Have you made a New Year’s resolution?  I did, but mine is the same every year.  My resolution is to be happy.  That’s it.  No, I don’t need to lose weight.  I don’t need to find a new job, I just want to continue to be happy.  I think that’s pretty simple and if you know how, easy to do as well.  I already do what I love for a living.  I have a wonderful son and husband and yes, we even have a great dog.  All of our needs are met and even some of our wants and my family and friends are happy and healthy, as are we.  What more could I ask for?

So, do you have any resolutions for this year?  If so, I’d like to read them.   Just drop me a line on this blog or on my Facebook page.  My next blog will be of one of my last sessions, so stay tuned.

This year my sister who lives in Arizona and owns The Painted Pretzel and her family are coming.  I haven’t seen her in about 3 or 4 years.  Both of my brothers and their families are coming as well. One from California and the other from North Carolina.  Then I have sisters that are here and cousins as well.  This will be the first time in a long time that all of my sibling have been together.  Yaaaaay!

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.  Family of course is the best part of it, but then there’s the food!  I love to eat!  My mom is hosting this year and all of the guests are bringing the side dishes.  I can hardly wait!

At any rate, I hope you all have a wonderful and safe holiday!  Until next week…

Don’t get me wrong, Christmas is a great time of year, but it has become so commercialized.  Everyone is so worried about what to get Aunt Besty or Uncle Joe and not that concerned about the meaning of Christmas.  Besides, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.    With Thanksgiving, it’s a bit different.  People think about what foods they can cook (and eat) to share with family and friends.  Of course there’s also the Thanksgiving Day football game too!

I don’t know about you, but I’m so looking forward to Thanksgiving this year.  It’s going to be epic!  On my next blog I will go into this year’s celebration further and let you know what I’m thankful for.  I’d also like to know what you are thankful for.  If you have a moment, please leave a comment as to what you are thankful for and why.  I love reading happy stuff!

If that sounds good to you, then boy have I got something cool for you!  Photo jewelry! Yep, that’s right.  Instead of carrying around images in your wallet or on your phone, you can now wear it!  How cool is that?  Just in case you’re thinking it’s some cheesy jewelry, I’d like to inform you that that is simply not the case.  Not only is it fashionable and beautiful, it is sturdy as well.  It is guaranteed not to fade or yellow.  It just doesn’t get any better than that.

This is a sneak peak of what I will be offering for the holidays, as well as for other occasions.  If you subscribe to my monthly newsletter, you will get even more information on the jewelry.  It’s not too late to subscribe!

As the saying goes, it’s not important that you fell down, but that you got back up.  I’ve been in business for 8 years and have had a total of 2 unhappy clients.  Of course I would have liked that number to be zero, but that’s just not possible.  The main thing is that you find out what the issue with your customer/client is and rectify it as soon as possible. Sometimes it may be difficult to determine what their real problem is, but keep digging. Well, I keep digging because if you’re not happy, I’m not happy.

This is not just about business, this is about me.  I do not like my clients being unhappy for any reason, regardless of what or who made them that way.  Unhappy clients are not something I enjoy talking about, but it is a fact of life.  I work my hardest to give them the best product and service I can, but I am not perfect.  Sometimes there are misunderstandings, but the important thing is that we come to an understanding in the end.

Talking about this is not something I enjoy, but I felt it was important enough to put in my blog.  We all fall short of our somewhat lofty goals for whatever reason and need to make things right to move on.  My first unhappy client came about because of a miscommunication on her part.  Most recently I had an issue with a client that was caused by a scheduling error on my part.  It really hurt me to know that I had disappointed my client.  She was upset and understandably so.  For three days I worked with her to come to an amiable solution to our issue.  Finally, after numerous phone calls and emails we came to a resolution that we both agreed upon.

I’m not proud that we had an issue in the first place, but I am glad that it is resolved. When I disappoint someone, it’s like me disappointing myself because I know that I am better than that.  Conflict resolution is not something I deal with on a regular basis, but it is good a good skill to have.  I’m not the best at it, but I do what I can and do what I have to do to get it done.  As I said before, I am not perfect but I am an excellent photographer who cares about her clients and giving them the best that I can.

Considering today is Tuesday, that should tell you something as well. Yesterday I was so busy that I didn’t realize that I hadn’t written my blog until the end of the day and I was exhausted. Not sure whether or not this brightens your day, but I felt the need for an explanation.

At any rate, I will have a great blog lined up for next week and will even send out my newsletter with upcoming specials. I know you can’t wait for that!  Hey, I’ve got an idea, how about you tell me something interesting from last week that you experienced?  That would be cool, right?

In case you don’t know, Dr. Amelia Boynton-Robinson was a leader in the Civil Rights Movement.  She played a major part in getting the Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed, as well as being instrumental in getting the federal food program for low-income children instituted.  It was truly a blessing for me to just be in her presence.  I don’t think I have enough time or space to give this woman’s biography due justice, so if you are so inclined, I would encourage you to Google her name for a plethora of information about her and her life.  She is truly a heroine to me and I’m sure to many others.

