Whoopsie

July 17th,

   *sigh......* Will I ever get back into the swing of this blog? 17 days missed? I can't even pretend I know what happened during that time to try to make them up. I certainly didn't keep my word and take a picture every day. My dad came down to visit for a week which was awesome, and I just put this on the back burner. Most pictures were taken with his camera and I just snapped out of photographer mode for a bit :) July is treating us well though. We made some new friends thanks to Cael's baseball team! We had a little bbq for the kids at the end of the season (well, the almost end....We missed Cael's last game due to pure forgetfulness!!!!) 

Next for us in these upcoming weeks is getting ready for our big move!!! When Derrick deploys in September (boo) the kids and I are relocating to Washington to be with family! Lots to do before then, getting the house all set up with the realtor to find a renter, figuring out where to store all the stuff we aren't taking, fine tuning the details of when exactly we are going to leave. It's about to get crazy! I'm torn definitely, I don't want Derrick to leave. But I am looking forward to going home. I just hope this next year goes by nice and fast because after this deployment is over, we won't be facing anymore! We are ready to be close to our families and get normal jobs :) The Army has treated us fairly, and it's a proud job to have, but he loves me and knows the kids and I don't want to be without him anymore. I can't complain :)

Little Swimming Lessons

July 1st, 

I kept my promise today, prepare to be overwhelmed with pictures! While this morning was super slow and consisted of nothing more than clearing up some space on my DVR and contimplating whether or not I was going to eventually put on a bra, we still managed to get a lot done today! I bought some adorable new tutus for my teeny tiny newborn shoots coming up that I can't wait to use, and my husband woke up with a serious cleaning bug and scrubbed the house from top to bottom. (Like how I compare our accomplishments like they are equally deserving of a pat on the back? I realize he did actual work and all I did was shop, but that's my little way of making myself feel less guilty about not helping as much as I probably could have...I was the laundry folder...) 

After the sun went behind a cover of grey around 7, the kids were FINALLY allowed to go swimming in their pool. This weather right now is brutal here in TN, 107, 108, 112....you can't look out the window without getting a sunburn. But it makes for GREAT evening swimming weather! And tonight the kids did so many things that were new to them. If you don't know this about my kids, I'll tell you know...they are little scaredy cats in the water. :) We haven't spent as much time in the water as I always assumed we would, and I guess a lot of that reason is just because they are still young. The year Derrick was deployed Averi was just a baby, and taking the two of them to the pool felt a little intimidating. So now it's a slow-going process getting them used to it. I have all the patience in the world though, water can be a scary thing when you sink like a rock! Today Averi let her little elephant floaty do it's job, and I was so impressed to see her lifting her feet out of the water. When we first got this pool, she wouldn't even let go of the sides unless she had to.  

Another thing they are working really hard at, is putting their faces in the water. Yesterday I taught them how to play "motor boat, motor boat" and blow bubbles in the water, and they kept practicing that tonight. Silly things, I guess, but they make me a proud mommy. :) Anyway, here are a bunch of pictures of pool time tonight! 

First time to the Commissary

June 30th,

So we have lived here since December 2009, and I had never shopped at the Commissary on post for groceries. Most military families ONLY shop there. No tax, plus lower prices. Seems like a no brainer? I have no idea why I never went before, it just seemed too out of the way when we lived at our old house, when Kroger was right down the street. Now that we are in our new house, and have been for a year, I guess it was just out of habit that I still went to Kroger. Well, for most things anyway. I always make two trips when shopping. Kroger for just about everything, and then WalMart for dog food and cheese lol. One thing Middle Tennessee knows nothing about....cheese! Sorry, but the cheese here stinks. On the West Coast we have Tillamook. And Bandon. Here we have Kraft, or Great value. Blah! I am not a fan at all, I really miss my good cheese. Walmart has another brand though, I can't remember what it's called right now but it's decent so that's why I get my cheese there. Anywhoo, back to my point, today we decided to go to the commissary. A new one just got built a few weeks ago and since we will be leaving soon, we figured we better at least see what all the fuss is about. Holy crap. People everywhere! BUT, we saved a TON of money. We spent $176 on a cart full of groceries that usually costs about $200-$220 at the other store. That's enough to make me happy for sure. On the downside, it was 5 bajillion degrees out today and that was really miserable. It didn't matter what store we shopped at, that didn't change the weather, I'm just saying getting out of the house was no fun. When we got inside the store, the walk from our car had completely deteriorated my mood and I was a grumpy gus for the first 10 minutes of our shopping. After the A/C found it's way into my bloodstream I was fine and gave Derrick a big hug and said I was sorry I snapped about us not needing a stupid watermelon because we will forget to cut the damn thing and it will take up too much room in the garbage can. All was great until we walked BACK OUT to the car after the shopping was done. I snapped at Derrick again about him eating one of Averi's fruit snacks (like it matters? lol geez, I'm such a B word...) and he looked at me and said "ONE PASS! One pass through this heat and your mood is completely done for!" LOL...at least he still loves me and knows I'm not always like that. It's this DARN HEAT! It's not a nice heat....it's sticky, and it frustrates my brain. Bleck. I'm ready to be in Washington already. Sometimes you know you want to go, where everybody knows your name. And friends are always glad you came. Did you sing that? I did :) Ok, enough.....I'm not 100% sure what this blog was supposed to be about. Picture tomorrow! Promise! And maybe some make up pictures if I'm feeling super spunky.

