Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Tuesday's Top Ten [Romance Novels Worth Reading]

I debated for so long on what to do with my blog. I want to keep writing, but my schedule is insanely busy. As I hashed out my schedule I began to realize how much time I wasted doing things that do not matter (i.e. scrolling through Facebook). I knew that I needed to get back to doing something that I enjoy, but is not a brainless activity, (like scrolling through Facebook). I've made reading and writing a priority during those rare down times of my daily life and I have forgotten how much I enjoy it! It's like working out, if I don't simply suck it up and do it I'll never get anywhere and then I forget how good it feels when my body is no longer stagnant. Apply the same concept to my brain. I was fueling it with status updates, which of course sounds absolutely ridiculous, but that's how I spent my time when the girls were in bed and everything I needed done for the day was done. That's just silly! I may not have a top ten every Tuesday, but I'm not going to waste 20 minutes of my time on Facebook. Since putting reading back into my life my brain is suddenly swarming with ideas again. (Amazing isn't it?!)

With that said, a top ten inspired by some recent reading and some old favorites...


Let's be honest, I'm a romantic. Stories about how two people fell in love, and then their decisions as they faced conflict together, get me. I'm a sucker for words: poetry, love letters, secret whispers. I love books, so it should be no surprise to my husband that the best way to woo me is through the beauty of words. They speak to my soul.

I truly believe my love for romancing comes from God Himself because He designed marriage to reveal the type of relationship we have in Christ; and my own is an amazing one. This mystery is one that is not easily understood and so I struggle with the words to explain it myself. But what Scripture states about a husband and a wife in comparison to Jesus and His bride give me goosebumps (Ephesians 5:22-33). So when I read stories about love I am reminded of how incredibly blessed I am to have the husband God has given me with my very own love story, and for God's steadfast, unfailing love despite my daily imperfections.


I do not read romance novels because I need an escape from my life, but because I find them encouraging and fun and thought-provoking. I also want to be careful with what type of love story I read because romance novels can be grotesque and painstakingly similar. In fact, I would argue that romance novels are to women what pornography is to men. So if it involves graphic sex scenes and unrealistic expectations (which can be deadly in any marriage) I will not read finish reading it. So these are recommended because they are unique, thought-provoking, encouraging and fun.




1. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers is the very first book I would recommend to any woman. I cannot recommend this one enough. She wrote it to go along with the book of Hosea in the Bible, which illustrates God's perfect, steadfast love when Israel (His chosen people) failed Him time and time again. Michael represents Hosea and the main character, Angel, represents Israel. Angel's life is an extremely difficult one, with quite a past (that readers will find shocking, I will warn you that Francine Rivers does not shy away from details). She fails Michael time and time again, but he remains faithful and steady. The ending is not what you'd expect and will blow your socks off. I wish I could talk about it here without giving it away!

2. I also liked her book The Atonement Child which is about a broken relationship that brought about a love story worth reading. It is a heartbreaking book that will challenge your thoughts on abortion, adoption, and so much more. I encourage everyone to read this book and then follow it up with Francine River's testimony - the whole reason she wrote it - which is a HUGE reason why I enjoyed it so much. She wasn't just writing realistic fiction for the sake of writing it, her own experiences inspired this amazing story.


3. The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks is another favorite. Nicholas Spark books were always "meh" or "okay" until I read this one. I cannot say enough about this book and the surprises in it. It's about one of Noah and Allie daughter's from The Notebook who has been married 30 years, but her marriage is failing. It's told from the perspective of her husband who knows that he must win her heart or lose her. How he does it is phenomenal.


4. The Vow by Kim and Krickitt Carpenter is a non-fiction story told mainly from Kim's perspective. It's one of undying devotion in the face of tragedy. It's a bit dry because, well (let's be honest) it was written by a man, so it's unemotional, but the story will inspire you. Krickitt will inspire you. And the book is nothing like the movie. In fact, it's so different that I was disgusted with the movie and couldn't even finish it. I felt like Hollywood took too many liberties (weird, right?) and they kept God out of the story (another complete surprise), which was the central focus of Kim and Krickitt's life. However, Kim and Krickett see it from a different perspective: they took advantage of the opportunities the movie gave them to talk about how God worked in their life. I was, and still am, amazed by them and their devotion.


