Photo Shoot (12 months, 3 weeks and 3 days old)

So, the "12 month" photo shoot took place on Sunday, November 11th and Monday, November 12th. I never dreamed it would be so much work, but it really was a lot of fun!

On Saturday, my husband rented some equipment from a nearby photo supply store while Annabelle and I visited Jo Ann's to try and find a white "back drop" we could use for the photo shoot. My husband found out it would cost $25 to rent a back drop, and I figured we could buy one for under $25. Grandmama and Granddaddy met us at the Jo Ann's (since we went to the one nearest to their house which is also the one nearest to us). We found a white cloth to use that was just thick enough and wide enough. It was 60 inches wide, and we purchased 5 yards (15 feet).

Annabelle and I made it home long before her Daddy did though as the process to actually rent the equipment was somewhat cumbersome for him. He had to complete an application, and then they needed an hour to approve the application. And, then, they had to set the equipment up to make sure that everything was working properly before they sent it out the door with him. So, we all had gone our different directions at 2:30 p.m., and Annabelle and I made it home around 3:45 p.m., and I don't believe that her Daddy made it home until closer to 4:30 p.m. So, that left no time to even set up the equipment as we had a wedding to attend at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday evening.

It costs us only $54 ($50 plus tax) to rent the equipment, and believe me, that was a good deal considering we took close to 2,500 pictures! Crazy, I know, but with digital cameras, you can just snap away, and you are bound to get a good shot. Not to mention, my husband is a really good photographer, so he gets much better shots (with less pictures). My photo shoot on Monday probably resulted in the majority of the 2,500 pictures.

Well, my husband calls me on the way home after renting the equipment, and he says, "You'll never guess how much the deposit was on the equipment?" I said, "$400." And, keep in mind, I was shooting way high with my guess of $400. "No" he said as he laughed at me. I thought, "Thank goodness it wasn't $400!" Then, he says, "It was $2,900." You've got to be kidding, right? Nope! He wasn't. We put a $2,900 deposit down on this photo equipment that we rented for a measly $54! And, instead of making the deposit with a credit card as I would ALWAYS prefer to do when messing with deposits and companies I've never dealt with, they apparently required a check, so he gave them a $2,900 deposit using a check from a bank account that had no where near the $2,900 in it. Keep in mind, I handle ALL of the financing. He assured me that they told him that the check would only be cashed if we failed to return the equipment. So, no worries! And, he was correct, so no crazy story on this $2,900 deposit, thank goodness! But, I just had to write about it because I'm still blown away by the deposit amount. The equipment doesn't even cost that new! Fortunately, when I took the equipment back to the photo supply store on Monday, I received the actual check back from them. Grandmama wasn't aware of this, and when Granddaddy and I left to go to the photo supply store to return the equipment I told him, "Please remind me to make sure I get my check back." I said, "I didn't want to mention this earlier as I knew that Grandmama would have a conniption (am I using the right spelling for this word here?) if she knew I left a $2,900 deposit by check." Not to mention, my husband was told the equipment was due back no later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, but the paperwork actually stated 9:00 a.m. Once again, he assured me that the guy told him 5:00 p.m. We didn't have any problems returning the equipment though, and I didn't have to listen to Grandmama nag me. Thank goodness!

Okay, so enough on that, Annabelle's 12 months, 3 weeks and 3 days old photo shoot went very well, and we really got some awesome pictures! I had great intentions on Sunday night (after the first photo shoot) to make her another birthday cake to match the original 1st birthday cake just for the photo shoot on Monday, but I promptly realized at about 10:00 p.m. on Sunday that I was crazy! I was going to make another pound cake (by scratch) and decorate the cake for this special photo session. It wasn't until I realized that we did not have ANY milk or much butter that I decided that I was crazy! Thank goodness for small miracles!

So, the highlight of the photo session was this little white chair in great need of a paint job. Of course, we love antiqued furniture, and my husband actually antiqued our daughter's shift robe in her bedroom himself, so it doesn't bother us that the little white chair has paint chipping off of it everywhere. "It adds character," as my Mother (Grandmama) would say.

Well, Annabelle apparently loves this little chair as well. As soon as we set it down on the white back drop, she immediately walked over to it and she proceeded to climb right into that little chair, and then she turned herself around in it, and she sat down! Wow! I knew she was started to become interested in climbing, but where on earth did she learn to climb into that chair and turn around and sit down? Grandmama!!! I later learned that Annabelle had apparently done the same thing the night before when Grandmama and Granddaddy babysat for her while my husband and I attended the wedding.

Well, that is not the worst part! Please keep in mind, I have not left my daughter's side, and my hands are right there in front of her and behind her to catch her if (maybe I should say when) she falls. So, the next chance she gets, she decides to stand up in the chair! Wonderful! My husband is busy snapping shots of our "Little Climber." And, our "Little Climber" is then busy tumbling forward over the back of the chair. I grabbed her with both hands though as she seemed to jump forward off of the back of the chair. We continued to use the chair for our photo shoot, but she was no longer allowed to stand in the chair...not that I allowed her to stand in the chair in the first place. She just wanted to show her Mommy and Daddy her new found talent.

Nonnie came to visit for the evening photo shoot, and she saw how interested Annabelle was in the little chair that she said, "She needs her Daddy's little rocking chair." I thought, "No, she really doesn't." After the photo shoot on Monday, I asked Grandmama to take the little white chair home with her. We don't need to worry with another bump on the 'noggin like the other day in the bathroom! Especially if we can prevent it.