Ari Damon at 5 Months Old....FIVE!

So, something crazy has happened. My little boy has turned 5 months old as of yesterday! Ah! I cannot believe it! Ari is the center of my world and watching him develop, grow & change day to day has been one of the most challenging and rewarding times of my life these past few months. Watching his little personality start to develop & seeing him learning & becoming curious and just how much love he has towards Drew & I and life in general is just the biggest blessing & honor.....sometimes I don't feel worthy of this little one and how much he likes me! It has been great getting to know Ari, and getting to know myself as a mother.

Let's see....some of the things and milestones Ari is accomplishing and discovering nowadays includes: comprehending a joke or game (e.g. he LOVES Drew's scooby doo voice & will CRACK up even if he's in a bad mood (sometimes he doesn't know if he's laughing or crying)...he also loves "manushi, manushi....pat! pat!" and other crazy & weird (and downright scary!) voices Drew & I come up with just to get a smile or laugh out of him. He has also tried a tiny bit of apple, banana and some rice cereal (he just ate the apple, smiled at the banana, and detested the cereal). One of his new favorite thing to do is stick out his little tounge constantly....he thinks it is just the greatest thing! He also loves trying out new sounds like high pitched squeaks, squeals and little baby yells. He is very enamored with himself and will give himself the biggest smile in any mirror and then whip his head to nuzzle into my neck, apparently embarrassed by the cute boy in the mirror. He also does this when he is "shy" or trying to escape Daddy or Mommy "getting him". He just started grabbing his feet and I think it is the most adorable thing ever! Ari is in general a very happy baby, and more often than not we have great days jogging around the park in his stroller, watching the dogs fight over their "babies", watching food network, cooking crock-pot dinners for Dad (or if I'm feeling really domestic baking a coffee cake or something, ha!) taking naps (more him than me, I promise!), reading books (his favorites are "I am a Bunny" and a curious george lift-the-flap book Sarah got him), playing on his play mat (he is very good at grabbing anything and everything....including sticking his entire hand in my morning oatmeal one day...whoopsy!) and skyping with some of the best people we know! Oh, Ari is also chewing on his hands and everything else he can get ahold of all the time (I just ordered the poor fella some teething toys, don't worry!) and I belive has a few little nubbins coming in on the top & bottom.

Not sure I'm ready for that....eeeek....what happened to my tiny little newborn baby?!?!

We had the best time over the Christmas holidays, getting some time with the Dacy side of the family in Lubbock & Roswell but also with the Speer side in Charleston. It was fantastic having my brother show up from across the world and also having my sister's precious family around for Christmas. Tons of fun and it was not fun coming back home to a quiet condo after all the excitement to be had. This little boy sure has a lot of people that love him.....he was very spoiled and got tons of new, fun & cute stuff for Christmas! Ari had a blast hanging out with Gigi and Pawpaw and all of his fun cousins.....especially with his new bff Luke! It's just amazing to think that last year Drew and I suprised everybody with the news of "Baby Dacy"and both Sarah and I spent the holidays pregnant (and sick for me...bleh). What a change a year can make! Thank God for our two healthy sweet boys. I'll finish this post with a picture I took yesterday of our sweet Ari Damon.

We are very excited for this upcoming weekend as Ari will be getting dedicated back to God at church.......what a special day! I will be sure to take lots of pictures and video and will do a blog.....promise! To all my family reading this......we all miss and love you so very much, we are so excited to see what all God has in store for our family & our loved ones this year....2011, can you believe it!?

Ari Damon Dacy

Well, it is as they say it is. Becoming a parent is the most incredible, hardest, most wonderful and crazy thing you could ever imagine. And I've only experienced 2 months of it! Ari Damon Dacy was born on his due date of August 22nd, 2010, with nothing less than a most dramatic, leo-worthy entrance.

