shutterspeed's Xanga

"who i am. who i'm not. and who i wanna be."

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 21:21:57 GMT

We interrupt your regularly scheduled day with a rare blog post from yours truly. And now that you've all gotten over your shock of me putting pen to paper....errrr...fingers to keyboard, here we go! =)

So it goes without saying that our life has been nutso-crazy-insane these last few months. When I last left you, we were planning for a road trip to California. Not one of our better ideas but it was an experience for the kids who'd never left the state of Texas before. They got to see & do things they'd never done and with that in mind, I declared the trip a success. =) Basically it was our last hurrah....no more vacations til next year! Life was about to get exceptionally busy. We came home, all of us sick as dogs...so we had to spend another week recovering. After that though it was time to hit the ground running.

After the school year ended, I started working up at the furniture store one morning a week. I've enjoyed helping Andy...altho I'm not totally sure how much help I am. I think the little old ladies who come buy from him enjoy making a sale with him, rather than me. Either that or I'm just not a very good sales-person. ;) But it's been nice to work up there & do what needs to be done & take some of the load of Andy, to see & talk to people & interact. As a stay at home mom most of the time, that's not always a luxury I get! =)

The beginning of May brought with it a few more Harbucks in Lufkin. Dan, Andrea & the kids moved back from California. Shortly followed by Phil, who moved back from San Marcos. It's been interesting having everyone here all in one place, a rare thing to have family get-together & have everyone show up!

We celebrated Ava's 3rd b-day last week. Boy does the time just fly by at lightning speed! I can't believe my oldest will be 12 this year!! I mean, you blink and they're all grown up before you know it. It makes me appreciate the short amount of time the little rugrats are with us before they fly the coup.

Ben has spent what seems like every waking moment working on details about the soon-to-be opened coffee shop. I've helped run errands & do research or work on whatever project needed help. It has been an all consuming force in our lives lately. And hopefully all that hard work is about to pay off. In just a few short weeks we will be open & operational. And it will be good to finally have the place up & running. There seems to be a lot of buzz about it and we're excited to have everyone who's offered support, encouragement & actual manual labor see the fruits of their efforts in the shop's success.

Right now we're just down to the details really. Adding all the finishing touches that will transform the space into an actual shop where people can gather.

For all you locals who might be reading this, be sure to stop by soon & try out a cup of coffee. "Like" us on Facebook & you'll receive news on upcoming events, discounts & freebies. =)

It's really exciting to see a plan come together. We've appreciated all the support, prayers & words of encouragement all our friends & family have given us during this time. Thank you so much. We are looking forward to this next chapter in our lives....if it doesn't kill us that is! LOL! =P

"expanding out it's empire by degrees"

Thu, 24 Feb 2011 01:21:49 GMT

BOO! Just popping in to scare a few of you off your chairs with an "OMG she blogged!" LOL! =)

So I believe in my last entry I made some nonsense comment about firing this bad boy back up again. Don't believe a word of it. :)

However, there's quite a few exciting changes happening around here that should be shared. Are you ready for this? It's pure awesomeness and I'm not sure you guys can handle it....

Ok ok you've dragged it out of me. =P None of this is secret anymore so why not share it with all my adoring fans....errrr readers...errrr people who randomly stumble upon this blog? =)

Last September, Ben was approached by a couple of investors wanting to start up a coffee shop/hangout in the downtown area. Because of Ben's experience at Starbucks and position of management, he was deemed perfect for the job. So things were set in motion. Of course waiting on the closing paperwork on the newly purchased building took several months.

When we got back from our cruise in early January, we were greeted with messages saying the building was purchased and renovations were to commence immediately and the open date was set for late April early May. Of course minds were changed half-a-million times between early January & now, and will probably continue to change in regards to all the details, but things are really finally on their way.

The coffee shop is going to be called The Standpipe Coffee House, the name has historical references for Lufkin's downtown area at the turn of the century, the other turn of the century (1900). It will serve traditional coffee, espresso, cappuccinos, frappuccinos, desserts, sodas & deli sandwiches. And we're hoping to have live music from time to time as well as many other things all still in the works. Ben will be the General Manager. This is EXACTLY what this town needs and has been lacking for many years. We are confident that it will be a success. Things are very busy right now with all of the preparations that go into opening such a place. But it's all very exciting and we're finally pleased to see a dream we've had for over a decade finally come to fruition.

