The Simplest Goodbyes Still Suck

So today was Monday and today Monday lived up to it's reputation.  At least for me. 

I miss my daddy so much every day.  Some days are easier than others and some days I wish I could just curl up and cry.  Today was definitely one of those tearful days.

We had to get rid of my daddy's boat.  It was not much but there were so many memories there and I found so much comfort driving by it in storage everytime we went to the lake.  Both of my boys had their very first ever boat ride on this boat.  I had so many memories.  Laughing moments from falling in at the pier when dad took Brandy and I out for a ride at Guntersville.  Horrifying moments of being caught in the worst storm while fishing with dad and Brandon at Guntersville.  Brandon's first ever bass was caught on this boat....granted it was the world's smallest large mouth bass, but it was his first and a great memory.  I remember working on the trailer with dad to get it ready.  So many small and large memories, but they are there.  I will always have the memories, and the pictures because you know I took a few over the years. For those I am thankful.  The years of just sitting had taken a toll on the boat though and it needed to go somewhere so that it could be used by others, even if only for parts.  Seriously I never knew that these small goodbyes could hurt, seems so trivial but it is what it is.  Thank you Brandon for the pictures, you know me so well!  I love you!

John Michael had a ball game tonight at Center Point.  They won and I was so proud of them for that.  I am a little shocked by the way that so many people acted at the game tonight though.  Seems like they should know these are kids....period.  I also did not know that John Michael had to do push ups but he did.  He says it was because he was last in the dugout if that is the case words will be shared sooner than later.  I just want to know what the deal is.  Then there was a time out called with the whole team except John Michael, which pissed me off.  He was hurt and that is not right.  Again, they are kids.  They shoud all feel as they are part of a team, and that was not the feeling that he had when he got in my van and cried all of the way home.  Needless to say I am not a happy momma and it was not the day to mess with me.  We have practice tomorrow so expect an update.  Not to mention that the ants found my toes again while we were there and I have over 40 ant bites from my ankles down.  Yes, down!  My feet are swollen and hurt and itch. 

I did cook a ham in the crock pot and it was pretty yummy.  I was proud of that as I am always looking for new ways to cook in the crock pot.  I love easy meals that pretty much take care of themselves.

Brandon went by the new house on his way home and the lumber was delivered.  They started working on laying out 2 sidewalls and had all of the interior walls drawn out on the concrete!  YAY!  I love progress and needed it today at least somewhere. 

So the boat was the first goodbye this week.   Not to mention tomorrow is May.  So goodbye to April as well. There is more to come so I am sure my emotions will be out of check all week.   please know that before you decide that messing with me or my children is a good idea.  Thanks!  Love you all!

Full Day

So this morning I took off to start a day full of photo shoots!   They were all great so watch the blog or watch my FaceBook page for more updates on them.  I love what I do and spending the day outside with great people is always a nice way to spend a Sunday.  I do wish my three men could have been with me but it was way too long of a day for the boys plus they had other things to do.

Brandon and the boys headed to the lake to get the boys' fishing rods and then they went to Zamora to fish and play some more with the cub scouts. 

John Michael had a game at 3:30 which was against a 6 year old team and it was rough.  I do hate that I missed it because I love seeing my little man play.  Brandon said that he got a double so I am super proud!

I also got the blog caught up which was no easy task!  But one I am VERY proud of especially since tomorrow is the end of April.  Seriously cannot believe that!

Just Another Manic What Day?

No not Monday...Saturday!

The past few weeks we have been so busy on Saturdays that we do not know when they start and when they end....this week was no exception!

Only Danny had a game. 

Again it seems that on Saturday every single team should be playing at the ballpark.  I get that some teams might have to play twice, but that is okay.  They all should play.  We should be at the park from morning till dark.  Maybe the park will grow some and next year that will happen.  Maybe they will put me on the board so I can have a say.  I was elected 2 years ago but then they decided to go a different route and not have an elected board.  Mainly because the City wanted control.  Stupid, if you ask me.  Anyway enough about all that.

