Sweet JamieLee Joy

She’s simply the best and I’ll take any chance I can get to celebrate her.

Happy Birthday Mama, I love you!💕

This week we celebrated our 8 year wedding anniversary on the beach.🌊❤️

Marriage is my favorite thing. Growing up, my deepest desire was to find someone to share life with. Growing up with a broken family was hard — you had so many people to love but they were all in different places. I always had a “tug” not fully being where I was — because part of my heart was somewhere else.

I vividly remember driving away from celebrating Christmas with my moms side of the family, getting in my black Subaru (Black Beauty) and driving alone 3 hrs to go celebrate Christmas with my dads side of the family. DJ and I were engaged at this point and remember crying feeling so thankful that this will be the last year I have to do this alone — because I found my forever person. I found my home.

David John, you are the light of my life. You are my home and bring me peace unexplainable. You love with such a steadfast love. You’re thoughtful and kind. You are brave and steady. I’ve never felt alone with you — even in the moments we are apart. I’m so lucky that I get to hold your heart, it is forever safe with me.

Happy Anniversary Babe, believing this will be the best year yet for team Kramer.❤️

In my seasons of grief, there have been many days where the fear + sadness overtakes me.

Where the everyday little things — getting dressed, leaving the house, having a conversation — felt like a feat.

When others tell me they admire me for my strength — when I feel nothing near that.

When I look at pictures of the “younger me” and I wonder where she has gone — feeling like I morphed into a completely different person. A stranger in my own body.

A quote I’ve held close to my heart during these times is this:
“Courage is just fear that has said it’s prayers.”

For when I outwardly look courageous + brave, I’m inwardly praying constantly...

“Lord, help me find joy in this moment.”

“Holy Spirit will you give me peace that surpasses my circumstances?”

“Jesus, I know you understand my the heaviness of feelings. Will you carry it for me?”

Courage is just placing your fears in the right hands through your prayers.

That’s how I’ve kept going.
That’s how I’m still here.
That’s the “secret” I want to share with you tonight.

xoxo, JamieLee Joy🖤

Before I went on my run last night, I asked myself WHY do I want to go on a run?

Is it because I saw something that made me feel my body wasn’t good enough?
Is it because I don’t like the size of my pants?
Is it because I feel like I need to?

As I asked myself these questions, I could answer no to every one of them. There was a time when the answer was yes to each and every one.

I thought to myself... I WANT to go for a run right now.
I want to go for a run because I’ve been sitting and working all day, moving my body outside sounds refreshing.
I want to go for a run because my mind is filled with anxious thoughts and rhythm moments help ground me.
I want to go for a run because my mind is stuck on projecting to the future, and running helps me be in the present.

The first set of questions would be out of hate of my body.

The second set of thoughts is out of love for my body.

Let’s be women who move our bodies because we love our bodies, not because we want to change them.

Yes? Very good.

*Styling in .thedeej vest. Will give fashion advice. 🤣✌🏼

❤️

Prayer is like a door into your home. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman — always standing right outside the door willing and ready to come in, waiting for an invitation.

When you pray, you decide to open the door and let the Holy Spirit come inside. His power and ability didn’t change, what changed was He was invited to move in on your situation.

The more people that invite Him into the situation, the more He will move because He comes and works in places that He is wanted.
That’s the flip-side of free will, love is a choice. Prayer is choosing Him — choosing love.

I think oftentimes we make prayer harder than it has to be (I know I do). Is it as simple as deciding to open the door?

He doesn’t care if your home is a mess. He’s like the best friend who when she is in her way over, you don’t worry about cleaning up and doing the dishes in the sink. He is the type of friend who when He walks in the door...He asks you what you need — someone to sit with you, someone to listen to you, someone to roll up their sleeves and help clean up?

The Holy Spirit is mysterious in many ways...but I don’t believe He wants His love and presence to be mysterious.

He’s eagerly waiting outside your door today, have you invited Him in?

"My body is broken"
It's been over a year since our loses and it's still a daily thought I struggle with.
Some days, this thought is in the back of my mind like an annoying beep of a truck backing up outside the window as you sit in the coffee shop. Other days it's like someone is screaming at me -- two inches away from my face, red-faced, veins popping, spit spraying.
I've talked to many women who have the same terrible, unwelcome thought living in their minds after they have suffered a pregnancy loss.

I heard someone explain it differently the other day and I felt I could take a deep breath. It helped me in the depth of my soul, I pray it helps you too.

"We live in a broken world, yes. But our bodies are not broken. They were touched by brokenness, but our bodies can heal."

