Lately

Pandora

The last part of last week and this week I've been jamming to Pandora radio. It's an online radio station that basically creates a radio station just for you based on what type of song you like. You can type in the name of an artist and it finds song similar is music, style, genre, etc and plays them. You can decide if you like them or not by click a "thumbs up" sign or "thumbs down" sign. It's pretty freakin' awesome! I like finding out about new artists and this is a great way to do it. Pandora has been around for a while but it takes me a while to catch on to things apparently. I suggest trying it out. The best thing about it is... NO COMMERCIALS and it's FREE!

so many things

There are so many things going on in my head it's hard to just grab one thing and write about it. From the emotional rollercoaster I've been on lately: spiritual and physical battles I've been dealing with...from falling down Pinnacle to hiding from tornados last week. I feel like Satan is attacking me in more ways than one but my God is more powerful than all of these things he is throwing my way.

Let's be honest, we've all had our share of temptations, frustrations, fears and most of all failures. For some reason, April has always been a weird month for me. This year is no different.
It the anniversary month of friend's homecoming to be with the Lord. It's been five years.... this week. Hard to believe.

It's the month between seasons, usually filled with rain, pollen, memories of winter and hopes of spring.

Lately, I've been blessed by my neighbors, by Epoch Church, the people I work with, but most of all my fiance, who never ceases to amaze me.

Here is a spring pic is hopes of cheering up this post! :) I want to see more of this and less tornados!

Something New

I haven't always enjoyed trying new things. In fact, my older cousin and two brothers nicknamed me "Beef" because our family used to go to this Bar-B-Q restaurant and without a doubt I would always order a child's plate of beef and nothing else. (Also, it didn't help the fact that I was a little chunky in my younger years.) At fast food restaurants, it was the same thing: a small hamburger with only ketchup...every single time. Believe it or not, I actually distinctly remember ordering my first sandwhich with lettuce on it. It was at Burger King. I ordered the chicken sandwhich. Then, of course, THAT became the only thing I ordered.

It doesn't always just deal with food either. I used to be scared to try ANYTHING new. I hate rollercoaster rides. I despise bungi jumping. I wouldn't even ride in an elevator by myself when I was younger for fear of being trapped in it alone. If I was trapped with someone else, at least, THEY might know what to do in order to save us. That was my logical 3rd grade reasoning, anyway.

I remember being scared to get on a jet ski when my family purchased two of them. I was very young and remember watching everyone have fun on them for HOURS before someone finally talked me into getting on one. When I did, they couldn't pull me off. One time I literally stayed on a jet ski for eight hours.

Well, the point of all of this is, TRY NEW THINGS! In part of highschool and all through college, I made it a point to go and DO new things. I tried my hand at water skiing, snow skiing, tubing, riding fourwheelers, and yes, I even got on a roller coaster! These things are all fairly normal things and most kids have tried at least some of them, but they were all things that I was at one point hesitant to try. But like the chicken sandwhich at Burger King, once I tried it, I loved it.

New things I have tried recently:

New Food:

Alaskan King Crab

New Artist:

Leona Lewis

New Drink:

Planet Smoothie- Equal Parts Rasberry and Strawberry with yogart, sweetener and a touch of protein added to it! I tried it last week and I'm addicted!

Try something new. ANYTHING!

engagement pics

Hey, guys (and girls)! Everybody go this instance and check out our engagement pictures at this website. Then once you do that, you will be amazed at this photographer and want to know her name so I will go ahead and tell you. Christen Byrd.

Be amazed. Be very amazed.

Hump Day

I find myself longing for weekends but not for the same reason everyone else does. I love my job so I'm not dreading the long work weeks or the endless amount of work. I just simply look forward to doing nothing. And it's not that I don't do ANYTHING, it's that I get to do the things I've been looking forward to all week. Since the weather has warmed up, I will be gettin' outside more. I absolutely love being outside! Sunday I went for my first "run" in almost two years. Officially, I was not told by the doctor I could, but I feel like I know my body well enough to make that call. I used to run daily in college. If anyone knows Ouachita's campus, I would run from Caddo apartments, past the football field, up "the hill", and back again. I would run that twice again. It may not sound like much but for someone with fibromyalgia, it's like climbing Mt. Everest. I was proud of where I was physically. I'm determined to get back to that point. So Sunday was day one of that painful journey...and yes, it is painful. My life goal has been to run a marathon one day. I'm not sure if my body can actually handle it but I will die trying probably. :)

On a lighter note, Monday was a gorgeous day for taking pictures. As soon as I got home from work, I grabbed my camera and took some shots of my friend's Harley. He's thinking about selling it. I told him he was absolutely crazy!

The first one is my favorite and the next one is one of his favs. Enjoy! Check back for more pics!

snow day

This week Conner experienced snow. It was pretty funny to see him trying to eat the snow. Also, my mom came up for a visit. We were pretty much stuck in my condo all day but we managed to step outside for a few shots.

