I am "Mom" to Chloe, Allie, & Emilia. I am wife to Misael Escobar. I am a child of God. I love to learn about other cultures and learn about others life experiences.I am always a "work in progress". Through many struggles I have become "me" and I am finally happy with the person God has led me to be.I am excited to see where God will lead me in this life.
Want a lesson in trust, faith, and not worrying? Then put your teen in the driver’s seat and move over to the passenger seat for the first time! We began our journey for Chloe to become a licensed driver almost a year ago. Texas has some of the strictest driving requirements, but I’m happy to report that Chloe passed her driving test and is now a licensed driver! It only took $350, 12 hours in the car with an instructor, 30 recorded driving hours with Mom, 20 classroom hours, and five trips to DPS (because the documentation needed in Texas is worse than getting a passport)!
First of all, ROADWORTHY is NOT a complete driver’s ed course. Your teen will have additional requirements in order to get their license, depending on what state you live in. However, this video series makes a great supplement for both parents and kids to watch together! I absolutely LOVE the idea of a course for teaching parents HOW to teach their kids how to drive. Timberdoodle has brought an amazing course for parents!
When it came to teaching my daughter how to drive, I honestly didn’t know where to start other than an empty parking lot. After I watched the videos, I felt like I was armed with new information to help my daughter learn to drive. The instructor break downs the techniques into simple steps as well as explains why he suggest these techniques. One of the best things about this video course is each lesson is short! Most of the video lessons are under ten minutes long, but full of information in that time. Best of all it’s very affordable!
NOT Your Typical Driver’s Ed Course
I will be honest–I thought this was going to be like drivers’ ed all over again, but it was not! The instructor gives REAL LIFE scenarios and tips on how to help your child learn to be an independent driver without being a helicopter parent. After watching these tutorial videos, I felt much more confident in my ability to teach and ease my child into driving on her own. I would recommend them to ANYONE who will be driving with a teen who has a permit! I will definitely use this series when my almost fourteen year old begins learning to drive!
Timberdoodle has tons of great, fun learning tools for kids of all ages. Check them out not only for your driving needs but many other things including this 10th Grade Curriculum Kit.
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
Disclosure: We have partnered with One Faith Boutique, in order to bring you an amazing giveaway that will encourage you in body & soul! Enjoy!
One of my favorite things to do is support fellow Christians in their business ventures, if possible. There are certain businesses, like One Faith Boutique, that get me excited about sharing what they do because sharing their faith is business as usual!
“One Faith Boutique is an online women’s clothing and accessories boutique with a mission to bless.”
When I heard that OFBwas opening a new store front, I had to go and see it.
What I saw impressed me more than words can say. They do not simply sell stylish and affordable clothes, they share their faith.From the first time you interact with them online or in the store, you will see that their faith is not hidden. It is obvious from the way they treat their customers, to the way they share their faith throughout the store and social media outlets, and even to how they share their faith beyond the purchase.
The Clothes
One Faith Boutique provides stylish, trendy and current clothes at affordable prices for all body types, ages and walks of life! Whatever your mood, you are sure to find something that fits and makes you feel beautiful. From jeans to rompers to dresses to graphic tees to adorable accessories, they’ve got something for every body.
Their sizes for teens and women range from size 2 -16. Recently, they even added a fantastic kids clothing section.
Two Ways to Shop
Shop online from the comfort of your own home, or head out to Main Street in Yukon, OK and visit their store front. It’s a family friendly store with a play area for your little ones and a man cave, in which your man can relax while you shop!
The man cave & the kids play area are in the back. This store has something for everyone to enjoy!
One of the first things that struck me as I roamed the store for the first time was that God’s word was literally sprinkled all over the store. Encouraging verses were displayed throughout the store, in the dressing rooms as little reminders of our worth, and even the sales tags attached to each clothing item have Hebrews 11:1 printed on them.
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
Hebrews 11:1
It was obvious that they couldn’t help but share their faith in the process of conducting business!
(Shopping Tip: Take advantage of their Markdown Mondays and their Flash Sale Fridays. They send out reminders to these promotions through their social media channels, so you’ll definitely want to connect with them via their Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and/or their Newsletter.)
Amazing Customer Service
It is evident by their growing online customer base and their online reviews that One Faith Boutique has stellar customer service. I experienced this myself when I went into the store after seeing a top on their Instagram feed that I wanted to purchase. Unfortunately, I had no idea what the sku# was. All I could tell them was,
“I’m looking for a white and black shirt with a 3/4 length sleeve and the model was standing in the gazebo at the park. And I’m pretty sure I saw it on Instagram but maybe it was Facebook.”