Madagascar 3

June 29th,

Super fun day today! Two of the kids' friends came over today to play for a few hours so their parent's could go grocery shopping in peace. (Which let's face it....is golden. Don't lie, you would love to grocery shop without the little ones every once in a while!) We had a great time, the older boys played Mario, as well as every single other toy that Cael owns, of course! Afterwards, the little one stayed with me while Cael got to go with his bud to see Madagascar 3 at the movie theater! It was his first movie without me, and he did great! I guess after the movie both boys were singing "Afro Circus" in the car on the way home lol. Cael got upset last night when he wanted to watch it again on Netflix.....It doesn't quite work that way bud. But wouldn't that be awesome? Movies available for DVD or streaming immediately after they are in the theater? I would love to watch The Hunger Games again, and I'm tired of waiting for it to come out!!!

Excuses, excuses...

June 28th,

I know, I know...please don't kill me. Why I am having such a hard time blogging every night, AND taking pictures during the day?? About a million times today I said "Oh, this would be a great picture for my blog" or "Oh darn, I am walking out to the car and my camera is about 6 inches out of arm's reach.....oh well, I guess I'll take a picture of something when I get home" OK, so maybe I don't really say that out loud but it does happen. Laziness? Probably. You see, when I did this blog last time in 2010, I wasn't a fancy shmancy photographer girl (that's not a real award...I made it up and credited it to myself. Pretty awesome nontheless though.) All I did was stick my memory card into my computer and boom, they were in there. No funny business. I didn't know darn thing about "editing" the pictures I took, they looked how they looked and that was because that's how my camera said they were supposed to look. Silly me.The only thing I knew about photoshop was that I couldn't afford it. Now I know what all the editing software does, and I think a lot of people might tell you, that what I don't know now....is how to stop myself from editing too much! :) Anyway, my point is, now that I know what I'm doing, I have software that is needed to help me turn "oh, so pretty!" into "....wow!" and because I have that stuff, when I insert my memory card into the computer, it opens up all these programs and they hold my pictures hostage until I fine tune them and process them, only then will it release them into my normal pictures folder and let me put them on my blog. You see how hard it is?? Or is it laziness? Either way, I am going to be better. I AM GOING TO BE BETTER!! I'm pretty sure caps lock makes those types of promises easier to keep.

Oh by the way, I also did stuff today. I just got a little carried away in explaining WHY I have been not blogging. Today I babysat an adorable little boy. So cute and full of goodness that I could watch him for ever! (And I didn't take any pictures.....you see?) It's so funny when little babies come over because Averi just loves to help me, especially the little little ones who aren't sitting yet. She laid on the floor next to him and sang every song she knows (or almost knows) and she didn't stop when he laid there and smiled at her. She didn't stop when he started crying and was more interested in a bottle, she did however stop when he pulled her hair.....but only for a second. She finished all her songs and then went to go play :) She came back a little later with a few of her little people and asked him if he wanted to play with her. Ahhh, she's just so cute. My little helper :)

Mini Caching Adventures

June 27th,

Good day! Did you have one? I did! Nice telephone calls with some of my best friends was awesome this morning. I got to shadow my photographer friend at another newborn shoot which was awesome as well. The little baby boy today was so cute! He slept like a champ and she got some amazing pictures! I can't wait to start photographing newborns, I'm very very very excited for that day! Right now I am just amping myself up for my big move home and hopefully once there I can really get going with newborns and seniors! (Did I forget to blog about my move? I think I might have. Remind me, that will be tomorrow'stopic...)

As for tonight, we went on a little geocaching adventure with the kids! The first few we tried to find had to be skipped because it was just too woodsy and buggy for the kids. Call me a bad mom (or a good mom...depending on what side of this argument you want to be on) but if it's buggy, or too hot, I would rather not have them out in it. One parent stays in the car with them in the nice AC, or we get a babysitter. I might be stifling their sense of adventure....but TN is crazy! In Washington, sure! Go on, get dirty, have a blast! (I say that now...) But here in Clarksville it's more like "Stay inside it's too hot, don't touch that it's probably covered in spiders!" Ugh, things a hotter climate can bring :) You win and you lose right? Speaking of Spiders, we were finding a parking lot cache when Cael found a MONSTER of a spider on one of those blue plastic newspaper holder things. You know what I mean? It was super huge and looked really mean. Cael was pretty sure it was the geocache though, he didn't want to let it out of his sight. I told him to go ahead and touch it to see if it was alive and he almost did! He jumped back when I screamed. Just the thought of seeing that spider move, ESPECIALLY as it jumped onto my sons hand and latched on with it's long hairy legs and disgusting body, clinging so it couldn't be flung off, and then moving terrifyingly fast across his little arm and hurdling itself onto me.....which I'm sure was it's plan from the get go. UGH, just writing about it makes me want to take a shower and throw up simultaneouly. I don't like them. And I didn't like this one. And I was NOT going to let Cael touch it. What a mean mom I was for even suggesting it! As soon as I plug my phone in I will upload the picture of it on here. Yes, I was brave enough to take one, but I zoomed as far as my iphone would let me zoom, so I can't guarantee the blurriness of it. I'll put it up tomorrow, don't let me forget that either! Goodnight!!

