Tag: blog

Dear Readers: I Cut My Hair And I Love It

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First of all my hair was pretty long before I made the chop. Long to where I could be braless and you wouldn’t see anything. Hair goals.

I was so eager to cut my hair though, and for awhile! However I made the commitment to myself to wait till after my friends wedding. I wanted a pretty hairstyle because you know, it was a wedding.

One of my friends actually became concerned that I wanted to cut my hair when I voiced it on Instagram. She sent me a message asking if I was okay. And then we talked on the phone while she continuously wanted to make sure I was fine.

Because you know, when most people chop off their hair it’s because they may be going through something. Like a divorce. That’s what my hair stylist said anyway.

But listen, I really just wanted to cut my hair. I wanted a change and I felt like cutting my hair would kind of be like shedding one’s shin. Making room for growth. You know?

My hair had a beautiful hoorah before I cut these beautiful locks I should say. Check it out!

It’s called a bubble braid in case you were wondering.

I told you it was long.

The Wedding happen and 2 days layer, I mean later, (that truly was a typo) my hair was chopped! Amazing how it took me so long to grow my hair that long and took an instant to just snip time away.

What do you think?

I am loving it!

This was my before
This is after. Right to my shoulders/collarbone. A blunt type cut.

3 Reasons Why You’ll Loving Having Short Hair if you’ve been thinking about cutting yours too

1. Showers are soooooo nice

Washing long hair can be a pain in the butt! And you don’t even really realize how much of a pain it is until you have short hair! The shampoo just lathers so beautifully, and you only need just a little bit of conditioner. Compared to using a handful of it.

It just feels so good, I promise!

2. Much Easier To Style

You are going to save so much time my friend. Your hair dries so fast when it’s short and whether you are straightening or curling your hair it’s less tedious overall.

And if you don’t feel like styling your hair, well good news is that short ponytails are super cute!

3. It’s Liberating

You will feel like a new person. Looking at myself with long hair now, in retrospect I feel different. Obviously it’s me but theres a level of confidence that comes with chopping your hair off.

Good bye all that does not serve me! Or good bye bad energy that was just lingering! Or good bye…. You get the idea.
Short hair don’t care. Thanks boo.
Long hair was so fun. But I think I might keep short for awhile.
More polished.

If you’re thinking about cutting your hair just do it!!

– mg xox

Soften The Heart: Devotional #21

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“Create in me a clean heart, O God,

And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me away from Your presence,

And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,

And uphold me with your generous Spirit.”

Psalm 51:10-13

The Bible shares with us that each of us are salves in this world. We are either a slave to sin or a slave to Christ. Either way, we are owned.

God granted us the choice in whom we will serve. We have been gifted a freedom to make mistakes, question authority, challenge ourselves, and find ourselves. In our freedom we begin to understand humility and love. We learn, grow, and teach (intentionally or unintentionally).

In choosing God, it is also mentioned that the path of Christ is not an untroubled one. Many tribulations will follow each us in our lives. However there is a degree of peace, patience, and assurance when strengthening your faith and choosing to be a slave of righteousness.

It’s a difficult web to be caught in. And we are all in it.

We need help each day to choose God over the traits of this world. Some days we have slips and will continue to have slips. But we must not shame ourselves, we must give ourselves grace and others daily. We must exhort ourselves, challenge others, and be brave to do what others may not be able to.

To seek God is to have the fog lifted in your life.

Fog can keep us stagnant because we are unaware or afraid. Since we can’t see beyond it, we decide to remain stationary because we only trust what we can see.

To have the courage and hope to seek something greater is to discover what’s beyond the fog. It’s to surrender to the unknown.

And it’s the discovery that there is indeed more than what meets the eye.

Dear Readers: Since Childhood Writing Has Been A Coping Mechanism For Me

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Dear Readers,

I’m going to create a category called “dear readers” where I can be transparent and raw with my feelings and experiences for a moment. A way to release all that does not serve me in a positive way. I would like to reveal a vulnerable side of myself to better connect with all that follow this blog.

But as well, I would like to write these to share with my children one day.

I’ve reached a point where I desperately need to express and empty in writing all these unresolved emotions and “traumas” that I have been carrying for many years. I do not wish to past these to my children. But I hope to gain solutions and euphonies to help them when they face these obstacles one day.

I’m not really into your typical therapy. Talking about it can only do so much for me. Writing and reading are my therapy. I have to write it all down. I have think about it. I have to soak myself in emotion and words and allow myself to shiver.

