Christmas in Colorado.

Sharing a few moments I managed to capture while we were in Colorado. Not technically the best, since they were taken with my iPhone, but good enough for the moment. I did not take as much pictures as I usually do. We are officially home, resting and getting ready for another week of our daily routine. Looking forward to what 2014 has in store; more traveling, health goals, and enduring life in Illinois. 

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays!

This post has been delayed, as I've been trying to find the time to sit down and release my thoughts.
A lot has happened these past few days. Alot of traveling, and alot of family time. Needless to say, I have been enjoying every minute. Our original holiday plans changed a few weeks ago. We secretly canceled our entire Puerto Rico itinerary and opted for a colder, more family oriented vacation. We did not tell anyone, my parents had no idea we were arriving. I honestly can't remember the last time we were all together for Christmas, so I took the opportunity to make it happen. The look on my mother's face when we arrived, absolutely priceless. As much as I would have loved to lay out on the beach, relax in a 5 star resort, I felt extremely guilty. Christmas just isn't the same without family. We have been here for a few days, Autumn has been enjoying her uncles, aunts and cousins. Christmas was wonderful, and I am looking forward to a brand new year, which means new goals, accomplishments, more traveling, a new place to live and new possibilities. Here are a few moments I captured so far from our Colorado vacation.

And We Danced The Night Away…..

 

This was the night I let go.

Free from school, final exams, the weight of passing my course with an"A". I did it. I could breath. From the beginning of the week, my mind was a tunnel vision consisting of finance concepts, applications and equations.

A lot of pressure, stress, emotions, tears, went into completing this course.That Friday night, I let loose, I deserved this celebration.

And so I danced all night. I held my husband close. I laughed and enjoyed every moment alone with him.

Together for 10 years and he still gives me that feeling.

Together for 10 years and he still is the most amazing, sexiest, comedic man I’ve ever met.

Everything is so easy with him; our love, our life is easy.

The voices of Eric Clapton, Garth Brooks and The Temptations, serenaded us as we got lost in each other.

Maybe it was the feeling of relief and freedom, or maybe the spirit of the Christmas Holiday, or perhaps just the enjoyment of two people in love, whatever filled the air, was exactly what I needed.  

Goals and Accomplishments.

I am back, despite taking a long hiatus from blogging, feels great to be back in my thoughts. I have been heavily involved in Graduate school at this time, focused and absorbed in every aspect of the course. Basically, I’ve been breathing Finance for the past couple of weeks. My brain needs a break and it seems every second, minute and hour I’ve spent is critical in successfully completing this course. Or at least I think and hope. Sometimes I think I am too hard on myself, if I missed a question, points lost, I frantically beat myself up over it, which often ends with me in tears. Crazy much?

Now before I continue, I am going to shed light on why I am this way. I am going to dig deep and share. One thing I’ve learned from a lot of mommy bloggers is that it is okay to be vulnerable; it is okay to share and have moments where you feel “not so perfect,” because those are the moments that make you stronger, those are the moments you learn from and hopefully others can relate, share or be inspired.

For as long as I can remember, I have always been an overachiever. I’ve always had a plan for myself. I constantly seek out opportunities, create and strive for goals. In my early 20’s, I graduated college, I traveled a lot. I immediately started Graduate school after I completed my Bachelors program. Since I was in high school, my goal was to have my Master’s degree at age 25.  I was on the right track, and finished majority of my courses, that is, until the first few months of pregnancy; I was taking 2 graduate courses and working full-time, needless to say, I thought I could handle it. I remember feeling extremely tired during that time, my job was hectic and grueling, working 12 hours from 6 am to 6pm, until one day, I couldn’t do it anymore. I resigned, went home and took a nap. I immediately felt a sense of relief, along with feeling supported and welcomed home by my amazing husband, but everything came to a halt when I realized how much I slacked in my studies. My flawless transcript was damaged by a failed attempt. I never failed a class before. I was heartbroken, and to this day, I am still devastated. Since then, I have been trying to fix my mistake and it hasn’t been as easy as I thought. Before this semester, I took a long break. I wanted to forget school, forget the thought that my journey is going to be harder, forget everything. While trying to conquer forgetfulness, I forgot the strive, the gleam of education in my eye, I started to forget who I was. I love being a mommy, with everything in me, but there are times I miss the opportunities, the traveling, the excessiveness of my ambition, overall, the young Adrienne. I am starting to learn that goals, dreams and hopes are still attainable as a mother, it may be a lot harder, but it is so much more worth it. I aim to be someone I am proud of, and I aim to be someone my family can be proud of, and most importantly, my little girl. Forget popular pop culture figures, models in the magazines, forget beauty, I want to be her role model. I want her to be in awe of my accomplishments, and hopefully one day create her own legacy. Needless to say, I want to be her guide.

