My 2012

I never did an introductory post, honestly I didn't expect to have any followers whatsoever, haha, so I was thinking maybe instead of a formal intro, everyone can just get a taste of who I am by reliving my past year with me?  2012 has had its ups and definitely its downs, but overall I'd say it was a pretty good year!  Wow, I have ZERO pics on my computer for the month of January.  Guess my 2012 started in February :)

February

I fell off a motorcycle.  It wasn't moving.  If I only give good advice once in my life it's this: do NOT start drinking at 9 a.m., continue alllll day and end the night at the strip club.  

This will happen to your face, my friends.  I didn't go to the doctor, but it took about 6 months for my chin to stop hurting.  I'm convinced I cracked something in there.

Rescued a puppy.  Sweetest little gal, unfortunately an unforeseen life change occurred and we couldn't keep her.  Luckily I had an animal lover neighbor to take her for us. We miss you Compass :(

March

Visited a haunted hotel.  We took a mini vacation up to Sedona then ended up in Jerome at the Jerome Grand Hotel.  I'm OBSESSED with Ghost Adventures, so this was right up my alley.  We did a little ghost hunting late at night but no luck.  Also on this trip I called poison control because Liam drank out of my adult beverage thinking it was just Pepsi.  He was ok, but mama freaked the eff out.  I also got pregnant in this hotel.  TMI? 

Out of Africa.  Took a pitstop on our way back from Jerome and saw a ton of animals.  I always forget how powerful and majestic big cats are until you see them running around and jumping in water.  

My second time seeing Willie Nelson.  I kid you not, Steve and I were the youngest in the place and Steve is 45 years old haha.  Such a good time though!  Side note, his pianist played with him in the movie Honeysuckle Rose.  They go way back apparently. 

(L-Liam, R-Stevie)  Took a trip to Austin for Steve's grandson's birthday.  Yes, when we get married I will be a 26 year old grandma.  It was my first time in Austin and the only pictures I remembered to take were of the birthday party and this night at the local Mexican food joint.  Steve's son lives in a little town (think no pizza delivery.  Srsly, I tried.) but the short time we were there was spent exploring the city.  How much do you love Liam's snakeskin boots?! 

Fast friends these two were.  Liam got a little taste of country livin' and he was hooked! 

April

Liam turned 5 in April, so we surprised him with a CA trip.  First, we hit up Medieval Times and as you can see our knight was a giant.  Seriously, he's not wearing stilts or anything.

Spent Easter Sunday at the beach.  When we first got there, it was totally deserted and SO relaxing.  We're a family of ocean lovers, I tell ya!

AZ Bike Week.  The long haired bearded dude is Opie from Sons of Anarchy.  People were waiting in line for hours to get something signed by him.  I said "eff that" and ran up and took a picture. Boom, that's five extra hours I had NOT standing in line in the sweltering AZ sun.

I couldn't find the digital copy, sorry about the copymark.  This may sound cheesy, but there's nothing I love more than being behind my guy on his bike.  I'll definitely be investing in a sparkly ass helmet this year.  Also, a few hours before this, we saw about 4 people go down on bikes on the highway.  Scariest thing I've ever witnessed.

Country Thunder.  We took Liam this year and he had a blast! Ridin' bulls, water gun fights, horseshoes, kisses from girls....he was in heaven.  We two stepped our little hearts out during Alan Jackson and little guy crashed early.  We can't wait until 2013!

May

My Liam is baptized.  I've said before that I struggle constantly with my beliefs and religion in general. I was raised Catholic, but as an adult the Catholic religion seems pretty damn scary to me.  Liam goes to church with my parents occasionally and it meant a lot to them to have him baptized, so we set a date and he became, as he likes to remind us, a "child of god".  Bless his heart!

July

This year we skipped out on fireworks and hung out at our new house!

June/July was spent being a huge, sweaty, pregnant mess.  We moved in July.  In the desert.  In temps 115+.  To say I was miserable is well...a total understatement.

August

The dude starts school.  It was the sweetest thing seeing him so sure of himself, but still so nervous.  Now, school is second nature.

September

Seven months pregnant.  I know I was miserable, but days when our littlest won't seem to stop crying, I wish I could shove him back in there.  I miss his little kicks and feeling his hiccups from the inside.

Liam started ice hockey.  Want to see something super cute?  Watch a group of 4-6 year olds try to ice skate in their hockey gear.  Liam's not such a newbie anymore, he does pretty well, and I'm one proud mama to have a mini Wayne Gretzky in the house!