It’s a puzzle that I know only I can truly solve.

Since childhood writing has always been a therapeutic tool for me. A way to strip the emotional pain or negative emotions from myself.

It’s always been a processing tactic for me. The only thing was, I would write it all down and then just completely ignore what I wrote. Well I’m older now and instead of ignoring the problems after I write I’m digging deeper for discoveries to better myself.

Writing was the release…..but as my love for reading has grown I also know how reading others writings can encourage and help others. Which is why I decide to share and write what I do on this blog.

My mom was in an abusive relationship during a good chunk of my childhood. Lots of screaming and crying behind closed doors. And I would hear her get thrown around often behind those closed doors. I know they didn’t want to fight in front of us, but our ears provided plenty of visuals.

This could be where my love for writing stemmed from honestly. I would write as they would be fighting. Expressing my hate for my stepdad. I would write prayers for help. It was all so sad really. The most vivid memories of this are from ages 9, maybe 8 to 14.

I know it was sad because there was a moment where I sat down (I’m thinking early 20s) and read those old childhood journals and it disturbed me so much that I didn’t want to remember any of those memories ever again. So I destroyed those journals.

But just because the words are destroyed doesn’t mean the actual memories are erased. My body still remembers.

Being much older now and developing a more sense of self I regret destroying those time capsules. Because now I’m really trying to heal myself to be a better mother to my children and those journals were like a cheat sheet to healing.

And now it’s like playing a guessing game. Something will trigger me and I’m sitting there left and confused, pondering it all day.

Truth be told I thought I was completely fine and “happy”. It wasn’t until I had children that all my repressed emotions began to expose themselves like weeds during a rainy season.

There’s a great part of me that sometimes feels overwhelmed, like now for example. Where I have to sit in a puddle of feels and just think about it.

It’s like, thinking you aced a test and then getting your test back and seeing that you failed. Sometimes I feel/think like “I’m healed, I’m good. I’m past it all.” I think that I can officially move forward and then I’ll have a humbling moment (usually provided to me by my kids) and I’m left dumbfounded. I’ve been shown that my emotions from my past are still greatly controlling me. That the work is definitely not complete.

It’s extremely frustrating. Parenting. Having “screw up” moments is really hard. Putting your tail between your legs in front of your children is super hard.

You want to be the best mother for your children however life shows you that you’re still a child yourself and that you’ve got lots of growing to still do.

Anyways, today I share and tell and I’m looking forward to sharing more.

Lots of love always,

m.g.

A Word Of Encouragement Goes A Long Way

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Encouragement is defined as, “the action of giving someone support, confidence, or hope.”

Encouraging another human being doesn’t cost a thing but it gives them more than anything. It can be life changing for some!

A small act of encouragement pushes people, gives them strength, reassures them, gives them something to hold onto and maybe even fight for…..especially during challenging and sorrowful times.

Even a smile is an act of encouragement.

Don’t fall into the common trap of belittling yourself and your capabilities. You are power.

You can save lives and you DO save lives. You may not know exactly how, but does that really matter? You influence others more than you know. That’s something to think about.

Who knows what doors you have opened for others.

Know in your heart you make a difference. Pass on the love, pass on the encouragement, pass on the hope. The world needs it.

The world needs you.

– m.g.

Allow God To Catch You When You Fall

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When your child is just learning how to stand or learning how to walk you are either holding them, or standing very close by.

In case your child falls you want to be there to catch them, versus them falling down and hurting themselves.

Nobody wants to see their child hurt or in pain, so we stand very close.

In this walk of life, we are the child and God is our heavenly parent.

But like most children we are very stubborn. We believe we can do things on our own, better yet, WE WANT to do things on our own. Like we need to prove something.

The thing with this mentality is we end up falling many times in life and learn many things the hard way, and it hurts. It hurts really bad. And God is just there waiting, patiently, to help us when we are ready to ask for it.

It’s not that he hasn’t tried to help us, we have pushed Him away saying, “I can do it myself, I don’t need you.” So he watches us fall and thinks to himself, please let me help you.

He knows learning how to walk is challenging and He knows the walk of life can’t be done without the help of Him.

Actually, it’s not that it can’t be done, it can. God just doesn’t want it to be a hard walk of life. He gives us an opportunity to try on our own but he stands by waiting for the permission to help us.