Instead of getting an eye roll and a “there’s no way we can find what your looking for based on that description, ” I was greeted with a positive attitude and a willingness to search the store until we found it. And guess what? We did find it and it fit perfectly! It took maybe 10 minutes of searching but even with my lousy description, there was a kind willingness to help me find what I was looking for. I so appreciated it.
But again, the service goes beyond finding the perfect thing to wear. It’s a service that touches the heart. Lara shares one of the most memorable experiences from their first week in business:
“I spent some time on the phone with a customer out of Edmond, Oklahoma this week and we were able to pray together. All I could think after that conversation is how blessed I am that this is how I get to spend my day. And, friends, God has big plans!”
This is one of my personal favorites from One Faith Boutique!
Beyond the Purchase
One Faith Boutique has a mission to bless. They bless those who come in the store and bless others they may never personally meet on this side of heaven. With every purchase made a donation is made as well! Donations are made to:
American Bible Society, which gives people access to the life changing message of God’s word.
&
My Stuff, which gives children separated from all they know something to hold on to.
They have a very generous spirit and are constantly gifting things to others.
And know they are gifting something to you!
In honor of our 1st birthday, One Faith Boutique is giving away a $50 gift certificate and 4 fabulous pieces of jewelry!
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
Disclosure: We have partnered with The Voice of the Martyrs, in order to bring you an amazing giveaway that will embolden you spiritually. Enjoy! This post may contain affiliate links.
Have you ever had a series of experiences that started to change your perspective until a shift happens and you never want to go back to the way you were before?
Because of what other’s have been honored to live through, my perspective has shifted. My hope today is that this post might be the start of a series of events that will do the same for you, especially in regards to persecution.
Persecution is an honor and a blessing! (This does not come from my own lips but from testimony after testimony of those who have lived through it.)
The 1st experience that Opened My Eyes
About 16 years ago, I was studying in Vienna, Austria with several others from my university. One night, I went to watch several of my friends sing where some refugees from across the middle east were staying. God worked it out and I ended up studying the Bible with a few of these refugees. I’ll never forget when Ali decided he wanted to become a Christian. We had only been studying for a handful of weeks, so I wanted to make sure he understood the commitment he was making. He looked me straight in the eyes and said,
“I know the sacrifice of becoming a Christian. If I ever return home, I will be killed.”
Ali had fled from Afghanistan.
From that moment on, I started to grasp that the persecution that happened to Jesus, the apostles and Jesus’ disciples in the New Testament was not confined to the times written about between the pages of the Bible.
Persecution is furiously alive, but the persecution only fans the flames of faith for those who love the Lord.
I have never had to even think about my life being threatened simply because I am a Christian, but for Ali and many others, it is an absolute reality of life. Choosing Jesus can mean choosing instant physical death.
Giving a Voice to the Persecuted – The Voice of the Martyrs
The Voice of the Martyrs was founded by Richard Wurmbrand, who himself was imprisoned for 14 years in a Romanian prison because he refused to keep silent about the complete truth of Christ and choose not to exalt the communist government and allow them control over the churches.
As a preacher and disciple of Christ, he encouraged worshipers to gather in his family’s home and preached the truth. Even while he was in prison, he never allowed the torture and the beatings to deter him from the only thing that can set us all free. While in solitary confinement, he was able to communicate with a prisoner next door via Morse Code and led that prisoner to Christ. Later, Richard had the opportunity to be in the same cell with this man and learned that man had been a former communist who had done many bad things, but was now saved by God’s grace!
Isn’t it amazing to think that in the deepest, darkest dungeons of prisons throughout the world, the Lord is working?
The courage and the hope Richard had in Jesus Christ sustained him to never waiver in his faith. And more than that, it encouraged and inspired others to follow the Lord, who could give a soul such strength and peace! Even now, it instills courage in the hearts of other Christians when they hear his story and so many other stories that are like it.
The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) upon Hebrews 13:3:
Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.
VOM gives a voice to the many persecuted believers so we can know how better to pray for and help them. It also encourages us to seek God’s will and seek opportunities to share the gospel boldly with people around us!
Blessing and Honor in the midst of the Persecuted?
At first, it was hard to understand how one could feel like persecution was a blessing, but that is why it is so important to listen to the stories of those who have been persecuted. To see how God works in these moments to bring about miracles and courage and hope so that these trails are seen as an honor and blessing.
