My Cup Runneth Over

Lately I have been feeling so blessed with the life God has given me. I think I take for granted TOO much all the many blessings God has bestowed to me. I serve a God that loves me, I have a loving family that cares for me, a husband that truly loves me, a sweet, loving, healthy son that God has given me, friends that are there for me, a roof over my head, a great church family....the list goes on and on. I love my life and I feel like my cup is just running over with all these blessings. I heard this poem read by one of Justin's relatives at a Christmas gathering about 3 or 4 years ago and haven't been able to get it out of my mind. This poem truly explains how I feel.

I’m Drinking From My Saucer

I’ve never made a fortune,and it’s probably too late now.

But I don’t worry about that much,I’m happy anyhow.
And as I go along life’s way,I’m reaping better than I sowed.

I’m drinking from my saucer,‘Cause my cup has overflowed.

Haven’t got a lot of riches,and sometimes the going’s tough.

But I’ve got loving ones all around me,and that makes me rich enough.

I thank God for his blessings,and the mercies He’s bestowed.

I’m drinking from my saucer,‘Cause my cup has overflowed.

I remember times when things went wrong,My faith wore somewhat thin.

But all at once the dark clouds broke,and the sun peeped through again.
So Lord, help me not to gripe, about the tough rows I have hoed.

I’m drinking from my saucer,‘Cause my cup has overflowed.

If God gives me strength and courage,When the way grows steep and rough.

I’ll not ask for other blessings,I’m already blessed enough.
And may I never be too busy,to help others bear their loads.

Then I’ll keep drinking from my saucer,‘Cause my cup has overflowed.

-Author Unknown

Psalms 23:5

"You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You welcome me as a guest, anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings."

He's still workin' on me!

Do you remember that childhood song?
"He's still workin' on me
To make me what I ought to be
It took Him just a week to make the moon and the stars
The sun and the Earth and Jupiter and Mars
How loving and patient He must be
He's still workin' on me!"

This song has been the anthem of my heart lately. Some recent things that have happened in my life have made me realize that I am STILL a huge work in progress. I have many things that I need to work on to become a better wife, mother, friend, daughter and sister. Makes me realize that even when I think I've got it all put together, God shows me areas in my life that have neglected to give to HIM. I have struggled so long with personal insecurities and now it's spilling over into other areas of my life. I must find my confidence in God and God ALONE. Wow, thank God He is so patient and that He never gives up on us!!
He's still workin' on me!!

Motherhood in the Raw part ??

There are a few new things to share about Judah and mothering a 1 year old...here goes...

1) I have a one year old. Okay, this is just weird to me. I can't even believe it's been over a year since we had a new addition. Seems like time has passed so quickly but also seems like Judah has always been a part of our family! So, new moms or future moms, what they say is true...time flies by, enjoy every minute. I look back now and realize I didn't savor his "tininess" as much as i should have! (I also need to post pics of his jungle themed party...it was so cute if I do say so myself)

2) Bye Bye Binky. We are now trying to get rid of the binky, pacy, whatever affectionate name you choose to call that rubber thing that goes in there mouth and keeps them quiet when you want them to. This has been a hard one, probably mostly for me. The pacifier has been a bit of a mute button for Judah, in other words, if he was crying or upset, the paci would automatically soothe him, or if he was babbling in church, the binky would keep him quiet a little longer than my shhh's would. We have gotten down to where he only uses it for sleeping or when he's very tired. I admit I cave probably more than I should. According to the Dr, the goal is to be rid of the binky by 18 months...we're on our way!

