This weeks theme over at i ♥ faces is reflection, as in the reflection of a face.
I love this picture because to me, the reflection in the mirror looks like an older version of Abby. Kind of like those shots were a little girl looks in the mirror and sees a grown up bride, except there is no Photoshop magic involved here.
I took it about a year ago and it is still one of my all time favorite shots.
So I have been doing a fair amount of complaining around here lately, no? The weather, the kids driving me crazy, the economy, blah, blah, blah.
So in an effort to focus on the positive, I am shamelessly stealing the idea of a happy list from my always fabulous friend, the shoe obsessed one.
On my happy list today:
A child free dinner with my husband comprised entirely of wine, bread, cheese and other no cook goodies from Whole Foods.
This picture. Just looking at it makes me happy.
A brand new tube of Dior Show mascara. Best. Mascara Ever.
Happy hour starts at 5 pm tonight. Have I mentioned that I have the world's best neighbors? I can think of no better way to end the day than a glass of wine with friends while the neighborhood kids run wild.
A fabulous photo session yesterday with the most adorable one year old. There is really nothing like doing what you love!
A forecast that includes multiple days of 80 degree weather! Yoo Hoo! Those girls of mine, the ones that were begging to go to the beach last week? We are so there. In their new Gymboree sundresses. Expect to see pictures.
So there you have it. My happy list for today. Which truly only scratches the surface of the most superficial things I have to be happy for, in addition to the amazing husband, two healthy girls and food on the table that I take for granted on a daily basis.
For a couple of months now, I have been admiring all of the wonderful and creative entries each week over at I ♥ Faces and, finally, I have decided to join the fun.
This week's theme is self portraits. The rules are that you must take the photo and you must be holding the camera when you take it (no tripods).
As the family photographer, I am rarely in pictures myself so I thought it would be fun to take a shot of myself and my girls to enter in the kids category. I originally planned to do them laying in the grass but even in the shade, even on an overcast day, the sky was to bright so we ended up taking this shot inside on the bed.
As anyone who has ever taken a hand held self portrait knows, they are very much hit or miss. I took about 30 shots and this one turned out to be my favorite. I like that the three of us are smiling real smiles and that the focus is not sharp, adding a feeling of motion and emotion. It just feels like us on any given day.
I decide that a twenty minute pilates workout might help energize me for the day. Twenty minutes isn't too long for a five and almost three year old to play nicely, right?
20 minutes later
My bed is torn apart, both girls are screeching, one of my curtains is tied to a chair and the rocking chair containing both screeching girls has just tipped over.
Yelling and two time outs follow.
It is going to be a long week, my friends...
And did I mention that my husband took the day off today and went to the Red Sox game? Let me say that again. A day off. Heh.
*************** If you do happen to be looking for something to entertain the kids with for an hour or so, I would highly recommend THE BEST CAT VIDEO YOU'LL EVER SEE . Go ahead, chick on it. You may even get a couple of laughs out of it the first time you watch it. The 50th time? Not so much. But whatever you do, DO NOT click on the related video of a cat on a toilet which turns out to be footage of a cat actually using the toilet and then accidentally falling in. Your kids will decide this is THE MOST HI-LAR-I-OUS thing EVER and beg and plead to watch it again and again. Until you find a cat farting on the toilet. Then they will be torn as to which one is THE MOST HI-LAR-I-OUS thing EVER and you will officially be the worst parent ever.
Back when I was pregnant with baby number two I first heard the magic numbers. When they are three and five years old, life will get easier. When they are three and five they will both be real people. When they are three and five you will be able to travel without a truck load of special gear. When they are three and five they will play so well together.
...three and five... three and five...
Three and five seems like a lifetime away when you are chasing a two year old as you bounce a cranky newborn, all on five hours per night of sleep. Three and five is hard to imagine when getting yourself, a constantly nursing, sleeping or pooping newborn and a defiant, potty training two year old out of the house on time for a ballet class is a monumental accomplishment. Three and five is hard to imagine when just making it to the end of the day is a monumental accomplishment.
And yet...
