Manage Your Emotions Using This Method : REED

This is something I teach all of my children in order to help them to recognize what they are feeling and to deal with those feelings in a healthy way. I hope to teach them that the feelings will come and it is important to recognize those feelings and lean into them, feel them and then let it go. This exercise was profoundly useful to me during a very difficult time in my life. I used this acrostic to help me manage the emotions that could have overtaken me.

The method is called REED. It is an acrostic that stands for Recognize Examine Express Decide.

Recognize:
what emotion am I experiencing right now.
"...why so downcast o my soul..." Psalm 43:5

Examine:
Why am I feeling this way?
"...search me o God and know my heart." Psalm 129:23

Express: 
Tell The Lord why you are feeling what you are feeling and ask Him for the wisdom and help to overcome.
"Hear, O LORD, my voice when I call; be merciful and answer me" Psalm 27:7"

Decide:
Make the conscious choice to leave it in the Lord's hands and trust that He is working all things out for the good of those who love Him.
"...Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." Psalm 43:5

An example of this is last week I was feeling down. I'd just seen my brother the day before. We talked about how he is going to be traveling the country for the next year. I was sad for a good part of the next day. I never took the time to examine my emotions or deal with them. Eventually I took just a couple of minutes to try to understand why I was experiencing this sadness using REED.
Recognize 
What am I feeling? Sadness
Examine
Why am I feeling this way?  My brother will be gone for a year! 
Express
 My brother is a very deep part of who I am as a person and it will hurt to not get to see him. I will miss sharing our coffee inspiring yet challenging conversations and getting his perspective on things (usually very different from my own but somehow the same). 
Decide. 
Ultimately I prayed for The Lord to out a hedge of protection around my brother, keep him safe, take care of him and his girlfriend and being them home safely to us. 

I felt better after this. I explained to him that I was feeling down because I knew I wouldn't get to see him for a year.  He said he like to focus on the positive and enjoy the good times we have together. I told him I like that as we'll buy sometimes it's good to recognize our emotions, feel them, deal with them and move on. He agreed. 

I hope this will help you to manage your emotions in a healthy way.. Praying this post gives you hope and  help. 
Grace & peace,
Adoring Family

Mood Boosters For When You Are Feeling Down or Overwhelmed

With all of the change going on in our lives lately I have been feeling a bit overwhelmed and even a little down at times. I miss the comfort and security of my old home and routine. I absolutely adore my new house and I feel like I am finally settling in but sometimes it takes me a minute to adjust to a big change. Some of the things I have been doing lately to boost my mood are gravitating toward the things that brought  me joy in the past. Spending time alone with the Scriptures, journaling the things I am thankful for, listening to familiar music and watching familiar things help me greatly. I have compiled a list of things you can do to help you if  you are also going through big changes.

Right now:

Light candles, open widows, drop some bergamot in your diffuser and put on some light perfume (my favorite is (Soft Perfume Oil from Amazon).

Listen to tunes in the major key. Upbeat music is proven to lift your mood.

Wear something comfortable and cute; fix yourself up. You will feel better if you feel like you look nice.

Smile. Even if you don't feel like it. Just sit there like I am right now as I type this. Make the corners of your mouth turn up in a smile. Studies have proven that just the mere act of smiling will bring your mood up.

Clear your space. Do one thing that will make tidying up easier. Is it unloading the dishwasher so you can then load all the dirty dishes? Is it making your bed and tidying up your room? Just do one thing and it will get the ball rolling to creating a space you can be happier in.

Chew gum. Studies have shown that chewing gum relieves anxiety and reduces stress. The scent of the gum will also be a pleasant mood booster.

Drink a kombucha, the polyphenols, antioxidants and beneficial bacteria are known mood boosters.

Journal. Write down exactly why you are overwhelmed and what is bothering you. Pray for wisdom and rest in the Lord.
"Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God" Psalm 43:5.

Daily:

Doing these thing on a daily basis will help your outlook to be peaceful and cheerful. 

Exercise. exercise releases adrenaline, endorphins, dopamine and serotonin. All natural ways to increase your positivity and reduce stress. These will also improve your sleep quality.

Eliminate sugar and processed carbs. These create highs and lows in your mood while also making you feel sluggish. 

Create Gentle, peaceful routines. These routines will help you feel secure, comfortable and to subconsciously know there is a steady rhythm in your daily life.  

Take a B-12/folate supplement if you find you are low in these areas. Calcium is proven to help with PMS induced depression.