He wants to catch us on those falls because he knows if we keep falling we will be become discouraged and won’t try anymore.

Nobody wants to crawl forever. We want to walk and RUN. When we allow God to catch us we will begin to take more risks, we will be confident, and we won’t be afraid.

When my children were small they would crawl to the edge of the bed only because they knew I would catch them. Imagine if they could talk at that age and say things like, “alright mom, stop, I want to crawl all over the bed myself without you hovering me.” But my children let me be there for them just in case. They felt safe. And they actually enjoyed me catching me.

If you don’t want to let God catch you when you fall that is ultimately your choice, however if you surrender and just let Him help you….your life will change in the most incredible way because you will know that you can do anything.

You can crawl to the edge of the bed with no fear, always.

If, you allow God to catch you when you fall.

– m.g.

Easy Pizza Dough Recipe With 5 Ingredients

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servings: 2 pizzas

baking instructions: bake at 500 degrees in a 9×13 glass dish for 10 to 12 mins or until edges are crisp.

What You Need:

1 pack of active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

1 tablespoon of sugar

3 tablespoons of olive oil plus more for coating

3 3/4 cups of flour plus more for dusting

1 1/2 teaspoon of salt

Steps:

1. Whisk together 1 1/3 cup of warm water (you don’t want the water hot, it will kill the yeast) and the sugar. Then mix in the yeast and allow to sit for 10 mins until mixture is a little foamy and bubbly. Once the ten minutes are up add the tablespoons of olive oil.

2. In another large bowl mix together the flour and salt. Creat a well in the middle and add the water and yeast mixture. Knead dough for a minimum of 5 minutes adding more flour if necessary until dough is smooth and stretchy.

3. Divide dough in half creating 2 dough balls. Brush each dough ball with olive oil, placing each piece of dough in a bowl covered with plastic wrap. Allow to rise for an hour and a half.

4. Once dough is done rising freeze one and prepare the other. Rub olive oil all over a 9 x 13 glass dish. Arrange your dough in the glass dish leaving some space in the corners to spread. Add your sauce, seasonings, and toppings.

5. Bake at 500 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until nice and crispy on the edges. Remove pizza from glass dish and place on a charcuterie cutting board and serve while hot.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Waffles

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A great way to start Fall. Full of flavor and so yummy! Enjoy!

Servings: 10-15 large waffles or 20 to 25 small waffles

What You Need:

Wet Ingredients:

3 large eggs

1 1/3 cup of milk

1/4 cup pure maple syrup (the real stuff)

3 tablespoons of unsalted melted butter

1 cup of canned pumpkin NOT THE WHOLE CAN (save the remaining pumpkin for a different treat)

Dry Ingredients:

2 cups of all purpose flour

1/4 cup packed of light brown sugar

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of salt or “a pinch”

2 teaspoons of pumpkin spice seasoning

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Steps:

1. In one large bowl mix together your dry ingredients. In another medium/large bowl mix together your wet ingredients.

2. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl of dry ingredients.

3. Heat up your waffle iron to a high setting and cook as directed to your waffle maker. ***Since these are made with pumpkin they can have a difficult time getting to that crisp texture but I have a tip below!***

serve these with whipped cream and a cinnamon apple recipe!

Waffle Making Tips:

• a good indicator that your waffle is complete is little steam or no more steam is present.

• waffle maker didn’t make them crisp the way you like it? No problem. Once waffles are complete pop them into your oven or toaster oven at 250 and bake them for a bit. Delish! (Toaster worker too if you made them enough)

• would definitely recommend freezing. Store in a freezer safe bag using parchment paper to separate the waffles. If you know you’re going to be freezing while making then definitely don’t aim for waffle perfection. Cook them a little soft so when they are reheated they are perfect! A yummy quick breakfast!

There Are Many Who Believe In You, You Just Don’t Believe In Yourself Yet

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Awhile back now I was researching how some baby birds learn how to fly. The reason I was reading into the process to begin with was because an author of one of my devotional books tied the development of baby birds learning how to fly to personal growth.

I just absolutely loved it and it resonated in such a way. What a great metaphor that many can relate to! Such a different perspective to perceive.

Think of a baby bird for a moment will you, all cozy and comfy in their little nest. The nest is harmless, and it’s very familiar. It’s all the baby bird knows really. Mama feeds and provides for them there, and they feel safe.

