Gosser Mafia's Call Me Maybe!

Here it is!!  The Official Releasing of the Video!!!  Hope you enjoy it!

blah... the giveaway.

Okay Guys I am so disappointed!  haha I had 35 blog views (not including those of you that view my blog on Google Reader) and I had only 1 comment during the week of the giveaway.  Now in a week we are trying this again with the  SOUTHERN SWAP BLOG HOP! and I need you all to participate out there in the blogosphere! However, there is ONE winner!!!  

Ms. Raygan Sylvester!  Congratulations on winning and thanks for posting and tweeting my blog!  You will be receiving a nice treat in the mail later this week!   For all of you other slackers... ;) Just Joking!  Please keep reading and enjoying my blog posts!    

Back to Basics GIVEAWAY!

I thought today that I would reminisce on the beginnings of CharmedBliss.  The good ole' Cupcake Days!!!  I am going to do a cupcake giveaway with this one (see if this giveaway stuff really works)!  So here is how we play.   1. Post a comment on your favorite cupcake 2. Follow me (If you aren't already following) 3. Tweet my blog link www.charmedbliss.blogspot.com and your favorite cupcake  **don't forget to tag me in the tweet @abby_turner 4. The winner will be drawn on Sunday and will win.....  An Armful of Lily and Laura bracelets - because I every time I see fun colors it reminds me a cute cupcakes and how delicate and yummy they are!!!!

Here we go!!! 

 Which one is your favorite?! I think I will have the Cinnamon Pumpkin Cupcake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting and the Pumpkin Coffee Cake Crumble on the top!!!  YUM!

The Negative

What is film used for?  It is a tiny ribbon of amber material that captures an image forever.  I recently found photo negatives of my mom when she was a child.  Now I am not saying that was FOREVER.. but it was a long time.  The negatives still have the pictures that were imprinted on them nearly 50 years ago.  That's how our thoughts and our minds are.  That is how humans operate.  We hear something, see something, or act on something - and suddenly we begin to imitate that.  Just look at babies.  They aren't smart at 10 months old and just know that the two syllables ma-ma and dada mean Mommy and Daddy.  They are imitating you repeating it over and over to them.  They are wanting that approval from you.  Imitation is the highest form of flattery - but can also be the highest form of destruction.  

God has been teaching me a lot lately about myself and who I am becoming.  There are people that I surround myself with, TV shows that I watch, and things that I read that are not pure and virtuous. They are things that are bringing me down.  If you have noticed - I haven't been blogging about my relationship with my Savior lately.  It has been about me.  It has been about what I am doing.  Not about what the Lord is teaching me or doing in or around me.  

This morning my mom brought a magazine in my room.  It is the recent issue of self.  I buy women's health, shape, and self to make myself feel athletic.  Being athletic is one of the things I strive to be one day in my life, yet I know I will never achieve.  I buy these magazines because the front cover "motivates" me to look like that - yet it is virtually unattainable.  These models are models because they are genetically born with a perfect metabolism, a great bone structure, and they were found at the perfect time.  Okay - maybe they aren't born perfect and have eating disorders and tons of problems - but looking at them, not only makes me insecure, it makes me wish I was them and become unsatisfied with how God made ME.  

But what is one thing that these magazine have in common.  Here is the breakdown of what is inside of them:

I have been praying about it - but as all immature people say, "It's not going to effect me!  I am a bigger person than this - I am a Christian and I can read and watch and talk like this and not be effected." 

20% Nutrition

5% Recipes

35% Workout Routines/Articles

40% Relationship and Sex Advice.

Now out of those things... I want most of all the Workout Routine portion - but am I getting any of that out of these magazines?  No.  I am getting more information about sex and ungodly relationships than anything!  That is ridiculous!  Why am I filling my mind with things like this when the Bible EXPLICITLY warns me about this:

Mark 7:20-23 says:

²⁰ He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. ²¹ For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder,²² adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. ²³ All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”

What you behold you become.  Your life is like a piece of photographic film.  

The eyes are the window of the soul.  

Things that you see go into your eyes make an impression on your soul.  The things that you focus on long enough you eventually take on the characteristics of what you are looking like.

Check this out:

This is a perfect "secular" example of this idea.  Old married couples look like each other the more they age.  What they focused on for 10-20-50 years are the characteristics they are beginning to embody.  

This is my favorite one! haha

So I pose the question:

Only you can be honest with yourself. Don't wait the 47 days to New Years to make a change.  make a change now.  

The change might be hard.  It might involve changing your friend group, not watching the shows you watch, and it might even involve you meeting new people.  But it also means...

You get more time with you Heavenly Father!  And that is ALWAYS a good thing!

I want to let you know what sparked this blog post.  It was a video that I watched several nights ago of one of my friends Dorothy Shepherd and her wedding that took place a few months ago.  (Click on the picture to watch the video)

It reminded me of the relationship, the man, and the love that I want to share and reciprocate one day.  It is a love that stems from Jesus - a love that can only be found if you seek HIM out and cultivate that relationship day in and day out.  

blog hop

go check out my blog hop page at the top of my page!   It's happening in a few short weeks!! And the best part - we are having a prize drawing!   How can you win?

1. Read our blogs (listed on the blog hop)

2. Comment on your favorite (or several favorite)

3. Tweet #SouthernSwapBlogHop and put a link to the Blog Hop in the tweet

>> http://charmedbliss.blogspot.com/p/blog-hop.html

4. Check back to the Blog Hop Page to see if you won!!  

We are going to set you and your favorite Blogger up with a special Christmas Treat to get you ready for Christmas time!!