Danny's game went good.  There were some bad calls, but whatever.  They played a great team and they lost.  Maybe next time.  I do hope that they get at least one practice in this week.

The cub scouts were camping out todanight at Zamora so we were running back and forth until after we were done at the park to make sure that all was well.  It was so awesome to be at Zamora after so many years.  I have a lot of really awesome memories there!  The cub scouts made some today too!  They are working on getting the pool open, so swimming did not happen.  Well some managed to get in the lake.  LOL!  It is so great to see my boys making memories and having fun at the smae places where I spent so much time growing up.  They fished, they ate, they cooked smores, they played on the play ground, they all had a blast.  I hope that everyone really did so that we can do this more often.  It was so simple to work with the Shriner's and it was great to be there.  Anyway, I will work on getting feedback next week and I will make it all happen again soon I hope!

We missed Brian and Christen's couple shower, but they know (I hope) that we love them.  We wished that we could make it but circles is what we ran today!  We love you both!

Just add Cement....and Injuries!

So let me just say I love Fridays with Brandon!  They are awesome and they really mean a lot to me, we get to do all of the things that we need to do and never have time for.  Like getting new shoes.  I have not had new shoes in a few years and Brandon well he abuses his.  I want to start running so I wanted good shoes and so did he.  We went to Track Shak in Trussville and they were great!  I also want to say that I LOVE my new Brooks!  WOW!  I had no idea how bad my shoes felt until I felt the way that shoes should feel. 
We headed home and were going to get to work in the office and den when the school called.  Danny had hurt his wrist and it was swollen.  We headed to check him out and went on and got John Michael.  It ended up being a sprain, which is definitely something that we can all live with. 
We all headed up to the house to see if we had a foundation.  Guess what we did!  They were still working, but it was awesome to see our porches and our garage floor and the foundation for the house!  Now it will cure all weekend but I do not care, I am so glad that there is something happening there I do not know what to do.

After that we headed to the ballpark for family night.  Games were all canceled, which sucks.  I personally like the ballpark being active with games.  All the other stuff can go on too, but I like games!  In fact that is what we signed up for.  Anyway we were there for all of about ten minutes when Danny and another kid were throwing.  They decided to start pitching, well the other kid was pitching Danny was catching.  They were too close he threw a fast ball, which Danny is not used to anyway.  Also Danny was not in his gear.  Anyway, the ball centered Danny in his eye.  We ended up at the hospital and then home waking him up every couple of hours.  Poor guy is all I can say.  He is such a trooper and I know that it hurt. 

Progess Makes Me Happy

So building a house is definitely frustrating but being able to go by there every day and see progress is awesome.  We all went as soon as Brandon got off and before Danny's game.  They are getting ready for the cement.  They had the gravel down and the plastic and mesh and all that jazz down and ready.  So so excited.  It is really cool to be able to walk through and know where everything will go....wall wise anyway! 

Danny's game tonight was great.  John Michael decided that he wanted to do the scoreboard, so I ended up helping with that and doing the book.  It was a great game and I was so proud of the boys.  They got another W and those are not easy to gain for the 7 and 8 year old teams. 

We have Plumbing!!!

Yes, the new house had plumbing go in today!  This is an exciting moment.  In fact I am not sure that I have ever been so excited before.  The fact that there were poles sticking up made me super happy!  I only saw them from the pictures that Brandon took though.  I cannot wait to get up there tomorrow.

John Michael had practice today.  He did great and Danny was super excited to get to help out.  Even though they like to fight like they cannot stand each other it is these sweet little things that let me know they really do care about each other.  Well, this and the fact that Danny loves to play baseball! 

I love My Job

So many times I am asked why I am a photographer.  Well, I love it is the answer that I enjoy giving the most!  I had a cancellation at the last minute today and that is NEVER fun, but it is all good.  We all have a life and have to do what we can with it. I did have a senior shoot this morning that was great! 

