hello again

Hi there. 

I haven't posted a blog in over 10 days. I've been meaning to. Plenty of blog worthy things have happened to me. Well funny things I think would entertain you. Or at least make you smile. Laugh maybe.

I just, well, theres no good excuse. I've just been, well, overwhelmed lately. 

I have my hands in too many pots I guess you could say.

Trying to make money from home. Trying to be creative. Trying to make money being creative. Trying to go to school. Trying to simplify my life. Trying to learn photography. Trying to learn photoshop. Trying to make this blog awesome. 

Trying to be a good wife. Trying to be a good mom. Trying to follow Jesus with all my heart. 

Some of these things are way more important than others. I find myself putting more time in to some less important things and less into the more important things. 

This is because I have no decent schedule. My time floats by all willy nilly. I need a daily schedule badly. I need to figure out how much time I should spend on each thing I want to do daily, and stick to it. 

I have more troubling problems that compound this.

I am lazy. 

I am a procrastinator.

I start many things and finish few.

I am easily overwhelmed. 

When I'm overwhelmed I tend to hide. From everything. Taking a break at first seems refreshing. Then as the says go by, I get more worried. I need to start again. But I'm starting to get overwhelmed cause I missed too many days. Then the days just add up and starting again at all seems harder than starting over. 

I'm not trying to whine. I've been blessed beyond recognition. Pretty much everything I've said is my fault. 

 I guess I'm just telling you why.

And I'm sorry. It's hard getting back in the habit. 

And I promise to try better. 

<3MaryAnne

ps- Thx to those that sent me messages of concern. I'm ok. Just a little lost right now. 

Photo contest winners coming up...

Check out my guest post!

My friend Heather recently asked me to guest post for her blog. She wanted me to do so because she was going to be welcoming home her husband from his first deployment. I was more than happy to help her out.

Her blog is He Wears Combat Boots, I Wear Stilettos and I highly recommend it! She is a personal friend of mine and she is one of the sweetest people I know. She blogs about everything from her 30 day challenge, to her obsession with Army Wives :), and from her passion about current events that affect her life and the lives of many, to her playlist of songs for deployment.

So here is my guest post. It's full of drama and intrigue! Oh who am I kidding, it's just full of drama. Drama I can expand on if you're interested! Go check it out! :D Tell me what you think here! And tell Heather what you think there! She is such a beautiful sweetheart and I'm so glad she and her hubs and their little girl are back together again. Check out their super sweet reunion pic and tell me you can resist visting her blog. You can't! It's impossible! ;)

<3tprm

I'm it!

So the oh-so-lovely and wonderful mommysankey from Surviving Motherhood has tagged me in a game of bloggy-tag!

She qouted the oh-so-eloquent and amazing Kimberly from All Work and No Play Makes Mommy Go Something Something when describing tag:

"Remember playing tag in grade school? That game was totally invented by parents. Like you ran like the dickens and didn’t even know that you were secretly burning all the sugar you consumed in your morning Pop tart. Parents are genius. Playing tag made for some good times except when the person who was “it” was a known nose picker and was trying to hunt you down with cootie ridden boogie fingers. So not cool."


The rules are to answer 4 questions that she picked and then create 4 more questions of my own and then tag 3 more blogs.


So here are mommysankey's questions for me!


1. What is something you regret NOT doing thus far in life?
2. What is your most favorite thing to do with the kiddos?
3. Why did you start blogging?
4. What is the one thing you hate doing most?


1. The thing I most regret not doing thus far in life is traveling. I have always been so afraid to fly, so I have just always stayed home. Home as in America. But there is so much in the world that I want to see- Japan, London, Jamaica, Hawaii, Thailand, India, and on and on forever. I also regret not pursuing my dream job as an artist any farther than I have. But hey, the night is still young! Maybe one day?


2. My favorite thing to do with the kids is to take them anywhere where they can be social with other kids- the play ground, Chuck-E-Cheese, the play place at the mall, and so on. They are such social little guys, I love watching them interact with other kids, and how they make friends and play together. How they help each other out and chase each other, screaming that awesome outside-voice-scream-laugh that they have.


