Elizabeth Kearney Photography

It's made. Still a work in progress, though. Let me know what you think and how it could be better before I let the whole facebook world know about it.

http://elizabethkphotography.blogspot.com/

yay!

Elizabeth K Photography

So a few days ago, I decided to look up what it takes to get a Nevada business license, and how much it would cost. While I was on the website, I decided to actually fill everything out and then wait to file until I could afford the $200. But as I was filling it out, it asked if any exemptions applied to my soon-to-be business. I read through the exemptions, and apparently, you are now exempt from having to file and pay for a license if you are a home-based business making less than 66 2/3% of the average annual wage, which, as of 2010 is less than $27,000 a year.

So I filed, without having to pay, and I have a business number, or something like that, and I can now legally take pictures, charge people, and not worry about someone finding out. :) Sometimes it pays to take the dive.

Anyway, I looked at tons of different combinations of my name, Bobby's name, our initials, etc., to try and find a good name for my photography business. I didn't want "Elizabeth Kearney Photography." It seemed long and boring. I finally just decided on "Elizabeth K Photography" hopefully with a really cool font.

Anyway, my whole reason for writing about this is because I'm going to start working on another blog just for that, and I think it will be something like elizabethkphotography.blogspot.com or something similar. I will also be setting up a facebook page that I would appreciate if you all wouldn't mind sharing with all your friends once it's up and running.

If you can't tell, I'm very, very excited, and I feel like this is a great thing for me and my family. I will need a little bit of help getting this off the ground, but I'm willing to pay back with free pictures anytime any family wants it.

Thank you! And look for the next few posts that give more details on the new photography blog!

A New Direction

Still excited about staying healthy and keeping the pregnancy weight gain to a minimum. But recently I've gotten very passionate about something new: photography. I started taking classes in high school and some in college. I worked at a school photography company for 2 years. I just never took the plunge and spent my money on a nice camera. I just put everything on hold when I got married.

When I worked at the credit union, there was a girl that I worked with. She was barely graduated, and barely married. 18 years old, trying to have a baby, ended up with twin boys. Right after I had Andrew, I decided to stay at home, and hadn't heard from my coworker in over 3 years.

We met up again on Facebook, and I found out that she had started doing some photography and even had her own business going. I was a tiny bit jealous, but mostly I thought, "Good for her! That's awesome! I wonder how she got that started with 2 little toddlers? And I haven't done anything in the same amount of time." I kind of filed that away for a while, made some goals to get the camera I wanted and started planning out the business I wanted to start. Almost 2 years later I finally have a nice enough camera to get things started. Bobby even bought me Lightroom for our anniversary (it's a smaller version of Photoshop) and he got me another lens for Mother's day. I'm finally taking the steps I need in order to make this dream a reality and I'm still working off of this excitement high. I'm hoping that by September, this business will be up and running and hopefully off to a great start!

Blech...

I kind of stopped trying to eat so healthy. I was so happy to be able to eat almost whatever I wanted, that I didn't try as hard. I'm not doing anything extraordinary as far as exercising goes. Just normal walking and cleaning and child rearing. I can feel my clothes getting tighter. A few of my things have already had to find storage. I weigh myself maybe 2 times a week in the morning, and the number floats around the same. 236 lbs. I was feeling somewhat discouraged because the numbers are now going up instead of down, but when I really thought about it, I'm 16 weeks pregnant today. I looked up the average weight gain and it was 5 pounds from your starting weight. I'm still down 2 1/2 lbs from my starting weight. (Not for the competition, but for the pregnancy.) I have at least a pound of baby stuff right now, and if I can still say that I'm down a few pounds, that makes me feel pretty good. Not great, like if I won the contest and the prize money, but good, like I'm making good changes and they are still working in my favor.

One of the most frustrating things about being pregnant during a Las Vegas summer is that it's already hot, and my body is working overtime, which makes me hotter. When I'm hot, I don't usually eat very much. I do a lot of water, juices and fruits. Usually. While I'm pregnant, that isn't enough to sustain me. If I don't eat enough or often enough I get sick. If I eat too much in the summer when I'm so hot, I get sick. It's a horribly uncomfortable catch 22. If I could afford it, I would keep the A/C blowing constantly. But that's not really an option with NV Energy. They are ridiculously overpriced. I have to settle for cold showers, (they feel so good in the afternoon) and having a floor fan follow me around all day.

