Do you know the saying, “You are aging like fine wine”?! Music to my ears!
This May, it will be TEN whole years since I starred on season 4 of ABC’s hit reality show, THE BACHELORETTE. Can I be honest with you? I definitely feel like I am aging like a fine wine! Or maybe it’s just my foggy head from the fine wine I drank last night.
Welcome to my new website! So much has changed for me over the last 10 years and man, have I grown. And I don’t mean in height & weight....which actually did happen because I’ve had two children since being wrapped in roses and transported to and fro in a limousine. My heart has grown seeing as I just celebrated my sixth wedding anniversary to my super hot and patient husband, Stephen Stagliano. Did I mention he’s patient?! Lord knows he has to be to spend the rest of his life with me! Marriage is wonderful but, it’s also hard. I am thankful for how hard we work at it every day! We use this line frequently, “Going to therapy doesn’t mean you’re crazy. You’re crazy if you don’t go to therapy”! We are in it for the next 60 years, right babe?!
Most of you knew me from seeing me on The Bachelor with Brad Womack when I was just 25 years old. What a baby I was! And thank the Heavens above that Brad didn’t choose me. And thank you Brad! That heart ache was truly real. Even looking back now, I still remember how crushed and betrayed I felt by my Bachelor. Life goes on....and so does The Bachelorette! Season 4...wow. In The Bachelor franchise, this pretty much makes me elderly these days. What a wild ride that was! 25 guys, some hot and some not so much, all vying for my heart! Or so the magic of television leads you to believe! Ha! The joke was definitely on me. Anyway, I chose someone. I won’t even dare type his name because I have trained my brain to erase those four long months. The path that I chose was definitely the wrong one! I was bitter and sad for a very long time. Too many tears were shed over another failed relationship. And then in swooped Stephen, my knight in shining armor! Real talk, he’s no knight. He’s a MAN. A Christian man who loves his family, loves the Lord, and loves his job. Yum!
Today, I’m a woman. I’m a mom. I’m a wife. I have a real job. I have dreams of sleeping in past 5:45am. I get excited when I get to shower or use the bathroom by myself. I hide in my closet just so I don’t have to share my ice cream with my kids. I find joy in getting to properly shave my legs. I go to the gym for the childcare and I only workout so that I can eat whatever I want. I love The Lord. I love wine. I love my husband. And I freaking love the hell out of my kids!!
I hope you will enjoy being here. Being a part of life with me. Checking in to see what’s new. Sharing recipes, cheap clothes, good laughs, homeowner shenanigans, products that I love, kids stuff. Oh, and kids......I hope you like kids. Cause mine are super cute and I love sharing this life with them!
Love, love, love,
DeAnna Stag
Listened to you on Kaitlyn Bristowe's podcast. I've been watching the Bachelor/Bachelorette since it started. I loved your honesty. Good luck on your blog. I will be checking in from time to time!
Thrilled to see this new blog! You truly have aged like fine wine. I admire you as a mama and wife! Thanks for sharing so openly. I'm a mama of three littles in Minnesota (where we just got a huge April blizzard!) and a huge fan of yours!
Here are a few topics I'd be really interested in reading, if you'd consider blogging about them:
* Family planning -- how you and Stephen planned/timed your family, whether you're having another, which factors you weighed
* Photography! How to take beautiful pictures, what your tricks are, what you've learned from the pros, clothing, filters, angles, toddler tantrums, all of it!
* Beauty tricks -- you seem to have truly come into…