Painting Rainbows

June 26th,

I am absolutely in love with today's blog. You know how sometimes you have those days where you ACTUALLY do something and then you can't stop smiling and feeling like your the best mom ever? I didn't even do anything of much signifigance today and I still have that feeling! Well first, I woke up to the sound of Derrick cleaning the kitchen and that was a GREAT start to my day :) Then we decided to swap the kids' toys out. (Backstory: In March after Cael's birthday, I filled one portable toy box with as many toys as I could, I think it was his train set, all his toy story action figure things, and ocean animals...then I did the same thing with a toy box in Averi's room. Ponies, Little people, and a few babies.) Well it's been almost 4 months now, so today was the day we brought them inside and swapped them out for another group! The smiles on there faces were insane...like it was Christmas. And they spent the majority of the morning in there rooms playing. Plus, it was so much cheaper than actually buying new things!

After lunch I needed to make a trip to Office Depot to get a picture printed for a distressed canvas I will be making and I took Cael with me. He wasn't too keen on Hobby Lobby for some reason and didn't want to go in, so I told him if he could just come with me and help me pick out a canvas and a few new paintbrushes, I would take him window shopping in any other store he wanted to go in, just to spend time together. What did he pick? Kroger. What a nerd. So that's what we did! First at Hobby Lobby we got some water color paints in addition to the things I needed, then we headed over to Kroger for a little window shopping. Well, kind of, he picked out a box of fruit snacks and each of us a candy bar which I thought was pretty sweet of him. So after we got home and he showed off his goods to daddy and Averi, of course we had to paint! I said I was going to paint a rainbow, so the kids decided to join me and make rainbows for themselves! I love them both so much for so many different reasons. Averi's because it's absolutely hilarious and seems totally opposite of her normal character. She is all about pink and happiness, but when it comes to coloring she almost always chooses brown or black. I have no idea why. And apparently water colors are no different, she started with black and just mixed everything on top of it. She's so cute, I love how she is never afraid to go against the grain. Or I could be reading into too much because she is a two year old and this is how two year olds paint.....either way I think it's cute. Cael's I love because I just can't believe how fast my bow is growing. His favorite thing to do now is math. Yeah I know. And he can paint a pretty decent rainbow.

Get out there!

June 25th,

Not the busiest day today. This morning was quiet and relaxed. Derrick and I want to go to the park this weekend and play a fun game of ultimate frisbee (haven't played that since high school!) so I have been trying to rally some players to come with us! It sure sounds like a fun way to beat cabin fever to me :) I think Cael being in blast ball in the summers is making me wish I was in high school again. Is that crazy? I don't WANT to be back in high school, but I do miss sports. And I'm sure there are plenty of sporty activities I could be doing now, and I'm sure "being a mom" is no excuse....but how to people find the time for stuff like that? I wouldn't even know where to start! Maybe I'll start looking into it though...and not only for softball either, it might sound a little cooky, but I really want to play capture the flag for some reason. Like real, intense, heart pounding through buildings and around corners trying not to get caught......weird? Yeah probably. But it sure sounds like fun!

Cael had a blast ball game today and he did so good :) It's really cute how into it he is getting, and we love watching him. Today during the game I looked over and saw him sitting in the dugout with his hat on backwards, drinking a gatorade and I thought to myself: Wow.....in the blink of an eye I might be at a high school baseball game and see this exact same image only with an older boy. One who's feet can reach the ground. Sad.

Animal Crossing Overload

June 24th,

So as of yesterday, my husband is officially on his block leave! Hooray! This first week we have nothing planned at all. We figure, it will probably take about 7 days to get all the laziness out of his system (and I say HIS system, because I don't feel justified in implying that I have any reason to need lazy days......I have quite a few of them, but we all know I'm in my sweat pants too :)) Next week will be really great, my dad is coming to visit! Cael can't wait to see his Papa, one of his favorite people in the entire world. Anyway, this morning I was sleeping in (like a champ) and when I woke up Cael, Derrick and Averi were sitting on the couch while Cael was playing Animal Crossing on the Wii. If you've never heard of it, check it out, it's my favorite! Our Wii had a nice little layer of dust on it, but for some reason Cael thought it was a good time to fire it on up and get some fun family game time happening.........and then it was time for dinner? Haha, yeah, we kind of played all day. Maybe not the kids, there attention spans come and go... but Derrick and I definitely took advantage of the comfy couch. :) Ahhh, good days when we are all home!

"Shadowing"

June 23rd,

Ahhh, it feels good to be back. The kids are in bed asleep (which makes it so much easier to think in full sentences) Actually, the previous blog post about my entire last week was done with my 2 year old daughter sitting on my lap trying to watch "Annie" on my iphone. It's hard to concentrate when all I can think is "little girls little girls...every where I look I see them. *hiccup*" lol. Silence is a lot easier to write in! So anyway, they are asleep, I am in my jammies and tucked all in my bed and my awesome husband is right next to me with his laptop on his lap just like me. These are good moments!

Today has been really great! I "Shadowed" another friend photographer today while she took photos of a newborn baby boy. Watching two different people conduct photo shoots has actually been really beneficial to me, I get a chance to see different mannerisms and different techniques and have a great basic starting point for what might work for me. I am so very, very thankful to both of my photographer friends for being so generous and non-catty :) You two know who you are! My photo of the day is one of the ones I took today, not my props or my setup so I can't take much credit other than the photo itself and editing, but I definitely think it's blog worthy!! And here is a bit of awesome-ness for you, my first newborn shoot is already scheduled! Monday afternoon I will get to photograph a little Ella and I absolutely cannot wait, I am already going crazy picking and planning my props and goodies for her. <3

This morning while I was at the photo shoot, Derrick took the kids to a cool shindig in a neighboring town called Touch-A-Truck. It was at the mall, and in the parking lot were 4 big trucks that the kids could climb in and pretend to drive. Fire truck, police car, and two others...I think a tow truck? I don't know, something cool I'm sure. Cael absolutely loved it! He told me he sat in the back of the police car, where they put the bad guys. I asked him if that was cool and if it made him want to grow up to be a bad guy, and luckily...he said no. :) Our afternoon was spent playing games on the wii together, video chatting with some family on the west coast, and getting thrown into the bathtub while the kids were taking a bath. That last one is thanks to my husband who, along with Cael, though it was just hilarious.