In other exciting news....I'M PREGNANT!!!! LOL! JUST KIDDING! Nope I think three is our magic number just threw that out there to see who all is paying attention! =D Gotta keep ya on your toes! =P

Ok seriously ....

It appears that the entire Harbuck clan will once again be reunited and all be living within the same town. How scary is this right? LOL! Dan & Andrea & kids are moving back this May from that foreign country we call California. And Phil & Delaney will be moving back from San Marcos this summer. It'll be interesting to have everyone together in one place and if we don't kill each other, it'll be a pretty sweet set up!

So between opening a coffee shop, moving family back home & all the small details of daily living things are pretty full right now. I'm not sure we'd have it any other way. And that's a Cliff's Notes version of what's been going on with us the last 6 months! Stay tuned for exciting updates on all our endeavors! I'm sure you don't wanna miss a minute of it! =P

i'm gonna give all my secrets away...

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 02:31:10 GMT

whoa...7 whole months...this must be some kind of record for me. HAHA! just kidding. probably not. and can ya'll believe this blog is 7 years old??? holy crap!

i've been so caught up in living life that i haven't had time to write about my life. i find that that's a good thing.

when i was younger i had this inexplicable need to voice my opinion about everything all the time. the older i've gotten the less i feel the need to spout off my ideas. maybe this means i've "grown" as a person? LOL! *shrugs* sure. *wink*

so between being busy with other things and just not having anything much to say anymore, my poor little blog has suffered much neglect. =(

i'm debating on whether or not to fire this bad boy up again! does anyone still read this thing? i've probably faded into obscurity. alas...it does happen. i'll ponder awhile about it. but blogging seems unnecessary with Facebook, Flickr & Twitter.

however, there's so many exciting new changes coming for us this year...maybe the journey needs to be recorded. stay tuned. :)

hold on to your words cuz talk is cheap...

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 13:25:52 GMT

these days i feel a bit adrift. like i'm floating in an endless sea and i haven't yet spotted the land. i'm not frightened by the vastness of the ocean more curious as to how long i'll be at sea ya know? or maybe you don't. probably not. my brain works differently than most. i enjoy this quirk about me...but it can be frustrating at times as well. being misunderstood all the time does have it's disadvantages.

i've been able to more accurately pinpoint the little needle pricks that keep sticking me. but how do i put it into words?

creatively i feel dead. which is not good when your "job" is to be creative. it's not helped by the fact that currently little voices in my head tell me that i was never creative to start with. and i've never really been the type of person to need affirmation or pats on the back or reinforcement that i'm good at something. but i notice that in the circle of photographers i know i'm never mentioned as someone with talent. so & so is a spectacular wedding photographer...susie q is a great fashion photographer, jane doe is the best at children's photography. so when your peers don't see any talent in you...do you have any? it's quite possible that i'm just average and nothing about what i do stands out in any way, therefore not garnering any praise or noteworthiness. but it's all made me wonder...why am i even doing this then? i'll admit that since May i've been burnt out and stressed out about photography projects i was doing and that's probably played a role in how i feel right now. (no i'm not fishing for comments/compliments/words of praise...i'm asking myself seriously here what am i doing and should i keep doing it?)

and if i'm feeling like i'm crap at photography well then my scrapbooking suffers too. and since i joined the creative team at Peppermint Creative, i feel zapped of all my neat ideas concerning layouts. they kind of go hand in hand for me so if one side suffers the other side suffers.

in addition to all that, over the last 6 months or more i've been rather discontent with my ... social life. our group of friends consists of Ben's brothers and their significant others, as well as a sprinkling of several 20 y/os and ONE other couple that's our age. and frankly i'm tired of hanging out with people so much younger than me. the phase of life they're in is not the phase of life i'm in and i feel the age gap more than i ever did before. and i notice that i have no real female friends. girl pals you can just call up and say hey lets go shopping or grab a cup of coffee or chat on the phone with. and really up until now that's never bothered me. i've had no need for it. but maybe now i do need it? i had that in my friend Shannon but of course she moves to California. and i feel like now i'm starting to develop a good relationship with a fellow photog friend whose girls are the same ages of my kids. and that's been nice for me and for them. so i'm feeling less discontent. but the road is long.

so yeah, all of that stuff has had me a bit out of sorts. and then of course there's a hundred little things that bother and nag me but i'll refrain from putting that in such a public blog cuz it would just get me into trouble.

moving on....i can only stand so much of my own whining before i get irritated. LOL!

the first official day of summer hasn't passed yet but summer is already in full swing here in Texas. which means the kids are in the pool practically every day. Zander & Ava are like bronzed beauties while poor Meg and her delicate white skin stands out so much from the other two. she laments the fact that she can't tan but i tell her that if i had her milk white complextion i'd like it more. my body is dotted with moles & freckles...who wants that? lol! no one is ever content with what they have right? hahaha! so we've spent a majority of our days soaking up vitamin D and playing in the water.

