No Sleep

I am so tired today! After an amazingly busy weekend and the need to stay up late last night to finish a session edit, Port decided sleeping was for the birds and he was up all night long! *yawn*

Friday I drove the boys out to Wimberly so I could meet up with a bride and groom at their wedding venue. It was a long drive, but the boys did pretty well considering. We had our fair share of upsets, but overall they were good. I got back that evening just in time to drop the boys off and head over to Kim's house so we could do our live podcast celebrating our 1 year anniversary. That was a total blast! The show itself ran pretty long, but then afterward Kim's hubby brought out his guitar and talked Kim and I into a little jam session. We sang for probably a good hour and a half before Kim finally kicked me out. If you would like to hear the audio of the live show, and the little clip of our jam session at the end, click here.

I fell into bed late Friday night (actually early Saturday morning) and then had to get up bright and early so I could pick up Kim at 8:30am. We went on a photography location scouting mission and spent the entire morning driving around. We found some amazing places for senior portraits and I am so excited to get to use them!! We got back in time to stop by the brand new farmers market that opened in Cedar Park and then headed home. I had just enough time to grab lunch and then I had to start cooking for a party Saturday night. A couple of our friends hosted a New Moon DVD release party, and I was responsible for making PW's Buttered Rosemary Rolls. OMG they are soooooo yummy!! You really have to try them. It was very cool to harvest some rosemary from my plant on the porch to use on these rolls. Things like that make me giddy!

Sunday we went to church and once we got home I left for a bit to see if I could find a funky chair to use in some of my sessions. I had no luck there and ended up back home with just enough time to clean out the van so I could taxi my evening senior session model and her mom to our location. Kim was supposed to come with me as my assistant, but her whole family ended up sick at the same time so she had to stay home with them. Thankfully a quick call to the amazing Jen landed me with an assistant to take her place. Jen was great - she caught all the stray hairs and messed up clothing and she helped me with some off camera flash I was experimenting with. We worked until after sunset then loaded up and headed back to town. I dropped off the clients and Jen and I stopped at Subway for a quick 9PM dinner.

Once again I crawled into bed way too late. Port was up at 4am and screamed for a good hour or so before he fell back to sleep. Then he was up again when Hubby got up for work, and I don't think he went back to sleep after that. I finally peeled myself out of bed after 8 and found him standing in his crib with his head under the window covering, looking out the window and talking to the squirrels. At least he was happy to see me!

Yesterday was a bit of a struggle - I was desperately trying to catch up on laundry and finish my client session edits and do my taxes. The laundry got about half way done and the session was no where near finished, so last night after our regular Musing Mommies recording session I stayed up late to finish my edits. When we put Port to bed at 8 he really wanted to stay in Kiddo's room. He actually laid down in Kiddo's bed and pulled the covers up over himself. Once in his crib in his own room, he screamed for only a few minutes. But while I was up editing later that night he woke up again. I think it was about midnight. He cried for the longest time. I hate leaving him in there like that but I can tell by the cry that nothing is wrong. After about an hour of off and on fussing he finally went back to sleep. I went to bed finally at around 1:45 and at about 3AM Port started crying again. He cried for about an hour before I finally willed myself up to get him. He was totally fine, not even wet, but he wanted to go to the couch. So I took him there, and over the course of the next hour he got up 3 times to get something to eat. I was so sleepy that I didn't have the strength to stop him, I just wanted him quiet. He ended up eating 2 hot dogs and a frozen waffle! At about 4:30 I had no more reserves so I put him back in his crib. He screamed for what seemed like forever. Kiddo started bugging me for breakfast at about 8 and I finally crawled out of bed at about 8:45. Port was up with his head in the window again, happy as a clam. ugh

The garden is beginning to take off now, though I am getting really frustrated with a couple of things. There is something nibbling on almost all of my baby plants. The green beans are seriously struggling and the black beans have been munched on too. The cucumbers appear to be struggling, and today I watered in the morning and there were 3 cucumber plants (one hill never sprouted). I walked back out a couple of hours later and one plant was completely gone. All that was left was a hole like someone yanked it right out of the dirt. The boys can't get into the garden area without me, so my best guess is it was a bird or a squirrel. grrrr!

Another thing that is extremely frustrating is that something is wrong with my soil. When I planted, it was perfect! It was fluffy and rich and light, and now it is like clay. It is so hard that when some of the plants try to push through the surface, they end up breaking under the strain of the dirt. I am so upset about this!! I don't know what happened. The only thing I can figure is that all the rain we had washed down some of the organic matter?? I have no clue. So, I am going to have to figure out a way to work some peat moss and compost into certain areas and hope it's enough to help the plants already there survive. Another option is to dig up what is growing, amend the soil and then replant. I am scared to do that though - it might shock my plants to death.

The lima beans never did come up and I guess now I am going to have to replant those and some of the cucumbers. I am making floating row covers for the rest in the hopes of deterring whatever is nibbling on things. I cut the bottoms out of a few yogurt containers and placed them in the dirt around my baby spinach plants so they could have a chance to grow and it seems to be helping them. The pepper plants never came up either, so I guess I will spring for actual plants and put them in sometime in the next week.

The good news though is that my carrots, broccoli, peas, corn and lettuce are doing great and I am getting a few leaves of spinach and lettuce every day now. Hopefully once the plants get bigger I can harvest enough to actually make a meal instead of supplementing like I am now. My garlic is almost ready to pull and I am eagerly anticipating that.

Here is what we pulled today. I am slowly thinning the carrots so we can get some big ones. Kiddo gets so excited when we get to pull a few!
That's parsley on the left. Going clockwise from there, carrots, spinach and lettuce. I am going to try to use them all in supper tonight. Yum!!

Port's birthday is coming up on Saturday and I have no clue about what we are going to do. The family is coming in so I need to do something, and make a cake. And mercy, Easter is the next day!!! I haven't even talked to the bunny yet! Ugh. I see a midnight run to Walmart in my future.

Until,
D :)

Sweet Little Thing

And one more thing...

Today Kiddo was in his room. I walked by the door and he said to me,

"Mumma, I just had a good idea. I am going to marry Ayssa (his favorite little girl friend from our playgroup). She is always so happy to see me. I like that. She is going to be so happy to see me at the wedding. I think that is a good idea. Do you think it's a good idea? Ayssa is always excited to see me, right Mumma?"

He is such a sweet boy.

Until,
D

Still Alright

I am here, I promise. I am just currently buried under about 5 feet of tax paperwork. All my utility bills, all my receipts, logs, client folders, order invoices, etc. I will hopefully find my way out tomorrow.

Things are looking up from my last posting. Port's issues have subsided, the weather was once again gorgeous today and this weekend is shaping up to be fantastically busy. Friday night, the Musing Mommies Podcast is celebrating our 1 year anniversary with a live show on Ustream. We will be answering listener's questions and comments in real time, giving away prizes and having a great time. So if you are a MuMo listener, or if you just want to log in to watch and listen to us record a live show, click on that link above sometime after 8:30PM tomorrow night. We would love to have you! I can't wait!