Overall it was a great Tuesday and guess what....
They are working on the house!  The forms are up and I am so so so excited.  I am not happy that it took them almost 2 full months to get to this point, but now that it is here I am seriously pumped. 

The boys were so excited to go up and see the progress.  We also got to meet 2 of our neighbors.  It is going to be great living somewhere like Legacy Springs! 

School Picture Day

So there are reasons to smile about school picture day for the boys and it is not because of the camera that comes out.  The boys (Well everyone) gets to dress out of uniform, which makes for some great grins!  It is funny how special these little things are to them all.

Danny had a game at Center Point at 6:00 and John Michael had a game at 6:00 at Clay.  I do not like it when I have to miss one of my boys' games.  Mom went to see Danny's and Brittany came to see John Michael. 

Danny's game was a great one from what I understand from my text updates!

John Michael's game was a great one too and John Michael ended up with the game ball, which absolutely made his day.  In fact it might have made his season!  He did great though and I was definitely proud of him! 

Photo shoots

So today was a day of back to back photo shoots.  This is great for business and I am so thankful.  I started at Morris Avenue and when the day was over I was at Aldridge Gardens...and yes the snakes were waiting on me.  Seriously I am not a fan, but they seem to be fans of mine. 

A Typical Saturday

Today started with John Michael's baseball game.  They did great, and I was so proud of them all.  They are a great little team, and I have to say while John Michael is not all star ready he is definitely improving and I am definitely super proud of him and how well he is doing.
After his game we headed to see Brittany and take some pictures of her for her prom.  She looked stunning.  Her dress was orange and with her tan it was the perfect color.  It fit her great.  She was just beautiful.  I went with her mom to her date's and then to the school where the limo was picking them up for even more pictures.  It was great and I was glad to be a small part of her very special day. 

Teresa took me back to the ballpark so I could catch the end of Danny's game.  He is another one who is really improving.  I am hoping that he is making enough of an impact to make All Stars, but who knows.  He really wants it and he is a great catcher.  We shall see I guess.

After Danny's game we headed to St. Francis for Marina and Mikael's wedding.  I cannot believe her big day is here.  The wedding was absolutely gorgeous!  She made a bride for the magazines in fact the whole wedding was fit for a magazine.  Absolutely wonderful and beautiful. 

Every time I go to a Catholic wedding I want to renew our vows and do it right this time!  Hopefully one day soon we can get that done.  We shall see.

Needless to say it was a day that went from early in the morning until late at night, but it was a great day!

Why I Love Science

So today was a pretty stressful one.

Brandon and I headed up to the house, where they still have not done anything!  Needless to say between Brandon, my mom and myself we let Melanie (the Realtor), the Builder, and the Building Manager all have it.  Getting harassed and stepped on and stepped over and pushed around and forgotten about are not things that I like to have happen and yet, here we are.

The boys had a great day at school and then we all headed to the Botanical Gardens for a photo shoot.  We got there and I realized that the client was also my Science teacher at St. Barnabas.  Mrs. Katz.  She was just as amazing and she is the reason why I have always had an interest in science.  She had a way of bringing it to life.  She is also one of the reasons that I wish I would have stayed at St. Barnabas.  It was wonderful to see her and I hope to be able to catch up with her more. 

John Michael had a game at 6:00.  We had to haul it to Clay, but we made it...barely! 

Non Stop

The boys had a great day at school today and I had a great day at work!

I had two session this morning at Aldridge Gardens.  Unfortunately the snakes decided to make an appearance, which always makes it a little more stressful and definitely not something that I like to deal with, but we have to do what we have to do. 

