My Little Model

The title says it all.  I take my camera to every soccer game.  I realize that there is not much new things that Gracie can do at each game, but I have this insane need to photograph everything.  I feel like I am going to miss something on camera.  I have gotten so used to watching things through the the viewer thingy (that is an official term by the way) that it feel as though when I don’t have the camera up to my face, I feel naked.  Ok, I am willing to admit, I might be a bit over indulgent with the camera.  Another soccer mom calls herself the “mama-razzi”.  I heard this and thought, “Man, I wish I would have thought of that!”  But back to the point, here is my lil’ model.  Seriously, she would give the contestants on America’s Next Top Model a run for their money…seriously:

See, I told you.  I can here Tyra announcing it now! ha ha!  Ok, can you tell, I have had a really long week?  However, it is definitely worth mentioning that Gracie did MUCH better this week at soccer.  She was all about playing.  The funniest thing she did was run over to us after each play to report if she got to kick the ball or not.  She must have forgotten we have eyes….just saying.  But I love it!  She is number 10.

Of course, by the end of the game, she was doing this (yeah that leg was up in the air trying to do a flip….):

Other big news in the Cunningham household, Matt officially finished his last class for his Bachelor’s Degree!  I am so proud of him!!!!!!!!  This has been 10 years in the making.  Matt is really doing great things for himself.  He is planning on getting his Master’s after a well deserved break.  This is totally deserved! YEH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, this weekend is going to be a quiet one for us, but I am sure I will have something to report on.  If nothing else, I am sure I will have more soccer pictures.  She as a game on Friday.  Happy Wednesday, only two more days until Friday!

Thoughts

I am sitting here in Starbucks catching up on the blogs I love to read when I was truly touched.  I have have been following a couple off and on for the last couple of months.  She struggles with infertility and is not ashamed to talk about it.  Infertility in itself is a hush hush subject.  For those of us who struggle with it, the fact that it is a hush hush subject is hard to deal with on top of the fact that we have a problem with getting pregnant.  Amy has not been shy about her feelings or faith in God during this incredibly hard time trying to make their family complete.

Recently, her and her husband were contacted by a teen mom who wanted to give her baby up for adoption, to them.  That alone takes incredible faith that the birth mom will come through with the promise and give them the baby they have dreamed about.  To remind themselves of the faith they would need to carry them through this, Amy bought a pair of ballerina slippers for the unborn little girl to remind herself that no matter what the outcome is, to have faith that God is in control and that baby will always be loved.

Upon reading this, it reminded me of the countless times I talked Matt into “looking” through the baby section of almost every store we went to.  Poor guy, I was so focused on having a baby, I am so glad he was tolerant of me.  Recently Matt and I decided we should see what would happen if we started to try again.  Kind of a “if it happens” game.  Well, as to be expected, nothing happened.  We have since decided to take a break for awhile.  The next year is full of uncertainties and I don’t want to add the pressure or stress of trying to get pregnant on top of that.   Following Amy and DW, reading their recent news in their journey, reminded me that I need to have faith that God is in control.  Things aren’t on my time, things are on His time, and maybe having another baby right now isn’t the right time. 

Thankfully, I wasn’t the same crazed baby focused woman I was 5 years ago, but the pain of it not happening wasn’t any different.  It was a little easier to accept, a little easier to move on, a little easier to take a step back and let God be in control.  He is the one that gave us the perfect little girl who fills our life with love and laughter.  It has not been an easy road to get the family Matt and I always dreamed for.  I am thankful for Matt and for Gracie.  I thankful for God, He is the one that has blessed my life with them.  Just a little thought, just a little reminder to have faith…

Weekly Rambling

Well, over the last week, we came home from a camping trip, Gracie started soccer (officially), and we saw Disney Live: Three Classic Fairytales.  I have tons of pictures to share, but I will try to keep it to a dull roar!

Camping

We went on our now annual camping trip last weekend.  It was a really great time. We once again went with the Elliott’s up to Cloudcroft.  If you remember, they had “that handsome boy Baby Dean” just a short 2 months ago and he has officially had his first camping trip.  He did wonderfully!  Mom and Dad were a little worrisome, as to be expected, but all in all it was a great weekend.

 

Gracie got to go on her very first fishing trip while camping.  She is just like her Mama, she does not touch fish or bait, but she will hold the pole as needed! Ha!!!  We caught 6 fish at this little trout pond near our camp site.  It was perfect little place for kids or newbies.

 

The “firsts” thing seems to end once they achieve major milestones as an infant and toddler.  Once they past that stage, it turns into events like fishing, games, trips, etc.  But, you forget about the sweet things like, the first family picture your child draws, the first time they say “I love you” and you know they understand what those words mean, or the first time your baby gives you a flower, even if it is a dandelion!

Disney Live!

