Congratulations & Recommendations!

March 17, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

Happy Monday!!

I don’t know about your particular neck of the woods, but here in Georgia, it’s dark and stormy outside – DEFINITELY THE KIND OF MONDAY THAT MAKES GOING TO WORK MORE DIFFICULT THAN USUAL!

So let’s cheer things up around here a little bit! First, we have a winner!

Congratulations, Peggy O’Flaherty (an appropriate name for St. Patrick’s Day!!) of Creating Space In Your Life on winning our giveaway for a One-Year Free Subscription to iParent.tv! Please contact us to claim your prize!!

And now for the recommendations! This week, we have two:

Son Of God (2014) You must go see this movie, and if you’ve already seen it, invite others. We saw this film last night and were both physically moved by it – tears pouring down in the theatre and all. It is POWERFUL, folks.

“On Purpose” by Alan Mushegan, Jr. We have been doing a bit of weekly moonlighting with a non-denominational church in our area the past couple weeks. Two of our very best friends attend the services weekly at Full Turn Church, and two weeks ago, I begin accompanying on Wednesday evenings for praise and worship. Craig came with me last week, and it was an amazing experience. It’s where I discovered this song:

(I thought it might be beneficial for y’all to see/hear a version with lyrics…I hope it gets stuck in your head! Just sing along and praise the Lord!)

Anyways…. The pastor at Full Turn Church wrote the book above, and gave Craig and I free copies when we visited… I have just delved in…but I urge you… READ THIS BOOK. It is so full of God’s Word and hope….Here is a quote:

With the right perspective, every error or mistake will give us a deeper sense of purpose – an opportunity to learn and grow. Why? Because in God’s eyes we are never failures.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve made some big mistakes along the way and reading this gives me peace. He backs this logic up with Romans 8:28:

And we know all that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.

Whatever has happened in your past; whatever you’ve done; wherever you came from; no matter the trial you’re going through right this second… God is ALMIGHTY and He can use ANYTHING and ANY SITUATION for His purpose. How awesome!?!?

So there ya have it, people. Read this book and Watch that movie. It’s an order.

We hope to see you back here soon – Especially next Monday…We have an amazing deal for y’all!!! Keep in touch and stay tuned!

We love you!

Food For Thought Friday

Spaghetti Popsicles & Other FOOD For Thought

March 14, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

This week, I was deeply affected by the quote below…and I wanted to share it with y’all.

“The meaning of earthly existence lies not, as we have grown used to thinking, in prospering but in the development of the soul.”

–Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Do a little bit of background research on Mr. Solzhenitsyn…Perhaps, you’ll be even more affected by his quote above…

And now for some Friday FUN for Thought!

Click The Picture – Dinner & Dessert In One?

YUCK!!! Would any of you eat that???

and

I can totally relate because I do the exact same thing – with sneakers, too! Wondering if I’m alone?

and

{Open this post in a browser to see the video below.}

One of the songs on our playlist right now… 😉 Colton Dixon performed this song at WinterJam this year and I think it’s a really wonderful worship tune.

Be blessed this weekend!

We’ll return on Monday – St. Patrick’s Day! – with a WINNER for the giveaway! So today is your LAST DAY to enter to win! Check back here for the details!

Thirsty For Christ Thursday

What Spiritual Gifts Has God Blessed & Specially Endowed YOU With?

March 13, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

In the spirit of Lent, have you thought about discerning God’s true calling for your life on Earth?

We weren’t put here to watch television and trudge back and forth to our offices everyday, surely! So, what gifts did God bless you with to be of service to His Kingdom?

Take this short quiz, and gain some insights:

Spiritual Gifts Test

I was graciously given by God:

Teaching
Knowledge
Evangelism

What about you? When you discovered your results, were you surprised?

And the bigger question, will you take this information, prayerfully, to the Lord, and ask Him how you can better serve Him?

What's Up Wednesday

Philipians 3:14

March 12, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

It has been non-stop since Friday last week. We told you we had an adventure of sorts planned and we weren’t lying!

