Seeing RED!

My lovely and talented sister, D, took some new pictures of Gianna the other day while we were out at my parents house. They have this wonderful expanse of woods behind the house and we "hiked" back there and took some pictures. I think they turned out really cute! Of course this is just a few of them but I can't get over how grown up Gianna looks. Especially in that first one. Occasionally I look at her now and almost glimpse a teenager. Scary, I know! She is so independent and determined, yet I still see that tiny little girl who still needs to be reassured of her abilities. It gets harder every day realizing that everything those around her say and do she picks up on. Phrases or songs she picks up immediately and the next I know she's saying and singing them. I have to be SO careful what's on TV or what's on the radio. I'm so afraid she'll pick up my bad habits, I'm trying so hard to curb those so that she doesn't. I want her to know right from wrong and be able to determine for herself when something isn't right. I see daily more and more people living unGodly lifestyles yet they want everyone else to pretend they are fine. And if you disagree they kick you to the curb. I'd much rather be kicked to the curb for standing up for what I KNOW is right then to live with the guilt of pretending all was well. I want Gianna to be able to stand up for right too even if that means standing alone sometimes. I want her to be strong enough and brave enough to do it. Over and over people are good about being your friend until you point out something they KNOW is wrong and then suddenly you are judgmental. I guess I fear for them and the true Judgment one day.......but anyway, back to Gianna - I just hope and pray one day she is all the things I haven't found the courage to be for so long. I want her to explore new things and never be afraid to. I have been afraid to try so many things and have been too prideful to take the first step and so I've missed out on some things. I hope Gianna is adventurous and daring yet level headed and will think ahead. She is beauty captured so simplisticly.

We FINALLY got my parents pool fixed and in order! It was an ordeal to say the least but after two days of working super hard it now has a brand new liner and is almost completely full of water again! I'm so excited, it's bitter cold but so nice knowing it's there to take a dip in when it's so hot out. Plus there is just something much more refreshing about laying out next to a sparkling pool then laying out beside an empty circle of metal! Lol! Gianna is so thrilled, I'm going to have to get her some floaties for her arms so she does drown - she is so eager to get out there by herself! Hopefully someone can teach her to swim this year, I know how to swim of course but I'm not sure I know how to teach someone to swim. Maybe Beej can do it!
I have officially started taking piano lessons now! I'm really excited and eager to learn. My first lesson went well, I think my teacher is going to be great. She seems to know how to taylor her teaching style to each student instead of working within a set schedule or lesson plan. She seems to know how to flow with my speed of learning. I started out this week learning the basics of piano and notes and doing some finger exercises and note progressions. A little "black key diddies" and I started working on the VERY simple version of Ode To Joy today and transposing it too. Little steps! I know it won't come over night and I have to make myself concentrate on just focusing on what I have to learn this week because when I start thinking ahead to all I still have to learn I get overwhelmed and the task seems too daunting. But thanks to Stacy Dupree of Eisley I have officially been inspired! I have always wanted to play piano but it was just one of those things I figured I'd never know how to do but watching Stacy play and sing behind the piano absolutely threw my inspiration into high gear and I knew I had to learn how to do this!

And so, after some debating I decided to dye my hair red! I love red hair, always have. I've had mine red before but it's been a really long time. I figured since it's short now and mostly "virgin" hair this would be a good time to try it out. It looks a little more burgundy in the picture but in real life it has a slight orange tint. Kinda freaked me out a bit when I first saw it! Lol! But it's growing on me already...Beej said it's "rocker chic" so I guess that's a good thing! No, I don't have make up on in this picture, I just woke up so it's awful but you get the idea! I know it's going to fade quickly because I wash my hair every day but I can re dye it every couple of weeks at least for a little while and when I get tired of it I'll go back to my usual dark brown/black. But change is good and red hair makes me feel feisty!

I've worked out this morning and feel great! Going to clean up and then possibly head out to mom's to lay by the pool for the better part of the day. Beej is out playing golf so he'll be gone a good part of the day. Gianna is absorbed in the world of Spongebob and Bikini Bottom for the moment so I should run do something useful while she is!