A Little Piece of a Miraculous Romance

I know an amazing mother/wife/sister/and friend. She is a good Woman of God and I have taken a lot of advice from her. She is also a fellow blogger. You can find the link to her blog Miraculous Romance a little farther down. I wanted to have a piece of her mind and of her blog on my blog to share with my readers. She is truly inspirational. So I hope you enjoy. =)

I just wanted you to let us know a few things that way my readers (now yours as well) will know a little more about you. Tell us your name and age...and anything else you think we may want to know. ; )
--My name is Crystal Nichole O'Rourke (Hooper). I am 24 years old. I have been married to an amazing man of God, by the name of Patrick, for almost 4 years now. I have 2 beautiful daughters by the name of Eden Neriah and Toula Michelle. If you would like to know more you can read my blog http://miraculousromance.blogspot.com/

I am so glad that you were able to do this for my blog. I LOVE your blog and I'm glad to have a piece of it on mine.

--Thanks Jacqui! I love you and your blog! I am so blessed to have this opportunity. :)

 

My Jesus: Lifegiver

 

A good friend of mine once said that, “…In this world you will have trouble…” Well, I can most certainly testify to that. The past few years of my life seemed to have been full of that detestable “t” word. I have been bruised, broken, and at my wit’s end on more occasions than you could fathom. My heart has cried out for rescuing from the hurt and pain that I have suffered in this “world”.

Let me start by giving you a little taste of my experiences these past few years. When I was about 6 months pregnant with my first daughter my mother was hospitalized during a near death bout of what would be diagnosed as stage 4 cancer during my 7th month. She fought a good fight against the disease but only 3 months after the confirmed diagnosis was taken home to be with Jesus; which just so happened to land on my sister‘s birthday, July 4th. Then, in what seemed like an instant after her passing, my father began to date my husband’s mother and they were engaged before labor day. My husband's mother and I have had many issues in the past and were not the best of friends to put it kindly, so as you can imagine this was most certainly not celebratory on my end… not to mention the fact that my mother had only been gone for a whopping 3 months before the engagement. There was many a battle between all of the relatives near and far, and my family who had once stood so close was as divided as the Koreas. This most certainly put a strain on my husband and I causing our marriage to be pushed to the brink of near extinction. Needless to say, there were many roles in my life that were almost immediately damaged or completely cut-off. I was without a mother, a father, a husband, and half of my siblings were pried from my life. Though, I can honestly say that throughout all of the chaos and heartache there was a hope that came anew every morning…

I began to cling (more strongly than ever) to the only thing that I knew could give me the strength to withstand any blow that this world, the enemy, or any human being could throw my way: Jesus Christ. I HAD to trust that He is who He says He is. I HAD to trust that He could do what He says He can do. I HAD to trust that His word is Truth. I had to have faith that my story wasn’t over. I didn’t have a choice in the matter. He loved me (or shall I say loves) and I am His anointed daughter. This was the only thing I had to ensure that I would be able to get myself out of bed and take care of my beautiful first-born daughter. He gave me strength to pray and believe Him for the miracles that He was going to do in my marriage and my life!

I could hear his still small voice through the storm raging in my life reminding me that I am richly filled with His love. That I am not alone. I had the comfort of a mother as he nurtured me through the pain and heartache, just as His word promises in Isaiah 66:11 as he speaks of His gospel and zion... “She will nurse and comfort you, just like your own mother, until you are satisfied. You will fully enjoy her wonderful glory.” As I prayed and fought with my flesh to continue to trust in Him, I had the companionship of a sister or brother… Proverbs 18:24 says: A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. This friend is Jesus! I had the support of a loving father when I need encouragement and discipline just as Psalm 89:26-28 clearly explains: “He shall cry to me, ‘You are my father, my God, and the Rock of my Salvation.’ And I will make him my firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My steadfast love I will keep for Him forever, and my covenant will stand firm for him.” Most importantly I had God as my Lover and I as His beloved when my husband and I had a divided heart. He says of me (and you), “You have stolen my heart, my sister my bride; you have stolen my heart with one glance of your eyes, with one jewel of your necklace. How delightful is your love my sister my bride! How much more pleasing is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your perfume than any spice!” - Song of Songs 4:9-10. I began to see that God’s word was alive and active in my life and most of all in me! He was manifesting His Spirit deep within my being and I was finally coming alive after I felt that I could never really live again.

