Glitter!

Elsewhere : A Roundup

You guys, it’s been fun around here lately! I’ve been so fortunate to have a ton of new opportunities head my way in the past few months, but often, I forget to share them with you once they are out in the wild. While this blog and my photography will always be my first loves, it’s pretty cool to be able to write for other outlets and share about things that might not be a good fit somewhere else. With that, here are a few things I’ve been working on…

parenting with an age gap
My first post on the Kansas City Moms Blog went up last week, and it’s all about parenting kids with an age gap.

Most of my friends and family had children within one or two years of each other, meaning when they have activities or plans, for the most part all of their children can participate and enjoy. Taking a 9-year-old to a preschool play date isn’t exactly her idea of a great time! And my son is constantly whining because his sister gets to have sleepovers with friends and more independence. When I try to explain that he is only four, and sleepovers don’t happen in our family until kindergarten, he usually just stomps off in a huff. I get it. Being little stinks sometimes. It can be extremely frustrating to parent children going through completely different life stages. On one hand you have a toddler temper tantrum, but on the other you have a tween rolling her eyes and crying over friend drama. It’s exhausting, and can feel like you’re constantly switching gears.

Read more about how we’re taking on these challenges on the Kansas City Moms Blog!

Glitter!
A few weeks ago I assisted for a Senior Elite Photo Session with Amanda Yount Photography! It was such a fun experience! There is a great write-up and video from the session on her blog.

This spring and summer in Kansas City has been one of the wettest in recent history. For almost a month it rained daily, with flooding becoming a real threat to the area. So we weren’t surprised when the rain clouds rolled in, but we prayed they would pass over without incident. We arrived at the baseball fields and the girls changed into some adorable Royals gear, but as we gathered in the bleachers, the wind picked up and the rain started to fall. We all ran to our cars, and decided as a group to try and wait out the storm. There was lots of texting between cars, and I’m so grateful for these girls, who were total rockstars. After about 30 minutes, the rain slowed and the clouds parted! The team wiped down the bleachers, and we were ready to go!

See more (along with the amazing images) on the Amanda Yount Photography blog!

Addiction.com Expert Blogger

I’m so proud to be a Recovery Expert Blogger over at Addiction.com! One of my favorite things is helping other people through telling my recovery story. I feel like everything I’ve gone through is worth sharing, especially if it helps even just one person. My first post was all about how I coped with being a summer mama while going through early recovery.

After that initial outing, I found other tools to help me through the hot summer months. The biggest and probably most important was learning how to ask for help. Before recovery, I was an A+ parent who refused any assistance. But as a mom in recovery, I had to learn how to ask for help when I was overwhelmed. And I quickly learned something amazing: People want to help! It makes others feel good when they help you! What a revelation! All that time I’d assumed that if I asked for help I would be seen as a burden. Turns out asking for help made me stronger than I’d ever been.

Read more over at Addiction.com!

Kansas City Rainbow Skyline

Elsewhere : Kansas City Moms Blog

KCMB Intro

I’m so excited to announce I have joined the Kansas City Moms Blog team as a contributing writer! The Kansas City Moms Blog is a collaborative blog written by KC moms, for KC moms and striving to bring online mothers together offline in meaningful and lasting community. I’ve been following this site for a few years, and I’m so honored to be working with all these incredible mothers, writers, creatives and all around rockstars. If you want to learn more, or connect with other moms in the Kansas City area, head over to the Kansas City Moms Blog Facebook page!

Elsewhere : Gaming Safety Tips, Homeschooling, and Local Photography Spotlight

Sometimes it may seem like this here blog is a little quiet, but that’s just because I’m writing elsewhere. As a freelance writer, I sometimes feel like I’m go-go-going all the time, but I love being able to write about topics that may not fit in here at Crazy Bananas, but are still super-interesting. Here’s a bit of what I’ve been working on lately:

Pixelkin-logo

I’m over at Pixelkin.org talking about gaming safety for kids and parents.

