Monday, April 6, 2009

From SAHM to Working Mom

I have been a SAHM (stay at home mom) for two and a half years now. Oh, I have done odd jobs, helping out my aunt in her business on occasion; shampooing carpets; washing windows; grooming dogs (or cats, depending on the need,) for some extra money for the household, but nothing that would even remotely qualify as a working mom.

As of this weekend, I am a SAHM no more.

My extremely talented sister in law Amy Parsons is a wedding photographer, and I get to be her second shooter. Marty keeps cracking jokes about me being the second shooter on the grassy knoll. (Get it? JFK? Yeah, I know, it's dumb.) Weirdo.

Anyway.

I did a few weddings with Amy last year, and am really just learning the ropes in photography. I did photography in school and I was a photographer for JC Penney Portrait Studios for a while. The studio thing really didn't count since everything was automatic, and back in school everything was so different. Digital brings a lot of flexibility, but with that comes a lot to learn. My first wedding with Amy, she handed me her Nikon D200, set it to manual and told me to figure it out. Really, that is the best way to learn and I hope I have been improving with each wedding.

I had a blast getting back into it, luckily this first wedding was just around the corner from our house so I was able to run home to nurse Drew a few times. I was exhausted by the end of the day, and so was Marty, as this was his first day with all four kids. I don't think they understood that Daddy needed them on their best behavior, and they gave him a hard time. He did well though, 'cuz he is super-dad.

My second venture (since I am an idiot and cannot limit myself to just one thing) is starting a business with my best friend, Teresa. We have been talking about it for years, but have been alternating being pregnant for a while. Since neither one of us plans on any more kids, we thought we'd give it a go. We make beaded bridal bouquets, boutonnieres, jewelry, garland, wine glass charms, and anything else we can think of. We got together yesterday and sat in the beautiful sunshine, watched the kids play, and did our crafting. I will post some pictures of our product as I get some. The kids were great, and the day would have been darn near perfect if it were not for my hubby's allergies that came in full bloom and made him miserable. Seriously, his eyes were so red and swollen he looked like he was high as a kite and unable to breathe. Poor guy did not have a great weekend.

I am loving this since the beads are something I can do after the kid go to bed, and the photography is on the weekends when Marty is home to take care of the kids. And, photography involves talking to grown-ups, and beading is with my best friend. Yay!

So there you have it. Last week a SAHM, this week a mother of four under five, entrepreneur, and photographer. Oh, and blogger. Can't forget that one!

3 comments:

JoEll said...

i nominated you for mommy of the year. go to my blog and check it out

Paging Doctor Mommy said...

I've been reading your blog for awhile now, but I've never left a comment. You are always good for a laugh!

Hopefully the fact that I just nominated you for a blog award will make up for my non-commenting status. Check out my latest post to see what you've earned for being such a creative blogger! And I promise to leave more comments from now on!

Anonymous said...

CONGRATULATIONS! And weekend work is the BEST! :) Enjoy beading - I do x-stitch and needlework and all sorts of other things.
:)