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
– Jesus, Matthew 5:11-12
I can’t really explain it any other way than to say it is awe inspiring and you must listen to these stories yourself! God is amazing in how He brings other prisoners, guards and witnesses of persecution to Him through these persecuted experiences. This stories will help reshape your heart and thought process about what living for Christ looks like!
That is why we are so thrilled to be able to partner up with The Voice of the Martyrs to give you a chance to win this “i am n” curriculum. It is set up as a small group study and will encourage your heart to boldness as you see how God is working in the lives of persecuted Christians.
This engaging video curriculum presents true stories of Christians facing Islamic extremists around the world. Ideal for small groups, campus ministries and churches, the I Am N Curriculum Kit includes
the I Am N book,
a participant’s guide,
a facilitator’s guide and
a 6-session DVD.
Each 15-minute video includes interviews with persecuted Christians as well as commentary and teaching by leaders from The Voice of the Martyrs and other leading missions organizations. As you explore the six themes of sacrifice, courage, joy, perseverance, forgiveness and faithfulness, you will be inspired to grow deeper in your relationship with Christ and witness with boldness and joy to your friends, family and co-workers.
https://youtu.be/DjaNu7LxHqM
“We have lost everything but have gained Christ and that gave us a joy!”
What can you do to help?
Pray!
Use VOM’s Prayer Map to learn more about the restricted, hostile, and monitered countriers.
I love VOM. After reading their book Tortured for Christ by the found Richard Wurmbrand I was so convicted in how easy it is to be a Christian in America. We whine about things like not having time to sit and read our Bibles or wishing we had the money for such and such. Truly, we are abundantly rich in every way. We have Bible studies, churches everywhere, 3 meals plus snacks and desserts everyday!
I really felt what he went through and took it personally. Living without the freedom to worship, being beaten and imprisoned, practically starving…. he would’ve done anything to have what we have. Or would he?? He willingly went back to continually reach the lost for Christ. I couldn’t “un-know” what he went through.
VOM is built around people like that and helping them. They support the persecuted who live in incredibly dangerous situations, as well as the families of martyrs. How could I not want to be a part of that?! We started giving monthly to VOM after that. Every month we receive a newsletter about what VOM is doing across the globe and ways we can help both financially and tangibly. It’s an honor to support their mission! – Ashley M.
God’s grace is what carries us all through and gives us the ability to stand tall and courageous in the face of extreme situations. Like the first martyr, Stephen, fixing his gaze intently on Jesus in heaven while being stoned, we too can fix our eyes on Jesus and trust that God will provide for us even in the worst of physical times.
Giveaway
This giveaway has ended but check out these great resources.
Enter now for your chance to win the “i am n” curriculum discussed above.
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
Disclosure: We have partnered with Family Time Training, in order to bring you a great giveaway that your family will benefit from spiritually. We have used these Bible Activities in our own family and all opinions are 100% ours. Enjoy!
God is fun and creative! He has provided so many ways for us to dig into His Word so it will plant in our hearts and grow! Sometimes, we mistakenly think that having a Bible study has to be boring. Family Time Training proves this myth wrong.
If you were anything like my husband and I when we first had children, we wondered how in the world we were going to teach them Bible principles at home. We started with songs and bible stories from children’s bibles.
Then we found Family Time Training and it gave us an amazing tool in our Bible teaching toolbelt. Like God, it’s fun and creative and helps God’s Word stick in our kids’ hearts. Not to mention ours as well.
What’s so great about Family Time Training?
1. They do all the planning for you.
Yes, all you have to do is pull out a lesson, read over it, gather the materials and you are ready to go. They even put in bold the main phrases parents should say, so it makes preparing for a Bible lesson very easy, especially if you don’t have time to prepare a Bible lesson during the week.
2. It helps bring your family together so you can plant the Word of God in their hearts!
Sometimes, the hardest part of studying the Bible with our kids is just getting in the habit of doing it. Family Time Training suggests picking one night a week that you have an easy dinner so you can quickly come together afterwards and have fun studying the Bible. Of course, you can always choose to do it another time, like on a Saturday afternoon or whatever suits your family best.
3. They make it FUN!
Yes, fun and studying the Bible can go together. It doesn’t have to be dry and boring. With Family Time Training’s activities your kids will not only have fun but they will learn about the Bible in such a way that sticks.
4. Lessons that Stick
Because the lessons have fun activities, kids typically remember them more easily. We could be driving down the street and a topic comes up. In trying to relate it back to God’s word, it’s easy to say,
“Hey, do you remember when we wrapped you up in toilet paper (or did such and such activity)?
Do you remember which character in the Bible you were pretending to be when we wrapped you in toilet paper? Yes, Lazarus.
