Tired of being....

SICK!!!!! Poor Aaron was sick over the Thanksgiving holiday with this cold/sinus/congestion/killer whatever it is that is immune to any meds...and unfortunately it was passed to me on Sunday.UGH. Who knew it was possible to go thru a box of tissues a day, and that any kind of cold/sinus/congestion/etc. meds just give about 30minutes of mild relief until your head feels like it's going to explode again. So far Morgan hasn't gotten it. She and I have already had it once in Oct. It really wouldn't be so bad, if only I didn't have less than a week to try to get my whole entire December to do list done before we leave for GA next week for my Mom's wedding. Oh well, I guess I'll do as much as I can and the rest will have to wait until....who knows when! Tomorrow will have to be much better with hopefully many less sniffles and tissues!

So much to be thankful for...

The past two weeks have flown by and now I actually have a moment to catch my breath this evening before I tackle my next overwhelming to do list. I went to visit my friend Kim in TX 2 weekends ago and it was non-stop but a lot of fun. I helped pick out paint colors and flooring for the renavation of her clinic and we did a little shopping along with going the play "Guys and Dolls" which was extraordinary! Then back home to take care of my two and spend an entire week working on editing two photography sessions which are finally done. yipee! My in-laws joined us Thursday morning and we had a quiet mid afternoon dinner. I really enjoyed having them here, I just had hoped for even a few more people to share the day with. Aaron and I were both looking for extra guest this year...we checked with the squadron, church, friends, and even Morgan's school to see if there was anyone who needed a place for Thanksgiving without any luck...so next year I plan on starting a couple more weeks in advance to find some extra dinner guest to share the day with!!! Moving on, my mother-in-law and I did decide to go do the whole 6am shopping on Friday morning...and since I'd never been, I figured it was about time!! We had a ball! It was a little crowded but everyone was really nice and polite at Target and it was definitely worth it just to see at least 200 people lined up in front of Target. I did buy a small little point and shoot camera to carry in my purse (to capture the little moments) in case I don't have my pro camera with me, so Morgan and I have had fun taking pictures of this, that, and the other! Morgan is thrilled with taking pictures, so maybe there'll be a little shutterbug in the family. It's nice to see that she might have an interest in something that I love! Aaron's been sick the past 3 days, so he's been really low key. Hopefully it won't get passed around the family again. Well, I finally booked the tickets to go home to GA in December for my Mom's wedding. It's the first time that we've been able to go home in almost 2years which is definitely too long to be away. It's probably going to be a trip with some interesting dynamics, but it's good to be going home as a family. I think that about catches up on the past couple of weeks. Oh yes, God blessed us with another car 3 weeks ago that fit into our budget. It's a 97 Honda Accord, champagne in color with a sunroof (which Morgan adores). It's been very well taken care of by the previous owner and we are so incredibly thankful to have another car to drive. God has really taken care of all of the details and issues that have gone along with my accident. Oh, and just in case you might be wondering!....this car's name is Noelle! (Yes, we name all of our vehicle, and no there's not any reason for concern!) To all of our friends and family, we are so incredibly thankful for you and for what a blessing you are in our lives. We miss all of you that we're away from, and so grateful to be near the ones that we are.

Farewell to Grace, but oh how amazing is God's Grace.