October

Stories of Steve's time spent in the army are a daily occurrence around these parts.  Liam is SO proud his stepdad served his country and he lets his friends know it, so it was no surprise our guy wanted to be an army ranger for Halloween.  Next year, he wants to follow in Steve's footsteps and be an airborne  ranger.

November

Family photo pre-Jackson.  Kinda looks like he's clawing out of my tummy, huh?

Since I was scheduled to have the baby the day before Thanksgiving, we decided to put up the tree.  Thank god because when I got home I could barely walk myself to the bathroom!

Our Jackson came screaming into this world.  He's 5 weeks now and so handsome and stubborn.  He sure does cry a lot, but every now and then we just listen....and appreciate that he'll never be this little again and we'll actually miss our sleepless nights.

December

First bath.  Gosh, we went from womb to first bath.  If you only knew how much happiness you brought to our life....

Liam learned to ride a bike.  I bought him this bike for his last birthday and it came with training wheels.  Well, today we took those trainers off and rode this bike like a man!  He didn't fall once!  My gosh this dude is taking the world by storm and I couldn't be more proud.

Both of our kids are so lucky to have their Dad.  Steve listens, I mean really listens.  He doesn't talk to our kids like their just "kids".  He has a way about him, that guy.

So here's to 2013.  I go all out or I go home and this year is gonna be my BIIIIIIOTCH!
Happy New Years ya'll!!

Random Wednesday

Holy wow, the past few days have been CA-RAZY! Between tying up some loose shopping ends, to having visitors and running around from place to place, it's safe to say I am SO glad Christmas is over.  I was telling Steve last night that next year we're holing up in a snowy cabin somewhere, just the four of us.  I'm exhausted!

On with the randomness!  Linking up, as always, with Shanna....

1.  First thing, Merry Christmas!! God bless my wonderful family, but taking a family photo (at least in my case) was more tiring than it should be. Haha between trying to get a shot where the baby wasn't crying, or I wasn't yelling at Liam to put his hands down and Steve not looking at the camera....this photo was the best we came up with.  So from my family to yours, happy belated Christmas.  I hope it was spent with loved ones and everyone got what they asked for! 

Couldn't resist.  We all love crying baby photos don't we? Just me? Alright!

2.  We were SO blessed this year.  As stressful as it was, I am so thankful we have the family and friends we do to share the holidays with.  It was the first time meeting Jackson for most of my family and they all just adored him.  Then he cried, and back in mama and dad's arms he went. 

3.  There's something you should know about Steve.  Not only is he handsome, loving, funny and kind, he is a hell of a gift giver.  I've been pining for a camera bag ever since I bought my Canon and he delivered! 

Isn't she beautiful?!  (The bag, not me ;) )

P.S. the bag is from JoTotes.  Seriously great quality.  I'm in love.

4.  Slimmin' down.  I'm doin' it.  I know you guys are dying to check out my hot bod so here's a gratuitous photo for you ;)  Don't ask what's going on with my mouth, I don't have a clue.

5.  This boy:

I die.  Everyday he's lookin more and more like his daddy.  Snores like him too!

Never never

Never ever will i wait until the last minute to start my Christmas shopping!  Next year I'm doing as I usually do and starting in October.  No joke, I buy a few gifts a week starting mid October and I'm usually completely done by December 1.  Last night Steve and I set out to finish up some shopping and I somehow wandered into Victoria's Secret (and by somehow wandered, I mean I marched ran straight in there).  Do you know how many gifts I bought?  None.  Do you know how many gifts I bought myself? 

$300 worth.

People, that is crazy. $300 worth of sweats is obscene.  That's not including the fact that I went back today and found a hoodie I HAD to have.  Price tag on said hoodie?  $80.  I know, I'm bad.  Fancy sweats are my guilty pleasure, I guess.

Pictures don't do this little lady justice.  

Does anyone else have this issue?  Can you buy for others without indulging

a little and buying something for yourself.  As you can see, I can't. 

Here's to hoping ya'll finish up your shopping without having to dropkick some of the

crazy crazy rude women I've seen out there!

The good, the bad & the bloody

It's no secret around these parts that I recently had a baby.  Seeing as how it's my second child, you would think I would have remembered everything about new mommyhood.  5 years and 900,000 cocktails later, it seems I forgot how AWESOME a post pregnancy body is.  Except not.  Everyone is quick to give advice about pregnancy and a newborn, but no one seems to want to touch on the subject of what your body will go through in the days and months following birth.

