You guys, I am SO lost about what to name our son. I just don't know. I HATE naming children. There is so much pressure. I want him to have a name already. I want to call him by that name instead of "this one" or "the new baby".

I had a dream we named him Nate. Great! you may say. It is a sign! But it isn't. I like the name Nate but that is not his name.

It doesn't help that one of our favorite agreed upon names is Jackson. But we have a dog named (Captain) Jack (Sparrow) and that is a little too awkward. Plus, when we first mentioned we liked that name when we were pregnant with the then gender unknown Sophia, my mother jumped in about all the Jacksons we had in our family, even though I had never heard of any of them in my entire life. That sealed the deal. Our child is not being named after a plethora of relatives I didn't even know existed. The name was/is ruined for us. Ruined.

Don't get me wrong. We have a list. The list. The list of names that gets more meaningless instead of more enticing.

I wish he could just tell me what his name is already.

In 5 years, when little Nate Jackson Hale is running around the house you can remind me of this post.

lv,
Court

Sophie started a new Little Gym class today. She was bumped up to the next age group. She is still technically a month shy of that class but trust me, she was ready! The class is full of nice moms and wonderful kids! So that went smoothly... (yay!)

In other news, my home is in shambles. The office is becoming the new nursery. The guest room must now house some of the office stuff. All other items must be sold/donated/or find another place within our home. Oh, the havoc! So... the office is MOSTLY cleaned out. This means that a plethora of items are stacked in the guest room and have been added to the "Organize" to-do list. The large corner desk and hutch are now sitting on my side of the garage waiting to be brought to its new home at my parent's house. (Meanwhile, I am parking my car outside - NOT preferable.) My "office" nook in the game room is now both Kyle and I's nook.

Our neighborhood has bi-annual by approval only garage sale and we signed up for the one this spring, so our formal dining room is now host to all items deemed "Sell-able". Kyle and I have never done a garage sell. We just donate stuff, but we have enough that we figured we should try. We purchased a [gorgeous] new chest and yet another bookshelf to help give us more storage space. And so on and so on... you get the idea. The point is that nothing is quite done yet, but is instead in the process of getting done. So, in the meantime, I don't plan on having guests over. It is amazing how much rearranging has to go into reallocating a room! I'm excited though. A lot of this stuff NEEDED to be done and after that garage sell, etc. we will have a rearranged home with less stuff, more accent furniture, and a brand new nursery right across from Sophie's room.

(Thank goodness Kyle and I are NOT pack-rats. We don't hold onto a lot of stuff. I can't imagine how difficult this would be if we were.)

Everything from the office desk and closet. Some of this will go in our new accent chest, some in the guest room closet, and some gone for good. Note: I can't put on the freshly washed guest room sheets on account of the havoc. 

 Kyle and his dad finished the chair rail! Obviously, some of the items left in here need to be removed. Note: I have started moving items from Sophie's room and other baby related things into the new nursery.

On a different note, we went to the zoo last week and Sophia was over the moon. This wasn't her first time, but it was definitely her most interested time. (It was St. Patrick's Day, hence the green!)





I love her undefinable colored curly hair. Her dress is from Mimi, Jenney's daughter. Check out her blog here: Adventures of JKL

And finally, Kyle and I went to our first ever consignment sale. We were both disappointed in the actual sale, but we loved the vendors that were also there. We actually won a "Baby's First Year" photography package from this one adorable photographer. So excited!! I feel like I never win anything!

Kyle was on Spring Break this past week ( a perk of working for a school district!) and we spent a lot of time on Operation: Get Ready for Baby! (See: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Z7Yob03Yu4&hd=1) I feel wiped out. I need to get back into my blogging habit but in the meantime, a peace offering of our activities via photos. =)


Make your own animation


Make your own animation


Make your own animation



lv,
Go Team Hale

So, as a lot of you know, I used to work in film and television. It sounds exciting and I am not going to lie, it was - sometimes. But it was also very, very, very time consuming. And when you were contracted to a film it meant 12 hour days, 6 days a week. And that was if you were putting in the minimum. Not to mention when you had to travel to a location or *gulp* be away on location for 6 plus weeks. Needless to say, that life style is less than ideal to my personal mothering expectations.

However, occasionally I take a freelance gig such as a wedding or a promo video for a company, etc. This has turned out to NOT be a good idea. I honestly feel that people have absolutely no idea how much time, energy, etc. goes into editing and producing the final product. This is not something you can do during your toddler's 1.5 hour nap and it is DEFINITELY not something that can be done while they are awake. So I work when Kyle is home and he can watch our daughter, but then I am totally cut off from them. I work when my mother can come over and "nanny" but she can only do that so often. I feel like I can never get a leg up on the projects. It is stressful and frustrating and I am not going to do it again for at least year. And I am definitely not doing it for my current rates. I am way underpaid for the amount of time I have to put into this stuff.

The problem isn't the work. I don't mind working. The problem is that I don't have TIME to work. I am suppose to be a SAHM but then I am trying to fit in a work load that takes more than 40 hours a week for several weeks on top of mom duty. That doesn't add up. 

And the freelance stuff has none of the fun and excitement that being on a movie set does, so I am not even getting THAT back from it.

*pout*

So, enough with the grumpiness, but THAT is why I have no time to blog. I have literally buried myself in finishing up the last two contracts I have (One Wedding =DONE! and One Convention Promo = Half way Done) because I am OVER THEM. And then I have no stupid project weighing me down. I want that weight lifted OFF of my shoulders. I want to spend Sophie's nap time (my only free time until the Mr. gets home) mapping out the new baby's nursery or blogging or vlogging or reading or eating lunch or napping. (I am pregnant, after all!).

I guess by writing about this, I feel like I have taken a stand. Against what? Myself, I suppose, b/c I am the one who takes the jobs. Lesson learned. Being a mom wins.

=)

Now for a stroll down film making memory lane...


lv, CH