This is Grace, she's been my car for a little over 8 years. She's the first car that I've ever owned. I was 21 and in desparate need for a car and had very little to work with financially. I received a small loan from my bank and off I went looking for a car. After a couple weeks of looking around and doing some research, Aaron and I (we were dating at the time) decided to take a trip down to Jacksonville, Fl and see what we could find there. This car was the last on our list to check out and it turned out to be the one that was for me. She was beautiful, in excellent condition inside and out and drove like a dream! I was ecstatic. God in his timing had provided a car that was just right for me! I know you're not supposed to get attached to things and I completely understand that. But I think since this was my first real car I did get a little attached to her, maybe it's not so much the car itself but the memories and history of my life that took place in her. The many trips to the beach, the multiple hours that Aaron and I spent talking in the car, dates, going down to Pensacola, Fl and picking up my best friend from college for the weekend and blaring Bon Jovi as we left the school campus. Visiting Aaron while he was in different training sessions, Road trips here and there and everywhere, Countless hours of praying and thinking while driving, Riding home from our wedding night, Driving to Savannah, Ga for our honeymoon, Multiple moves across country, Bringing Morgan home from the hospital, Picking up friends and family from the airport, Driving to and from the airport when we flew home, Picking Aaron up from TDY's, Taking Morgan to school on the first day, and the list can go on and on. Memories are an incredible part of our lives, and there were obviously a lot that took place in my car. Well three weeks ago... I was driving to pick up Morgan from school, it was pouring rain and I was taking my typical route on the dirt/gravel road. Now I have driven on dirt roads since I started driving so they're not anything new to me. I was going under the speed limit when I hit a huge mud slick and before I could gain complete control I skidded into gravel, completely lost control of the car, hit a ditch and flipped the car upside down. Sooo, I find my self upside down (thank goodness for seatbelts and guardian angels) and I'm thinking this is so not happening, I've got to pick up Morgan from school!!! And of course Aaron is deployed at the time. Unbelievably I walked away from the wreck without a scratch. God provided a complete stranger to take me to pick up Morgan from school and bring me back home and my friend Amy helped me with taking care of all the tedious things that go with an accident. (Thank-you so much Amy) Obviously I was stunned at the situation and it wasn't until seeing my car Grace at the impound that I really began to realize how seriously injured I could have been. And I am so thankful that Morgan was not with me. God's grace and protection are marvelous beyond words. I'm so grateful to Him for still being alive and in one piece. I will miss my little grey car, but I have the memories, and most of all God's wonderful grace!

My little stinker

So this year Morgan decided not to be a princess, or a fairy, or a cat, or anything frilly, but a Skunk. Once she made her decision she stuck with it and nothing would do but a skunk costume. I think she made quite a cute one at that, and of course I love the saying on the backside-so true!

I love fall...and so does Morgan

Thanks to a friends advice...I have finally found a place here that works beautifully for pictures. We had a lot of fun being outside this afternoon. These are just a few shots from the afternoon.

They're here!

My sister in-law had her twins this morning....And I woke up to Aaron calling me saying we're finally an aunt and an uncle! They were born a little earlier than planned, but both of them and the mom are doing good. So welcome, little Evelyn Grace and little Brianne Nicole to our world. We're so glad you're here and we can't wait to meet you and hold you. Congratulations, Krista and Eric we are soo happy for you!
p.s. we can't wait to help spoil them!

This Week...

has been a week of many "issues". So yesterday I was feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Sometimes all it takes is a different perspective to make things seem a little better. Soo...I decided to look at things individually through the lense of my camera and it definitely helped!

I couldn't help but laugh while Morgan played with a neighbor friend and of course my pets are always doing something funny. So I thought I'd share some of the pics that I took. It made me realize that my life is Still GOOD!

Morgan is still amazing and I love her so much!




This is Mischief aka Missy- we've been together a really long time!

Then of course there's Buddy, who jumps in my kitchen hutch everytime the doors are open. Crazy Cat!

Ok, so meet Oliver aka Ollie. I had a huge moment of insanity this past Monday at the pet store with Morgan...yep we came home with Ollie "(like I need anything else to take care of right now, but we have enjoyed watching him.)

Sooo...Ollie meets Buddy....so far there hasn't been the remains of a blue appetizer on my counter top... yet. I honestly think Buddy's not that interested...It would be too much work to catch him!

Morgan always enjoys playing outside!

This is me watching the kids play...mmm

And this is me trying to find some humor left in the day! hahaha ( you know what they say...if you smile/laugh, your spirits will have to rise at some point too! ok so it was worth the try!)

A glass of pomegranite green tea from the Tea Smith in attempt to gain some focus, and my notepad waiting for the never-ending list of to do's.

Girls Night....

Today was an extremely busy day, but it was a good one. I actually got quite a few things done and had girls night at my house. For all of you that were able to come-thank-you. It was very nice to have you here and as always your company was great. Looking forward to next month!