Then one day, mama bird just starts throwing her babies out of the nest! What a far drop too! I’m not kidding either, she tosses them out and I imagine her saying, “todays the day!” I found this fascinating! I had no idea!

There comes a time where mama knows it’s time. If she’s not throwing them out she’s gently nudging her precious babies out of the nest. There’s no bargaining with the mama.

The baby bird I’m sure is TERRIFIED, like what is going on!! Is my mom trying to kill me! She must hate me! But the mama bird doesn’t feel that way at all. In fact, she does this because she LOVES her babies. She KNOWS that her baby needs to learn how to fly for survival. Because there will come a time when she knows she will longer be there for her baby and she needs to know that they will be okay.

She knows her babies to need to fly and her bird friends know it. The baby bird is the only one saying, “mama No, later later! I’ll learn later. I’m not ready!”

But guess what….

Push comes to shove and the baby bird FLYS. The baby bird finally believes in itself as the mother always has and chooses to opens its wings. The baby bird trusts in his mom that there’s a reason behind this.

Life is very much like this. It never waits for us to be ready. Because truth be told, we never will be. We are too cozy in our nests.

.

.

.

If you have been thrown out of “the nest”’in someway….if you’ve been taken outside what you know and you’re scared and frightened this may actually be an unprepared flight lesson.

Who’s knows why this is happening, but there may something that you need to learn. The time is now. And this frightening experience will benefit you, as it does the baby birds. Questioning it will not do anything.

You will later realized that you HAD to be thrown out in order to learn how to fly.

Oh I hope this all makes sense. Ponder it a bit.

What I want you to know is that God believes in you, the universe believes in you, many others believe in you……. people believe in you and see your potential (they always have) , it’s time to believe in yourself and to not be afraid of the falls from the nest. You were born to fly, that’s what those wings are for.

Welcome the push and shoves with bravery and perseverance. It’s normal to be afraid but once you push through that fear who knows what you’ll see and capabilities you’ll discover.

Who knows where your wings will take you……

Beautiful places, that I’m sure. No need to be afraid. Trust, always.

-m.g.

Your Ideas Are Smart AND Needed

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I read something awhile back that said,

“what kills dreams more than anything is this thought, ‘what will they think of me…’”.

Someone out there needs and is waiting for your idea, your perspective, your plan, your project , etc., you have to believe that! You are being relied on and you don’t even know it yet. The person out there may not even know it yet. But someone or someone’s is waiting for YOU.

You were born here. That’s miraculous in itself. Now show who you are.

Our voices are so powerful. Our ideas are powerful and can influence change in countless, possibly infinite ways!

The world is your oyster has more meaning with age and experience, but how true this statement is.

Whatever it is don’t give up. Welcome any pushback with open arms and use that to fuel your fire that lingers inside your soul.

Share your ideas with trusted individuals and hear their opinions but don’t take everything to heart. Sometimes the ideas in our heads are so tangled up, and be challenging to articulate to others.

Sometimes unweaving them is only something you can do and MUST do by yourself.

So be patient with yourself. Give yourself grace daily. You know your vision and you can’t let others or yourself hold you back.

What are you waiting for? I’m cheering for you. It doesn’t matter what they think. Seek your reason and the nothing else at all will matter.

– m.g.

Chicken And Mushroom Pasta In A Heavy Cream Sauce

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Servings: 6-8

What You Need:

1 12oz bag of wide egg noodles

4 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1/2 cup chopped white onion

1-2 teaspoons of garlic (fresh or jar)

1 small package of mushrooms

3/4 cup of chicken stock

1 cup heavy cream

Salt and pepper for taste

2 cups of sharp white cheddar cheese shredded

2 cups chopped chicken or 1 rotisserie chicken shredded

Chopped fresh Italian parsley for garnish (optional)

Steps:

1. Boil a medium to large pot of water. When water is boiling add a few dashes of salt and then cook pasta according to directions. Reserving 3/4 cup of pasta water.Set aside when done.

2. In a large skillet melt butter and sauté onion and garlic until tender.

3. Add mushrooms and continue to sauté until cooked and tender.

4. Add chicken stock, heavy cream, cheese, and season with salt and pepper. Mix until smooth and cheese is completely melted.

5. Stir in the chicken and pasta in the sauce and add the pasta water. Turn off heat and mix well, allowing to sit for little for sauce to thicken.

6. Serve with a salad and garlic bread.

Enjoy!

**** This taste amazing the next day too! ****