*Our bodies have been touched by the brokenness of this world, but they are not broken.* (Read that again)

We may never have the answers this side of Heaven...why things play out the way they do. Honestly, I hate that we won't have the answers. I like answers to my questions. Don't you? I think what we are looking for when we are looking for answers is a comfort to our pain. A refuge in our storm. A calm to our chaos...

Our thoughts are so powerful. It takes about 300 times for a thought you think to turn into a belief. Once you have a belief about something, it's hard for us to break it. BUT this can go both ways -- we can change our beliefs about if our body is good.

What is it that you want to believe about your body? I'll go first. I want to believe that my body is good. That my body can sustain life, even if it hasn't happened yet. I move my body because I love my body, not because I hate it. I nourish my body because I love my body, not because I hate it. I believe that even though my body was touched by the brokenness of this world, it is not broken. Healing is possible. Healing is happening. I live in the Kingdom of abundance, not of lack. I serve a God who is always with me....giving me strength and peace, even on my hardest days.

What is it you want to believe about your body?
Let's start changing our thoughts today, so our beliefs line up with the TRUTH. xo

🍲My secret to quick nourishing meals? Bowls! You choose a carb base and top it with some protein, fat and veggies!

☝🏼One easy base is Congee! Congee is simply just rice that has been cooked longer with some ginger to make it easier on your digestion.

🍚How to make Congee: place 1 1/2 cups white jasmine rice, 1/2 cups white sticky rice and 1 inch fresh ginger peeled and diced in a medium pot. Add filtered water to cover the rice by 1 1/2 inches. Bring to a boil and cook for 45 minutes until rice soften and open up. Stir often and add more water if needed.

🍲Adzuki Bowl🍲
+1 cup peeled, diced and cooked sweet potatoes
+ 1 cup Adzuki beans, warmed
+ 2 chicken breasted cooked and seasoned (I used garlic salt, onion powder and pepper)
+ Top with Primal Kitchen Garlic Aioli

— Putting it together —
Place warm rice in a bowl, top with sweet potato, beans, chicken and a little aioli. Enjoy!

🖤Save for later and come back and comment what you think!

This gal has news!! 🎉✨

This Fall, I intentionally took time to sit with God and ask the hard questions. This was the main question I sat with Him about, “With all this pain I’ve been going through, God, how do YOU want me to use it for the good of others and for your glory?”

I saw an email one day in my inbox from to apply for her coaching program. I felt the holy nudge to apply, so I sent in an application not really expecting to hear back. To my surprise (thanks God!) I got accepted into her licensing program!

For months, along with 50 other women, we dug in deep for how to each of us were uniquely designed to help women. It is such an honor to see God work through these coaches in huge and gloriously unexpected ways. We all got together in December in Charleston to dig in deeper, brainstorm together and ask God for even clearer vision.

Through this season of seeking, I felt God answering my question. To use all this for his glory would be to help other women understand their stories, dig in with them and get a front row seat to watching God move, and giving them practical tips to run after their dreams + come along side them with a flashlight and the Holy Spirit to uncover how their personal stories can be used to help others and to better understand themselves.

I’m a Life Coach, sis! If you have a situation you want help walking through or know of someone who would benefit from this kind of work, I would be honored to be your coach.

Send someone this post.
Share this post.
Send me an email ([email protected]).
Check out my website.
Ask me any questions!

I can’t wait to see how God moves through you. Let’s uncover what He has been whispering to you, together. Amen?

Xoxo, JamieLee

Years ago, I would go for long runs because I hated my body and wanted to change it.

A few years ago I was training for a half marathon, I could run more miles than I had ever ran before...but I was in a dark season of depression. And in a lot of physical pain because I pushed my body passed it’s limits. I didn’t listen to her because I hated her and didn’t care what she had to say.

Today, I went for a run. As I was running I was thinking about how different it is now. I wasn’t tracking my miles. I don’t even know how long I ran. I just ran when I felt my body needed to run. Mentally, I felt like I needed to run to clear my head. Physically, I knew if I ran this evening I would sleep better tonight. I moved my body because I love my body, and I want to take good care of her.

I didn’t run until I felt like I had to puke,
I ran until my thoughts were clear.
I ended when I felt a smile come across my face, not a scowl of discouragement that I didn’t run as fast, as long, or as far as so and so.

This wasn’t a overnight change.
It was a gradual shift.
Years of learning more about my body and how it works. More about my mind and why I have the emotional patterns I do.
It was learning to take life in strides and not strives (.epperson 😘).
Learning how to set MY pace and stay in MY lane, even if it looked different than everyone else around me.