The whole plan was to fly out to North Dakota for the weekend, visit Craig’s old stompin’ ground, and go to a University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux hockey game – and that’s precisely what we did! 🙂 Our weekend was just a tad bit more audacious than we had originally planned…

We met at the airport around 4pm and tried to get out to Minneapolis…After running around from the T Concourse to the A Concourse and back, we realized neither Minnesota nor North Dakota were happening tonight! Everything was booked – overcrowded and oversold, at that.

Off to spend the evening in Madison, Wisconsin – for which Priceline came in handy! We were able to find a decent hotel with an airport shuttle at the very last minute!

Luckily, this hotel even sold beer, wine & champagne at the reception desk (You gotta love Wisconsin!) – which Craig and I happily enjoyed once we got settled in for the night! We thought we’d had a crazy, fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants trip already…Little did we know…

THe next morning, we caught the hotel shuttle back to Madison’s airport and easily made it to Minneapolis on the first flight out. Whew. But…we didn’t make it on the flight to North Dakota…So we decided to drive…for five hours…in this:

Hatchback cars are a long-running joke between Craig & I, and when he first mentioned we may have to drive the last leg of our journey, I laughed that we might have to drive an “egg” car… Craig said, “No!” He had booked a compact – similar to a 4-door Ford Focus!

I collapsed in a fit of giggles when I saw we were making the trek in this little beauty – a Ford Fiesta. Good thing we didn’t have the furs with us…My goodness, we’re relatively small people and we barely fit with our two carry-on bags and my purse. Cue CLAUSTROPHOBIA.

As usual, we had a BLAST in the car, singing along to songs on a playlist I made quickly on Spotify. This is one I THOROUGHLY enjoyed at Wednesday night church with our friend Julia last week, and it was my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE in our road trip mix!

Oh, I LOVE that song!!!! And I can’t tell you how AWESOME it was in person…Wow.

But back to our journey!

We finally arrived in Grand Forks, North Dakota and checked into our little hotel.

We had dinner at the Blue Moose Bar & Grill – It was DELICIOUS!!!

We also had drinks at Whitey’s Wonderbar – and they had the spiciest and yummiest Bloody Mary I have ever had!

I had a special little skirt made on Etsy at the Preppy Pink Shop for the game, and found a coordinating green and black L.L. Bean shirt for Craig to wear. We may have been the only two people in the arena not wearing a jersey…But I just had to bring a little bit of the South to the Midwest. One does NOT wear a jersey to an SEC Football game, for sure! 😉 As a matter of fact, I’m not even sure I’ve ever worn jeans. Probably some of the cutest outfits I wear all year long are worn to Georgia Bulldogs football games!

The game was alot of fun! It was my first hockey game, and while I wasn’t sure what was going on most of the time, it was certainly more exciting to watch than some sports!

Unfortunately, UND lost to Western Michigan that night…But we still really enjoyed ourselves!

The next day, we got up early and enjoyed a beautiful Mass at St. Michael’s Catholic Church.

And then we headed back on the road for our five-hour journey in the Fiesta back to the Minneapolis airport…Only to NOT make it out on the last flight…And that’s another blog post all on it’s own!

By this point, we were a little bit grumbly…

But we made it – by the SKIN OF OUR TEETH – to our last alternate – Kansas City, Missouri! And again…Priceline came in handy! We even managed to wrangle a Sheraton for the night, complete with a restaurant, a shuttle and a super comfortable bed – for a steal!!

We finally caught a flight out of Missouri and made it back to Atlanta on Monday…We both collapsed as soon as we had a home-cooked meal on our stomachs, and slept long and hard! I felt as if we had run a marathon!!!!!

Which made Philipians 3:14 come to mind:

Philippians 3:14

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Things aren’t always smooth sailing…but we must finish the race and press onward toward the goal, the prize.

Until tomorrow…. 3 more days til this giveaway is over!!! “Follow” our blog officially to enter, or if you already follow us, comment below “Done.”.

Lots of Love!

