Our Adventures — Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology

You know, I really love my job. Not only do I get the work from home, but when I do leave the house on official business, it usually consists of a trip to a local museum, a snazzy restaurant review, an opening party for a new nightlife destination or a family-friendly activity that's fun for everyone in my clan. A little while back, we took a trip to the Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology for a feature I wrote for IEShineOn.com.

I attended the museum with two out of three of my sisters, Natalie and Lindsey, with the three second-generation girls in tow, Sadie, Mabie and Charlotte.

We had a great time at the museum. The kids were instantly hooked by all the hands-on, interactive displays and activities there were. The educational aspect of the museum was just a bonus, as the kids didn't even realize how much they were actually learning while digging for dinosaur bones, the oldest of the three reading everything in sight. I found myself answering question after question to the young girls as we passed countless skeletons, fossils and more.

 

The Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology was easy to find, as it is located on The Webb Schools campus. To find out more information about the museum, read more here in my feature for IEShineOn.com.

Photography — Amateur Tips for a DIY Newborn Photo Shoot

There is nothing more intimidating to me than a newborn photo shoot. I think this is because newborns are a little unpredictable, and they seem so fragile. However, once I get passed that, it's nothing but excitement. The newborn phase goes away before it really sinks in for parents, so it's best to take pictures sooner than later! Here are some quick tips for newborn photo shoots.

1. Accessories. In real life, I'm not one to put headbands or anything uncomfortable on babies. However, I'm not opposed to doing so in the name of a great photograph. Sometimes simple accessories with an otherwise naked baby is the most adorable styling you can do. 

2. Positioning. Make sure you use a nursing pillow and other soft padding to position and prop the baby in cute, comfortable positions. This is something I still am working on perfecting, but once you find the perfect spot and the baby is relaxing, you can really take some sweet sleepy pictures . . . which are also essential in a newborn photo shoot!

3. Meaningful Props. It's a great idea to take a picture of the baby with something meaningful to the family. For my daughter's newborn photo shoot, we took a picture with her and the softball glove my dad brought her in the hospital (it's his tradition for his granddaughters). This inspired me to take the picture above of this beautiful baby girl in an antique box, which has been handed down in her family from generation to generation.

4. The More the Merrier. Take tons of pictures, because babies movie so much it can be hard to get a perfect shot. I took these last two pictures with my iPhone, and they were some of my favorites from the day. You never know when something cute is going to happen, so caution on the side of snapping too many photos! It's better to have too many to choose from than not enough.

I hope these quick, simple tips help you on your endeavor to amateur photography. Please share your advice in the comments below!

Baby Milestones — One Year Old

Happy Birthday Sweet Charlotte!

It's official! As of 1:07p.m. today, Charlotte has successfully made her first complete journey around the sun all on her own. Way to go baby girl! She's grown so much since she was less than eight pounds and could barely move a muscle. Now she's a walking, talking, dancing baby with the personality that would go places in pageants . . . although we'll never know for sure. I'm eager to share what Charlotte is up to at one-year-old.

Talking & Reading. Lately Charlotte has been picking up her books, flipping through pages and reading out loud in sweet baby gibberish mixed with some recognizable words, which are more often than not, "up, dada, mama, happy, baba, papa, hi, hey and hello." She's been experimenting with new sounds lately, so she interchanges all her consonants and vowels, often surprising herself with what she comes up with. She also will choose to mimic certain phrases I say, which is adorable and kind of scary. 

Moving & Swaying. Dancing has taken on a whole new level recently, as Charlotte is bouncing at the knees, isolating her hips from the top half of her body, moving in all sorts of creative ways. She inherited my inner cheerleader and Josh's drummer rhythm. She's loved heavy metal since day one, and it makes me laugh all the time to see her little body shaking around to Black Dahlia Murder, especially when I used to turn my head sideways when Josh would play it for her in the hospital at one day old, and she would instantly stop crying.

No. Charlotte is really starting to understand concepts, one of which is "no." She shakes her head side to side, saying no when she is about to get into something like my purse. Other times I swear her shaking her head back and forth is really just another signature dance move, but either way it's pretty cute.

Climbing. Charlotte is a little rock-climbing baby. With or without assistance, I watch her climb up and onto baby gates, boxes, her toy box, toys, people and anything else that's in front of her. She loves climbing stairs, and she's actually really quick at it too. I have to be careful with which toys I put in her playpen, as she has already figured out stacking things together could make for a great escape.

Schedule. I work outside of the home no more than four hours a day, a handful of days a month. On most days that we spend every waking moment together, Charlotte is on a perfect schedule. She wakes up at 7a.m., naps before noon and again before 4p.m. Then she's down for the night by 8p.m. She will wake up once or twice in the night, which I'm not complaining!

Can I brag a little bit? I think Charlotte is the happiest baby in the world. During her one year photo shoot, we watched this little girl come alive on camera. She was just beside herself having the full attention of her mom, dad, aunt Natalie and new friend and photographer Katie (A Simple Story Photography). Katie admitted ours was the easiest one year photo shoot she's ever done, because Charlotte is a sweet babe.

Happy first birthday baby Charlie! You're a silly goose, and you bring so much joy to everyone around you!