Overcoming Insecurities & That Sage Llama

Today, I'm posting at Faith's little corner of the internet. Kicking off her new series "Overcoming Insecurities".

A sneak peak: 

"Insecurities are a part of daily life though. It's normal. There's insecurities about what you're wearing, how you look, or how you sound to other people. But then there's the insecurities that cripple you and can prevent you from getting out there in the real world. 

"Hi, I'm Melissa... and I'm insecure." (all: "Hi, Melissa!")"

To read more, go: here

Please go read my story on Faith's blog. It's going to be difficult for a lot of y'all to read, I'm sure. I only know this because it was difficult to write. I wish that y'all gain something from reading it though. I wish it encourages conversation. Most of all, I wish that if you do read it, it doesn't change your view of me. I'm still the same person.

BUT!
Don't go to Faith's little corner JUST yet. Y'all get to know Cassie from Sage the Blog a little better today. Cassie is one of my favorite bloggers that I've gotten the privilege to know. She's caring, funny, and really knows her stuff when it comes to blogging. Also, her love for Jesus is such an inspiration to me!
Shameless plug: she's also pretty clever when it comes to the new Adproval & she is even offering classes!

I'm happy to know Cassie, and I'm so happy that she's one of my Mama Llamas this month!
Take it away, Cassie!

Describe yourself in 4 words.
Authentic
Wife
Child-of-God (that works right? haha)
Motivated

I really love your blogging style. What made you start blogging? 
I started blogging because back in 2012 when I read a few blogs that really helped me learn who Jesus was and fall in love with him. I wanted to be that kind of inspiration, even if it was just for one person. 

You're a new addition to the crayon box. Which color would you be, and why?
PURPLE. Purple is just such a happy color, so why not?

What's the best advice you've ever gotten about blogging?
Don't force yourself to blog about something if you don't love it. Unless I am passionate about something, even a product, I won't write about it on my blog. My blog is a sacred space and I want it to represent my passions. 

What's your favorite movie quote?
I'm kind of in love with The Princess Diaries so definitely, "Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all."

If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?
SUSHI! You can pretty much put anything in sushi, plus I really just like eating with chopsticks. It makes me feel so fancy. Am I alone?

No, you're not alone with the sushi, Cassie! lol.
Isn't she so much fun, y'all?

Want to get to know her better? Follow along:

instagram || blog || twitter || pinterest 

Geek Fuel

People that know me really well know that I'm a lover of all thing geek. I'd love to learn klingon, elf languages, and more! This is probably why my husband and I get along so well. He never has to fight me to watch a Marvel or DC movie. (We don't discriminate in this house!). Plus, the kids proudly wear their Justice League shirts. Not to mention the fact that I still really want to be a chemistry teacher, and math is fun for me. So yes, I'm a geek and proud of it!

Imagine how excited I was when I found out about Geek Fuel!

Geek Fuel is a monthly subscription box catered to your inner geek. It's filled with collectibles, toys, gear, games, and as they say, "all things epic". Each month an exclusive T-Shirt is included. So basically each month is like Christmas for your inner geek. It's always a surprise as to what you'll get in your box! How fun is that? When mine came in the mail and my husband saw "Geek" on the box he totally opened it before I even got the chance. It's safe to say that everyone in the house was excited about it.

Here's what I got in my box:

1. The exclusive monthly shirt. I thought it was very clever... making Batman look like Pacman going after the villains. Well played, Geek Fuel, well played. Not to mention it's SUPER soft, it fit perfectly, and perfect for men or women.
2. I *heart* Retro sticker. I'm not really a big fan of stickers like this. Our car doesn't have them & we don't put them around the house, so this might just go in a drawer.
3. Green Lantern glass. Um! YES PLEASE! This is a really nice, good quality drinking glass. And who doesn't love Green Lantern?
4. Space Invaders Soap. It's green soap and it doesn't really smell like anything, but it has the Space Invaders logo stamped on it!
5. I *heart* Retro button. This will probably be going to my sister because she loves buttons like this. She puts them on her camera bag. However, if I decorated things with buttons I would totally keep it.
6. Worms. Because who doesn't need a yummy gummy snack, right? These two gummy worms looked like real earthworms, and there was a code for a FREE downloadable game! BONUS!
7. Retro Videogame Magazine. Yay for magazines, right?!