Something about Wednesday

So today was the school Mass.  This is a great day for me as it allows me to reconnect with Jesus with my boys and all of the children at St. Francis. 
After Mass I had a photo shoot with the beautiful Ella Brooke.  She is 11 months old today!  She is so precious and we had a blast on Morris Avenue.  We even managed a few pictures of big brother Jacob!
After school Danny had Bible Bee with Mr. McCormick.  He loves Bible Bee days and I am so glad that they mean so much to him.
We headed to Aldridge Gardens as soon as he was done for another photo shoot.  This one is with the beautiful Andee, who was celebrating her first birthday!  The boys even posed for a quick picture, which is a rare occurrence!

After the photo shoot we hauled tail to Clay for John Michael's practice.  It was a great practice. 

Art Show

The boys had a great day at school.  I was so glad too! 
John Michael had practice tonight, but he could not go because we had the home and school meeting at the school.  This is the last one of the year, which I cannot believe.  This one is the Art Show.
There are several great things about the Art Show.  One is there is wine!  I am an avid fan of wine so this is a nice treat!  The second thing is that the kids pick their own work that they want to show.  Danny did an amazing picture of the crosses on the Mountain.  John Michael did a self portrait.  I was so proud of them both. 
They were excited about the magician that they had there for the kids!  It was great and all I heard about until the snoring started! 

Back to It

So everyone went back to normal today!  YAY! 

The boys had great days at school and Brandon at work.  I think everyone was glad to have a little normalcy back.

I worked on getting some pictures done and getting some things on eBay.  I also managed to get the living room picked up again. 

The downside to everyone being home is that everything gets destroyed and then some.  We will see how long it takes the house to recover from a week of the flu. 

Recovery

So doing so much yesterday after being down with the flu for a week had us all in bed for most of the day today.  It was a much needed day of rest and relaxation because well he flu was no fun. 

We are looking forward to getting back to normal though! 

After rescheduling all of my sessions the next few weeks will be insane but I will get through it all!  I cannot wait to see how the week goes!

Saturday

So getting out of the house was something that had to happen today for all of our sanity. 

The boys both had ball games.  Danny's team was definitely glad to have their catcher back.  John Michael's team was also glad to have him back on board. 

After John Michael's game his coach took the team to Dairy Queen.  Talk about fun and LOUD!  I love the DQ in Clay but it is Small and loud with a few people.  A team of 5 and 6 year old makes for  vey loud DQ!  It was a blast though and all of the kids had so much fun, which means the most to me!  Thanks again for John Michael's ice cream Coach Matt!

Brandon was working at Mom's before and in between games.  For anyone who thinks a tornado hits and thats it...well it is not the case at all. 

The boys and I went over there for a few minutes between the games.  We also discovered that the copper theives had struck.  Let me say something....You people who steal from anyone SUCK!  People who steal from people who have been through something like a tornado, suck does not even begin to describe it.  In fact, there is a special place in hell for you guys, and guys when it is too good for you!  I am so serious and remember what a BITCH it is when KARMA comes your way!

Half Way There

So we could not go to school, because we have to be 48 hours without a fever, but we did go to baseball. 

The doctor said if they were up to it that it would do them some good and I have to agree.  If we did not get out of the house today it was going to be bad.  The boys have seriously had enough of each other.

John Michael had a game and they did great.  He was not 100% there but he was there and you could tell he was glad to be out.  Danny sat with me and ran the scoreboard.  It was a great night and hopefully we can do a little this weekend and next week be 100% there! 

Getting Things Together

So I am not 100% better but I am good enough to fake it.  It is what Momma's have to do, I would have faked it all week but I honestly did not have it in me. 

I have the laundry caught up, which was a feat in itself.  I had to get blankets, sheets, everything clean.  Relapsing is not an option.  This stuff has been rough. 

Hopefully we can be back to close to normal tomorrow.  We shall see. 

1 Up 3 Down

Well, I am alive and human and that is more than I can say about earlier this week.

Brandon went back to work and he knows that it will be a long closing of the week since he missed most of Monday and all of yesterday.  I think he was glad to get back though.