Enough complaining, Elizabeth. Time to look for solutions. Duh, fresh salads. They are filling, especially with a little chicken or eggs, and they are still light enough that I don't feel sick after eating a plateful. Stir fry and rice. Very filling and pretty light. Lots of good veggies, not a lot of fatty calories. I know there's options, I just need to find them. If you have any ideas, feel free to share. All in all I'm pretty happy about the lack of weight gain in comparison to my stage of pregnancy, and I know once I get serious about walking and exercising in general, things will get so much better. :)

Back on Track!

These last two weeks I did not do very good on eating or exercising. I didn't make any menus, and when I went shopping, I wasn't thinking about me. I was thinking about meals that Bobby could take to work, or that I could feed the kids quickly. Neither of which was healthy enough to give me the right kind of energy. Two weeks ago, I was preparing for a trip with my hubby so I cleaned (with lots of help from Nicole) the house, and that was a lot of energy. When I left, I put it into my head that I wanted to keep eating healthy. That a vacation is no excuse to eat poorly. For the most part I did good. There was a salad at 2 out of the 3 lunches/dinners we ate. I had fruit at each breakfast, and there was very little junk food. There was, however, an emergency Panda Express dinner where I ate way too much and way too crappy. That was enough to throw me off. Last week, I was feeling particularly exhausted, so I didn't even do any cleaning, which Bobby took upon himself, and that didn't do anything good for our marriage. I went into a slight depression, which made me not want to do anything or eat anything good. Yesterday, I woke up to breakfast in bed, and Bobby made me lunch, and Mom made us dinner. Everything was pretty healthy so I got back some of the energy I had been missing. Today, I woke up and, after breakfast, started cleaning. Nothing too strenuous, but enough that it made me want to do a little more. So long as I drink 2 cups of water at very regular intervals, I feel better, and I have energy.

I think I lost sight for a short while of what this was all about for me. This isn't just to lose weight and win money. This is to get my body in order and prepared for this child that's going to come. I need to keep the bigger picture in mind.

I saw the video last night of our SFFD in the park. You don't ever see yourself fully in the mirror. It's the 360 degree view from a video camera that really lets you know what you look like. That was more motivation for me.

Anyway, my rambling is getting weird now. Maybe next post I'll write about the kids.

My secret's not a secret anymore

Ever since April 13th, when I found out that I was finally pregnant, I've tried to be very good about what I eat. My last few posts are evidence of that. I found that my desire to lose weight and be healthy was strong, but my desire to give this baby the best chance I can was even stronger. And my nausea was even stronger than that. I have so many reasons to finally eat right and exercise that it doesn't even seem hard. I've been feeling nauseous almost every hour of every day, so much so that there is no food that I have found that I actually want to eat. I look at salad and feel sick. I look at cookies and feel sick. Since I know I have to eat, my choice becomes so much easier. The only downside is that I'm also feeling so exhausted that I haven't been doing much of anything, much less exercising.

Now, I don't actually have much hope of winning this competition, but I do have a lot of hope that this is the perfect opportunity to get healthier and in shape. Whether or not I even lose 1 pound. I'm excited to see and hear everyone else's stories about what they are doing. This is such a great idea.

By the way, my starting weight for the competition is 235.2 lbs. Only 75.2 lbs to go!

SUCCESS!!!

So, for a little over a week now I've been trying to get my body in a good routine, so as to healthify(is this a real word?) myself. Every day is a struggle. Every day I think of sugar and how good it tastes. Sometimes I give in, but the majority (yes majority!) of the time, I say no. I feel empowered every time I walk past a cinnamon roll from cinnabon, or only take a few small bites of cheesecake, or see the 3 sleeves of oreos in my cupboard still there after 10 days. Each time I decide to eat right I feel like I can do it again, and it's easier each time. I've been taking advantage of spring break by keeping myself active. Walking around a mall or store, walking to Grandma's house with the kids and/or the dogs. I knew it would be very slow going, but at least I was going. Today I weighed myself and found that I had lost almost 3 lbs! This is a very healthy pattern to keep for someone doing only a few changes at a time like I am. I'm excited to start this competition with everyone this weekend and see how far we all can go! Yay!

Adding Exercise!