Goodnight everyone! I hope this weekend turns out to be a good one :) Oh, another thing I wanted to mention: As of today, my husband is on leave! Cool news for us because he gets 2 weeks off of work, bad news is that the reason he gets it is because he is about to deploy. Enjoy it while we can, right? It's going to be so nice to have him home every day! Tomorrow's adventure is going to be to dump out our 8 ft pool and clean it so we can swim again. Someone (don't look at me....) didn't get a skimmer, and doesn't remember anytime he/she is at the store, so our pool acts as a bug and grass magnet. Bleck.

Alright! Goodnight!

Eeeek, I'm in trouble!! (A week in review)

Ok....let's start with the big elephant in the room....I haven't blogged for an entire week. (Or 9 days.....but who's counting?)  We had a 3 day weekend at a hotel in Nashville and I just didn't get as many pictures as I had intended. Well, I got some, but they are on my phone and it just takes SO MUCH ENERGY to plug my phone into my computer.......    or I'm lazy. Ok, I'm fixing it though! I've been stalling because I didn't want to rack my brain and try to remember what we did on what days, so instead (if it's alright with you) I would just like to compile the whole week and start fresh tomorrow. Sound ok? Picture overload....

 First was a little play date that the kids got to have with a friend of mine's kids! They had such a great time, and didn't want to go home.

 Both of these pictures were taken in Nashville! Our weekend was really great, and the hotel had an awesome daycare service provided that allowed us a date night! I took Derrick to Jack's BBQ, a place my sister and I found when she visited a year and a half ago. We feel special because anytime we see Nashville on TV, the reporter just happens to be standing in front of this place :)

 We had to stop at the newly re-opened Opry Mills Mall before we went home and we all rode the tea cup on the caurasel! 

 Not the best quality picture, but this is Cael's baseball magnet :) We got one last year too, and I was so happy to see a smile this time :) It's awesome to see the changes he is going through lately, he used to be my little introvert and now I think he is starting to come out of his shell a little!

 Awwwwww.........My good photographer friend has been letting me assist her in a few newborn photo shoots so I can start to get comfortable to do them myself! Isn't he the cutest thing ever??? I absolutely love photography, but I admit, babies scare me a tiny bit :) I'm getting ready though!

 Here's a photo from the shoot I recently did too! This family has a near and dear place in our family's heart :) You guys are so great!

 Random??? This is a little present from Averi :)

 Backdrop stand!! Probably looks like chaos right now, but that is going to be a lifesaver when I start photographing newborns :) 

See you tomorrow, I promise!! With one (on average lol) picture and a much steadier train of thought!!

Father's Day

June 14th, 

It's Father's Day!!! Well....sort of. Derrick has a 4 day weekend starting tomorrow, and we will be spending 3 of them at a Strong Bonds Marriage Retreat in Nashville! Not 100% sure on what that entails, but we were informed that happily married couples are strongly encouraged to go, as well as couples who feel like they could use a little help. (We are the former, fyi!) The kids get to come with us, and there is free on site childcare provided while we go to classes and out on a date! I'm really excited to go. Anyway, back to my point, which is today. We celebrated Father's day today since we won't be home Sunday and surprised Derrick with a cute little picture that the kids and I made, and a huge lego set! My husband has walked down the lego isle of every store we have gone to since the day Cael was born. He has very impatiently been awaiting the day he could use our son as an excuse to buy some legos and pretend he is a kid again. Well I figured that has come, or close enough anyway. I made sure to get a Marvel Superhero set so Cael would like it too, but I don't think I needed to take that precaution. He is having so much fun putting this....spaceship?....airplane? whatever it is, together. Something from the avengers lol. Derrick and I are pleasantly surprised at how well he can follow the instructions, even without Derrick's help! I think ice cream is in our near future as well, so I'm outta here! I don't think I will be able to blog while I'm at the retreat, but I'll try! If not you'll get another 3 days at once, that's a pattern I'm going to try to get out of next week :)

Blast Ball!

                                              

July 13th,

Sorry for the picture overload today....it was busy! Those are the best, nice busy days with the whole family.  It started with me being a horrible playgroup coordinator and changing plans at the last minute, if we're being honest. I host a weekly playgroup Wednesday's at 10:30 and this morning at 9:30 I decided to switch it up from taking some father's day pictures, to heading out to the pool to go swimming! It was just so nice out and the kids really needed to get rid of some energy. Only one (out of two lol) was able to make it, so we decided to take it one step further and head to the water park in Hopkinsville! The kids had a great time and we had a nice refreshing morning together! After the pool we headed to Cael's first blast ball game of the season. He played last year, but as a 3 year old, he really didn't get into it very much. He's a shy guy anyway and had no idea what to do. This year is completely different, he likes it a lot more, he runs after the ball and he doesn't get embarrassed when it's his turn to hit the ball. Last year he didn't run to the base after hitting. Not once! But it's so cute to watch him now. I love my little blast ball player :) I included a video of him hitting....not sure if it will work or not. If it doesn't, I will delete this part of the text when I delete the video so I don't look like a fool :) See you tomorrow!