Looking forward to the Blog Hop on December 2

A Marathon of Information....

I have been working at UCA and making my self quite at home.  I absolutely love the people that I work with and wanted to show you what we do at work.  Last week I made sure that Josh, the photog media guy, was fully aware of my Baylor Pride!  He was late to work (like I'm never late ha) and so I sticky noted his whole computer face!  And even drew some nice drawings on some of them!  Oh how I will miss this place... But I will be so happy to return to Baylor... to my family!
















I was driving last week, I really don't remember where we were going, but Baylor was in my lap and usually he puts his head down and sleeps, but in this instance - you can see how he has turned around and faced me and just watched me drive... obviously he was very tired as his eyes are half open. hehe

My sister was Sleeping Beauty in the school play and was absolutely adorable. She played the best little princess and I have to say I am very impressed at her acting skills.  So the baby of the family can dance, sing, and now she can act - what can't she do??  She can't do sports ;) haha - naa she could probably do that too.

She even had her first stage kiss!  It was a funny one too.  The prince went to kiss her lips and went for the forehead at the last minute and then she took matters into her own hands.  I would say she takes after me:)  Taking matters into her own hands - sounds like it came straight from my book of secrets hehe

After the play - we went to iHop and I had a hole in my tire.  So I promptly called AAA (thanks GrandMary and Papa) and had them come change my tire.  The guy was so nice!  He even taught me how to change it.  He said that it is as easy as pushing a few buttons, and of course picking up the tire, jacking up my car, and unscrewing the lug nuts! ha But the dinner at iHop was the best!  I had dinner with this cutie pie!  Little Miss Brynlee.  She wanted a happy face on her pancake so I got the honors of putting the yogurt hair on it! She was so very happy and a bit overwhelmed (that half-smile) when it came out - but she ate a lot of it, and to my surprise - did not like the whipped cream!  Who doesn't like whipped cream!  I know I LOVE it! 

Some more pictures from the play. Proud Sisters!

Proud Grandmothers!!!

(Molly Turner and Marianne Gosser)

Last Friday was Senior night at NLR - Alex (my cousin) is Number 24!  I was so proud of him!  I can't believe he is already a senior and graduating.  In fact, this Wednesday he is officially signing to play baseball with the University of Arkansas.  And one of my favorite parts of being home this semester has been getting to see him play football (and of course seeing my sisters in the play and dominate Tiger Tunes) but it is also been fun hanging out with my family.  Aunt Leigh Anna and I have a ritual of watching Revenge together every Sunday night - in fact - we are already planning Skype dates while watching it when I am in Waco!  Needless to say I love my family and we always have a great time together!!!

Have a blessed Monday!   I am preparing a Blog Hop for December - if you read my blog and want to be apart of it - please let me know!  I am sending out the information this week!

A Pumpkin and a Pirate

I have never been much of a fan of Halloween.  It has never really crossed my mind to dress up and I was always the one who never quite figured out that Halloween was the Holiday where girls got to dress up like hookers and look as scandalous as they could and not get in trouble for it.  I mean I remember one Halloween in high school where I was a witch - not a slutty witch or one with a short dress and fish-nets... it was the witch from the convent - totally dressed up like a nun.  That's me.  Good ole' naive Abby.  Maybe not so naive, haha, just oblivious!

So this Halloween, I decided to stay indoors.  It was a beautiful night and I had complete plans to go to the gym and work out - instead, I dressed Baylor up for the night and handed out candy.  I have noticed 2 things:

Girls dress up as the SAME THING!!  Barbies, cheerleaders, or princesses - whatever happened to creative consumes girls!!!  I think one year I was Miss America (prophecy??? - I think I was rudely mistaken!) I made my sash and pranced around in silver heels that were 5 sizes too big.  And pretty sure that was the year that Spice Girls were popular - so not only were the shoes too big, but they were like 6 nice platform.  Girls - you know what I am talking about.

Boy costumes are just terrible.  Some of the kids were just wearing old sports jerseys.  I did have a group of boys come around in Globetrotter Jerseys.  The costumes weren't that cute or creative, but I should have made them do a trick for me for a treat.  That is a novel idea!  A trick for a treat!  Not Trick OR Treat, but Trick FOR A treat! haha Let's get it started!!

I dressed Baylor up as a Pumpkin and he practically slept in the costume.  I am sure my little guy gets cold in the winter time so the big burly Pumpkin costume was most likely warm, however, he did NOT like that hat.  His ears are just too big for hats and the like.  But I wanted to get your opinion on something... Do you think that Dogs really do stay warm when they have dog clothes on? I think they do. :)

The next picture is of my cousin Jessica, Baylor, my mom, and I in front of our house!  She was a pirate.  Now that is what I call an adorable costume!!  She was the cutest pirate.  And as you know Jessica is quite the smart little sucker - and she even picked the costume out herself!  She watches Spongebob, probably more than any other child.. EVER! haha and she wanted to be a pirate like on Sponge Bob and had a sword and everything!  She loved her NOT ITCHY costume!  hehe






Then this last little gem is a framed picture I have in my room of my Grandfather and Molly Anne and I - I was probably about 5 in this picture and Alice in Wonderland.  I loved that costume - I think I wore it to school haha.