Obviously I'm not a medical professional, this list is my experience, and mine alone.  If you're a pregnant reader, don't be alarmed, you might not experience the same things I am. And if you do, God bless ya!

1.  The bleeding.  I'm having the longest "period" of my life.  I've been bleeding for over 4 weeks.  Sounds scary right? It amazes me that us women can bleed for a week straight and not die, but four? Damn!  Tampons are a no-no, so I've been having to wear a diaper pad.  It stinks. Literally.

2.  You'll still look pregnant.  When I left the hospital I still looked about 5 months pregnant. 4 weeks later, while I'm back at my pre-pregnancy weight, my belly hasn't seemed to get the memo.  It's still pretty squishy to the touch.

3.  Stretch Marks.  Unfortunately, this is genetic.  With my first pregnancy I lathered SO much stretch mark lotion on my belly everyday of my pregnancy (sometimes multiple times a day) and still ended up with stretch marks.  This pregnancy, my stretch marks got stretch marks. I'd like to thank a very lovely nurse for pointing this out to me.  Bitch.  Over time they usually fade, but they won't go away completely without the help of surgery.  At this point, I'm considering it! I live in a bikini in the summer and having deep tiger stripes on my belly isn't an option for me. I'll be trying out different stretch mark creams and hopefully I'll find one that at least minimizes them a little bit!

4.  My boobs, oh lawd my boobs!  They are the biggest, sorest, droopiest things I've ever seen in my life.  I'm 5'1, 110 lbs and my boobs as of today are at a 36D.  Seriously?! I look like a sideshow freak, excuse me while I tuck my ladies into my waistband.  Ok, it's not that bad, but the mommy plastic surgery package is sounding pretty tempting right about now.  Breastfeeding is, in my experience, the most challenging part.  From the milk letdown (OUCH), to the leaking, the clogged ducts and sore nipples, you'd think us mamas would get a break after the pregnancy and delivery.  Nope!

5.  Dry skin.  I think this is a side effect of breastfeeding.  My hands are so dry, even the best moisturizing creams don't help.  My legs are dry, my hair, my arms.  It's awful.

6.  Appetite.  This is where I differ from the "norm".  I've read over numerous sites that state I'll supposedly be hungry all the time.  Well, for me, that's completely untrue.  Maybe I'm just too deliriously tired to realize when I'm hungry, but I just don't want to eat.  Like, ever.

7.  Mood swings.  I'm not talking about being a little weepy one minute and happy the next.  I'm talking straight up enraged one minute, sappy sweet the next.  My poor boys probably think mama's off her rocker.  I'm ready for my hormones to level themselves out, thank you!

8.  Back aches. In the first two weeks after delivering, my lower back pain was so bad I could barely walk, and when I attempted to walk I had to do it hunched over.  Not pretty.  My obgyn recommended going to a chiropractor, but something about that intimidates me.  Anyone have any experience in that area??

9.  C-section recovery.  For the most part, I'm glad I went ahead and scheduled my delivery.  I delivered an 8 lb 15.5 oz baby, which was the same size as my first so I probably would have ended up needing it anyway, but the recovery is no picnic.  Walking was pretty much unbearable for the first few days and even 4 weeks later the incision and areas around it are still pretty tender.  I'm not sure if the C-section itself had anything to do with it, but I had horrible, painful gas pains the few days following the surgery.

10. Sweating.  You'd think I was going through menopause.  I had hot flashes like crazy and more often than not woke up in the middle of the night drenched.  Hormones are wonderful, aren't they?

11.  Constipation.  Even with all of the stool softeners and laxatives I took, I didn't have a bm until nearly two weeks after I gave birth.  I was almost to the last resort (enemas and suppositories YIKES) when my body finally let me go to the bathroom.  I think I scared the shit out of myself.  Literally!


Well, if this little list isn't good enough reason to have a baby, I don't know what is!  JK, but really...I know it sounds scary and gross, and it is,  but as cliche as is sounds....SO worth it.  All this nasty stuff will pass in a matter of time but I'll have my little dude forever!

In case the world ends....

When exactly is the world supposed to end? Midnight tonight? Noon tomorrow?  I'm confused.  Are leap years accounted for?!  Well, in case it all ends tomorrow, it was nice knowing you.  You all are some pretty spectacular people and I'll miss my little space here! ;)  Linking up with Kristen!

It kinda looks like Jackson's trying to claw his way out of my belly, no?! Haha next year I will make damn sure we're WAAAY more prepared.  I hadn't planned on doing Christmas cards, but I couldn't pass up the awesome deal I got!