It's the little things in life that are so wonderful

I had the priviledge and pleasure of rocking Morgan to sleep tonight. Rocking her used to be a nightly routine, but now that she's getting bigger she doesn't always want to be rocked. But tonight she snuggled down with me in the rocking chair and eventually went to sleep. I looked at her and wondered how in the world did she grow up to be 4 so quick?! And this afternoon she just wrapped her little arms around me, gave me a huge hug and kiss and said "I love you mommy," and then bounced off to play. It's those moments that make being a mom even more worth it! It's amazing, she's starts pre-school tomorrow. I know, I know, it's only pre-school but...it IS still school! So as a mom I get to have a sentimental moment. At open house this week, she was so excited to go, but then when we got there, there was some hesitation on her part to join in. She eventually warmed up and had fun with the other children. Sooo we'll see how tomorrow goes. She keeps asking me if I can come and play with her at school too. She's so sweet ( at least most of the time)! The Lord is definitely starting to open some doors, even if they are just small cracks at the moment. It's a little scary, a little intimidating, but really exciting. I keep telling myself that it's all in His good time. I have so much to be thankful for. I'll post pics of Morgan's 1st day of school tomorrow night!

So far this week...

has been extremely busy, but it's been good. There's been a few Grrrr moments, but there's been some amazing moments as well. I received a call yesterday from the preschool that we've been trying to get Morgan into throughout the summer but there was a long waiting list, and they called to say there was a last minute opening and was I still interested- of course I said yes! It was definitely a God thing because Aaron and I had just figured pre-school just wasn't for this year. I'm thrilled with Morgan's teachers (all three of them) and Morgan is ecstatic! She starts next Friday. I kept looking at her today thinking how is she growing up sooo fast. I know the pre-school is only 3 days a week, but it's kind of bitter-sweet because it's a prelude to the next 13 years of school! I think I'll just take one year at a time, actually one day at a time is a little more my speed right now. I also enrolled Morgan in Awanas tonight, so I think that she's going to enjoy that too. She loves being around other people, she was talking non-stop after church tonight. She's amazing. Like a lot of other people, I'm probably going to be traveling over the weekend, so please keep us in your prayers for traveling safety. Also, my new camera has had a major malfunction this week and is going to have to be sent off to the Dealer, so I'll be without my camera for about 3-4 wks (that's been one of the Grrr's for the week) So everyone who knows me, knows that my camera pretty much goes everywhere with me. So hopefully, they get it fixed and back to me asap! Well that's all for tonight, it's going to be another crazy day tomorrow! I'll post some more pics of Morgan soon, since I haven't done that lately (sorry Mom!)

Human and only human...

I've come to the conclusion that a lot people consider women, especially moms superhumans and that a military wife is a completely invincible superwoman because as you know we're this whole other species that "knew what we were getting into when we married a man in the military!" I completely and whole heartedly disagree with that concept. And just like everyone else I am human and only human. Perfectly Imperfect. Three words that sum up this past week- frustration, defeat, and loneliness. I knew from the last deployment that the 2nd week is usually the hardest for me and this 2nd week was no exception. Obviously school is back in full swing here, and as I watch everyone else get into their own groove and routine and live their full and busy lives, I realize once again that I have yet to find my own niche here. Everyone that I know has been able to put down roots quickly here and find their own place and yet I feel like I'm still floundering looking for that place that I truly belong and can serve in. Isolation is something that isn't new to any military wife. Isolation from family, from friends, from a familiar place. We've been here over a year now and I know that God has a purpose for us here- he always has a purpose. And I realize that in my weakness He is made strong. This next week has to be better- it will be better. I am going to continue asking for the grace and strength to continue, wisdom in how to handle my wonderful daughter at this more than interesting 4 yr old stage she's in, and the guidance to a niche that I can truly belong and serve in. Tomorrow is another day with no mistakes in it, yet!

p.s. to the friend and her husband who were graciously willing to work on my broken down car this week, my sincerest thanks. and to my friends in WY and NC thank you for your e-mails and phone calls this week to check up on me. You were the blessings and miracles in my week.

an adorable tiny girl and unbelievable cheesecake!