Ava celebrated her 2nd birthday last week. she LOVED all the attention and getting presents. i shot a few photos of her to commemorate the event. i mean one only turns 2 once! LOL! i'm amazed by how fast the time flies by when you're watching your babies grow. seems like just yesterday Megan was 2 and soon she'll be 11. if you blink you miss it. and while i don't necessarily miss the baby stage...the breastfeeding, constant diaper changes, no sleeping at night...the farther i get from all that the more i realize how soon they'll all be grown and on their own. it's a sobering reality that has me appreciating every day with them. Ava astounds me with her intelligence and personality. and she's got LOTS of it...personality that is, and some intelligence sprinkled in. LOL! the things she says & does make me laugh. i told her the other day that she was precious and she retorted that she wasn't precious and then i asked what she was and she replied very simply "I'm 2!" i'm sure i'm the only one amused by the exchange but it's little conversations like that that i hold on to.

Meg, no longer a little girl but a young woman on the verge makes me take a pause. can i really be old enough to have a child about to hit puberty? oh dear lord...help me. i'm not sure i'm quite ready for that. Megan reminds me of myself alot, perhaps that's why we don't get along always...we're too similar, too much the same personality. we butt heads frequently. she's trying to be so grown up and i'm trying to keep that from rushing forward so fast. we do share a love of books and reading and that common ground really helps us have great conversations. i'm sure once the teenage years are over and if we haven't killed each other we're going to be good friends!

Zander is my little man...quite literally. it seemed like he went from little boy to young man quite rapidly. being the middle kid has not really affected him. of course being the only boy probably helps with that. there's no "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia" drama from him. actually there's no drama at all...it's so different from parenting a girl who is so full of emotions. i'm told tho that in a few years that might all change once he starts hitting puberty. he's my bud, the one who'll play games with me on the Wii or whatever board game interests him. we like watching Discovery channel together where he's fascinated by the things they do on Mythbusters. he's the one who wants to go run errands with me and help out around the house. he & Ava play together quite well and i believe he relishes being a big brother with someone to look after.

well have i blathered on like an idiot long enough? i think so.

my new cell phone.

you can view the entire series of Ava's bday portraits HERE.

well now that i've spent a majority of my morning on this, i suppose i should conquer other endeavors like the laundry and the dishes.

Happy Thursday!

"what's the frequency Kenneth?"

Sat, 22 May 2010 15:58:17 GMT

testing testing 1 2 3...is this thing on? does anyone read this thing anymore? since i neglect my poor blog i doubt there's anyone out there anymore who gives a hoot. i remember the days when i'd blog everyday or sometimes twice a day. i must've not have had that much to do if i was on the computer that often. and if so what the heck was i writing about? these days i spend more time living my life than writing about it. it's probably for the best.

so...what have i been doing the last month since i last updated? more than i care to review. it's been super busy. i'm not sure when my life took a sharp and dramatic turn for the "freeway of life". i'm not really a fan of being busy busy busy...but alas that is the phase of life i'm in. i can't complain...at least i'm never bored. :)

it seems over the last month i've had a great many photoshoots. which is good. but it's also kinda back-logged me a bit. i'm use to be on top of my project(s) and i don't like feeling like i'm treading water. i had a FANTASTIC bridal shoot that i can't wait to post next week once the wedding is over. it was probably some of my best portrait work to date. and i'm really excited to share it. photographed a wedding. i've determined from that experience that i'm probably not cut out for wedding photography. too many variables, too many opinions, it's just ... too much. but it brings in the big bucks. so i'll just have to get better learn to be more of a "go-with-the-flow" kinda gal. it was a learning experience tho and those are always useful. oh and i downloaded the trial of Photoshop CS5 and i'm in LOVE. can't wait til i can get it for real!!!!

