Not your average...

...headboard. But I am SO excited about this piece of "junk" we found at a local consignment shop. I posted about it earlier, and how we've been fixing it up. Billy finished painting it yesterday afternoon, and we put it up in our room last night. I am very excited about the different look it gives to our room, as opposed to the traditional headboard we had before.

Also, again, I'd like to take this moment to thank Pinterest for giving me ideas when I am suffering from preggo brain and can barely remember my name much less come up with cute decorating ideas for our home. All the ideas on there, everything from recipes to home projects, are so much fun to look over and fantasize about one day actually accomplishing.

Fixing it up has been somewhat of a chore. It's huge, and weighs a ton, and was covered in chipping paint that we wanted to kind of salvage because we liked the look of it. It's been residing everywhere from my living room to the back deck during the process. One afternoon it was on the deck and it started to rain. I was home alone at the time, and my pregnant self had to drag it into the house. Not a pretty sight.

But now it's finished and has found a new home in my room. (I'll put up some pics of that at some point later too...it was in the process while I was writing this) Now I probably need to find another project for Billy to work on really quick before he gets tired of all this crafty stuff I've been forcing him to do lately.

The first shot is for Perceptive Perspectives, and the last is for Sweet Shot.

A Gift

As our Wildman gets older, and we get to know him better, we are realizing a little bit more about who he is. He's a high energy, inquisitive, possibly ADHD, a little OCD, guy who is full of life and questions. He is, and always has been, a lot like his daddy, who was recently diagnosed with ADHD. Merrick seems like he's a good candidate for the same. ;) And knowing what I know about my husband, we actually see it as a gift.

Sounds a bit funny maybe, since ADHD (or any label for that matter) is often seen as a negative. But after watching how Billy's mind works, if that's what we're dealing with in Merrick, he's got a lot of great qualities to offer that some people may not necessarily have when they don't have ADHD to work with.

We know that learning as much about him (and whatever it is that makes him up) as possible is best for him and us. He's a little young for us to know for sure if it's ADHD, but we met with a lady over the weekend who said a lot of things that made a lot of sense in relation to our bundle of energy. We're looking forward to getting to know Wild even better.

The last shot is my pick for Paper Heart Camera.

Future Vegan?

I got to do a session with a little guy yesterday at the park. He's turning one this coming week, and his mom contacted me to have some one year pictures taken for his birthday party.

She was in a big hurry to get them finished before his party, which had snuck up on her. The first birthday tends to do that, looking back on it. You turn around and all of a sudden your baby is turning one...where did the year go? Seems like the story of my life...so I totally sympathized with her.

He was a trooper, only giving me a few glares when we first started shooting. But he quickly got comfortable crawling and cruising like a pro and eating everything (and yes, I mean everything) he could get his fingers on. Sticks, rocks, seeds, leaves, grass, dirt...I think his mom may have a vegan on her hands. He seems partial to salads. ;)

It was fun to do a session like this, which I hadn't done in a little bit for all the weddings and summer busy-ness. Kids are so easy to shoot, in my opinion. (Some people think it's really tough, but I think it's just what I'm used to) No shyness or camera-phobia yet...they are totally themselves. (I have a panic attack in front of a camera, which is why it's usually pointed the other direction.) Hope this little guy has a great first birthday; I'm glad we got to hang out for a bit.

The last shot is my pick for The Paper Mama

Junk Junkies

Since our move into our new place, we've been investing some of that time we were spending driving around the state like lunatics in projects around the house. I'm a self proclaimed tight wad, so we've found a lot of our materials at Goodwill, Craigslist, and junk stores.

One of our favorite stores had this old mantle that we kept eyeing when we were there. Finally, after thinking it was going to be snatched by someone else, we had some cash that tight wad Barron was willing to part with and bought it.

Admittedly it needs some work, but that's half the fun. We are going to use it as a headboard for our bed, and I can't wait to see the finished product. (If you haven't already GET A Pinterest account. Lots of inspiration over there. I waste many a nap time getting ideas for the house.)

I really like buying old junk and re-doing it. I guess it makes it more personal, and I love the unique look it gives to a house. It's stuff we've worked on together and invested in, so it makes it home. Kinda reminds me of how God feels about us...someone else might see us as Craigslist material, but He's just dying to get His hands dirty fixing us up to be what He knows is just under the surface.

Check out more shots at YouCapture.
The last shot is for Texture Thursday.

Shooting Heads

Late week I was asked by a friend of my husband (they used to work together) to take headshots for him. I was a bit panicked. I'm used to shooting drooling babies and giggly brides, not trendy guys who are working on their modeling portfolio. But I was flattered that he asked me...and was thinking it would be great for my portfolio.

It was actually really interesting shooting a guy...the posing and expressions are totally different from when you're shooting a female. Girls are pretty easy to shoot if you ask me...they want to look pretty. Being a girl I guess I know what poses would make me feel comfortable and attractive, but with a guy I wasn't exactly sure what would be weird or not ok. I did figure no pooched lips or flowers, however. ;)

He brought along a guy friend of his who is really interested in the fashion industry, so he was a great help with posing ideas and seeing things that I might have missed if I was just on my own. He knew way more about what to look for in a modeling portfolio, and had a lot of insight with the styling of the shoot.

I am really glad to have had the chance to do this type of shoot, even though I was reeediculously anxious about it. (I talk a lot when I'm nervous, which makes no sense because I'm a total introvert. I also make stupid jokes when I'm nervous. Thankfully people are kind enough to laugh.) I think the shots turned out great, and am looking forward to saying "I shot him first" when he's a famous Armani model. ;)

The last shot is my pick for Sweet Shot Tuesday