It’s true, God is my comforter. He has filled every role in my life that is or has been lacking and has never let me down. You know that quote I had written in the beginning of this article was actually something said by Jesus and is quoted in the bible in John 16:33… and it didn’t end there. He went on to say… “but take heart! I have overcome the world.” Sure, I have faced trouble. I have been up to my eyes in it. But the truth is that with Him, I was always able to find His peace.

Please know that it was Jesus who gave his life to share in a miraculous romance, a sacred bond, with you. He promised that if you would come into communion with him that he would never leave nor forsake you, His beloved. He died for the opportunity to have you fall in love with Him just as he is madly in love with you. His beautiful spirit is calling your name... Will you answer?

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, so that whoever shall believe in him shall not perish but shall have eternal life.” -John 3:16

 

 

Talk to you soon,

J

Thankful Thursdays- 26

I know I haven't been able to do a TOAT in a while. But I'm doing one today!

Things have been super busy around here, so it keeps me away from my computer. Even with all the hectic go go go that is my every day life, I am still so thankful for everything I have. Here are some examples...

I'm thankful...

231. that this summer, even though I'm in school, is going so well.

232. that my brother and sister in law surprised me with a brand new video camera! I am now able to literally document the kids, every single day.

234. that Ryan and I are on the same page with where our life is headed.

235. that I have friends who actually like participating in my blog!

236. that Ryan understands when I need help around the house.

237. that I was not only able to go to almost everything I was invited to this month, I was also able to buy gifts. My goal for the rest of this year is to make it to every birthday party and baby shower we are invited to.

238. that I haven't had a bad day, for weeks. My family is happy...and so am I.

239. that I am not a liar. I wont lie about something small and I wont lie about something big. The TRUTH will always be the route I take, no matter what.

240. That the year is already half over...and its getting so close to all the holidays and stuff! My favorite time of year!!

So what are you thankful for this week?

Talk to you soon,

J

Interview With A Vampire...

Just kidding!! This is really an Interview With A Pregnant Woman, I just had to put that title because thats the first thing that popped into my head when I was thinking of what to call this...why vampire, I dont know.

We all know by now that I LOVE to have other people participate in my blog. So when my good friend Ashley agreed to be a guest I jumped at the chance to ask her anything that popped into my head. She's the skinniest pregnant girl (aside from her baby bump hehe) that I know, but also one of the kindest women I've had the pleasure of developing a friendship with. She has overcome adversity with a smile on her face and is now happily married to her Prince in Shining (Army) Armor and expecting her first baby. I hope you enjoy taking a look at some things through her eyes.

Please state your name, age, occupation, and state of mind. =)
--My name is Ashley Danielle Hazelett-Meneses. I'm 22 years old. Wellllllll since I'm pregnant I'd say my current state of mind is never quite normal, but at this moment I'm feelin pretty sane :)

That led me right to my next question. Your due date in August is right around the corner! How's your pregnancy thus far? What is the story behind your baby name?
--Oh man yes it is and we cannot wait!!!! I've had some ups and downs in my pregnancy but so far I think it's going great! Heartburn/gerd is a son of a biotch and I can't wait to never have it again!!

About her name...my husband actually picked her first name Aislyn, pretty funny that he picked a white girl name and he's 100% Mexican I guess I assumed he'd pick a name like Maria lol...her middle name Destiny is after my sister Autumn, we always said we'd name our kids after each other...plus it fits pretty well.

