One of Life's Lessons Taught through a Horse

I can not believe we are almost through February! Where did all the time go? I feel as though my life is going by very quickly and I am just trying to keep up with it all.
One adventure that I would like to hi-light has been with going to Sandy Creek Bible Camp. This has been something that I have started to do every week for the last couple of months. They have 10 horses on property 8 that can be ridden. God has sort of dropped into my lap an amazing ministry with these horses. God has as all so used these horses to  minister to me. Let me explain...

Karen all prim and proper on her horse Rocky

Such a happy camper;)

 So first I have to say that I just need to laugh at myself! When I got engaged to Tyler I thought that would be the end of me working with horses. I even remember getting all teary eyed when I left Camp Redcloud, because I knew then that it would be the last time in a camp environment that I would get to serve God in this way. I remember crying this fall in despair of never getting to ride horses again. And then God moved us to Houston.
God knew I was going to need some place to minister to people using horses, and I believe He has brought that into my life. Sandy Creek is just a little camp located in Brenham. I would like to consider their herd of  horses to be a meager lot...but

Karen was cantering Rocky:)

diamonds in the ruff. I was a little skeptical as to how much I would be able to help this camp with their horses, but wow, God is!
What is even better about this whole thing, is that these horses are proving themselves good in the arena for my friends to come out and ride and for me to coach them as they ride. I am in my glory!!! To teach and fellowship with people is an awesome privilege!
Again I never thought I would be working with horses in this capacity, and yet here I am! Here are some pictures of our time:) My Mother-in-

Susanna on Blaze

  law Karen Kaminski and a friend Susanna  came and rode:)
As Susanna was riding one of the horses, Blaze, I sort of had a teachable moment come to me. Blaze is a great trail horse and a good horse to lead the trail ride. He has a routine however, that he doesn't think to kindly to being messed up.The routine goes as such: He goes out on the trail, he works, and then when he gets back he gets hitched up to the rail closest to the barn to rest. Seems like an innocent enough routine on the surface, until we bring working in the arena into his life. The first couple of times around, Blaze was great for Susanna. He did relatively what she asked of him, no problems. She asked him for trot and circles and all kinds of things. A little while in however, Blaze decided that it was time for the trail ride to be over. He was tired. So he parked at the rail. He became a stuck horse. She kicked and pulled and did everything in her power, and yet he ignored her. She would finally get him to move and they would make a lap and he would

 park himself again when they reached that wall. His actions seemed harmless enough, after all it was his routine, but it was still disobedience.
I am finding in my life right now that God is choosing to push me away from my comfort zone and away from my tight nit schedules. I find myself beginning to act like Blaze.
"But God! I know what my routine is, look I can be obedient in what I know to do...why do you want me to learn something new?" Just like Blaze I find myself stuck in monotony and complacency. God has so much more he wants to do through me than just to

That grin was really more of a "I'm gonna kill you if you don't move soon." kind of grin.

Notch, a smart horse with great potential!

have me be a run of the mill Christian. Just like I see Blaze being more than just the run of the mill Trail horse. I want him to succeed, to become more than what he is now.
God wants me to live an above average life. He wants me to live an extraordinary life for His glory. That requires me leaving at his throne my ideas of how things should be done. It comes down to trusting God. Do I have the faith it takes to trust that God has my best at heart?
I have been reading a book by Beth Moore called Praying God's Word.

I've been reading the chapter on Overcoming Unbelief. One of the verses encourages to pray back to God is Philippians 2:17. This is how she wrote it: "Lord Your word indicates that my willingness to make sacrifices and serve you faithfully flows from faith...Father, please help me understand the importance of faith in my walk with you."Our trusting Jesus has to come into play, if we are ever to allow Him to use us. It's amazing, when we let it all down at His feet He uses us.
After a while, I could tell Susanna was struggling, so I had her jump on my horse, Notch, and I took Blaze for a ride.