What is that kid wearing?

June 12th,

Today was a really nice day! It started a little too early for my tastes....we had to wake up and take Derrick to work (awesome-ness of a one car family) and as tired as we all were, there was no chance of the kids going back to bed when we got home. I survived though and got to spend time with some really good friends. First was dropping the kids off with my friend Alycia so they could play with their best buds Zander and Connor, then I was off to my photographer friend Kristina's house to watch her do a newborn photo shoot! I have attempted newborns before, but got scared at how much I could tell I needed to learn, so I swore them off. Until now.I learn so much from her, and today was no different, it was awesome to see her in action too!

After the photo shoot, I went back to Alycia's so her and I could have dinner and watch the Hunger Games while the kids played! It was a good day! And yes....that is what Cael wore today. Oh, the regrets of telling your 4 year old to pick out whatever he wanted...

Keeping busy

June 11,

I apologize if most of these blogs are photography related....but that's my life now :) So when I talk about what I did today, it will usually have at least something to do with being a photographer. Plus, this is a photography blog too, so I guess I'm alright lol.  I have never been too excited about doing indoor photo shoots, I felt that since I don't own a studio or have proper lighting equipment, it would be unprofessional to bring clients into my home and "make it work." Well I have learned now, that I was totally wrong! All I need is a little confidence that I know what I'm doing, that I know what lighting works and what doesn't, and a few minutes to transform my kitchen into my own workspace! Obviously clients will be happier with a photographer that can move some furniture around and be able to make pretty pictures in the middle of their home, than they would be with a photographer who can't take their pictures if the weather is less than perfect :) Watch out world, I have my head on a little straighter and Darci Ann Photography's studio is open for business!

A year already?

June 10th,

This is how I got to spend my Sunday morning :) Choosing to become an "actual photographer" and going into business for myself has been one of the scariest and self challenging decisions I have made since we moved over here to TN. It has also been one of the coolest and, I think, smartest decisions I have made as well! I have learned SO much and made some really amazing friends. I have made friends with other photographers which I hadn't expected honestly, and I am so happy that I did! It's awesome to have someone to talk to with such similar interests! I have also made some really great friends out of my clients, and it makes me so happy when they come back to me time and time again, telling me they like the photos I take :) Both of these sessions from Sunday were families that I have photographed for an entire year. I took newborn pictures (my first ones ever!) of both little cuties pictured here, and just wrapped up their one year photos! (11 months actually for the family in the top picture, but they are moving away this week so we had to squeeze some in a little early!)

Thank you both, and thank you to everyone else who has allowed me to glimpse into their beautiful families, even for only an hour, and capture memories that will hopefully last them a lifetime. And I am so looking forward to everything I will continue to learn in the future, so stay tuned!!

Congratulations to a Happy Couple!

June 9th,

Today was exhausting, but wonderful! My photographer friend Bonita is also a photographer in the Clarksville area and she asked me to be a second shooter for the wedding she photographed today. Weddings make for an extremely long day, but we had a great time! The couple was great, the sweetest people you could ever meet and the location was a beautiful one with plenty of inspiration to get creative with our shots! I wish all the best to the happy couple and am so grateful I got to be a part of their special day!

Snow White and the Huntsman

June 8th,

Wow am I late! Today is the 12th and I am just now filling in all these blogs. Needless to say this was an insanely busy weekend, which obviously, I will get to :)

Friday was a productive day. It probably wouldn't have been, but Averi had a small (and by small, I mean extraordinary large) accident in the living room while I was being a slightly selfish mom playing Bingo on Facebook.....ooops :/    But props to her for getting me up and ready to clean the house! We shampooed the carpets which meant rearranging the living room temporarily which the kids LOVE.  I worked on my distressed canvases a bit, and got to spend a little time chit chatting with my good photographer friend Kristina.

Derrick came home nice and early and made it possible for me to go to a pre-deployment meeting (yay...) where us wives got stuffed full of information about what's going to happen in a few months when the guys leave. It's never a fun time, but I've done it before....so it should be easier? I hope that's the case anyway. I'm in denial a bit, I haven't talked about it much yet, but I'm sure that day will come. One thing that makes deployment stuff easier is a movie with a good friend!

Before the meeting I got a call from my friend's husband, asking if I would help get her out of the house for a few hours so she could have some baby-free girl time. Of course I was all for it, thinking I could use a little of that myself, so her and I headed to the movies! We missed the 8 oclock showing thanks to my slow-driving skills...they sold out at 7:59! So we hung out at Sonic for an hour and a half and went to the 9:40 instead. Snow White and the Hunstman was.......AMAZING! I was nervous, not a huge fan of Kristen Stewart and her one facial expression, but I was pleasantly surprised! It was a really good night with a really good friend and I wish we had more of them!

