My new baby has a name...

So this post is going to shock some of you, make some of you smile and make the rest of you shrug your shoulders and say " There she goes again..."! As of this week it is official, I am running my own business. No, I did not sign up for yet another direct sales job. I am not selling make up or jewelry or even cooking supplies. Nope this time its all me, my talent and my passion that I'm attempting to make a living doing or at least enough to pay for this equipment I purchased over the weekend...

Okay no more stalling here it is. I am now the official photographer of AJ Photography. Business cards are on the way, my camera is bought and I am even looking into working with a couple other girls that already have  a studio space. I am planning something with the church and maybe even something with my mom's group. I am working on my portfolio and have lots of "plans" that need to be worked out and put into action this summer before we leave. I am so very very excited and cant wait to share all the ups and downs with you. I wanted to make photography my job and now I am. Ben has been super supportive and even questioned why this took so long. Oh and my new camera for those of you that are interested is a Canon EOS 50D. I have been very snap happy since I got it and even took a trip up to Bellingham to hang out with my really awesome photographer friend Chad, from DeRosa Photography, and his girlfriend. They showed me an awesome time up there and I learned so much just from following him around. I cant wait to do it again. Here are some of the pics I took up there. 

ADD... my reason or my excuse

Okay so let me start this post by saying that I do actually have clinically tested and treated ADD. Anyone who actually knows me or talks to me for longer then ten minutes or tries to keep up with me when my mind is going a hundred miles an hour or even relies on me to do something that could possibly (in any way) resembles doing something on a regular basis, can attest to this. So tonight I thought I would give y'all a little glimpse into my head. Some of you will walk away saying "Hey that sounds just like me!" and others will be thinking "Theres no way one person is that flighty!" Let me assure you there is... I am constantly bouncing from thing to thing. I love stuff and when I love it, its all I can think about. I'm going to be the best at everything. I am passionate about everything from the type of toothpaste I use to my photography. Problem is I'm only passionate about stuff for about a week... Do I still feel the same way about my toothpaste? Yes, am I still willing to drive all the way to Tacoma to get it like I swore I would from now on last week... ummmmm no. Am I on my blog everyday? No, but do I constantly think about my blog, even think thoughts like I'm writing a post. Absolutely!!! Do I ever actually write them down or make a point to get on here two or three times a day...ummmm no. Do I make friends everywhere I go only to lose them because I am the worst caller/emailer/facebooker/comment on other's blogs friend ever.... ummmmm yes. Do I spend hours online looking for classes to take only to get bored by the time I actually find the one I want.... ummmm yes. Was I told to take it easy this week because of surgery and then have one of my most productive weeks in months? ummmm yes What is it about someone telling you to relax that makes you want to do laundry? I never want to do laundry, but this week I actually got satisfaction outta putting all the laundry away. (Maybe my husband is slipping something in my tea, that just doesnt sound like me) haha that totally rhymed y'all! Want to know whats happening at this very moment in my head: well, theres a song playing (forever by Chris Brown fyi), I'm wondering if its this week or next week that the kids are outta school, did I feed the dog dinner?, what time is it?, is anyone going to read this, does this make sense?, im itchy, "i wont let ya cha fall, let ya cha fall, let ya cha ummm girl" (sorry its that damn song) Well there it is. Not much to look at but hey thats me. Tomorrow you get to hear all about my kids running from my camera and see the resulting pictures! Also, check back to see if I managed to talk Ben into the Canon 50d + accessories! lol

