Each morning I wake up grateful for this life I have. I don't type this as some cliché but as my true heartfelt sentiment. I am so thankful each morning when my eyes open and I can feel the bedsheets touching my skin and the way my socks feel on my feet. My husband thinks it is weird that I sleep in super thick socks. Even in the summer I sleep in them. When I was sick I couldn't feel my legs so my socks remind me that I can feel. I can move. I can breathe. With the Thanksgiving weekend slowly creeping away I always get a tad sentimental this time of year. My mind spins at 100 miles a minute thinking about how thankful I am for this life I have. My life is messy at times, I have three little kids, my bathrooms aren't always clean, and my kitchen floor usually has several sticky spots on it. But in spite of the mess, when the sunlight starts to creep into our home in the morning and I see our kids awake, running around, playing, laughing, and how the light dances around their head … [Read more...]
In Sickness and Health
"I, Josh, take you, Tamara, for my wife,to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part." The older I become the more I feel the amazing blessing of being loved this way. When Josh and I said our marriage vows to each other on November 10th, 2007 I was in the midst of battling a neurological disorder. There were many unknowns about what our life would look like moving forward. I became sick several months into our engagement. The save the dates had already been sent when we learned that the muscle weakness and paralyzation I was experiencing weren't symptoms that would be quickly fixed or even had the potential to get better. Josh was under no obligation to stay with me. Walking was a struggle, driving a car wasn't happening, and just being able to get out of bed in the morning was hard. The reality is that most 23 year olds don't get to start off a marriage the way I did. Our plans for … [Read more...]
Why I Stopped Teaching “Christian” Yoga
I have tried to write numerous times over the last two years. Our family Bible verse is: Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong. Do everything in love. 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 To those of you reading this, I hope that you know that my words are coming from a place of love. Not from condemnation or malice. I enjoy sharing how God continues to mold and shape me, thanks for reading! A few years ago I wrote a blog post titled “Does Downward Dog dishonor God?” I tried to address the question “Should Christians practice yoga?” Over the last few years my desire to know God has grown so much that last year I finally disciplined myself to read the Bible in its entirety. Even before I began reading my Bible something had just continued to feel off over the last several years when I would practice and teach yoga. I would have loved to have stumbled across a blog post like this back when I was looking into teaching Christian yoga. The only reason I ever felt … [Read more...]
Backyard Circuit Workout
Two weeks ago my favorite clients came over to our house for a backyard training session. The workout they did was so good that I wanted to share it on the blog. I realize not everyone has access to this equipment or space at their house but this could make a great park, track, or gym workout too with a few modifications if need be. Equipment Needed: Pull-up Bar (Josh built one in our backyard but I am linking to an at home option), Battle Rope, Heavy & Light Kettlebells/Dumbells Complete three rounds of circuit one resting only after a round is completed. Once three rounds are complete move to circuit two. For the squats and lunges I held in 18 pound kettlebell but you could also just use your bodyweight for these exercises. We have an alley behind our home that I used for sprinting, thus the name alley sprints, and I am estimating that the distance sprinted would be 100m. Right before Jesse was born was the first time in my life that I had ever been able to perform a … [Read more...]
Fruit of the Spirit (Family Devotion Unit for Preschoolers & Toddlers)
Back in the fall of last year I began sharing our family devotions on the blog. I had all the lessons typed up and ready to post and forgot to publish them. Along the way I discovered that there were some things that needed to be tweaked to work better for our family, especially now that we have a newborn! I am happy and excited to share our full 9 lesson unit of the Fruit of the Spirit for Preschoolers and Toddlers! || CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD OUR FREE LESSON PLAN PDF FOR THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT UNIT || Below are the Supplies + Resources for our Fruit of the Spirit Family Devotional Unit. Affiliate links are included for your convenience. The Jesus Storybook Bible The Good Samaritan (5 Minute Bible Stories) 9 Fruits Alive (GodCounts Series) Seeds Family Worship - Seeds of Character If you have any questions feel free to ask. This family devotion unit will always remain free, but I love getting feedback! Let me know what did or didn't work for you. The first … [Read more...]
What I Learned from Reading the Bible
For the last several years I have really wanted to read the entire Bible. I was just never disciplined enough to actually do it. I had super great intentions in January of every year but come March I just lost interest. I think my wanting to read the Bible can be equated to the same way the majority of the population makes New Years resolutions to go to the gym and eat healthier. We start out strong but without a realistic plan and a strong why behind the motive even our best intentions will fall short of our goal. My reason for wanting to read the Bible before was simply to be able to say I had read the Bible. When I began to really want to know God more and his character my why changed. This year when I started reading the Bible in January I didn't follow any plan. I decided I would start in the New Testament before I even attempted the Old Testament. And it totally worked! The New Testament was familiar and full of rich lessons and teachings. When I made my way to Genesis I … [Read more...]
