Raleigh Family Photographer – What I Learned in September

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Oh September is teaching me a lot about rain and patience. And even though the sun is peeking through this very minute, the ground is just way too muddy to be out photographing. Sigh. So many reschedules are up in the air right now..and then, out of nowhere, a hurricane is coming this weekend during our super cute minis with Little Apple Styles. (Whatever she designs is just magic, and these will be oh so adorable, just not sure when they will be held right now with the hurricane. It looks like even our back up day will be washed out.) I am holding out hope that next week will be filled with sun and photo sessions, too!

We have eased into kindergarten life. There have been some really cute days where the class read Blueberries for Sal and the mamas brought in blueberry snacks. Then Johnny Appleseed came in to visit which included apple snacks, apple art, and of course, apple juice! The former teacher in me loves these super themed fun days for the kids. It just makes learning more fun.

1.Settling into a carpool routine makes life so much easier. So thankful for a good friend and a sweet husband so that we’ve worked out a great carpool in the mornings and afternoons Wed-Fri which makes it a little bit easier for Harrison to nap and for me to get a little bit of work done. Figuring out how to get Harrison on a good nap schedule has been one of the biggest challenges since starting kindergarten. Monday and Tuesday I still do carpool in the mornings and afternoons so I get time to catch up on reading.

2.Books I’ve read this month-

It’s still kind of unbelievable that I read two books this month and I’m almost finished with a third. Part of it was carpool and part of it traveling. The first book I read was All the Light We Cannot See.I will admit I had a really hard time reading the first chapter or two and was avoiding the book everyday during carpool. I had another friend who told me she kind of felt the same way about the beginning, so that made me feel better that I’m not the only one. What I found on our way to DC was that I needed a big chunk of time to really get into + read the book. It was so great, so if you get into this book, carve out a little bit of time for the beginning. I also re-read the beginning once I got to the middle. (you’ll understand when you start reading it) Highly recommend this one – looooved.

We flew to Disney and Michael held Harrison on the way there while watching Netflix on his phone. On the way back, I was going to hold him and realized I needed something to read,etc since he will sleep. And flying just makes me a little bit nervous. Holding Harrison helps calm my nerves. We were major delayed, and it was late so I knew he’d sleep (he did) I downloaded The Fault in Our Stars, and it was so good. I really felt like I was lucky with both books I chose this month (and I’m just about to finish a non-fiction one I’ll share next month) I haven’t seen the movie to this book, but I just might have to watch it now. It was a very quick and easy read, and I might have sobbed a little. Anyone seen the movie – what did you think? What are you reading this month? Send me some recommendations!

3. Not to forget to pack your ponchos at Disney. (usually around 1.00 at target) Disney in September is way different than Disney in January. Since we’ve mostly been in January, we haven’t experienced the sweating all day heat or typical Florida it rains once a day everyday. We probably pulled out our ponchos at least once a day, too.

4. I realllly love traveling for sessions. We went to DC this month to meet our friends’ sweet baby boy, and what a joy to see them and photograph them. The boys also loved visiting museums and seeing the White House, too.

5. The Fitbit HRis my new bff. So, I have really loved this fit bit for many reasons. Yes, I have the purple and I just accessorize it with other bracelets so it doesn’t stand out as much when I wear it with non workout clothes. The caller ID function is great, so if I’m working, I can see if it’s the babysitter calling by looking at my wrist instead of having to get my phone out of my bag. I also love that during pure barre, when my phone is in the other room, I can still see who’s calling on my fitbit. I also turn the screen lock off when running and watching my heart rate on the app. (I set it up on the treadmill where I can see it.) My fitbit was crazy steps when we went to Disney, and it always fun to see how many steps your friends have each week. (Let’s be fit bit friends – find me if you have one!)

6. Suzanna’s Antiques has the best pumpkins. If you are looking for pumpkins – stop at Suzanna’s (see here.) How fun that they have Cinderella pumpkins, gourds, white pumpkins, big and little orange pumpkins, and all kinds of whimsical and antique decor. Definitely one of my favorite places ever.