My Choice Monday · TTC Tuesday

Mixed-Bag Monday/Tuesday

March 11, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

{view this post in a browser to see the attached video}

Maybe you noticed we didn’t post yesterday… Well, if you knew we were flying stand-by this past weekend, you might have guessed why we were missing…

Today’s post is a special supplement: a list of essentials to bring to the airport, just in case you’re flying stand-by:

First, and foremost, you will need to bring the biggest bag of PATIENCE you can find!!! You may not make it on the first flight you sign-up for…You may not even make it on the second…You might have to devise an alternative plan altogether! The key is to stay calm and think of the whole thing as the adventure it is.
A car charger for your phone… Oh, but you’re not planning to drive anywhere? Ha, ha, my friend. You just never know when a five-hour drive might show up on the horizon, and there you are…in an unfamiliar vehicle with an almost-dead phone and no method of charging it.
An account on Priceline – You just never know when you’ll need to book a last minute hotel room at your last minute destination as you’re running down the jetway…Priceline specializes in last minute bookings, and if you do your research, you can get a great hotel for the price of a scary hotel by using their bidding tool!
Your very best friend. What kind of adventure is fun when you don’t have someone to share all of the frustration, laughs, and sites with?!?! Besides, so many crazy things happen, no one else will believe it, but your travelling buddy!

Visit us tomorrow for a full recap of our crazy weekend!! If you’ve never seen the 1980’s classic “Planes, Trains, & Automobiles“… maybe you should watch it first for reference! 🙂

Don’t forget to enter the giveaway! This is the last week! You only have until Friday to enter to win the FREE ONE-YEAR SUBSCRIPTION TO iPARENT.tv! Today, all you have to do is enter your (confidential) information in the form below:

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Food For Thought Friday

Dream The Impossible Dream

March 7, 2014March 7, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed LefebvresLeave a comment

Happy Friday! Today open this post in a browser because we have a ton of thought-provoking information for you, and a lot of it is via video. You’ll want to watch. Trust us. 🙂

Some food for thought…

Isn’t that what childlike faith is all about?

Luke 18:17

17 I tell you the truth, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”

In other Food For Thought Friday News…

A 30,000 YEAR OLD VIRUS HAS BEEN REVIVED?!?!?! {click the picture for the link to the article} I don’t know about y’all…but that one should make you THINK!

And these two are just for fun…

Um…is it just me, or is that not SUPER cool?!?! That’s actually a current “concept” Pizza Hut is considering…Now if only the place had gluten-free pizza…

This next one freaks me out a little bit…The whole concept… But I want your opinion…Would you go?

The father…I just don’t understand how you could live with yourself… I really don’t…Did that bother you, too?

What are your overall thoughts after watching that documentary… I was very provoked by it…Made me think about how we should feel that way about Earth, since as Christians we are aliens in a strange land…

And finally, this Chevy commercial just made me cry right here at my desk.

All I could think about was our sweet fur-babies… Oh, pets are SUCH a blessing!

Have a great weekend boys and girls! Craig & I have a super fun excursion planned for the next couple days! Tune in next week for all the details! 😉

*Enter the giveaway! You have until March 14th! Today, Like us on Facebook & then comment below “Done.”, for one entry. If you don’t have Facebook or already “like” our page, follow our blog, or comment on ANY ONE OF OUR POSTS for a chance to win – EACH COMMENT IS ONE ENTRY!!! Good luck!*

Thirsty For Christ Thursday

The Lenten Edition: The #3030 Challenge

March 6, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

Welcome to the (first) Lenten Edition of Thirsty For Christ Thursday! For all of you Catholic folks out there, you (should) know all there is to know about Lent; however, I know when I converted from Protestantism to Catholicism, I was a little bit lost. So for any of you who are a bit mystified by this season preceded by Mardi Gras and ending with Easter, the videos below should help to clear things up:

Catholic or Protestant, Lent is a great time to get into a new habit…Make it last for 40 days and take it beyond! This year, I am giving up meat, carbs & sugar (along with the low-sugar, & no gluten diet I already follow). Many people ONLY take away (or fast from a practice) during Lent; however, Craig & I feel it is important to also ADD something to your lifestyle. This year, we are adding daily Bible study as a couple, as well as something I only heard about the other day…something that fits this season SO WELL, I’m sure God revealed it to me to share with you!