I have some important business stuff to take care of tomorrow as well, and I am hoping the boys behave for me. On Saturday I am going out again to scout for locations for some upcoming sessions and afterward I am hoping to stop by the new farmer's market opening in Cedar Park. I am so excited to have something like this close by, finally! I can't wait to check it out.

So anyway, I just wanted to check in. Hopefully I can find some time to post some this weekend.

Until,
D

Empty

Hello my lovies!

I am sorry I didn't blog yesterday, but well, to be honest, yesterday totally sucked. It started with being up with Port for over an hour in the middle of the night and then weird and scary dreams before I even woke up. Then I woke up to Kiddo messing with me while I was trying to catch the lat few minutes of sweet sleep. I was cranky, and I told him if he couldn't be still he needed to go back to his room. Of course, asking a 5 year old to be still is like asking...well it's like asking a 5 year old to be still! It isn't going to happen! So I fussed at him and he burst into pitiful tears, wailing that he only wanted to cuddle with me. Of course the HUGE, GINORMOUS Boulder of Mommy Guilt crushed my chest and so I apologized and snuggled with him for a while before his brother woke up. Then I kicked myself for the rest of the day for not being a normal mom and a nice mom and cherishing every little moment I have with him because in a few short months he will be off to school and cuddling with him in the mornings will be something I will most likely never be able to do again (and probably not something he would want to do anyway). Why can't I ever remember these things in the moment? Why do I have to make him cry to trigger my brain that maybe he is still a little guy that loves me and just wants to be near me? Ugh.

So...I am PMSing. And of course the whole day just kind of went down hill from there. It wasn't that anything really was bad, there were just a million and one little annoyances that added up and by 5PM I was done, done, done. Port is teething and so he is dealing with constant (seriously like every 10 minutes) nasty diapers that are burning his little hiney no matter what I do. So I had to chase him around all day and check his diaper every 5 minutes, and every time he needed to be changed I had to wrestle him to the changing table and deal with him fighting every move I made. We went to the grocery store and I bought way more than I expected (hello! they finally have peppermint mocha creamer in the store!!). I was standing in the check out and I realized that I forgot to pick up one of the free items from the meal deal I was buying. It was a loaf of bread that I could have received for free and I totally forgot it. And of course, I am too weird about these things and the boys were right on the verge of going insane so I didn't bother asking the checker if someone could go get it for me. So I kicked myself all the way back to the van for not getting the free loaf of bread, and then opened the van to find that I had a shopping cart full of groceries and a van full of bicycles and gear. So I had to move everything out of the way and load up the groceries while the boys were losing their minds.

Then there was the usual nap time struggle and dealing with Kiddo during nap time when I am trying to get work done and all he wants to do is play with me. He likes it when we have time for just the two of us and I totally understand, but I really needed to get some things done. And once again, I told him "no" one too many times and he burst into tears and the Mommy Guilt Boulder found it's way to my desk chair. And then I fought with the boulder and the angry woman in my head who was yelling at me for feeling guilty. So there is part of me that wants to teach him to play independently and part of me that is sad that he will be starting school soon and part of me that just wants to enjoy having him around while I can. And none of my parts knows how much to give or take and what is healthiest for him and they are all angry at each other.

Confused yet?

Oh and when I was at the grocery store I bought some yogurt specifically to help little Port with his issue and when I unloaded the groceries from the van I somehow managed to leave one bag in the back.

The only thing in the bag was 5 containers of yogurt. *sigh*

Beyond that I am dealing with other things I can't discuss on here - actually anywhere, and dealing with them internally is just eating me up right now. And most of it is petty and ridiculous and blown way out of proportion by hormones and some lingering, insecurities that I really wish would go live with my 16 year old self because that is where they belong. And yesterday I was just wishing I had 1 friend that I could be incredibly selfish and whiny and a big cry baby with so I could get all of the "dark and twisty" out of my system and be done with it. But that's just not going to happen and so I was mad at myself for wanting that and feeling that way.

And then right about the time I was teetering on the edge, Hubby changed his plans and, though it was nothing at all it tossed me off the ledge. Add to that a couple of other well timed bits of information coming across my desk and by the time Hubby got home, I was a lunatic.

{welcome home Dear!}

So yeah, the day was not so hot. I wasn't planning on writing it all out like this, but I kind of feel better for doing it. One highlight was getting a phone call from a dear friend.

Today was not much better - more poop, more screaming Port, more wrestling with him every 5 minutes when I had to change his diaper, more PMS. Thankfully my sweet, dear, wonderful friend Kim made a trip to the store for her own family and offered to bring me some yogurt for the boy on her way back. Sadly, I couldn't get him to actually eat any of it until late afternoon, but I was very grateful I didn't have to go to the store myself to get it.

The day has had it's bright moments; a couple of encouraging phone calls and a semi-encouraging email, another call from another dear friend and some nice moments with the kids.

Things are starting to emerge in the garden. I have cucumber, zucchini, peas, black beans and basil sprouting. I am still waiting on green beans, corn, tomatoes, peppers, lima beans and okra. I think it has been too cold for them until recently. Hopefully they will make their way through the dirt soon.

And hopefully tomorrow will be better. Though, the weather is supposed to be yucky, so I am not getting my hopes up. And I have to do taxes. Joy.

I will try to think of something more positive to talk about tomorrow.

Until,
D :)

Spring Spring Spring

Happy Friday Company Girls and Beloved Readers!

Today was an absolutely gorgeous day! I just love it when the weather is like this! Sadly though, Texas will prove itself unpredictable once again and we'll wake up to rain and cold. Blech. What a way to experience the official start of spring. Oh well.

Hubby has been home with us for a couple of days. He originally took off from work so he could go on a TORCH (the church motorcycle rider's group) camp out. Unfortunately the trip was canceled because the bike trails where they were supposed to camp were closed, but it worked out good for us because we got to have Daddy home. And it worked out great for me because Hubby worked on finally putting the wood down in the hallway!! Yay! No more walking on concrete! It looks so nice! We have a bunch of the wood left, so I think we may put some in the bathroom and then tile the areas around the shower and the tub. I think it will look really nice when it's done.

Little Port woke me up bright and early this morning. We are still not adjusting to the time change well. And today, I believe he is dealing with teething. He has had the worst, the worst diapers all day, including 2 nasty blowouts. And he has been pretty testy as well. Tonight when I put him to bed (he was very upset about it) he cried for a while then stopped. We thought he had fallen asleep but about 30 minutes later he was up and screaming. I went to check on him and he actually asked for medicine. He's never done that before so my guess is his teeth were hurting. He will hardly let me brush them right now. Poor little guy.