While the labor & delivery couldn't of been farther from what I had imagined, God saw me through it and Ari, Drew & I all made it out alive (albiet, Drew and I were both thinking....we are NEVER going to do this again!). Ari was born at 9:52 AM weighing in a 6 lbs 6 oz. and a whopping 19 inches, hehe. It was incredible to finally see the physical body of this precious little boy I had been thinking and dreaming of non-stop for the past 9 months. Unfortunately, in the process of being born Ari had swallowed a bunch of gunk and was whisked to the NICU almost immediately following birth. Come to find out, he had developed pnemonia & had to stay a week for a round of antibiotics. Talk about surreal and disappointing....especially after such an intense birth! Driving back and forth every 3 hours to try and breastfeed was also such a test....fortunately, I had my mom here to lean on as well as an amazing sister that had gone through much worse with her first born son. In fact, seeing as Ari was the healthiest and biggest baby in the NICU, I was feeling pretty much on cloud nine and was trusting that in only a short seven days our baby would be safely home with us. And God saw us through that! And while that moment feels just like yesterday, our little Ari D now weighs in at over 10 lbs., 23 inches and is going to be 2 months old in just a short week.

I CANNOT believe how fast time has flown.....and I was scared of being bored to tears checking days off my calandar being at home with him! HA! While I have enjoyed very much learning this new little person and re-learning myself as a mother and stay at home mom, it's hard being home alone sometimes just wondering if I'm letting him watch too much TV or if he's bored and I'm not reading to him enough, ect.....it has been quite a transition! I am still in shock that I am a mother to this beautiful little boy. Sometimes it seems like I don't even remember being pregnant! I swear, it's the craziest thing. And breastfeeding?!?? Don't even get me started. Craziest thing ever. I can see why so many moms just throw in the towel on that one. And it's not been a cake walk for us, that's for sure.....we are still using a nipple shield....lol, tmi, I know....but I just can't believe how much stuff I've learned about and had to do and put up with and research in the past 2 months. I am like a completely new person. It's definately been a lesson in putting yourself to the side, but I would be willing to do anything for my little boy. It's great trying to figure everything out with my husband and laughing and discovering funny things like how we never knew such a small person could have such a loud adult fart! Hehe.

Anyways, I could say so much more but it is really such a blur and just me taking it a day at a time for what it is.....and definitely learning to remember to appreciate the small, simple things in life. For when I can grab a shower or a meal to myself or make it out to run a errand, or talk to a comforting and friendly voice on the phone.....that's the good stuff! I am continually asking God for patience and joy and just a sense of calm so I can look back on this as a fond memory and not just a "boring" and difficult stage of life that I can't wait to move on from. I am truly trying to cherish each day I have with my baby son. I am amazed at how much he has already grown and changed, and I continually remind myself (especially when I am becoming impatient at him nursing for an hour or more or how much time I had to stay cooped up in the apartment in one day....) that he will only be this small for once and that I had better take every cuddle or bonding moment for all it's worth!

Thank you God for blessing us with this precious and beautiful life, help me to be the best person and mother I can be to this little one....help me make the right choices for my life and for my son's life. Thank you for making my life 10,000 times richer than what it already was! Amen.

July 3rd, 2010 Ari's Baby Shower!

"The Ari-Baby-Belly!"

As most of you already know, Drew and I are thrilled to be expecting our first little one, a tiny and most endearing boy due to arrive August 22nd, who is already so blessed to be loved by many. On the weekend of July 4th, my two amazing friends, LeeAnne Henson & Betsy Hobbs pulled off a wonderful little celebration/baby shower for him despite record flooding rains, low attendence, and leaking ceilings (grrrrr.....). It wasn't the best weekend to have it, but one of the only times we could due to people in graduate school, hosts traveling, and other events happening the same weekends we were trying to have it. Oh well. It turned out to be a great success despite all of the kinks and roadblocks thrown in the way! So, without further ado, here are some pictures from the event! Thanks to everyone who participated and sent presents to the baby even if they couldn't be there.....we know you would've been there if you could and are just as thrilled for us! And a special thanks to the hostesses & their families (and for my amazing "Dallas" Aunt, Jennifer who helped out so much!) Love you so much.

Smiles all around!

Some of the group.....

So many cute little boy clothsies already!

Laughing about the "Michael Jackson" baby toy glove

Hard at work at the ingenious scrap book for the baby table!