on the family front we celebrated Ben's 31st birthday and my nephew Luke Wayne Harbuck was born just 2 days later. mom & baby are doing great...as well as dad and little sis. we're looking forward to seeing them in July. we took a rather spontaneous mini vacation to San Antonio last weekend. we stayed on the Riverwalk, did the boat tour, took the kids to the Alamo....all things they'd never done before. they really seemed to enjoy it. and it was nice to get out of town and do something different for a change. we really needed it. it's been a crazy wacky year with Ben's job situation and the financial rollercoaster that has been. but now that our financial is more secure we're working on Ben not having to work 2 jobs to make that happen.

as for the kiddies....Meg's signed up for the summer reading program at the library. which is perfect because she reads like 5-7 books a week. and not small little chapter books but 400+ pg books. kids that read over i think 20 books get to pick prizes and get a certificate. she's really excited about that. Zander is enjoying building stuff with his lego sets that he's collected over the last couple years. it's amazing to me that something so simple can keep him entertained for so long. they're both excited that this next week is basically our last week of school. summer vacation here we come. Ava is a darling. LOL! her vocabulary is extraordinary and her comprehension of things amazes me. in just 2 1/2 wks we'll celebrate her 2nd birthday. now if we could just get this potty-training thing down all would be FABULOUS!

this post has felt a little detached...but i'm so out of the practice of writing that it's rather hard to string 2 coherent sentences together. i'm surprised i managed this much text! LOL! i'll leave you with some photos of the last few weeks!

mother's day!

3 little bed bugs...on our trip to San Antonio.

i LOVE this photo!

probably the best hamburger EVER!

Casa Rio along the Riverwalk....i'm a sucker for so much color! you can see all the photos from our trip HERE!

recent photoshoot with Anna & Heather.

finally starting to grow some hair!

our little Nerf assassin!

samurai warrior princess?

"mommy it's a water fountain!"

and if you're interested...lots of new and soon to be added scrapbook pages HERE!

happy Saturday!

accidentally in love...

Mon, 12 Apr 2010 13:56:25 GMT

so it looks like i'm averaging a month between blog posts. that's probably good. who wants to hear/read the hum-drum of my daily life? even i don't want to do that!

the only problem with blogging once a month is that i can't remember what i've been doing since the last time i blogged. i'm convinced i have early onset alzhiemers or something. my ability to recall or remember information is severely lacking in precision. ask me what i did yesterday and i usually have to pause a minute or so and think about it..."what did i do yesterday?" but anyway....

i guess the biggest news is that towards the end of March I was asked to become one of the design team members at Peppermint Creative.com (they sell digital scrapbook products). since last June i've hosted the weekly (now bi-weekly) photo challenges at PC. and now i'm designing scrapbook layouts too and testing new products before they go on the market. and giving imput on what products to make and sell. so far it's been a lot of fun.

i've created a whole new collection gallery on my Flickr page dedicated to my scrapbook pages. check it out
one of my favorite pages that i've done lately didn't have any photos at all:

(i made this for the Mixed Bag Monday challenge)

photography jobs seem to be picking up. altho right now other than a wedding in 2 wks, i have nothing definitive on the calendar, just lots of "we want our family portraits done" or "i need bridal portraits"...if all those "promises" of jobs came thru that would be really really nice!! :)

recently i did a photoshoot for an old friend from high school. i use to scrapbook with her & her mom every week and 2 wks ago she had her first child. so i was enlisted to take the newborn photos of little Whitley.

you can check out more of here photos HERE!
i hadn't had an opportunity to do a newborn shoot since Ava was born so it was a lot of fun getting to do something soft and sweet for a change.

i tried to get some photos of the kids in the bluebonnets at the end of our road but this proved unsuccessful as the models in question were completely uncooperative and whiney for the 10 minutes we tried to get photos. this was probably one of the better "normal" ones........

Ava wanted to look everywhere but at the camera. she was being stubborn and pretty much refused with a resounding "NO!"

she's got attitude...well they all do, but her especially.

this was our Easter:

Ava will probably own an iPod by the time she's 3. she LOVES music. i mean LOVESSSSSSSSSS music. she's always asking to hear something and her sister will sometimes let her "borrow" her iPod shuffle:

playing with bubbles...who doesn't love blowing bubbles?

see she does smile...

but will turn right around and do this:

took some photos of my future SIL's engagement ring:

coming home from a photoshoot i spied this field full of flowers and had to stop to get a few shots:

took some photos of all the brothers on their motorcycles (or the ones who have them anyway):

and a couple photos of me & Ben:

i gotta say it's hard running in 4.5" heels. at some point in the future i've gotta invest in a wireless shutter release control! LOL!

and that's really all i have time for for this edition of "the life & times of Sarah H."....LOL! i've spent entirely too much time on this as it is. check my flickr and facebook pages, i tend to frequent them more than my neglected blog! =) Happy Monday to all!

take this sinking boat and point it home!

