Diamond Fields Films Commercial

Here's a commercial I did for my company. I took it from the footage I got from the weddings I filmed. I gives me warm fuzzies, so I thought I'd share it.

See You Next Fall

Lately I've become obsessed with Photoshop. So I've been going through my old photos that have been stashed away and gave them a little make-over. So this entry will be an illustrated blog.

When I think of the fall I think of warm colors.  I love warm colors and the cold crisp air this season brings. There’s nothing quite like it. I love taking my daughter out for walks and just feeling at peace because my surroundings are so beautiful. I want to soak them up and embrace them like this.

          Around Halloween I go back to my roots to a special place few of us are privileged to know. It’s a little place called Apple Hill in Northern California. This orchard has been around since before I was in Kindergarten, which is surprising considering how many folks have up and moved out of the Golden State in my day. 


            Apple Hill is the place you go to take your kids and enjoy the outdoors without having to campout. There’s a playground, a fishing hole, a place to ride ponies, a market to buy those delicious orchard apples, the Fudge Factory and you can also enjoy a yummy sandwich and scrumptious raw apple cider.

            Back when I was a wee lass Apple Hill had acres of pumpkins ready to be plucked. I’d roam free searching for the perfect pumpkin to carve for Halloween (and believe me, I took my pumpkin carving very seriously). I’d always try to find a pumpkin with a perfect scar, so my Jack-o-lantern would be more Halloween-like. I can’t explain why, but I would check out Halloween children’s books and figure out what kind of face I was going to carve that year. And I always looked forward to scouring through those acres of pumpkins at Apple Hill. I remember one year we made the trip up there to that special orchard and BAM! No more acreage of pumpkins to scour. There was just a tiny corner with a few pumpkins already picked sitting on stacks of hay.  My childhood joy was shot that day, but even so, Apple Hill still holds a very special place in my memories. 

            When I got older we used to go to Apple Hill around Christmas to one of the tree farms and select the perfect pine to celebrate the holiest of Holidays (well, it may be equal with Easter, if the you take the giant special bunny out of the equation). So Apple Hill somehow found its way back into my life.

            It seems like fall passes into winter too quickly. The leaves turn and then WHAPAP! They fall to the ground, loose their lustrous color and everything dies or at least looks dead. Then you know winter is here and it’s too far to count how many days till summer comes again. If you couldn’t tell I’m not a fan of winter, or rather I’m not a fan of the cold. A little chill is nice; a frozen white winter turns me into an ice sickle (accept I don’t want be outside or even leave the house). I become the winter hermit. Christmas aside, the cold isn’t enjoyable to me. There’s the anticipation for Christmas, which is almost better than actually celebrating Christmas. After I open my gifts, it’s all over. All that’s left is three more months of blistering coldness, two if I’m lucky. Then its allergy season, and then YAY! Summer’s back! Pull out the bikes and the hiking shoes. I’m going outside again! Until then I’ll be your friendly neighborhood hermit. See you next fall!

 



Too Adorable

Okay, this is just too cute to not share. This video was taken when she was only 6 weeks old, she apparently already knows she's adorable...

Vine videos are all the rage these days, so that was my first one. I'm sure there will be plenty more in the future. If your asking yourself what a vine video is, its a 6 second video that is usually funny or interesting. I'll go ahead as say this one is both. Haha.

Refurbished Hobby to Capture that Cutie Pie

My little girl is 7 weeks old this week, which means I basically haven’t slept in 7 weeks. It’s not all bad though, sometimes she’ll sleep for four hour stretches and its luxury. Other times she wakes up every hour and wants to eat.  That’s pretty much when I feel like I’m being tortured.  The thing is she’s sooo dang cute I can’t even be mad about it.  Being a new mom has its ups and downs. No sleep would be the downside, but the upside is when my daughter looks up at me with those big little eyes and talks… And by talking I mean cooing and gurgling at me. It’s the cutest thing to watch. She’s inspired a new hobby in me, and by new hobby I mean old hobby taken out, dusted off and ironed out. Photography is a lot different today than it was when I was a kid. Twenty years ago photography to me was taking my box 35mm camera and snapping photos of the sunset. And I'd never know how the photo's would turn out until the film got developed. I'm sure my daughter will one day respond "What? You had to wait 2-5 days to look at your pictures?" Today photography is all about Photoshop and digital image clarity. My camera today gives much better image clarity than my old 35mm did back when I was a kid. And it's more fun to mess around with Photoshop than spend hours in a black room developing photos and hoping whatever I shot would turn out great (not that I spent time in a black room, but I had my fantasies that one day I would).