You're probably wondering what those two have in common...! Easy they both have to do with our neighbors. Today I had the priviledge of playing with Miss Kaleigh and taking a couple pictures of her. It's been a long time since I've tried shooting indoors with an infant, it was interesting and enjoyable. As for the cheesecake...it turns out that Kaleigh's Dad loves to cook and one of his specialties is gourmet cheescake from scratch. So when they came over, they brought me 3 different slices of his cheesecake...chocolate, raspberry and lemon, and they are unbelievable. He needs to open up his own bakery! So I would have to say that it was a good Friday afternoon!

Daddy's girl

My heart is aching this morning with Aaron being gone again. Morgan has looked at her copy of this picture all morning and says that she misses her daddy- and of course my heart breaks some more. My house is too quiet, and there's this huge hole here that only Aaron can fill. I need and want him back home. (long and quiet *sigh*)

Find the Positive...Find the Positive...

I can't sleep...I can't seem to shut my mind off tonight. This deployment is too close- can't breath. So I thought if I found a few positive things from today, that maybe it might help me chill out. So here I go.
1. Had a quiet evening with Aaron (thanks to my friend Amy, who took Morgan for a couple of hours- thank-you!)
2. Aaron and I worked on a few projects that hopefully will give Morgan something to look forward to while he's gone this time.
3. I got a good haircut today that I actually like
4. Made a batch of biscotti
5. I learned how to make a cafe mocha Starbucks style, thanks to their mocha powder
6. Watched our wedding video with Aaron just for fun, which brought a lot of laughter and a few tears.
7. I had few moments by myself to be creative
8. Morgan is actually still sleeping in her own bed tonight- usually she wakes up and crawls in with us
9. I have a few more days with Aaron
10. This part of his career is only temporary- it has to be right?!
11. I am loved by my husband, my family, my friends, and my heavenly Father.
12. I am going to survive this!

Ok, I can breathe a little bit more now...until tomorrow! Going to try to get some sleep now! Goodnight!

The past week in review

This week has gone by sooo fast, and it's been a busy one in a good way. As you can see we were able to get some bigger things accomplished as well as enjoy some little things along the way. Aaron's parents and grandparents came up this weekend and we really enjoyed their company. Morgan loved all the grandparent's attention. Dad and Aaron worked all day Saturday on the swingset, and it's finally taking shape. Hopefully we'll be able to get the rest of it done this week. Life is still good!

Morgan's swingset is almost completed...thanks to Aaron and Dad this weekend

Morgan enjoying her new dress and shoes! She's definitely my girl!

We finally got the basement cleaned out and turned into a playroom! Morgan loves it!

Meet Yoda the pig! Check out his ears! haha!



Admiring one of God's amazing creations. This dragonfly was gorgeous!

Having a blast with a water fight after an evening walk!

Witnessed an amazing sunset with Aaron from our front yard.

Still one of my favorite pictures from this Summer

Have you ever tried...

making a cat go through a cat door to try it on for size? Buddy was quite adament about not trying it out, and Aaron finally got him to go through once and then he decided to attack the door. Needless to say, we went back and got the larger cat door because if Buddy was hesitant to go through it, then there was no way that our older cat Missy would even try it!

Summer...Watermelon...and Sandboxes!

Morgan has been asking for a watermelon since the 4th of July...so we finally found her a little football size one at the grocery store. Morgan was thrilled that it was just her size!

mmmm....so good!

I love summer (despite the heat)! I love that it stays light out until 9:00pm and that Morgan absolutely loves being outside. I love to watch her and Buddy chase lightening bugs in the evenings. I love watching her build sandcastles in her sandbox. She's amazing!

Thought for the day....