I want more women to move their body because they love their body, not because they hate it.❤️

These last two days have been filled with time to be creative and it’s refreshing me all the way down to my bones. Thankful. 🤍

——
Seeing a vision in your head become tangible + beautiful.
Playing with flowers with some people I really, really love.
The first sip of coffee.
Witnessing hundreds of kids hear about how much Jesus loves them.
The art of stringing words together.
A new shirt.

“The present moment is where time touches eternity.” -C.S. Lewis

The emotions you feel are always valid, but they are not always true.
(Read that again.)

This is how it goes:
Thoughts create emotions —> Emotions create patterns —> Patterns create beliefs

When you notice that you’re feeling “off”, stop and ask yourself....what was I just thinking about?

Do a heart check to see if that thought is factoring into why you feel sad, mad, scared, happy, etc. in this moment.

Your emotions aren’t always true because a thought is just a thought until we put it into action.

It’s not true no one likes you.
It’s not true you’re not beautiful.
It’s not true you’re wasting your life.

Take it back to the root — “What was I just thinking about?” And then speak TRUTH into that thought.

I am deeply loved by God + my family and friends.
I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
I am doing the best I have with the day I’ve been given.

“Take every thought captive + make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 2:5)

The first step to taking our thoughts captive is being aware of them + how they are making us feel.

When we connect with our emotions, we can better connect with God and with others…this is the goal. Connection brings healing.

Have you thought about it this way?

“God, thank you that you’re never-changing in an ever-changing world.”

Is a prayer on repeat in my heart lately.
Never-changing. We cannot even comprehend that. The same God we read about in His word is the same God today. The same God that created the universe is still the same God today. We’ve heard it before, but have we let it really settle in our hearts?

We are always changing. Our minds. Our hair. Our homes. Our careers. Our bodies are always fading.

The only thing we have is the present.
The only thing we can hold onto is right here.
The same God who created the universe, who formed the Heavens, who breathed the first breath... is the same God who wants to be with you. Right here, today. In the present moment.

——
The way DJ looks at me.
Seeing life through a toddlers eyes.
Baby giggles + wiggles.
New friendships.
Long walks in the crisp air.
The way dough feels in my hands.

I watch in awe as I mix ingredients together. How an empty bowl can become a delicious treat to nourish bellies.
Just the right amounts of each ingredient, mixed in just the right way, baked at just the right temperature for just the right amount of time.

I think about how we’re all in process. We don’t see ourselves fully, beginning to end. We get confused when we’re in the middle. Frustrated in the process. Ask questions to the Maker (or the baker, see what I did there🙃).

Not realizing we’re being made into something beautiful.
Someone who’s wanted.
Someone who’s needed.
Someone who’s understood.
Someone whose presence is noticed.

—
The sound of DJ still dreaming beside me.
The way the sky turns colors as it fades into a new day.
A friend trusting me with pieces of her heart.
The bright colors of a beet as you cut them open.
Being able to move my body and feel my worries lighten.

Life can get so complicated and messy. Big things happen, big feelings follow. It’s can all be so hard to navigate.
When I look at the big picture, I get overwhelmed. When I have pain in the present moment, I project to the future where I tell myself it will be less painful. We’re all trying to escape, without realizing what we’re running from. It’s all a mirage...running to the future where we will inevitably do the same. It’s our human nature.
But in our weakness we find strength.

The next 40 days I’m circling some really big prayers. But one of them is simple — to be more present. To fully embrace the little gifts given to me, everyday. The present moment is really all we have anyway.

The dog on my lap.
The smell of garlic on the stovetop.
When DJ walks through the door after work.
The way the snowflakes fall down.
The smile of a friend.
The time capsule of a book.
The way the sun feels on my skin.

I was inspired by my friend with her posts to share here with you all. Because I’m sure I’m not the only one who struggles to stay in the present. This quote hit my soul the other day —

“The present is where time touches eternity.” C.S. Lewis

I want more of that. Amen?


I’d love if you would join me. ❤️

If you don't know what you're feeling, that's okay.
If you don't know what to pray, that's okay.
If you don't know what to say to people, that's okay.

The Holy Spirit comes right along side you, *the moment* you get tired. He's already on His way before you even know you're about to get tired.

This passage is also saying: it's okay to get tired in the waiting.

It's okay to get weary. It's okay. But know this — He is right there with you.

“The moment we get tired in the waiting, God’s Spirit is right along side helping us along. If we don’t know how or what to pray, it doesn’t matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, He knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.” Romans 8, MSG.

I hate endings. I always have.
I cry when a good book ends.
I hate sending my people off on a plane.
I throw a pity party when I pick my last garden crop.
I'll keep asking questions & hold on a little tighter to a good conversation.
When a delicious meal ends, I'll contemplate having more...even if I'm full to the brim.