Today I was able to get out for a bit while he was napping, so I went to a couple of hardware/garden stores (Lowes and Home Depot) to look at gardening supplies. I purchased some conduit pipe and some connectors and am going to build a frame with netting for my veggies to climb. I need one for the green beans and one for my cucumbers to climb. I think I will use tomato cages for the peas.

We've recently had a flock of birds take up residence near by. I think they are grackels, but I am not sure. Whatever they are, they are noisy beasts and they are pooing on everything. It is extremely annoying. I need to find some helpful tools to keep them out of my garden. I may have to sacrifice some old cds to hang or buy some mylar balloons. I know you can hang them over your plants and the shiny/flashy-ness of them will scare the birds away.

Today I finally got the 2 gardening books I ordered. I had a rewards credit on Amazon (my business credit card gives me $25 rewards every now and then) and so I ordered The Vegetable Gardener's Bible and All New Square Foot Gardening. I was so excited to get them home and look through them. As soon as I walked in and set them down, my 5 yr old confiscated them and ran off to the hammock outside to read them. I wasn't sure if I should be upset or proud! lol! He loves gardening books! I have caught him many times flipping through and reading one of the one's I use, and it doesn't even have pictures!

Tomorrow is supposed to be cold and wet, but thankfully, Sunday should be back to sunny and warm. I am so ready for spring and summer! I can't take much more cold.

Thanks for stopping by! Have a wonderful weekend.

Until,
D :)

Touch The Sky

This is Port's favorite song in the whole wide world. (not that he's been exposed to a plethora of music, but whatever) No matter what he is doing, no matter where he is in the house, when the first notes of this song play, he drops everything and runs to the tv. He stands there, totally wide eyed and mouth open, mesmerized for the entirety of the song until the part where he gives Snook a high five by touching his hand to the paw on the tv screen. At that moment he breaks out into a big grin, gives the high five, then steps back to his eyes wide, mouth open position. He LOVES that song. So much so, that it is what I sing to him every night when I put him in the crib. He gives me a high five too. ;-) I have never seen him so mesmerized by a cartoon character like he is with Snook. When the show comes on (Big Big World), he gets so excited. Strangely though, he doesn't really watch it much, just the song at the end.

But I have to say, I love singing the song to him. He calms down, he gets the funniest looks on his face, he gives me googly eyes and goofy grins. My heart melts as I watch him listen so intently. It's just one of those things that I love having with him that I know I can use if ever he is freaking out or over hysterical. He loves it sooo much, and it instantly puts him in a state of zen.

So I thought I would share it with you. It really is a pretty song.

Until,
D :)

Good Night Ladies

The no-sleeping Port saga continues. *sigh* Ok, so we only moved the clocks up 1 hour, why, oh why on earth does the child now wake 2 hours earlier??? Seriously, if it is going to be like this for long, I am just going to turn all my clocks back and force myself to run on that time instead. I'll just show up an hour early to everything (or is it late? I am already confused!) so that I am on time.

The screaming has. got. to. stop.

Today was a little better at nap time. Of course, I ran the boys hard this morning with a mega Costco trip, a quick drop off of the groceries and a run to HEB (all without even getting them out of the car at the house). Sure, there were melt downs and of course, there was screaming. Lots of screaming, (more on that in a minute) but thankfully I had a sucker stashed in the diaper bag and it seemed to work.

Please don't get on me for giving my tantruming child a sucker. It was, as always, a last resort. It was just enough to make him calm down long enough to be pleasant for the rest of the trip. He had some goldfish and some water and was a good little camper after that.

Before the sucker, people were staring. People were hastily leaving the isles we were on. Old ladies with hair nets (Costco workers) were approaching me and speaking to me and the boys in baby talk. I couldn't take it anymore!

So, why was he screaming you ask?

Well let me tell you.

His first Christmas, when he was a mere 8 months old, he got this.

After he got over being scared of it, it became one of his favorite toys. He played with it constantly for months. The problem was, the darn thing eats batteries like candy, and 4 D size batteries every few days got mighty expensive. So, one day, the toy got put behind another toy, and then another, and then another, until it was pretty much out of sight in Kiddo's room (the toy black hole). I was so thankful the obsession had passed; the music that thing plays at maximum volume is no longer appealing once you've heard it a few bazillion times. (Good Night Ladies, anyone?)

Anyway, it has been in the toy black hole for a while now. Then the other day I moved some things around and pulled out a kid sized couch to put in the living room for the boys to sit on. I was tired of them destroying my couch. And when I pulled out the kiddie couch, all kinds of forgotten toys emerged from the rubble.

Today, Port found the ball toy. And he has not let it leave his side since.

He carries it everywhere! The thing is pretty heavy and awkward for a little guy to carry, so when he can he pushes it along the floor and if he can't push it, he slowly carries it through the house. When we got all ready to go to the store today, he picked up the toy and tried to carry it out the door.

Um, I don't think so!

I have a pretty strict no-toys-in-the-car rule. Only a few things have ever been allowed to travel short distances with us. And I have an extremely strict no-toys-in-the-store rule at all times. I do not ever want to go through the drama of losing a toy in a store, so we just do not bring them in at all.

However, I now have a little dynamo by the name of Port. And he doesn't like rules.

*sigh*

So the dang toy made it to the car. And he played it loudly and annoyingly all the way to Costco. And when he dropped the balls onto the floor and they rolled into the door well, he screamed non stop. When we got to the store and I opened his door, he wanted the balls so he could play the game some more. After I had to chase 2 of them through the parking lot because they fell out of the car when I opened the door, there was no way I was going to give them back to him. When he realized we were going into Costco without his beloved toy, the screaming began again.

And it did not stop until 30 minutes later; when I absolutely could not stand it anymore, when I had to strap him tight into the cart because he absolutely refused to stay in it, refused to let me carry him and refused to walk with me next to the cart; when I finally fished that cheap sucker out of the diaper bag.

I swear people in the store collectively sighed with relief when I finally handed him that candy.

I had been so distracted by the screaming that I had to completely retrace my steps through the store twice just to pick up the things I missed on my list.

Thankfully we got out of there fine, with no trouble from Kiddo (bless him that he doesn't usually give me grief when Port is going nuts).

The trip to HEB was ok. At one point Port refused to sit in the cart. But then he got a hold of my phone and he was perfectly content to play with that for the rest of the trip. Even though I really, really, really didn't want him to EVER touch my phone, I was kind of glad he was entertained. He added lots of cool letters to my grocery list and deleted a list I guess I don't need anymore. ;-)

But we made it home in one piece.

So nap time wasn't too bad. He put up a fight, but petered out relatively quick. He didn't sleep long though, which could be very good or very bad for tonight.

I hope I get some decent sleep. I really need it.

