Awhile ago, my DH turned me on to a woman on You Tube who does her own make-up in tutorials, to show you how to properly apply it and get that gorgeous professional look.  We’d both watch this lady in awe, because it was quite fascinating.  Her name is Lauren Luke, and she’s from England with a THICK accent, I swear, sometimes it’s hard to understand her.  LOL

Anyhow, her videos would be posted with her son watching TV in the background or her pugs snoring away on her bed.    Over the course of two years, she’s become a You Tube celebrity with a few copy-cats who also post their own make-up tutorials.

Now, as anyone knows me can attest, I rarely wear make-up.  I only wear it on special occasions, either a party with friends, going out with my hubby, or anniversaries, etc.  Otherwise, going to the store or doing errands around town, I’ve got nothing on.  However, this lady still fascinates me.

I’ve been following her for a little while now, and am happy to let all my readers know she’s been “discovered” by a make-up company, and now, she has her very own make-up line, just released TODAY!  It’s so awesome.  She’s such a cutie on her videos, definitely someone you could be friends with, and she’s so danged happy to be living her dream.  She’s asked her viewers to spread the word, so I’m spreading the word to my little corner of Internet followers.

Her kits come in five colors, greens, blues, purples, smokey, and pink/violet glam.  They’re awesome.  They come with eyeshadow primer, to help the shadows stay on and not crease in your lid, three shades of shadow, liner, blush, and two choices of lipsticks all in a flat palette-looking box set.  (You have to provide your own brushes right now, however, Lauren has said more things are in the works for her make-up line like individual shadows, brushes, blushes, etc.)

You get the entire palette of colors of your choice for $32.50 (plus shipping), but I think that’s a deal for all the products you get in the kit.  If you buy two or more kits, you can forego the shipping cost.

Here’s the link if you’re interested:

http://shop.bylaurenluke.com/products.html/

Just thought I’d pass this along because I LOVE watching her videos (she even copies famous looks on celebs) and she’s known on YouTube as Panacea81 just in case you want to find her.  Here’s a direct link to her channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/panacea81

Good luck with your make-up line, Lauren!  My faves are the smokeys and the vintage glams.  Might just have to buy me a set.  Thought I’d spread the word for another lady who’s living her dream! 

~~Becka

I want to blog but have nothing of interest to say.  Therefore, you might be in for a post of random ramblings.

This past weekend, DH and I and a couple of friends painted our house from a hideous green to a more friendly “sandstone” color with bright white trim.  You can see the before/after pics on my hubby’s blog at www.jimgoings.com.  It’s really a dramatic difference and we’ve even been complimented by a few of our neighbors.  It just blended in too well with the two giant trees in our front yard and our house didn’t stand out at all.  Now, it’s more cheerful and cleaner-looking.

After that, since the days have been beautiful here, we decided to take the kids to the beach for a fun day because DH took some days off of work.  We pack up, all excited to go, get there and realize it’s pretty chilly.  Well, it’s still morning, so it will probably heat up in the afternoon.  We get an early lunch and head on down to the beach.  Right as we get on the sand, a fog rolls in, reminiscent of the movie “The Mist” – great flick, btw, watch it in B&W.  Anyhow, we’re literally sitting on the sand and cannot see the buildings behind us, nor can we see the surf in front of us.  It’s like we’re lost in some kind of limbo reality.  We’d see other beach-goers walk off into the mist and we’d chuckle because it was JUST LIKE the movie.  LOL  Every now and again it would clear and you could vaguely make out the waves, but then it would roll in again.

Baby was cranky and cold and the kids made the best of it with their buckets, but they were disappointed at the lack of sunshine.  We packed it in early and left, disappointed that less than a mile or two from the beach the fog lifted and it was a beautiful blue sky.

Yesterday was my oldest daughter’s 10th birthday.  We took her out to dinner and her daddy took her on a shopping spree at Target.  She got some new clothes and two new books to read.  She was very excited.  We’re having a party for her on Sunday.  She’s hoping her best friend will return from Mexico in time to come over, but DH and I are sceptical.  It’s so cute, though, that my daughter’s best friend’s sisters want to hang out with our kids.  They are teenagers, from 15-17, yet they love hanging out with 10, 8, 7, & 6 year olds and frequently take them to the park.  So that’s very sweet of them.