 Drink Miracle Tree Tea. Miracle TRee Tea is filled with nutrients and antioxidants that are proven to help with depression. 

 I do hope some of these suggestions help you if you are in a season of change, if you are feeling overwhelmed or if you are down. Praying blessings over you today.

Grace & peace,

Adoring Family 

How to Be a Happy Wife

I have heard it said, "Happy wife, happy life." I think the premise here is for husbands to do whatever it takes to make their wives happy in order to ultimately be happy themselves.

As a wife, I strive to have a happy atmosphere in this home so I take full responsibility in cultivating my own joy. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit. In His presence is fullness of joy. We find joy when we hope and trust in the Lord and in the discipline of contentment and thankfulness. My prayer today is that my cup of joy be so full that it overflows and trickles into their cups.

Our home is quite noisy, I want it to be a joyful noise unto the Lord. I write this today as a reminder to myself that I want my husband, my children to rise up and call me happy. Happy wife, happy life.

Grace and peace,
Adoring Family

linked here:
Wake Up Wednesday

How to Have a Happy Pregnancy



Pregnancy can be the most joyous time of your life but it can also one of the most challenging. Heartburn, digestive issues, backaches, muscle pain, a growing belly and those are just the physical aspects. As a mom over 35, my "high risk" pregnancy could have caused much anxiety if I let my thoughts go anywhere they wanted. How can we find joy during a time of pain, waiting and uncertainty? The answer is to choose joy.

Lot's of joy right here!

Focus on the end result.

The good Lord is knitting a sweet blessing in your womb. What a privilege. I know it is hard and can be painful. I don't know if it was my age (I'm high risk y'all :D) or just the fact that it was my fourth child but this pregnancy was painful! My hips were killing me, some days I could barely walk.

 I would remind myself that these present sufferings are temporal but will produce an eternal reward as 2 Corinthians 4:17 says. I would think about that darling, blessed reward and picture myself kissing my sweet baby.

Love your belly.

I wish I had taken more photos of my baby bump during this last pregnancy. You may not think it is beautiful and you may not feel beautiful but I assure you, you are! The only thing more beautiful than a woman who has that pregnancy glow is the beautiful infant she will deliver. Love that belly! You may miss it someday. True story :D

1 day before baby 4 came.

 Give thanks with a grateful heart.

Thanksgiving produces joy. Thank the Lord for your precious blessing.

 We are called to rejoice, to pray and give thanks.

Life is what you make it. Happiness is a choice. Choosing joy is a discipline. You work at it just as you work at running a marathon. Ask any runner and she will tell you it get's easier as you train. The discipline of choosing joy is no different.

Exercise and eat right.

Understand this: I know you are tired. I would think, I can't use the only energy I have to exercise, who is going to unstack the dishwasher or give the kids a bath? I am here to testify that the energy you put into exercise you will get back. Exercise = endorphins. Endorphins = happy! It is important for you fuel your body with clean, nutrient dense food. Your baby will thank you and your body with thrive. Avoid energy zapping sugar and refined foods. Of course you want to discuss these things with our O.B. or midwife first ;)

Draw your strength from the one source of true joy and strength-Christ.

Nehemiah 8:10 says the joy of the Lord is our strength. You can turn that into an uplifting chorus to sing when you are weary. Ask the Lord to give you strength. Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." Lamentations 3:22-25 says,

The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,

For His compassions never fail.

²³ They are new every morning;

Great is Your faithfulness.

²⁴ “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,

“Therefore I have hope in Him.”

²⁵ The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,

To the person who seeks Him.

 Memorize God's Word.

Times will get tough. As this was not my first go-round, I knew this. I decided to memorize verses for encouragement during those times. I would ask the Lord to get me through this brief moment and then recite some of these verses.

"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us." Romans 8:18

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. James5:17

 "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,

offer your body as a living sacrifice. Deuteronomy 30:19

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Romans 12:1

 ¹⁶ Rejoice always; ¹⁷ pray without ceasing; ¹⁸ in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. Hebrews 13:5

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8

Each of my pregnancies presented their own challenges. I was put on be bed rest with my first two due to a blood clot inside the uterus. My third was easiest but I was teaching water aerobics and a barre class up until a month before I had her. Still, I was pretty exhausted after teaching and also caring for two little ones! My fourth was the most painful and exhausting but I praised God for every ache and pain. I was so thankful and happy to be unexpectedly pregnant! I didn't always choose joy, but I am thankful for the times I did.

1 Thessalonians 5:24 

 ^"Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass."

Grace and peace,

Adoring Family