Just Keep Shooting

Today's post I'm totally going to make worth your while. Why you ask? Well, because not only is today's post hilarious (as per usual) but it also comes coupled with some good news. No...not good news...GREAT, AWESOME, STUPENDOUS, KNOCK-YOUR-FUCKING-SOCKS-OFF news.

To begin, one thing I've learned in my photography journey is to just keep shooting. I had read hours and hours worth of factoids, advise, and tips on how to better you photography and get the best possible results. And one of the best tips I've received thus far, hands down, is to just keep shooting. Sometimes without setting up or perfecting the shot you can get this ridiculously awesome picture. Some of the best pictures I've gotten (this really only applies to moving subjects) are from continuous shots. Now I do still take my time throughout the shoot but, man those unplanned shots can really be something else. Now I know you want to see my all time favorite unplanned shot. Well here, take a look at this gem:



This is my puppy Sadee (as seen in "Ode to a Nikon") in all her sad, sad glory. Yep. If she had a facebook she DEFINITELY would have untagged that bad larry. I was so proud of taking this shot (and a few of the good ones of my bug, which i will follow up with in another post) and I would have never gotten it (or the mindless hours of laughing that followed) had it not been for my "just keep shooting" mantra. Just keep shooting, just keep shooting, shooting, shooting.

And that brings me to my ABSOLUTELY MIND BLOWING SO EXCITING news. IT HAS OFFICIALLY BEEN ANNOUNCED. After 10 years. TEN LONG AWAITED YEARS, they finally announced the sequel to Finding Nemo!!!



Not only am I fucking obsessed with Disney, Pixar, and all things related, but Ellen Degeneres is one of my favorite people of all time. Combine that shit together and you got one happy mama. I'm not so excited about having to wait another 2 years for it to be finished....but I think one of the biggest reasons I'm so elated is because this time around, I'll get to share it with my daughter and I can't freaking WAIT :D

Rubber Ducky You're NOT the One

Ahhh baths. I'm infamous for liking them far more than any human really should. Any opportunity to take a bath, bubbles or not, count my ass in. There's nothing more comforting, relaxing, and just down right flipping awesome. A couple candles, a glass of wine...need I continue? And don't get me wrong , I do enjoy me a good shower, but there's nothing comparable to a bath, especially one in an appropriately sized tub. So to me, a jacuzzi tub is like the taj mahal of bathtubs.

Well apparently my love of bathing is NOT an inherent trait. My bug, loves the shower. Put her in her little baby tub and she bawls uncontrollably, and not like a I'm-starving-feed-me-you-crazy-bitch cry, it's more along the lines of how I'd imagine she'd cry if she fell down a flight of stairs and landed in a pile of broken glass. And to a mother, this cry is HEARTBREAKING. How am I supposed to bathe you, little peanut, if you are crying so hard you're practically purple.

Now to get slightly off topic (but I promise it'll make sense VERY soon). The other day I was doing a photo shoot with her (yes, I'm totally crazy, I know. I'm one of THOSE moms), she was NOT feeling the whole naked thing. I had turned up the heat so high it felt like we were on the surface of the fucking sun AND had a heating pad underneath the blanket I had her on her just like they tell you to do for newborn shoot and this little girl was NOT having it. So what did I do to calm her down you ask? I sang to her. And not just any normal soft lullaby, nope, not this mama. For some reason "you are my sunshine" and "twinkle twinkle little star" had completely escaped me. So I sang soft kitty to her. YES. I'm being dead serious.

For those of you who have not heard of this song it's from one of my favorite shows, the Big Bang Theory. And it goes a little something like this: *AHEM* "Soft kitty, Warm Kitty, Little ball of fur. Happy Kitty, Sleepy Kitty, Purr. Purr. Purr." Short and sweet and not profane (which I'm sure surprised you if you haven't heard of the song). But that shit worked like a damn charm! So here I am with my camera shooting away taking pictures and singing this ridiculous song. And this baby is in a trance like no other! Now back to my original story, just like I promised.

Every bath time now requires a little karaoke on my part now. So anytime my stinkbug needs a bath, it's up to her little tiny baby tub we go and mommy sits there singing this stupid ass song. But guess what? IT WORKS. Lord, knows why, because apparently she could give a shit less about my little songs that I make up and sing to her (which are pretty damn awesome if you ask me).

But the best part of bathtime is definitely those ridiculously cute hooded towels. AH. Don't even get me started. Functional and adorable. Don't believe me? Here, take a look at the worlds CUTEST frog:



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Gender Reveal

So October 5th was the day we had set to get our structure ultrasound. The structure ultrasound is an anatomy ultrasound that they should (assuming baby cooperates) be able to tell you the gender of your baby.Let me tell you, the month and a half leading up to this appointment had felt soooo excruciatingly long. But the day was finally here and my boyfriend and I couldn't were off our damn rockers. We had a gender reveal dinner planned for that night (assuming all went according to plan) we couldn't have been more excited, and nervous. All we wanted to hear was that our little peanut is HEALTHY and that they could determine the gender.