I will leave you with a Kiddo-speak for today. I call it the wisdom of a 5 year old:

Kiddo: "Do clothes cover our skin?"
Me: "Yes"
Kiddo : "Why do we wear clothes?"
Me: "Why do you think?"
Kiddo: "We wear clothes so no one sees your penis or your booby."

Man, I love that kid!

Until,
D :)

What Time Is It?

Ok so the first day after the spring forward, daylight savings, change your clock fiasco that most of the country still does (another reason to miss AZ) went fairly...ok. The boys woke at a reasonable hour. Port fought nap time a little more than usual, but it wasn't too bad. Bed time was a different story though. According to Hubby (I was at my weekly Starbuck's meeting) Port went to bed ok, but about 30 minutes later he woke up and started screaming.

It lasted for a while, I was told, but it wasn't too bad.

This morning, at about 3:30AM, the screaming started again.

Port's pajamas were soaked, though the diaper wasn't by any means full. He must have been lying just right to make everything leak the way it did. I changed his diaper and put him back to bed and he then screamed for about 2 hours.

We shut the door to our room so we didn't have to listen. I hate doing that.

This morning everyone slept a little late, but not too bad.

Nap time however... colossal FAIL.

He screamed and screamed and wouldn't lie down for anything, so I eventually took him out of the crib. So, he hasn't napped today and I am anticipating a ginormous fight come bed time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So yes, bed time was quite the experience. He was pretty good about putting on jammies, but he did NOT want to go to bed. He screamed angry, violent screams for a good 30 minutes before going completely silent. No wind down, nothing. It was a bit nerve wracking.

Hopefully he can make it through the night without waking. I dressed him a little lighter so he'll stay cool - the last time we had a lot of trouble with night waking it was when we had a couple of warmer nights. If I get hot in the middle of the night, it has GOT to be hot in the house. I am always so cold that it really takes a lot to get me out from under the covers. However, the in last week or so I have woken up several times at night a little warm. So I can imagine Port has been warmer than usual.

We shall see how this works out.


It is Gratitude Monday! Today I am thankful for...

1. My business. Even with it's ups and downs (and this past week has really been a roller coaster week. ugh) I still love it. And if I never make a cent in real profit, I will still be thankful for the joy it has brought me.
2. The Musing Mommies Podcast. How can something be so much fun? We get to meet new, exciting people, talk about whatever we want, and people listen and tune in every week. It's been almost a year since we started and I can't imagine going a week without it. Also, we got some great news today from one of our past interviewees and I can't wait to share it with you!
3. My friends - I am so thankful that I have managed to make some pretty awesome friends here in the Austin area. We lived in AZ for 3 years and I can honestly say I did not make any friends while we were there. I am so glad to be surrounded by wonderful, supportive, hilarious and intelligent women to lift my spirits and keep me sane. I thank God for all of you!

And you. My readers. I am thankful and grateful for you. Thank you for coming by my little corner of the web and reading my ramblings. I so very much appreciate it!

And if you have something to be grateful for and you would like to share, grab a button on my sidebar and participate. Leave me a comment letting me know so I can come visit. :) Have a wonderful week!

Until,
D :)

There's No Solution

Or is there?

From Ikea, $159.00
From Ikea, $149.00

Both of these bunk bed set ups are relatively small and still provide some under the bed storage. We could put something like this in Kiddo's room and still have room for the toys as it wouldn't take up any more room than his bed already does.

It would be a good solution to our sleeping/limited space dilemma. That is, if Port would actually sleep in the bottom bunk and not get up all night. I kind of have a feeling he is going to be one of those kids that gets up and tries to come out of his room. He has never slept without the confines of the crib. Kiddo on the other hand, slept with me until we got him a big boy bed and he rarely ever gets up and out of it in the middle of the night.

We could possibly do something like this though, if the crib would fit underneath. Then we could convert the crib to a toddler bed and maybe, just maybe Port would be more likely to stay in it. Maybe.
From Ikea, $139

I am afraid we will be in for a rude awakening when we move Port out of the crib. Literally.

Until,
D :)

Can't Sleep

Happy Friday everyone!

Come on in, have a seat, please ignore the mess. It's been a weird, sleepless week and I am just too beat to pick up around here. But you understand that, right?

I replaced my poor, tired, messed up coffee maker today, so fresh coffee is on the way! Thank goodness for store credit. I returned something I was never going to use and it covered the new coffee maker I needed and supplied me with 21 cents to take home in my pocket! Yes! So, grab a cup.

I did not sleep a wink last night. After 2 nights this week of being up all night with Port, I really needed a night of rest. Amazingly, Port slept through the night and I didn't sleep at all. I hate it when that happens! It started out that I just couldn't fall asleep. My mind was racing (I think I must have OD'd on caffeine or something) and I could not shut it off. I was thinking about all the things I needed to do, emails I needed to write and then at one point I had a major panic attack. I started worrying about the "what if" of something happening to me during the day while I am alone with the kids and them not knowing what to do or how to get help. I freaked out that I haven't taught Kiddo how to dial 911 or use my phone. I was trying to figure out how to relay that information to him without scaring him. Then my mind went into all these scary scenarios about what might happen.

I. Was. Freaking. Out.

In the dark; crying, praying, scaring myself to infinity for what seemed like hours, then without notice my mind went off to something else entirely. I started drifting in and out of a light sleep, dreaming weird dreams and having scary thoughts. Hubby began to breath funny and every time he took a breath in I thought it was Port crying in his room. I laid there listening; straining to hear every sound in the house and making sure it wasn't him.

Then my stomach started to hurt (no doubt from all the crying and freaking out). Once that subsided, my allergies charged full steam ahead and I spent the rest of the night drifting in and out of sleep, waking myself up every few minutes scratching the roof of my mouth with my tongue. But I wasn't waking up enough to actually get out of bed and find the allergy meds. I woke up several times scratching the roof of my mouth and the inside of my ear at the same time. I was miserable.

So, this morning I was not the most pleasant person to be around. I hope the kids forgive me.

The roof of my mouth is raw and I can't stop sneezing today. I really, really need to get to the store and get some more oregano oil. I haven't sneezed this much in months.

Poor little Port is having allergy trouble today too. His lips and face have been red and splotchy, and he's been sneezing a lot. Our Ash trees are blooming out front, and the pollen is everywhere. I think they may be part of the problem.

In other news, I managed to get the garden all planted this week. I am starting everything from seed, so I am praying it all works. In one of the 4x8 beds I planted black beans, peas, okra, basil, cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers and dill. I have some additional pepper plants that I started in the house a few weeks ago, and when they are big enough I will transplant them there as well.

The other 4x8 already has broccoli, spinach, carrots, onion, lettuce and garlic growing, and I planted cucumbers and lima beans in the empty space.

In between the 4x8 beds I have a row of zucchini and along the fence line I have green beans and corn planted. I have individual pots containing strawberries, chives, parsley and more dill, and today I bought a few more herbs to go in their own containers as well (lemon balm, peppermint, oregano, and another mint variety). I also have my blueberry plant from last year, a new blueberry plant for it to love on, and a blackberry plant as well.

