girls I was not too excited to be having to put the dreaded bathing suit on. After, trying at least ten suits and checking myself out in the mirror nothing seemed to be looking like I wanted it too. Finally, I settled on the black one with the mesh at the top.

Jamie my little sister’s friend had a membership to this pool called Robindale. The neat thing was that she could have guest come for free.  So we loaded up my Saturn which looked more like a clown mobile due to all the pool bags, noodles and people situated inside.  Finally, we made the 15 minute drive to the pool and we all began to  unload fast and make our way in. 

I began to take a step into the pool floor and as I was walking down the stairs my eye’s met the lifeguard on duties eyes. I thought to myself look-- Oh girl look at that body. I must be staring at a body of a god. Then, could not believe I decided on the bathing suit I had chosen.  But before the girls settled on a seat where we would have our stuff.  I quickly went into strategic thinking mode,  I  was able  to convince everyone we should set our stuff on the right side of the pool because it looked like the sun was hitting over there better. Well, at least that is what they all thought, but I was setting  it up to where at some point he would have to speak to me, and well at the least notice me. Now the funny odd thing is that I did not want to date him at all, I just wanted to know in my mind that I still had it going on because at this point I was trying to instill confidence in myself. 

It did not take long at all. He started drumming up conversation with me and smiling and joking with me. He mentioned he would be off the stand in about 20 minutes. Hmmm I started thinking to myself about  5 minutes before he was to get off the stand,  I would like to become better friends with this guy. So I was able to get a boys vs girls game of keep away going, Brilliant plan might I ask because as soon as he got off he jumped in and joined in and happened to guard me.  Well, for those of you who know me well I love some good ole’ fashion competition. Turned out he was competitive by nature as well. We laughed giggled and had a blast! It was at that moment that I developed the best friendship of my life.

Now I am proud to announce I have been married to that hot sexy life guard for 11 years now. I am in love with him more today than the day  I promised to love him through the good and the bad.  He is still my best friend   Now don’t get me wrong like every marriage we have had seasons of not loving each other, thinking man this should get easier,even to the point of planning escape plans. Yet, despite the tough times we have both stayed the course and decieded that there is absolutely NO OTHER SPOUSE for us on the face of this earth.  You can mark it down  that I would never  ever be able to  love another human being  the way I love this man. 

 I have been thinking a lot over the past two weeks about my husband and how crazy our lives are with the girls schedules, and then I just got off the phone with one of my girlfriends who was telling me how she desperately needed a date night with her husband just could not figure out when to do it  because of the kids schedules.  I totally understood where she was coming from with busy schedules. I started thinking back to how busy I was when I meet Cort. I was going to school full time, working full time and dealing with everything a single mom has on her plate.  I thought to myself..... You know it is all about priorities. I have to make sure my life priorities are looking like this: GOD, CORT, and then the Girls. 

When Cort and I started to date we made a way found a way to see eachother.  Well, nothing is different now sure we have both walked through life and it has brought  us seasons of joy and hurts for us, but the same is still true. I love Cort, and  I want to be the women he loves and cherishes and enjoys coming home to. So to do that and be that for him I am going to have to purpose in my heart to campout on this for a moment. I am about to become very vulnerable and transparent because I feel as if others lives will be touch by me becoming a glass house.

I have not always been great at respecting my Cort. If truth be known, I probably fail at it more times than any other women would and should.  Sure I thought I respected him, but my definition of respect and his definition did not always see eye to eye, and still don't always see eye to eye. Instead of “submitting” to his idea I tend to let him know his was wrong and mine was right. By either giving him those "Go to H- E- DOUBLE  L eyes, or just out flat yelling and getting angry, and letting him know how he did not love me.   Don’t judge me!!! You know you have done it also.  I spent years praying for God to resurrect his love for me and take back the words I said that caused him hurt, and bring down the walls that were put up to protect him. See ladies, the one thing I did not realize is that  praying to change him and not truly focusing in on trying to change me still kept my tongue and my words for bringing the healing for him and I.   Instead of using my words to build Cort up, I did the exact opposite. I am so grateful to say that my husband is truly a godly man because despite the hurt I caused him he stuck and stayed. I am humbled by that kind of sacrifice and loyalty he has for me. 

Lately, I am learning that it is not Cort that needed the changing it is me. Years of hurt that we both had to walk through from choices that others brought into our lives and some of our own doing.  I am learning that the heartbeat of my family is me. Oddly enough, when I push through and try to bring positivity into the house our family functions better.  I have had to come with the grips that I will mess up I am not perfect, I had to give myself permission that I will screw up and God will put back the pieces. All I have to do is begin to get my priorities back in order, and well at least give it a try even if I totally mess it up! 

 I have started asking God why is it that we women have to be the ones that keep everyone going and happy, and it hit me today when  I was praying on my armor with the girls, and putting on my sassy breast plate of righteousness this morning.  I felt this in my spirit… “You are the heart of this family, Cort is the head.”   Driving back I started thinking about that the heart of this family, and not the head. I started talking it out. Praise God! That people looking in my car probably thought I was on the speaker phone, or else they would have looked for the nearest "funny farm" to sign me up for.  I know I am not the head of this family I mean why I would think that I am.  I started realizing that over the past 5 years I had mentally put myself in the mindset of making sure I provided and everything that needed to work out I would make it happen no matter what the cost, I began to recall the things I thought in my mind and how I stopped being the person who pumped life into my family with my words, and had become the source that sucked the life out of our family by letting the stress effect me. See Cort's shoulders are a lot tougher and can hold a lot more than mine ever will.  The heart is the vital organ that keeps the blood flowing. We as women keep the blood flowing.  Kailee told me this past Saturday, "Mommy when you were yelling Go girl! You can do it! It made her proud and want to score more goals. She ended up scoring 7 goals."  That is just one example of pumping the blood into the family!   

