24 Mar
A Little Bit of The Latest
This is one of those weeks where I open up my calendar and to-do list and feel my heart begin to race as I see how much needs to be done. How do you manage your stress during those time periods? I have a playlist of songs with a fast beat that help me dance around and calm down a little bit. (I’m listening to Daft Punk by Pentatonix as I type this.) Why the escalating stress levels? It’s tax filing season, the time where I curse Jenna Cole and self-employment and wonder why I persist in working for myself (then I file and it’s all over and I love it again).
Also, this Thursday and Friday I’m doing preschool pictures for T1′s preschool. They have two locations, and 120 kids between all of the classes. I’m finalizing my paperwork and plans, and preparing to overdose on coffee so I can bounce around like a maniac for several hours trying to get kids to flash the perfect smile into my camera so their parents will feel they absolutely have to have the shots I present. This past weekend I assembled the backdrop supplement that I invented and I’m really excited about how it’s all going to come together. Here’s a little glimpse into what it’s going to look like, though the actual photos won’t be backlit by the sun, will have a gray backdrop, and won’t have kids with messy faces (I’m hiring someone specifically for messy face and hair patrol!).
Normally I might not be able to share photos showing the final result, but since T1 is one of the subjects I’ll be able to share his. I have an appointment with an endocrinologist this afternoon to have my thyroid levels tested (thanks to Courtney of Sweet C’s Designs for being an awesome friend and pushing me to pursue this further) and after that appointment I plan to head to the outlet mall to buy T1 a new outfit just for school pictures. Normally I wouldn’t bother, but since I’m taking them and know they are going to be fantastic, I think it makes sense to splurge a little bit on a new outfit for him. I’m justifying the cost by saying it’s the money I would have spent buying the prints if someone else was doing his portraits. 
It’s been awhile since I’ve talked about the day-to-day stuff going on in my life. I miss this. Blogging time is over now though, time to wade back into the 2013 Tax Checklist my accountant sent me.
Also:
I'm a farm-raised almost-crunchy stroller-pushing picture-taking lifestyle-blog-writing gastronomy-obsessed divine-seeking thrift-store-combing cheese-inhaling pavement-pounding laughter-sprinkling lover of individuality and taking chances.
Love this post! How awesome you are hired to take the school photos. I hope you have a lot of fun. Be sure to repost back to us!!
1Love the backdrop, looking forward to seeing the finished photos!
2Good luck with the preschool photos. I did it one year, many years ago, never again. It’s exhausting.
Jenna Reply:
March 25th, 2014 at 12:52 pm
I am definitely doing this as a favor to the director. We love the school and want to give back in some way (the last set of photos were TERRIBLE and it was a nightmare for her to handle all of the orders). I’m definitely trying to temper my expectations going into this, both about taking the photos, and what I will make doing it.
That is cool you are taking the preschool pics! Do update us…
I get that stressed-out feeling. A really vigorous yoga session like Vinyasa usually helps me out a lot! Or any serious exercise. Pentatonix is great, they are actually coming to my area this Saturday!
4Can I ask where you got the clear chair? The backdrop idea is adorable! Good luck with the photos - that’d give me nightmares LOL I’m sure you’ll do great!
Jenna Reply:
March 28th, 2014 at 3:26 pm
I bought the chairs off of Craigslist. They’re called slither chairs and I hear you can sometimes find them on deals sites like One Kings Lane.
It was refreshing reading about your day to day! Some days at my job are
6really hectic and I just chant to myself “only x more hours” to get through it!
I’m amazed you she still find the time to blog in the first place to be honest. I’ve given up for now. I think it’s great you are doing the preschool photos. You should get some fun and crazy results with pre-schoolers. Good luck and may the force be with you on this one
7I love how real you are. So good, yes and yes! Thank you!
8Hi Jenna,
My daughter attends the same preschool. We are lucky to have you take the class photos. I normally don’t purchase the school pictures since most of the time they are not that great. But I love yours. The backdrop is beautiful. And how did you get my daughter to smile so naturally? The picture was amazing.
Jenna Reply:
May 3rd, 2014 at 10:10 pm
Yunan,
This is such a kind note. Thank you so much! It means a lot that the parents are happy with the photos. I put a lot of work into them and really wanted to create something beautiful. I wore a pizza hat on my head at one point, maybe that helped?