New Years Eve is always bittersweet to me. When the clock changes from 11:59 pm to 12:00 am, I can't help but feel that I missed out on something. I want to scream, "Wait! There is still so much more that I could have given. So many more friendships I could have nurtured. So many more places I could have experienced. More recipes I could have tried. I want more time with my people."

2021 was a year of trial. This year, when the clock turned to midnight....I felt like a part of me will always be in 2021, a part of me died with the deaths I experienced. I felt like I could live in that minute forever, in the space between 2021 and 2022. Sad for what could have been and didn't ever come, scared to hope for what 2022 could bring.

Instead of judging my hate of endings...I look deeper. Should I get frustrated with myself that I enjoy the moments that were given to me? Moments so sweet, that all I want to do is to relieve it...soak it all in. If I only had more time.
I love getting lost in someone else's story, hearing their heart and viewing the world through their eyes.
I love spending days on end with my people, mornings in our jammies, sipping coffee and talking about all things of life.
I love sunny days spent in the garden, watching miracles grow right before my eyes and slowing down enough to hear God speak to me.
I love sitting around the table with people, eating good food and laughing until our bellies hurt.
+ as it is my nature, it's hard to end this post. This isn't the classic "new-year-set goals-inspirational post", no. It's for the gal who is also sad to see something end, in all it's beauty and pain. It's for the gal who's sitting in that in between....in the moments of today daydreaming about yesterday and hoping for tomorrow.
It’s for all reading this and realizing as the clock turned, we’ve been given more time. xo❤️

The concept of “inner child” seems to be a bit of a buzzword right now, and I love it. I love that there is a generation rising up wanting to do things differently than most of us were taught as children.

This concept can be as complex or as simple as you’d like to make it, let’s make it simple, eh?

The thought is, if you get triggered in a moment, your current self in your brain + emotions will go back to one of the first times you felt that feeling that you’re feeling now.

Your brain cannot tell if the moment is actually happening or if you’re just reliving it in your mind. (Example, people who have PTSD).

I wanted to talk about this because with holidays coming up, there are many who have big emotions (🙋🏼‍♀️). Rightfully so, life is just plain h a r d sometimes.

Sis, give yourself grace.
And space.
And love.

If there are moments you think “I am going crazy, I can’t control my feelings, I want to just go away and cry…”

Pause. Deep Breath.

Think back to what just happened in your day, what someone just said, maybe what you just smelled…

You’re not “going crazy”. Your mind may be literally reliving something terrible that happened to you.

Try and connect it to your childhood. Pray and ask God to give you a memory that you maybe are associating with it, unaware that you’re doing so. And then, love that child.

If a seven year old was crying because they were scared, felt alone and felt misunderstood, would you yell at them?

No. You would comfort them, hug them, speak truth over the lies, right?

Do the same for yourself. ❤️

Current YL members, this is for youu!! Some amazing changes with YL!!

YL Stepped it Uuuup! — sweetjamieleejoy All current Young Living Members, this info is for youuuuu!! YL launched their new websites with some awesome upgrades! You ready for the deets?! Not only is the new website beautiful , it is easy to use! There are some terms that changed to make it easier to understand. Essential Rewards —&a

It's Not Over Yet — sweetjamieleejoy When you walk through the valley of the shadow of death... You come through to the other side changed, whether you want the change or not. I’ve stared death in the face before, but not like this. Not with my baby. Not with my life. My heart was broken into a million pieces, and it’s taking time ...

Walnut Baked Pears — sweetjamieleejoy I used to think warm fruit was nastyyy. Now I can’t get enough of it! This recipe is one of my faves to eat anytime, especially during your Follicular Phase when pears are a great choice for your snack! But don’t you worry, everyone in your fam. will love these tasty little snack...

Luteal Phase PM Tea — sweetjamieleejoy Since our miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy I’ve been diving deep into researching how to care for my hormones with food. One thing I’ve started to incorporate is seed-cycling! It’s pretty simple: The Follicular Phase of your cycle (days 1-14) you add pumpkin seeds and flax seeds to your diet.

Grief and pain are a part of the human experience. Inevitably, we are all going to go through grief in this life because it is broken and isn’t the way it’s supposed to be.

Grief takes all different kinds of forms, in my opinion. It’s not just when you lose someone you love, it can also be the loss of a job, a relationship ending, the loss of a dream, etc. My most recent grief is having a miscarriage in January and then having an ectopic pregnancy in March. I’m still in the midst of my grief. It’s raw and real and the world still feels grey most days.

