My Love Affair with Skateboarding....

Im not exactly sure when I feel in love with skateboarding. We have had a long road together. Skateboarding first entered my life when I was 8yrs old. Sent to my class to sit in the corner most days due to being the class clown. Little did I know that skateboarding had lost its daddy and was trying to figure out who and what it should be. Skateboarding was cute even then with curly hair and jeans. Skateboarding and I saw bits and pieces of each other as the years went by all the way into highschool. Skateboarding was coming into its own and stayed out of the troubles of drugs and fighting like its peers by spending most days and nights at the skatepark. God was protecting skateboarding even then and it didnt know it.

Skateboarding and I lost touch for a couple of years. After my grandfather died I guess God was ready for our paths to cross again. I stopped at the gas station before heading back to good ole Orange Texas and saw a blue Honda on rims with music BLARING out of the speakers and a cute dark haired beautifully tanned face staring out of the window...it was skateboarding. It asked me for my number and I asked how its mom was doing and replied I could take its number (a lady cant appear too eager). I called skateboarding two weeks later and its mom answered. We talked for a while and I left my number for skateboarding. Skateboarding called me that night at MIDNIGHT....really!!?? I told skateboarding it needed to call me back during normal hours and hung up! Skateboarding must have been up for the challenge because it called back the next day at 11AM. Asked me out and we were literally inseparable from that day on. Skateboarding was fun, intelligent,smart,sweet and kept me laughing until I was in tears most days. I learned at the age of twenty what a best friend was, is and should be. 

On our first real date skateboarding took me to Galveston and as we waited for the heat of the day to pass we ate chilli cheese fries and butter finger blizzards. A year later skateboarding brought me back to that same spot and ordered the same food and put my ring under my fries tray when I went to the bathroom and asked me to be its wife. 

It will be 15 years in four months that skateboarding has been in my life. We have grown up together, been through valleys, peeks, arguments, extended grace to each other and took it back only to extend it again. Ive watched skateboarding excel in the oil and gas field with no college degree (well at the end of august skateboarding will have its degree in marketing...I know skateboardings daddy is smiling down on him). We have encouraged each other when no one else did or would. Skateboarding accepts me just the way I am... loud mouthed, aggressive, emotional and impulsive ole me. Encourages all my many hobbies and made me a mama of two crazy kiddos. I still dont know when I feel in love with skateboarding but I know that I love skateboarding with every beat of my heart and know that skateboarding was created just for me! Thank God for the gift that I call my love.

~Mark 10:9

Yuckies or Yummies...Which one will you choose???

I recently had the pleasure of attending a Women Of Faith conference in San Antonio. It was an AWESOME experience. There was worship music and Christian speakers. One of the speakers Marcus Buckingham, who really wasn't one of my favorites, but his message(or my interpretation of) has been in my head big time! So..when the hamsters run in their wheel I blog!

He talked about strengths and weakness a little bit differently than I'm used to thinking of them. He gave us a verse from Psalms 18:32, God gives me strength and makes my way perfect. He then went on to define strengths and weaknesses. Strength, as success where you feel effective. Things you delight in. He went on to give these explanations. A strength is something that makes you feel stronger after you complete the task. It energizes you. A weakness, on the other hand, is something that physically drains you- in other words, you may very well be good at a particular task or skill, yet when you complete it, it leaves you more tired than when you started."

So from this talk I'm gathering a whole other thought process. I started looking at everything around me. From my hubby, my children, my activities and friendships. All from the aspect of things I think negatively (draining to me) to things I think positively (delight in) about. I started thinking what if I CHOSE to be Strong, delight in and enjoy things instead of being weak, drained or depleted by things??!! What would happen.

With Bj...my sweet man....however...there are somethings he does that I want to grab him and SHAKE him till I feel better..lol! He loves to play as WILD and as RUFF as he can with the kids. If it is 8:30pm he has them in a LOUD tizzy in the hallway or in their bedrooms. Sometimes I can tolerate it, most times I'm a bit annoyed and wanting things to be quiet. The louder they get, the more annoyed I get. NOW...I'm thinking about this from a weak or draining perspective. What would happen if I turned it around and tried to view it as a strength..something I enjoy..or even as something I am thankful for?? I enjoy being the wife of a man who enjoys playing with our children. He could be an absent dad  or a not now dad and that would really make me sad. So instead of shaking him, I go down the hall and hug him, love on him and tell him thank you for playing with our children and giving them time. I probably would go to bed less drained and less annoyed...MAYBE..WORTH A TRY!

