Image Map

Friday, August 29, 2014

It’s My Birthday and Other Funny Things

IMG_1914withhazeetsy copy

Disclaimer: Now let me warn you this post is going to be nothing but random. If that’s not your cup of tea here’s your warning to make like a tree and split. I don’t really have anything in particular to blog about but it’s my birthday and I wanted to blog……about nothing……..and I feel like I can without feeling guilty that I’m not working on other things that need my attention…..because it’s my birthday darn it!

Yep today’s the day. I’m 32 but Kent swears I’m 33. I’ve told him he’s crazy all week but now I’m starting to wonder if he’s right. I’m too scared to do the math. So let’s stick with 32 which I’m prrrretty sure is right.

I used to always wonder (when I was younger) “How in the world do people forget their age?” Well I get it now. 

BTW I like to say “eh” along with “and such” and every now and then I throw in a few English words. I don’t know guys it’s just fun and I’m weird. The other day someone asked me if I was Canadian, which turned into an awkward convo where I tried to explain myself. I should have just said “Yes eh!” and smiled. 

This week I’ve done so many “What the What” things Kent and I both have been shaking our heads at me. It’s not out of the norm for me to do stuff like this but this many in one week, WOW!

Let me share……….

1. Left the house without shoes. I was fully clothed (thank goodness), had makeup on and something else on besided workout clothes (maybe that’s what threw me off) but left without shoes. I had to turn around and drive back to get shoes after I caught on. You would think the feeling of grass on my feet or pushing the gas pedal with my toes would have clued me in…..nope!

2. I’ve had to wash 1 load of clothes 3 times because I kept forgetting to put them in the dryer and they had that stank. Y’all know what I’m talking about.

3. Met friends for lunch only I went to the wrong location even after we talked about which location we were meeting at. Major fail!

4. I cut my finger pretty bad. I think I need stitches. Kent doesn't so I’m choosing to hope he’s right. My finger is pounding as I type this but it’s my birthday and I want to blog darn it!

5. Put a box of crackers in the fridge.

6. Left the faucet in the kitchen running. I went upstairs and went on with my day. I don’t want to even think about how long it was on before I realized.

7. Went to Target. Shopped. Tried on clothes (with a baby I might add), waited in line, items were bagged and ready to go annnnnnnd I realized I didn’t have my wallet. Asked them to void my order (there were people in line behind me that were super happy that I was holding them up) and hold onto my items while I ran to the car to get my wallet. Went to the car…….no wallet. Put Weston back in the shopping cart went back inside and asked if they could hold it while I ran home “I only live 5 minutes away.” I got the look but was told it should be fine (the should part came with a dirty look). Made it home and could not find my stinking wallet anywhere! Keep in mind all this is going on while I have Weston who many of you know is what we call a needy baby. Loves his mama and hates being away from me…..unless he’s watching his tablet in the care (ac on of course) Decided it would be best to put him back in the car that way I can look hands free. I could have put him down in the house but that would have just turned into a massive fit and I just didn’t have the sanity left for that.  Turned the car on got him all set up with a show (buying a tablet for him has to be the best purchase of 2014). He was happy and I was able to continue my hunt. After looking a little longer I still couldn’t find it and started to think it must have gotten stolen. Oh great! Decided to take a wallet hunt potty break and guess what I found? My wallet in our upstairs bathroom resting on the toilet patter roll holder thing. I have no idea how it got there.

At this point I could care less about running back to Target I was DONE but I got “the look” so I just had to go back and prove them wrong! I know I’m super mature like that. Not to mention I put a lot of work into that purchase between managing Weston while I was shopping and The Great Wallet Hunt of 2014. Coming home with my items would be like coming home with a trophy.  So off we went. Got another cart (3rd one for the day) and waited in line to collect my items. Good news is that they still had them. The clerk told me they had a bet going on if I would come back or not. He bet that I would. His manager bet against me. I told him I was happy to help him win and off we went. See I told you I had to go back!

We have 3 days left in the week so I may need to come back and update my list if anything else happens.

UPDATE:

8. Opened the car door too quickly while I was too close. Why in the world was I that close? The corner of the door scratched my beloved sunglasses and jammed the frames against my face. It freaking hurt! Now one of my lenses has scratch across it.  Boy am I lucky I was wearing glasses though. Maybe I should wrap myself in bubble wrap!

IMG_3520 copy

I’m so ready for my mother-in-law to come home! Not only do we miss her but I’m starting to lose my mind (read above). 

For those who don’t know (umm you should be following along on Instagram then you would know all this stuff) my mother in law watches Weston while I work but  has been unable to watch him for over a month. I knew this was coming but only knew about 2 weeks of it. The other part was a surprise soooooo we were not prepaid. No outside help besides her. Poor Kent has had to adjust his schedule just so I can take a shower. I’ve had to move a few of my shoots which I felt awful about. I now have a pile of work a mile long that will take me all of September to catch up on. So while things are crazy busy right now when my sweet mother-in-law returns things are only going to get even more crazy as I play massive catch up.

With everything there is a lesson to be learned, right?

IMG_1899 copy

Here’s what I’ve taken from this….
1. As much as I say I want to be a full time stay at home mommy. I’ve learned that I don’t. Well I do and I don’t. I want to be with him most of the day but mama needs an outlet. For me this is work. While I get stressed over deadlines and all the other hoopla that comes with running my own business. I’ve learned to have gratitude for my situation.

