Monthly Archives: September 2006

Sep 24 2006

wedding albums

Posted on by

I have a question for all you married folk out there. Paul and I would really like to get a nice, professional-looking album for our pictures, but seeing as our photographer has stopped answering my emails I can see that we’re going to have to put this thing together ourselves (I take back any recommendations I made about her… If you’d like to know all the reasons why, email me).

SO… that being said, I have started to research custom wedding albums. I do have all the high-res digital files, which is good. However, I’m not really sure where to start. So, here are my questions, and I beg feedback from anyone who might have some answers! Thank you. :-)

- How many pictures and how many pages are put into a nice, professional wedding album?

- How did you decide which pictures to put in?

- How can I choose between the different types of albums? i.e. library bound vs. removable inserts, Art Leather vs. Renaissance, leather vs. stimuated leather, small (5×5) vs. medium (8×8) vs. large (10×10), etc.

- Where is a good place to get nice prints made of the digital files?

- Any ideas for a good place to buy wedding albums? I’ve found a few places online, but it seems like most of them sell only to professional photographers. I’m just curious if anyone else has done this and has recommendations.

Okay that’s it for now. I hope some of you can answer these questions, about what kind of wedding album you got (even if you ordered them through your photographer), it would be most helpful! I have a vague idea of what I want, but am just a little overwhelmed by the choices out there! Gracias mucho. :-)

Sep 24 2006

again…

Posted on by

Tonight, I had to miss a super fun evening with the Garrisons at Stone Mountain. I was really disappointed; I had been looking forward to this, and we were worried it was going to rain but the weather was beautiful! Sigh. I hope we can reschedule, but I’m really bummed I had to cancel.

This morning I went over to my coworker Lisa’s apartment to help her with some computer stuff. I brought my laptop and was teaching her how to use Dreamweaver and Fireworks, and we were having a great time. Suddenly, my head started hurting. I excused myself to go take some medicine, but the bottle I keep in my purse was empty. I went back for a little while longer, thinking it could wait until I got home. Soon, however, I realized it wasn’t going to happen so I excused myself again and drove to a nearby drugstore and picked up some Excedrin. I came back to Lisa’s place, and asked to sit down for a while and not look at the computer. When I wasn’t getting better, I laid down and put a dark cloth over my face to block out light. Soon, my nauseagrew worse and lost my entire lunch in Lisa’s bathroom. Time from when I first got the headache to then was about 45 minutes. *sigh*

I slept on Lisa’s couch until Paul got off work and was able to pick me up; at which point, I had to call the Garrisons and cancel Stone Mountain plans tonight. Not another migraine, I thought. Not only did I not want the added expense of another emergency room visit, but I really didn’t want to go through that whole Morphine IV again!

Paul got me comfortable and I slept most of the afternoon. Later in the evening, I was able to eat some crackers and keep it down. I have found that as long as I stay perfectly still, I’m good to go. When I start moving around (rolling over, changing positions) I get queasy. Paul found some samples of Imitrex in my medicine cabinet. They were 2 years old, which is why I didn’t take them last weekend (that, and I was afraid I would just throw them up again). However, Paul noticed they expired only a few months ago, so I decided to try my luck and take one.

I’m feeling much, much better now. I have had very good experiences with Imitrex in the past, although usually it puts me out for the day (unlike their claims that you can go on with your life after taking it). I am now wide awake, able to sit up and walk around, and I even at a bowl of rice! I am happy now, and sufficiently scared into making an appointment ASAP.

Well there went my Saturday and here’s hoping I don’t lose my Sunday as well. We were hoping to go to the Zoo tomorrow, but I have a feeling that will have to wait too. Besides, we need to go back to Lisa’s apartment and pick up my car.

The weird thing about the migraines is that I can’t figure out what is triggering them. In the past, I’ve been able to pinpoint a few things – once I lost my student ID and so I didn’t eat for a day, and I got a bad migraine. Other triggers are dehydration (especially when I was living in Florida with an air-conditioner-less car) and certain smells (when I first worked at the print shop, the smell of the ink really gave me bad headaches). But now? I’ve been eating regular meals (now that Paul has taken over the cooking :-)), trying to drink lots of water (60-80 oz. a day), and there isn’t anything different about my routine like a new job. I felt a bit stressed on Friday at work, but overall I haven’t been too stressed. The only thing perhaps is lack of sleep – I am still having a lot of trouble falling asleep at night (do all newlyweds struggle with this?), usually zoning off around 2am and getting up for work at 8am. I dunno… perhaps the doctor will have some answers. When I make the appointment. :-)

Sep 23 2006

the busy season at work

Posted on by

What season is the height for furniture sales? You guessed it – the fall! Why? Because the holidays are coming, and people are getting ready to host parties and have guests visiting. A new (or bigger) dining room table is in order, or perhaps a new guest room bed, or new living room furniture. For a furniture dealer, the fall is about putting the most into advertising. For the advertising agency, fall means a lot of jobs in! Busy busy!