Speaking of names, as you've probably read in my blog, Whats In A Name? I am struggling with the idea of altering Max's name. You hyphenated your last name when you were married, I know why, but for the sake of our readers why dont you tell me again. ; ) Do you feel names are an important part of how our lives turn out and how people perceive us?  
--Wellllll in my opinion a name change is a huge deal! I kept my maiden name and hyphenated my husbands because my dad has no one to carry on our last name, so although my daughter wont carry it on I'll still carry the name and hopefully bring honor to it in some way. I do think names give us a huge sense of who we are while growing up, and I do think names effect how people perceive us, names are something kids make fun of or adults judge. I think I'm judged as some sort of feminist for keeping my maiden name when that's not the case.    

Well now everyone knows you aren't a feminist or anything like that, you just did what you felt was right for YOU, and that is what matters most. I think though that the name will suit your baby girl beautifully, so your hubs did a great job! How has your pregnancy and expanding your family affected your brand new marriage. Like myself you also got pregnant like the second you were married.
--Thank you! I think my pregnancy helped strengthen our faith in God because we had tried for so long to get pregnant and it just wasn't happening! We said "I do", and a few weeks later found out we were finally pregnant...it may sound silly but I think it was God's wish for us to be married first. It's brought us closer as a couple knowing that we have created this little human being. Its also motivated us to do better in every aspect of our marriage because we want to do our best to show her how a marriage should be.

Do you and Victor want to have more kids? Why or why not?
--We don't plan to have anymore kids because I'm RH- blood type and my doctor has scared me to death that I will kill myself or my kid if I have anymore lol one healthy baby will be just fine for us. :) 

I completely know what you mean about God wanting you to be married first, I think the same about Ryan and I. Let's switch gears a little bit. You are a stepmother, (like you didn't already know haha), and you know how I feel about stepmothers. So, what would you say are some of the most important things that any step mother should know?    
--I think any GOOD step mom will know her place from the beginning. She has to put herself in the biological moms shoes! Step moms need to realize that if the biological mother is in the child's life then her wishes for how they should be raised should be respected...I also think if the bio mom is in the child's life then the step mom has to take a step back, put on her big girl panties and realize to the child, she's secondary. One other big thing would be to try to show the child love, even if it is not given in return.

What is a quote/saying/bible verse that you apply to your everyday life?
--In everything you do, put God first and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success. Proverbs 3:6
One other great thing of pregnancy is I'm forgetful, I just realized I forgot to state my occupation lol  I'm a Graphic Support Analyst/Housewife

That was an excellent quote!! How do you apply that into your everyday decisions?
--I apply it to my daily life by doing things the way I think God would want me to do them. Sometimes it's hard to have a kind heart but if I remember to put God first he guides me & then I reap the reward from that.

Don't you just love technology? We have done most of this interview through email, that were both checking on our phones. What kind of world do you see for our kids when they're our age?

--I know how neat is it to be able to do this via the phone/email. I'm actually fearful for what the future holds as far as technology...I ordered food from Jack in the Box on a computer screen the other day...are we no longer going to need people to do things anymore?! It scares me!!!

The future does seem pretty scary for our kids, luckily as humans we can adapt to anything if given enough time. This was a lot of fun for me! You know I love to ask questions!! How did you like letting my readers see into your world? Would you do it again after baby??
--It was really fun! I loved it! I would love to do it again after the baby so I can talk about all the new things I've learned.

Thank you again so much for doing this. I hope our friendship continues to grow and become more and more meaningful, the way it has so far, as time passes. Oh and I can't wait to meet baby Aislyn!!
--Thank you so much I'm honored that you asked to interview me! I Can't wait to share our little blessing with you and watch our friendship grow! :)   

Talk to you soon,
J

Whats in a Name?