As for Mr. Rufus Durrah, I actually do know him.  He’s my great uncle on my paternal grandmother’s side.  He turned 100 on August 22nd.  I remember visiting him in Cleveland (Ohio in case you’re wondering) in his small corner store.  It was always nice to see him and extra nice to get goodies.  He was always a friendly man with a warm smile.  I didn’t realize until I was an adult how much he looked like his sister, my grandmother. It’s actually uncanny!  Another interesting fact about my great uncle is that he is one of the last remaining World War II veterans.  In fact, earlier this year he and the other surviving veterans took a trip to Washington, D.C., where they were honored.  He said that he had a great time, but couldn’t believe how much they were fussing over him!

Evidently even when you turn 100, you still get gifts.  Not only did he get gifts from family and friends, but he also received a birthday card from President and Mrs. Obama! How cool is that?  His response to the card was “I don’t even know him.”

Well thank you for letting me share more of my experiences with you.  Below is one picture of Ms. Boynton-Robinson and one of my great uncle.  Oh to live that long and still be happy and loved.  What a blessing!

Before we left my husband was given two sets of directions. One set from his friend and the other from his mother.  All I know is that I was given a set to navigate with.  So we all hope in the minivan and head on our way.  After about the second turn my husband deviated from the directions I was reading,  which in turn threw me off.  We got on the freeway and I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be looking for at that point.  When I saw a sign that said “To Cape Cod” I told him to go that way.  Unbeknownst to me, that was not the way his friend wanted us to go.  Ooops.

Fortunately we got to where we were going, even though we ran into some horrible traffic.  It seemed that everybody and their brother were going in our direction.  The only thing that would have made it worse was if we here going to Hyannis instead.  Once I got to the point where the driving directions matched written directions, we were able to follow the directions to their home.  When we pulled into the quiet retirement community, people stopped and waved.  I wasn’t used to that in Massachusetts, but we waved back.

The home was beautiful!  They came out to greet us and that’s when it started to rain. The rain was definitely a good thing because it had been so hot. Things cooled off and we got to relax on their gorgeous deck with a view of a beautifully peaceful pond.  We called it a lake because it was huge.  Anyway, the women went grocery shopping, my husband and his friend went to buy fresh lobsters and mussels and the boys stayed at the house playing video games.

When every one returned, the women were in the kitchen seasoning hamburgers and making fruit salad and regular salad and of course chatting up a storm.  The men were on the deck grilling, boiling lobsters, drinking beer and talking about stuff that men talk about.  After my six year old held a live lobster (which he would only do after my husband’s little brother held it) it was dropped in the pot with his friends.  We all ate and then parted ways.  The men and boys went kayaking and swimming while the women stayed home and talked.  I think that was the first time I really got to relax on a vacation.

The next day was pretty much the same.  We had planned to leave in the morning, but we were having such a great time we decided to spend a few more hours there.  Finally it was time to go and we had to make the trip back to Boston.  This time traffic wasn’t so bad on the bridge, but the freeway was murder.  Fortunately we arrived safe and sound.

The next day we went back to downtown Boston to try to see more site, but were unable to see much as it was raining all day.  Not only was it raining, but it was in the low 70s so I felt like I needed some pants and a sweater.  We went to a mall and got some clam chowder from Legal Seafood.  Yum!  After realizing that it was not going to stop raining, we went back to my mother-in-law’s.  Once there we packed to leave the next day.

There wasn’t too much that went wrong going home, except for the fact that this time my son’s bag was pulled out to be searched.  We had already consolidated the liquids into one bag to be checked, so we weren’t going to have that problem again.  Of course they didn’t find anything in the bag, so we packed up and went on our way.  Once home, my husband’s little brother realized that he didn’t have his wallet.  He thought he left it at the house on the Cape, but it turns out that he left it in the minivan.  Evidently a family that rented the minivan found it and notified the rental agency.  Of course all of the money was gone, but the wallet was there.  I have my theory of what happened, but this post isn’t about that. The wallet was mailed back, finally after much consternation.   Oh yeah, we get to look at all of the pictures that were taken!  What can be better than that?

The next morning, we were up and (almost) raring to go.  We dragged a bit because of the lack of sleep, but other than that we wanted to get out and see Boston.  My husband’s plan was to go down to Fenway Park and get the tour, then walk around the Commons to see the sights.  Well, after I woke my son up, with some effort, we got dressed and had breakfast.

While cooking breakfast my mother-in-law put a plastic plate holder on the lit eye of her gas stove.  All of a sudden, there was smoke and next thing you know the paper plate (with the freshly fried bacon) was on fire and the plastic plate holder was melting.  I was able to throw the plate into the sink (with the bacon) and run water on it to put the fire out.  We just had to let the plastic finish melting while we ate what was left of breakfast.