Well, did Lazarus need help getting unwrapped? Yes!
Why? Because he couldn’t do it by himself.
Your right and there are times in life when we can’t do things by ourselves. From whom should we ask for help? Right! God.
5. Easy to find exactly what you need!
Family Time Training does have physical workbooks for all ages, but my personal favorite is their Total Access. Total Access is an electronic database that allows you to search through over 300 activities in seconds to find the perfect one you need.
Do you want to do a Bible lesson on Abraham? Just type in his name. Or maybe you want to find a lesson that will help a certain child with a bad habit…type it in and voilà, there it is.
Watch how easy this is….
6 – Very Affordable!
Total Access so awesome and easy to fit into the budget. For only $6/month or $60/year, you can quickly access as many activities as your family needs. A congregation can even purchase a yearly membership for $400, which allows ALL of it’s members unlimited access to the activities.
Yes, Family Time Training’s goal is to make it easy and affordable for family’s to be able to teach their kids Biblical principles and values in the home!
FREE gift for you!
The Chocolate Milk Activity
Family Time Training graciously agreed to give you my favorite Bible activity to for free! There are many reasons why the following activity is my favorite:
#1 – It introduces kids to the “stirring” of the Holy Spirit and how He acts in our lives. Truly, how many of us as adult have a difficult time explaining to other adults about how the Holy Spirit works, let alone explaining it to our children?
#2 – It uses chocolate milk! And come on, who doesn’t like an activity that involves chocolate milk.
Sign up right now, to get a FREE activity in your email box every month.
Team Curriculum
Family Time Training has also developed a fantastic team curriculum for training groups of people who are passionate about investing in the lives of children and passing their faith on to the next generation.
The Lord our God, the Lord is one.Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates. (emphasis added)
Family Time’s activities make this goal of teaching our children and pouring God’s wisdom into their hearts easy and fun!
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
Is music the rhythm of your life? Why not share the love of music early with your infant, toddler or preschool aged children and do it in such a way that incorporates family, fun and learning?
This past fall, my children and I had the opportunity to enjoy the Music Together Class. The whole point of the class is to bring grownups and the children they love together to grow more in love with music. This class was led by Heather Hoffines, the owner of Gracenote Family Music, and Leah Sherma.
Top Picture: Leah & Heather singing the welcome song. Bottom Picture: Leah showing my youngest son how to play the castanets.
I was a little concerned at first, because my two younger children, ages 4 & 2, don’t always like to sit and are quite hyper. Thankfully, the very first time one of my children decided to run around, Heather encouraged me to allow them to enjoy themselves. Whew! Thank you for letting this momma relax and have fun with it too! It is a great chance to have fun & be silly together!
The children are encouraged to explore the music by:
Moving their bodies to the music through dancing, jumping, clapping, parachuting, etc.
Learning the speeds, tones, and sounds of the music.
Interacting with all sorts of instruments. (During the class, they put out a pile of instruments and the children get to play as many as they want.)
Understanding how different sounds are part of early language skills.
And so much more!
Here are a few examples of what we learned in class:
Resources for Home
My children and I had so much fun in this class and they so enjoyed playing with all the different instruments, that their stockings were filled with music eggs and bells so that we could continue learning with this music at home.
Yes, so not only are the classes loads of fun but they do really want you to bring this home. To encourage this, they supply you with a wonderful book of all the songs that are covered in the class and a CD that allows you to play the music at home. There are also other resources like an app, access to the Family Music Zone, Facebook community, & newsletter that they encourage you to engage in as well.
An Inter-generational Class Option
Gracenote Famliy Music offers this wonderful Music Together® Class in several locations throughout the OKC area, but if your schedule permits, I would encourage you to attend the multi-generational class that is held at the Teal Real Retirement Community in Edmond, OK.
Being able to play along with an older generation was so much fun. We even had the opportunity to enjoy their company after the class was over and that was quite a treat for us and them!
Sign Up Now & Receive a Discount!
Classes are currently enrolling for the Spring semester. Check out their early bird special that allows you to save $15 on the class, if you sign up by March 9, 2016! You can even preview a class for free. Just go to their website
Spring 2016 Schedule:
Tealridge Retirement Community – Inter-generational Mixed Age Class 2100 NE 140th St. Edmond, OK 73013 Saturdays, 10:30 a.m. with Ms. Leah Sherman
King’s Gate Christian School – Mixed Age Class 11400 N. Portland Ave. Oklahoma City, OK 73120 Tuesdays, 3:15 p.m. with Ms. Leah Sherman
The Changing Table– Mixed Age Class 1745A NW 16th St. Oklahoma City, OK 73106 Tuesday, 6:30 p.m. with Ms. Crystal Johnson
Bruce Music Store – Mixed Age Class 13722 N Lincoln Blvd Edmond, OK 73013 Monday, 10:00 a.m. with Mrs. Angela Piersall
They are working to add more classes in the future so be sure to check out their website and Facebook page to see when they come to your area!