Opening gifts and presents (and some HI-larious cards!)

The proud parents-to-be! :)

Snacking on the amazing food!

The amazing Aunt Jen & hostess, LeeAnne!

My dear friend Jan & her BF Stephen scrapbooking for the baby!

Playing a shower game.

Some of the gang that was able to come out & celebrate Ari's life!

Some of the amazing food prepared by LeeAnne's cooking camp students....amazing homemade Italian meatball soup! Yum. Yum.

The delicious homemade chocolate-coffee cake, made by miss Betsy Hobbs!

The beautiful diaper cake made by several of my friends!

A Year?! Seriously?

Wow, how can this be....a whole year since I've last posted!!!! Sorry to whoever reads this (Sarah! :) Well let me summarize what all has been going on in the Dacy's life the past year. ALOT has happened.....here it goes in the short/summarized form:

A week after my last post we had the most FABULOUS time in Santa Fe with family and friends for our wonderful wedding, the next week after we spent in Santa Marta, Colombia....snorkeling, sight seeing, eating fresh seafood, & most of all lazing around by our pool. After we came back to the real world (aka, Lubbock TX), I resumed job hunting while Drew headed back to school (back to school, back to school, so my Dad doesn't think I'm a fool, hehe). Fast forward a few months....I had the WORST time finding work & mostly sat around on my computer searching, applying, going to interviews....and being turned down. UGH. Worst time of my life! I eventually found work first at the LBK International airport working in the bookstore & the coffee shop...very interesting, horrible management, but fun to people watch and fill time.

I went through a very scary time around this time as well, when my vision went out in my left eye, not completely but enough to be very concerned & to start being tested for MS, ect....I had cat scans, various tests, and a home nurse come and feed me steroids to take down the swelling in my eye. I even had to have a IV drip in my arm at work....now THAT got some interesting comments & looks! Thank God, everything went back to normal within 2 weeks and it was determined to be an isolated incident after everything showed normal on my brain scans, ect. I went to Charleston in August with my friend Sarah for a week in order to have a few more tests done and to see my parents, and fortunately that has been the last incident I have had related to the freak vision loss last May. Thanks parents for taking care of me!

By around August I was also burnt out on my stupid little airport job and driving out there everyday, so I quit & found work at yet another starbucks that was closer in town. That was fun while it lasted, I learned the ins & outs of the drive thru starbucks, made some friends, and had had enough of that by January. Thank God, my wonderful husby graduated in December and went to work full-time for Roundtable Corporation doing some payroll & accounting work for them.....while there, he put in a good word for me & I was hired by their other entity, their accounting firm Beakley & Associates doing some HR work, & administration. I have been working there since February 1st and have been loving it and the perks that come along with it including being on payroll & having excellent health care insurance!

Speaking of health care insurance, it came in the nick of time because Drew and I got the shock of our lives the night before he graduated from Texas Tech........we are going to be parents around August 22!!!!! The best part was is that we got to tell my parents & family in person when we spent Christmas with them in Pittsburgh.....it was truly the best feeling ever because my sister & her husband are expecting their 3rd son a week before Drew and I are expecting our first son! (Oh yeah, we both found out in April that we are having BOYS!) We are thrilled, scared, excited, nervous & any other emotion you can think of!

So, most lately, our lives have been filled with work, doctor's appointments, moving into our new condo (pics to come later....we are LOVING it & having our own place), and me nesting & preparing for the baby binks. We are also trying to be moved to Charleston by the end of this year.....we shall see....Drew has been searching & we have been praying for a good job opportunity! God has definately thrown us a few curveballs in the past year, but it is great & we are taking it all in stride & with a smile on our faces. I will be sure to blog more, and to post updated pictures as soon as I get my new computer.....which should be soon......thank you tax return money!!!

Gardening, Springtime, & Such

April 2009.

Drew losing his mind during finals week



"Will you quiz me later??"

It's me in my Colombia explorer hat!