Sweet Garrett and Emily...parenting these two can be AT TIMES a task I want to run from..lolol~ They are opinionated, demanding and disobedient at times. They are also loving, sweet and respectful at times. So..when times get tough, which will I think about? Which behavior will I concentrate the most on? If I focus on their endearing qualities, even when they are being not so dear. I just might be able to move past and help them move past certain behaviors. Motherhood can be a VERY draining task but it is VERY rewarding task also. So will I choose to view it as a strength or weakness???

My activities..the first thing that came to mind was housework and laundry! Why oh Why does our mind always float towards the weakness or the things that drain us? Instead of thinking about it as a negative thing, maybe Ill turn it around. Thank you God for the time to clean, for the house that I live in. We could be homeless with nothing to clean. Thank you for the laundry. It is signs of LIFE in my home. Thank you for the washing machine and the dryer. What if I was having to go to the laundry mat with two small kids. Makes the task more of a strength than a weakness.

Last but not least. Friendships or Relationships in general. We can delight in them or we can be drained by them. In this particular instance I feel the need to chose. I say this because in my opinion my hubby, children and housework are all things that have to be done. Friendships or other relationships outside of that are merely a choice. Now....I'm sure we all have those relationships that feel like Alaska....I'm talking about Alaska when its dark, cold and depressing...or...the hottest day of summer when you feel drained and thirsty and the nearest water fountain is a MILLION miles away!  Then there are those relationships that feel like fall...when the leaves are falling all pretty, with many colors, the wind is blowing and you are sitting outside watching your babies run and no one needs to potty and everyone is getting along!!! I don't know about you but I tend to focus on the draining ones. I don't know why. I want to fix them. I want to make them enjoyable. I figure I was brought into it for a reason so its my job to FIX it. All the while my fall beautiful day relationships are tended too but not as much. Why????? My papa used to tell me..Kia, do what you love and love what you do! So..I'm CHOOSING to focus on my beautiful fall day relationships and leave the hot, draining and dark ones to figure themselves out! It makes me happier in the end and is so much better for me!

Now..can we walk around basking in out strength, living in our effectiveness all the time...NO! Life was never promised to be easy. We have to address and deal with weakness sometimes. However for me and my house..we are choosing Yummies (how we describe good, healthy, happy things and strengths to Garrett and Emily) and leaving the Yuckies (sad and sometimes stressful) to consume less of our time. You have to CHOOSE to be fulfilled and positive. I feel like if I can choose it enough...IT JUST MIGHT START CHOOSING ME!!!


Philippians 4:8

The Lion

The bible refers to the devil in many ways. In 1 Peter 5:8 it talks about the enemy prowling around like a roaring lion...WOW! Ive been thinking about that this morning and what that means for me. I think sometimes we can look around and see the Devil attacking all at once..devouring like a lion. I think more times than not his approach is much slower. Let me explain. He will make us have many consecutive days of stress...in our marriage, with our children or in a relationship that God might have put in motion for HIS work. The stress in our marriage might make us start to feel unhappy..which then opens a TINY space for him to work even more. The stressed out mommy might start wondering if she really should be in the home with her children..cause if it is this stressful...then she cant take it. The relationship that was set in motion for good might be ruined by bad thoughts or by looking with our own eyes instead of Gods eyes.

We have had so many people around us rocked, shaked and turned upside down financially. Why?? They are all hardworking men. Men who get up EVERYDAY to support their families! I truly believe its the enemy. He wants our men to be weak, to fill abandoned and discouraged, so hopeless that they begin to seek pleasure in things they shouldnt or just beat themselves up. Our saviour wants none of this. He wants us to know that we are GOOD. That we are always safe with him. While we know these things...its hard sometimes to stay focused when the attack is so present and we are in the throws of anguish and hardship!

Marriages....I dont think there is enough time or typing space to talk about how the devil is trying to ruin families. He sends broken people who are easily led, looking to be fufilled and not really strong in who can be all those things for them and in that split second...vows are broken, families are destroyed and generational curses are fufilled and sometimes started. Why???

Suicide is so prevalent right now! Bj and I know at least EIGHT...yes EIGHT families..including our own who have been shaken by this. Why??? If you look back at the slow process....Being layed off from your job, the loss of a marriage, finances gone down the drain....he moves SLOWLYYYY. Without a strong faith and understanding of who we really serve...HOPELESSNESS AND DOOM take over...and a life is gone!!!