Not Me Monday

Are you feeling guilty for pretending not to notice your toddler playing with the dogfood? Feel like a slouch for staying in your jammies all day? We'll don't! Not Me! Monday was born out of MckMama's desire to admit some of my imperfections and reveal a few moments I'd rather forget. You may find it therapeutic to join in and do the same thing! Enjoy this weeks Not me Monday and head over to MckMama's to check out all the other ones from around the world!!! Okay, so this past week was not one of my craziest yet. I did not at any point get my belly button peirced and then turn around two days later and get a tattoo on my arm. I am way to old for that kinda stuff and there for would never do that. But if I did, it would be way cool looking and I would so post about it later. Oh, but I didnt so do dont look for it. I did not get a text from a girl that was watching my kids asking if my kids could swim in their undies. I did not tell her that I couldnt care less if the kids swam in their underoos, I so dont raise my children like that people. I did not arrive to pick them up and quickly strip my 2 yr old down to a diaper, only to decide that it was going to fill up really fast and then remove said diaper. So I did not end up with two kids running around in dirty underwear (from sitting on the ground, not from me not washing them) and one completely naked. Who does that, I mean really have some class... Oh and then when we were leaving I did not decide that it would be better for everyone (well not me) to ride home naked since their clothes were wet. I was not worried the whole ride home of getting pulled over or in a wreck simply because my kids were naked in the back seat. lol I have not been trying to figure out how to convince Ben that I need a new Canon 50d soon. I'm not currently looking online to see if I can find a really sweet deal on one and I'm not trying to figure out how to make it seem like buying it was his idea. The thought of telling him that I really want this other much more expensive camera and then convincing him that I will be willing to settle for the canon hasnt crossed my mind at all. I dont think that way and I would never try to intentionally manipulate my husband like that. What kinda marriage would that be????

The pee chronicles...

So we have had many adventures potty training our little man. Potty training Carolina, while not easy, was pretty straight forward. Sit on the pot, pee or poop, wipe, wash hands and flush. Easy right??? Well not so with George, because of a little thing called "standing up to pee"! Who came up with this nonsense? At first we of course told him to sit to pee, it was easier and he really wasn't interested in standing up. Things have gone on like this for some time now. And I will be the first to admit that I'm the one usually asking "George don't you want to stand up to be like a big boy?" But what the heck was I thinking? It goes EVERYWHERE and by everywhere I mean, on the back of the toilet, on him, on me, on his feet, on the floor, on the seat and then just the very last little bit makes it into the toilet!!!! Its pure craziness people, oh and its also one of the grossest things ever. I thought after the whole spit up thing was over I wouldn't have kids spraying bodily fluids at me anymore! Boy was I wrong. Plus its not like its something that I can just tell Ben he's in charge of. No the boy demands to go pee, even if his dad is at work!!! We have tried different things to get the aim a bit better, but so far nothing kicks in until he's half way done already! So I'm off to mop the floor, again and hope for a better shot next time. 

I will keep you up to date on the progress of our little man and his peeing habits. I know your on the edge of your seat... lol

Is there a future in this.?.?

So photography is starting to take over my life... I'm am so absorbed in it, reading everything I can get my hands on, walking around with my camera everywhere I go and taking so many pics of the kids they actually whine when they see the camera come out! I dont know what this all means yet, but I do know that my life has changed since getting a DSLR and photoshop. I spend almost as much time editing pics as I do taking pics. I think I see a difference (for the better) in my photos now and it just keeps spurring me on. I am sticking to the fact that I am very happy with the camera and lens I have now, but I've heard that upgrading can become quite an obsession in this field. I am planning on working towards the goal of actually being paid to take pictures. But for now, I am willing to take anyone's photos anytime FOR FREE, just to get the practice. I cant promise you any great ones, but I might get a few pretty good ones out of it. Here is a couple I have taken and edited or some that Ben has taken and I have edited. Let me know what you think!

Not me Monday, the Tuesday edition!

Okay, so I did not get so behind this weekend that I didn't find time to write my Not Me Monday!!! That would just be so lame of me! I am not so addicted to writing this really awesome post that I am so going to do it anyways and post it on Tuesday. I in no way wondered if anyone would notice that I hadn't posted it yesterday. How vain would that be??? Okay, so here it goes and don't forget to head over to MckMama's blog mycharmingkids.net to read all the rest of the worlds (seriously people I'm pretty sure the whole world reads her blog!!!) Not Me Monday post! 