Tue, 16 Mar 2010 15:50:36 GMT

the weather teases me. some days it's warm enough we think we'll have to turn on the a/c and then days like today it's rather chilly and the heater stays on. but i'm confident that spring is almost here. for that i'm grateful.

last week we (the kids & i) spent each day cleaning and organizing. it didn't take as long as i'd thought. we got rid of a bunch of stuff. i filled up the entire trunk plus part of the back seat and took a load to Goodwill. it's nice having a "cleaner" house and things organized neatly.

yesterday i got the bright idea to do some yard work. the yard needed to be raked....desperately! we had neglected to do so during the fall, however it didn't make much sense to seeing as how leaves were still hanging from the trees until just a few weeks ago. now with new buds sprouting it's finally pushed the last of the dead leaves off. and so we raked. i have blisters and my arms/shoulders/upper back are so sore from all the strenuous work. but the yard looks nice and one day of manual labor didn't kill us.

i ordered a new lens last week. the Canon 24-70mm 2.8L. and it's suppose to arrive sometime today. the UPS tracking says it's been out for delivery since 5:45 this morning. i'm getting a bit anxious. of course most likely i'll be one of the last stops of the day so i won't have it in hand til tonight...*oh well* i've waited this long to get it, a few more hours won't kill me. *EDIT* during the course of this typing the UPS actually knocked on the door and left it on my doorstep! it's soooo awesome! can't wait to play with it!

Ava's vocabulary continues to grow. it's so much fun watching a tiny little person develop into someone who talks and can carry a conversation. she makes us laugh all the time. but then i'm sure every parent thinks their kid is the cutest/funniest/sweetest...insert adjective! when we put her down for a nap or for bedtime she'll lay in there and yell "come back!" or "come get me!" or "i want out". LOL! when she's had enough loving she'll tell us "go away" or "no more kisses!" her two favorite words right now are No and Ok. She adds ok onto the end of sentences like the Canadians add "eh" to everything! LOL!

a few weeks ago Ben was finally able to get the motorcycle he'd been talking about/wanting.

it's a 2006 Honda Shadow that was kept in excellent condition, mostly in the guy's garage and only had 1200 miles on it. it gets like 60mpg and only costs like $5 to fill up and the insurance on it for a year is what our car insurance costs over a 2 month period. so going with an MC as a 2nd vehicle has been ALOT cheaper than getting a 2nd car. and no i don't wanna see your articles or hear your stories about motorcycle accidents and death rates. so save your metaphorical breath! i haven't really gotten a chance to ride it. it's been too cold and just now the weather has started getting a little more consistent. i'm hoping we can go riding tomorrow.

a few photos:

yet another snow day at the end of Feb.

my NERF gun war wager!

the little man turned 8 on March 1st. this was one of his many gifts. he wears it almost everyday!

about a week an a half ago my BIL & soon to be SIL wanted to do their engagement photos:

you can catch the whole series of photos HERE!

Ava's turned pimp!

and i just like this!

well that's all for my brief game of "catch-up". hope everyone is well, happy & healthy!

somehow it don't seem real...

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 01:27:36 GMT

holy moses i haven't blogged in a month and a half? say it isn't so? well whatareyagonnado? i'm not one for blogging these days but i suppose if enough time goes by there's actually something to report. as it happens i have quite a lot to report.

it's been a busy couple of months. although i couldn't exactly pinpoint why...it just has been...lots of little things added up. so the biggest news in our life right now is that with our tax return moula, we decided to pay off all our debts. and i mean ALL of them. this is the 2nd time in our marriage to be debt free via credit cards and the 1st time to be 100% completely debt free...no car payment, no credit cards, no medical bills, no store credit....NADA! i can't even begin to describe how absolutely liberating it feels. no longer will we utter the phrase "well when we're debt free we'll.......(fill in the blank)". now it feels like we have a freedom we didn't have before. so it's been exciting to get all that worked out.

