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Newbie... opening myself to flames. :)
I made this account like a billion years ago when I was a bride, and then used it again when I was pregnant in 2009 until The Bump got too scary. I mentioned to Tiffany (SHOUT OUT! 
) a few months ago that I was jealous of the camaraderie she had on this board, and she encouraged me to post since weddings are off-limits and I could in no way be seen as "pimping" what I do for a living.
I've been too scared to do it. Really and truly, if any of you feel like I'm breaking a rule by being here, I'll go away! No hard feelings!
But today, I came over to see what was going on (because sometimes you girls have great workout and diet tips, and I'm working on losing weight), and I saw the discussion about buying a baby toy, and I thought, "Hey! That's an area I could help!" I almost just posted on that discussion, but I thought it'd be weird to just sort of show up there.
So, all that run-on out of the way... here I am. I'm a self-employed, 3.5 years married mother of 2. Dorothy, the youngest, is 15 months old. She loves books, and toys that allow her to pretend she's doing whatever I'm doing. I've found this age is fun for cooking sets and things like that, because they're mimicking the actions of their parents, and learning.
I really hope you'll allow me to participate in some of your discussions! Working for yourself can be pretty isolating, and I miss the daily jabber I used to have at the newspaper. I had no idea how nervous I'd be to put myself out there and ask for permission, but I really really am!
Re: Newbie... opening myself to flames. :)
AND, um, my name is Chelsea. And my username is stupid, but I didn't know how to change it.
There, I'm done now!
Hi Chelsea!
107 weeks and 3 days pregnant! That must be pretty rough.
Hey there, I think it's super cool! (But does this mean we have to stop talking about you behind your back or can we just do it in front of you?)
I could never be self-employed no matter how much I dream about it. I'm so not self-motivated like that.
With All the Trimmings
Just do it!
My Ovulation Chart
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Thanks, ladies!! I appreciate the faith in me. I promise, I know the line.
And I'm glad some of you are readers, because that means you know how friggin' adorable my kiddos are!!!!
Stephie, it definitely took some getting used to, but I think I had a leg up because I previously was a newspaper reporter, and pretty much set my own schedule then, too. The big difference is that now, all deadlines are mine instead of an editor's. I will say, it's the hardest I've ever worked in my entire life. It's not uncommon to pull 100-hour weeks. But then again, sometimes I put in 15 hours. It's not for everyone, but for us, it's been very rewarding!
I would love to be self-employed too.... I just don't have any particular ideas or talents that would allow for that. I've really thought long and hard about it and come up empty handed.
This would be me, although I really only look when people tell me to.
I thought the pictures of your little one dressed up as a gnome were precious.
Regarding self-employment, you REALLY never know where God is going to take you. If someone had told us 6 years ago that this is what we'd be doing for a living, we would have toasted stout beers to their diminished mental capacity. It just wasn't ANYWHERE on the radar.
My best advice, for anyone thinking about becoming self-employed... pick an industry that doesn't require you to spent a lot of time working outside in the summer. I clearly didn't think that through enough.
Hee, well it's mainly all of us gushing. Like me last week when I forget who's bridal session it was but I was just oohing and ahhing like crazy...
Ok, I went and looked--Brittany. I didn't do bridals but this is EXACTLY what I would want mine to be like. *sigh*
See--this kind of stuff. It's going to be hard to refrain....
With All the Trimmings
Just do it!
Haha, noted. Perhaps my day will come.
ETA: Should have been linked to Stephie's earlier statement, but I'm still learning.
I think it's probably ok if you mention stuff, particularly if none of us ever links to the blog. It isn't in my bio anywhere either.
But the way I'd respond to that honestly is that WHOEVER you book with for WHATEVER photos you're taking, what creates pictures like the ones you're referencing is a relationship of trust. If both parties are invested in the session, and the client trusts the professional to do their job and do it well, everyone will be very pleased with the outcome.
Word. My DH did a for-fun shoot with some friends on Sunday, and we did part of it in Deep Ellum. It was so miserable, I thought we were all going to melt on the spot.
I know you!
Through Lynn Michelle's blog, but still. I checked out Courts' work a few times after he interviewed her, and LOVE the stuff he did for the roller derby girls. Too.Much.Fun.
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I saw those photos. Or some photos - the salon photos. They were great, BTW. Now, I want to cut my hair like the blonde girl. I don't have the guts to do it, though.
I really appreciate you girls being so welcoming. This felt like being the new kid at school and asking someone if I could sit at their table for lunch.
My first real question, for anyone reading this thread still, has to do with Hawaii. Mack and I will be there for work from Aug. 2 til Aug. 7, and we'll have a few days on our own. We've rented a jeep, we're staying in a condo, and the event is on Kauai. I know I want it to be pretty laid back, but as I've not been to Hawaii since I was a teenager, and Mack has never been, I thought it couldn't hurt to see if anyone has some suggestions!
Whoa, I feel famous! Haha, just kidding. And thanks! He had such a blast doing the shoot with the roller derby girls! He'll be tickled to know that someone besides my mom reads his blog, lol.
Lacey, thanks! Misty (my hairdresser who I talk about all the time) is the one with purple hair and Meredith works with her. We had so much fun with them. I love Meredith's hair too, but I can't really do the straight across bangs, they're too hard to style
Welcome to the board! I am also a blog stalker!!!!
What newspaper did you write for?
We spent a week of our honeymoon on Kauai and loved it! If you're going to do a helicopter ride, plan it early in the trip. We booked ours for the last day, and it was cancelled due to weather issues. I was so upset, I cried for an hour then bought a ukulele to make myself feel better. True story. Definitely go see Waimea canyon, and the Koloa rum distillery has free tastings and seriously delicious rum. We spent a lot of time just driving around, looking at scenery, and stopping when something caught our eye. I definitely recommend the book below. I'll look back at my journal when I get home, there are some places I can't recall the name of at the moment.
http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Kauai-Guidebook-Revealed/dp/0981461018/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1311193735&sr=8-1I went to Tarleton State University, and was a reporter for the Stephenville Empire-Tribune for a few years while I was there. I was then the editor of a tiiiiiny weekly paper in Dublin, TX for a year, then spent a year as the content editor of a quarter horse racing magazine. Lastly, I was the lead civic/political reporter at the Weatherford Democrat for about 18 months. At that point, I was offered a position at the Star-Telegram for about the same money but more headache, and decided it was a good time to get out of the business all-together. I jumped ship, and have been SO thrilled with that decision!
Hi Chelsea! Welcome to the board!
My sisters and I loved all of our b-pics. My DH is the only guy that hasn't seen them yet but the other 3 guys loved them. I'm working on my book for DH for our anniversary in Oct. Thanks again for the great afternoon!
Thank you SO much, Banana! We'll be ordering that tonight. I get terrible motion sickness, so I doubt we'll do the helicopter, but the distillery sounds like a must visit for us.
DANA! You're pregnant! SO exciting... congratulations! That means we had pretty good timing for our shoot!
I just had a feeling you'd be over here one day! I don't see any problems with you posting over here either.
Welcome! So glad to have you around!
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