3) Growth charts. Why is it, we as mothers constantly measure our pride on our children's growth chart? At Judah's 12 month appointment he was 25% for height and weight. However he must have lots of brains cause his head was a whopping 90%! So my child will probably unfortunately be shorter than average, sorry Judah, you can blame me. I was actually surprised to see that he was underweight. This kid eats a ton!! Seriously more than me sometimes! He is VERY active so I guess he runs it off.
It seems that other mothers tend to ask what his or her percentages were at the last visit to see where their child is in comparison to yours. I'm guilty as well. I guess Judah will just be below average in height and weight, but look out world, cause that big head of his will be chop full of knowledge and crush your overweight kid! (lol)

4) Bye Bye $25 formula! Our doctor told us we could take Judah off of Formula at 11 months (which is a little early, but much welcomed!). You couldn't have told me better news. We were paying $25 every 4 days for a tub of formula. The next time I went to the grocery store and didn't have to purchase that expensive stuff, I seriously did a little hallelujah dance down the isle! Praise God, we now only spend $4 about every 4 days for Judah's Organic Whole milk!

5) Table for 4. I honestly wouldn't mind having another child if only we could afford it. Childcare is so expensive we can't afford to have two in full time care at the same time among the other expenses having a child incurs. It looks like we will have to wait another 3 years or so. I have really just enjoyed Judah lately. He's so lovey and sweet. Don't get me wrong he will throw a tantrum or two (yes already) and stress me out from time to time, but he is such a blessing.

Money, it doesn't grow on trees

Starting this year, Justin and I have vowed to be the best stewards of our money as we can. We had always tried to do our best, but now we have decided, with much persuasion from a dear friend, to start clipping coupons.
Now, in the past, I always considered this a colossal waste of time and money. I would always buy something that i wouldn't necessarily use just because I had a coupon for it! Silly! Well, the website we have been learning about and using is http://www.southersavers.com/. This girl really does a great job of matching coupons to items that are already on sale and for several different grocery stores also! The one that seems to be the best for us is Publix. They have their BOGO (buy one, get one...you've got to learn the lingo too!) deals every week. She posts all the bogo's and then additional coupons that you use on both items, the free item and the one you're paying for. So, essentially, you could get items for free or for like .30 a piece!!
Publix is also awesome because they honor competitor coupons. I went shopping last night and used several Target coupons. I spent $50 at Publix and saved $40!! The girl that writes the "blog" puts links to print out other coupons from websites such as couponbug.com and others. Justin and I just created a "junk coupon" g-mail account so we could join such websites.
I'm excited to see how much I can save. Justin has even gotten into it! As a matter of fact, we sit together on Sunday nights and go through the (2) Sunday papers and website to see what we need and what the best deal is!! Yay! I encourage you to consider couponing this year. Give it a try. Even if you're not totally into it, if you do it here and there you'll realize your putting money in your pocket! It's worth it!

In Review

Happy New Year everyone!! I decided I'd share my joys and sorrows of 2009 with the world. Overall, 2009 has been an exciting year FULL of firsts!

On January 8th, 2009, Judah Avery Johnson was welcomed into the world and our lives changed forever. We were so anxious to meet Judah and the roller coaster of emotions began for me. I was elated, nervous, scared, and happy. The overwhelming feeling of being a mother and the responsibility that hung over me was almost more than I could bare! Honestly, these feelings coupled with my hormones probably made it more that it really was, but I, never-the-less, was overwhelmed. Justin was so patient and seemed to calm me down by just being there.

The whole nursing thing was a bit much for me. I felt so secluded and strapped down. I was glad Judah was eating and getting the nutrition that breast milk had to offer, but again, it was overwhelmingly lonely to me. I would just cry when I fed him. I finally realized that I was in a bit of a depression. I would just cry and cry. I wasn't happy and felt like a failure as a mother. ALL of which were lies the devil was feeding me. I went to my Dr. and she suggested I go on some anti-depressant pills and see someone about my feelings. I took her prescription, but never filled it. I decided that God was more than enough to cure me. I didn't want to become so dependant on a drug for my happiness. I finally came through it, with MUCH prayer, when Judah was about 6 or 7 months old. I began to feel like myself and my baby weight (which was also a source of depression) began to come off as well.

Since that time, things have been great! Judah is flourishing, learning and becoming so independent, and strong-willed! (I wonder who he gets that from? lol) I am loving spending time with him now as he jabbers complete non-sense, claps for me when I sing to him, and dances anytime he hears music. He's walking everywhere and is looking quite grown up. He loves to eat and is a great sleeper. He's on quite a fabulous routine and is so active (all boy!). Although this "year in review" revolves around Judah, he's the biggest thing to happen to us this year. 2009 has revolved around him and I welcome the changes that will take place in him through the years.