I've got quite a few things running through my mind this morning, like everyone else -a never ending list of things to do, the amount of unfinished projects around the house that need to be finished soon, the mound of photograpy work that I need to process, how to guide and love Morgan through the 4 year old stage she's in right now, the nagging thought and fear that Aaron is deploying again way too soon...and I ran across this verse in Psalms and it's exactly what I need right now. Here it is "Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord have never forsaken those who seek you." Psalm 9:10 It's wonderful to know that I'm not forsaken or forgot about in God's eyes, and that he's always here, and he knows what I need right now. I just need to remember to constantly pray for wisdom and focus.

It's been a little hot around here...

Yep, it's amazing how much we take for granted until it's gone or not working properly! Like Air Conditioning!!! Ours went out this morning...so it's made for a really long, hot day around here in the house. Aaron and I just kept watching the temperature rise! The wonderful thing is, is that my wonderful husband kept being persistent and finally found a couple of diconnected plugs within the AC unit - reconnected them and flipped the breaker and ta-da it works again. We still might have someone come out and look at it on Monday, just to make sure it's ok.

Just for Fun!

Can you tell we're related?!

Sisters

It's amazing really...my mom has always called us her sun, moon, and stars because even though we're sisters, we're completely different. Obviously I'm the oldest by quite a few years. I was almost 8 when Sarah was born and 20 when Carissa arrived. I think I probably have most of the characteristics of the oldest child. Responsible, Protective, Opinionated, and for the most part easy going! I call my middle sister, Sarah, the dark beauty of the family (I still think she was secretly adopted or there was a milkman or postman involved somewhere!-my mom will disagree!) She's 21 and is an amazing person. She's incredibly artistic and talented and has no limit on what she can do. Besides being an absolutely beautiful person on the outside (which by the way Sarah whether you believe or not, a lot of women would give pretty much anything to have your physique!- including myself.) she's beautiful on the inside as well. A lot of times she thinks I'm the crazy one in the family, but I can usually get her to finally smile when we're together. I really miss you girl! And then there's Carissa (aka Kissy-bug) who was indeed a great big suprise. I tease Mom all the time that she missed me so much that she just had to try to replace me while I was at college! She is by far the most intense of the 3 of us, and the most wild one. She definitely walks to a beat all her own, but she is an incredibly loving and an affecionate child. She laughs and smiles very easily. I love her bunches. Sometimes it's not until you get older that you realize how important siblings are. We share a whole lifetime of history together-the good and the bad, and even though we haven't always been close due to our distinct differences in personalities, I am so thankful for them, and that we're becoming much closer as we grow older. I love you two so much and I miss you.

An Amazing Weekend and a Happy Birthday

This past weekend was great. We were able to get so much done. I think that we have finally found a church home. We're all looking forward to going again this next Sunday. We have visited quite a few churches and have truly enjoyed them, but didn't quite feel it was home. Until now!













So that is a huge anwer to prayer! We celebrated Aaron's 32nd birthday on Sunday. Morgan was ecstatic that it was her Daddy's birthday. For those of you who don't know - she adores birthday's -anyone's birthday is just great! It was so nice to be able to celebrate Aaron's birthday together. I'm so glad that you were born Babe. I can't wait to spend the next 32 + years with you. We also bought Morgan a swing set over the weekend. It's one of those that has a ton of lumber and an instruction manual and the rest is up to you! I had to smile at my father-in-law's comment to Aaron regarding the swing set, Welcome to adulthood- you know you've reached it when you spend your birthday putting something together for your child! How true! Needless to say it's going to take a couple more + days to complete the swingset. Our garage looks like a redwood lumber yard. I'll be posting before and after pictures when it's finally completed. Aaron returned to work on Monday (he took 2 weeks of leave which was great!) and Morgan Kellye is having a melt down every morning because Daddy's not here when she wakes up. (Heaven help us when Aaron deploys again in 4 weeks) She is such a Daddy's girl-she's his little shadow and I love them dearly.

Retail Therapy...