I am so excited! The soil is amazing and I am hoping everything gets a good start. I just need to find pots for the new blueberry and blackberry and one of those multi-holed herb pots for the herb plants I bought. Then I should be set! I need to also build a climbing structure for the cucumbers and the green beans (though some will hopefully climb the corn). And I need to put up cages for the tomatoes, peas and black beans when they start popping up.

I can't wait! Are you growing anything this spring? Please share your progress!

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Until,
D :)

As A Blonde

I don't know if you all know this, but I am was a natural blonde.

{That's me on the right. I have no idea who the other 2 are. Sorry girls.}{my mom and I, circa 1976 - 1977ish. check out that big bottle o' alcohol in front of me! lol! oh stop, I was helping her with the dishes. I think...}

I don't know what color my mom's hair is/was naturally. She dyed it jet black for most of my young childhood, then started dying it a different color every month for a few years. Eventually she settled on a "frosted" look and hasn't really deviated from that since. My dad has always had blonde hair.

I didn't start highlighting my hair until high school. As I got older, my hair turned darker shades of blonde, and I enjoyed having a few lighter pieces in it to brighten it up. My roots were always darker though, leading many people to think my hair was not natural.

But somewhere between 30 and now, my two pregnancies, lots of yummy hormones and age have made my "natural" color a lot darker than I care to see, and so I regularly dye my hair. Sometimes I bring back the blonde, sometimes it's red, and others, a richer, warmer brown.

All of this is to say that while I spent most of my life blonde, I never really identified with the whole dumb blonde stereotype. My friends might say otherwise, but I don't know.

However, yesterday I had a huge "blonde moment".

I can't believe I am going to admit this. This is how much I love you, my friends and readers.

So yesterday I was in the garden, planting seeds. I was tilling up the dirt and mixing in some compost and with every scoop I was turning up earthworms. Big, small, fat and skinny, they were everywhere. Sometimes I would pull up a scoop of dirt and there would be 5 or 6 of them squirming around. So at one point, I was mixing dirt and I came across a little piece of egg shell. I often add egg shells to my soil to ward off slugs and to feed tomatoes, but I hadn't done that in a long time to this particular bed. I figured it was a piece of bird shell (we have lots of birds and nests in our trees) and moved on. I was churning up the dirt about a foot away from where I found the egg, and out popped a worm. It flipped rather rapidly and began to slither much faster than the lazy worms I had been digging up before. I commented to it (yes, I am the crazy lady that talks to the animals. I talk to plants too, so think what you want about that.) "wow, you're kinda moving like a snake there little fella." (yes, I do occasionally say fella too. Sorry) I watched him slither off and I noticed he had two little dots at the "front" end of him that looked like eyes. I thought to myself that I had never noticed a worm with eyes before.

(oh Lord, I can't believe I just typed that)

So...that was at around 3PM yesterday afternoon. I didn't think about it any more after that, but you know how sometimes your brain processes things without you knowing, and then suddenly, at a random moment, the answer will explode in your head. Like, when you can't remember somebody's name and then in the middle of the night you shoot straight up in bed???

Yeah, so at about 11:30, in the darkness of my bedroom, I finally put 2 and 2 together. I'm quick like that.

It was indeed, a snake.

I guess I never expected to find a snake in one of my raised beds. I mean, it's just dirt. I thought snakes liked the cover and protection of leaves and dark places. But thinking about it now, I supposed the soft, fluffy, warm dirt was probably the perfect spot for a nest of snake eggs.

It's a good thing I like snakes, or I would probably never work in that garden bed again. lol.

After doing a bit of research, it may have been a Texas Brown Snake, but it didn't have any dark markings on the head like what I saw in most of the images. It was uniformly brown, with little black dot eyes. I think it was lighter on the belly, but I don't really remember.

I think I need to start taking my oregano oil again. It really helped with my mental clarity.

And I need to go buy some more red hair dye.

Until,
D :)

Ah never mind, it most likely was a Rough Earth Snake. It looked a lot like this, except smaller. {not my image. I found this here.}

White Spider

Sometimes when I am in the garden, I like to take my gloves off so I can feel the dirt in my hands. I am kind of funny that way. Because it's not enough for me to just smell that rich earth and see how beautiful and fertile it is, I have to feel the moisture and the grit and the fluffiness of it. I have to smell it on my hands even after I wash them and I want to get in the dirt enough that I have to dig it out from under my fingernails.

It's a sickness really.

But, it is also easier to plant seeds with bare hands vs. gloved. It's kind of hard to evenly distribute when your fingers feel like stay puffed marshmallows. So today, as I was planting my seeds, (tomatoes, peppers, peas, basil, dill, okra, chives and black beans so far) I took off my gloves to really feel the soil. It was calling to me.

At one point though, I dug into an herb pot next to my raised beds and out popped this friend.
I am not sure what he/she is exactly, though in doing a quick bit of research I think it might be either a jumping spider or some sort of orb weaver. I am so glad it was polite enough to not jump at me as I finished my work in the box. If it is a barn spider (orb weaver), perhaps her name is Charlotte?

Thankfully I was digging with a small shovel, not my bare hand.

Until,
D :)

This Just In: My husband just informed me it is indeed a female jumping spider. And, he thinks she's cute. More on that some other day... ;-)

Cry Baby Cry

Today was not a good day for the neighbors to replace their roof.

The banging at 7:30 sharp was enough to almost make me call the men in white coats to take me away.

It all started with a huge parenting FAIL we had last night.

For a while, we've been toying with the idea of putting the boys together in the same room in bunk beds. Port is still in his crib, and we thought we could fit both beds in one room, but it will be really tight. And if we do, all the toys will have to go in the other bedroom, making it a playroom. But since they boy's schedules have been different (Port goes to bed around 8, Kiddo around 8:30 or 9) I haven't really pushed it.

Lately Kiddo has been bringing it up again. He wants Port in the room with him. Actually, he wants anyone in the room with him. The kid is desperate for a sleep over.

So last night the boys were getting ready for bed (or rather they were supposed to be) and they both ended up in nothing but underwear/diaper in Kiddo's room. They were jumping on the bed together (yes, I know, but think of the gross motor skills they are developing!) and having a blast. I brought Port's pajamas into Kiddo's room and they got dressed together. They were seriously bonding over this whole night time routine thing, and just enjoying eachother's company for once. I didn't want to mess that up! After they got dressed, they went back to jumping on the bed. I walked out to get a sippy for Port and get his bed ready and when I came back into Kiddo's room, both boys were in Kiddo's bed. They were laying side by side, and Port even wanted the blankets up over him. (He is NOT a blanket kid - he hates them!)