The boys and I stayed in and did not do much.  I started to work on the laundry, which is SO backed up!  When mommy is down everything goes to crap!

Good news fevers broke tonight....maybe just maybe the worst part is behind us!

Still Down

Definitely not out, but still not sure about being human either.

Brandon is better today and will probably head back to work tomorrow, but today he stayed home to let me rest another day.  I am so glad too because I do not remember feeling this bad....EVER!

The boys are still down too, which seriously breaks my heart.  They are upset because there is no baseball this week.  There is no school either but I do not think that bothers them as bad. 

The Flu?!

So so thankful for my mom who came over to sit with the boys and me while Brandon went to work.  My asthma was in full gear and we were all just sick.  The boys were out of school today, and mom was kind enough to take John Michael to the doctor.
She called me and told me that he tested positive for the flu.  Dr. Lytle said everyone home until we were 48 hours fver free.  Seriously?  An extra week at home.  I called Brandon and told him to come on.  He did not argue. 
I called all of my clients for the week to cancle and reschedule.  No need to share the germs.  I was seriously not even feeling human.  Not sure if I have EVER slept so much!
My poor boys are so pitiful.  Mom helped out with there medicine which was insanely expensive.  Brandon and I opted for the over the counter options.

Happy Easter

We woke up early this morning to see what the Easter Bunny delivered and to get ready for Mass. 

Well, it seems that while the baskets were nice.  The boys were very excited about the gift cards that they recieved especially the one for the one month membership to Club Penguin.  They seriously love that game.  The Easter Bunny also delivered the flu.

Brandon was still sick so I was going to take the boys to Mass.  I picked John Michael up and he was seriously on fire.  I took his temerature and it was 102.  Not a good sign.  Danny's was 99.  I figured what the heck what's mine, it was 101.  Grrrr....I so do not have time for this at all!

Needless to say we spent Easter sleeping and feeling reallly bad. 

baseball

Baseball, Baseball, and yep you guessed it baseball.  It seems to be the topic of the day for any given day, which works!  I love the ball park and I love watching my boys play. 
John Michael played at 10:00 and Danny at 2:00 so between the games we went to get lunch and check on the new house where again...NOTHING!  This is getting pretty old!
Brandon is really sick.  I hope that he feels better ASAP!

10 Amazing Years

So 10 years ago I married my best friend and my soul mate, the man I would have married when I was 15, but 21 worked just as well.
When I met Brandon I thought he was cute, as I got to know him better I fell in love with him. He is an amazing person and the person who completes me.
I cannot believe that it has been 10 years since we said I Do, but I cannot remember life before we were married.
Through the trials and triumphs of the past 10 years there has been one constant and that is Brandon. He is my heart and my soul and I love him more today than I did 10 years ago, and I assure you I had no idea that was even possible.

Suprise

This morning Brandon headed off to work so that he could be there by 6. The best part was he was home before 10! He only had to work a little over three hours today. When he hits 40 hours he is off and today that happened early! It was a great surprise for me and for the boys, who were out of school today for Holy Thursday. What I did not know was this was the first surprise today, there are more to come.

I had a photo shoot but thanks to the weather it seemed best to cancel it. I probably was for the best since it started raining around 10 and it was at 10:30. The bottom fell out, but soon after the sun came up which was nice. Since the clouds had been pretty heavy for the past 2 days seeing some sunshine was nice.

UPS came this afternoon and brought me a box from FTD florists. It was from my amazing husband of 9 years and 364 days, tomorrow is our 10 year anniversary. He has always known how to make me smile and today he definitely did that. There was a very cool purple vase and once I finally got to them, the most amazing roses I have ever seen. They are rainbow roses and they are gorgeous! I plan to photograph these babies everyday so stay tuned! Definitely the most gorgeous roses I have ever gotten! I love my man for so many reasons, and these just added to it.