3. I originally purchased thepunkrockmom.com domain in 2007, when I was pregnant with my first son. I felt a huge lack in support for punky moms. I had a lot of great vision for the site, but never the time or money to put in to it. Fast forward to now- I still don't have the money, but I have the time available that I want to spend reaching out to and supporting other moms- lifting them up and loving them. So I went the blogger route. (With plans to develop my .com in the future! Somehow!) My site is definitely geared towards punky moms, but I love all you mommies out there and my blog is open and welcoming to you at all times. So my main purpose in blogging now is to share my little self with the world, and to love and support those who share themselves with me. :)


4. This one is tough, since there are SO many things that I hate doing! LOL! The easy answer is dishes. We don't have a dishwasher- so that's all you need to know about that. And the fact that my husband is an amazing guy and usually does all of the dishes for me. Love you babe!
The harder answer is probably being honest with myself. You see, I have a very hard head and I am very willful and uncooperative. Except I do sit down with myself regularly and really dig deep. I'm always finding things I don't like, but ultimately because of this- I am able to at least try to change myself for the better. I am definitely a work in progress. :)


So here are my questions:


1. Whose team are you on and why? (Team Jacob? Team Aniston? Team Tom Cruise? Team Snooki? Etc :))
2. What is your favorite thing to cook for your family? (Recipe please! :D)
3. If you could go forwards or backwards to one day in time, what would it be, and why?
4. What is the best movie, book, tv show, or song that you've loved lately that has really affected your life?


The 3 bloggers I tag to be it are:


1. bouffe e bambini - She says her life is about food and babies, and hey! I dig it! Perfect scenario for me!
2. Chelsea's Psycho Babble - I just heart her. She is so funny and lovely. I love reading her blog!
3. Circus Children - Amazing woman and soon to be mommy. She has an awesome blog! Go visit her!


Thank you mommysankey for tagging me! If you haven't been to Surviving Motherhood to check her out, I strongly suggest you do! She is an amazing woman and mother and all of her posts are wonderful and so sincere. She has me laffing my head off and making me tear up  on a daily basis with all of her amazing posts. Do yourself a favor and get over there right now! :D


<3tprm


Ps- Don't forget to enter my photo challenge for this week! :D

Post for my winners!

Thanks to all who entered my first photo challenge about perspective. The winners were all amazing, as were all of the pix! Thanx so much for your passion and enthusiasm in your shots! :D

So one of the prizes for the winners, runners up, and honorable mentions is to have each of their blogs featured on a post of mine. So here's that post!

(And the winner and runners up get a featured spot on my side bar for a week as well! :D)

The winner and first runner up was Tiffany from They Call Me Mama!
     If you like photography, crafts, and a whole lot of family goodness, go check out her blog! She has an amazing family and her photography is gorgeous! Get over there! Like now!

The 2nd runner up was Anna from Absolut Anna!
     Anna is a small town girl living the big life in Bali! If you like gorgeous photos, advice and recommendations about amazing things, and posts about life as a wife and mom in Bali, go check her out!

The third runner up was Katie from The Journalings of a Julius!
       If you're up for more amazing photography, do not miss this blog! She is super sweet and has the most amazing and wonderful adventures with her husband (not to mention their amazing adventures in dining out!). Don't miss out!

The honorable mentions were:

Vidya from The Dreaming Press!
     Vidya is a wonderful photographer. She always catches the most amazing moments on film.
She is an amazing artist and cook, and she always writes the most beautiful posts. Go see for yourself!

Ashley from Ramblings and Photos!
     Ok, it's Ashley Sisk. Need I say more? Amazing blogger, excellent photographer. If you haven't been there yet, you don't know what you're missing!

Kakunaa from Spermination Station!
     Kakunaa is one of the most wonderful bloggers I know. Not ony does she take amazing pictures, but she has an amazing soul as well. She blogs about her trials and awesome triumph over infertility. Can't wait to meet baby! Get over there and say hi!

Hope you all can go visit these lovely bloggers! I hope they touch you like they have touched me!

(That's what she said! LOL!)

<3tprm

Friday follow! :D

Hello followers! Time for a little friendly following.

If you like what you see, I hope you'll stay!

If you like to take pictures, I hope you'll enter my current photo challenge!

Happy Friday! Have a great weekend! :D

<3tprm

I have the best readers in the world :D

Hello you gorgeous people!
Hi again! Just wanted to post this up to let you know that no, I have not forgotten about you or the photo challenge!

My photo class got pushed to today and I just got through with it and chatting with Lisa. She is super excited to judge the contest and has promised to have her picks ready tomorrow afternoon. So come back tomorrow! (Sorry about the delay- she is a very busy lady!)