Random Wednesday

Man oh man, time is flyin'.  Christmas is in less than a week and I still have people to buy for!  Next year I'll be on top of things, I swear.  Linking up with Shanna Banana for another random Wednesday!


Before I begin, the giveaway ends today so make sure you get all your last minute entries in!

1.  I bit a country star on the ass.  Yep, I did.  Unfortunately, the radio station hosting the meet & greet refused to take a photo of it, so we just ended up with this:

This was back in February, don't really know what made me think of it now.  And, in case you're wondering, I politely asked if it were ok to bite his rear.  Look mama, I've got manners!  Also in case you're wondering, that cute dude is Jerrod Niemann, and yes, I'm a lot little drunk.

2.  Country Thunder is in April, and I'm already taking inventory of my closet and making mental notes of what outfits I will be bringing.  For those of you who don't know, Country Thunder is a HUGE 4-day country music festival AZ has every year. There's tons of awesome artists, camping, drinking and friend making. We took Liam last year and he was the life of the party in his biker vest and cowboy boots.  The ladies ate him right up haha Mama was pregnant and pretty miserable last year, so I'm looking forward to making it up to myself next year.

3.  We took the boys to see Santa a few nights ago.  Little guy slept through the whole thing!

4.  Went to Forever 21 today to hopefully find a Christmas dress and failed.  You'd think I'd be stoked about my huge breastfeeding boobies, but no!  I'm 5'1 and they look waaaaay out of proportion.  I did find a super cute shirt to wear though so I'll have to work around that.

5.  Happy 4 weeks to my Jackson.  Does that mean he's not a newborn anymore?!  That makes me so sad. (He was napping during the writing of this post, so we'll do his 4 week pic on Friday when he officially turns a month old!)

Lastly, I need to say that like so many others, Friday shook my world. I still have the heaviest heart and I've felt so down since it happened.  I really truly wish there was some way to take away the pain, the loss and the hurt from the victim's families.  I can't imagine suffering a loss like that.  I'm not a religious person. I still struggle with my beliefs, but I have to, HAVE to believe those little babies are being taken care of by some God in heaven.  I hope they're spending their days playing with puppies and climbing trees and not seeing the uglier parts of this world.  

Simple Sunday

This past week was spent with Steve and the kids, shopping, creating, cuddling and lovin' on each other.  I'm so so grateful to have these wonderful people in my life!

Sweet Angels

If you know me, you know I'm not very good at eloquent speeches, but after hearing the news about the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, I needed somewhere to express my grief and heartbreak over the horrible tragedy.  No parent should ever outlive their child.  No child should ever feel afraid to go to school.  No one should have to fear going to work.  It saddens me to live in a world where sending my child to school worries me.  It could happen anywhere at any time and while I know it's not healthy to live in fear, some days it's impossible NOT to feel fear.  Days like today make me question my decision to have my child in public school.  Days like today remind me to hug my kids a million times tighter, kiss them until they can't stand it and keep them close close close.  My heart goes out to the families who now have to celebrate the holidays and all their days without their loved one.  

You better believe I picked my son up from school early today and squeezed him with all my might.

Giveaway!

To celebrate Myranda reaching 500 GFC followers, me and a bunch of fabulous ladies have joined up to bring two lucky winners some amazing prizes!

There are 2 different prize packages, so feel free to enter them both. It will be open for 1 week, so hopefully you can use it for last minute Christmas shopping. Don't forget to stop by PrettyLivingPDX to congratulate and thank Myranda for putting this together :)

PRIZE PACK 1

$60 Gift Card to Store of your choice

Amazon or Target 

From these lovely ladies

Sarah- Life In a Break Down

Kim- That's The Thing About Destiny

Amber- Amber Outnumbered

PJ- Planned in Pencil



and 

Me!
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Prize Pack 2
Ad Space and Gift Cards
From These Beauties!

Large Ad Space

Nicole- Chiffon Diary

VIP Ad Space (200x200)

Lanaya- Raising Reagan

Lipgloss and Braclets

Samantha- Hooah and Hiccups

2 Months Large Ad Space

Ashley- Wannabe Green

$10 Starbucks Gift Card

Chelsea- Sunny With A Chance of Sprinkles

Da Kine 

Premium Ad Space

Tarole- One Haole Girl

$10 Amazon Gift Card

Sandra- Lara's Vintage

2 Months Ad Space
Paige- Eloping Stethoscope





Large Ad Space

Jessa- Life of a Sports Wife



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