We are ready for one more snow day!

Here's a shot of Conner while he was discovering what the white stuff was.

My mom came up for a few days to visit. She canceled her hotel room in preparation for the storm that is headed are way. I think she is praying that we get stuck in my condo all day long so we can do nothing but wedding stuff all day long! I'm not sure how I feel about this...

Food wise... starting today I get to add one new food a day to my diet. Today is chicken. So tonight I celebrate with snow...and CHICKEN!!

the essence of chicken photo by: tbthayer

Well, this week is the week of firsts. It is the first week of phase one of my new "eating plan."

For years I have struggled with health problems. Last year we had a break through, when I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. This conquered most of my problems but they were still many days when I did not feel right. I was STILL having migraines and feelings of achiness. My memory suffers still from what the doctors call "brainfog." I was not satisfied with the results so I went in search for more answers.

I found out about the LEAP program. And since I can't explain as well as a doctor, I will copy and paste from a website:

LEAP or Lifestyle Eating and Performance is a program that will help you overcome any food sensitivity problems you might have. LEAP allows you to quickly identify what foods, additives, and chemicals are likely provoking your symptoms, and, more importantly, which foods have the highest probability of being safe. LEAP uses a patented, proven blood test named MRT (Mediator Release Test) to isolate a safe foods diet for you. MRT eliminates the guesswork to give you definitive answers. Once the test is performed, an eating plan is developed and tailored to the needs of each individual client.



So, as you can see, the LEAP program works in conjuction to the foods that you are sensitive to.

Ergo, I can't eat anything this week: I found out I am highly sensitive to these foods. (I realize that noone is really interested in all of this. I am mainly writing about this for my own good. It's good to journal these major events in one's life.)

So this is what I CANNOT eat for the time being, at least: (Highly sensitive foods) Apply, Asparagus, Avocado, Banana, Buckwheat, Caffeine, Capsaicin, Carob, Cashew, Coffee, Oregano, Pistachio, Rye, Scallop, SMB. Suflite, Sole, Tuna, Yellow Squash.

(These next foods I showed a reaction to but a little less severe than the previous ones listed) Almond, AM. Cheese, Apriocot, Aspartame, Barley, Beef, Blueberry, Catfish, Cauliflower, Cola Nut, Garlic, Ginger, Onion, Paprika, Shrimp, Sodium Sulfite, Spinach, Tilapia, Tomato, Turmeric, Tyramine, Zucchini.

Week 1: Phase 1: This is what I CAN eat. Pork, Egg, Lentil, White Potato, Celery, Lima Bean, Lettuce, Mango, Organic Grape, Cantaloupe, Yogart, Butter, Pecan, Olive Oil, Sesame Oil, Corn Oil, Honey, Lemon, Vanilla.

Needless to say this week has been interesting trying to come up with fun ideas to eat. I'm not very creative in the morning so everyday I've made scrambled eggs and bacon...not a bad deal though. I could get used to this.

The porkchops, however, can go...and I won't say a word.

For more information, (and if you're just really really really bored or interested in this kind of stuff, read this.)

engagement pics

This was my first "official" engagement session. It was really really cold so we might have a retake. Lauren & Daniel were just shivering the whole time. But I managed to snap a few good ones.

my brother

Today is my brother's birthday. Chris is one of the best brothers a girl could ask for. He has always been there for me as a role model and as a friend in my life. His will is strong as a rock but his heart is that of a child's. He has taught me so much as I have watched him navigate throughout life's traffic and turns. Above everything, Chris always has a smile on his face. He makes the best out of every situation. THAT is what I truly love about him.

I can remember growing up, on family vacations, he was our entertainment. He was always the one to make us laugh on those 24 hour car rides to Estes Park, Colorado. We never got tired of him being our tour guide and entertaining us with those ridiculous songs he would come up with off the top of his head. His creativity never cease to amaze me.

That is why today, on his 29th birthday, I can think of no better way to wish him a happy birthday than to simply say "thank you."

Chris, thank you for always being strong even when those around you weren't. You can't imagine how many times I thought to myself, "What would Chris do in this situation?" Thank you for always making me smile even when I didn't feel like it. I know I can always count on you for a good time. Whether it be listening to rap music in your car or getting lost in Disney World on New year's Eve, I will always remember those times as GREAT times!

