Christiana Childers Photography Blog

There.  It’s out there.  Today is my 40th birthday.  I’m not freaked out about it or anything.  In fact, the older I get, the more I like myself!  I’ll take that over youth any day.  I’m really not saying that to make myself feel better.  It’s true!  But when I think about the fact that I remember well my mom’s 40th birthday, I start to get wigged out!  Or that we moved to Scotland when my mom was 42 because she was a grown-up, like a real parent and, in my teenage mind old!  So it’s not that I’m freaked out, it’s that my 12-15 year old self is freaked out that I’m there already, and a grown-up (oh do shut-up those of you who would like to argue that!).  I’m so grown up that we are passed the mini-van stage! How did that happen?

Recently I was with my mom’s cousin, Ruth – a very classy lady.  Her grandmother was my great-grandmother and we called her Granny.  I remember her as this old lady that was, well, a granny – bun, house dress, comfortable shoes… Ruth made a comment about how women who now have grandchildren, as Ruth does, are not their grandmothers!  Granny wore a bun and house-dress easily by 40.  Ruth dresses very well.  Not a trace of Granny about her!  This comment was made like “Whew! Thank goodness we are not victim to that anymore!” Which of course I agree….BUT as I let this sink in, I thought that there is some freedom in the other side too.  I thought about the pressure we put on ourselves to look as young, hip and put together as possible.  I imagined what a life would look like without the societal pressure of trying to stay young, where I’d wear a house dress, make pies and was allowed to be pleasantly plump.  It wasn’t a bad day-dream, I must admit!  But then I woke up!  I am so happy where I am – after all, as Kari said to me “Forty is the new thirty!”.  I like that I can wear my favorite green Converse or my red cowboy boots.  I wonder what Granny would think of them?!  I’m thankful for a husband who is very involved in the housework, raising of kids because I know that wasn’t the case for most generations behind us! And I’m so thankful that I’m allowed to have a photography business that gives me such joy!

Thank you, to all of you who’ve let me capture you or your family this past year.  It has been such a blessing to my life…this new life!  Thank you!

One more thing… I’m applying for a scholarship called the SOAR! scholarship.  The dateline for submitting is today – my 40th birthday.  So I’m hoping my birthday mojo will help get me this scholarship out of a pool of lots of amazing women!  Winners of the scholarship get some cool Sony camera gear, business coaching, mentoring from amazing photographers, branding, and website help just to name a few.  If you’d like to see my video go HERE and pray that I am chosen for this amazing opportunity!

If you think you have the best friends in the world, well, your wrong.  I do .  I had to do a quick post on the party my friends threw for me on Saturday night.  As my birthday is on the shortest day of the year (like being four days away from Christmas isn’t lemon juice in the paper cut enough!), my friends had a “Big Night” party for me!  Remember that movie?  It’s about an Italian Restaurant set in the 50s.  If you’re a foodie like me, you’ll remember!  Anyway, they made it all Italian themed in my friends garage (which we call the Garage Mahal -  nothing like MY garage!) Here are some shots from the night…

Is that cake the best or what?!  I tasted great too!  Greg, you have to leave a comment on who made the cake!

My nickname is Sugar, btw…

Ah, Bono.  A birthday isn’t complete without you.  Sorry you couldn’t make it this time…

Here’s me feeling so grateful and humbled by the toasts.

Time for cake!

I wish….what could I possibly have that is better than this.  I love you all so much.

Last year, my family decided that instead of buying presents for each other, we’d either make, buy handmade or buy used things.  We do an exchange between families and just make something for the kids or the family as a whole.  I have to tell you that I was dreading it a little.  I do like to make stuff but at Christmas I just want to get it over with!  I was pleasantly surprised to find that I enjoyed the act of giving so much more when I put some time into the gifts.  So this year, I was more excited about making stuff!  I wanted to share one of my projects because I’m pretty darn pleased with how it turned out!

