pictures, pictures, pictures.....

Well, I finally broke down and got one of these!

I had a point and shoot camera but the battery died. A new battery cost $59 and I would just rather buy a newer camera than spend $60 on a 5 year old camera. You’re probably thinking, why does she want a point and shoot when she has a SLR camera? Well, I’m very picky about pictures….I love photography….but I don’t always like professional looking pictures of me and Kaz for a couple of reasons….1 I don’t always want to carry my big camera around with me. Sometimes even if I’m on vacation and I have the big camera it still feels like work. I still have to edit the pictures….2, Not a lot of people knows how to use an SLR camera so I’m always disappointed in the pictures after they are taken. And to be honest, I get nervous handing some stranger a $1500+ camera that my business runs off of! 3, I like bad pictures SOMETIMES….I love looking at pictures and to be honest some of the worst pictures are my favorite when it comes to my family [NOT PROFFESIONALLY speaking…I would never give someone a BAD picture professionally]. Does this make any sense whatsoever? I honestly feel bad sometimes putting pictures on my personal blog that aren’t professional. I know a lot of photographers who would never do that. For me, most of the pictures taken that are on this blog are from my iphone. I don’t want every picture taken of my family to be perfect so please don’t criticize my photography skills based off of some pictures on this blog:)
So anyway, I’m loving my new Kodak point and shoot camera! :)

Speaking of pictures, how do you store yours? Currently, with my personal pictures, I create new albums and upload them to Snapfish. I’m trying to create a photo book for every year of our marriage so anytime I upload an album I automatically create 1-2 pages in the book and design those 2 pages. That way it’s a process and not something I have to spend 4 hours on at the end of the year going back through pictures trying to figure out which ones to use. BUT my problem is I have a HUGE box full of pictures and CDs that just sit in my closet. Most of them are just pictures-No digital record such as a CD all the way back through high school. I don’t know what to do with them….I don’t have the time to put all of them in an album, but I hate the thought of them just sitting in a box unorganized. I think honestly those are my only 2 options though….I’m confused and don’t know what to do….As you know, pictures are very important to me so I want to keep them but they are useless sitting in a box because I will probably never go through them if I ever did want to look at them. An album would work but it would take awhile for me to get them all put together. I literally have probably 2000+ pictures that I’m talking about…..Urggggg-What to do:(


How do you store your pictures? Tell me the good and the bad experiences that you’ve had!

Miscellany Monday.....

I decided to join in on miscellany monday over on my friend Carissa's blog!

1. The homestudy is COMPLETE! Yay! So, now we are just waiting…[more on my thoughts later]

2. This weekend completed my crazy busy wedding season! I had 3 weddings in 3 days! 21 hours of weddings! I’m so relieved to finally have a break and for things to slow down a bit! Since the beginning of March I have had 27 weddings! Whewwwww….a break!

3. This coming weekend I’m in a wedding for a change! I’m really looking forward to being able to be apart of a wedding, and actually get to dance with my husband at the reception instead of standing on the sidelines:)

4. The nursery is almost complete! We just have to get a mattress and the bumper. I saw the bumper this weekend and it looks great! It’s almost finished!

5. Tuesday nights are my favorite….The biggest looser, 90210, The Hills, and The City comes on. Well I’m really sad….90210 ended last week and The biggest looser ends this week:( Very sad. I love knowing that on Tuesday nights I can sit on the couch for 4 hours and watch TV. Watching tv has been my relaxation through this busy season.

6. I’m starting to run again today! I was up to 8 miles and then stopped once things got so busy. I ran a mile the other day and it was hard:( So I’m going to train again for a half marathon and hopefully be ready in August. I’m going to go slow again and take it up 1 mile a week….I’m excited:)

Hope everyone has a great Monday!

preparing for the final meeting....

Well, today's the BIG day! The final home visit[at 330]! In order to prepare for this big day and not scare our social worker away, I had to give this sweet little stinky puppy a bath!

It looks a lot better than it really was....She's not the easiest dog to handle by yourself in a bath tub! Please ignore the shorts-they are really Kaz's basketball shorts rolled up. I had no idea he would take pictures!

Have a great Thursday everyone!

what's going on with me.....

