What's new?

Hi again!! Long time no see!!
If you're wondering what has inspired me to come back to this nearly forgotten place, I'll tell you . Those of you who are close to me already know I've been working toward fulfilling my dream (that thing I never had as a child and didn't feel until I became a mother & realized "ahh ha! I do have a calling").. Breastfeeding (or in other words, becoming a Certified Lactation Consultant)!.. You all know, that taboo & socially unaccepted thing women do to nourish and comfort their babies? Well, the dream I have is to counsel these women and encourage them so they might have a positive, successful and fulfilling breastfeeding experience & at the same time, help to normalize this act and educate people on the endless physical, physiologic & economical benefits of mothers milk! What could be more important?.. after all, the very future of our society begins in the arms of a mother! Also, in addition to this very exciting endeavor of mine, I still really enjoy taking photos. In a perfect world I would have my certification in Lactation Counseling and photography would be a sidekick to my career. I envision taking a class(es)- so I might understand the never ending complex world that is pictures- and then specializing in home/hospital births, newborns & breastfeeding mommas (yes, some of us crazy ladies want those intimate moments to be captured by a professional photographer & treasured for life). But, this is not a perfect world so I have some work to do.. the road is long and I must start with one thing at a time so photography will remain a hobby, for now. With all of that said, I will be using this blog to help me not only share my photos but also, in time, I would like for it to be used as an informational resource for breastfeeding mothers. A chameleon, if you will. ;)

So, lets get started!!
I'm sharing w/ you a few photos I took recently of my good friend, Natalie, and her sweet- chubby cheek-full of energy-giggly little bundle of mischievous wonderfulness-baby boy, Chase! It's obvious there is no avoiding falling in love w/ this child!! By the way, this was my 2nd attempt at an official *amateur* photo session w/ Natalie. A few weeks ago I went to her house to take photos of her & her husband + their 3 boys.. and I, for lack of a better word, bombed it!! I learned that my previous attitude of "go with the flow" picture taking does not work on a family of 5! You need to show up prepared w/ ideas and have experience interacting w/ a larger group! Plus, have a camera that doesn't freeze up on you (naturally, I've never had that problem until I was taking photos for someone else's family)!! Good thing I'm not excepting money for my amateur services!! But, I learned a lot, to say the least, and was so glad for the practice, at her expense. :) She was a trooper!

I also have a new challenge that has been introduced to me and  has transformed what was once a fun & easy going little hobby of mine into a bit of a headache, to put it lightly. That is........ photo editing! Ryan got me a program called Corel Paintshop Pro that is slightly comparable to Adobe Photoshop and almost as impossible to learn!! There are all of these strange things called layers and curves and I have only begun to understand the very basics of it. So, all you photo editing knowers out there... be sensitive to what you're about to see!! :) And thank you to all of my dear friends who have given me such support and encouragement.. it means the world to me!!