I Heart Halloween!

How To Take a Great Family Photo

I've been working at a portrait studio for a little while now and I've picked up some easy tips for making your session less stressful.

Know Your Expectations
If you're looking for a wall portrait to hang above your fireplace, let the photographer know. He or she can change the camera setting to make sure your image looks good when it is emlarged. You'll get a better quality picture.

Come With Ideas
Do you have an idea for a pose or a background? Have you seen something in a magazine that you'd like to try? Don't be afraid to communicate with the photographer. I was flipping through a magazine the other day and saw an ad for baby lotion where the mom was cradling the baby's head in her hands and it was an over-the-shoulder shot. I can't wait to try it with my own baby.

Take a Step Back
It might be difficult, but you'll get a better picture. If you're somewhere off to the side, trying desperately to make your toddler smile, they'll be looking at you and not the camera. Let the photographer do their job. If they need help, they'll let you know. If you're asked to play peek-a-boo or make a silly face, do so as close to the camera as possible so that even if they're looking at you, it'll seem as though their eyes are focused on the photographer.

Try to Relax
Don't stress about getting the perfect photo. If you're child is not smiling or they're acting goofy, just go with it. Some of the best portraits are those that showcase your child's personality. I love pictures of moments. I just took my girls to get pictures of them in their Halloween costumes and my favorite is one of them looking at each other. Big J is smiling at Little J and it's so sweet and innocent. You want your pictures to have personality so if your photographer wants to take shots of your child's feet or you holding your newborn, let them. If you don't like the picture, you don't have to buy it.

Being Mr. Mom

I need some mommy advice here. I just found out that I have to work next sunday, when I requested off. Not that big of a deal, except Big J has a Halloween party with some of her preschool friends. I won't be able to take her now so I asked my husband and he laughed at me. Yes, he laughed at me. He got pissed, said no, and was like, "yeah right."

He said he wouldn't mind taking Big J if he didn't have Little J. What is it about babies that makes men so completely afraid? Why does bringing the baby make things more complicated?

I get that he won't know anyone and that he'll feel uncomfortable, but this is J's first party. She loves her school friends and is always asking for a playdate with them, but because my husband can't suck it up and take her to the party, she's going to miss out. I may actually ask one of the other moms to take her for me. Isn't that pathetic?

Is it just my husband who is an ass or do the other dads out there laugh at the idea of taking their children to a party? I'm so annoyed. Am I overreacting?

Practice Makes Perfect

A while back I wrote that I got a part time job. I absolutely love it! Photography is something I've always wanted to do, but I never took the steps to learn. In college, I got an internship at a magazine and have been writing ever since. It was only a short while ago that I rediscovered my love of photography. I've always enjoyed taking pictures and I collect photo books, but it never really went beyond that.

A few months back I was looking at pictures of me when I was little. I came across some pictures that I had taken when I was probably a tween. They were of my dolls. I posed them, set up a background and a scene and took a picture. I'm a dork, I know, but it made sense. That's what I should be doing.

It couldn't have come at a better time. I was feeling lost and depressed and I was craving something, anything to do that would bring a little joy back to my life. Not that I wasn't happy being a mom or a wife, but I didn't have anything that was all my own. I was too busy making sure everyone else was happy, that I forgot about myself.

When I started my job, I felt so insecure. Everyone else has photography experience and mine was limited to snapshots of my children. A little time has passed and I am feeling better about my abilites. I think I have an eye for taking pictures, I just have to master the technical side.

Another part of the process I had no clue about was enhacing and editing pictures. Trolling around the web I found a wonderful blog written by a photographer named Tracey Clark. You should definitely check it out. Anyway, I've been learning so much. I read about Picasa and immediately went and downloaded it. You can add all kinds of fun effects to your pictures. Go give it a try!

Here's what I came up with.

Writing Motherhood

I picked up this wonderful new book called "Writing Motherhood." It's a practical guide to recording motherhood and all its ups and downs.

The first step is starting a Mother's Notebook, which I think is a fabulous idea. I'm the type of person who never really did well with traditional journals. I'd start one and then abandon it because the pressure was just too much. It was overwhelming for me to stare at all those blank pages and think I needed to fill them.

The writer's notebook is not a journal. Author Lisa Garrigues says there are definitely similarities. Both are about self-discovery and self-expression. However, a Mother's Notebook is about telling stories, and as moms, we've got plenty of those.

Whether it's a tale about your terrible toddler or a sweet moment with your newborn, a Mother's Notebook is a place to tell those stories and, at the same time, sharpen your writing skills. It can be a place to document your child's everyday life from first words to report cards and silly conversations. More important than that, Garrigues says, the Mother's Notebook allows us to tell our own stories. "It's a means of understanding who we are as mothers."

I've just started reading it and I can't wait to go to the store and pick out my Mother's Notebook.

If you're a writer or aspire to be one, you should definitely pick up this book. Read more about it here.

Trading Milk For Beer

My daughter just asked me if she could have something to drink. I told her she could have whatever she wanted - juice, water, or milk.

Her response?

"Not beer?"

This child cracks me up!!!!