The boys both had games tonight. John Michael at 6:00 and Danny at 7:30. Well, John Michael made it to the second inning and the game was called. The weather got nasty fast, but did not last too long. We ended up getting to come home pretty early which was nice. I love baseball, but tonight I was tired and really just wanted to be home with my three men, and well my roses ;)

So I am off to bed, tomorrow is a day off, but it is a day filled with stuff to do including somehow celebrating 10 amazing years!

End of the School Week

This morning was the school Mass. As always I love going to Mass with my boys. Spending time with them and Jesus is a great way to reconnect with Christ. It is easy to get busy and not slow down, but this really helps me stay connected and on track.
I came home and got to work around the house and on editing. I am not behind but it would be easy to get there. I am trying to get completely caught up. We will see what happens. I almost have my kitchen back under control, which is nice. Now to get everything I need to on eBay. Who knows if or when it will happen, but I am doing my best. I also have a lot to get shipped, I am hoping tomorrow or Friday. Again we will see.
The weather took my photo shoot to the square in my calendar for next week. Better to be safe than get caught in a storm.
The boys had a great day and John Michael finished the week with all green faces. It was a three day week I know, but it is progress and that is what I love!

No Progress

This morning after I took the boys to school I headed to Alabaster for a photo shoot. I love the park there and I hope to go back for more shoots in the future. It was beautiful. The shoot went great, and I cannot wait to get to work on it. Stay tuned to www.monicaannephotography.com and the blog there for more information on the location and the shoot. I promise it will be worth it!
After Brandon got off we all headed to the new house to see if there was any progress. There was none. This waiting for it to start is killing me! I am so ready to see something start to happen! Maybe sooner than later! Stay tuned for more.

Photo Shoots and Practice

So I am definitely glad that Monday came, which is not something I would normally say, but it is truly how I feel. I have been so busy this weekend, and I just needed some normalcy. While I am not sure that it was normalcy it was much closer to my schedule which is extremely important.
The boys had great days at school. John Michael started off the week and the month with a green face! I hope that he keeps it up. Danny finished up his testing, which I think made him pretty happy. I cannot believe that in two months I will have a 1st grader and a 4th grader. Time is seriously flying by.
I had two photo shoots today. One was at Morris Avenue and the other was at the Civic Complex in Gardendale. They both went great and I cannot wait to get started on them. Keep an eye out on my blog at www.monicaannephotography.com
The boys both had practice today. They ended up practicing till almost 8:30. That is REALLY late for us. I have so much to do even when I get home. Plus they are done after about an hour and a half so two and a half they were really done. Then we still had to have showers and all that fun stuff.
I spoke to the City of Clay and to one of the board members at the park to let them know about the A$@ that runs the concession stand. I can assure you of this the concession stand will be getting no business from me nor will Deerfoot Cleaners. More on that when I am not falling asleep typing. It has been a long one.
Know that you are all amazing to me and I cannot wait to see and hear about all of the wonderful things that are happening with you all!

April Fool's

So if I saw one "I am pregnant" joke this year I saw 100. While they are funny after the first few does anyone really notice? I am not a huge fan of April Fool's Day but mainly because there is constant .... haha April Fool's being chanted around the house by two little men.
Today was Palm Sunday which is one of my favorite Masses. There is something moving and chilling about the Gospel. If you have never experienced a Palm Sunday Mass I highly recommend it. The boys got palm branches for all of the beds, the new house and our house now. They also got some for Nana, they were worried about her not having any.
It was a great day.The boys had a great time at the Indy Race at Barber Motor Speed Way. I am so appreciative for the tickets and The parking pass was great too!
I had to go to the store, since John Michael decided that he did not want to buy lunch this month. Oh well, it saved me a little money and as long as he eats his lunch that is fine with me. Plus I had an overstock of Capri Suns and juice boxes that maybe will start to dwindle down now. The grocery store is one of my least favorite places.
Overall it was a VERY hectic day with too much going on to discuss, but I know that there are many wonderful things that occured today and this evening. For that I am very thankful.