Youtube Mondays

This one never gets old.

Youtube Mondays

00:55 and 01:15 are my favorite parts. I love this guy

The Stylish Blogger

I won an award. In the blogger world, this is pretty cool apparently. My friend Lindsay over here at this blog passed it along to me. She is so sweet. No seriously this girl is cool. And I miss her. AND her kid is so stinkin cute! So... Lindsay, you rock!

I'm not really sure what "stylish" blogger means... but I'll take it.

Here's the rules...

1. thank and link back to the person who awarded you

2. share 7 things about yourself

3. pass award on to bloggers you think are fantastic

4. contact those bloggers and tell them about the award

So, Here we go. 7 things about me.

1. I am a new mom to a sweet little guy. I endured the most torture in my life by going through natural childbirth with him... but MAN am I glad I did. Read all about that story HERE ;) Here's little Micaiah Gabriel

2. I am a research junkie. I am ALWAYS researching. I won't buy something unless I research if it's worth it first. I'm mainly crazy about checking out health things and how to live life without medication and just living healthily.

Check out my Health Revolution Blog to see what I'm talkin' about www.lauradstern.com

3. Fun facts: In 2010, my husband and I moved cross country twice. The first move, I got the call from my doctor on our way that I was pregnant. The second move, I was 7 months pregnant. And I had the baby at the end of the year. In the midst of all this, my husband has had 3 different jobs, we've been a part of 4 different churches, and my grandma passed away. Talk about a stressful year. But also very blessed!

4. I am obsessed with indian and mexican food. I wish I could live in India and Mexico simultaneously just for the food. SOOO GOOD!!

5. My favorite stores? Ikea, Trader Joes, Forever 21 (online because the store overwhelms me), and H&M. Thanks to Atlanta, I can go to all of them. :)

6. I love photography. I've had to take a little break since having the baby, but it is one of my passions. Check it out HERE.

7. Funniest moment: My cousin Charlene and I were riding in my car in college. I lived in Florida at the time and it was raining buckets. Literally. If you've ever lived in Florida you know exactly what I'm talking about. It can be compared to driving under a waterfall. Anyway, my air conditioning decided to go out on this 100 degree humid day in my 1992 Toyota Celica. My brain didn't quite put two and two together and we just watched as the windshield started fogging up. I start laughing because I can't see anything and my cousin sticks her head out the passenger window to tell me where to go. She is getting soaked and telling me "left, right" and I am laughing hysterically. Funniest part (at the time)... I had no idea where I was going and couldn't see the road at all. Thank you God for keeping us safe! She pulls out a tampon to wipe the inside of the car and the windshield. She is the funniest person on the planet.

So, there ya go.

And now to pass on the award....

Ashley Poole - www.mommapoole.wordpress.com

Jess Stern - www.jessandthislovelylife.blogspot.com

Megan Brueseke - www.thebruesekefamily.blogspot.com

Amanda Lester - www.appleblue.org

Get going ladies!! Follow the rules above :)

The Cloud Over America

Soooo.... I've been having lots of dreams from the Lord lately. I'm super excited about this, as anyone would be, because it was prophesied over me when Will and I were engaged that I would start having lots of dreams and that they would be given to me from God. I've had them scattered here and there, but recently it's been a lot more frequent.

I know these are God dreams because I wake up thinking they are real every time. It's like it takes me a while to figure out that they were just a dream. My God dreams are always way more vivid and clear... not weird, like me eating cotton candy with unicorns on a rainbow in the sky. These dreams always have some sort of meaning to them and they always make sense to me, even when I wake up.

There was one dream in particular that Will and I felt like I should write about and share with other people. I normally have dreams about my personal life, or about my family... but this is the first one I've had about our country.

I saw a map of our country. It was almost like an illustration of it and it was cut out, like in 3D. I was looking over it and noticed a huge cloud over it. It was a thick, dense cloud, but (being over it) I could still see a faint outline of America. It was grey and gloomy, just like you would expect a rain cloud to be. There was no lighting or storms yet, just clouds.

In my dream, I asked the Lord why it was there. I was sort of having this dialogue with God about it. He said,

"this cloud represents that there is still hope over America. Nothing going on right now is permanent and can't be undone. The state of the country SEEMS gloomy and dark, but, in reality it's not. America is MY country and I have claimed it from it's start. Although it looks like darkness is surrounding, once you get past the clouds it is light and sunny. The appearance of the clouds is causing my people to question where I am or what they should do. Many people are wondering if the darkness has taken over. But, I want you to know that this is NOT a wall! (** I remember that part very clearly**) If it were a wall above the nation, you would not have any light shining through and it would take years, if ever, to break it down. It would be hard work and you wouldn't be able to see me through the wall. There is a cloud because of the way that America is choosing to go right now, but I am still present. Clouds are not permanent, they go away quickly and, even if you can't see it, the light is still shining beyond them. I want my people to not fear these clouds and to not be intimidated by them. America is still my nation and I still guard it. The more my people stand out as a light during these times, the quicker these clouds will burn away. Clouds can easily be blown away. They look intimidating, but you can easily blow them away or through them"

I woke up not remembering my dream right away and then that night it hit me and it all came flooding back to me like I had actually had that conversation face to face with God. It was awesome and that's usually how it works for me for some reason.

