faith, love & natural hair.

Happy Sunday, friends!! I have a special treat today. Meet my precious friend Ashley from I'm Always Ashley - she's an amazing woman who loves God, has such a heart for ministering to women, and is inspiring and so sweet. She is also one of my fellow Quite Magazine writers (yay!) and her blog is always an encouraging read. I've asked Ashley to share more about herself and her ministry here today - get to know her and show her some love!

Hey y’all! (I pray my Southern twang was heard in full force with that intro, LOL!)

I am so happy to be sponsoring Sweetness Itself again this month! This was the first blog I ever started reading, and Erin and I have grown to become real-life friends. I love her dearly, and her heart for spreading God’s message of love, joy and purity through this platform. So, don’t think of this as an introduction to my bloggy-world, but more like you’re just sitting in on a coffee date with Erin and I!

I’m a 26-year-old, self-proclaimed “southern belle” from Alabama who fell in love with a rustic Belizean from Central America. I may just be the most simplistically complex person you’ll ever meet (lol). I’m very laid back, but extremely meticulously. I go with the flow, but still always plan every day out in my planner. I love my relaxation time, but feel as though I should always be keeping busy with something. I guess that’s why my blog can some times appear to be just as all over the place as I am. I have a passion for mentoring young girls, which comes to life through the program I co-founded called CodeBLUE. Please visit http://CodeBlueMentoring.org to learn more about the program, and to see how you can help. I simply have a passion for life. Some consider me to be an eternal optimist, and I take that as a compliment. I just prefer to focus of the sun peeking through the dark clouds, instead of worrying over the flashes of lightening. I am very much a people person, and my mother used to always say that I have never met a stranger. To know me, is to know that I am wholly and undeniable in love with Jesus Christ; He is my everything. The source of my every breath and I dedicate my life to Him. At I perfect at it? Not even close. But I live to please Him and share His love and sacrifice with the masses!

5 Random Things about Ashley.

1. If I could travel anywhere in the world, I’d go to Italy and California. Mainly because I’ve just always thought Italy was romantic and, even though I’ve been to Cali, I’ve never seen the Pacific ocean in person.

2. I still talk to my third grade teacher. She always encouraged me to write and actually got my first short story published when I was in the fourth grade.

3. I am a feature writer for both WHOLEmagazine.com and QUITEmagazine.com (with Erin)!

4. I’m currently writing a book about abortion...stay tuned!

5. I love spending time cuddled on the couch with my husband.