8.08.2011
8.02.2011
Kathryn's Bridals.
My friends Kathryn and Cody were married this past Saturday. They didnt hire a professional photographer so I offered to be especially shutter happy for them. Kat and I thought it would be really fun to do a bridal session in both her dress and her mee maw's dress. Kathryn was married on July 30th which was also her grandparents wedding day. Her pee paw was also the officiant. (check back later to see how cute he is!)
What we thought would be fun, actually turned out to be torture. We were in the woods and in the 100 degree weather, with only 2 beers and a flavored water. We almost died. We fought off ticks, bugs and sweltering heat. It was so hot our clothes were sticking to us. She ripped her dress and I blew out the ass of my pants. It was all worth it though and we were pretty happy with the results!
What we thought would be fun, actually turned out to be torture. We were in the woods and in the 100 degree weather, with only 2 beers and a flavored water. We almost died. We fought off ticks, bugs and sweltering heat. It was so hot our clothes were sticking to us. She ripped her dress and I blew out the ass of my pants. It was all worth it though and we were pretty happy with the results!
8.01.2011
Be Grateful.
I had a moment of enlightenment this morning. In retrospect it seems pretty obvious, but I thought I’d share it anyway.
Ryan and I had friends over for dinner last night and we drank entirely too much for a Sunday night, so waking up this morning was a little less than pleasant. I was having the hardest time getting motivated and had to force myself through getting up, brushing my teeth and making the coffee. I was thinking about all the things that I had to do today and was dreading every single one of them. At one point Ryan made a comment about how awful the day was going to be and normally I would have agreed with him and cussed my way through making our lunches, but not today. Without even hesitating I replied back with, “today is a blessing.” Now, I’ve never ever referred to any day where I feel slightly hung over and tired as shit, as a blessing, but today I did. I think that we all know that we should really appreciate our lives and not take one single thing for granted, but I wonder if we REALLY know this. Out of nowhere, I not only knew it, but I believed it. I believed it so whole heartedly that it made me change my attitude and take responsibility for the day. I sat down and thought about my life and all the things I was thankful for. I thought about my cousin James who is in a wheelchair healing his severely broken legs and it made me appreciate my legs and it motivated me to shut up about dreading my afternoon workout. I thought about what a great job I have and the wonderful people I work with and it drowned out my grumbling about having to go to work on a Monday. I thought about my family and friends and realized just how lucky I am to have today to share with them because we aren’t guaranteed any number of days here.
So, the moral of the story is.....Be grateful and give your best to each and every day like it was your last. Oh, and don’t drink on Sundays. : )
Ryan and I had friends over for dinner last night and we drank entirely too much for a Sunday night, so waking up this morning was a little less than pleasant. I was having the hardest time getting motivated and had to force myself through getting up, brushing my teeth and making the coffee. I was thinking about all the things that I had to do today and was dreading every single one of them. At one point Ryan made a comment about how awful the day was going to be and normally I would have agreed with him and cussed my way through making our lunches, but not today. Without even hesitating I replied back with, “today is a blessing.” Now, I’ve never ever referred to any day where I feel slightly hung over and tired as shit, as a blessing, but today I did. I think that we all know that we should really appreciate our lives and not take one single thing for granted, but I wonder if we REALLY know this. Out of nowhere, I not only knew it, but I believed it. I believed it so whole heartedly that it made me change my attitude and take responsibility for the day. I sat down and thought about my life and all the things I was thankful for. I thought about my cousin James who is in a wheelchair healing his severely broken legs and it made me appreciate my legs and it motivated me to shut up about dreading my afternoon workout. I thought about what a great job I have and the wonderful people I work with and it drowned out my grumbling about having to go to work on a Monday. I thought about my family and friends and realized just how lucky I am to have today to share with them because we aren’t guaranteed any number of days here.
So, the moral of the story is.....Be grateful and give your best to each and every day like it was your last. Oh, and don’t drink on Sundays. : )
7.28.2011
Finding My Voice.
I’ve been struggling with sharing my thoughts, photographs and perspective through the various social networks and outlets lately. The thing is, putting yourself out there makes you somewhat vulnerable. I might work on something and think to myself, “what if someone thinks my photos are completely bush league? Or what if I’m not communicating what I want to say correctly and I sound like a jackass? What if my grammar is all wrong (I’m pretty sure it is)? What if no one likes this? What if this has been done or said before? And most importantly, what difference does it make if I share this?”
These thoughts have prevented me from sharing so many times. I’m afraid that I’m not good enough and get so worried about an audience liking what I do, that I resort to doing nothing at all. There is a fear of negative feedback and rejection that looms over me that is ridiculous, yet common and understandable. I think we all tend to rely on positive feedback or encouragement from others to motivate us to continue creating and doing what we’re doing. If you’re sharing a part of yourself, you are most likely looking for some sort of validation that people want to hear more from you and then that snowballs. Ideally, you want to feel as though you’ve reached someone or stirred an emotion. If you feel like you haven’t accomplished that, it leaves you feeling somewhat powerless, discouraged and without a voice.