My daughter has become the subject, or rather the victim of all my rigorous picture taking.  She’s now used to the clicking of the camera and actually gives me smiles and coos on cue, instead of looking strangely at this weird black thing in my hands. The problem with being the photo taker is there’s never any pictures of me or even my whole family. So it’s awesome when a third party volunteers to take some portraits of all of us (thanks Trudy!). It’s also nice because my husband complains less when someone else is taking the photos. Usually when I’m the one taking the pictures he usually mutters something about he had to go and ‘marry a film major photography person.’ I had fun playing around with Photoshop and was really happy with the results. Their professional quality and I may just blow all my savings on printing these puppies out. Their way good, I’ve missed my calling in life, or rather… may have just found it. Trudy took the first photo below, and I took the liberty of photoshopping it (the second photo). And yes, there's nothing sexier than a man holding a baby!

BEFORE

AFTER

Its amazing what digital photos allow you to do! Below is a quick hue edit that adds a little something more to the photo. Granted not all photo's look great with this effect.

Below are a few of the photos I’ve taken, as you can see she is just too adorable to not photograph. I won’t post too many at the risk of being one of those parents who can’t stop showing photos of her kid to the general public. Haha. But these are my favorites of the thousands I’ve taken of her already. The first is just the raw photo, no edits. The second I made the colors a little softer.

     
       Another thing I’m great at is putting pictures to music for special occasions like weddings or other random reasons for needing to put photos to music. It makes it fun to watch and creates a mood to go with the photos. Here is just a little tidbit of what the videos look like. 

All in all my creative side is coming out now that I have more spare time to think between the feedings and diaper changes (naturally!) I'd love to start working on projects for hire, its something I love to do and its real easy to photo shop with a sleeping babe in your arms. It just takes one hand! I have been learning to do a lot of things one-handed lately :)

The Ninja is Loose!!!!!!

They say you forget the pains of labor once you see your beautiful baby. I’d like to correct that statement; its not that you forget, its that once they hand you the most precious being in the world, you know the pain was a small price for such a beautiful bundle.

            I never really put much thought about what it would be like once I became a mother, probably because I am mothering by nature. Now that I have my own precious little ninja I know how much I love it, and how much I love her. I love the little sounds she makes when she sleeps, her squeals when she’s frustrated, and even her hysterical cries when she’s hungry. I’d always thought before I’d had a baby that I’d wish the newborn days would pass swiftly, but the reality is I cherish every minute I have with her. I want to hold her in my arms forever and kiss her kicking feet. And yes, now that she’s out of me I laugh when those little ninja feet go crazy. Its strange to think she's only been around a short time, cuz it feels like she's always been a part of our family.

            On the recovery side of things, I never realized having a baby is actually a trauma to your body. I ignorantly thought that it’s just natural and normal and that maternity leave was to adjust to the sleepless nights the baby’s schedule brings. Well, it is natural, but there needs to be recovery time for mama and baby needs to build up her immunity so she has a fighting chance in our disease riddled world. Squeezing a child out of you takes awhile to recover from. I will get a spurt of energy and do a load of laundry, and then have to go lie down for a few hours to recover. This is why I’m super grateful for my awesome mama who flew out to help with the baby, and also managed to act as a merry maid and meal service, as well as a home organizer and baby expert. I may just have to hire a maid after she leaves, although hired help couldn’t hold a candle to the incredible changes she’s done, or the priceless advice she gave. Gotta love mamas, we are quite awesome because we inherited it from the mothers who came before us. 

Nearing the end - Can't come soon enough!