As women our jobs whether we are working or staying at home should be creating a safe haven for our families to be in. Our homes are those safe havens. You better believe I took time this morning to pray through this house and ask God to create a safe haven and help me to be the heart that functions well and not put my family in cardiac arrest.  It is our jobs to be the one to breathe life into our kids and pump them up with joy and encouragement just like it is for us to do that for our marriages.

I want to challenge all of us for the next couple of months to start being the heart beat of our marriages and begin to pumping NEW LIFE  into them  by bring some FRESH  love. So over the next couple of months start flirting with your man. I use to think it was Cort’s job to be romantic and flirt with me. Don’t get me wrong I married Romeo himself,  but when you show your man that he is still your Knight and your Romeo you are sending him the message of you are loyal to him and him alone.

 Here are a couple of ways/suggestions that when our schedules are full with kids and life how you can begin to flirt with your man.  

1.    1.     Send him a “visual Invitation” Maybe it is a picture of the shower,  your car, or your bedroom, it could even be the restaurant your family  is going to tonight.  Just simple send the picture and text him. You + Me = Tonight

2.     2.   Catch him off guard and share with him a desire a dream even the word we ladies tend to never say: A FANTASY.   You could start it off like.......If money was not an option, I would take you to Jamaica and kiss you under the waterfalls and wrap my body  up in your arm...........  Who knows what kind of laughs and giggles and dreams you will come up together with.

3.       3. If your husband comes home after it is late, maybe simple have a note on the door he enters saying. “You are my hero! Thanks for working” 

4.     4.   Another fun and easy thing to do is make a coupon book that they can redeem even if you are with the kids.

A.      Massaging your feet 

B.      You watch the football game and I will make your favorite: ________________

C.      You + Me watching a movie you pic

No matter what girls! Do not let the enemy tell you that you have no time to date your husband because that is a LIE.  We are creative human beings, and think back to when you first met your man. You flirted with that hot man that you now call your husband. So why on earth would you not flirt with him and “date” him that way now.  I know for some of you this might be hard. But girls get in touch with that "wild spontaneous side"  :) LOL Just remember that your husband is worth finding time for.

My two cent’s of the day is: FLIRT WITH YOUR MAN, and Be Creative When you flirt with him you are making deposits in his love account and you will be creating a healthy relationship and pumping life back into the family and not only will you both reap the benefits BUT  your whole family will. 

I love you girls! Have a blast flirting! 

Tiffany 

Develop A Morning Routine for your Kids!

I have always tried to teach My Girls to Command Their Mornings! Chaise and Kailee told me this school year they want to do the "Chailee Morning Devotions".   So on mornings that they have something they want to share we share it.

The most important thing we can do as parents for our children's is teach them to Command Their Mornings. What I mean by that is we have to help them develop a routine.   We must lead by example even on those days we would rather just put the radio on and drive quietly! I can promise you with three girls our drive to school is not all butterflies and warm fuzzy. Don't get the wrong impression that our family is perfect.We had a  morning last week that  our car ride could have been a episode on the Jerry Springer Show:

This is how it went.....

Rielly started barking orders at us to get in the car because she was going to be late.  By the time I got all of them in the car I was looking for my Clear Mood just so I could drive the car.  Kailee and Rielly had been at each other all morning.  Chaise was acting like she was  St. Mary Claire and the perfect child which was making them all fume more. Finally, After I gave them a good old fashion yelling at and telling them I could not wait for them to ride the bus. I realized I had to get off the merry-go-round of craziness and get us back on track. Which you can imagine at this point was far from easy. So we went into the morning prayer.

Kailee prayed.  Then, Rielly prayed in a quiet voice. So Kailee got on to Rielly telling her a prayer is not worth praying if I can't hear it. So we had a battle between sisters. I played referee for a brief moment then we went back into praying.  Chaise wrapped it up!

The point of sharing that with you is letting you know. We all have those mornings when nothing goes right, we all fight, BUT the important thing is to teach them no matter what we get it done!

When you start praying as a family.  There will be things that try to prevent that prayer or routine from happening. Please know, when you try to put routines in places everything will happen to try not to let that occur. You have to push through and Ask Yourself these questions:  Do my kids hear my voice? How am I raising kids to seek Him First? If I am not willing to push through, why would they want to push through?

As for The Bethmann Family. Our girls know every morning we are going to do these 2 things no matter what happens!

1. Put the Armor of the Lord On
2.  When they walk out the door of my car. I roll it down and say, "Girls, make wise choices today!"

The other day when I picked Rielly up from school she said, " Momma, the principal asked me if you say Make wise choices to me every morning? "  Then she got a big grin on her face and said, "I told him every morning.  I hear it!"

While they might act like they are embarrassed.  You are letting them know you care about them enough to put a plan and daily routine in to place.

Our kids are in school all day. What impression are we leaving on our kids?  Maybe it is a quick! You're a Champion!

So my two cent's of the day is:  I want to encourage all of you to start from a very young age and develop your children into little Champions!  Let's give them those routines they can count on happening no matter what the drive to school ends up being.