5. A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist was one I picked up recently because of the story plot. When I was a 10-12 year old girl the idea of being a mail order bride intrigued me. I devoured historical fiction stories revolving around this piece of history (don't ask me why). So when I found this one I picked it up as a chuckle; a reminder of those innocent days of wondering. I was genuinely surprised. It was an okay book until I hit page 231 where the main character is hit in the gut by my favorite passage in Scripture: Job 38. It's when God answers Job and reveals his greatness, His power, His sovereignty. The author beautifully articulates how Scripture changed her thinking from one of pride to one of awe. I was surprised to find deep theology in a romance! And this wasn't the only occasion. For that reason the author went up a few notches in my book. I am now interested in other books written by her.


6. Eve's Daughters by Lynn Austen is not the happily-ever-after love story of the year. In fact, it's heartbreaking. But it is so incredibly eye-opening and well written. It follows the lives of four women and how their choices affect family generations later. It tells the tale of one woman in particular  whose story will break your heart, but who has determined that her 50 year-old secrets should be told to her granddaughter in an effort to save her marriage.


7. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen a classic, must-read. It might be a sin leaving this one out of any romance novel recommendations (for good reason).


8. The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins who also wrote another trilogy I thought was better than The Hunger Games titled Gregor the Overlander. There is a teeny bit of a romance in the story but it's not the central focus, but it is just as dark as The Hunger Games, if not more. I bawled like a baby. Suzanne Collins is an expert on how war affects children. Her study on this particular topic is evident when you read her books and I recommend The Hunger Games not just because it's a story worth your time, but because you can see inside the brain of someone who has seen and done more than we can possibly imagine. It's heartbreakingly eye-opening and depressing, but is also full inspiration to persevere, with a bit of hope sprinkled on top. Plus there is an imperfect romance told throughout.


9. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes is an excellent book that I absolutely hated. Oxymoronic I know, but it made me angry, it made me sob, it addressed issues I never thought twice about until reading it, and it was a heartbreaking love story that did not end like I wanted it to. I was angered by how society treats people in wheelchairs. I was enlightened on the difficulties those individuals face daily. And I could not put it down. All of this was heartbreaking and frustrating. I applaud Jojo for writing about these things! I also applaud her for writing an amazing love story. It was full of hope, dedication, perseverance, and potential that was crushed by one selfish decision. I'll let you read it and make your own judgment call on assisted suicide, but I believe, even after reading about the struggles one faces day in and day out with a handicap, that suicide is the most self-centered decision one could make. Life sucks. It can be a mess. Full of trials and sickness and heartache. But it can also be beautiful and full of hope and learning and growing. I cannot even dare to say I understand the trials of living life as a quadriplegic. The inability to even wipe ones own "arse" would be humiliating. To be stuck. Immobile. With own one's memories about a life once lived, driving one mad. I have only my imagination to dredge up the horrors people face day in and day out. No one would choose to live that life, but it's only one life to live and it's not just about you. So read this book and have a good think on it, but make sure you have a box of tissues. The second book titled, After You is also excellent. I had a hard time deciding which I liked more! You rarely get the story after the story. I was so thankful that the author gave a glimpse into the life after losing Will and how she lived with her grief. I wouldn't recommend one without reading the other.


10. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows This one took me at least 30 pages to get into, but once I was able to differentiate between the characters and get past some of the literary references I knew nothing of, I could not put it down! There was so much depth to the story and the formatting was so different than anything I've ever read that I fell in love with the author's ability to tell a story through letter correspondence. Genius! This is one of those eye-opening, rip-your-heart-out books I'll always treasure, especially after reading the extra insight in the author's note (don't skip it).