I am an Oklahoman by birth, a Texan by current living situation, but claim the world as my playground.I love to travel and hope to someday soon take our family on adventures to far off lands, where we can share God with others and experience all the wonders He has created.
I am a mother of 5 crazy, homeschooling children ages 10 & under, wife to an amazing man, and daughter of the King of the Universe!I enjoy reading, making my kids laugh, cooking, all things natural, learning to play guitar and dusting off my piano skills.One day I hope to run again, but until then I’m learning patience.
Disclaimer – This is a sponsored post for Sight & Sound Theatres. All opinions stated are 100% our own and we highly recommend Sight & Sound Theatres to all our friends and family.
Have you ever had a present you just couldn’t wait to open because you knew it was going to be amazing? Then with every sighting of that present, you get a little more excited until you are about to explode with excitement upon opening it! This is how I felt sitting with my family in the Sight & Sound Theatres in Branson, MO in the Spring of 2014 waiting for the show to begin.
We had heard amazing things about the productions that came to the Sight & Sound Theatres. Everyone one said if there is just one show you see, make sure it’s at that theater. So when we made our plans, we made sure to purchase tickets to see Jonah.
We arrived at this beautiful theater ahead of the curtain call to take “The Behind the Scenes” tour, which only increased our excitement levels even more. We saw the animals that are an integral part of each production and learned a little of how they train them to be used in the production. We were able to see the massive sets that were used in the production of Joseph. We even got to try on some clothes from the wardrobe. It was such a great learning experience to better understand how these wonderful productions come together.
Our families’ first experience at the Sight & Sound Theatre in Branson.
Then we experienced the story of Jonah come alive not only on the stage but throughout the entire auditorium! My kids ages 6, 4, & 2 sat through the entire performance in awe of everything happening around them. They still talk about this production and ask when we will get to go back. This is truly an experience everyone in your family will enjoy!
McKenzie experienced a show at Sight & Sound a few weeks ago. Before she had never heard of Sight & Sound, so she didn’t know what to expect, but now having experienced it this is what she had to say:
My husband and I got to see the Jonah show at Sight & Sound Theatres recently and we were both in awe the entire time. We weren’t familiar with any show in Branson, much less one with a spiritual plot line, but when Kristi recommended that we see it, we were excited to experience something new!
Once we got to Branson, and drove around, we understood that the Sight & Sound Theatre is not like all the other theaters there. It’s HUGE. This size enables them to make such a beautiful impact with their show. The sets come and go off the stage with fluidity. The REAL animals on stage, I mean come on! It was so amazing. The text to stage interpretation of the story was beautifully done and we left the show beyond impressed.
I have seen many stage productions in many cities, in many venues and this honestly was like nothing I had seen before. As we ate dinner, we talked about our favorite parts. We discussed even the familiar story in a new way, seeing it played out the way they did. Sight & Sound Theaters has left a lasting impression! I can’t wait for the opportunity to go again!
2016 brings new productions to the Branson & Lancaster County Sight & Sound Theatres!
From March – December 2016 – Moses will be captivating audiences in Branson, MO.
Their creative abilities are astounding. I get excited imagining how they will express the plagues, the parting of the sea, and even Moses’ time away from Egypt! Anticipation is growing again!
From March – December 2016 – Samson will be debuting in Lancaster County, PA.
This story has always been one of my favorites and so this has trickled down to our kids. Our kids are constantly asking to watch the Samson teaser and the Samson Announcement Event videos. Needless to say, we are excited to see this production too!
So in a couple of words, the best way I can describe Sight & Sound Theatres’ productions, without you seeing it, is Epic!
Epic Bible Story + Epic Storytelling Production = Sight & Sound Theatres!
Now is your chance to win your choice of 3 different Sight & Sound Experiences
1. Experience ALL of Sight & Sound Theater’s Productions in your own Home with the Complete DVD Collection
Put some of this excitement under your Christmas tree this year!
Check out Sight & Sounds store and reserve your tickets today.
Be sure to check out all the other giveaways that are part of the “Christ in Christmas Shopping Guide” and don’t forget you can enter daily to increase your chances to win!
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