I have a friend who spray painted those laminate samples you get at the hardware store with chalkboard spray paint and gave them as gift with a little thing of chalk. So you tie the mini chalkboard to your napkin with a name written on it as a place card!  I thought it was the coolest thing and ever since have wanted to do something with those laminate samples!  So I had the idea to do a calendar and then it turned into an Advent calendar.  Here’s the process -

First I made a sketch and then transferred it to a blank rubber stamp (they have them at art stores with the wood block/linoleum block stuff) and then carved my image out with a linoleum carving tool. 

Then I painted the laminate samples, added numbers with a paint pen and then extra paint over that to soften it up.

Then I taped the numbers all together and modpoged some sheet music on the other side, added extra paint until I got the background the way I wanted it.

Then it was ready to print -

I painted the frame my brother made for me (yes, my brother that I’m making the gift for made the frame for me!) and then put brads in where the holes were.

I didn’t get it done for the 1st, as was the plan.  So I’m pretending this is a photo from their house of what it’d look like today, had they had it on the 1st.

Baby Jesus is on the 25th!  If I had it to do over (besides starting earlier! …Yeah right!) I’d not make it so tight fitting but have a smidge of space between the samples.

Merry Christmas!

You might recognize my friends from a previous posts (Baby W) and my website.  I thought I’d show you some photos I took of them for their Christmas card.

See what I mean?!  NOT ugly!

Here’s Baby W.  He’s grown so much since his birth day!

And I had to show you the many faces of A!

Thank you guys for a fun day with you all and a small baby fix!  Love you!

Ben surprised me for my birthday with a trip to NYC!  I’ve been dying to go ever since my cousin,  Sweet Miriam (of a Mississippi Wedding post) moved there. We had a fabulous time!  We’re big foodies so we made that a big focus but it was just so great to be there on so many levels besides just the food…the glorious food!  We went with our long time friends Scott and Mary (of the Apple Press post!). Mary goes to NY several times a year on business so between Mir and Mare we felt like we weren’t tourists but living in city which is how I love to visit a city!  Here are some shots from our trip -

Scott and Mary.  Isn’t that cool with the train going by in the background.  Love it!

I like to do little hip-shots sometimes.  Occasionally I’m surprised at the result.  I thought this one was kind of cool.

I didn’t Photoshop the “Ring Bell” in there but doesn’t look like it?

I’ve always wanted to do one of those shots with a slow shutter speed of Grand Central.  Ben and I got off the train there so I could do that!  Isn’t my husband patient?!

Ben took this of me and Mir in Brooklyn!

I wish I could tell and show you much more because this barely scratches the surface but I’m afraid this post would be just miles too long.  Sigh.  It was a big time in the Big Apple!

So our decorations are up!  I’m rather chuffed with how my house looks so I thought I share a little of it.  It’s mainly just candle groupings with greens that I gathered from outside with stuff I had around the house.  Good thing too because we spent a whole heap on brand new outside lights as EVERY SINGLE BRAND NEW LAST YEAR strand was out!  Grrr.  So we thought we’d go for the commercial ones this year to hopefully avoid the waste next year.  Anyway, here’s my entryway -

I got the candles at the Dollar Store!  I love seeing this when I walk in the house.

Here’s a couple more around the house -

I’ve always been fascinated by smoke ribbons so when I blew some of these candles out I thought I’d try to photograph them.  I won’t tell you how much time I wasted trying to get an “even better” shot…. I think smoke ribbons may be my biggest photography challenge yet!  The camera didn’t know where to focus so I took it off auto focus but then I wasn’t fast enough…blah, blah, blah…it was hard, people!  Here’s what I did get -

Cool huh!!

One more thing… One of my dearest and oldest friends (not that she’s old, our friendship is old…wait, that’s doesn’t sound right either! Errr my really good friend, Kari!) started a blog called MamaBloo.  She is an amazing writer, mother, teacher and friend.  If you’re a mom, you’ll love her wit, observations and writing on mothering and life.  Check it out at www.mamabloo.com.