The Christmas Spirit

In August I decided to go on a year commitment to not buy what I don't need. I was doing fantastic until November when my birthday came and I got a few presents. Oh boy the joy of getting gifts was just so nice. I felt like I hadn't had something nice in a really long time, however it had only been two months in reality that I probably hadn't bought any new item of clothing or such. I felt like a shark with blood floating around me. The feeling of "I want THAT, I NEED that, I GOTTA HAVE that." was upon me. It hasn't made things better that Christmas is just around the corner and stores are so aggressive in their amazing deals and marketing. "This store is having a great sale",  I would say. "This arm hair extractor with a built in waffle maker is never going to be on sale, EVER again!  The feeling of a bottomless pit has settled quite nicely in my soul. That is exactly what I was trying to alleviate myself from by doing this year challenge of not buying what I don't need. To be content with what I have. Don't get me wrong there is nothing wrong with buying something nice for your self. However, if it comes in between you and God, we have a problem. I have struggled with the feeling of never having enough for a long time. Any time I am not in the word of God (the Bible) or giving myself time to pray and meditate on God I get super squirrelly. I get this anxious feeling and I am never satisfied. No matter how much I think either buying stuff will fulfill me, or eating stuff (this is my other struggle in life!) will fulfill me. All these feelings came to a halt when anxiety came upon me when I didn't have "enough" Christmas decorations up at my house. SERIOUSLY?  What is Christmas about anyway?!

The world we live in is so distracting and sneaky at robbing us from true peace and joy. All of the distractions of this life take away from what Christ really wants us to experience this Christmas season AND ALWAYS. His UNFALING love and his indescribable peace. I don't need decorations to have the Christmas spirit in me because Christmas should be about rejoicing that Christ was born. If I want to have that "Christmas Spirit", or just peace through out the year, all I have to do is spend more time with God. Material things are nice, but not when they make me feel the opposite of what living a life free in Christ feels. The few times in my life that I've really devoted myself to truly seeking God more than anything in this world;have been some of the most inexplicably joyful, peaceful and fulfilling moments of my life. To think that everyone that seeks God and his peace can have it is amazing to me. We can have it every single day of our lives if we wanted it! But we are only human, and that's okay.  He understands how difficult it is for us, and that is comforting. It is so difficult because there are a million distractions in this world. 

Consider this passage. 7 "But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. Philippians" 3:7  

When we finally get a taste of God's peace, our souls can't settle on the garbage that is of this world. I keep running back to Him even if I fail him over and over and over again. He will NEVER fail me. Or YOU if you let Him! 

Stay blessed and stay saucy! And a very Merry Christmas to you! 

-Libier 

The Most Amazing Birthday Ever!

Yesterday was my birthday. I always have a sense of "weirdness" every year on my birthday. I  feel like I should be re-evaluating my life and making sure I'm on the right track...  I am a very spirited and competitive individual and I love competition (mostly with myself, but still) so every year has to "top" the last if you will. Most years of my life I've been pretty happy with what kind of person I've evolved into over that twelve month period. But this year I needed to end my twenty-seventh year of life on a really good note. After a lot of meditation and prayer, I knew I had to some good deed that blessed other people. I knew this because when ever I would think of what I "wanted" for my birthday as far as a present went, I just felt a void and a hunger for something different. While I did run through countless possibilities of what I could ask for from my family and friends I did come across asking for my own very special Marc Jacobs bag-this would have been the most amazing present as it would've had two perks:
 #1.- I could never justify buying one for myself. 
 #2.- For the more obvious perky-perk, they're just gorgeous bags and I've always fantasized about having one. 


However, the more and more I thought about me with my amazing bag hanging off of my shoulder, the more and more I felt a deep desire to take an opportunity... a HUGE opportunity to make a bigger difference in someone's life. I thought, what if I just donate the money. I would take what my husband would of spent on me and just donate it to some charitable place. Nah that didn't feel right. Second idea, WHAT if I ask everyone that might of wanted to get me a little gift to instead of that they just give me some $ and I could donate that to a charitable cause... nah THAT didn't feel right. And THEN I though what IF I make a video and put it on Youtube on my Libby Lu Channel and open it up for anyone who watches it to be able to donate money and I'll take that money and do something amaze-ZING with it!? YES!! But who would I choose to help?