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Monday, January 16, 2017

My Not-So-Sweet Sugar Story


While I was pregnant with Eleanna, I was bombarded by yeast infections. One after the other after the other, until finally, I was given a prescription medication that finally did the trick in relieving me of the symptoms. However, six months after she was born it reared its ugly head again. I did the same things as before and when nothing was working, I went to the doctor. There I found out I had BV (bacterial vaginosis) which is the most common vaginal infection affecting women today. It's an imbalance of good bacteria and bad bacteria. They tell you to go to the doctor for antibiotics, which I did, but here's the kicker: 30% of BV cases come back. And it did for me, along with a UTI. I was miserable. I tried reading a book on BV specifically and how to treat it using hydrogen peroxide, probiotics, vitamins, yogurt, etc. etc. You name it, I tried it. Nothing was working and I was desperate. I finally chatted with a friend who is super knowledgeable about natural healing and she instructed me to eliminate sugar from my diet.

What does bacterial vaginosis have to do with sugar?

Quite a bit actually. My diet was killing my vagina. Was it as weird reading that as it was typing it? Haha, it sounds funny, but it is the truth. Sugar was feeding the yeast and I kept eating it. So, I cut all processed sugar from my diet completely. It was way harder than it sounds because sugar is in everything. Reading ingredients became a habit and I was strict about what I ate. I began to notice a big difference, but it didn't cure it.

When I went back to researching I happened across an online discussion where women, just like me, struggled with reoccurring BV's. Some things worked for some, while that same thing didn't work for others. It was extremely frustrating. I was going through their "Have you tried this?" list and found one that I had not tried: boric acid. Voila! After one suppository, the symptoms were gone! It was a HUGE relief.

Unfortunately, I feel like I'm now an expert on a subject I had no intention of ever knowing anything about, but I felt like I had to share this story because I know I'm not alone. And sugar may be your culprit.

Sugar
Let's have a little chat about sugar. Sugar is a good thing in its natural form. It's what the body uses to create energy, however, there is a huge difference between natural sugar and refined/processed sugar. Our body needs sugar (aka carbohydrates) in order to function properly, however, no matter how badly we want it to, our body does not need cakes, cookies, pastas, breads, etc. Our body needs the nutrients and the carbohydrates, but I was beginning to understand how refined sugar affected me specifically and it was not good - obviously.

I also could not believe how much sugar my family was eating on a daily basis! We mainly stuck to the outside of the grocery store when shopping, and stuck to fruits and vegetables mainly. Still, we were consuming more sugar than was needed. I also couldn't believe how much I did not know about simple carbs and complex carbs or processed sugar verses refined sugar. The more I knew the more I became aware of healthy food choices.

And then when I saw and felt how my body reacted to this sugar break I knew I couldn't go back.

A Big Bonus
A big bonus of this knowledge, and putting it at work in my life, was my body's reaction to the changes. I was the biggest I've ever been my freshman year of college and was bound and determined to never be overweight again. In fact, I weighed less being pregnant than I did back in those days. The more I learned about diet, the more I began to understand the huge role it plays in overall health and appearance. Breastfeeding definitely helps in that "weight" arena, but eliminating sugar for 40 days took all that baby weight off. That was enormously satisfying in and of itself.

Another Sugar Fast
We decided that after the holiday's we needed another break from sugar, so we dedicated an entire month to being refined-sugar-free. I am again pleased with the results. The first week is the hardest, but it is so worth it.  I never, ever want to go back to where I was before. My body can't handle it. When I overdo sugar now-a-days my stomach hurts. It just isn't worth it. I used to enjoy giant macchiatos from Starbucks, or small blizzards from DQ, but now I can't even take a sip of it without cringing and I can barely finish a mini blizzard. It's too much and I'm perfectly okay with that. I enjoy a slice of dark chocolate after dinner and I'm satisfied. I feel so much better and my vagina thanks me... haha.

Just try it.
I encourage you to try it. Start with a week and see how you feel. Begin to pay attention to the ingredients and find food that has no added sugar, but you enjoy eating (example: cashews are a new favorite snack as well as goldfish and raisins or natural peanut butter and an apple). You do not have to cut everything out entirely, but moderation is most definitely a good thing.

Your body will thank you.