So last week, I had a 45-65% success rate of eating right, and not eating too much sugar. I did still eat sugar because like I had previously posted, if I can't eat sugar, I overeat and that's no good.

So, last night, as a family, including the dogs, we all walked to Mom and Dad's house and back. It was so fun! And it gave me the confidence to start walking everyday. Not that I can wake up any earlier than 6:30, and Bobby is gone by then so I can't go, but I can totally go after the kids go to bed. I took Natasha and we walked up the hill a little ways, turned around and came back. Only about 1/2 hour, but enough to make me winded. And enough to make me so proud of myself. So much so that I ate a chimichanga when I got home. Still worth it.

yay me!

Who's to Blame?

Since this is a journey to becoming the person I want to become, and not just a weight-loss journey, I've found myself questioning things that I do and why I do them. I blame Biggest Loser. I like the show because it forces people to look inward and find the reason for their outward. (Did that sound totally lame or cool?) Anyway, I was trying to find someone or something to blame for the way I feel about my life and my weight. I could try and push it off on the kids. "If I hadn't gotten pregnant, I wouldn't have put on so much weight!" That didn't seem fair. I could try and blame my parents. "They fed me junk all the time!" That just sounded ridiculous and untrue. I could try and blame life. "You stress me out so I eat too much!" But we all know that that isn't the case...for any of us.

I have a list of a thousand different reasons why I eat too much junk food and don't exercise enough. And they all start with me. At first I was kind of bummed about that fact, because it's somewhat depressing to know that I got myself to this point. The more I though about it, however, and the more excited I got. I realized that I'm the one who gets to say what I do, how I feel and how I act. This was very encouraging. I can pull myself out of this.

I love the scripture in Ether 12:27

"And if men come unto me I will show unto them their^aweakness. I ^bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my ^cgrace is sufficient for all men that ^dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make ^eweak things become strong unto them."

I know that I have a weakness in sugary foods. I cave almost every time. I know I have a weakness in not exercising. I'd much rather sleep. But if I'm ready and willing to change, and willing to humble myself, I'm anxious to see those weaknesses become strengths. I'm anxious to be at a place where people come to me for healthy food tips, or for motivation to exercise because I'm the example. Most especially my kids. Last year I tried to work out every morning and I did pretty good for a while. Some mornings, Andrew would come out and try and do crunches with me. It was so cute! The only thing I want my kids to blame me for is for keeping them healthy and active.

Anyway, another page of my random thoughts. Enjoy!

Caramels Put Me in a Sticky Situation...

I love making caramels for people. Whether it's for people who are buying them from me, or just for birthday presents, it has been so much fun to make such a yummy treat for people I care about.

The problem is I also love to eat them. They are around 50 calories each piece, and I have no problem putting away at least 10 of them while I am wrapping. This is a bad thing. There was a time that I wrapped a whole pan and didn't eat a single one. That was weird. I think I need to set a limit of 2 caramels per pan and that's only if I make one pan a week.

Maybe I should stop making caramels altogether. That would solve that problem. Or I would just go buy some. Not as good, but much more convenient.

What a dilemma!

Doing OK so far

So I didn't go all gung-ho like Rachel did and completely change everything. I'm not that strong yet. I think if I were only going on a time-limit diet and exercise regime then I could probably change everything. But I need to really change me before I can change my body, and that is a small step at a time process.

I'm gonna let you all in on a little secret. I don't like being fat. *gasp!* And what's worse? I have a hard time liking the me under the fat. I'm fairly certain that losing all the weight isn't going to magically change how I feel about me, so I'm going a different approach than normal. I'm actually a lot like Rachel in that I'm an all or none type person. But in this respect, when it comes to changing so much, I know I have to take it slow if it's going to make a lasting difference.

The first thing I know I needed to change was all the junk food I've been eating. I have no problem getting good foods in me. I love fresh salads and whole grain bread. The problem is I love to stuff myself with processed sugars and empty calories just a little bit more.

So, the one thing I'm trying to work on this week is to seriously cut my limit of sugary things. I know for sure that I can't cut it out completely. I would die. maybe. In the last few days of trying this out, I've done ok. I went from 100% to maybe 50%. Even if that 50% is still 600-700 calories each day, it's way better than 1200-1400. (Just random numbers. I have no idea how many calories I eat from junk.)