So I've been really horrible about my blog. I apologize, but I think I'm not quite a "blog" type of person, but I just acquired a wonderful new camera (Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ28) and I wanted to post some random pictures I've been taking to try it out. I'll officially get a chance to test it out here in this next week, the week before my WEDDING, and then definately in Santa Marta, Colombia (Honeymoon anyone??!) ! I am SO very excited, and am flying out to meet my family in Albuquerque this upcoming Wednesday. It'll be nice to get some good relaxing family-only time before everyone starts arriving for this EPIC weekend! So, without further ado, here are some new pictures of Springtime around Lubbock. The dog pics are courtesy of Drew, he went a little crazy one night....haha.

Little Miss Piper

My sweeties getting ready for bedtime

Time to break out the gardening supplies!

My leftover seed selection from last Spring. I'll let you know when/if they pop-up!

Johnny jump-ups! My fav.

America's Next Top Gardner??

They're just growing in the alley behind my house!

"I'll help you dig!"

A RED RAIDER GRADUATION!

Well, this is old news now, but it's still fresh in my mind, that's for sure! Graduation was the culmination of the longest five years of my life, and what a great day! My Dallas Auntie was able to come up for it, as well as my parents, my future in-laws, and of course Drew and Jon were there.....having all of you guys there to help me celebrate was great! Here are a few pictures of the day: Up above is the Jones stadium, with a few us us graduates starting to fill it up.

And here we all are, class of 2008 all ready to become official alumni of Texas Tech! The ceremony, while painfully long (at least to me), was excellent, mostly because the Chancellor is a really great guy and a top-notch speaker (random fact: his college roomate was John Denver!)

And there I am! SO HAPPY! I'm pretty sure I got to feel what it would be like to be the President of the U.S.A., or at least what I'd imagine when I had to shake about 50 faculty member's hands, assembly line style. Very awkward.....HA. Anyways, it was definately a top-notch day in my memory and I will never forget it. Red Raider for life! The last picture is my favorite picture of the day, courtesy of my Aunt Jen, of me cheesing like crazy with my parents, who have supported me and my education from day one. Man, am I blessed or what! Hmm, grad school here I come? ;)

So I Caved.......

Well, here we go! I can now officially add blogger to my resume! Because I find myself laughing and enjoying my sister's blog so much, as well as a few other select hilarious blogs, I decided I needed my own. As anyone reading this probably knows, I, as well as future-hubby have a whole lot of milestones and upcoming milestones approaching us this year. So, now is a perfect time to create my very own little blogspace to update and entertain those that might stumble upon it, or GASP, even want to read my ramblings! Some of the most exciting things that have been happening in my life have been:

A) I graduated in December from Texas Tech University, yeah! Guns up, Raider power! (wish we would've finished the football season better, but hey, we still beat those Cows from Austin! ;)

B) I have my first real job interview this coming Wednesday with a local adoption agency (childrensconnections.org) and I REALLY want it, so PRAY people!

C) D and I are frantically planning our wedding which after 2 1/2 years of engagement and one of us graduated, is going to be May 16th, 2009 (In Santa Fe, NM, the picture up above is us at the plaza about to meet with our coordinator) and we ARE PUMPED!

D) Drew is finally going to graduate this Summer and best of all, he LOVES what he's majoring in! (Finance, for those that can't keep up with all of our degree changes :)

E) We are praying for God's direction in where we should try to move to start our own little family! (I am praying most of all for mountains, family, sun and water to be close by!)

F) For my Christmas present, I finally got to go to Pittsburgh to spend some quality, albiet sick, time with my precious sister, brother-in-law, and nephews (and the best suprise, my little brother too!)....and I LOVED IT. I'll try to steal some pics from S's blog and post them soon. I actually got to see snow! It was very special since I don't get to see any of them very often. Thanks Mom & Dad!

So, as you can see, this is certainly going to be a monumental year for us, and we are totally excited and ready to meet it head on! It has already started off with a bang! Also, we are currently, and always, debating about where we should go for our honeymoon.......we definately want a tropical one, Costa Rica's my dream vacay, but might have to put that off until later.....SO, any other suggestions??? Until next time, happy blogging! :)