Come Join Me in My New Place

Hello! It's been awhile. I wouldn't be surprised if no one even follows this blog of mine anymore. I haven't blogged for almost three years. In that time, so much has changed. D has graduated from school, we've had one more baby and we've moved out of the city to the suburbs. To be honest, I've missed blogging. I've missed being a part of the blogging community. I've missed making connections and meeting new people through this blog. And I want to get back into it. But to be honest, this blog isn't me anymore. True, D is still in the National Guard, we're still part of the military community... sort of. But not entirely. I'm proud of being a military wife, but it is such a small part of who I am.

That being said, I'm itching to be a part of the blogging community once again- this time, in a new genre. D and I love to travel. We have a very large (and growing) bucket list of places we would love to go in our lifetime. We always have. We didn't get to travel much while he was in school (hello, large amounts of law school debt!). But he's been out for two years now. And we've got the itch to travel. My new blog details our adventures as a family, exploring new (and old) places, while helping our children learn to love and appreciate the many beautiful places in the world. Along the way, I'll share tips we pick up while traveling with young children and places we come to love. I, in no way, consider myself a travel guru. But with each trip we take, we have new experiences and I'd love to share them with you.

So come along with us. Follow along on our adventures at my new space on the internet- Becoming a Traveling Family.

Thursday Thoughts: Success

 

To me, the meaning of success has evolved a lot since I was younger.  As a young girl (and even as a shallow teenager) to be successful would mean that I'd have a college education with a masters degree or higher.  I'd be married to a rich doctor and have a few kids.  We'd live in a big house with a dog and maybe a cat.  And we'd have a maid to do the dishes and laundry.  I would be Supermom.  I'd be able to juggle cooking fabulous meals and having dinner on the table right as my husband walks in the door, taking the kids to all their activities, keeping my home immaculate, and doing awesome projects for that home.

Now I look back on that definition of success and laugh.  It's shallow and so not who I am.  I'm not crafty, even if I try to be.  Right now, my husband is lucky if dinner is even started when he gets home.  My apartment is a mess because my baby has trouble napping during the day.  My husband is far from being a doctor.  He's a law student so we're living off student loans and a meager paycheck.  And that large house?  I traded it for a 600-square foot apartment.

But, I've never been happier.  I wouldn't have it any other way.  Except for maybe the house.  I'd love to have my own house.

But for now, as long as my family is happy and healthy, and our needs are met, I'd call that success.

Thursday Thoughts: Learning

 

I have to admit: I had a hard time with this one.  The word learning is such a broad topic that I had a hard time deciding what to write about.  I could write about learning how to be a mother.  I could write about my husband who is learning to be a lawyer.  I could write about how even though I am no longer in school, it's still important for me to keep learning.  And those were only a few options.  But as I thought more about it, I decided to write about my daughter.

Although my daughter is still so new to this world (she's eight weeks) and can't do many things yet, she is constantly learning every minute of her waking hours.  I can see it in her eyes as she looks around when we go for walks.  Her face constantly looks like she's trying to take everything in about this new world where she lives.

Every time she learns something new, I love watching her enjoy her new skill.  She has recently learned how to "talk" and she eagerly shows off her skill by chatting away to the animals on her activity mat, the pictures on the wall, and especially to D and me.  I love how her smile lights up her face every time she discovers something new.  She is a daily reminder to me that life is to be enjoyed and that learning is fun.

Thursday Thoughts: Beginnings

 

I'm linking up with Wife of a Sailor for Thursday Thoughts.

This word is perfect for today since I have been thinking a lot lately about new beginnings for our family.  D is about to start his third and final year of law school.  With that comes job applications, interviews, and the anticipation and nervousness of not knowing where we will be next year.  Will he make it into the JAG Corps like he really wants?  Or will he be doing something else?  Will we be stateside?  Or overseas?  Active duty or still in the Guard?

Despite my nervousness for the future, I'm ready for this new beginning.  After spending the last ten years almost as a student or married to a student, I am ready to close that chapter of our lives and move on to the next.  I'm excited.  I'm scared.  I know, like with every new beginning, there will be challenges.  But I know that there will also be happy times.  I'm excited to start this new chapter with my husband and our daughter and see where life takes us.

She's Here!

This weekend we welcomed our precious baby girl into the world.  She's absolutely perfect and we are so in love with her already!  Now we're at home enjoying lots of snuggles and family time while D doesn't have to work.  Please excuse me if I'm not around much for the next little while.

Once again, family and friends (blog friends, too!) if you would like to keep up with our little girl, please send your email (if you haven't already) and I'd be happy to add you to our family blog!

Attention Family and Friends!

After much thought and careful consideration, D and I have decided not to put any pictures of Baby Girl on Facebook or any public websites.  I wish I could say that everyone who views my blog is completely harmless and has good intentions but I know that's not true.  We just don't feel comfortable putting her picture out there for all of cyberspace to see.

However, we also want to be able to share pictures of her with our family and friends.  In order to do that, we have set up a private blog where we will post our pictures of her.  All family and friends (blog friends included) are welcome to provide their email address in the comments (or you can email it to me as well) and I would be happy to send you an invite.

I will still talk about her on this blog because she is already a big part of our lives but, with no pictures.

Thanks for understanding.

Family Photos 2012

A year ago, D and I had family photos taken of the two of us.  Apparently I've been busy because it's taken me a long time to download all the pictures onto my computer.  But I'm finally done.  So, I'm a year late on getting these pictures up here but hey, better late than never right?

Our friend Tiffany was so nice to take these pictures for us.  She owns her own photography business.  We're so sad that she and her husband moved to Colorado last month since we're losing a great photographer and a wonderful friend.  But I highly recommend her to anyone in Colorado who is looking for a photographer.  She specializes in wedding photography but she also does newborn and family sessions as well.  Here is her website if anyone is interested: http://tiffanyrebecca.com/

Here are some of my favorites from our session:

I love my hair in this one.