I was never going to change my name. I never saw the romance in it, I never understood why women would want to give up the only name they've ever had just for a man.
And then I was actually getting married. My husband asked me to change my name. He understood why I had reservations about it, he knew that I loved him and that I was just nervous about losing myself and my own identity in our new marriage. He wanted me to take his name though. That was it end of story, my man wanted me to do something for him, so I did it. After he listened to my reasoning, and we talked it to death, he still just wanted me to be called by his name, so I agreed.
Now another thing that I have never (and still do not) understood, is why women give children the last names of men that they are not married to. I do not get why essentially single (not married) women would give the children they birthed, the name of a man that they dont know will eventually marry them. Now I'm not saying all men will leave their children and girlfriends at all. I'm saying that UNTIL they are married to these guys, they should give their children their own names.
This brings me to a dilemma I've been fighting with myself over. Maximus has my maiden name. Had I been in a relationship with his father when he was born he would STILL have my name. Gabriella has her fathers last name, but thats because we were married when she was born. Had we not been married, she would also have my maiden name. Now this makes Max the odd man out. He is the only one of the four of us with a different name, and he is starting to notice. We dont go around talking about how we are the Hill's we dont have it all over the place. Nothing like that. We dont even say he is anything but one of us. BUT he is writing his own name now, and he was told at school unfortunately that we have a different last name than him. (Yeah, jerks I know.) So after a few requests and complaints from Max that I was supposed to name him Hill and not what his name actually is, I started seriously considering a name change.

So its up to me as mommy to figure out how I feel about this, and what would be best for him when hes an adult. The only answer I can come up with that would satisfy every situation that I can think of is to just add Hill to the end of his already hyphenated last name. (Yes, my maiden name is hyphenated.) I think if we do this then my name will be carried on, like I wanted it to be, and Max will feel more like he is one of us, even though we have never ever ever said anything to make him think he wasn't. And when it comes to school, he can just go by Maximus Hill.

I know most people may think, its just his last name, who cares. But I do care. I care about who I was, and who I am. I care about my family and the names my children will carry on. This is why I put so much thought into what they're named before they're ever even born. Names mean something, so changing Max's to something other than what I intended it to be when he was born is a big deal to me. In the end I hope I make the right decision and I'll keep everyone updated on the process.

Talk to you soon,
J

Late Night Reading

I just HAD to share! 
Tonight I asked God to show me what he knew I needed to read...and he did.

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the council of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.
Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgement, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
Paslm 1:1-6

I'll talk to you soon,
J

Just an Update

It's been a while since I've had the chance to sit down and blog. I really shouldn't even be doing it right now because I need to be studying...but I couldn't help myself.
I have been so super busy this month, I have 3 classes that are all super concentrated because of how short the summer semester is and before I can even get to homework and all that I have to make sure the husband, kids, and house are all taken care of. Needless to say, I've been go go go non stop for about three weeks now.
I want to see my friends but I have absolutely no time. I want to just relax with my kids and enjoy Max's first summer break from school, but I always have something to do. I want to have time to make my husband feel special because of how hard he works everyday, but instead I'm asking for his help with the housework. This is probably one of the first times I have felt truly guilty for not being strictly a wife and mother. The only way that I can ensure my success in the future though is to get through this next month and be done with this part of school. So in the mean time I will pray that my friends will understand, my kids wont notice, and that my husband will hold my hand and help get me through this madness.

I'll talk to you more as soon as I can,
J

A Best Friends Point of View

I said I would be trying to get different people to interview and give a guest spot on my blog and this month I decided to interview (if thats what you want to call it haha) my best friend Evette. I thought it would be nice for people to not only get to know someone I'm so close to but to also let everyone read about our friendship from her point of view. So I hope you enjoy getting to know her!

For the record please state your name, age, and state of mind. ; )
--My name is Evette Sisneros. Im 24 about to be 25. My state of mind, is a little overwhelmed, but happy.

How do you spend your free time?
--I like to spend my free time with my family. I love going outside with my kids and watering our flowers or taking walks around the block. I love just sitting around with my husband and watching our shows together, playing video games, and singing our karaoke game.

We’ve been friends for quite a while. Tell me one of your favorite memories out of all of our fabulous adventures.
--We have had MANY fabulous adventures together. Its hard to choose just one, but if I had too.....I'd say going to Las Vegas before we were 21, and living it up like we were. One of the very few nights I didn't care what happened and just had a blast! I remember right when we pulled into the motel we were staying at in my busted up car! LOL Some guys followed us and you and B were embarrassed cause you couldn't open up the car doors from the inside.LOL You guys had to reach out the window, I laughed sooo hard!  You guys were pissed at me. I'm pretty sure those guys took off after that, but that was just the beginning of our crazy fun night.