So the most impressive moment this past week was when I didn't even consider pulling a pair of (not that dirty) undies out of the clothes hamper for my son George when he ran out. That would never happen for two reasons A) my kids clothes never get so behind in the laundry cycle that I run out of stuff B) I would never ever think about putting (not that dirty) clothes on them. Who would do that??? Not ME!!! I am not thinking, as we speak, if the kids would mind pb&j for dinner tonight. No, I don't make that kinda junk for my kids. Oh but I did sneak some wheat germ in George's oatmeal the other day... hehehe I love it when I get away with stuff like that. My five year old did not use a permanent marker to "be creative" in her bedroom this weekend, meaning that I did not have to spend part of my Sunday scrubbing black sharpie out of my 10,000 dollar carpet! I so did not just tell the world how much I over paid for our carpet. I did not answer a question asked by my oldest this week without even realizing what the question was. Seriously people, an answer did not just jump from my lips before the question had made it to my brain. I am not that checked out around my kids sometimes! I am always present and attentive to what they are saying each moment of the day, I do not want to miss a single moment in their precious little lives...

Even as I am typing this I am not sitting on the couch in the family room with my headphones on so I cant hear three little voices trying to stay awake in their rooms. Its not like I cant get anything done if I don't have the headphones on... I am not so ADD that I just wander from room to room until I look up and its 3:30pm and time for my wild ones to get up whether I like it or not.

Last but not least I am not ending this post because I forgot to write down all the funny things that happened over the past week. I am not that much of a space cadet and I do not forget things ten minutes after they happen! 

Wait what was I writing about...

What is a MILITARY wife????

Update: I wanted everyone to know that I did not write this. It was sent to me on facebook and I wanted to share it with everyone that always asks how we (military wives) do it. This is pretty close to the truth... I'm so glad that so many of y'all have enjoyed reading it and learning more about us (military wives) or just sending me an Amen from my fellow military wives. Y'all are all awesome and I love hearing from you! 

What is a MILITARY Wife?They may look different and each is wonderfully unique, but this is what they have in common.Lots of moving---Moving.Moving.Moving far from home.Moving two cars, three kids and one dog----all riding with HER of course.Moving sofas to basements because they won't go in THIS house.Moving curtains that won't fit.Moving jobs and certifications and professional development hours.Moving away from friends, moving toward new friends.Moving her most important luggage; her trunkful of memories.Often waiting-Waiting, waiting, waiting for housing; waiting for orders; waiting for deployment; waiting for reunion; waiting for phones calls; Waiting for the new curtains to arrive; waiting for him to come home for dinner----AGAIN!They call her 'military dependent', but she knows better.She can balance a checkbook.Handle the yard work.Fix a noisy toilet.She can put together a WOODEN swing set.She is intimately familiar with drywall, anchors, and toggle bolts.She can file the taxes, sell a house, buy a car, or set up a move, -- all with ONE Power of Attorney.She welcomes neighbors that don't welcome her.Reinvents her career with every PCS; locates a house in the desert, the arctic, or the deep south and learns to call them all 'home'.She MAKES them all home.She is fiercely IN-dependent.Military Wives are somewhat hasty.They leap into decorating, leadership, volunteering, career alternatives, churches and friendships.They don't have 15 years to get to know people.Their roots are short but flexible.They plant annuals for themselves and Perennials for those who come after them.Military Wives quickly learn to value each other.They connect over coffee, rely on the spouse-network and accept offers of friendship and favors and record addresses in pencil.Military Wives have a common bond.The Military Wife has a husband unlike other husbands, his commitment is unique. He doesn't have a job, he has a 'mission' he can't just decide to quit. He's on-call for his country 24/7 but for you, he's the most unreliable guy in town!His language is foreign:TDY,PCS,MOS,FOB,ACU And so, a Military Wife is a translator for her family and his.She is the long-distance link to keep them informed the glue that holds them together.A Military Wife has her moments----She wants to wring his neck, dye his uniform pink, and refuse to move to Siberia...But she pulls herself together.Give her a few days, a travel brochure, a long hot bath, a pledge to the flag, and a wedding picture.And she goes.She packs.She moves. She follows. Why? What for? How come?You may think it is because she has lost her mind. But actually it is because she has lost her heart.It was stolen from her by a man...Who puts duty first.Who longs to deploy.Who salutes the flag.And whose boots in the doorway remind her that as long as he is her Military husband,She will remain his Military wife.