I feel like God is encouraging His people to not get discouraged in a time that might SEEM dark and gloomy. The enemy clearly wants us to back down and start thinking that the fight is over, when God is still wanting to shine is light brighter than before. Our country looks like it is going the wrong way, but this is the perfect opportunity for God to step in and show people His love. I was even thinking, with our government suddenly inviting so many muslim people in, this is the BEST way for us to show them the love of Jesus. These people coming into a country founded on God from the very beginning, they are bound to feel the love of God whether they accept it or not. God can turn this around for good, and He will.

I am one of those who has once thought that America is already too far gone... with debt, with turning away from God, with abortion, etc. I start to get down. It is so encouraging to know that it is only a cloud over us. Clouds blow away eventually and a bright sunny day WILL shine through. Kind of like that Switchfoot song that says "the shadows prove the sunshine"... the darkness right now is just God's way of shining brighter later (even if it's not His plan, He promises to turn it around for good).

So, don't be discouraged, friends!! Let's take steps towards asking God how pray in His wind and glory to blow those clouds away. I want to daily ask God what I can be doing to bring His wind into my apartment complex, my city, the Starbucks line... whatever. We also need to burn hotter than ever before. The hotter we burn, the quicker those clouds will burn away. How do we do that? I feel like God is asking people to not compromise in daily things. This isn't out of religion or to make life miserable, it's to align yourself even closer to what God is saying. We can't burn as hot when we have so many other things trying to suffocate our fire with the Lord. Just tuning ourselves in to personal convictions of what the Lord has placed on our hearts. For me, it's not listening to secular music because I don't want it competing with what the Lord want to do in my heart. It's also not watching rated R movies and looking up all movies before I watch them because I know that there is never anything good to put in my heart that comes from them. These are things that fill my heart and can push out what the Lord wants to do. Let God burn you! It's ALWAYS worth it. Once He does, you will notice a burning and a longing to feel the things on His heart and you will automatically start doing things for the Lord. He leads you when you're emptied out of the junk that keeps you from Him.

The more we burn for the Lord and the more we invite His winds to blow, the quicker we will see our nation turn back to God. The more that we are a light to the people around us, the quicker they will see the perfect love of Jesus.

This Love

How do I even begin to describe this new love that is so deep, I daily feel it pierce my heart? It's like, when I look at this boy, my heart hurts. Not in a bad way. In a "I would do anything for you" way.

People tell you that a love for a child is the most extreme love you will ever feel, but you can't really understand it until you are there. Even being pregnant with him, I didn't truly grasp the love I would have for him. He is so helplessly dependent on me, and I love it. I think God makes it this way so that we completely fall head over heels for our children. If we gave birth to teenagers, we probably wouldn't feel that immediate love. Ha ha.

He is so simple and so pure. So innocent and so joyful. When he smiles, my heart melts all over again .

Even though my life is more non-stop than it's ever been, I wouldn't want it any other way. Even though I can't really be by myself much any more and I'm constantly running around... there is nothing that makes me feel more fulfilled. Even when I'm learning how to feed him and pumping every 2 hours just to make sure he gets the right food, I love that I am able to sustain his life. What an incredibly awesome thing that God has created in that.

I'm choosing to put all of my fears and worries aside about not measuring up and not being the mom that he needs because I'm not able to do this and that and not good like another mom is at something. I am his mom... no one else has been given this life. I choose to trust that the Lord has given him to me for a reason and that He has completely made me capable for the task. I am going to choose JOY today as I run around and don't even have a moment for a shower, because I know that these times are going to be like a flash. I am going to choose to spend one on one time just looking at my boy and staring at every little feature so I can remember it years to come. I am choosing to laugh at all of life circumstances that don't work out exactly as I envision. God has it taken care of.

THANK YOU, GOD for this blessing of life that you have given us. I cry just thinking about it. God has given me HIS heritage and HIS son to help grow and mature. This life is more than my heart can handle... it wants to explode with love for him.

I understand now how God must feel for us. I can understand now how much it must have hurt God to, not only give up His only Son, but sacrifice His life for us. I can envision the pain that must have stung like nothing else. But He thought of us. He did it for our good.

I'm just in awe of all that God has done, thousands of years ago, and even now. How He has shown his love through each generation and now through each day of my life. He is so good.

Things Are Looking Up

Things are looking up here in the Stern casa (feeding wise). Not that things were bad, but let's just be honest... it's hard to figure out!