I had ridden Blaze not a week or two before, so I knew what he liked to do and where. Once I helped him get over his blockage of having to stop, it was like he was a different horse. I decided to push him and see what he could do. By the end we were doing Canter transitions from a stop. Such a beautiful thing. He surrendered what he thought he needed most, and I brought better things out in him than I thought were possible of him.
When all was said and done, When we let God take control, He may still work us and there may still be friction, but ultimately it is to bring our hearts into
harmony with Himself. So he can use us for greater things.

 So needless to say, I had an amazing time at Sandy Creek:)

One of the hardest things I have been pushing to do lately is run:P I found this work out online and decided to take the challenge. I have decided that at some moments...yes...I hate myself for doing it. But yet I love it. I love the feeling of knowing you sweated because you worked hard; or because you hurt because you did more than just was necessary.
This is the work out I am working toward:
Week 1: Run 1 min. walk 90 seconds
Repeat 8 more times. Do three times a week.
Week 2: Run 2 min. Walk 1 min.
Repeat 7 more times. Do three times a week.
Week 3: Run 3 min. Walk 1 min.
Repeat 6 more times. Do three times a week.
Week 4: Run 5 min. Walk 1 min.
Repeat 4 more times. Do three times a week
Week 5: Run 8 min. Walk 2 min.
Repeat 3 more times. Do three times a week
Week 6: Run 12 min. Walk 1
Repeat 3 more times. Do three times a week
Week 7: Run 15 min. Walk 1 min.
Run fifteen more min. Do three times a week.
Week 8: Run 30 min. Do three times a week.
I just finished week 3...Its tough, but I can feel myself getting stronger. My stamina is gaining and I know I am not the same woman I was a year ago. Praise God! God is so good to be strengthening me.
 The last little thing to say is just sort of something I am excited about.

Before...

 Our couch just didn't work in our living room. There was too much yellow, blue and brown...and the couch was an olive green. Thanks to the wonderful invention of slip covers, I got a chocolate colored two piece slip cover and I recovered all the pillows accept for one...and wow...it is like it is a totally different couch! It is amazing how such a little thing can make all the difference in the world! Very excited about my home improvement:)

After!!!!

Well I believe I am off to read for the evening. We just got our dog book in...I need to start reading quick! Our dog comes in just a couple of weeks:)
Well I hope that you are encouraged or inspired by my blog.
Love in Christ,
Jules

The cutest little donkey at Sandy Creek Bible Camp.

The Adventure of Growing and Making New Things

Happy Valentines Day everyone:)




Today I want to share of some of the ways that I have begun to learn to be thrifty.

I was reading on line about how to grow an avocado plant. Apparently it is very simple. Here is the website:)
http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/seed/2002114535011263.html

Here is the progress of both of mine. They have split and and soaking up water like crazy:) I hope to soon see some sprouts soon:)

 

I started cutting pieces of different ivy that I have around the house. They are growing like weeds:) I love growing things. I added a little blue dye to the water to make it blue...makes it nice and festive. 

 

This is one of the projects I took on when I saw some young saplings that had been cut down at Sandy Creek. They were going to burn them...I couldn't let that happen! So I brought them home and began the job of cutting and twisting them to make a curtain rod/ window decoration. It was alot of fun and it came out splendidly!

 The sapling wood story doesn't end with the window hanging. I decided to cover one of my candles with sticks. I thought it would look nice. It took a while to figure out the best way to get the sticks connected and secured...but the final product is as you see:) its rough and a little rustic, but I like it. I want the master bedroom to have that kind of  feel.

The next project I took on was really more of an experiment...I have had in the past your average rice or corn sack. I thought that why not make it smell good? So I added dried mint, spearmint, and other tea leaves in with a rice and corn mixture. The result was amazing! Every time you heat it up you get amazing refreshing smells. I used an old pair of jeans to make this one. I sowed sections in the fabric before i put the filler in there.

 I am excited about starting my first garden and learning to grow my own herbs instead of always buying them at the store. It is so much more expensive to buy herbs, and so easy to grow them, that it seems to be a no brainier when it comes to making it happen. I have Cilantro  here growing like a weed:) It looks beautiful!