Let’s give God 30 Days!

Isn’t that the VERY LEAST we can do?!?!

Join this challenge with Craig & I, and pledge to read and study your Bible for at least 30 minutes per day, for 30 days in a row!

30 minutes?!?!?! That’s one episode of 2 Broke Girls or Mike & Molly!

Surely, you can manage that!

Philippians 4:8-9

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

Let the song below BLESS YOU, and kick off your Lenten season with a bang!

What's Up Wednesday

What’s Up (With The Ashes?) Wednesday

March 5, 2014March 5, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres6 Comments

Today is Ash Wednesday, which begins the season of Lent – a time for us to do some spiritual spring cleaning and focus on the Lord – we will focus a lot more on Lent and what it really is all about tomorrow. 🙂

Ash Wednesday is one of my favorite days of the Liturgical Calendar. Why? Because it gives us an opportunity to truly wear our hearts on our sleeves. Even wearing a cross around your neck could be taken for granted in today’s society. It could be just a fashion statement, or even a mockery. However, wearing a black smudge of ashes on your forehead is noticed. And thus, a wonderful opportunity to share a small part of your faith.

My personal tradition (since Craig is never in town for Ash Wednesday) is to wake up early (now, I’m typically up and out so early it felt late!) and go to the 6:55AM Mass at a church close to my office, and head to work afterwards. I cannot tell you what an amazing (hidden) opportunity this is! It’s 1:45pm in the afternoon and I have had no less than fifteen conversations about Ash Wednesday and Lent and the meaning of it all since I arrived at the office at 7:55AM – and these were both in the office and when I headed out for a quick bite of tuna salad around lunch time.

If not enlightening others about the meaning behind the ashes, it is discovering others in your place of work or around town who share your Christian faith. Community is a wonderful thing, and you don’t have to be Catholic to participate in Lent or Ash Wednesday. Head to a service right now!

Like I said, more tomorrow on Lent! Don’t miss it!

In other newlywed news, I’ve been ramping up my workout by adding in two days of cardio every week, in addition to 3 days of Pure Barre. I’m getting very very addicted to exercise – a concept I never thought I would understand!!!! If I can get excited about working out, any one can. Trust me. There is hope for us all!

Most of our other time this past week was spent with the furs – as usual – when we weren’t at work or working out:

Our little Lucy is a mama’s girl and she does NOT realize she is enormous and no longer a puppy! She is such a big girl nowadays she literally steps up onto the couch and lays down on top of me – and that’s the end of it. ZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzz! and not a thing we can do about it! (And we wouldn’t have it any other way!)

Just look how much she’s grown!!!! This was taken just a year ago!

And finally, on Saturday, we went to LaGrange and had our hair done (Yes, Craig too!) 🙂 . Then we had a sweet visit with my grandmother, Mama Dee, and ended up going to dinner with my parents.

Pardon my red eyes! 🙂

We ate at The Farmhouse At Serenbe, and it was such a wonderful experience! I wish we had taken a picture with my lovely parents, but I think we were too mesmerized by the dessert to think about such things! Yum!

*Don’t forget about our giveaway! iParent.tv graciously donated this free one-year subscription to us, and we can’t keep it for ourselves! Maybe you know parents who could benefit? Enter to gift the subscription to them! Today – All you have to do is comment below. ANY (NICE) COMMENT AT ALL – wins you one entry!*

Join us tomorrow for our first Lenten Edition of Thirsty For Christ Thursday, and right now – head to an Ash Wednesday Service near you!

Oh, and one more thing! CLICK THE IMAGE for a beautiful and FREE Lenten devotional by the amazing Ann Voskamp, brought to you free of charge by Ann herself at A Holy Experience.