I stayed at work until 7:30 tonight! It was soo busy all day. One of my coworkers was sick, and so I got some of her jobs. I actually enjoyed being busy, even though it was stressful. I felt like I got a lot accomplished those last two hours of overtime, which will make things happier on Monday! I always feel bad sending out proofs to customers and then pushing for an approval within 24 hours. :-( They’re supposed to have a week to proof it, but that’s rarely realistic.

I don’t have much interesting to say! It’s after 1am and I am definitely not sleepy at all! I have this new thing where I lay down when Paul goes to bed, and then when he’s asleep I get up and do my own thing. So now I’m sitting in a dark living room with the laptop, blogging. I might pull out – gasp – a book! I haven’t sat down and read in forever.

Oh, yesterday I decided to join FlyLady. For those who aren’t familiar – it’s basically helping women get back in control of housework, one step at a time. I like that philosophy – I tend to jump into things with both feet. So far…. I have failed miserably, as my sink is dirty. At least I can say today I dressed to my shoes. ;-) So I’ll put a little more effort into keeping the sink clean. Tomorrow, tomorrow.

Okay the laptop is hot on my lap so I’m going to sign off now. Still not sleepy. I’ll have to think of something entertaining to do. :-)

Sep 20 2006

it's coming!

Posted on by

This morning I stepped outside on my way to work and discovered there was a delicious crispness in the air (I think delicious is my newest favorite adjective). Fall is coming! The trees are still full and green, but the air brings promise of hot apple cider and crackling fires and comfy sweaters. I might prefer warmth over coolness, but I do embrace each change of seasons – especially spring and autumn! I am glad to live in a place to experience all four seasons! What a beautiful thing I missed out on for so long!

I have had the distinct pleasure of sitting on my porch at lunchtime, breathing in the sweet breath and admiring the view. I was telling Paul yesterday how God picked out the perfect apartment for me. It’s somewhat secluded, but at the front of the building so I can watch the people. It’s on the top floor (desireable due to vaulted ceilings and no noisy neighbors above!), but in a building where the top floor is only one flight of stairs up! As excited as I am to move to a bigger place, I am sad to leave this beautiful complex.

I also had the pleasure of enjoying the beautiful blue sky and scattered white, fluffy clouds through the sunroof of my car while driving to and from work. I like being able to take in the outside even when I can’t be outside! :-) Now all I need is a window in my office so I can sit and daydream – I mean, work. (Just call me Anne Shirley…)

Oh and by the way, I am feeling much better. :-)

I’m excited about the approach of autumn! Is anyone else able to see the change in seasons yet, or is this only Georgia?

Sep 19 2006

when trials come

Posted on by

Originally published on September 19th, 2006 at Onward & Upward
I have been out the past week or so because I’ve actually been quite sick! I’m all better now, thanks to the nice doctors in the emergency room. :-) I don’t have anything insightful to share from my weekend in the sickbed, except that I have a wonderful husband who sure knows how to step up to the plate and take care of me! He is truly wonderful, and I feel like I can’t tell him that enough! :-)

This morning I read the blog post of a friend from college. She had some pretty insightful things to share, something I think all of us can understand and relate to. So please hop over to The Alien Princess and read about “When Trials Come”. An excerpt:

So what do we do when the dreams we have of a perfect life fall apart? First, cling to God. There you can find peace and comfort and joy, despite the pain. Second, take a look at the situation, with God and other believers you are close to, and see what happened. Was this your fault? Was it the sinful world’s? Was it God’s way to grow you? Third, be open to learn whatever God has to teach you, so that you can become more like Him.

Thank you for the reminders, Kristen! I think that is something I am constantly forgetting: that times of trial are an opportunity to get closer to my Father. I just want to struggle and shout “It’s not fair!” However, when I let God work in me then amazing things can happen!

EDIT: Be sure to also read a followup post, Trials Part 2.