 I am so excited about these chives too. I am in love with putting chives in every thing, so it will be good to have them on demand.


And lastly the best of them all, I have a strawberry pot that I am going to grow strawberries in. Why not??? It is so much fun to try to do new things. We will see what happens, but from what I have read, if you take good care of strawberry plants and keep them watered and fertilized they  will yield a good crop in this little pot. Since all I have is a porch, it seems like a good project to undertake. I just planted ten plants one in each hole. I am so excited to see if they grow! Wouldn't it be so cool to just walk onto the back porch and pick some strawberries or to make jam off of your own patch. I think that is just way to cool.

Well to finish off this inspiring do it yourself ideas, I wanted to end with a verse. 1 Peter 4:8 "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." Tyler and I picked this verse for our wedding day as well as to be our life verse together. We have to choose to love others the way Christ first loved us, not because of what they do for us or how much they love us...It says we are to love each other deeply. That's not just superficial, let me buy you flowers on valentines day love. That's deep in your face love. That is pursuing the other person no matter what they do or don't do, how they act or don't act. Christ loved us when we wanted nothing to do with Him. We despised Him and yet He pursued us. Should we not choose to love the same? Yeah I know its not hard. I understand that more and more as I see myself interact with my husband. I see the selfishness come out in me and the ugliness of my sin. Poor Tyler, I don't know how he can put up with me some times! When, however, we seek to love the other person as Christ does, as the verse concludes God gives us the grace to overlook the sin we see in others and learn to give grace and love them despite their sin.

Happy Valentines Day everyone! Recognize the people in your life and seek to love on them!

Soaring in the Air:)

 Welcome, Everyone to my first ever blog...It was inspired by my sister-in-law, Emily Savage, so I am planning on giving it a go. I plan to post anything from the food I make, to the adventures Tyler and I have, to the projects we do around the house:) i hope you enjoy the shared moments of our lives.Enjoy:)
I find it hard to believe that it is February...and almost Valentines Day:) Time seems to fly faster when your having fun...at least that is what they say;)
God has truly been blessing Tyler and I in so many ways. In church today the speaker was talking about remembering what God has done and choosing to praise Him and thank Him for the good things He does in our lives. I couldn't help but think of my dear husband and the relationship God has given me with my husband. Being married is so cool! And continually humbling.
I think of things material things that God has blessed us with: Two working cars, an apartment, a bed, table and chairs(If you knew how we ate before we had a couch, you would understand the joys of now having a table and chairs), we even have room in the living room to exercise(again it is the little things that bring joy to my heart!)...I am so thankful for what he does and is continuing to do in our lives.

Our newest addition to the family will join us in March:) We are getting a Flat Coated Retriever puppy. He is a boy and we are thinking of calling him Zed. These are several pictures of some of the boys we do not know which one is ours. We are getting excited though and beginning to prepare for the change in our lives...Who would have thought there were so many things that you have to get before actually getting the dog...:) It will all be worth it. I am sure we will continue to talk about our future pup in later blogs:)

For a early Valentines Day celebration, Tyler decided to surprise me with a crazy adventure. We drove 45 min to Sugarland to a private airport. There he surprised me with an airplane ride to Brenham, where we got burgers. Both Tyler and I got turned getting to drive the plane! We both took off. Wow...so much fun!

Captain Tyler Kaminski:) Learning to fly.

Ty couldn't be happier! He's been dreaming of flying a plane for forever!

Here we are with our Pilot instructor, a friend of Ty's from College. 

The View....wow...

I'm flying!

Up close to the river...Our pilot gave us a fun ride...

My First time trying to fly...Umm...a little nervous...It took the whole plane ride to Brenham for them to convince me to try!































We had a grand time:) 
In all I have to say God is good:) And I am excited to see what grand adventures God has in store for us in the future...I'll keep you posted:)
-Jules and Ty
P.S. I miss the snow...so that is why my back round it so snow like. I love winter:)


Happy Valentines Day!