And since this is Labor Day weekend, I know a lot of you will be out having fun with your families, so remember when you get a second to check back. I promise to have all of the winners up tomorrow come heck or high water!

And I will have a new challenge- the second in a series of 5- up on Tuesday, so you definitely need to come by then and take a look. And hopefully participate! The Linky will be up again for a week to give you time to take pix or find one that fits the theme. It's going to be fun so don't miss it! :)

I also want to take this time to send a HUGE thank you to mamasankey over at Surviving Motherhood for giving TPRM the Cherry on Top award! I am so completely honored because I just love her blog. Whether she is posting pix of her gorgeous children and their beautiful art, letting her hair down and letting loose on some real douche canoes, talking about one of my favorite TV shows of all time, or her hilarious instructions on how to rid the world of certain beasts, she keeps me rolling on the floor or admiring her lovely words and camera work. I can't get enough of her blog! So go visit. I triple dog dare you. :D

The Cherry on Top Award’s rules are:

1. Answer this question: If you had the chance to go back and change one thing in your life, would you and what would it be?
2. The second thing you have to do is, pick 6 people and give them this award. You then have to inform the person that they have gotten this award.
3. The third and final thing is, thank the person who gave you the award. 

To answer the question of what I would do differently in life, I would choose to have only loved my husband. Yes the other boys (emphasis on boy) I dated (and married one- :O  lol) gave me a lot of experience on how to (and how not to) treat another person, how to have a real, honest relationship, how to recognize and stop playing games, and how to love someone more than you love yourself (among other things. I'll spare you the gruesome details. LOL!). But none of these lessons would compare, to me, to having only loved and cared for and given my all to my best friend, soul mate, partner in crime, and true love- my husband. And only him. I didn't meet him till I was 21, but I would wait 100 years for him if I had the chance to do it all over again. I love you babe! <3

And to pick 6 beautiful bloggers- the hardest part. Cause I love all of you and your blogs so much! But I love spreading the bloggy love around (twss :D) so here are my 6. But you all deserve it, and more!

1. The Ramblings of a Sassy Soccer Mom

2. Bijoux in Bloom

3. Circus Children

4. Closer to Lucy

5. From PDX With Love

6. the annoyed army wife

Love you all! You peeps rock!

<3tprm

You all are too kind! I'm blushing!

ThePunkRockMom has been honored again! So much bloggy love- I can't stand it!

Ok, I lied. I can stand it. I'm basking in it's lovey warm glow at this very moment. :D

First up, the amazingly awesome Kiranda from Welcome to Mommyhood has given me the following awards and I just can't thank her enough for thinking of me. She has an awesomely hilarious blog- she keeps me rolling on the floor daily with tales from her mommy-hood. Some of my favorites being when she blogs about her gorgeous and coolest-son-ever Austin, her many days-of-truths, and her random adventures  that let me know that she is a woman and mommy after my own heart. <3 

She blogs with honesty and humor and I have, on more than one occasion I believe, told her how much I flipping just love her face. That alone should get you moving over to her blog! So get over there. Do it for your own good. :D

So here are the awards she so graciously gave me:

 

So the duties, as Kiranda so excellently puts it, for each award is to thank the person that gave you the award [check], list 7 things about you that you haven't revealed to the bloggy-verse as of yet [check], and pass them on to the bloggers that deserve them [check]!

So here are my facts and some bloggy love to my awesome followers!

1. The last awesome book I read was Stephen King's Under the Dome. If you have not read this yet, I highly recommend it. It's awesome. Very. 
2. We just noticed there are fresh black berries growing behind our house and all up and down our street. So I am currently learning to make all things black berry. Jelly, jam, ice cream, etc. Who wants to come over? :D
3. I love to sew, paint, make crafts, etc, but I am SO lazy at actually doing them. It almost takes an act of God to actually get me over to my craft space sometimes. 
4. The Just Dance video game for the Wii is my new favorite work out. It actually has 'Lump' from The Presidents of the United States of America as one of the songs! SWEET.
5. Blimps freak me out.
6. Flying kites freaks me out.
7. When I was little, I used to tell people my name was Elizabeth because I hated my name. I'm ok with it now. :)

The Blogger Buddy Award goes to the following blogs for rocking my socks daily (in no particular order):