I finally made it to full term. I know technically this still means I have 3 weeks left, but I'm not going by that date, in part to keep my sanity and the other part to give myself some relief that its over soon! Baby girl is restless and very uncomfortable which makes mama restless and uncomfortable. Her not liking my cramped little womb makes me think she's not going to be a fan of swaddling. She wants her feet to kick freely, like any ninja would.
     Some may find it odd or surprising that I'm still working. I'm either a tough chick or just completely nuts. I think I worry people at work when I waddle around with my massive baby bump. My co-workers can't seem to remember the due date, cuz they fill the need to ask every time they see me. I should tape a calendar to my belly with that date highlighted, just to see if it helps them remember.  It cracks me up when they see me coming down the hallway, they step to the side and smash their bodies against the wall, like I really need that extra 4 feet to get by them.  Really, thanks for the thought, but I'm not that huge people!  I consider it a blessing I am still able to work and not on bed-rest. I think I would have gone insane if that happened.
     I don't sleep much these days. Between the writhing child inside of me and not being able to find a comfortable enough position to lay in... and not to mention having to pee every hour on the hour.  I just can't seem to stay asleep. I have to get up rock baby girl to sleep, clean, stretch and read a book. I repeat in this order till baby falls asleep and I get tired enough to lay down. I blame the brain being affected by all these extra hormones. That chemical that gives you vivid dreams while pregnant, also seems to like to continue whatever preview I saw on TV or continue the episode of whatever show I just watched. My mind will continue playing the episode. I've predicted the winner of Master Chef, who the killer is in Whodunnit, and even rewrote the ending of August Rush since I didn't find the ending very satisfying. Its the default setting on my brain, I can't seem to turn off. If I were a scientist researching the cure for cancer my brain would have no-doubt solved it by now.
     I have become quite the spectacle at the pool. All eyes focus on my giant belly when I walk in. I've outgrown my towels, so I can't really wrap it around myself, so I just waddle in proudly and swim a few laps. Sometimes the kids at the pool ask if I'm pregnant. Yea, kids. This ain't no bee sting! And when I start wadding in the water, one kids shouted "You're baby's gonna get wet!" Too late, she's already there, little one.  She's already having a swim party in my belly.  The thing I love about swimming the most is its the perfect anti-gravity device to help me forget about my unproportioned body and pregnancy pains.
     What I'm really excited about when its all over is being able to eat cupcakes again. That and massive quantities of pasta and rice. I have gestational diabetes, and what that translates to is, for the duration of my pregnancy I have to limit my glucose intake because my placenta give off too much glucose and my body isn't absorbing it like it should. Which means all that glucose goes to the baby, making her at risk for not only being too big a baby, but it could cause her blood sugar to drop too low when we cut that umbilical chord. There's no better motivation to keep to a diet than this. I've always had issues with diets, but I've not had any issues sticking to one for the baby's well-being. Awww, aren't I a super mom? Its okay, just agree with me :)
     But I am mostly excited to get this little Kung Fu Panda out of me and in my arms, its the way it should be. I have so many clothes to dress her in, I want to start now! I have a months worth of diapers on standby and a bag all packed ready for the hospital trip. The car seat is already strapped in, the crib and bassinet are prepped. All i need now is a baby. So, baby come out. We want to meet you!

Something to Talk About - 3rd Trimester Woes

     I have a healthy baby, what that really translates to is... I have a kickboxing ninja baby, who I feel one day might punch its way out of me like the Incredible Hulk. In all my years of being a woman, I have never heard a pregnant woman utter these words before. Its not like I got pregnant super young and didn't have a chance to hear this before, I mean, I am 30 years old for crying out loud! So let me be the one to educate those out there reading this that it hurts to be pregnant.
     When I asked my doctor if it were possible for my baby to kick its way out of me, she said (once she stopped laughing) that this has never happened before in her career, and then went on to say its actually a good thing because it means the baby is healthy. Okay yes, I have a healthy baby, and I am grateful for that. I really am! But how come if this is so normal, I've never heard about it before? I mean, the first day my baby girl kicked what felt like 2 - 3 inches out from my stomach, I kept imagining myself lying unconscious in a parking lot somewhere, with a baby arm or leg sticking out of my belly like an alien. Someday's I come home from work and just have to lay down and do nothing else for the rest of the day. And when people ask me how I'm doing I just want to laugh and say "do you really want to know, or are you just being polite?"
     When my doctor asks me at my appointments if I've been exercising regularly I want to protest and ask: "And how exactly would that be possible? Would YOU like to hit the trails while someone repeatedly kicks you in the gut AND ribs, all while hanging onto you?" I don't even touch on the constant leg cramps and how easily I get winded from walking from my car into work(especially on a hot day). Not to mention the extra 35 lbs I have gained, makes it hard to not only get in and out of cars, but in and out of bed as well.. or putting on shoes.. pants... socks... etc.
     At church I teach the 11 and 12 year old girls, who like to ask me questions about my pregnancy. One of these girls asked if it tickled when the baby kicked me, because that's what her aunt told her... my response was: "No, I wouldn't describe it as tickling." But I really wanted to add "and your aunt should be shot for telling you such a bold face lie."
     I don't know if its the hormones or what but sometimes I just want to punch people in the face. Like, when they ask how my pregnancy is going, I want to respond "Bite me! Non-pregnant one!" And when they try to offer advice like "You should really start parenting your baby now and teach her not to kick you so much." I want to slap them in the face and say "She's a fetus, she doesn't understand!" And when they say "oh well, just rub her calmly and she'll stop kicking you so much." My response is usually: "Yea, I do that all the time and it just makes her kick harder and more frequently." (Tickling seems to work, though :)
     I get that its a great miracle to be pregnant and I am so excited to finally get this writhing ninja out of me, so I can say "there, now kick all you want, baby girl!" For all those who have already been through the 3rd trimester woes, I congratulate you on surviving and ask that you might want to spread the word that it sucks being pregnant sometimes. Who knows... if all girls knew about this... there might be a lot less teen pregnancy :)

Pregnancy = Disability?