Your Devotional Is At The Bottom Of Her Blog Post – But Make Sure You Read That Too! How Beautiful!

Until tomorrow y’all,

Monica at Equipping Catholic Families

Equipping Catholic Families on Facebook

Chris at Campfires and Cleats

Campfires and Cleats on Facebook

Tina at Truly Rich Mom

Truly Rich Mom on Facebook

Tracy at A Slice of Smith Life

A Slice of Smith Life on Facebook

TTC Tuesday

Warning! This Post May Be Controversial…

March 4, 2014March 4, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres1 Comment

You know…sometimes as a Catholic fertility-challenged couple, life is hard – especially so. We get e-mails frequently, more than some of you might imagine, and one question people always seem to ask is:

Why don’t you try IVF?

Yikes…This question is always a touchy one to answer, so here is a general Catholic-doctrine-based answer to all of you who have asked – or may be wondering, silently:

In Vitro Fertilization – Why Not?: A refresher on the Church’s teaching

This is not to say I/we condemn or judge anyone who chooses this solution for conception and infertility; however, I certainly have an issue with “cafeteria-style values and religion”, and the Catholic church teaches against this option…and we are Catholic Christians…

When I was allowing God to lead me to my husband via Catholic Match, there was a section in the profile in which you chose which parts of the faith you believed?!?!?! How can you SAY you’re a Catholic and not practice all the tenets of the faith? You cannot pick and choose which parts of a religion or values system you will follow! It’s all or nothing!

The point is:

If you’re going to label yourself, you must practice what you preach!

Trust me, there have been millions of times during this year and a half when I have considered just taking that route. But if we are going to be Catholics, we are going to be Catholics 100%.

Fin.

Fortunately, we were blessed with two reader e-mails recently informing us of some Catholic-friendly options for infertility we weren’t even aware of! How could we not share?

Snowflake Adoption

Naprotechnology

Even if pursuing IVF is something you are currently involved with, perhaps these additional options would be worth looking into, as well. At any rate, as Christians -Catholic or Protestant – we know that all good things come from above:

James 1:17

17 All generous giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change.

If you are infertile, the most important thing you can do is to pour your heart out to God. If you are NOT infertile, praying for understanding and compassion, and for the Lord’s Will to be done in the lives and marriages of the infertile is so important.

Mark 10:27

27 And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

Pray. For with God, nothing is impossible.

*Don’t forget to enter the giveaway!!! Today, you can TWEET our blog link (use #newlywedlefebvres and @QuiteThePair in your tweet) or you can comment “Enter My Name” in the blog comments section – Doing both, or all 3 if you include yesterday’s chance, will grant you one submission for each ‘task’.

My Choice Monday

A New Giveaway!

March 3, 2014 The Not-So Newlywed Lefebvres6 Comments

Welcome back work week! Grrrr! 🙂

Weekends just aren’t ever long enough, are they? My 4AM alarm to get up and head to my nemesis, the elliptical machine, came WAY too early this morning. I could have sworn I had JUST closed my eyes…In any event, Monday is upon us! And that means…it’s MY CHOICE!

We are so grateful to begin this week with ANOTHER giveaway! That’s right, folks!

iParent.TV Subscription Giveaway!

iParent.tv has graciously donated a one-year subscription (valued at $49) to giveaway to one lucky reader! While Craig & I aren’t parents (yet), we recognize that some of you are, and we couldn’t wait to share this awesome deal and opportunity with you!

All you have to do to enter to win is watch the video below & comment in our “Comments Section”, posting about what you think the best part of the iParent.tv platform is!

Each household is only eligible to win One (1) Subscription to iparent.tv. Only one entrant per mailing address per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you will not be eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

Good luck, parents!! 🙂

Don’t forget! Lent begins this week! What will you be giving up? What will you be adding to your daily faith walk? Take this opportunity to do some spiritual spring cleaning, and grow closer to the Lord. You won’t regret it one single bit!

Join us again tomorrow for a hope-filled TTC Tuesday!