1. Just Thinkin'- In Pictures

2. Falafel and the Bee

3. Outside the Lines

4. Pix Plus

5. The Dreaming Press

The Chupacabra Award for Excellence goes to the following bloggers who keep me obsessed with their hilariosity, amazing posts and random exploits (in no particular order):

1. The Fertile Infertile/ Dragondreamer's Lair

2. RMONTALBAN

3. Awkward Sex and the City

4. Alabaster Cow

5. Chelsea's Psycho Babble

The Beautiful Blogger Award goes to the following blogs who amaze me constantly with their beautiful lives and sweet spirits (in no particular order):

1. They Call Me Mama

2. Atelier Caroline

3. Bugaboo, Mini, Mr, and Me

4. Surviving Motherhood

5. Life at the Zoo

And finally, I have been given the Blog with Substance Award from the gorgeous Caroline from Atelier Caroline!

 She has an amazing blog and I wish that I had her creativity (I mean, she's going to craft all month, and she's not even gonna buy new supplies till September! Talk about creative! I can't wait to see what she makes!)!  Every time I visit her blog, I'm drooling over her creations. Like this. And this. And this. Don't forget this (Yeah, she bakes too!  Flipping YUM!)! Ok, I have to stop now because I could go on till doomsday. 

But seriously, if you love handmade stuff, like to craft, and/ or are looking for some amazing inspiration, get your rear in gear and visit Caroline today! You'll be whipping up some awesome wares in no time. :D

So because of all that, I am truly honored to have had this award given to me by such an awesome blogger and crafter-after-my-own-heart. And the rules are the same for this award, thanks to the giver, some facts about yourself (7 seems like the going number) and pass it on to those lovely bloggers who fill their blogs with substance. :)

I'd like to give this award to the following bloggers (in no particular order):

1. If Life was like a Cupcake

2. Welcome to Mommyhood

3. Spermination Station

4. Hollywood Chic

5. Scrap Addict 4 Sure

All of these bloggy award recipients definitely deserve every award and more, and I hope you will all visit their blogs soon. They all rock!

(Oh and don't forget to enter my photo challenge/ contest! You still have till tomorrow @ midnight PST to enter! Fun and prizes to be had! Hope to see your gorgeous face and beautiful pictures there! :D)

A double honor for TPRM and I am tickled pink!

I have been bestowed another great honor to the power of 2!

The amazing Lolo from Crazy About My Baybah has given me not one, but two awards, and I am so thrilled and humbled. There are so many bloggers that deserve these awards, and I just adore her for choosing me. She is delightful and if you haven't been over there to check out her site, do yourself a favor and get on over there! For more about her blog, see my review of it in the post preceding this one. :)

Here are the two awards I humbly accept and am exceedingly grateful to receive:

First up is the Blogger Buddy Award!

The Blogger Buddy Award is for your blogger buddies!  Share 7 things about yourself, and then pass it on to 5 of your Blogger Buddies! 

So here are 7 things about me I have as of yet not disclosed to the bloggy world:

1. I am obsessed with Arizona green tea. It is pure addiction.

2. My favorite band is Blink 182 and have been for around 15 years.

3. I have never broken a bone. *I hear by cast jinx protection around this fact! lol!*

4. I never learned how to do the splits.

5. I cannot paint my nails worth a flip. A boy could do better and has done better.

6. I want to become a Roller Derby girl. I'm so psyched at the thought!

7. When I was little, I used to think food had feelings and if you didn't eat all of your dinner, the left over food would be sad. Like it didn't get to fulfill its one purpose in life. I was a weird kid. ;)

The 5 blogger buddies I wish to bestow this great honor upon are in no particular order:

1. Really? I'm a Mom?

2. He Wears Combat Boots, I Wear Stilettos

3. Really? Are You Serious?

4. It is Tuesday, right?

5. Absolut Anna

The next award I received is the I Heart Your Blog Award!

The I Heart Your Blog Award was made to give to bloggers that give you inspiration and support!  Pass this one on to anyone that gives you inspiration and/ or support!

The bloggers that give me tons of inspiration with their stories and their pictures and who definitely deserve this award are in no particular order:

1. irocksowhat
2. In the House with Wild Things
3. Not Always Picture Perfect
4. 100 Pursuits Prior to Passing
5. Ramblings and Photos

Love all of you guys! You all rock my world! And of course, you all deserve each award, but I wanted to spread around the love!
<3tprm

(Oh and don't forget my photo challenge! There is much fun and prizes to be had! Open till next Tuesday @ midnight PST. :))