Wow

I am really bad at blogging, well at least lately. However I am now done school for the summer, and almost done work for the summer as well, so I will get back on the blogging train, and stay up to date with the blog.

Washington DC

This past weekend I had the opportunity to go to Washington DC, for the Lungevity Grassroots event. I had a great time, and got to meet some wonderful people, that were all there for a cause that is near, and dear to my heart.

View from the plane

Washington Monument

WWII Monument

WWII Monument

More pictures of the other places I visited coming soon.

Sickness

On Monday night Zack said "Mom I need a bucket in my room, I have a belly ache." Being the horrible mom that I am in these cases, said "No, Zack, it is now an hour past your bed time, and you are just playing a game, you need to go to bed please." Well needless to at about 11pm he came up and woke me up telling he had just thrown up all over his bed, and yes he did. I felt so bad for my child for the next 12 hours he was throwing up, and miserable. I spent the full 12 hours with him awake, watching him go through this horrible stomach bug. He then woke up the next day feeling great. I thought for sure I would be up all night the next night with it. That did not happen, Tuesday came and went, Wednesday I was feeling great, even got a workout in after dance. I woke up at 3:15 for work on Thursday, and knew right away I was done, I spent my next 7 hours sicker than a dog, throwing up, and even I think fainting, I would be sitting on the couch, and wake up in the floor a few minutes later. After I was done getting sick, I got a really high fever, and had the worst body aches, and head ache I have ever felt in my life, it was the worst illness I have had in a long time, and the stomach pain was crippling. Zack, and I are both better now of course, and not that any of you wanted to hear or read this, but I just thought I would share what this dreadful virus is like that is going around, and remind you all to scrub your hands all the time, and take your vitamins (even though I take mine everyday, and it did not save me).

I Know Who I Am.

I think having teenage children brings a whole new world to look at. One thing that I notice with my kids, and with my job, is that there is a lot of be like me, and if your not, either you will be the kid no one speaks to, or your the kid (and this is mostly with girls) that will not get spoken to, or made fun of, or they will so jealous of you that they make your life miserable, and talk about you all the time, even when they thought they were friends. I find it very important for my kids to learn, and know that it is okay for them to be them, and know who they are. So this post is more a lesson for my kids, and anyone else who needs a little self love speech (i do not know that is the right word).
I always thought I wanted to be a teacher, but after working in schools for a while I realized, no flipping way do I want that job. I always loved to take pictures, but with a ton of critizicsm about how horrible of a picture taker I was. I knew though that I saw wanted I wanted to capture I guess no one else did though. I managed to take a couple classes while in school for teaching, and learned a few things. Then decided I really wanted to be a photgrapher, and now am in photography school. I know I will be good at what I do, despite the critics. I know I do a good job.
My best friend is truly my husband, I love him more than life itself. We have a relationship like no other couple we know. Yes of course no matter what there are critics there as well. My husband allows me to be me, and I know you have all read this before, but I can't say it enough. We are who we are, and do not need to pretend. In the end we are best friends, and our love truly grows everyday. Our kids are our world, and they know it. They are great kids, and that is because we raise them. They are the center of our universe.
I have tattoos, and yes a big old skull on my arm, even my friends have said not nice things about it, I also have a deer for my dad, and yes have heard shit talk about that too. I am a huge baseball fan, and could give you a ton of baseball facts. I have a one of kind relationship with my husband. My kids are the three best things that have ever happened to me. I am very close to my mother, I was very close to my daddy, that YES I still cry everyday wishing he was still here. I am a Wife, Mother, Daughter, Sister, Soccer mom, Dance mom (not like in that gross show), A Photographer,and A Mini Van driving tattooed woman who know who she is, and could not be prouder. Critics will talk, let them you got their attention, so you have made an impression.

The Simple Things

Getting out cookie cutter, and recipe, a cup of coffee, and my eyes on this bright, and sunny Sunday morning.

A Fighter, and A Hero Often Goes Unrecognized

The other day, my mother updated a blog that she had started when they found out my dad had cancer. She really has not posted anything in a long time, but other day she did. It is not that this update is that life changing, but as I read it, I thought about how everyday I miss my dad so much, and it never gets easier, I do not care who you are it does not get easier, and you always think the "what if's". Does that change anything? No,  does it help anything? Nope. What it did do though is made me go back to the very first post my mother wrote, and read all of her posts, and cry of course. Here is the thing, and my mother did not really even know this until my dad told her, I was really close to my dad as a teenager, and spent pretty much every night in the garage with him. I had the dad every little girl wants, he took us fishing, to gymnastics, four wheeling, to dance, and even hunting. All well my mother went to school, and worked a million hours a week so we could do all these things. My mother did, and still does so much for us, and in the midst of my dad being so sick I guess I lost some sight of that. My mom is a fighter, hell she could not stand hospitals, or needles, yet she sat with my dad for every treatment, and did everything she could for him at home. There were days where I am sure she thought she could not do it, but she did it anyways. She took care of my dad throughout his whole life, and my sister, and I. She may not have always been there, because of work, but she wanted to be.
Through my dads cancer my was by side the whole time, that is tough, there were good days, and bad days, but man there days I would leave and just cry so I have no idea how the hell she managed watching her husband of 40 years go through hell, and wake up the next day to do it all over again. My mom was the reason my dad fought so hard, without her I do not know that he would have. My mom was and still is fighter to, she dealt people saying shit like "well he knew smoking could do this, and still chose to smoke." and guess what she still deals with those people. If I were here I would have told them to "Fuck off" a long time ago, not my mom, she goes with I am better than them, and I will be sure that they know it attitude, and conquers each day with that. She struggles everyday without the love of her life, and that has to suck more than I know, but everyday she comes back fighting, and trying to raise awareness for lung cancer. She also got a tattoo for lung cancer awareness, and because my tattoo guy (and hers) is so awesome, he donated the money she paid for it to Lungevity.

My mom is a fighter, and a hero that has gone unrecognized, but mom, you have not gone unnoticed by me, and my family, and I am pretty sure Tami, and her family would say the same.
Thank you for all you do, and have done, I am proud to call you my mom, and clearly dad was proud to call you his wife. You are the strongest woman I know, I love you!!!

Here is my first Month- in- Photos post.