Ok, I guess I better move on to the other 3 nights I have missed :)

Blast Ball

June 7,2012

   Great day today! I woke up to the exciting realization that "The Glee Project" would be available to watch on Oxygen.com! That's probably only exciting to me, but last week I changed our DirecTV package so we could save a little more on our bill and I realized we were paying $13 a month extra for 3 channels. That's it! 3 channels that we watched anyway, the rest was all mumbo jumbo that we could care less about. (And when I say WE, I mean me....I am TV junkie) But anyway, one of those channels was Oxygen and I realized about 15 minutes after I canceled it, that the Glee Project was premiering THAT NIGHT. Talk about luck. I love the internet though and I'm ok with waiting a few days to watch my shows for free. Wow...off topic much? I'd say so! I promise there was more to my good day then just a tv show, I'm not THAT shallow :)
   The kids and I spent the morning out and about, running errands, playing on the mcdonald's playground during lunch, going to speech therapy 4 hours early... :) I thought today was an 11:30 day, but after 45 minutes of waiting I realized today is the 2:30 day instead. Oopsie. After all that was the best part of our Thursdays, Blast ball! Blast ball is a version of Tee Ball that is for 3 and 4 year olds and it is absolutely adorable. It's a lot less chaotic for them, and just introduces them to some of the fundamentals of base ball. Hit the ball, run to the base. If you didn't hit the ball, then you get to chase it down! There is only one base, they run to it and when they jump on it, it squeaks. I guess it's to keep the kids' attention. We love it. Cael is a Brave and he is #1 this year! We played last year as well, he was a Cub. I'm definitely going to be keeping all of his shirts. If baseball becomes something that he wants to keep playing, I think a big blanket would be a really cool "Happy High School Graduation" gift for him. If that day ever comes....which I doubt it will because I plan on keeping him semi-small forever! If Cael and his sister graduate high school, that means I would have to get older and to be honest, I just don't see that happening. And on the topic.....is a blanket even a "cool" present for a boy? What do you give to a boy that incorporates years and years of baseball shirts? Any ideas would be awesome, just comment below and I will write them down on a sticky note which will SURELY be around by the time he graduates high school in the year 2026!
   Night everyone, it's 11 and I am so ready for bed!
 

Hide and Seek

June 6, 2012 -

   Derrick's deployment is something that I really haven't been talking about very much. Denial? Probably a little. But mostly, I think it just doesn't feel like it should be here yet. I still think of it as something that we will deal with when it comes up. But the truth is, it's coming up awfully fast. He leaves in about 3 months and I suppose it's time to start preparing! Playing hide and seek in the house is no special occasion, we probably play it once a week at least because it's hilarious and the kids get a huge kick out of it. Derrick and I always start out with really goofy hiding places that will make each other laugh, and make the kids laugh, like pretending to be a stuffed animal, or sitting in the bathtub. But as time goes on, our competitiveness always sneaks into the game and we find the hardest, most insane places to hide, just to stump each other.
   So far I hold the title of awesome places, I squeezed myself in the tiny gap between the refrigerator and the wall where we keep the broom. I knew it would be great for my self esteem if I could cram myself in there, and I could....with the exception of my boobies and my nose. The boob thing is a problem most girls would love to have, so I feel bad complaining (and the nose.....that's just life, I have learned to love it)....but believe me, there is a big difference between being able to HIDE between the wall and the fridge, and being STUCK between the wall and the fridge! I was in pain. And because of that pain, I was not letting out a peep! It had to be worth it, and stump the family or else I would just be a girl who had a fantasy moment pretending she could fit into a broom hole.
   I was stuck there for half an hour! They had searched the house high and low and couldn't find momma. It was great :) Finally Derrick spotted me, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't start making little noises to speed up the process. He'll tell you it was "instinct", but I totally gave myself away.
   Anyway! My point here was to talk about how great it is to spend time with him, and how I need to wake up and smell the roses. Admit that the deployment is coming, and cherish every moment that the kids and I get to spend with him! We don't want to see him go for another year, we don't want to have birthday parties without him, or the Holidays. It's not going to be a fun time, but there is a bright side I guess, and that would be that we have done it before. The shock will (hopefully) be a little less this time around, and I already know I have the strength to get through the next year without him physically being home. Until then, hooray for daddy pretending to be a stuffed animal :)

Weeds Be Gone

July 5, 2012

Today was great! Almost every day, the kids want to go outside and jump on the trampoline (which shouldn't be a huge shocker, since they're kids!) but every day I have a silent battle with myself because I KNOW they are going to come in and out and in and out and the door is going to get left open and I will spend the rest of the afternoon swatting flies in the kitchen. Should that be my biggest concern? Is there something wrong with me? Nevermind, we'll talk about that another day :)
  Anyway today I decided I needed to get up off my booty anyway and get some yard work done, and I am so glad I did! The kids and I had a blast today, and on top of that I got a lot accomplished. The picture below is our backyard, and those stalks are big ole' fat weed/trees that grew up while we were lawn mower-less. Well today I dug them all up! 

While I was digging in the hot sun, my genius children were digging in the shade underneath the trampoline! Jo Boxer had gone under there and unburied a bone from about 3 months ago and left a nice hole for this kids. They were certain they were going to find a buried treasure under there so I told them to go for it, and because I'm mommy I get at least 30% if it's gold! Not only did they find treasures, they also found a frog! (Also thanks to Jo...) That was pretty cool for them. And I had gardening gloves on, so I got to pretend like I had no fear at all and pick it up for them to see better. Pretty sure I earned a few cool points there.

 After spending all day outside (Digging up weeds, frog hunting, swimming in the pool, stopping the ice cream truck, weeding the front flower beds, blowing bubbles in the driveway, going on a bike ride.......I guess that's all!!) I felt like a super good mom and the backyard looks a lot less crowded! Not the most exciting day to a lot of you I'm sure, but I had originally intended to "fold laundry" in the living room all day while watching reruns of Law&Order SVU.

June 4th, 2012 (seems like as good a day to start as any!)

