I haven’t blogged in awhile, but mostly that’s because I’m crushingly busy.

Photography
I’m pretty sure I didn’t post any pictures of the wedding I flew out to California for.  I had lots of fun out there with Teresa and Jase (and extraneously Jenny and Steve) and it was good for me to photograph the days up to and after the ceremony/party.  We even got to do a Trash The Dress on the coast which was really good practice and a ton of fun.

I think weddings will always be a learning experience for me because there are so many different ways that things can play out and how people act that it’s almost impossible to plan for the same type of picture for everyone.  You can always try, but sometimes those differences make a better picture.

I tried a new model in Mirinda in October.  We learned that a bright sunset does not go well with shadows and sun in the eyes, but the sky color is killer with the polarizer in the right place.  We also tried some tricks with the studio, and I’ve gotten a different experience with Photoshop editing with those shots.

I spent nearly 24 hours photographing the birth of my first cousin once removed in November.  I had not yet experienced a live birth so it was both a great experience as a photographer and again as a cousin, friend and future potential mommy-ness (!!).  Soon I’ll get to take photos of the new baby at home settled in.

Last weekend (December 8th) I had a photo session with Leslie.  We did her maternity photos.  I can’t stress enough how much I love working with this girl, and not just because I’m trying to be nice.  She is so fun and even though she “works it” for the camera, she has a great imagination and an artist’s eye.  I think part of it is that she knows what looks good, but then playfully tries new poses to mix it up.  I rarely ever have to point out poses for her or to have her repeat a pose for long.  We had some excellent shots and I’m really excited to edit them.  With her permission I will repost the ones she OKs.

Work
Same crap I will always talk about.  Blackboard is always acting like a big baby and although I’ve been the admin for 2 years on it, sometimes it just doesn’t make any sense to me.  It feels like I’m lost and the fact that it is constantly going down or screwing up and on top of that support is close to nil, it makes me just want to scratch my eyes out.  One day everything will be perfect but I’m not going to hold my breath for that day.  Also, NOT HAPPY I have to work over the entire holiday break.  Please please can I get out of it? 

Life
I have been putting my Palm to good use and put a calorie tracker on it.  I have to either save the packaging for everything I eat or find it online to put in all the nutrients.  It’s helpful that it also tracks my workouts and mood so that I can get a good overall picture of my weight loss goals.  Which brings me to the last topic of

Wedding Planning
I finally bought the dress.  I really didn’t want to buy it from Posie Patch which I have outlined previously, but I had no choice.  I did give other bridal shops a chance but either nothing had everything I wanted, it just wasn’t my style or it was way out of my price range.  I don’t think I’ll ever have a dress that is 100% perfect and I can find a few faults with this one, but overall it has everything I asked for (p.s. *this* girl isn’t having a white wedding).

I agonized over getting the dress size I can wear right now, or getting the smaller size in anticipation of my weight loss.  After what felt like 15 minutes I finally let Mirinda talk me into the smaller one.  I feel like if I keep up with my calorie counter and going to the gym 4 times a week like I have been, I should be down to my high school weight by February.

Within the last month we’ve narrowed our guest list, finalized the invitations we wanted, bought the dress, planned and bought our honeymoon and smaller things on our to-do list.  Well, whether Andy admits it or not, I pretty much do all the planning and then ask for his opinion.  Our opinions are pretty much the same so it’s usually ok, but really…  Sometimes I feel like I just want to have the parents, brothers, sisters, Chata and Andy be the only ones with all the stress over money and crap that goes on (no offense to any friends not mentioned).  But then I think about how friends and family really shape who you are as a person, and I would love to have them all around us having a good time.

It seems like we’re having a much bigger wedding than we intially wanted, so we may or may not pare down the wedding party and total guests invited.  I guess it just depends on how we feel in the next month or two.  Honestly if we do, it’s not a slight on anyone, it’s just that we are well aware on how much a wedding costs and to put the burden of gifts,  bridesmaids’ dresses and groomsmen tuxes on people sometimes seems a little unfair.  Mirinda tries to convince me that it is MY wedding and I can do what I want, but you all know me, I aim to please. 

Well I guess that’s all.  Look for a Year in Pictures whenever I can get another chance to settle down for a blog again.  Happy holidays everyone.