Brag time...

I have been thinking about writing this blog for a while and decided that now was the time. So, if you don't want to hear me go on an on about my wonderful husband then click on, but just fyi...it's gonna be good!

Justin Michael Johnson and I have been married now for 4 years and 4 months. We met at Lee University where we were just friends for about 2 years...until things changed of course. We got married, moved to Florida and started as youth Pastors all within about 3 months. So, needless to say, I was overwhelmed with the amount of life changes I had to go through. I admit I got depressed when we first moved here..you know...no friends, no family, nothing familiar. Justin and I just had each other. We did EVERYTHING together. We were never apart and looking back, I think it was the best thing for our marriage. We had to depend and rely on each other because that's all we had.

We moved to Orlando not knowing really what we were doing. Justin took a Youth Pastor position at the church we are still at, Christ Church of Orlando. He took this position after several grueling interviews. He didn't graduate from Lee with a "Ministry Major" or a theology degree. We were truly just following the call on our hearts to work with teens. I have to admit, shamefully, that I didn't know if we could do it. I doubted Justin and his ability to "be a Pastor". I even think I challenged him a bit, because I have a bit of a control problem, and finally realized that he IS AWESOME at what he does, how he connects with the teens, and I'm sure it's no thanks to me and my nagging. He is a dynamic, charismatic, entertaining, humorous speaker and sometimes I don't know where he pulls stuff from. I will admit I still get nervous every time he speaks. I never know what he will say, and he has embarrassed me and probably himself several times....It's scary when the microphone is in your hands! Regardless, he's done such a great job and I look forward to all that he'll do in the future as he continues to marinate in his calling. Yes, he works alot, but we knew what we signed up for.

I love to watch Justin with Judah. They always have so much fun together. They are constantly laughing and having a good time. I'm certain they'll be buddies. But, I will say that Justin is the disciplinarian of the family. (thank God!) He's firm with Judah and I think Judah respects him for that. When Justin watches Judah every Friday, they are always taking fun daddy/son field trips to places like Lowe's and Ikea. What a great daddy!

Justin constantly is encouraging me to be bold and step out of my box. He is the perfect balance for me. I can be a bit uptight and he knows how to calm me down. He encourages me when I'm having self image issues. I know I'm beautiful to him, because he tells me so. I know he's happy, because he tells me so. Thank God I married someone that complements my love languages! All in all, I married my best friend. I actually enjoy being around my husband (imagine that...lol).

Now, he's not perfect, as none of us are, but he's perfect for me! This is a bragging blog for goodness sakes. I'm proud of my hubby, my friend, my baby-daddy!

Chill out already!

So, I have a lot going on right now and have found myself waking up every hour at night. Why is it that we as women can't turn our brain off? I am in charge of the Thanksgiving basket drive, organization, and delivery for our church this weekend. I love doing this every year, just get so stressed about the details and will I have enough help and so on. Everything seems to work out just fine, but man, I wish I could just chill out!

I am also throwing a baby shower for a friend at church this weekend and feel the need to have a perfect girly party looming over my head. I don't know why I do this to myself or why everything seems to be planed for the same time or day!?

I think the fact that I'm also already planning Judah's first birthday party is stressing me out. When did my baby grow up so fast? One year already? Where has the time gone? I thought time went fast before I had a kid, now it's like twice as fast...crazy! I have ordered the invitations and we...I have decided to do a jungle theme. I'm excited about it and am constantly trying to come up with creative ideas that go with the theme. So, far I've got quite a few...I'll definitely share pictures afterwards...don't hold your breath though, it's not until January. (Obsessed much?)

I really don't' know why I do this to myself. I think it's because I LOVE to plan and do parties and think that everyone that knows that I love this expects something grand from me. I hope not to let them/you down, but first I just need to chill out already!!