Pregnancy is like being temporarily disabled with varying symptoms. I can't lift anything without harming myself or the baby. I can't walk too far without my feet outgrowing my shoes. I can't get up to fast, or shift too quickly for several reasons. I feel like a koala bear, which, if you didn't know, move very slowly. I also have grown to hate speed bumps, and I think there should be a sort of gently lifting bra for my enormous belly.
     I also have to drink my weight in water (practically), then I have to run to the bathroom to relieve said water. I can't stand for long periods of time. I can't eat too much, can't get too hot, can't run at all (and I miss running!) According to the doctors this is all normal. So whoopi-freakin-doo to that. I once read a list of things that would change if men were the ones to get pregnant. Some of the many improvements would be that morning sickness would become obsolete, there would be a cure for stretch marks, and maternity leave would last from 6 months of the pregnancy till your child was 3 years old. I'm all for these glorious improvements.
     It would make my life easier if by just becoming pregnant, I would automatically be eligible for disability. That way I wouldn't have to worry about showing up to work everyday, so we can afford rent and groceries. I consider myself a pretty conservative person, and I don't think that this is a totally ridiculous request. Especially for ladies like me, who don't handle pregnancy very well. They say that you forget all about the pains and aches of pregnancy when its over, well that's fantastic for the future, but for now, I still remember very clearly.
     On an up note, I love my little kicking critter growing inside me. No I don't call her my little nudger, she's doesn't nudge, she makes her presence known, and I love her for that. I can't wait till I get to lose sleep taking care of her. I can't wait to see her adorable little face and kiss her little kicking feet. I'm ready for these next three months to fly by so I can hold my little critter gently in my arms and soften her tiny yet loud and vocal cries. Until then, I suppose all I can do is endure and wait.

My eggo is preggo!!!

I know this is a weird way to announce to the general public, but its true! I'm pregnant. I began this blog shortly after I discovered that my eggo was prego. That being said, this blog is a shout out for all those ladies out there who have either given birth or are currently pregnant. You woman are goddesses!!! Man, oh, man it is impossible to truly prepare for pregnancy. The amount of changes my body has gone through already, is outrageous. The first 5 weeks were a breeze, the only thing I dealt with was feeling tired. Then came week 6 and 7, then came the morning sickness, or in my case the constant dry heaving and nausea. And the dog-like ability to smell doesn't help with my weak stomach.  The sight or smell of creamy or greasy foods sends me running towards the bathroom. Which when you live in America, is everywhere! I had no appetite to eat, and what I could eat, wasn't very much, I often thought of how would I survive the next 9 months without checking into a hospital.  I know the baby would be fine and take what it needed, but how would I keep from being malnourished and stay hydrated? It was rough going there for awhile and very difficult to go to work every day when all I could eat was crackers. And trying to eat during my lunch breaks was another challenge. I'd eat a half a cup of food and start dry heaving again. It seemed my reaction to everything was dry heaving. I got hot, I dry heaved. I got stressed I'd dry heave. I had to learn how to adjust my diet to avoid the milky, creamy and greasy. I pretty much felt like I had an eating disorder. I'd shop like I had Celiac, and I felt super weak all the time.  I had seriously considered quitting my job, and I had a desk job. A desk job! How do single mothers do it? How are you supposed to support yourself if you feel uncomfortable, weak and absolutely ill all the time? I rested as much as I could, but it wasn't enough, I was stressed all the time due to the fact that I couldn't eat anything! When week 9 and 10 came around, I could eat again!! YAY! It was a miracle!! I was starving and had lost 5 pounds, which the doctor said was normal. Uh thanks, doc. I still couldn't eat greasy or acidic things ...like tomatoes or lemonade... yeah not joking here. And eating out became an undesirable thing. I wouldn't know if I could eat what I ordered, until I took my first bite. “Uh, waiter? Can I have a sample of everything before I order here? Thanks!” We can call it the prego sample platter. I think it’s my best idea yet! My husband does the best he can to comfort me, and sometimes I have to laugh when he puts on “What to Expect When Your Expecting” to help sympathize with me. He cue's it up to the part where Emily Banks character is ranting in front of a baby convention that “Being pregnant sucks. I have no control over my emotions or my body!!” It’s true. I've lost count on how many commercials I've teared up over, and don't even get me started on all the movies I've cried over, movies I've never cried over before the hormones kicked in... When week 11 came things got weird. I developed an aversion to toothpaste. And I'm a frequent brusher! I now have to brush carefully or chew gum. Gag reflexes are the worst! But alas I've just moved into my 2^nd trimester, and from what I hear it’s the best one... you know, besides the pure joy I'll get when it’s all over and I get to hold my little bundle of joy in my arms. And, I think once it’s over I will eat nothing but sushi and seafood, on top of a whole large pizza. I've made the decision to intentionally get fat after all this because I've been so deprived of food! Oh well, that’s life I suppose. Until my next blog!