Say that again!

It is late. I am exhausted but can't sleep, so why not write a blog post?!?! ;) 

Anyway, I have an addiction...to Pinterest. If you don't have an account you should sign up NOW!! It's full of fun ideas, tutorials, fashion tips and cool sayings. 

Here are some neat sayings that I absolutely love:

To all the STRONG ladies!

 The ONLY relationship that really matters. 

 What is your answer? 

 My mom says this to me a lot. What else are you looking for? ;) 

 Powerful. 

My Hero

This blog post is a few weeks late. I have been meaning to post this for a while now but somehow just haven't gotten to it. 

Father's day has come and gone and for the past 2 years it has been one of the toughest days of the year for me. The reason being that my amazing dad, my hero, Cesar Virtucio went on to a much better place on in 2010. Needless to say, Father's day is always bittersweet for me.

The last 2 Father's day I have honored my dad by letting go balloons at a beach or a park. I wrote all over the balloon and watched them disappear. However, this year has been different and probably the best.
I chose to celebrate by myself unlike in the past where I have asked someone to join me in remembering my dad. I wanted this year to be just "me and daddy" and I am so thankful I made that choice.  I also decided to fly a kite instead of letting balloons go.  I went to the Alameda beach and let this kite (below) flap in the air as I sat on the warm sand remembering the amazing man I was so blessed to have as my daddy. I now have a new tradition.

Dad, I miss you more than words can ever express. Thank you for being the best Father and example of what a true man should be.

I thought this was the perfect kite for my hero!

I love his smile.

Forever his little girl.

I love you, dad.

Free Yourself!

So, this marks my first official rambling blog post. I thought hard about it. I wanted something spectacular, exciting and memoroable. But nothing amazingly wonderful came to mind.

Since this is where I can ramble on about whatever is on my mind, I am going to share something that has been on my heart...something that I truly believe God has been using to shape me into a better person.

For the past couple of weeks the topic of forgiveness has been preached on. No joke...at least the past 3 or 4 services the preacher has commented on the importance of forgiving. During these messages I sat there scribbling down in my notebook the noteworthy comments these preachers made, while my heart was being tugged at. Yanked!

I am one of those people who hurt deeply. I mean deeeeeeeeeeply! I get my feathers ruffled to the tenth degree! This is not something I am not proud of really, but like I said God's working on me. Being this type of person my mentality has been " why should I forgive someone who wronged me so badly?" or " they don't deserve my forgiveness."

Ever been guilty of that way of thinking? 

These preachers emphaized the importace of forgiving and having a forgiving heart. Really, God expects it of us. My Pastor said it best last Sunday night when he said that people choose not to forgive or show forgiveness because they want to hold on to the hurt. It is as if we want to feel entitled to hold a grudge. Once again my heart felt the tugging and yanking. I hear you Jesus! I really do. But I think God wanted to make sure I really heard him, because on Wednesday night Bro. Thomas from San Jose touched on forgivess too. He talked about having the Mind of Christ and when we do forgiveness comes easily and so does forgetting. One more tugged at the heart. 

My heart's desire is to be pleasing in God's eyes and to have a heart like His. So, thank you God for working on me (as painful as it can be) and for showing me what I need to change in order to be pleasing to you. 

  

Forgiveness makes you stronger, wiser and a survivor!

This speaks volumes! How true is that?!

In short, forgive and forgive earneslty. Avoid falling into the pit of hatred and bitterness that only makes a bigger mess of everything (sadly, I have been there). And more importantly avoid being displeasing to God.

Many people say, "just let it go!", which is easier said then done in most cases, but really...let it go!

I speak to myself here. Forgiveness is hard, but I refuse to be held captive by it.

It is just no fun.

Free yourself!

Hello Blog World!

I finally gave in! I have decided to see if I have the makings of a blogger. I follow several different entertaining blogs and have had an itch to try it out myself. I kind of made it my summer goal. I did some blogging in the past, LC4C, a blog in honor of my dad (Check it out), but wanted something more personal and day to day type of blog! Let's see how this goes!

So, let me introduce myself! Hi, I'm Carisa. 26 years of life and just one of those girls who rambles on about whatever comes to mind and trying to find her path in this world. Here is a glimpse of my life in a nutshell:

Here I am during a photo shoot at the gym! HA! I try to stay active. How do people do crunches on those balls? I am in awe!

One of my # 1 hobbies is bike riding. I absolutely love to ride my bike especially during Spring and Summer. Isn't this bike a beauty? My heart wants it...needs it!

Jesus is my all and all! This was taken on a Sunday afternoon. Starbucks and the Word of God, it can't get any lovelier than that! 

I am not super crafty, but I have a great appreciation for all things crafty. I follow several craft blogs and the talent these women have is amazing!

"Another man's trash is another man's treasure" (did I quote that right?) I am without a doubt addicted to thrift stores. You never know what awesome treasure you will come across.

I wouldn't call myself a true bookworm, but I do love a good book! James Patterson is one of my favorite authors. This is a local bookstore.

I love all things vintage. I just think this picture is so cute. I love the handkerchiefs and the suitcase.  

Well, these pictures do not sum up my whole life, but it will work for my introduction post. I will most likely be blogging about all these things as they are close to my heart.

Before I end this, I wanted to share what means the most to me aside from God. My family (not everyone is pictured, but I don't want this to become a novel):

This is my dad. My Hero. The first man I will ever love, who is watching over me from a better place.
I love you, daddy!

Mother dearest. We fight, we bicker, she nags and I tune her out. Typical Mom/daughter relationship.
She loves me with all her heart and I am grateful for her.

My Lola. Cutest Grandma ever. Miss her so much.

The lovebirds. 52 years of love and friendship.

Hope you enjoyed my first blog post!