Honestly I have it pretty good!

I get to do something I love. I’m able to control my schedule and I get to be with Weston as much as I want. He typically goes to my mother-in-law’s for 4 hours a day. I get to work. Hit my refresh button and be mommy again when I pick him up. It’s honestly the best of both worlds! Over the years I’ve lost gratitude for what I do. This has brought it all back. 

2. I appreciated Kent’s mom before (Seriously his dad and mom are awesome. They’re the kind of grandparents you dream up for your children. They love him to pieces and are super involved even with the not so fun stuff. We are so blessed to have them!) but my gratitude has been taken a whole new level. Honestly I would not be able to work, shower, do laundry, pick up our house, wash bottles, or have a second to breathe without her. I know it sounds a little dramatic and yes I can find the time to do those things but then I would never sleep and neither would Kent…….that’s 100% true. Without her I would have to close the photography business doors which would make me sad. They are the glue I tell ya!

While things have been little cray-cray and I’m starting to show sings of losing my mind. Life is good and I love it even the stressful times. Well because the stressful times come with more coffee!

The end.

 

Ps… Kent got me a wristlet wallet for my birthday which is kind of fitting after the whole Target debacle. I sure love him and our Mr. Sweet Cheeks.

Why are we not buddies on Instagram?
Instagram: Kendra.Pryor

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Living Room Gallery Wall

The space above our couch is super awkward. In fact it’s so awkward it’s been empty for as long as we’ve lived in our home…..almost 8 years! I just couldn’t make my mind up, shelves or gallery wall. So there it was blank and lonely.

Until I got word that we had family coming to town; family that had never visited our home. I dug through my “goodie” closet aka the corner of Weston’s closet that holds my random finds and pull out a few things I thought would snaz the wall it up.

IMG_0999 copy

No planning or measuring. That’s too stressful. I just grabbed a hammer and some nails and went to town!

IMG_1025-Edit copy

The H was a flea market find. The yellow frame was Goodwill frame I fixed up with some spray paint and the Kent and Kendra art work is from Esty store. I LOVE everything is their store. I bought a few things for Weston’s nursery and had this done as well hoping I would find a place for it someday. I think it’s kind of perfect in our living room!

IMG_1009 copy

Eeek isn’t nugget so cute. This was from his 6 month shoot which by the way I have not finished editing and he’ll be 1 in a month! Kiddos that have a photographer parent totally get the shaft! Can you see his sweet little teethies? I remember wanting to get his 6 month pictures done asap to capture that sweet smile right there……with those 4 little teeth…..before all the others came it. He now has 8 and is working on 9 and 10. So glad even though it was a busy time and even though I have yet to finish editing them that I made it important to document that sweet smile! 

The fancy dude silhouette was another flea market find I bought hoping to use in Weston’s nursery but couldn’t find a spot for it. I love it so I’m glad it ended up working for this wall.

IMG_1005 copy

The Huie’s sign was a craft project I whipped up while I was preggers. It special to me. I remember painting at the coffee table trying to maneuver over my big belly while I thought about all fun memories that that lead us to where we were “The Huei’s”. Yep this one will be with us for a long time.

The sweet girl picture was a Goodwill find and the Picasso (yes it’s totally real) is from Ikea. What you didn’t know they sale Picasso originals at Ikea? They totally do!

IMG_1052 copy

And there ya have it! Nothing fancy or earth shattering but it’s pretty, it was done on a budget and the awkward wall looks much better!

Okay now onto something a little off topic. Well not totally of topic but I’m switching gears a little.

Do you remember above when I said we had family coming into town which is why I decided to do this? Well it was a very last minute project and I needed something within an hour to fill my empty frames. I did a big no no. Something I tell all my clients not to do. I had some prints done at Costco. Shame shame shame! They were able to get them to me in 30min so I went with it.  Even though I knew I was being bed I was shocked at just how awful the transfer was. Can we say GROSSSSS!

Pro lab print is on the left and Costco is on the right.

IMG_0983 copy

The saturation is way over done. Compare Weston’s feet and face. Among many other things. I edited this image to have a warm (not Costco warm) vintage feel to them. My pro lab print matches my edit perfectly!

Pro lab on the left and Costco on the right.

Compare the skies the contrast and shadows. Nice try Costco but now even close!

IMG_0990 copy

I left the uglies in the the frames just long enough to replace them with prints from my pro lab.

So when your photographer tells you not to use a printing services like Walmart, CVS, or Costco this my friend is why!

However if you do not have access to a pro lab and would like to order from a safe place I highly recommend Mpix.  Nope not affiliated but I’ve run test images though them in the past and have been happy with them. Going though your photographer is always best. You just can’t beat pro lab prints but Mpix works if a pro lab is not an option.

Instagram: Kendra.Pryor

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Special Moments From Our Weekend

I tried typing a few photo descriptions but keep deleting what I type which tells me these sweet photos do all the talking on their own!

A few special moments I captured over the weekend………….

IMG_2800 copy

 

IMG_2784 copy

 

IMG_2803 copy

 

IMG_2823 copy

 

IMG_2767 copy

 

IMG_2769-Edit copy

 

IMG_2840 copy

 

IMG_2859-2 copy

 

IMG_2865 copy

Instagram: Kendra.Pryor