A Day in the Life

This blog entry is inspired by a recent assignment that I completed for my Photography class in which my teacher asked our class to "Select an object or a collection of objects that are important to you, then photograph the objects...Be sure the images relay something about you; think of this assignment as a kind of self portrait." 

What came to my mind more than anything was my family, and I was reminded that in the absence of them I wouldn't be who I am. I am a wife, a mother, a homeowner, a pet owner, I work to help provide, and I go to school to attain knowledge and further myself in life. I decided that the best way to show myself was through my family and what my daily life looks like. The challenge was trying to come up with "still life" ideas to represent us without actually photographing us.  I thoughtfully selected our shoes to photograph in different day to day places for us and myself. So, with that I’ve included a more detailed look at what my crazy, busy and beautiful life looks like.

This is me... where it seems like I spend a good majority of my time. I've put over 50,000 miles on my little Prius in a year and a half's time. I depend on my car to safely get me and my kids to all of the different places we go. Also pictured are my other two dependencies: Starbucks is my fave but just coffee in general, and my phone.  

This picture represents me taking Jaxon to pre school on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. 

9:00     This is Jaxon’s first year of school and really spending time with people other than family. He goes back and forth between being excited to go to school and wanting to stay home. Some days he gets up and dresses himself (sure maybe his pants are on backwards but hey he did it himself) and is rushing me to get ready so he can go to school. Then there are days that we have conversations like this:

          Me: Come on Jax lets get ready for school.                                           

         Jaxon: No, I want to stay you.                                                              

         Me: I have to go to work buddy and you have to go to school.              

         Jaxon: No, I stay you. Watch TV in you bed and snuggle.

*This is his bribing technique because #1 he never sits for longer than a minute and #2 he never wants to snuggle or be hugged on at all*

         Me: Oh, come on, what about all your friends they’ll miss you.

         Jaxon: No! I can’t want friends!

On Tuesdays and Thursdays I have class at 8am until 1:45pm. (I also have 2 online classes this semester)

7:30-7:50      Fight the battle that is 40 East only to make it to the Park and Ride lot just in time to see the 7:50 shuttle pull off.

8:00-10:45     This is my Photography class, a lot of things that have been taught so far are review from what I had already self researched and learned on my own. But this class is fine art photography instead of the commercial style that I am used to. Initially it was tough, but it has forced me to view things from a different perspective, and strive to tell a story with my subjects.

11:00-12:15     If I don’t forget my wallet in my car, I will typically get some lunch while trying to catch up on some reading for Literature class.

12:30-1:45    This is my literature class. Going into this semester my Literature class was the one I thought I would least enjoy but thus far I have really enjoyed it.

2:45     On Tuesdays and Thursdays and other days of the week that I'm off work or go in late, I pick Bella and Micah up from school. normally they can’t wait to tell me about their day. 

3:15-5:30     Our evenings are spent either riding bikes, playing ball, walking the creek beside our house, sports practices, Jaxon's gymnastics           class, or a combination of the above. 

We just bought our first home in August and we are enjoying making new memories here and doing lots of new things around Kernersville.

 7:30    Something my husband and I have made a priority in the past six months is to have family dinners sitting down as many nights of the week as possible. It may not always be at an ideal time but more often than not we are able to.

8:00    Check homework, put on PJ’s, lay out clothes for next day, pack a lunch, brush teeth, read a bedtime story, put out any fires….oh wait scratch the fire part.

9:00    (sometimes closer to 10 or 11 lol) Settle down with my husband to either work on homework, edit pictures or just chill while enjoying Netflix. Typically during this time Jaxon will get up and attempt to bribe us again with snuggling, but it only works on us about 95% of the time.

10:30 - 7:00     Days when I don't have school, you can find me at work. I usually only work 2-4 days a week. I recently started working in Photo from Center Section to fill in for someone on medical leave. The timing of the switch lined up perfectly with starting my Photography class. I love getting to see other photographers work and getting to talk to them about all things photography related. As well as helping people preserve their heartfelt memories. 

We like to explore and do fun things as a family to make special memories. Over the past year we have made an effort to focus more on experiences rather than things. A kid will most likely forget that $50 toy you bought them, but a day spent laughing will live on with them forever. 

This is at Hanging Rock, overlooking Stokes County, where I grew up. For me this represents looking back on the past and feeling more elevated and in control of my life now, and in love with the family that I have made. Sure, being a mom is hard, but I believe I was created to be a nurturer and I love this role the most. 

Since we have moved to Kernersville, we have started attending Triad Baptist. So far, we really enjoy this church. There's a welcoming atmosphere and the messages we take away from each sermon are always inspiring.

The weekend means catching up on the laundry, which is a daunting task when you have a family of five.

I would love to say that we have a typical day but in reality we don’t. Micah alternates weeks between us and his Mom’s, Bella spends every other weekend with her dad. I have class two days a week in addition to my online classes. Other days of the week are spent at work for me. My husband is a Middle School PE teacher and coaches multiple sports. We have a lot of variables that make every day different for us, and sometimes that can seem hectic and overwhelming; but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

We have some very exciting things coming up in the next month and we don’t want you to miss anything. Within the next month we will be announcing a giveaway like you’ve never seen before. Also we’ll be having an Easter Day Dream session event, one day indoors and one day outdoors. Our Blog subscribers will always get a chance to sign up for Day Dream sessions before they are announced on social media. In addition, we will regularly send our Blog subscribers discounts and additional print credits for our sessions.