Photography Dreams

Well I got my business cards in the mail yesterday, and I had a lot of fun passing them out to people at school today. I had several people mention they'd like to get some pictures done, so now I need to follow up on that and get them some information. I think since I'm just starting out that I don't want to charge too much so we are both getting something great out of the deal :) I just need to cover gas and expenses of printing of course :)

And April 5 I set a date to do some glamour shots at our house. So I need to get a background, some boas and glamourous fabrics for costumes, and some bling jewelry. I'm excited to get started!

New Header

Ok, my header has finally gotten a picture... Bryce's expression is so cute, and we couldn't help but crack up when we saw what finger he was holding up! :) (By the way, Shawn took this picture!)

Starting a business

I am researching what it would take to open a photography business, and I am planning on trying it out this summer! So if I can get some people to take a chance and hire me, I will be making a little money off of photography! That is exciting, I just hope I can hit the ground running. The only problem I see is living in the middle of nowhere. But maybe with the right advertising that won't be a problem. I don't mind travelling, after all. If it looks like I could make some money, I might be able to jump in full-time and try to make a go of it! I have been scouring photographers' websites and looking at printing services online. I'm still looking into startup costs right now... Business cards, website hosting and setting up my own domain name (www.diamondlphotography.com?), flyers, a copy of photoshop, etc... And maybe a lens or two. We've got a couple of good ones so far.

Thank you Mom!

Well my mom is leaving today after being at our house a whole week! She kept all four kids by herself while Shawn and I went to San Antonio for four days. And not only that but she bought us all kinds of groceries and even left fully cooked meals in the freezer!! Thank you, Mom!

The San Antonio Stock Show was fun, although we spent more time doing things other than the stock show. We went ice skating, we saw a movie, we visited the Alamo, and we braved a mirror maze. We had a lot of fun :)

I definitely missed everyone, though. When I got home Henry motioned for me to come get him and then when I put him down he screamed. Poor baby. I had just stopped by the house to drop off formula on the way back to school. I had to go put in a few more hours before I could come home. Today is school as normal, darn it. The picture is of all 6 of the kids who showed from Star.

Complete Turnaround!

Ok, so yesterday I talked about how the girls may not be able to be adopted after all. But Shawn just called me and the judge has ordered mediation, which means that we will be having a meeting with the girls' mom and basically trying to come to an agreement that would make it possible for us to adopt the girls. maybe we would agree to some kind of contact, like letters and pictures, or something like that. So we will see! Shawn got to testify... I am sure it was a scary experience!! I'm glad it was him and not me! Anyway, I am much more optimistic about everything now :)

Court Date

Today is the girls' court date at 11:30. Shawn is there to see what happens and possibly testify... We'll see what they say.

I found out that my friend Brandy is going to have her reception on March 22, 2008. They got married December 22, 2007 in a small ceremony that I was able to attend! And she is expecting again! Leigha is going to have a baby brother or sister :) She called me last night and was wondering about a book I read once that she wants to read. It is The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace. I really liked it, it was straightforward and honest, and biblical. That is a good combination...

They grow up so fast!

I know everyone says so, and it's because it is true!! A week ago Bryce was terrified of showers. Now that he knows we have a handheld shower head, he begs to take a shower "in you shower, mom" He loves it! And he is talking about everything now... He just told me "I almost slipped on that, mom. It's macaroni!" He is now calling me mom. Mature for a 2 year old, don't you think? It is of course because of his older sisters. Oh well, maybe Henry won't catch on :)

Henry is crawling all over the place and now he's pulling up on everything, too. While Bryce was playing in our shower, he was pulling up on the side of the tub watching all the fun, and begging to get in. It sounded like this "Ta-ta? Taaa-Taa!" He's just so cute I could eat him up. Seriously, he is the cutest baby ever (since Bryce of course). He is laying on me right now sleeping and I have the computer almost too far away to reach, but its propped on my knee and I am typing two-handed. Pretty good if I do say so myself! Shawn is in Odessa without us, eating pizza and watching movies. I am jealous!

Reading blogs... interesting

Wow, I have been reading a lot of blogs lately! I have mainly been reading foster care/ adoption blogs. Hearing everyone's stories is somehow comforting. We aren't the only ones dealing with everything in "the system." Shawn is in Odessa as we speak because the girls had a court date and we didn't want to miss it. All this time it seemed termination of parental rights (TPR) was imminent, but now the judge says "it has been too long" and the case they had 2 years ago is no longer going to work. Their mom apparently does care for them, she just isn't able to take care of them, if that makes sense. Which I understand. I just wish the girls could have permanency instead of having to be foster kids til they are 18!

The sad thing is that the girls are now not going to be able to be adopted. They will be under permanent custody of CPS (and hopefully us) but they are still kind of in limbo. Adoption means something, even if they are going to be with us, it just isn't the same if they don't have our last name and they aren't legally ours. For one thing we can't parent them the way we feel is best because of all the things we have to adhere to as foster parents. Plus we will have to keep everything locked up indefinitely... I was kinda hoping to adopt them and then not have to do all the "foster parent stuff" anymore. I was looking forward to FREEDOM! Inspections, caseworker visits, psychological evaluations, it never ends! And God forbid you don't turn in a form that says they had their yearly physical. Ok, the court date isn't even til tomorrow but all this info is from their new caseworker...

On a different but related note, their sister may be coming to visit over Spring Break for a few days...

Freecycle

I just got the coolest thing for free! It is a little swingset for toddlers. It has a swing and a little fort area with a slide. It's so cute, and I got it free off of freecycle!

People give away all kinds of free stuff. I have given away clothes, and all I did was send out an email to my group, and the first one to respond I told them where to come pick it up. It is great!

It's Been A While, Again...

Well Christmas and New Year's came and went. On to another semester at school. I got a great Christmas present this year, a digital SLR camera. It has been a lot of fun, I am still learning but already have taken lots of great pictures. The camera really does make it a lot easier to get some good shots. Here are some I like a lot:








I decided last Wednesday (before I got strep throat) to dive back into the world of html... I haven't gotten too far yet, but it is interesting to design a webpage from scratch. I'll have to share when I get something cool made. I never really like the templates I find, so maybe I can do better.

I really want to open a photography business and quit my "real job." I hope someday that happens :) My mom offered to buy me a backdrop and some lighting for my birthday to take a family portrait. Sounds like fun! I am hoping this summer maybe to put up a website to promote myself. Shawn might even join me. He is an experienced studio photographer and is interested in creative photos of outdoors stuff: leaves, animals, etc. I am more into pictures of people just being themselves. So, we'll see what happens! We have already decided on a name and I have been playing around with logos, mainly just cause I get bored and have nothing better to do. (Ok, I have tons to do, but I'd rather play with logos.)

Good news yesterday! My sister took her NCLEX-RN test to be a registered nurse and she passed! I knew she would, even though she was skeptical! She is really smart and a very hard worker!! I knew she would do well. Seriously, I am lazy compared to her. That is one reason I am hoping she will come help me pick out colors and paint some rooms in my house sometime soon. Come to think of it, I might need to invite several friends/workers ;) I have a lot of walls to cover in a weekend.

Shawn decided I could do what I wanted with the house, but he didn't want to be there for it. I decided that sounded good, so sometime soon he will go away for a weekend and come back to a newly painted house.

Ok, back to my class now...