The biggest previous grief in my life was when my older brother Kyle died when I was 13 years old. It was sudden, unexpected and formed me into the woman I am today. My childhood was filled with grief. Now, living through my current grief and looking back at my childhood, I felt there are some practical things I can share to help people who want to help their friend who is smack-tab in the middle of grief but aren’t sure how.

This beautiful, terrible thing seems to happen when you watch someone you deeply love go through deep pain — people don’t know what to do or say. So, often times they don’t do or say anything or when they do or say something, it is hurtful…

So I wrote a blog post for How to Help Your Grieving Friend and created a downloadable PDF for you. I’m not saying I have all the answers, but maybe you’ll learn even one thing to help better be there for your friend.

Head here to read my full heart behind this and download the free guide: https://www.sweetjamieleejoy.com/.../how-to-help-your...
In Love,
JamieLee Joy

What is your favorite Young Living Roll on?

The month of March felt much like Good Friday in our lives.
Dark. Unknown. Clinging to His Promises even though we can’t see it yet.
Do you know what an ectopic pregnancy is?
Yeah, we didn’t know much about it either.
Until we were forced to learn on the fast track.
It’s when the embryo makes its home somewhere other than where it should. Which results in the embryo not getting the nutrients it needs to survive and is life threatening to the mom.
It is a terribly long journey, unlike anything I’ve ever had to go through. Filled with a million questions, unimaginable pain physically + emotionally, soooo many sick days not being able to move because of nausea...
I’m working on a blog post about my experience (that honestly I am still physically going through and will emotionally being going through for awhile) to share for the woman who hasn’t gone through it yet but if she does will know a little bit more what to expect. To share for the friend who has a loved one going through it but doesn’t know what to do. To share for the woman who has gone through it so she knows she’s not alone.
I’ll let you know when it’s posted and pray it blesses at least one person.
Some might wonder why we keep sharing about the hard things we are going through. I share because it is by our testimony that evil will be defeated. Hope is contagious and miracles are happening all around us — if we keep our eyes open.
Sharing your trials brings the pain into the Light so darkness can’t have a hold on you.
Sharing your experiences helps people feel less alone in their experiences.
Sharing brings healing.
I share because I have hope that just like Jesus told us redemption is coming on Sunday, our Sunday is coming.
My arms are empty, just like my womb.
But our hearts are full of you, little loves.
Kramer, party of 2 has a lot more sting to it now. Two Kramer’s on earth, two little loves in Heaven. But we cling to the promises of His redemption. His restoration. His healing.
Xoxo

BIG NEWS!!!❤😭
Friends, we did it!!! Remember how I shared last week that I was inches away from a goal I’ve been running after for the past year? We reached it! Not only reached it, but surpassed it!

THANK YOU to everyone who has trusted me with getting started with their YL discount. Thank you for giving me the honor of teaching you and sharing life with you. This business is one of my all time favorite things —because of YOU. I love the products, I love the passion, but mostly I love the PEOPLE I get to serve, love on, teach. I’m honored to lead a team of women running the race with me making this their full time gig, while we watch these oils + products change the lives of people we love. What happens when you get a bunch of women together who run after the dreams in their heart? ANYTHING can happen with those type of women!

Humbled. Honored. Bawling.

BIG News!!! — sweetjamieleejoy Friends, we did it!!! Remember how I shared last week that I was inches away from a goal I’ve been running after for the past year? We reached it! Not only reached it, but surpassed it! THANK YOU to everyone who has trusted me with getting started with their YL discount. Thank you for giving me th...

Do you think there is a difference between being a peacekeeper and peacemaker?

Do you ever feel like the toddler that is always asking “why?”
Why don’t I get that blessing but they do, God?
Why aren’t you answering this prayer, God?
Why did that have to happen, God?
Why, why, why….

I’m not even sure where I heard this quote for the first time. What I do remember is it was one of those punch-you-in-the-gut, stop-you-in-you-tracks type moments.
I always want to understand. I always want to rationalize, compartmentalize, make things pretty and shiny again — including my feelings.

We are never going to fully understand this side of Heaven.
That can either be something that infuriates you, or something that frees you.

There is no finish line here. There is no ending chapter where we get to see how the story ends. We get glimpses and God gives us hope and peace to sustain us, but we don’t get to know it all. But we can trust Him through it all.

The worlds definition of peace are fake — there is no easy equation.

God’s peace is the peace that surpasses understanding, regardless of our circumstances.
In the midst of our pain — we can have peace.
In the midst of the confusion — we can have calm.
In the midst of the questioning — He is right beside us.

Immanuel, God with us.
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Price of Peace.