it also appears that i've booked a wedding for the 1st weekend in May, and have several other promises of photoshoots once this horrible winter weather subsides. so the promise of good photography biz has lifted my somewhat somber spirits (where photography is concerned). taking into account how yucky the weather has been and that everyone was pretty cash poor after xmas, things have been slow photography wise. i'm hoping this spring all these "promised" jobs come to fruition. we shall see.

on the photographic creative front, i'm once again doing a "Project 365" (where you take a photo for every day of the year). and after a rather rocky 1st week, i've gotta say i feel more inspired and motivated to take pictures everyday. i've given myself overall monthly themes and within each month a weekly theme that ties into the monthly theme. (clear as mud?) rather than looking at it as a chore, i find myself excited about the possibilities of what i'll photograph that day. i feel creatively i've never been better....hopefully that'll start to translate into money soon! LOL!

the older kids have been working on making their own children's book for their arts & crafts section of their co-op classes. it's been an all consuming project around here the last few weeks. and when i say they're making their own books...they are literally making them...they wrote the story, the illustrated it, they helped plan the layout, made the book cover, the book jacket, etc. a lot of hard work has gone into them, especially for mom! :) but they're very excited for the finished result and what an amazing keepsake it'll be once they're done.

Ava is quite the chatterbox and will jaw your ears off with her chatter. the irony of it all is she can say big words like "guacamole", "cappuccino", "California", etc. but she can't even say her own 3 letter name. LOL! her favorite item of the moment is a pencil. she loves pencils. will carry one around with her all day. and so far she's been really good at not marking on things she's not suppose to. when you ask her what she's got she's smile fondly and say "Wencils!" =) my MIL made her a photo book with pictures of everyone in our family and labeled them. she carries this book around when she's not carrying one of her "wencils" and will point out to you every member of her family. she's well educated on all of them, pronouncing most everyone's name accurately and even informing me that her Uncle Dan & Cousin Elle, live in "California". she's still having issues saying Andrea's, Mary-Beth's and Delaney's names correctly but we'll get there eventually. her answer to most everything is no. "Ava are you having a good day?" "No." "Ava would you like a big ice cream sundae?" "No." "Do you wanna play toys?" "No." =) And when you point to a picture of her in her "family" book and ask her who it is she replies "that's you!" (because when others go thru the book with her they point and tell her 'that's you!') LOL!

well i guess that's all for now. here's a few photos...lol or more than a few....

you can find a link to my project 365 here: P365

and a link to the nice little bit of snow we got last night: Snowfest

and a link to my digi scrapbook pages: layouts

and really the best way to keep up with me these days is on facebook...see you guys around!

a new decade...

Sat, 02 Jan 2010 14:47:19 GMT

well shucks...i was gonna blog yesterday but got busy doing other things. scrapbooking for one and playing Super Mario Bros Wii with Zander. yes they were more important than blogging!

so we've begun a new decade. or have we? i can never remember if the new decade starts this year or next..they have me all confused. well whatever. this marks the start of my 4th decade on this earth. it's kinda weird when you put it that way huh?

so i've seen a lot of people summarize 2009 with monthly reflections and i marvel at this. i barely remember what happened last week much less last january. so no year end summary for me. besides i really don't wanna reminisce about 2009 anyway. LOL!

we had a lovely family Christmas. but i'm glad it's over and life is getting back to normal. we took the tree down yesterday...all evidence of holiday decor is gone...so that means back to regular days, regular bedtimes, school (come monday), old toys traded in for new, etc.

we had a small New Year's Eve party where we played "Bohnanza" a game about beans and then we played "Battle of the Sexes" where the women triumphed ... could it be any other way really?

i've had several photoshoots here at the end of the year and another on monday. so that's a good way to end the year and a great way to start a new one. my goal is to get a new L series lens....hopefully by spring. i have a possible wedding in May, some newborn photos in June, and possibly another trip to Austin in the spring for more family photoshoots. the promise of a lot of business has me excited! looking back over my records i made quadruple digits in 2009. i was shocked when i added it all up. i hope i can double that this year.

so this next year...i wanna try new things. i've decided that i'm gonna try new recipes or make old favorites in new ways. i'm also going to do the project 365 again this year. i'm also going to endeavor to take individual and group photos of my kids on a monthly basis. i had a lot of Ava in 2009 but not as many of Meg & Z. i managed to read 52 new books (to me) in 2009. so in 2010, if i manage that it'll be a miracle. with my photo club commitments, and various photoshoots, plus my involvement with Peppermint Creative, homeschooling the kids and various other activities i'm sure reading will get stuck on the back burner.