I’ve gained a few pounds.  Boo hiss, I know.  About six pounds.  Yikes!  I really need to get my exercise on.  I took the kids on a walk yesterday to Payless Shoes because Miriam needed new ones and it’s close enough so we walked.  Since the weather has been beautimous lately, I think I’ll be spending more time outdoors.  We shall see if my plans come to fruition.  I’ve been enjoying the fact I no longer have to keep my blood sugar in check with medications.  I want to keep it that way.

Anyways…  That’s all for now!

~~Becka

So yesterday was shopping day.  I packed up all the kids and trekked out to the local Winco.  Normally, this store is packed, but if you go in the middle of the day on a weekday, you’ll encounter minimal crowds.  Anyhow, I’m pushing the cart, and my kids are trailing along behind me, one of them pushing Sophie’s carseat/stroller.  As you can imagine, one mommy + shopping cart + four kids + baby stroller = quite the parade.

In the cereal aisle, my kids reveal they have to go to the bathroom, so three of them go while one stays behind to push the stroller.  When the three come back, the other one leaves to go to the bathroom herself.  While she’s gone, we’re perusing the meat aisle when a woman approaches me.

“Are these all your kids?” she asks (a question I frequently get – I seriously doubt I’d take day care kids out with me shopping, but oh well.  )

“Yes,” I say.

“They’re very well behaved.  I want to congratulate you on that.”

“Thank you,” I say (a compliment DH and I frequently get since we don’t let our kids run amok yelling & screaming.)

She goes on to say, “You’ve really restored my faith in today’s family.”

“Wow,” I say, a little flustered.  “Thank you, they’re good kids.”

“Is today a day off of school or something like that?” she asks.

“Oh no, I homeschool them.”

The lady puts her hand on her chest and swoons (I kid you not lol) and says, “Thank you for that! How wonderful.”

I almost said, “You’re welcome,” but I thought it would be weird to accept thanks for schooling my own children.  Heh.  Therefore, I said, “Well, it was a decision their father and I made before we even had any kids.”

She moved like she wanted to hug me, but held herself back because I’m a total stranger to her.  At this point, my oldest daughter comes back from the bathroom and the lady’s eyes widen.  She says, “You have this one TOO?!?”

“Yup,” I say, “I have five kids!”

“You should be so proud.”

“Oh, I am,” I reply with a giant grin.

“Beautiful family.”

“Thank you so much!”

I’m telling you, folks, it doesn’t take a lot to have good kids these days.  We’ve all seen families in public who have visible problems with keeping their children in line or under control.  It seems this has become the rule rather than the exception.  And how sad is that?  My hubby and I have seriously thought about writing a book on parenting.  Our own skills come from a few sources, so I’m not sure how “fresh” our ideas would be, as we’ve employed others’ ideas.

Most of our knowledge in childrearing comes from two books called “Baby Wise” and “Child Wise”.  If you’re tearing your hair out with regards to your children, you might want to pick those up and give them a read.

Seriously, though, all of our friends are more than happy to babysit our kids if the need arises because they’re such a joy to watch.  Whenever we go into a restaurant, the patrons LITERALLY roll their eyes or sigh and look away because of the sheer numbers of kids tagging along behind us.  When these same people are ready to leave, more often than not they approach our table and comment on how well-behaved our children are.  For us, it’s a normal thing.  We go in, we sit down, we eat.  What’s so hard about that?  Apparently, today’s parents struggle with this.

No, DH and I are not “lucky” five times over.  We hear this so often, it actually makes us kind of angry at times.  It’s not luck, folks.  Anyone’s kids can be good kids.  It just takes commitment on behalf of the parent.  We are NOT lucky.  We’ve worked hard to have good kids.  And it shows.

People look at me and think I’m crazy for wanting to stay home and school my kids all day every day.  Well, when your child isn’t a little hellion, they’re an actual joy to be around!  Sure, we have our share of drama.  They’re still “kids” after all.  Hopefully, we’re teaching them the proper way to deal with these dramas rather than throwing themselves upon the floor of the local Safeway thrashing about like a fish out of water.  LOL

Simone, Levi, Hannah, Miriam

I love my kids.  And the best thing about all this?  My baby Sophie is an ANGEL.  No unnecessary squawking, sleeping through the night, and 1000 watt smiles.  It would seem she’s on the fast track to being another “luck of the draw”. 