My mom remembered a little orphanage in the town I grew up in, Tizayuca, Hidalgo (in Mexico) that is in desperate need of some lovin'.  I thought what breaks my heart most of all in the world? Kids who don't have their parents and who don't have even the "essentials" we so easily take for granted. BIGGIDY-BAM, SHAZZZAM! There we go. I started with the idea that I would have my sister go to the director of this orphanage and ask what they needed, I would make a video, pray people would help, and then send the money to my sister for her to buy all the needed supplies, and then donate them to those little kids in the orphanage! 


I can not tell you how EXCITED, and amazed I have been this birthday at people's loving hearts. I thought, oh God if I can raise one hundred dollars we'll be blessing those kids soooooooo much. Well it's been a couple of days and we've already raised $435!!!!! WAAAAHHHOOOOO!!!!!!  I can not wait to hear what those kids do when my sister comes to donate all their new, socks, shoes, toothbrushes, school supplies, underwear, blankets, sheets...... the list will go on! I have been blessed beyond believe on this birthday and I can not praise God enough. Thank you to all of the wonderful people who've made this possible! You have amazing hearts! 


This has been the first birthday in my entire life that I've hardly have received any presents. But it has definitely been the most rewarding and amazing ONE! 
Let God show you where he needs you in this world, He's always trying to show us what he made us for, we just need to listen. 


Stay blessed, Stay saucy! 


Here's the link to the website for the orphanage, you can see pictures of the kiddos here. 
AND
If you want to donate click here. (**DONATING WILL NOT BE ABLE TO BE RECEIVED AFTER 11/20/2011, BUT THANK YOU FOR EVEN THINKING ABOUT IT~)
AND
If you want to watch my video, here it is!

A Year of Madre-hood. Ay-ay-ay!

           So many exciting things are happening in our lives right now! Maddy is turning one, Doug is thriving in his job, and I am finding amazing blessings each day being a wife, mommy, and homemaker. God is blessing us so much, but if you can please say a prayer for my father. He's not doing too hot right now and he needs prayers all arouund the world! He is going to be okay, but his platelet count is down again and he had to go to the hospital again. Any way please pray for him to recover and to have his platelets multiply!
           This year of mommy-hood has had its shares of ups and downs. The ups have been higher than a stoney boloney on spring break and the lows have been lower than a grandfathers ba... I won't finish that. But I will tell you something, I've been weaning Maddy from the boobie juice for two weeks now and we are now down to just two feedings a day. One in the morning and one before bed. I'm not going to lie when I say that yesterday was the day we were supposed to cut out the morning boob. Annnnd guess what? I couldn't do it. I know that Maddy once she's not nursing anymore is still going to love me and know I'm her momma, but to tell you the truth I feel so nostalgic about this bond being on its final stretch. So I didn't cut the morning feeding because I just want to enjoy the last weeks of nursing her, because really soon she's going to be walking and on to a new phase of her life. It's hard for me to believe that we've made it a year (almost). With 17 more days until my baby girls 1st birthday, there is definitely something going on in my soul that I can't explain. I am sad and I am over my head happy for this marks the first of many birthday celebrations, God willing. I can't even begin to describe what motherhood has done for me over this past year. But I can tell you that something so mundane as just sitting at home and watching my baby girl play with her stuffed animals is something that gets me teary-eyed and I feel this wonderful rumble in my stomach that I have never in my life felt before (and no it's not just gas, I checked for that too). I feel so proud of her when she does something as silly as drink her water from a cup. I could just play with her all day. She's a really sweet baby girl and I hope that I'm doing a good job at being her mother so she can grow up being a confident little girl. I guess I'm so head over heels that the other day I was holding her and just wondering, what was I doing before you? I can't remember life with-out you. Thank you Madelyn for providing me with the circumstances for me to become a better person, growing in patience, kindness, patience, love, patience, joy, ohh and have I mentioned patience? Thank you for your warm smile when I need it the most. Thank you for making me laugh so hard I cry and then I feel like a weirdo that's laughing all by herself at home with no one around aside from you. :) Thank you Madelyn for helping mommy and daddy get closer to God and therefore getting closer to each-other to form a better unit and a even more fantastic team. Thank you honey for your tantrums and your sick days that bring out the best of mommy. Thank you for letting me experience all your firsts. It's been an honor and a blessing being able to stay at home with you and witness every part of your development. I love you Madelyn and I thank God you are in my life every single day! Here's to the second year of this shindig. I hear it's quite eventful, well I say.... Bring it ON!!

Stay blessed and stay saucy!