We have been pretty busy around our house the last couple of months. We've been doing lots of work and lots of playing. We took a big leap in April... we leased and started work on our new photography studio! It just kind of happened. The circumstances were right and we felt good about taking the plunge so we went for it. Needless to say we worked out little tushies off to prepare and so far it has been really great. Things are still a bit slow but inch by inch we are breaking into the new market here in Willcox. The crazy thing is, from the day we signed the lease to the day we opened was three weeks. Just three weeks, and I have to tell ya, I wished I'd had another three months to get everything together. But we made it, the doors are open, and we are working so it was all worth it. My family was great!! My sister-in-laws Allison and Lindsey came down the week we planned to open and took Josh off my hands for the day and that completely made the difference. It was that last little stretch that I really had to buckle down for and would not have made it without them. AND while they were here they did laundry, finished dishes, scrubbed down counters, and I came home to a clean little boy all ready for bed. It was fantastic!! The morning we opened was a bit insane to say the least. We had not been to bed before 1:00 am for more than a week, and the night before we had left the studio at 3:00 am. Needless to say that Saturday was a very long day. It was a little slow, but we didn't do very much advertising before hand. Just a few fliers and word of mouth. Photography has been a wonderful creative outlet in my life and what makes it even greater is that Cody and I enjoy learning the craft together. Wish us luck!!!
Funny story about the new paint we bought for the exterior. We just happened to choose the exact same color as what was already there. We really could not have gotten any closer. We had a whole wheel of colors, including several yellows and this is what we picked. I guess it was just meant to be that color. Here we have painted the top portion the "new" yellow and Cody and I painted the logo on. My awesome hubby created my flower logo for me from a chicken scratch drawing I gave him that was on a napkin. It represents me and Joshua. He is the number one reason why I love and have pursued photography. You can see how similar the yellows are before and after. The was drawn on the building free hand by Cody and then we both climbed up and got to painting. It was one long night. We did all of the painting in the dark. Yes, I know, we are crazy. But we had a deadline and it was approaching quickly. We repainted the lower half, and the awning brown. I think a fresh coat of paint made a big difference.
Here is Joshua keeping himself busy while we worked away. He was not normally this patient. He did have a jumping pit with balls, cars, and the train down the street to keep him occupied. But we did get a babysitter a couple of times to come down and hang out with him while we had things that were really involved to do. He was a pretty tough little guy during those crazy two weeks.
And here I am on opening day. My mom came up and helped us set up last minute stuff. I really hesitated posting this photo, but Cody said I really needed to have one. I guess it is probably a good thing. I was SO tired and was feeling the lack of sleep and hard work from the last couple of weeks. The flowers were from my mom. I loved them and Chrysanthemums are starting to become a new favorite flower of mine. This is in the little sitting/waiting area that we have in the studio.
I am so lucky to have a husband that is so supportive and encourages me to pursue my dreams and goals. He really was the force behind this new adventure. We still have some work to do on it, but now that the majority of the work is done and I have a studio to call my very own I am glad he thought I could do it. It has already been an adventure and I am looking forward to seeing where it takes us.
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