Sophie

~~Becka

He is Risen

To one and all, rejoice, for our Savior is risen!  Happy Easter!  I hope you enjoy the following video.  I posted it for the song, mainly, as there isn’t really a “video”.  Keith Green was/is one of the pillars of Christian music.  I say “was” because he was killed in a plane crash in 1982, yet his music still vastly impacts people today.

You might be familiar with the song that’s simply called “Easter Song”, but if you haven’t heard Keith sing it, you haven’t heard it.  No one else captures the joy of the Resurrection quite like Keith Green.  So I hope you enjoy your holiday and enjoy the music.  Mr. Green was only 28 years old when he was taken up to Heaven.  But he was a genius on the piano and crammed more into his short life than you or I could ever dream.  I can’t wait to meet him one day. 

Happy Easter and praise the Lord!

~~Becka

Waxing religious, folks, FYI.  Move along if you don’t want to hear it.

~*~*~

“Can God create a rock so heavy, He cannot lift it?”

I’m sure somewhere in your wanderings, you’ve heard this question before and even wondered how to answer it.  Athiests like to ask this question to trip up believers, as it’s a circular argument.  Either answer you give has a negative outcome.  If God *is* so powerful to create a rock so heavy He cannot lift it, then how can He be “God” if He cannot lift it?  And if it’s impossible for God to make a rock He cannot lift, then how can He be God if nothing is impossible for Him?

But the question itself is flawed.

From the outset, the question assumes God is governed by time and space.  If God IS God, then logic concludes He created time and space, yes?  Therefore He exists outside of time and space, and outside the realms of the question.

There’s a few things we know about God, or at least, a few things the Bible tells us about Him.  He is Spirit.  He is in three persons.  He is omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent.  This means He knows all, He is everywhere, and He is all powerful.  This makes sense, as a creator would know the ins and outs of his creation.  God is able to manipulate His creation, He knows everything about it, and is everywhere at every time.

Now, to even put God in the “human box” is flawed.  We, as humans, cannot fathom having three personalities in one Being.  We cannot fathom being everywhere at once, because we are physical, we are not Spirit.  And obviously, we don’t know everything.

While we were made in His image, He is not made in ours.  That means we are like Him, not the other way around.

So, within time and space, God could make a rock any size He wants; it would still be contained within time and space, and therefore, He would be able to manipulate it however He saw fit.  This does not violate the question and does not trap you with the “how could God create something bigger than Himself?” argument.

I believe that in the same way we cannot wrap our minds around the “three persons/omniscient/Spirit” aspects of God, we also cannot fathom God’s “size”.  Because He’s Spirit, He doesn’t have a physical body, aside from Jesus Christ.  This size issue is *still* measuring God by the time and space yardstick.  He is not a being like us, therefore, He cannot be measured in the same way we are.

So this question falls short of disproving God or His powers.  The question itself is in a box, if you will.

I suppose it’s possible God could create a rock outside of time and space.  However, “so heavy He couldn’t lift it” assumes gravity, and gravity is physics and physics is within the realms of time and space.  Once you begin putting “stipulations” on the question, then it becomes grasping at straws at that point, doesn’t it?

“Well, God is God, therefore He could create gravity outside of time and space…”

“To make a rock that big He’d have to create it outside of His creation…”

“To create it outside of His creation would have to be in another dimension…”

“But if He created it, it WOULD be a part of His creation, therefore He could manipulate it…”

When it breaks down into these crazy “but,but,but” stipulations, the question becomes absurd in and of itself.  It’s designed to trip up believers.  However, if you take the time to think about it, the question can also trip up the athiests.

Just a random pondering for the day.

~~Becka

My publisher at Champagne Books held their annual awards bash this evening, and I was nominated for Best Selling Author of the Year for 2008.  Lo and behold, I won!    This is my second year in a row for being the best selling author at Champagne Books.  If you look at my “about” page, you can see I’ve won an award at Champagne for three years in a row now.  Woohoo!

It’s very exciting, and all I can say is thank you to my fans for loving my stuff so much they buy it!  A lot, apparently! 

I can’t tell you how awesome it is to be the best selling author at a publishing house two years in a row, especially when that publisher has grown by leaps and bounds and there’s a million different authors signed now.  I’m not so sure I’ll claim the title next year, but here’s a head’s up to all my fellow authors at Champagne – I’m not giving up my title so easily!

~~Becka