Finally, we’re out of the house and into the rented minivan.  Yes, we rented a minivan. This day seemed to be even hotter than the previous day, but we trudged along.  First stop, Fenway Park.  Since my husband hadn’t been there in a while, he needed assistance getting to the park, so I used the GPS on my phone to get us there.  We found a great parking space, yay!  As we entered the building to purchase the tour tickets, we overheard the teller telling someone else that the tickets for the tour were all sold out.  Darn it!  No tour for us (must be said with a thick, Russian accent).

That was a bummer, but we continued on.  We drove to the Boston Commons and to one of the many parks and began walking.  As I stated previously, it was HOT.  We stopped and watched the ducks and pigeons.  My son was so excited to see pigeons and how close they were.  Every pigeon he saw he would say “hey mommy, look at all of those pigeons!” While watching the ducks and ducklings, this very nice woman sitting on a bench came over and offered Ethan some bread to feed the ducks.  I thought that was so sweet.  He was very happy and fed the ducks, birds and tried to feed the squirrels too, but they weren’t fast enough.

After that we looked at more sights, took pictures and listened to Ethan complain about being hot and his legs hurting.  When we arrived at the Frog Pond we experienced a miracle, Ethan was no longer hot nor tired and his legs didn’t hurt.  Imagine that!  He proceeded to take off his shoes and run and jump in the pond.  We cooled off, dried off and kept going.  We visited the Granary Burying Ground and much of downtown.  Of course I’m snapping as we go.  Many times they left me behind because they didn’t realize that I had stopped.

Since we were hot and getting hungry, we decided it was time to go back.  We stopped off at Marshalls and I got some sunglasses because the screws came out of mine at the airport in one of those darn bins at security.  The sad thing is I even saw the screws, but figured they were from something that was in there from a previous person.  I realized after I went through security that those screws belonged to me because one of the lenses swung from one side.  My husband and his little brother got Red Sox caps and then we stopped at an ice cream truck for my son to get some ice cream.  Boy were we glad to get back in that air conditioned minivan!

That was the end of day two.  Day three and four were awesome, which I will share on the next blog.  I don’t want you to feel like you’re reading a book.  So until next time…

It started out fine.  It was my husband’s idea to get to the airport early.  Our flight was scheduled to leave at 1:45, so he thought it would be good to get there about noon so we wouldn’t be rushing.  (That was one of his best ideas!)  So we get to the airport without incident and park in the least expensive lot we could find.  ($9/day).  What good timing because as we were getting out luggage out, here comes the bus to take us to the terminal.  Once in the terminal, we noticed that a movie was being filmed, but I digress.

We get to security and there are only about 2 or 3 people ahead of us.  Yaaaay!  We go through and this is where it starts to go wrong.  On my husband’s license is his first name, but his middle name is on his ticket.  My husband then had to explain the difference in names to the TSA person.  That took a few moments.  After that, we thought we were free and clear, but not so fast.  When we go through security both my carry-on and my husband’s carry-on are pulled for further inspection.  Turns out that we have more than 3 oz of liquid in our bags.  Bummer!  We were really trying to avoid those baggage fees, but that didn’t happen.  We ended up consolidating the liquids into one bag and checked that one bag.

So we’re waiting for my husband to come back through security, but this time the line is longer so it takes a while.  Finally he’s back, we’re on our way to the gate and he starts giving himself a personal pat down.  Man I hate when he does that because it means that he forgot something.  Sure enough he left is prescription sunglasses somewhere.  He really needs those because I was not going to drive in Boston?  Have you been there? Those drivers and roads are crazy!

He heads back to the baggage check desk to look for them while we head off to our gate.  The entire time our son is asking “where’s daddy?” So, we get to the gate and wait, and wait and wait.  By this time it’s about 12:50 or so.  My husband finally showed up with his sunglasses and told us about how much longer the line had gotten.  At any rate, we’re all together and ready to go.  Now I’m being peppered with the same question….”when are we going to get on the plane, mommy?”

Once in Boston, we go to baggage claim to of course, claim our baggage.  The carousel stops because too many bags are coming out and caused them to clog the exit.  Then my husband had a difficult time purchasing tickets to get on the bus to ride the train.  With the assistance of a very nice woman, she helps him purchase the tickets and we go on our way.  During our travels in Boston to get to my mother-in-law’s house, my husband was texting with his sister, who was also visiting, about where we were in our travels.  You would think that someone would meet us at the train station, which is about 4 blocks or so from my mother-in-law’s home.  That would be a no.  We walked up hill, pulling luggage in the hot afternoon sun. Not fun!  By the way, did I mention it was in the 90′s that day?

Finally we made it to her house.  Being that it was Boston, his mom doesn’t have central air.  There was one air conditioner and it was (fortunately) in the bedroom my husband and I were sleeping in.  All I can say is I was never so happy to see a small, window air conditioner in my life!  There is more to tell, but I’ll wait until next week.  Stay tuned.