The way we planned to unveil the gender to our family and friends was by having our tech write down the gender WITHOUT telling us and sealing it in an envelope (straight up 007 status, I know). We would, from there, take the envelope to the lady making our cupcakes (which were ready to go, minus the frosting and filling) who would fill each cupcake with either purple or blue filling, (purple because pink is so friggin cliche and well, I love purple) depending on what the gender was in the envelope, and then frost the tops. We would be able to bite into the cupcakes and find out boy or girl. Creative shit, I know :) Thanks pinterest.

So we get into the ultrasound room, best friend in tow, and I explain our gender reveal plans to the tech (we want to know the gender but not HEAR what it is), which she completely brushed off. Frustrated, I kept trying to explain that if she could see the gender WE DIDN'T WANT TO KNOW. (I was terrified she would just blurt it out and totally ruin our plans) Anyway...she begins doing all our little one's measurements barely explaining as she goes, and keeping the monitor pretty much faced towards her the entire time. I tried not to let it get to me but it was frustrating to have to keep asking about what the hell it was she was measuring and how everything was looking.

Finally, we get to the end and I'm waiting for her to tell us something...ANYTHING. She looks at me and says "Baby's legs are crossed, and I really can't see anything". At this point I'm about ready to explode. I know she didn't make ANY effort to try and look or even to wait and see if baby would move out of this position. I felt the damn waterworks coming. All my wonderful plans were falling to flippin pieces and this woman could care less. I asked if there was any way she could look again and I swear she looks me dead in the eye and says "Honestly, it's too early to tell, even if I could see. We need to set you up for an appointment in two weeks, and then we should have no problem determining gender as you'll be over 20 weeks". I tried, and failed at composing myself at that point, this bitch was SO inconsiderate, at one point during the appointment I was shaking pretty badly because for whatever reason they felt the need to keep the room at 20 fucking below and this woman has the gall to say "You need to stop shaking." REALLY? You're not concerned at all that I'm cold, and not only that, you can't even ask me nicely. It took all my strength not to give this woman a swift right hook to her big ugly nose. Now not only is this angry broad rude she's a LIAR. It would be one thing to tell me the baby's legs are crossed and that you really can't see anything but to tell me it's too early when I KNOW for a fact that it isn't?!?! I don't enjoy being lied to, and I'm literally BOILING at this point. I had people coming from 3 hours away and all over to be with us that night!!!

After we spoke with the doctor we found out that from what they could see of the baby that we were measuring a bit smaller (We were 18 weeks 5 days and the baby was measuring 17 weeks 6 days) but that our little one was HEALTHY!!! WHEW!!! At least at that point I had a GIANT weight off my shoulders.

After leaving my OB and making an appointment for the 19th, I called my mom and told her what happened. My mom asked if there was anything we could do, and I mentioned an elective ultrasound but with all the money my boyfriend and I are trying to save it really wasn't in the cards for us. To which she replies "If you can find a place that will do it today, I'll pay" WHAT?!!?!? ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!? INSTANT ELATION!! I had a chance to turn this all around. I thanked her till my voice went hoarse and rushed to find a place (it was now 11AM and our gender reveal dinner reservations were for 7:15..TIME WAS OF THE ESSENCE)

Two phone calls and a half hour later I had my elective booked (for 4:45 cutting it real close considering we were going the cupcake filling route and needed to have them filled BEFORE dinner). The place I ended up booking my ultrasound didn't have any appointments but the nurse squeezed me in at 4:45 even when they closed at 4:30!!! But I refused to let myself get excited just yet. 4:45 rolls around and we are sitting anxiously in the waiting room. We get called in and I swear I couldn't breathe. We explain the entire situation to our tech who was WONDERFUL she went above and beyond what was necessary and I really couldn't thank her enough. 1 min into the ultrasound she looks at me and says "I know the gender of your baby.'' I literally thought I was going to have a mental breakdown "Are you sure?" I asked. "Positive, without a doubt". I explained my frustration about the previous ultrasound because I KNEW 18 weeks wasn't too early to determine gender and that while they recommend 16 weeks and further that they have the ability to find out at 13 weeks, she says "Honey, I can determine at 12 weeks, I don't know WHAT that woman was talking about". She was my hero!

She took my boyfriends phone and TEXTED the woman making our cupcakes for us (since we no longer had time to give her a sealed envelope and wait for her to fill and finish the cupcakes) and then deleted it so we couldn't peek, just like we asked! I told her how much she made my day and that I couldn't thank her enough! Our gender reveal plans weren't ruined anymore!

Everything worked out perfectly. AND......





Hands down, one of the single best moments of my life. I would recommend a gender reveal to ANYONE interested in finding out the gender of your baby, finding out the gender of your peanut at the same time as your friends and family is, for lack of a better word, magical.


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