So..what do we do? How do we help? This is what has been resonating with me lately. Make sure the word gets out about church..I dont care what denomination you are. Lead people to your church. God will take care of the rest. Love your spouse. If he is having a ruff day...STOP..the dishes, the cleaning, if you are tired pray for a boost of energy..hug him..tell him it will be alright and pray with him!!! YOU CANNOT CONTAIN THE POWER OF A PRAYING CHRISTIAN!!!(Becoming a Woman of Worth..Becky Drace) Dont be afraid to lift your hubby up..even when you are low...God will give you the strength to do so!!! Remember...our men mirror Christs STRENGTH..we mirror his EMOTION!! Mommies...we are each others BIGGEST source of help. Bring a meal, offer to keep even with the most rowdiest kid..lolol..heck if you cant take it send them to my house..they will fit right in!!! We have got to band together and become such a strong house for those who are hurting that just as with speaking in tongues the devil will not be able to understand or figure out how to attack us. There has been a song playing in my head over and over again lately. It makes me feel unstoppable in this time of spiritual warfare...I hope it speaks to you too!

What a busy last couple of days!

Bj has been on his four days off since friday! We have been so busy! Thanks to my mom and a special friend we were able to go out thursday and friday night and spend some much needed time together! We have had birthday parties and lots of other things going on...we are getting ready to head to church in a little while. I promised some of my Happy Mommy friends some yummy recipes sooooooo when we get back from church and things have gotten quiet (imagine that) I will post some of my favorites!! I have a LARGE binder of recipes from over the years so get ready....there will be lots more to come! I hope everyone has had a great weekend! I know we have!
Blog ya soon!
Kia~

Ten Years of Understanding and Grace! Happy Anniversary to my Love!!

Ten years ago today (well at 2:15) I married my sweet friend BJ! I say friend because thats what we were first, thats when I truly saw his heart and when I feel in love with him! We have been through the valley together, to the mountain top and back to the valley..lolol! Some days I look at him and envision my last name being BOBBIT instead of Babin..lolol! Im sure he has had OJ Simpson type thoughts of me! However we stuck it out. Through six years of infertility, the pure heart ache of wanting a baby and getting a big fat no month after month....but..we remained faithful and the lord of our life granted our wish. I look at him and think to myself why in the world does this man stay with ME..I'm loud, crazy, emotional and sometimes down right MEAN! I watch him with our children and my heart is happy I pray Garrett is half the man his daddy is! He isn't perfect but he tries and to me he is the world..and to our children he hung the moon and the stars. Its so funny how we went from the couple in the picture below...operating on pure animal attraction, lust and the infatuation stage to who we are now. A couple with a deeper understanding, bigger hearts, adults (we were married when I was 21), stronger and the animal attraction is still there if Ive had more than five hours of sleep..hahaha! He called me today from work and said ..Happy Anniversary Love, I cant afford to buy you a blue diamond(inside joke) but I know my heart would be blue if I didn't have you! Then came the water works..melted my heart when he said that! Marriage is one of the TOUGHEST things next to parenting. I say this because its falling in love, discovering new things, long talks, fighting, fussing, cooking, cleaning and understanding...all with the same person, day after day!? Serious stuff and requires commitment!! Ive known Bj since the third grade. His mom taught religion and history at the school we went to. Who knew that back then the curly head boy in tight wranglers would be MY BABY DADDY..LOL! Someone once told me that love is a choice. Well I choose to love you William Babin all the days of my life..and I hope you choose to keep me forever! Well better get off the computer and find something to wear....we are headed out tonight and tomorrow night ALONE..WITHOUT KIDS...YIPEEEEE!! So excited for talking and time with the love of my life! Happy Marriages to everyone who reads this...pray about it, keep it, fight for it...ITS WORTH IT!!!
Kia~

Alert The Media.....There is a New Blogger In Town!!!

Okay! I have been a blog follower for a while now. Ive decided to join the world of blogging in hopes that the hamsters running the rat race in my mind will slowwww dowwwnnn! A little about me..lets see..Im a stay at home mom, I have two children and a husband. There in itself lies one of my many problems. Some where along the way I lost me. I have many titles but Im still trying to find Nikia!  My emotions were at times too much of a roller coaster for even my dear sweet parents to handle so off we went to find a name for it all and thats what we were given! Soooo strap on your seat belt people...because this will be parenting, wife-ing, friending, and churching all NIKIA STYLE!

Dont be afraid. Im happy most of the time. I cry alot! I have a great support system of family and friends and life is down right hilarious at times! I have a secret passion for women...let me clarify...I think women are a unique kind and we all struggle with so much of the same issues but for whatever reason we have trouble connecting on a deeper level! Could it be we are scared of judgment??Hmmmm!! Anyways..if I had one wish it would be that we could all be happy, fufilled, and secure in our own skin and be united as one helping each other along the way....MAYBE ONE DAY!? Please feel free to tell a friend about this blog! I want to give recipes, funny stories and just have fun with this. Wish me luck!

Kia~