Kiddo asked if they could sleep together in his room and I kind of hesitated, but Port looked so content to sleep there. He knew he was supposed to go "night-night" and he nestled into Kiddo's bed like he sleeps there all the time. I turned out the light, we said prayers and all seemed well.

Then I tried to leave.

oops

Apparently that was not on the menu and Port started to wail. He was fine when I was standing next to the bed, but he didn't want me to leave and he didn't want to go to his own bed. After standing there for a few minutes watching him rub his eyes and get even sleepier (and the clock in my head was tic-toc-ing even louder by the second) I tried leaving again but he pitched another fit. So I got him out of Kiddo's bed and tried to take him to his crib in the other room and he pitched an even bigger fit. I asked him if he wanted to stay with brother and he said yes so I brought him back to Kiddo's room (FAIL). He nestled back in but again he didn't want me to leave. Finally I had enough and I picked him up and put him in his room in the crib.

He was not happy.

To say the least.

He screamed in the way he screams when he is extremely mad or when I leave him. He screamed like that for a good 30-45 minutes. We thought at that point that all was well and we went to bed. At about midnight, the screaming began again. After listening to him cry off and on for about an hour, I got up to check on him. I changed his diaper and put him back to bed. He screamed some more. I got up again and took him to the couch. He settled down a bit and slept on my chest for about 20 minutes, then decided he wanted to get off the couch. The house was pitch black, yet he managed to find the tv remotes anyway. I put them away and he found Kiddo's Leapster and began to lay that. I allowed it in my hazy half asleep state and the next thing I know he was rummaging through the refrigerator looking for a hot dog. He ate a hot dog (at 2 AM mind you) and then wanted to play. I was done and not going to tolerate that, so I put him back to bed.

He screamed and cried All. Night. Long.

And, then at 7:15 the crying stopped.

At 7:30 the hammering next door began.

Thank God for coffee.

Until,
D :)

Here For the Party

I had another good day for my birthday weekend. Hubby actually got up with Port this morning (which never happens) and attempted to let me sleep in. I didn't actually sleep much, because part of me was confused why he got up and another was that mommy sonic hearing that made me notice every little noise. Then right about the time I settled down enough to maybe doze for a few minutes, a little face popped up in my bed and whispered "Mommy I want to snuggle with you." When I ignored the face, it proceeded to grow hands and fingers that tickled my head and played with my hair.

ahem

I gave up and decided coffee was better than fighting the urge to sleep and not being able to. We had another semi leisurely morning. I had a photo shoot just before 11 at a beautiful local park. There was a wedding scheduled there that morning and we arrived just as it was wrapping up. We were harassed by a wedding goer who mistakenly thought the park was off limits to outside visitors while they were there. I made sure to stay as far away from the bride, groom and photographer as I could, the wedding was long over and the reservation on the park had expired, yet she still tried to make us uncomfortable by standing just next to the people I was photographing. I just kept smiling and shooting away and eventually she gave up. People amaze me sometimes.

Later that afternoon, Hubby helped me work on getting a fence around the back corner of the yard. He dug holes and poured some concrete to set 2 posts and we will attach a wire fence from one fence to another to make a corner. It won't be pretty, but hopefully it will keep the dog and her endless poop out of my garden area. I am so tired of dodging steaming piles while I am trying to tend to the garden.

We went to dinner early thinking we could avoid the rush and get back in time for the yummy carrot cake I made for myself. I chose to go to Red Lobster - I know, it's not anything special to most people but I never get to go anymore and Momma loves her some crab legs! We showed up at 5:45 and I have never seen the place more crowded. There were people waiting everywhere inside, all the bar seats were taken and every table outside was occupied with people waiting for a table. At 5:45!!! We waited about 50 minutes before being seated and by then we were all tired, hungry and cranky. I was not about to go anywhere else though.

I am glad we stayed because dinner was sooooo good! We had a gift card from Christmas and my inlaws sent me some cash specifically for dinner and with the two combined we only had to pay $4 out of pocket. Woo hoo!! The boys had fun playing with crab claws and eating the biscuits, mac-n-cheese and french fries. I of course had crab legs and Hubby got some special that had lobster tail and some other things.

We got back home just in time for bed for the boys, but I let them stay up a little so we could do cake. I put the candles in the cake (just 2), lit them and then the boys sang "Happy Birthday" to me. I blew out the candles and Kiddo asks, "so is this your party?" I told him yes and his eyes got all big and sad and he said "This is it? But, where are the balloons?" Lol! We got a good laugh out of that one. Poor kid, he thought I got gypped on a party.

The kids went to bed with relatively little fuss and we had a nice quiet evening.

All birthdays should be so sweet.

Until,
D :)

Monkey Business

Happy Friday!!

Today is my birthday! It was a pretty great day as far as birthdays go. The boys were fairly well behaved. After a lazy morning (when I woke up I had been dreaming of peppermint mocha creamer! coffee was definitely in order) of coffee and computer time, I decided to take the boys to lunch for my birthday. First I had to do my traditional birthday photo. It was much harder to get a decent one this year. Ugh.I may have to work on it some more.

Of course, the monkeys needed some pictures too.Does he not look exactly like his shirt???
Monkey see, monkey do...
Whatcha doin' big brother?
For lunch, Kiddo originally chose to go to McDonalds, but he wanted to go inside. I had to veto the decision because if we went inside they would want to play on the playscape. I am not really against the playscape, but right now, Port is so stubborn that I was afraid if he climbed up in it, I wouldn't be able to get him out of it when it was time to go.

So, we settled on Sonic and the promise that we could sit outside at the tables. The monkey followed us there apparently.Dude, seriously. Enough with the monkey face.
What is his deal mom?
When we got out of the van, I suddenly remembered why we never sit outside at that particular Sonic; the WIND. It was soooo windy that is was uncomfortable. But on top of that, the wind was seriously cold. The boys tried to tolerate it, but after a few minutes they were both shivering. I had a great idea that we should have a picnic in the back of the van instead. We don't have the back seat installed right now, so there is a lot of cargo space in the back. I opened up the back doors and we crawled in and enjoyed our lunch. It was actually pretty fun!mmm, Tatertots.
mmmm, drink.
mmmm, caramel dipping sauce.

Then, Port caught his reflection in my lens...
Silly monkey. Of course, Kiddo has some silly, mustard mouth faces of his own.
I had also promised we could get ice cream, so when we were finished we got back in our seats to place our dessert order. Port did not want to get back in his seat. He wanted in the front and there was no way to convince him otherwise.

Until... I found a sucker in the diaper bag. Yes!

The sucker was enough to entice him back into his seat, so I placed an order for Kiddo and I and we ate our ice cream on the way home. I shared mine with Port and he loved it! About half way home, Kiddo was complaining about something on his arm, and I turned around to find a piece of his cup stuck there. He had poked a hole in the cup with the straw, and the ice cream was beginning to ooze out everywhere. Thankfully we weren't too far from the house, so I wrapped the cup in a napkin and held it the rest of the way.