So how does one go about getting these boxes of awesomeness? Well first, go to the website. Next, choose the type of subscription you'd like. The basic one is monthly for about $24 ($17.90 + SH) a month. Good news, you can cancel anytime with this one! Or if you want more bang for your buck, there's the 3 month plan, 6 month plan, and yearly plan. Yearly is obviously the BEST value at $238.80 you get 17% off plus THREE bonus items! What? How could you not want that?

I will admit, this subscription box is 100% for fun. It's full of toys, and collectibles. But if you are a true collector, the cost of this box is a huge savings compared to going to the store and getting everything individually. The soap by itself for example, is $11.99 from what I could find from a simple google search!

If this is in your budget, and geekiness is your thing, I really think you'd enjoy Geek Fuel!
Also, If you really love me and want to sign up, you can use my unique referral code so I can start earning credit to another box. Or, not. It's whatever. I will still love y'all. Sign up anyway!

Do you have a monthly subscription box? Do you have any questions about Geek Fuel? I'd love to answer them! Or, if you've already tried them, let me know! We can gush together about how fun that one level of Lego Batman 2 was!

*I was given these products in exchange for my honest review. All Opinions are my own. 

Philippians 4:13

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" 

(This is my all time favorite Bible verse, and it really spoke to me in the last few weeks.)
Having said that...
Y'all, I need to take a moment to brag on my husband. Also to take a moment to boast about how really super happy I am right now. It really hit me last week when I was reading Liz's blog, Simply Complex Mom. She had a post about Foreboding Joy. How we force ourselves to be unhappy... like we're always waiting for the next bad thing to happen. Oh. My. Gosh, y'all I cannot tell you how much that post spoke to me.

Do you know how much I have doubted my decision to not go back to work? A LOT. I've texted several girls from my tribe, and all of them have reminded me that ultimately it's the best choice I've made. They've reminded me that I AM contributing to the house. I'm making sure the kids are cared for, cleaning, cooking. I am working. Sure, I'm not bringing any income to the table, but I AM helping.
That. That right there is so easy to forget, y'all. Especially when the crap does hit the fan and, if you're like me, you feel awful about not bringing in any income!

A few weeks ago, Josh's car (the ONLY car we have) stalled out while he was driving home from work. Luckily he was able to get it to a shop so they could look at it. We were thinking it was just the spark plus. WRONG. $1,300.00 later, the car is working. And I'm freaking out about how we're going to make it. How are we going to feed the kids?
Let me tell y'all something, between my friends... my tribe... and PRAYER I was able to chill the EFF OUT! I gave it to God. I let it go.

And then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Last week, in the middle of the week of all things, all of the bills were paid. All of them. And you know what, y'all? We even had enough left over to where we could get Zander a little something for his birthday. (I was thinking he'd have to get a belated gift from us because we wouldn't have anything extra). That wasn't the case. And you know what? I wasn't relieved. I wasn't excited. I was content. I was 100% happy, and I realized that I had 100% faith that we could do this.

Because of my husband working so hard, getting overtime, working the occasional weekends, we CAN DO THIS. Josh didn't panic once about our situation. Sure, he got upset that the car needed repairs, but not once he did freak out about anything else. I'm definitely appreciative for what we have. Our home is full of love. We may not be able to go on fancy dates anymore, or go to the movies every weekend. But that's OK. What we have is enough, and I may need to remind myself of this a million times a day going forward, but it's true. We have each other, the kids, God, and love. It's like the verse in the picture says,

"Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." - Ecclesiastes 4:12 

With my husband by my side and God in our marriage, I am confident we can get through anything. Plus, it really helps that I have some amazing friends just a text or phone call away!