One of the ways I've found to help with not eating sugar, is to drink a glass of water every time I crave sweets. Then I try to find something that will fill me up a lot more than cookies. and I don't mean food. I eat mostly because I'm bored and I think that my time is not that valuable. Now I'm trying to do something whenever I want sugar. I clean a room. I fold some laundry. I plan my next few days of chores or brainstorm craft ideas.

I've found that when I not only cancel out the bad influences in my life, the crap that makes me feel worthless, and add productive activities to my day, I feel like I'm worth the good feelings that good food brings.

It's a slow process. But I can feel it working.

Don't Want to Lose this Motivation!

So, I saw Rachel's blog about losing the baby weight, and then I talked with Camilla about doing a Biggest Loser Competition with the family. And for some reason, I am totally inspired and motivated to lose weight right now! Never mind that I just had 5 oreos. I've got all the tools I need (except a scale) and I have all the support I need (except a sports bra) so what's stopping me? I don't even want to wait until the 24th of this month. I'm going to get the head start now and just keep it going! I've thought about it and I don't want to even have a goal in mind. Why sell myself short? I'm going to be excited about every ounce I lose, and I will take a five lb. loss, or a 50 lb. loss. Every step is a step in the right direction. Health...and fitting into my clothes again.

Wish me luck! and join me if you want!

Two posts in under two months!

This is a first for me. Well, actually a third, but what I mean is that I don't usually stick with something like this very long, and to have three posts already, WOOT!

I wanted to continue the puppy story:

Bobby and I knew that we wanted to name the puppies something that we would never name our kids. And nothing about how they looked, like Midnight or Caramel. We looked at all sorts of names. Nothing was good enough. And by good enough, I mean funny enough.

Bobby finally suggested two names from one of his video games, Sasha and Natasha. They were the names of two giant guns in the game. I felt that because I wanted the puppies to begin with and I would be paying for them, and I would be taking care of them that I should get to name them, too. We couldn't decide on any other name, however, so I tried to strike a compromise with Bobby. We would name the dogs after those stupid guns if he would change Emma's diapers for a whole week. When he was home. He sighed a huge sigh of relief and said, "I would have agreed to three weeks." Man did I feel gypped. It ended up being only 3 or 4 diapers because he had a really busy week and wasn't home much. Oh well.

Puppies!

Recently, like 3 weeks ago, I went to Bobby and asked him if we could get a puppy. He seemed less than enthusiastic. In fact, he flat out said no. I was not to be discouraged, however. I decided to pull out one of the oldest tricks in the book- bribery.

I offered to give him half of my spending money that would be coming with our tax return. This time he seemed much more willing to listen and negotiate. We sat down and discussed what would be needed and how the workload would be split. Seeing as how he was just getting back to a new semester of school and working a full-time job, and barely called to serve as the first counselor in the Young Men's Presidency, I got the majority of the responsibilities. But that works out because I am the one that will be home with her, (we already decided we were going to get a female) so she would come to respect and/or fear me the most. I could put her on the schedule that best suits me and the kids, and I was mostly ecstatic that Bobby was even considering talking about getting a puppy. This is something we've wanted almost our whole marriage! So, we talked to Stephen about going over to Jesica's house and picking out a puppy from their recent litter.

The kids seemed excited at first, but as we walked through the house to get to the dogs out back, they noticed a huge pile of new toys, and any thoughts of puppies vanished. They couldn't even take their eyes off the door while we were playing with all the dogs. Finally, not even 2 minutes outside, Andrew walks right back into the house and plays with all the new toys! Emma follows only after the puppies attacked her with love.

Stephen and Jesica has previously picked out two puppies out of the nine that they thought would be best for our growing family and young kids. One was a mostly black one, with small patches of white on her chest. She loved to play. Definitely one of the most hyper ones we saw. The other was a mostly black puppy with lots of brown that they so lovingly referred to as Wrinkle Face. Bobby held one, and I held the other. We each said we wanted our respective puppies. I suggested we trade for a minute and see if either of us would budge on our choice. Unfortunately, neither of us did. In fact, we fell in love with the other puppy as well.

So I suggested something crazy.

Perhaps we should get two puppies.

I thought Bobby might pass out as he thought about the prospect of, not one, but TWO puppies running around our house, TWO puppies to clean up after, TWO puppies to feed and play with.

To my great surprise, he agreed! I was so excited! Now to name them.......