“…there is a prevalent fear among parents and caregivers that gaming is a negative or scary medium for our children. Many of these concerns deal with fear of the unknown. Parents who are not familiar with gaming are unsure of how to navigate this foreign world. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a relatively new trend among child predators is to find children through online gaming. This news could shock parents, or make them want to cut off all gaming activity. However, the benefits of gaming are powerful, and removing games completely is not necessarily a wise option. So how can we ensure our kids are protected, while still allowing them to enjoy the fun and benefits of social gaming?”

Head on over to my post at Pixelkin.org to read my top tips for protecting our kids online, and why I believe it’s worth the risk!

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kc moms blog

In my first guest post for the Kansas City Moms Blog, I’m talking about homeschooling an a technological era.

However, the tide is changing on the homeschooling front. What was once seen as an option primarily for those with religious or other objections to a public education, is now becoming more mainstream, especially among parents with a technology or creative background. Between 1999 and 2012, the number of children being homeschooled in the U.S. doubled. My husband is a tech entrepreneur and I’m a writer and photographer. Both of us did well in school, but we struggled with the conformed way of learning that is practiced by most teaching institutions, including standardized testing. What we learned in school has not necessarily led to our success as entrepreneurs. Instead, real world training and problem solving has been much more beneficial to our careers.

You can read more about homeschooling, and learn about some great resources both online and in the Kansas City area at the Kansas City Moms Blog.

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hive logo

I was lucky enough to interview amazing local photographer Jason Domingues for the {Hive-Workshops} blog. My conversation with Jason was so inspiring, and I found his advice and openness to be really refreshing. In a world of creative posturing, Jason is the real deal.

Domingues says that photographers have to be willing to look at their work critically and break out of their own mold. When photographers get stuck in their particular style, and refuse to change, they can become outdated. “They are wondering 10 or 12 years down the road why they aren’t getting any business. But photography as a business is changing. If you can push a button, make an image, slap a bunch of filters on it, and create a website… then you’re a wedding photographer! What makes the difference is everything in between.”

You can read more about Jason and why he believes the best growth can happen by accident at the {Hive-Workshops} blog.

Elsewhere : Comparison is the Thief of Joy

I have an exciting announcement to share! I am now a contributing blogger for {Hive-Workshops}! {Hive} is based in Kansas City and offers small business classes for creative professionals. I am so thrilled to be a part of the {Hive} team and to be able to share and learn from their network of incredible teachers.

comparison+is+the+thief+of+joy+hive+workshops

My first post is up on the {Hive} blog, and it’s all about that dirty, little beast, comparison. I’ve fallen victim to the comparison bug so many times, and I think it’s inevitable that all creatives have to deal with it at one time or another.

I suppose comparison is inevitable in the world of artists. While we all strive to be original, to become more skilled at our craft, we often look to other professionals we admire. Slowly, and sometimes unbeknownst to us, our heroes techniques and aesthetics can start to slip into our own. If we aren’t careful, we can lose ourselves. Comparison robs us of the ability to enjoy our lives and our work!

Read more over on the {Hive} blog!

Elsewhere : Mothering Gamers, From Opponent to Advocate

In 2002 I met a gamer boy who was super cute and he asked me on a date. I had fake red hair and listened to way to much emo rock, and he wore lots of puka shell necklaces. It was adorable.

2002

Today I’m over at Pixelkin.org talking about how I started out as a gamer’s girlfriend who was VERY confused about the appeal of gaming and how my opinions have changed as my kids have become more interested in video games.

Now, as the “mother” I pride myself on being in tune with my kids’ wants and needs, but this was something I didn’t understand. I admit, at first, I was jealous. This was something my kids and husband could do together and I had no idea how to participate. Excepting a one-month binge of The Sims in college (when I locked myself in a closet with the game for a few weeks and then realized I needed sunlight and never played again) I certainly wasn’t a gamer by any definition of the word. All of a sudden my husband and kids were connecting on a level I couldn’t relate to, and I felt lost.

You can read more at Pixelkin.org.

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