Photography Blog

hello!

I've been working on SO much stuff for the business these last two weeks! 

I updated my website: www.wix.com/photosbybecky/web

But most importantly to all your bloggers out there, I made myself a designated photography blog:

http://beckygreenphotography.blogspot.com/

So go like it, and follow it, and read it :) 

It's all integrated into my website now! It's pretty crazy. And I finally figured out how to do all the stuff on my website I've been wanting. So I made those changes I was talking about last week to my services, and I'm soooo looking forward to using the new system. 

Hope everyone goes there and leaves me some love :) because I love YOU!

Lots of stuff I'm thinking about.

uh... stuff going on:

• Saw Harry Potter 7 part II twice last weekend. It was super. Cried most at Snape's memories.
• Procrastinating Trevor's next semester registration. 
• Working on photography networking: cupcake photos, free wedding stuff to some people. Trying to open my eyes more. Doing a women in business photoshoot thing in a few weeks.
• Working on my marketing. I bought some new labeling supplies for my photography discs, and came up with a new logo I can start using. I need to update my website, bad. It's been like 9 months.
• Trying to make by brain stop thinking same-old-same-old. Thinking of things I currently have in place that are limiting my creative potential possibly? 1/2 hour sessions might be ruining my ability to be creative... but I like offering a cheap alternative to clients who need it.
• Thinking about at-home studio possibilities and oggling over DropItModern
• Thinking about all the things I need to buy for the business: an external hard drive or two for backing up, a freaking long zoom lens, a better flash, bulbs, backdrops, the world--why not?
• Trying to stay positive and not getting caught up in small arguments--although I've pretty much failed at this lately. There's so many little things.
• Reassessed our debt situation today. That's always fantastic. 
• Trying not to watch too much TV, although I'm probably failing at that too. Netflix is so amazing, but so annoying sometimes.
• I need to eat more vegetables! And less cake. Too bad there's a fudge covered cake sitting on my counter at home right now, waiting and gooey-izing while I work. And too bad I found that cinnamon roll recipe by Alton Brown over the weekend. Something's gotta give.
• I gave up a stupendous coupon over the weekend to Torrid. It was one of those "thanks for shopping with us, so here's a coupon for $25 off your next $50 purchase when you come back during these dates" coupons. That's 50% off! Ugh, but I couldn't justify another $25. Sad day. Gosh, we need to spend less.
• Am loving Trevor. He's special to me. He makes me laugh, and he makes me frustrated--especially when he switches the mouse on the iMac to his freaking crazy insane 100 button WoW mouse that I can't edit with, or when he stressing me out every 10 minutes about something, or when he wants to watch Battlestar Galactica and I just want to watch Terminator Salvation dangit because it's been forever. I love him, and he makes my life better. 

More pie

I decided I needed a stress-relieving session of baking on Sunday. So I decided to try my hand solo at pie making. And I also wanted to test the difference between shortening-only pie crust as my grandma makes, and a shortening/butter combo as my pal Alton Brown makes. (Yes, he's my friend.)

The difference: Shortening-only pie crust is whiter, crisper, and more delicate. A pie crust with shortening AND butter is soft, flakey, tender, and golden. They're two different beasts, in my opinion. The butter/shortening combo was 10 times easier to handle though.

I got to use my great-grandma's sifter for the first time, and I felt super special.

I ended up making 3 pies in a matter of 4 hours. Berry, cherry, and key-lime pie, all completely from scratch. I spent the most time on the cherry, depitting and all. But the fresh cherries that were actually kind of amazing, turned in to that fated "cooked" cherry mess. Cherry-pie lovers would probably love it, but for some reason, I just can't handle cherries. The berry pie recipe called for a bit of blueberry jam, and it actually solved the sour problem. I might stick to that trick for the rest of my life. The key-lime pie is great. Although, I might just suffer the artificiality next time and add the green food coloring, because lime pie that isn't green is off-setting.

All in all, I had an informative and stress-eeking evening. Now we just need to eat all this pie.

Pie Crust and the 4th of July

We spent the weekend in Idaho for the holiday, but mostly just to get away. Some of my family lives up there, and while it's stressful in its own way to be around family so much in a condensed amount of time, it's still relaxing no matter what to be away from normal life in a green, grassy, breezy, familiar place that is consistently 10 degrees cooler than Salt Lake.

We spent half a day in Lava Hot Springs--which was pretty much insane, given that it was July 4th weekend. We wanted to go to the hot springs, and were almost jumping for joy when we saw that they weren't very busy. But one toe in the water showed us why there were only 10 people lounging around with their feet in the water. It was freaking hot. Like, so hot we couldn't even keep our feet in. LAME. So we suffered the jam-packed public pool down the street for about an hour and a half, all the while with Trevor asking if we could go yet. Seriously, is it so bad for me to want to spend a little time away in the sun and chlorinated pool water away from any friends, family, or acquaintances I might run into that might happen to see me in my swimsuit? Society just won't let me. We knew it'd be busy, but we were hoping not quite THAT busy. The highlight of the outing was probably a toss-up between the Thai restaurant's yellow curry, or the geyser at Soda Springs.

I did get a sunburn on one side of my body though.

We ended up getting up at the crack of dawn on Monday to make it out to a chuck-wagon breakfast, but it didn't work out. You know how things go when family gets together; something always goes wrong. I'm sort of surprised we made it home alive since we were both practically napping at the wheel (not really, we aren't that dangerous, I may be exaggerating).

My grandma made pie with me on Sunday, and handed down to me my great-grandma's flour sifter. She showed me how she makes pie crust, and had me roll out my own dough after she showed me how she learned to do it from my great-grandma. Pie crust is freaking ridiculous. Mine kept cracking and breaking and getting dried out. Hmph. The only other thing I've sucked at right off the bat so much in the kitchen is frosting cakes. But, needless to say, I will cherish that pie-making afternoon for the rest of my life. My grandma is getting old. And she only has more stress in her life lately. I want to remember the different things she gave to me at different times in my life--whether it was a floor to sleep and feel safe on during a summer trip when I was 5, protection from my older brothers and their plans to shove me into the ditch or catch moths and put them on me pronto pups on the shop porch when I was 10, consistent compliments on my hair, eyes, height, or brains as grandmothers do from the time you are 1 day old, or crust-making when I'm 23.

Needless to say, this was my first Independence Day without a single firework, sparkler, or throwing snappy thing. We catnapped the afternoon away while doing laundry, and mustered up the energy (somehow) to make spaghetti and lay on the couch watching Stargate while the fireworks went off outside in the parking lot. I love America; America's the best. And this year I celebrated by listening to America the Beautiful by the MoTab on my phone.