I love you! Happy Birthday!

non conformist

I went shopping with my mother this weekend for all the things I didn't think I needed yet somehow came home with. She's good at thinking of all the things I forget...which is everything and quite often. We went to store after store searching for the perfect outfits to this and to that. Banana Republic, Ann Taylor (two of my favs), then to Chico's and Talbot's (two of HER favorites). After saying many, "No's" and several what seemed like THOUSANDS of "I just don't like it, mom! It's not my style", we finally went to anthropologie. It was like walking into heaven. or so it seemed. There was soft lighting and green plants and candles burning that reminded me of my grandmothers house. As a flitted (is that a word?) from rack to rack touching every single dress and blouse, I repeated over and over, "What about this one, mom?" or "Oh, I LOVE this!" At first mom was NOT happy about my choices. Her style is definitely more tailored, more classic, and less "hippie" so I've been told. But as I put my foot down there in Anthropologie, I told her I did not want to be restricted with button down shirts and jackets and pants that come clean up to my eyeballs! This was my wedding, therefore the showers I was attending were my showers and I would wear "wrinklie" dresses, as she calls them, and I would wear them proudly.

I think that was my first bridzila act. I promise it won't happen again.

On the good side though, mom and I both agreed on SEVERAL outfits. I mean, if you HAVE to attend showers, brunches, teas, and things of this nature, you might as well look cute.

http://www.anthropologie.com/

I DID end up with a jacket but how could I resist?

Love. & Marriage.

The countdown has begun. 148 days until I become Cara Beth Buie! C.B.B. I think I can get used to that.

That's right folks, I'm engaged! The wedding is July 5th. I will apologize now if my next months entries are filled with wedding stuff. Just bare with me because right now it's all I hear about. You see, my mom is a wedding planner on the side of everything else she does. As soon as she heard about our wedding plans she jumped right on everything. We just announced our engagement this week and I already have a photographer, a caterer, a florist, a wedding, reception and rehearsal dinner site. I am already ready for the planning to be over, but I'm going to try to enjoy it because we have a short engagement.

It's still weird to say that I have a fiance. I like it though. More details about the wedding will come. Here's a link to our website at theknot.com.

lovely pics.

My boyfriend and I realized we don't have any quality pictures of us. Grant Harrison took a few pictures this weekend in downtown Little Rock. I am very impressed! This one is my favorite so far.




Also, check out grantlharrison.com. It's pretty much amazing.

what a great weekend!

New Orleans was amazing! It might have been a short trip, but it was so packed full of fun that I couldn't have asked for a better weekend. I went down there to visit my college roomie, Becca Core. We lived together all four years of college and managed to not kill each other! Correction: SHE managed to not kill me. Now that I look back on it, she really was like the greatest roommate ever. This weekend was all about taking pictures, relaxing, and catching up on the last year and a half of each other's lives. I think we accomplished just that. Here are a few highlights of the weekend.

Can you tell I have a thing for shutters and doors? New Orleans has such great art and architecture. I couldn't put my camera down. Hopefully it won't be quite as long before I can go back down.

Email me!

Hey people! I got a new email address strictly for my photography business. If you need your picture taken, please email me at bluehammockphotography@gmail.com.

Peace out.

Road Trip

I haven't taken a road trip in a while. Normally when you think "road trip" you think great friends, driving cross country, sleeping in dirty hotel rooms or sleeping in the car taking turns driving. Well, this road trip is a little different. It's just me. I'm driving down to New Orleans, so it's not exactly cross country. My college roommate (the whole four years) lives in Covington, La which is close to N.O. so I thought it was way past time to go see her.

New Orleans is such a historical city. I've always loved its history, art, and architecture. I can't wait to see what kind of shots I can get down there.

I'm looking forward to the drive down there almost as much as getting there. I haven't had a chance to be alone in a while. I plan to listen to some great music, spend some quality time with just me, the road, and God. Maybe He'll give me some brilliant word while I'm driving South for the weekend.

Here's to your next road trip.

New Year

I haven't written in a while but that's probably because I've been so busy taking pictures. Over the holidays a took several cute ones of my little cousin, A.J. This one is by far the best one! I told him to smile, but I'm not sure what kind of face this is. Isn't he so cute? (View in flickr.)

On Flickr I've started a new group called "365 Days." Your goal is to post one picture of yourself each day and add it to this group on the web. Hundreds of people all over the world are also doing the same thing, so it's fun to meet new people and see the pictures they post each day. Here are a few of my favorite. Here is a link to see the rest of my 365 pics! Enjoy!

"slow and steady wins the race"

Well, you know what they say..."slow and steady wins the race." My "photography business" is coming along well, nicely and slowly. I put "photography business" in quotations because it still sounds weird to say that. Technically it's not enough to claim on taxes or anything but it's enough to make payments on my new Canon! :) But it does sound strange to say that I have any sort of business at all...even though that has been my life dream! (well, besides being a mother) I am working with this new company that a friend recommended. I placed my first order today so I'm excited to see how they turn out. Before I had just been using kodak but this place is more personable...like when I call I talk to an actual person! Anyway, here are a few of the pictures the family ordered.

Enjoy! And if I can take your picture, please let me know: cbwalker23@yahoo.com