Abby is now five. Next month Claire turns three.
Three and five.
Today my mother suggested we take the girls to the zoo and the park, so I tossed an extra diaper in my camera bag and off we went.
No stroller. No toys. No bottles. No special food. No extra outfits. No burp cloths. No sippy cups.
But really, what is most notable about this trip is that nothing notable happened. No meltdowns. No drama. Nothing blogable at all really.
Just a couple of little girls at the zoo.
It was... easy.
We arrived.
We laughed at silly monkeys and stinky elephants.
At lunch time, each girl happily sat down and ate a Zoo kids meal, agreeing to a trade when one wanted more fries and the other wanted more nuggets.
As we passed by the gift shop, I asked the girls if they wanted to each pick one thing to buy with their Easter money. Abby picked goo with a giraffe in it. Claire picked a cat. We paid. No drama. No meltdowns.
We saw some more animals.
We rode the carousel.
Played on the playground.
Threw rocks in the Japanese Garden.
No drama. No meltdowns.
A day of fun that was actually fun.
Sure having grandma along helped, but still... we have come a long, long way since those early days.
I would say three and five is looking pretty good.
from right to left: Grandma, Claire pouting (she no longer smiles for pictures, she pouts),
So I did it. An entire year, 365 days, documented in pictures.
Did I miss some days? Absolutely. Several times throughout the year there were days when I just had absolutely no inspiration or desire to pick up the camera. Or I did, but the pictures were so boring or just plain bad that I could not bring myself to post them. Thus, my Project 365 began on March 5, 2008 and ended on April 5, 2009.
That said, doing this project absolutely inspired me and changed the way I take pictures. I have come to love documenting the little details of our day to day life. I got my first SLR camera in my twenties, and began taking pictures like mad when my first daughter was born, but generally I photographed occasions, with people posed and dressed nicely.
When you take a picture a day, you wind up with a lot of pictures of your kids dirty and/or in pajamas doing lots of ordinary everyday things. And strangely enough, these are the pictures that I have come to love the most. Yes, I will still do the posed shots from time to time. In fact, I have big plans to get some nice shots of my girls looking clean and pretty in their Easter dresses this week. But I also hope to continue documenting the day to day reality, because now, looking back, I am very glad to have these details documented in pictures.
I also learned soooomuch about my camera over the course of the year. In fact, I recently bought a shiny new Nikon D90 and two new lenses, a 50mm 1.8 and a 18-200 mm, both of which I love.
Prior to starting this project, I shot most of my pictures in Auto or maybe, maybe, one of the program modes like Portrait or Sport. Spending so much time with my camera with no particular pressure to get a great shot of a special event really helped me to learn exactly how Shutter Speed, Aperature and ISO work together. Finally, I GET IT. I feel like I have made great progress as a photographer.
And editing? A year ago I had no idea how to use Photoshop and now I could not live with out it.
It is funny, but after a year, taking a picture a day has become a habit. Sunday was my last official day, but I just automatically think about what I am going to get a picture of each day. And I do hope to continue to document our day to day life, maybe not with a picture every single day, but pretty close.
So to anyone who is looking for a way to grow as a photographer I would definitely recommend that you start your own Project 365. Now. Just do it. You will not regret it.
This question seems to be coming up a lot recently. At the pediatrician's office, in the mist of questions about my husband's occupation and the status of our smoke detectors, the nurse caught me off guard with "And what do you do?".
On the Kindergarten registration form there was a nice neat little box next to my name for occupation.
And tonight after books, as Abby drifted off to sleep, she asked me a series of questions about our friends and neighbors. What does she do? What about her? What about her Dad? What about her Dad?
And then, "Mommy, what is your job?"
"Well," I answered, "My biggest job is being your Mommy, but sometimes people also pay me to take pictures because I am pretty good at taking pictures."
With that she gave me a big smile and drifted off to sleep.
So what am I, anyway?
A wife. A mother. An aspiring photographer. A perfectionist. A pretty damn good cook. And if you are my daughters new kindergarten teacher, I am a stay at home mom that is here for my daughter anytime she needs me.