The kids were great when we got home. Port didn't want to nap so he screamed most of nap time away. I think he slept for maybe 45 minutes to an hour. He was pretty good when he got up though so it wasn't too bad. I gave him a carrot to chew on while I was making my birthday carrot cake with cream cheese icing and he absolutely loved it!
I finished up the cake and set the boys up with brats on the grill, then headed out with some of my girlie friends who took me out to a fabulous dinner! We went to south Austin to BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse. I had no idea we had a BJ's here - it used to be one of Hubby's and my favorite places when we lived in AZ. My friends know me so well; they treated me to great food (spinach and artichoke pizza, YUM!), coffee, Starbuck's gift cards and chocolate!! Thank you so much Kim, Julia, Shannon and Jen for a wonderful evening out. I really, really enjoyed it!

I came home happy and full and thankful for wonderful family and friends. It was truly a fantastically memorable birthday.

Until,
D :)

The Song Remembers When

I have had an iPhone for almost 2 months now and I am just now getting around to putting some music on it. The ability for it to store so much and act as a super mp3 player is one of it's best features, and I have yet to utilize it.

So for the past couple of days I have been digging up all my cds and uploading them to iTunes and then syncing my phone. It has been quite the wonderful process - I am rediscovering so much music that I had forgotten about. It has been quite the trip down memory lane as well. I am sadly reliving a lot of my high school memories, the little good and the lot bad, but amazingly, while the music brings me there and reminds me, it also helps me rise above it and float away on a happy little cloud.

No, not that kind of happy little cloud...boop boop shoop shoop...

But anyway, I've been enjoying all the old music. Even the stuff I am embarrassed to own. lol! I just love how it makes me feel, the thoughts it invokes, the inspiration it provides. I love how it motivates me and makes me smile and gets me moving. I tolerate the boys better, I get more housework done and I just enjoy the day more.

One of my extremely talented photog friends, Kevin Gourley, always posts the most wonderful quotes on his Facebook page. Usually they are quotes from other people (I am particularly loving the Winnie the Pooh series he's been posting lately) but today he posted in his own words...

"Sometimes I suspect "heaven" is simply made up of music. Music is an art form that touches our souls, transcends this world..."

I just love that! Music really can elevate you almost to another dimension. To me, listening to great music is like having a little slice of heaven on earth.

Of course, everyone has their own idea of great music. ;-)

You know how I mentioned a while back that Hubby retrieved an iPod off the road after he saw it fall off the top of someone's car? Well, about a week later was the TORCH (Texas Off-Roaders for Christ) Christmas party. At the party, they had a raffle and door prizes and Hubby just happened to win a speaker set with an amp that plugs into mp3 players. It is a super nice set, perfect for hooking up an iPod and playing some tunes. Some people have all the luck...

Anyway, he brought it into our living room the other day so he could play his iPod, and today I was able to hook up my iPhone to it. It was soooo cool! I was singing all afternoon. I can't remember the last time I did that.

Our cd collection needs a serious overhaul. I found so many empty cases, and cds in the wrong case; it was insane! I opened up my Norah Jones case to find some weird cd of Canadian harp music! (yes, you read that right) Canadian harp music?!?!? really??? Oh yes. Neither Hubby nor I have ever seen that cd before, so I am not sure how it got in there.

At least, Hubby claims he's never seen it before...

So now that I have dug up all my old tunes and am excited about music again, I am looking for a new cd to add to my collection. I have a credit at Amazon...any suggestions? What are you totally digging right now? It doesn't have to be a new artist either. I recently discovered Alison Krauss, but I am not loving any one particular cd. There are lots of individual songs of hers that I love though.

I can't wait to hear about the music you listen to!

Until,
D :)

One Of Those Things

Well today Port napped, but he was a cranky gus all day so it really didn't matter. I actually had to put him in time out 3 times for hitting! Good grief. He is definitely my fiery one.

Kiddo has been in rare form lately. I don't know what has come over him - maybe his Sunday school teacher said something that spoke to him or maybe his angel finally climbed back up on his right shoulder, but he has been pretty darn good these past few days. He has picked up his room each night after only being told once or, in one case, not at all. He's been much better about doing what he's been asked and being helpful to me. He's really been super sweet.

Still annoying with all the questions and the constant talking, but sweet nonetheless.

Twice today I had to say something to him though, that started with this: "You know, when you are in school, you won't be able to ___".

Ugh. It makes my heart sink just thinking about it.

We still haven't figured out what we are going to do or where we want him to go yet. And kindergarten registration is only a couple of months away.

I don't want him to go.

I want him to stay with me. I want to homeschool him myself.

I have a lot of selfish reasons for wanting to homeschool, and a lot of unselfish reasons. But the majority of the reasons center around sheltering and protecting him, which, while that might be good in some ways, it will ultimately be bad. I know he needs more socialization. He needs time away from me. I just wish public school wasn't our only option. It is not what I want for him at. all. At. All. At. All.

*sigh*

I can't even think about it without getting all upset.

Until,
D

No Such Thing

"...I wanna scream at the
Top of my lungs
I just found out there's no such thing as the real world
Just a lie you got to rise above"

Today Port slept in until 9:15. Of course, it was one of the rare days I was trying to get somewhere before 10AM. And, I thought because he slept so long he would be in a great mood today. On the contrary, he was quite a turd most of the day.

We made a visit to Julia's house. She wanted me to come by to have a look at some things she had been gathering to give away - tons and tons of gorgeous blankets and things I could use for newborn photo sessions! I couldn't believe it - I now have more props and blankets and fun stuff than I could imagine. I am so excited to get to use it all. Julia ROCKS!

Little Port was not too happy when we walked in her house. I think he had a flash back to last week when I dumped, er uh, left him and Kiddo at Jen's house. He clung to me like a sticky booger and would not let me go for the first 15-20 minutes we were there. Poor little guy just trembled the whole time. Once he realized I wasn't going to leave him, he relaxed enough to play with the kids for a few minutes. When it was time to leave he was great; he walked out to the van and got in without any complaints. But for some reason, he did NOT want to get in his seat. He kept trying to get into the drivers seat, and after asking him several times to get in his chair with no cooperation, I had to drag him back and put him in myself. He screamed and fought me and then did the dreaded arching back thing. Ugh. That boy is so strong. When he arches his back like that it is soooo hard to get him to bend! I am afraid I am going to hurt him when he does that. Once I got his back side in the seat, it still took me 5 minutes of wrestling with him to get him clipped. He kept sticking his fingers in the wrong places and I was terrified I would pinch his fingers in the clips.

He screamed the whole way to the bank.

