A New Hobby?

Normally I would start out a blog entry with something witty. Set the stage. Let my usually fun, borderline quirky personality shine.

Not today. Today, momma is tired. Mentally, physically, and emotionally. So today, I'll just jump in. 

As most of you know, I love taking pictures.

For a few months now, I've been toying with the idea of making a hobby of it. But- I'm not sure I'm actually any good at it.

 

In the past, I've gotten some pretty good shots. But I have to wonder, do I actually have a talent- or have I gotten lucky?

So- I've started putting together a portfolio (of sorts) while I sit the fence and decide if I want to jump into (what seems to be) an already saturated market for photography.


This is the fun part:
I would like to do some "practice", and I'd like some help from (who else?!) family and friends.

If you've got a high school senior looking for some cheap senior pictures

Or a pet

Or maybe you want an updated picture of yourself with your spouse, your family, a siblings shoot, newly engaged, mommy & me, daddy & me, small children,

Even graduates!

 

A brief background of where I'm coming from:

Becoming a travel agent has been one of the best things I've ever done. I feel like I have finally found something that I love doing. I have helped build family vacations, anniversary trips, honeymoons, and "just because" getaways. I LOVE helping other people make memories! It has meaning. (And it gives me good excuses to be knowledgeable about all the travel deals!)

Basically, I'm in a position in my life right now where I've FINALLY realized that I have spent FAR too much time doing and pursuing things I didn't enjoy, and it's time to take some steps forward.

Life should be fun and I've finally been able to identify a few things that I enjoy doing- Travel planning (and traveling!), Cooking, & Photography.

I'm already doing travel and it's been an amazing experience.
I've put together one family cookbook, am currently working on a different family's, and am debating starting my own..
So..why not try my hand at photography as well?

 

(Oh...take me back to the Dominican! Such a beautiful place)

As I mentioned above, I'd very much enjoy having some 'test subjects': so..... I'd like to open myself up for a few different people/families/events for photo sessions.

To start, I'd open it up to my Salem friends and family, as well as our Edwardsville friends. 

I'm not looking to make this a full-time job or come in take over other area photographers' clientele, I simply want to explore this outlet and see how it goes.  

Sessions would be very reasonably priced! Again, I'm not looking make this into a full-time job, but I do feel that my time spent posing and editing photos would be worth a little bit of something. 

If you think you might be interested in a photo session with me- comment on this post & let me know what kind of session you might like, and I'll go from there as far as making some sort of schedule.

I've got a few more projects in my queue that I've been on the fence about pursuing... so be on the watch in the future for other endeavors I might embark on ;)

4 years

4 Years. 

Hard to believe it's been 4 years since we said 'I Do'. The actual day is a blur in my memory- so much happened so fast that day. A few fond memories do stick, however, and at the end of the day I got to walk away married to my best friend.

Since April 12, 2014 we have:

- Visited 14 states & 2 foreign countries

- Lived in 2 houses & 2 apartments

- Had 1 child 

- Made several new friends

- Laughed, cried, said "I'm sorry", and compromised on differences

 - Said "I love you" approximately... let's see 4 x 365 = 1,460 + if you count text messages... there's at least another 1,460, and account for the days when we poke fun at each other and push each other's buttons... roughly 5 billion times. (ok, maybe I exaggerate a LITTLE bit..)

- Teased each other mercilessly

- Adopted a puppy, who is no longer a puppy. Ellie just turned 2 and is a ball of energy. 

This year we are doing a low-key anniversary and having lunch together, followed by going home and watching a movie on Netflix down in the basement while my parents keep Thatcher. 

Do I wish we could have worked out the cruise to Italy? Sure.  I'm certain we would have had a good time. But we couldn't make it work for the week that was assigned to me by winning that contest and winning the cruise.. and in a way, what we actually did was kind of perfect. It's funny how things work out for the best sometimes.

4 years. I can't wait for the rest of forever. 

You can't win them all, right?

Today did not go as planned.

Let me start with a nice backstory to properly set the stage:

Thatcher has been fighting 'a cold' for almost a week now. He spent part of last week with his grandparents and they had events going on, so Thatcher had to go with them. Last Friday night he was at a church event with 13 other area churches in attendance, and he was passed around several times. Saturday was my neices 2nd birthday party- again, he was passed around. Sunday was Easter; you guessed it, more people wanting to love on him.

Somewhere in all that, he picked up something. No big deal, it'll run it's course, right?

Yesterday was day 6 of this "cold" so I finally called the doctor. I'm exhausted. He hasn't slept for nearly a week and momma can't handle much more.

At the appointment, he tested positive for RSV and upon examination, the doctor also finds both ears to br infected. Poor baby! No wonder he has been so fussy and unable to sleep!

We get some antibiotics for the ears and are told to just monitor his respiration. He still didn't sleep last night, but this morning he didn't have a fever, so..progress!

Now, on to today.

I wake up (to Thatcher protesting very loudly in his crib) with a sleep-depraved throbbing headache. Borderline migraine.

Friday- 1 Kim- 0

We get up and I let Thatcher watch his morning Linkin Park videos on YouTube so I can go to the bathroom and sit on the couch for a few minutes and actually wake up to start the day.

Being the amazing lady that I am, while in the bathroom, I go to change the toilet paper roll. I don't get the springy holder back into the hole all the way and it springs back off and the toilet paper flies into the wet bathtub.

Friday- 2 Kim- 0

When Thatcher has had enough music videos, he lets me know (he whines and yells) and I carry him into the kitchen to put him in his high chair. The cat takes this opportunity to run up behind me, get under my feet, and bite my leg. He draws blood. (Seriously, Atticus?!)

Friday- 3 Kim- 0

Notice a pattern? .....

Feeding Thatcher breakfast he spits his medicine back out at me, splattering it all over himself, and even managed to raspberry some of it onto my cheek. He then proceeds to scream as loudly as he can.

Friday- 4 Kim- 0

All day long Thatcher is fussy and needy. My headache never goes away, despite the meds I take. Shortly after lunch, I get Thatcher to take a nap. I hand him off to Micah and I take a blessed hot shower. The first one I'd taken since..Tuesday. (No judgement!)

You know what, I get a point for that. I showered!

Friday- 4 Kim- 1

The plan was that I was going to lay down and take a nap after my shower. So, I went to do that. I had just layed down in bed and covered up when...Thatcher woke up MAD. I don't know if his ears hurt, he had a bad dream, what. But he wanted nothing to do with Micah and SCREAMED until I got up and got him.

Tonight I tried a new recipe for dinner. I thought the food was great! But, I burned myself putting it in the oven, and Micah's got a sore throat I didn't even think about the chicken being too hard and scratchy for him to be able to eat...

Friday- 6 Kim- 1

But the icing on this disaster cake is this:

After dinner I put thatcher in his crib to play and decided I would hurriedly take my third load of laundry downstairs and get it going. I missed a stair going down into the basement and...down I went. Laundry everywhere. My back hit a wooden stair, I turned an ankle, and broke the fall with my wrist and shoulder. But don't worry, I had a nice concrete floor and pile of unused drywall to break my fall.

...I'm already sore from the fall. So I'll most likely feel like I got hit by a bus tomorrow.

Did you know drywall splinters are a thing? They're delightful. Friday, you get 3 points for his one.

Friday- 9 Kim- 1

And now, Thatcher's finally asleep and...I'm writing a blog post because, you guessed it: I CANT SLEEP. I guess I'm past the point of tired. Fantastic.

Saturday, please be nicer to me than Friday was.