I still haven’t been able to answer why I am always planning my next goal, or my next accomplishment. I started this entry thinking; this semester is coming to end, I need something else to accomplish and so I created my Marathon training spreadsheet. I thought to myself, why do I do this to myself? There are going to be early morning runs before work, cold December runs, and early bedtimes. The idea of a marathon is scary. In my head I think, I KNOW I can do this, but 26.2 miles, it’s not the race that is frightening, but more so of the training. I am still in debate with myself on whether or not I plan to commit to the February 2, New Orleans Rock-n-Roll Marathon. In the meantime, I am hoping I can relax, refresh and take myself away from planning. In reality, my main focus should be the holidays, and getting ready for our big move in February.

Adventures With Autumn.

 

Weekends always consist of some quality time and much needed rejuvenation. Weekends rapidly fly by, and I start to wonder how Sunday nights arrive so quickly. I have been lagging on my blog for the past couple of weeks, and at one point I closed it, thinking I just don't have the time. Then I had a thought; sometimes we have to MAKE time for things we are passionate for, the time and moments we enjoy. Please bare with me; my blog is still a work in progress and I am still in the midst of trying to get comfortable with how much I am willing to share.

The weather has been a ping pong of cold and warm lately. Fall has officially taken over. Something about Autumn is mesmerizing and beautiful. The magical colors of the leaves blanket the surface, the air is crisp and cold. Today was actually warm enough for us to accompany Miss Autumn to the playground. She loves the outdoors, she has a large fascination with her surrounding environment; from the sky, to flowers, soaring airplanes, to b-bugs (lady bugs). Today I captured some beautiful moments, and her love for the outdoors is clearly visible on her face. One of the amazing things about capturing moments like these is that I live to capture "real" moments. Kids should be kids, and I love to capture that in a picture. I love when her hair is wild, I love when everything is natural; no posing, no interruptions, no directing, I want that picture, that moment to be the absolute truth.

A Future To Look Forward To.

At periodic moments throughout the day, my mind reflects and analyzes everything that is going on in my life, a dissection of my things to do for the week; family, school, work, money, and some day dreaming of future possibilities. It has been almost 2 weeks since we were hit with some extraordinary and unexpected news; we are moving! In a matter of months, we will be relocating to the state of Illinois! It all seems surreal, I mean, this is what we’ve been wanting for almost 5 years. Month after month we have been constantly saying, “I hope we get out of here soon.” I knew it would happen eventually, that’s military life for you, but I was expecting another year or so.

As an army brat, I am accustomed to constant changes and relocations. I think that is why I love to travel, I need a variation of sights, people, and things. I first arrived in Alabama in 2003, not by choice, but because my father is in the Army. I never planned on staying, my mentality was; finish 5 months of high school and then off to New York. I did NYC for a moment, only to come back to Alabama. For the past 10 years, I have been trying to escape this state; residing in NYC to Louisiana to Washington DC, and eventually always coming back.

Since we received news of relocating, I have been in disbelief; this is it, we are moving. With a mixture of anticipation for the future, I am also sad. Alabama has been my home for the past 13 years, and many of my best memories and growth happened here. I met my husband here and our whole life has blossomed in this state. Unforgettable memories and experiences; we married in Mobile, AL and our baby girl Autumn was born here in Montgomery, AL. As much as I dreaded being here at times, as much as I complained that I needed to be somewhere bigger, somewhere more interesting, I appreciate everything Alabama has given me.

I am still in disbelief. Not sure if it has sunk in quite yet, maybe in January it will. Right now my mind has been occupied with school, work and contemplating the status of our Puerto Rico vacation. With the sudden plans to move, a vacation does not seem like the best decision. 

My appreciation for Alabama has me feeling like I will miss a few things:

1.      Sweet tea. Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a sweet tea-aholic.

2.      Southern Hospitality. Everyone is charming here. After all, this is where I gained my mannerisms of always replying with a “yes/no maam” and “yes/no sir.”

3.      The accent. Something so warming and neighborly about the Southern accent.

4.      The weather. As a person who despises the cold, I enjoyed the hot and humid Southern summers.

5.       The short distance drive to beautiful Florida beaches, Atlanta, New Orleans and even an 8 hour drive to Disney World!!

As this chapter slowly begins to close, I am optimistic and positive about the upcoming future.

Pumpkin Patch Fun.

Weekends seem to go by so quickly! You get off on a Friday afternoon and before you know it, it is time to spend a Sunday evening preparing for the upcoming week. This weekend proved to be momentous and full of Autumn fun. Our girl is growing up so fast. I watched in amazement as she strolled around the Pumpkin Patch, pointing to "pun-kins"and taking in the atmosphere. She led us through a corn maze, without fear or hesitation. Moments like these are what I cherish the most. The Autumn and holiday season is upon us and I am embracing every fallen leaf, every windy breeze.......