Friday night we took Gracie to see Disney Live.  I love that El Paso is on the tour schedule for these things.  There isn’t a whole lot for kids to do here, so when you get stuff like this, you always want to take advantage.  I got fabulous seats for us for a great price thanks to the ticket place on post.  We weren’t on the floor but we were on the first tier on the front row, smack dab in the middle.  Gracie got to dress up in her “Sleeping Doody” dress and everything.  She was so excited.  Her little face through out the evening let us know she was having the time of her life.  I didn’t get a whole lot of pictures, I wanted to enjoy the show with my little girl.  There is nothing like watching a fairytale with your daughter.  Cinderella is both of our favorites!

Gracie’s 1st Soccer Game

My oh my, where do I begin?  Let’s just say….

This is how she spent the whole game.  Walking around, with her hands in her mouth, pouting about not being able to play with her ball.  It is partly my fault since I bought her a new purple ball that was more her size.  She has not been able to play with said ball since we bought it at 10:00 pm the night before when we had to go buy her socks that actually fit her.  So I take blame, sort of, for her unwillingness to play.  By the end she did get into it a little.   She even threw the ball in when the other team kicked it out of bounds.

 

Of course, her favorite part of the whole thing was when she got her snack!  She was one happy girl!!!

So that was my weekly rambling!  I am hoping this week is a bit calmer! Either way happy Monday!

Home is Where the Army Sends Us

So the big news?  Matt re-enlisted indefinitely today.  This means for at least the next 10 years, I will be an Army wife!  I am not sad about this at all.  Yes, it is a hard life.  Yes, there are times where I am forced to be a single parent because Matt is away.  Yes, I miss him terribly when that happens.  But, I get to be the wife of someone who is making a difference.  Matt has made the commitment to defend our nation, our freedom, and to continue to serve his country.  I am so proud of him. (Can’t you tell?)  There is nothing more simple than that.  I am proud of the man he has become, the soldier he is, and the person I get to spend the rest of my life with. He is my man in uniform.

Catch Up with the Cunningham’s

Wow, after not having a whole lot to report on since vacation, I feel like I have so much to catch you up on! 

Labor Day Weekend

We spent most of the weekend just getting stuff done mixed in with some relaxation and shopping.  Gracie is starting soccer this week so we needed to get all of her stuff.  We went on a major tour of El Paso trying to find cleats in her size.  Thankfully, on the tail end of our hunt, the soccer coach called and said she just had to have regular shoes.  So we were successful in finding some…but more on the soccer stuff later.  It was so nice to have a long weekend.  We decided to go out for a breakfast picnic at one of the parks today before it got too hot.  Thankfully, the hot weather has broken for the moment.  We were at over a 100 last week but today it didn’t even reach 90.  I love it!  Gracie loved the picnic, she knew exactly what to do.  Matt and I were not allowed to unpack the basket.  She was so excited we actually had a picnic basket too.  I tried to tell her that it was a wedding gift for us, but she could care less! Either way, we had a blast.  It was a great way to end our weekend!

When I tell her to smile or look at the camera, Gracie’s inner model comes out….this is my look I get 90% of the time.  She is such a silly girl.

I am officially a soccer mom!

Back in Colorado, we decided to enroll Gracie in soccer since she seemed to be a natural.  Well, she has taken the ball and rolled with it…literally.  She has all of her gear and is ready to go.  She loves her soccer ball and all of her stuff to go along with it.  She frequently reminds me where all of her stuff is so that I don’t forget it when it is time to go to practice.  We have taken her to the park a few times (we don’t have a lack of parks in El Paso) to give her a chance to get a feel for the ball.  As I see her “practice” I see all of my hopes and dreams of dancing flying out the window.  I don’t know much about soccer but I was surprised to see how well Gracie took to it.  I may be a bragging mommy, but she does so good!

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Of course we have to have pictures to document all the soccer happenings right?  I love these next pictures.  She was in such a mood…the one with her hair all over the place cracks me up!I love that my girl loves pink…she may not have all the matching shades, but the color is spot on!

Odds & Ends

We have watched Tangled a gazillion times, seriously.  We have watched it so much that I sing along with the songs.  Yesterday, Gracie informed me that I can’t sing, only she can.  This is what she does, she dances along with the movie!  If you can tell, she is mimicking Rapunzel.  Did I mention she has to have a dress on anytime she watches a movie or show with music?  Apparently it is a requirement….just saying.

Matt has made a big decision that I will fill you in more on later this week.  I will say that I am proud of him…but I will have to brag about that later.  I hate when people do this, but I couldn’t help it.  Plus, you all will remind me to blog later this week…right?

On August 28th, Matt and I celebrated 14 years of being together.  Yes, I have put up with him for 14 years!  It just amazes me how much we have been through and how far we have come along in our life!  I can’t even imagine going through this journey of life without him by my side.

Illinois College Homecoming 2000

I promise to check in later this week.  Happy fake Monday to all of you! I hope you enjoyed your Labor Day Weekend!