I can't believe it's been 2 and a half YEARS since I started this blog, and it's funny (or not) I haven't even considered starting this project again until just a few hours ago!  I enjoyed this the first time, I really did. But there were days when it seemed like more of a hassle than a help. Days when I would forget to take a picture, or when we just didn't do anything special, so I would find myself taking a random picture to make up for it. Usually those ones had very little creativity or thought behind them, and my words written were just as blah. I have been afraid that if I start this again it will be the same way, boring. But as I opened up the past entries and read through them this afternoon with my kids looking over my shoulder and asking about each one, I realized that I actually did what I had intended to do! I preserved our memories through that entire year. And I see now that there were a lot less "boring entries" than I seem to remember, so that's a plus too!

A lot has happened during the gap, my husband and best friend has been home for a year and a half....not enough of course, there is never enough time spent with the family when you are an active duty soldier. But we must take what we can get I guess. The majority of his time home has been spent at our new house!! Living for the army can be very fickle and ever-changing, moving soldiers from state to state as needed, so naturally we decided to purchase a home in our very first duty station :) Just kidding, we are enjoying the many perks to owning our own home and whether or not we live here forever, this little house will always have a huge place in our hearts!

I don't want to draw this entry out with a recap of the past since most of you are on my facebook and already know most of it, so I'll do a quick reader's digest version and promise to have a much more awesome entry tomorrow! Here goes:

Derrick and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary (Harry Potter movie premiere, geocaching underneath the city, and planking, oh my!) and we are now preparing to celebrate our 5th! Our son Cael turned 3, and then 4 (4 was pretty darn cool, he wanted to have a Halloween themed party in March lol) our daughter, Averi turned 2 and will be 3 soon enough. We bought a house, covered that one. I started my own photography business which I ADORE and have met some of the most amazing and kind people because of it! It's nothing I want to give up in any realm of the forseeable future.
Hmmm.....I suppose that'll do for tonight. See you tomorrow!

This is only the Beginning...

December 31st...

There you go...a glimpse into my life for an entire year. A sneak peek inside the day-to-day of an Army Wife enduring her husband's first deployment in a completely new world. Wow. I can't believe I survived this, to be honest. One...I can't believe I just made it a whole year in Clarksville, TN without my husband, without my family, without any of my friends from back home. Of course I made new friends while I was here (and they are great, GREAT people that I will love and stay in touch with forever now) And two...I can't believe I actually kept this blog up! Ok, so maybe I didn't take a picture EVERY day...there were definitely periods of time where I was more enthusiastic than others, but that was to be expected. If I skipped a day (or a week) I would rack my brain to remember what we did, and try to capture a picture that had at least something to do with that day, after the fact. Mainly so I wouldn't have to face my oldest sister who constantly let me know how behind I was!

To be perfectly honest, I had initially intended to use this blog as an outlet to get through this deployment. To vent, or cry, just be an open book for my family back home. But as it turned out, I am just not the "open book" type. I used this blog more to highlight the fun, or funny, things that happened to us during our days here, and not to focus on anything negative. I had my moments, of course, but I thought I was going to treat this blog more like a diary. If I decide to continue this blog into 2011...I am going to try and be more open about everything and really use this blog for what it was intended for. I think having my husband home will help me do just that, with him around I always feel more comfortable in my own skin!

This isn't the best "farewell 2010" picture, it doesn't really capture what I wanted it to...but of what I took, this is what I got! I really didn't do much for New Years, I sat on the couch by myself while my kids went to bed at their normal time. So instead of having that depressing though end my blog (for now) I decided I would take the kids outside on these nice sunny (winter) days and get some pictures of the kids. Cael was playing soccer in the yard, and just looking at him, and seeing how much bigger he is than when we first moved here was really emotional for me. It breaks my heart that he, and all kids with military families have to grow so much during the years that their parents are away. But on the plus side, I know that in a few weeks Cael is going to be able to kick that ball to Derrick, and he is going to kick it right back! So that's why I chose this picture to end my blog, because it shines a little light on what we have to come.

Thank you everyone who kept up with me this year, and cared enough to peek in and see how we were doing! It means a lot to me how much love and support I have in my life, and it really was brought to my attention after we moved away. When you are right down the street from someone, you don't think to tell them how much you love having them around, probably because you don't have to imagine not having them. It was really a comfort to me to see how many people in my life made this move with me, maybe not in person, but definitely in heart!

And another thank you to everyone who I met while here in TN and really made this year tolerable! Faith, Amber, Tiffany, Eryn, Christy...just to name some of you. Thank you! I cherish our friendships, and even though circumstances keep changing, I hope we can always keep in touch!

Love you guys!

-Darci

Resolutions

December 30th...

Today I got a head start on my New Year's Resolution. I am hoping that since I started early, I might actually keep it...who knows though! I'm not the best at making changes and sticking to them. I have been in quite the funk for a good chunk of this deployment and it's probably due to the fact that I am so ready for it to be over! I am ready to have my husband back so I can quit telling myself "Eh, that'll be easier when Derrick is home...I'll just deal with it then" Things like laundry and dishes are not going to wait until he is home to help me wash them, so boycotting really doesn't do anything but make my chore list longer and more dreadful. So, as a start to my new year (and the end of this one) I decided to put us on a schedule! It's nothing set in stone, I just split up our day hour by hour and figured what would be the most useful, healthy and realistic way to spend our time. I even designated certain "hours" when the TV when be on, and when it will be off. This morning was my first test to try it out, and I am PROUD to say, I stuck with it! When Cael came into my room and woke me up at 6:30 this morning, I didn't put in a movie for him and go back to sleep like I really, really wanted to. Instead, I put a movie on for him, and jumped in the shower. By 7 Averi was awake, and that was perfectly OK because so was I! We all got dressed and had breakfast and then it was on to my first chunk of "chores." I had put on the schedule that from 8-9 I would wash any dishes, start and fold whatever laundry needed it, and vacuum...and you better believe at 7:59 I was sitting on the couch trying to stop the clock with my mind! I did it though, I got up, turned the TV off (yep, off!) and did all three of those things. And the best part? The kids were fine with it!! Cael played in his room the whole time, while Averi bounced back and forth between helping me put the dishes in the dishwasher (and then back out again) and playing with her toys. It was pretty amazing, I must say, and it really set the pace for the rest of the day!