we're also planning to take a trip out to see Ben's bro Dan in California this spring...maybe March? that will be a great opportunity for lots of picture taking as we will be driving out to see them.

hmmm, what else? with the start of a new year there's the promise of better tomorrows.

and here are a few pics...well scrapbook layouts that sum up 2009...

this was a photoshoot i did for the brothers Dec 2008 and just got around to doing something with them.

something i made!

my new Crumpler photobag that Ben got me for Christmas!!

NYE '09

my 1st photo for P365.

the brothers pitched in together to get Ben a motorcycle vest...as we're planning to get him a motorcycle by this spring as a sort of 2nd vehicle...we're trying to equip him now. he definitely fits the part here!

and that's all folks!

Happy 2010 to you!

The end of another year...

Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:00:50 GMT

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before?.
7 photoshoots back to back?

2. Did you keep your new years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't usually make resolutions. I tried to keep up with my photographic 365 project but towards the end of the year I floundered.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Not this year. 2008 seemed to be the year of babies.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
.......

5. What countries did you visit?
None this year.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
A vacation. More stability financially. More photography jobs. 2009 was the upswing of photog business for which I'm grateful for & pleased by.

7. What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
There were a couple of highlights in an otherwise abysmal year. Our 10th anniversary party April 18th. Mine & Ben's 30th bdays. Ava's 1st bday. But all that happened during the first half of the year which was considerably more pleasant than the last half.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Maintaining a sense of civility and calm during a time of chaos.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Misjudging some people's character. Placing trust in those who hadn't earned it. Not listening to my instincts.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Nope no illness or injury.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Money's been tight this year. Not a whole lot of extra to play with. But with all the money I earned from the Austin photoshoot weekend I bought a new camera...well new to me. Canon EOS 40D. I also with some photography money bought Ben a new suit for Christmas/Anniversary. He looks amazing in it. Best $200 I ever spent!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
My husband & my children's for always making me laugh, giving me tremendous joy, and loving unconditionally.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
There were a couple people's behavior that really baffled me. But then people do what is in their nature to do. I don't waste time thinking about them or being around them.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Paying bills, just living.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
The possibility of getting a new camera, which happened, and a new lens.

16. What song will always remind you of 2009?
oh boy...i wasn't a big music buff this year. I really enjoyed getting to know “Band of Horses”.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: happier or sadder?
I think my judgment of this is clouded by how crappy the last few months have been. So I'm not sure I could give an honest assessment. 2009 was a hard year.

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
always take more pictures, traveled more...

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Surfing the net, wasting time watching TV...

20. How will you be spending Christmas?
With family.

21. How will you be spending New Years?
Party with the friends!

24. What was your favorite TV program?
Dexter, Criminal Minds, Sons of Anarchy, CSI, Project Runway

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
Hate is such a waste of time. And only ends up hurting you.

26. What was the best book you read?
I did mostly fluff reading this year. Comfort food reading. I did enjoy “The Wedding” by Nicholas Sparks & “The Lost Symbol” by Dan Brown. “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold was kinda weird but interesting.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Band of Horses

28. What did you want and got?
I think my desire for material things was at an all time low this year. The only thing I really wanted was a new camera...which I was blessed enough to get.

30. What was your favorite film of this year?
I always forget what I've seen. I know that “Star Trek” was a surprise hit for me. I really enjoyed “The Time Traveler's Wife”.

31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Went out to eat, had a party with friends. I turned 30! I'm in my 30s now! Wow!

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Not worrying about things I can't control. When you let go of that stuff it really frees you up. (last year's answer seems pretty good)

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
I wear what feels comfortable...

34. What kept you sane?
Ben. Drugs. Ben. Good friends...real friends. =D

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Celebs are overrated.

36. What political issue stirred you the most?
I'm so sick of politics...I really don't care.

37. Who did you miss?
I haven't been in a missing mood.

38. Who was the best new person you met?
Did I meet anyone new this year? Some of the moms from our co-op group have been fun getting to know.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009:
Trust in your instincts, they don't fail you. Only put your trust in people who have earned it. Don't accept mediocrity as an excuse for being an @$$hole!