You know the saying "Shop till you drop!"? Well the thing is I love to shop and very, very seldom do I ever drop! I was able to go out this afternoon with Amy and her daughter and we had a good time browsing quite a few stores. Our main goal was the sales racks at the Gap store in Village point where I found the incredible red shirt above in the picture. Then after we finished there we stopped in at Whole Foods and found some stuff to eat along with a great cup of coffee and as always they have their recycled grocery bags for purchase. I love their new design for their bags for the summer (pictured above). Thought it was really cute! Then of course since we were on that side of town it would have been a sin not to stop in at the Pottery Barn stores! Sooo...off we went. Ok, well as most people know, if I had the means I would furnish my entire house out of Pottery Barn and Pottery Barn kids-it's one of my most favorite stores! But since furnishing my entire house out of Pottery Barn is not an option, I enjoy browsing the store for ideas and looking through their seasonal clearance. My splurge for the evening though was the cute little flowered piggy bank above. I've had my eye on it for quite a while, but of course it wasn't on sale like all of the other piggy banks....no000, and it had the be the last one they had in stock. And Amy said that Iwanted the pig therefore I needed the pig and I should buy it...so I caved and the pig came home with me!!! I considered putting it in Morgan's room, but on 2nd thought it'll probably end up on my desk in my office! mmm...I think I'll start a shopping fund!!!!! It's definitely the little things in life that make us smile...oh and by the way the pig wasn't that expensive, I would just rather find things on sale than pay full price- who wouldn't!? Happy Birthday, Amy! Thanks for going shopping with me today!

Oh, Happy Day!

Everyone woke up happy and in an extremely good mood today. We've laughed today, joked with each other, and had a lot of fun just being with each other. I would definitely call this a happy day!

Attack Cat!!!

Ok, so this is what our almost grown kitten, Buddy decided to do this afternoon...attack whoever walked up the kitchen stairs! We all laughed and laughed at his antics. Of course Aaron was his favorite prey!

Just for fun...

Ok, so I had a little creative moment tonight....My good friend Kim recently went to Mexico City, and she graciously gave me a copy of her pictures to browse through. They are all incredible and she has an amazing perspective when it comes to photography, especially travel photography...she could be one of those photographers for national geographic, or for a travel agency!!! But for some reason this black and white caught my eye. I love that it's just a portion of a gate with a stairway on the other side. Kim and I both have this thing for doors and gates. So other than increasing the contrast on the black and white picture-it's all Kim's work! But after playing with some other color options I love the comtemporary-graphic artwork that came out of it! For anyone who truly knows me, they know that I love color! Now I wonder how this one would print up on canvas to put in our playroom in the basement. mmmm....don't worry Kim, I still plan to have it done in black and white for my office. ok, my creative playing is over for the night, back to work editing more picures!

Fireworks around here...

Well I hope all of you had a really good 4th of July this past weekend. Our neighbors always have a huge bar-b-que and fireworks each year, and we had a wonderful time with them, their family and some of our close friends. It's been wonderful to have Aaron home again. We're trying to get some home improvement projects started around here...so we're off to the flooring place this afternoon to see what we can find for our dining room and living room. Life is still good!

Beautiful Girls

Ok, so I've been editing pictures from a photo shoot that I did of some really good friends of ours and I ran across this one and just had to post it! I love this picture-their innocence, their beauty and simplicity. I love that these two are friends. What I wouldn't give for us to live in the same place again so they could play together often. I miss you little miss Emily, and Morgan, I'm so glad you're mine. You're amazing!

Just for fun!

Ok, so this was the cake I made for Aaron for our anniversary yesterday. I found the idea in a Wilton Cake book and thought it was adorable and since Aaron loves to fish.....thought he might like it too. Needless to say it was a huge hit at our house last night. Aaron got a good laugh and enjoyed eating it. And of course Morgan loved picking the candy off and eating it which gave her a big sugar rush right before bed! oh well!

Happy 6th Anniversary

Happy Anniversary Aaron. I love you so much. It's hard to believe that we've already been married 6 years. Sometimes it seems like we've been together sooo much longer and other days I remember it like it was just yesterday. Our wedding day was one of the most amazing days of my life. I am so blessed that God sent you to me. You are truly my other half. God knew what I needed in you long before I ever did. Thank-you for being such an amazing and loving husband and father. Thank-you for accepting me just for who I am, and thank-you for being an example of Christ in our home. I love you with all of me!