The thing is, I’ve come to realize that not everyone is going to feel what you’re saying or doing. Not everyone is going to pat you on the back every time you put yourself out there, even if they do think it’s great. You have to move on from worrying about what someone else might think because getting praise from others is most likely not the reason you’re doing it in the first place (credit to my husband for pointing this out). You can’t let your fear of failure debilitate you. If you’re a writer, you probably write because you love to write. You’re first published piece may not resonate with your audience, but you don’t give up. You keep writing because it’s what you love and believe in. You know that if you don’t start somewhere, your voice will definitely never be heard. Whatever your passion may be, it needs to be cultivated. You don’t just pick up a pen or a camera and start being great. You have to work at it and build one step at a time. By sharing the steps of your journey with others, good or bad, you’ll end up adding so much value because you may inspire someone else along the way. They’ll remember the first piece of mediocre writing or the first completely overexposed photo you ever shared and see where your love & passion made the difference in the end result. Most importantly, by drawing from your experience, they’ll see that they have the ability to create something too.
Today, I am shifting my focus. I don’t really need validation to keep doing what I love doing. I know that I am not great, but I do know that I could be great. I’ll keep working on defining my voice, one that reflects how the world looks through my eyes, but through it all, I know it will be one that supports, encourages, and inspires others to challenge themselves to dream, create and build. We all have something of value to say to the world, but it is up to each and every one of us to decide whether or not anyone hears it.
These thoughts have prevented me from sharing so many times. I’m afraid that I’m not good enough and get so worried about an audience liking what I do, that I resort to doing nothing at all. There is a fear of negative feedback and rejection that looms over me that is ridiculous, yet common and understandable. I think we all tend to rely on positive feedback or encouragement from others to motivate us to continue creating and doing what we’re doing. If you’re sharing a part of yourself, you are most likely looking for some sort of validation that people want to hear more from you and then that snowballs. Ideally, you want to feel as though you’ve reached someone or stirred an emotion. If you feel like you haven’t accomplished that, it leaves you feeling somewhat powerless, discouraged and without a voice.
The thing is, I’ve come to realize that not everyone is going to feel what you’re saying or doing. Not everyone is going to pat you on the back every time you put yourself out there, even if they do think it’s great. You have to move on from worrying about what someone else might think because getting praise from others is most likely not the reason you’re doing it in the first place (credit to my husband for pointing this out). You can’t let your fear of failure debilitate you. If you’re a writer, you probably write because you love to write. You’re first published piece may not resonate with your audience, but you don’t give up. You keep writing because it’s what you love and believe in. You know that if you don’t start somewhere, your voice will definitely never be heard. Whatever your passion may be, it needs to be cultivated. You don’t just pick up a pen or a camera and start being great. You have to work at it and build one step at a time. By sharing the steps of your journey with others, good or bad, you’ll end up adding so much value because you may inspire someone else along the way. They’ll remember the first piece of mediocre writing or the first completely overexposed photo you ever shared and see where your love & passion made the difference in the end result. Most importantly, by drawing from your experience, they’ll see that they have the ability to create something too.
Today, I am shifting my focus. I don’t really need validation to keep doing what I love doing. I know that I am not great, but I do know that I could be great. I’ll keep working on defining my voice, one that reflects how the world looks through my eyes, but through it all, I know it will be one that supports, encourages, and inspires others to challenge themselves to dream, create and build. We all have something of value to say to the world, but it is up to each and every one of us to decide whether or not anyone hears it.
7.26.2011
Melissa Beth Duffy.
My sister in law is a model. And a singer. And an actress. And she’s pretty much got it all. If I wasn’t so insanely proud, I’d be ridiculously jealous. To me, Melissa projects something that I find unbelievably infectious, and that is serious promise. She has got the world by the ass, so much potential, so much possibility and so much ahead of her. I can’t wait to see what’s to come from this girl.
7.22.2011
Friday Randomness.
Awww...TGIF. I feel like this has been the longest week ever, but I can't help but love the randomness of the day.
1. Me: "Ahh, I love the Kentucky Head Hunters....we used to line dance to this song in school. Did you ever line dance in gym glass??"
Ryan: "No."
Me: "Really? Y'all didn't line dance at all??"
Ryan: "Umm, No."
Me: "Weird"
I guess line dancing is country curriculum only.
2. Chico loves deviled eggs. My grandmother would be very proud.
3. I was approached my Supra Boats to have one of my photos featured in their new dealership brochure that would be featured across the US and Canada. I think we're just waiting to find out if the file size will be big enough for commercial print. Please send positive vibes my way. I'd love this for my friends, The Smiths and myself.
1. Me: "Ahh, I love the Kentucky Head Hunters....we used to line dance to this song in school. Did you ever line dance in gym glass??"
Ryan: "No."
Me: "Really? Y'all didn't line dance at all??"
Ryan: "Umm, No."
Me: "Weird"
I guess line dancing is country curriculum only.
2. Chico loves deviled eggs. My grandmother would be very proud.
3. I was approached my Supra Boats to have one of my photos featured in their new dealership brochure that would be featured across the US and Canada. I think we're just waiting to find out if the file size will be big enough for commercial print. Please send positive vibes my way. I'd love this for my friends, The Smiths and myself.
6.28.2011
Proud Aunt.
My nieces and nephew are visiting my mom this week for Grammy Mae’s summer camp. I received this gem from my mom this morning. Now, my little sister, Sarah always claims that Lili is her little mini me, but I gotta say I think she’s throwin’ off an Aunt Liz vibe in this one…..
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