Thanks to EVERYONE'S advice, I felt so encouraged and felt like I could conquer the world. So, thanks to all my wonderful friends. Isn't the world wide web fantastic? :)

I took several people's advice and spent a while pumping. This was great for me because it gave me a little break from being frustrated and it allowed me to get my milk

supply up because I was doing it every 2 hours. On top of that, I started taking a Fenugreek seed supplement which has really been helping. I've only taken it for 2 days or so and so far I can see that my milk is increasing. Not to mention that it makes me smell like maple syrup! Not even kidding. My armpits smell like pancakes. Ha.

Makes me hungry while I'm on this detox diet. I'm on day 4 so far, and it was really hard at first but has gotten easier. We are eating really healthy and are feeling the good effects. More energy and things like that. I have the occasional, "get me taco bell now or I will bite your head off" craving... but those are rare. Only about 5 times a day. Just kidding. I do

love me some Taco Bell.

Little buddy is doing awesome. He is 6 weeks and is growing like a weed. He is sooo long and is just now starting to show signs of some chunkiness. I can see the beginnings of some leg rolls. Love it!! He is also getting really good at entertaining himself during the day. As long as he's fed and his diaper is changed, we can leave him to play and he talks to himself and smiles. It's really cute! He is also SO good at putting himself to sleep. At night, we have a routine and you can tell that he knows that it's bed time. We turn off the lights, feed him, swaddle

him and just lay him down. He might grunt a little but then he just falls asleep without any help from us. We feel so blessed that we aren't having to rock him or bounce him up and down for an hour. He's a really awesome baby.

By the way, this kid's smile kills me. Oh my goodness, it is perfect. He recognizes me. I will walk over to him and he will see my face and immediately smile. It's so great knowing that he knows who I am. I mean, how do you not just melt when you see this?

He will have his 8 week appointment here in a couple weeks. I'm excited to see how much he's grown.

We are loving live here in Georgia more than ever. We are getting more and more involved in our church and getting to know more and more great people. Will's job is going great and he has some other endeavors that he's about to take on.

We can't wait to get out of apartment living, so it's good motivation for us. We are hoping to buy a house in August. We want it to be a house we can stay in for at least 10 years, so we are going to be super picky about it. It will be weird to have to think so much in the future, in terms of kids and what not while we are looking. Plus, I want to homeschool so it will have to fit those needs as well. We are debt free now, and we are praying for God to help us stay debt free. We know that God wants us to be debt free and honors it when we ask for His help. So, our huge goal is to never be in debt again. Even on a house. God works miracles, why not ask for them! AND we are HIS children. So, that's our prayer for this year and all years to come. We can't imagine how flexible it will be able to make us and how available we would be for God if we were debt free for the rest of our lives.

Anyway, that's where we're headed! Excited to see where He guides us!

Feeding Frustrations

Why do people love breastfeeding so much? I've been asking myself this question from the day I brought my baby home. All I've heard are how awesome it is once you get it going and how convenient it is from people. Um, am I experiencing a different thing than all these people?

Don't get me wrong! I am SOOO thankful that my little buddy is nursing now and is doing awesome at it. I think it is sooo cool that God designed me to be able to nourish my child like this without anything else.

I'm not gonna lie though. Most days, it is a frustrating struggle for me. I either end up frustrated, feeling like a failure, or just plain tired!

The little guy latched on at about 3 weeks and I was SO excited about it. I had been using a shield up until that point which really helped establish him being comfortable nursing. I took it away one day and he's been fine without it ever since. Well, there started the soreness, the blisters, and all the other unfortunate scenarios. But, I kept trucking.

Honestly though... if I could, I would use formula. If the organic formula we buy wasn't so expensive and if he were still able to get all the nutrients he needs... believe me I would. Cai is a SLOW eater. I think this is why I don't like it. Feeding him formula is so fast and easy. He's done and full. When he nurses, he usually falls asleep... so I try everything in my power to keep him awake. Get him in his diaper so he's cold, change his diaper, tickle him... but to no avail. This kid just loves falling asleep while he eats. It's so adorable in the sense that he feels so comfortable with me. But, on the other hand, I hate the cycle. He will eat, but won't eat enough, so I stop after trying to make him eat more. Then, 30 minutes later, he's crying to be fed again because he didn't eat enough during the entire hour that I tried to feed him. So, count it up... I literally spend ALL day feeding him. Whereas, if he were eating formula... we would be done in 10 minutes and he'd be good to go.

Why oh WHY do people enjoy this? I can't get anything done during my day. Although I LOVE snuggling him and bonding with him, there comes a point where I need to brush my teeth or take a shower or do the laundry.

I feel at a loss and I'm not sure what to do. I have seriously tried everything. I can't even go do the store most of the time because he doesn't have enough in his belly to go. I know that I would just be setting myself up for a miserable time because as soon as we get there he is hungry again.

Any thoughts? Any hugs? I need them!