He calmed down once we got to the bank and was fine at the post office and all the way to the grocery store. He did well in the store as long as he had a snack to eat. He didn't even fuss when there were no balloons with suckers waiting at the entrance! But when we got to the check out line that all ended. He wanted to help me unload the basket and put things on the belt. Fine. He wanted to run the card for me and push the buttons on the machine. Fine. He wanted to go play the HEB Buddy game - no way! So the screaming began and he fought me all the way to the car. I had to force him into the seat again and he screamed the whole way home.

He was great when we got home; super sweet even, so I let him stay up a little longer than I normally would before nap time. Then the next thing I knew it was after 3PM and I totally forgot to put him down. He was playing so well it just completely slipped my mind. So I decided to forgo the nap -

ok people, that was soooo not a good idea.

Bed time was awful, horrible, maddening. He fought me tooth and nail to get jammies and diapers on. He screamed all the way to his room and for a long time after I left him there.

He is so not ready to give up naps. He just doesn't know it yet.

Until,
D :)

PS. I need to add one more "Gratitude" to my Gratitude Monday list - I know I mentioned my friend Jen and what a saint she is for watching the boys last week. But I also need to mention her again because I am so truly grateful for her. Not only is she one of the sweetest people I know, she is always willing to help me out when I am in a jam. And, Jen is the one who introduced me to the wedding photographer I second shoot with. If it weren't for her, I probably wouldn't have met him and had the amazing experiences I have in wedding photography. So thank you Jen, I am so grateful for you!

Love Story (Marry Me Juliet)

Happy Monday!

What a crazy weekend it was! After a round of a stomach virus early in the week, I was looking forward to some adventure this weekend. Thankfully, I had lots to look forward to as I was hired to second shoot 2 amazing weddings with my friend Allen at Doberenz Photography. Allen is so amazing to work with; he is just the nicest guy and extremely talented.

On Friday, I spent all morning preparing 2 batches of homemade lasagna and a loaf of PW's famous Olive Cheese Bread. I took one pan of lasagna and the bread with the boys over to my friend Jen's house because she so graciously offered to watch them for me (um, watch the boys, not guard the lasagna or anything. lol) . I had to be at the wedding site at 3pm, and there was no way Hubby could get off work that early. I knew that Jen would have my 2 and her 3 boys together right around the normal dinner prep time, so I made the food to take that stress off her. She saved me with the boys - I had to do what I could to thank her! Oh yes, and just so you all know what a saint Jen is - with my boys there she was watching 5 boys, ages 5, 4, 3, almost 2 and 1yr all at the same time!!!

There was a big front coming in so the temps were dropping and the wind was blowing hard and gusty. It was quite the feat getting the boy and all the food out of the van without someone or something blowing away! But I got it all where it needed to go and headed over to the wedding location.

The wedding was gorgeous and the people were really fun. Because of the cold and the wind everything had to be moved inside. It didn't seem to mess anything up though; everything still looked gorgeous! I just fell in love with the venue. The grounds and all the gardens were planted with edible plants. Barr Mansion promotes itself as the nation's first certified organic events facility. As I was walking the grounds, I began to notice some of the plants looked familiar. I saw all kinds of lettuce, garlic, onions, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, spinach, broccoli and cauliflower...an endless array of beautiful, edible greenery! The mansion is a zero waste facility, diverting 97% of it's waste stream. Even now, with things being still somewhat brown from the winter, the grounds were beautiful and omg, looked so amazing in pictures!! You can see a sneak peek from Allen here.

I got home sore and exhausted at around 11:30 and fell into bed in a crumpled heap after downing some ibuprofen and a big glass of water. It wasn't enough though; I woke up at 2AM with a severe leg cramp. I really hadn't had the chance to eat or drink much of anything during the day nor at the wedding (I still feel very incomfortable eating when I am working, even if the bride and groom say it's ok. lol) so I guess I was a bit dehydrated. Saturday morning I had to leave at 9 to meet Allen at his house by 10. The wedding that day was in San Antonio.

We drove out to San Antonio and met up with the bridal party at the Westin Resort near Six Flags. They had a gorgeous 2 bedroom suite that held a hair stylist, make up artist, the bride, the mother of the bride and 10, yes 10 bride's maids! There were also a couple other close friends hanging out too. It was pretty chaotic, but a lot of fun. Once everyone was dressed and ready we did some bridals on the resort grounds; the weather - PERFECT. The sun was high which made the light harsh, but we managed to find some great shady spots anyway. After, I stayed with the girls and Allen met up with the guys at the church. I rode over to the church on the shuttle with the girls and hung out with them until go time. The wedding was beautiful! There must have been over 200 people there!

The reception was about 30 minutes away (out in the middle of nowhere) on a ranch. We pulled up to find 3 of the biggest longhorn steers I have ever seen. I was not too certain the wire fence that surrounded their pens was strong enough. The horns on those beasts were at the very least 3 feet long each! We got some amazing group shots in a field next to the arena area. Dodging cow patties was totally worth it for the shots of all 22 of them standing in a gorgeous field with the sun at their backs. I can't wait to see those images!

The ranch was so awesome; the food amazing, the decor absolutely perfect! I loved everything about this reception; from the people to the band to the venue and even the time (it was a short reception - much nicer in my opinion than the long drawn out ones that seem to go on forever). We got all the gear packed up and were back on the road by 11ish and got back to Allen's house around 12:30AM. I got home at about 1:30AM.

Of course, the boys did not sleep in so I was up at 7 and starting to feel the pain. We went to church and came home for lunch and then when Port was napping I headed out to Home Depot and bought about 300 pounds of garden soil and compost. I hauled it all in through the house and into the back yard by myself while Hubby was out letting Kiddo ride his bike.

Needless to say, between the weddings and hauling the dirt, my arms, back and legs are quite sore.

I have had a terrible time staying awake today. The dreary weather isn't helping any.

March is going to be a busy, busy month for me. This weekend starts with a session and of course my birthday. The next weekend, another session and a party and the rest of the month goes about the same. I am completely booked for March and am looking forward to my sessions and events!



On this gratitude Monday I am so thankful for:
1. My health. Being sick sucks, but I thankfully recovered quickly and none of my family got that nasty virus.
2. The rain. As much as I complain about it and as bad as it makes me feel, I know it is going to produce some of the most amazing and beautiful wild flowers in the spring and I cannot WAIT to get out there with my clients and capture some beautiful bluebonnet shots.
3. For Allen Doberenz. He is a true professional (even when others are not *wink wink*), a genuinely nice guy and someone I so enjoy working with. He is supportive and helpful and every time I am around him I learn so much about not only wedding photography, but about myself and what I want to do with my business. I wish more photographers out there were as open and supportive. He is a blessing to my life.
4. Again, my sweet boys. I missed them so much while I was working this weekend! I think I may have taken an extra batch of images of the kids at the weddings because I was missing my own little guys! I am so thankful to be able to stay home with them and cuddle them just about any time I want.

May you be blessed and grateful today. Grab a button in my right sidebar and join in!

Until,
D :)