The last few days….weeks…..have been really hard but none as hard as today. Lately, I have noticed big changes in myself- Not caring, no emotions, bored and always wanting to be in a bigger better city like New York or LA, annoyed by everyone’s questions and remarks, etc. Now, if you know me, this is out of the ordinary. I mean, don’t get me wrong I always love to travel, but it’s been to the point where I’ve tried to think of every possible solution to make it happen RIGHT NOW. Now, not later, NOW. I’ve thought I have to leave….Emotionless-This by far is not me…I CRY at everything-happy, sad, funny, etc. I’m talking about the girl who cried while running on a treadmill at the gym when the news showed Shamu having a baby whale. Running around 15+ people, yet with tears pouring down my face…

Today, I drove to work as I always do and just wasn’t happy….I’ve felt like lately everything has just been a routine…and I’ve just been bored. Even last night-Tuesday nights are my favorite and I found myself not really caring just kind of going through the motions of a typical Tuesday night in the Prikazsky household.

So, I started thinking really hard today about what my problem is….What is going on? I’ve come to the conclusion…

I’m FREAKED OUT! SCARED OUT OF MY MIND. IN COMPLETE OUT OF CONTROL MODE! FEARFUL.

You see, Kaz and I have been in the adoption process since January….Everything that we’ve “had” to do is NOW coming to a close. FINISHED, as of tomorrow which brings us to the “Waiting” stage. With the waiting stage brings the unknown….

I have so many questions in my mind….There’s so much that needs to happen…..So many decisions to make…..and yet I know nothing! When will it happen? What’s the gender? The age? Will we get grants? Will the money be provided? When will it be provided? Will I be at a wedding when we get the phone call? WHEN WILL IT BE?

I’m completely OUT of control. I KNOW NOTHING! I’ve never had to trust this much before…..Am I trusting? Do I believe? What exactly do I believe?

My mind is everywhere! I feel almost like I’m having a mild panic attack in my mind….it’s racing 1000 miles a minute. I can’t stop thinking…..

Then I think my life….our journey…..our wants and desires…..This is what we want-What we’ve prayed for. Everything so far has worked out and been perfect even our pain. For awhile I drowned in the rain[in my pain], then the Lord changed my heart and I was able to drop my umbrella for awhile and just dance in the rain. I’ve gotten so comfortable here….Am I really saying that? I’m happy in the rain….Not completely, but I have been happy at times….I’ve had joy through the pain. What’s it like to step out? What will the next step be like?

Am I making any sense? I feel like I’m rambling and maybe I am. Maybe this post is all for me to get everything out……

Then I read Hebrews 11 and my heart while still racing, is at peace.
1Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2This is what the ancients were commended for.

17By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring[b] will be reckoned."[c] 19Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.


29By faith the people passed through the Red Sea[d] as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.


30By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days.


39These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

The winner is.....

The winner of the $40 gift card to CSN is Jennai!

Jennai left this comment!

Congrats Jennai! And a special thanks to CSN for hosting this great giveaway!

The sleeping disease has hit our home…..

Working 2 jobs has finally caught up with me….I’m almost to the point where I’m run ragged. This weekend was extremely busy and the past 2 days I have found myself wanting to sleep ALL the time. I went to bed last night at 830 and Kaz still had to basically pull me out of bed this morning an hour later than I normally wake up! Thankfully, I just have 1 more really busy weekend which is this weekend. It’s going to be the real humdinger….I have 3 weddings in 3 different cities over 3 days! It’s going to be crazy and a lot of driving BUT after that my life will become “NORMAL[well, normal to me]”, meaning from now until the rest of the year I will only have 2 more weekends where I have 2+ weddings in 1 weekend. Other than those 2 weekends it’s 1 wedding a weekend and I couldn’t be more happy! Time has flown by this year and the Lord has definitely carried me through and given me so much strength.

This sleeping disease hasn’t just hit me….It’s hit my sweet little puppy also! Miley spent last week with my parents. When she’s at their house she’s a guard dog. She stays outside during the day and has to bark at all the cats, goats[Yes, I have/had pet goats! Billy and Leroy!], birds, bees, etc.