Grocery shopping, lunch, and naptime were pretty straightforward, no big changes there. But after naps, that was a biggie. As soon as both kids were awake, I let Cael pick out a movie to keep them busy while I cleaned both bathrooms! I know! What an accomplishment! Normally, I will clean one...maybe half way...and then say I will clean the other one the next day. Or week. I'm pretty bad, I know. But I did it today, because it was on the schedule :) After that we played, I cooked dinner, we ate, bathed, and now the kids are sleeping soundly!

It feel like a million bucks tonight! But I can already tell, I really don't want to get up at 6:30 again...

Pretend Shopping Sprees

December 29th...

Ever have one of those days where you just have to get out of the house, but you can't think of a single place to go? It's still a few days until payday, it's already dark out, we already ate...what should we do? Well lucky for me, my son always has the answer. We went to Toys R Us to play with the Choo Choo Train display...obviously! I'm not sure if it's there strictly to keep 2 year olds busy for an hour or so when the mom has no intention of buying anything...but I hope so, because that's what we did! He played with that train for the longest time while Averi and I window shopped that one isle that the display is in. (All Thomas toys are buy one, get one half off...FYI) Then of course, on our way out we HAVE to ride the Winnie The Pooh airplane! I always get so embarrassed because it's right there by the checkout and it plays the Winnie The Pooh song SO loud, and for forever! Oh well though, they both love it. If you can get both kids out of the house for a while and keep them entertained the whole time for only 50 cents, I'm not going to complain!

I've Got Mail!

December 28th...

My mom and sisters made my day yesterday! (Yes, yesterday...I'm a day off with this picture, sorry!) Jo barked at the window, and Cael and I looked out to see the postmistress stopping in front of the house, which is always a great feeling. She brought up a box to us and Cael pointed at it all excited and said "Dada home!" It was more than a little heartbreaking. I just looked at him and said "You really think daddy could fit in here?" instead, what we got was an awesome box of goodies from my families "baking day" tradition! I was bummed I couldn't take part this year, and I guess they were bummed not to have me there. So to make me feel included, they sent us some samples! Everything is awesome, you guys did a great job!

Ponytails!

December 27th...

Alright, so it's not the prettiest ponytail ever...but in my defense, it is my first! Well, it's my first in a while. I have to admit, there were a few times Cael got one. Or a headband. Or a barett (thanks Nik!) He had really long hair as a baby and it was adorable so I wasn't about to cut it...instead we would just "put it up" at dinner time. But still, this is my first ponytail that I did for my daughter. Whenever I do my nieces' hair, it's more the "sit in your lap so they can get their hair done" type of environment...Averi's is more the "hold still for 2 seconds!!!" type of environment. But regardless, she has one! And that means her hair is growing, which is a really good thing. She doesn't have much in the back, but at least she didn't lose it all, I am definitely thankful for that.

Big Bone...Bad Idea!!

December 26th...

So Jo Boxer got a bone for Christmas...but I decided to stray from the normal rawhide bones that she loves so much because she gets so paranoid about there whereabouts. You get her a rawhide bone and she will hide it 57 times in a day. And as soon as she hides it, she will walk around in total worry-wart mode and run back to it every time someone steps in that general direction. Out side, she will constantly dig holes to bury it and then dig it back up and put it in a new whole. Since we are renting, she is not allowed to take her bones outside. But that's alright because there are hundreds of places for her to hide those big slobbery chewed on bones inside...like the laundry. Or Averi's stuffed animal shelf. Or in Cael's bed! So....no more rawhide bones for Jo. At least not for now, when we own a home then sure dog, go for it!

Anyway, to my point, I got her a real bone this Christmas. So she could feel super special and eat it, and let that be that. Well...that wasn't that. She ate that bone in about 15 nano seconds and threw it back up all over my living room while we were sleeping. Awesome. From now on, I am sticking with tennis balls!!! She's not the type of dog who likes to play with toys, but that is just too bad!

Christmas Day

December 25th...

Last night when I was filled with sadness and hurt for all the people I love but didn't get to see this year, I didn't put much faith into the rush of presents and happiness I would witness this morning. I love my kids so much and they snapped me right out of my funk today! They are both so hilarious, after two or three presents they wanted to stop and eat breakfast. After breakfast we got back to it and they started handing them to me to open! All they could focus on where the things already unwrapped that they wanted to start playing with. Silly kids, don't they know the unwrapping is supposed to be one of the major highlights at that age? I'm not complaining though, the pressure is definitely off for next year! Quality over quantity, definitely!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! I would like to just say a special thanks to everyone who has stuck with me this long! I can't believe the year is almost up, I only have a few blogs left and it felt really great (and maybe a little too open, at times) to share the main events of each day with you. It has really boosted my confidence level when it comes to letting people into my life and not worrying about what they are going to think. We are who we are, that's all there is to it! You either like it, or you walk away and read someone else's blog!!