Our relationship has stayed consistent since we started hanging out. Do you think our polar opposite personalities contributes to the fact that we have never fought before? Why/why not?
--Oh I def. think thats why we have never fought before! You have never judged me, and I have never judged you. We make a perfect balance for each other. You have been my strength when I was at my weakest. I think we have been there for each other as much as we could possibly be. I can trust you and you can trust me.  I don't think our relationship would have worked if we were exactly like each other.  I think we would drive each other crazy! Oh, well wayyyyyyyyyyyy more than we already do now. JK lol

Do you see our kids being as good of friends as we are?
--I hope so! I dont see why they wouldn't. Atalaya is a mini me and Max is a mini you! The only difference is they're opposite sex. lol Plus, everyday Atalaya and Chace are asking to go play with Max. Never once have they had a big fight. They already get along sooo well. Watch Atalaya and Max will be real close, and Chace and Bella will be close. :)

How did you feel when you found out we named the little girl I had been waiting all those years to have after you?
--I felt very very honored. I mean who wouldn't feel honored.  That just showed me how confident and important you feel  our  friendship is. That's really saying BFF! lol  No really though we will be best friends until we are old and gray and we will get to see each others kids grow and have kids of there own. Awww... at least there's one thing to look forward too while we get older. :)

What is a quote/saying/bible verse that has greatly impacted your life and the way you live it and how do you apply it to your life everyday?
--My favorite saying is " What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." It only works though if you really really learn from every bad  or sad thing you go through in life. Instead of dwelling over it.  Like for instance when my mother moved and I stayed here, our relationship pretty much wasn't as strong as it used to be. I used to let that effect me everyday, but I learned shes happy, I'm happy, and life goes on.  It made me more independent and stronger. Or lets see, when I finally left the father of my children.  After years of on and off unhappiness and him cheating, I finally left! It didn't kill me, only made me stronger! I apply it every day. I have to remember that even though there are some people put into my life that I wish weren't here, they're here so that I can learn how to deal with them and in the end it will make me a stronger and better person. If I keep doing whats right instead of blowing up, I know nothing and no one can destroy me. That proves I am strong.

Do you think after our husbands have been buried (you know we’ll live longer than them), our kids have made their own families, and we are all alone that we will sit on the porch of the house we will share and reminisce about the good ol’ days?
--Duh! Well unless we both get Alzheimer's...That would be sucky. Don't forget all my cats! Remember I used to tell you I was going to be that old lady with a million cats.  :) Well,  I think you know what I would talk about if we were reminiscing. I still talk about it to this day. (Hint: While we were in Lowes Labeling different screws family titles like, momma screw,daddy screw, EVIL screw, Bwahhahaha!) . Our boyfriends pretended they weren't with us. LOL Those were the funniest moments that I think I will always talk about it.

So I've been missing you on Facebook! Are you missing it? Why did you deactivate your account and when are you coming back??
--HAHA....um no! I dont miss Facebook. I miss the friends I made on there, but the drama I dont miss. Some people should be banned from it.  I deactivated it because some people think they have the right to post what ever they want, but If they dont like what you post they get upset and start problems. I probably wont be coming back. I haven't even really thought of Facebook. So nope!

How did you like letting my readers get a glimpse into your mind? Would you do it again?
--Well, since they weren't really personal questions, it was kinda fun! I could write pages about some of them, but I wont. :) I would definitely do it again, as long as you and your readers don't think I'm too boring. LOL You know I am!

Thanks so much for doing this! Lets talk about maybe you doing a monthly guest spot! I think it would be so fun!
--You're welcome! Well honestly, I thought you would think I was lame. LOL  But anyways, I'll think of some stuff to write about, maybe you can give me some ideas.

I hope you enjoyed that as much as I did!
Talk to you soon,
J