She usually barks so much that she’s horse by the time she comes back to our house. Since she’s been back the below pictures pretty much sums up what’s she done….

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

My first baby shower.....

Today I had my first baby shower....
I must say it was a really strange feeling.....Don't get me wrong-I LOVED it! Tiffany[the hostess] did an amazing job but it just felt weird for me....Let me explain
This whole process has been a learning experience....and there's been so much to do. So at times I feel like I'm just going through the motions but can't see the end....That's how I felt today. Like I'm preparing for a baby, but there's no emotional attachment yet, no baby, and I don't know when there will be. So I felt like I was receiving gifts for something to come but no idea when that time will come...Does that make sense? I really enjoyed the shower a lot and got some really great stuff...it was just a different feeling than I've ever had. BUT I'm so thankful my wonderful friends came and pampered me with love, food, and gifts! This baby[wherever he or she may be] is already loved by so many wonderful people!
Below are a few pictures....

The decorations were so cute! AND the colors were perfect:)

Me and Mom

Me and Kristen[college friend]

Me and Amber[My Jamaican wedding bride AND friend]

Me and Sabrina[we are inseparable at work!]

Me and Amanda[next door neighbor and friend]

Me and community group girls

Everyone!

and just for fun....Me and my 2 pregnant friends:)

Thanks everyone for making me feel so special:)

If you haven't entered to win the $40 giveaway, click here.

Coming to an end...

Our community group has been together for 2 years….We’ve become so close and have gone through so much together….2 couples are moving away so we had a little going away party[minus the kids] at Atlanta Bread Company Monday night. It’s really sad to me, but at the same time I know things in life have to change…I don’t always like change but its apart of life. Below are a few pictures from our goodbye party:(

The group...

Julie, Caleb, and Jude

Scott and Andrea[They are moving to Florida to start a church-Vintage Grace]

Ryan and Blythe

Tiffany and Wilson[They are moving to NC. Wilson just passed his boards and is now a Dentist!]

The guys....

The girls....

Kelly and Carissa[and baby Sage]....

Me and Kaz....

We were missing Chad and Beth....They started the group 2 years ago....

One final picture....

If you haven't entered for the $40 gift card giveaway click here.

A $40 gift card GIVEAWAY!

This giveaway is in collaboration with CSN Stores and their sister sites. At CSN, you can find a wide range of household appliances, furniture and equipment, from pots and pans to cribs and corner tv stands.

CSN stores include:
http://www.csnbaby.com/
http://www.csnlighting.com/
http://www.racksandstands.com/
http://www.cookware.com/
http://www.allmodern.com/, and many more!

 This giveaway will end on May 19th at 11am. I will announce the winner that afternoon!

3 ways to win:
1. [Mandatory entry] Become a follower of my blog and leave a comment telling me you are !
2. [additional entry] Blog or Tweet about this giveaway
3. [additional entry] Tell me what you would buy with this gift card!

Hope you enjoy this fabulous giveaway!

adoption photo book....

We had to create a photo book for the adoption. It will be available at all of the Bethany locations in SC for birth moms to look at when they come in. A birth mom will choose us based on our book and online profile. I wanted to share our book with you.... It may be hard to read...So I've written below each page what some of the text says...

Cover

A letter from us to the birth mom....

"We met in college"

"on a summer trip to South Africa"

" a year later, we both worked at Disney World together[another summer]. That's where the magic began"

We dated for 9 months....

"and then Kaz proposed"

"We had a lot of great family and friends celebrate our wedding with us"

"We spent our honeymoon in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico"

"then started our life in Washington, DC"

"a year later, we were able to move back to SC where we bought a house and a dog!"

"Meet Miley. She loves squeaky toys, chasing birds, planes[well really anything that flys] and water!"

"Our family is very important to us. We spend a lot of time with them"

"Evelyn and David[Amy's Parents]"

Text from aboe...We had our parents write a letter to the birth mom also...

"Cy and Anne[Kaz's parents]"

"Peter[Kaz's brother], Emily and Matias"

Text from above....

"Our wonderful friends"

"A little about us"

"We love to travel, run, hike, and spend time with family and friends.."

"Kaz is a project manger for a contracting company and Amy is a photographer"

last page...

What do you think?