Sacrifices. Struggles. Success. 
 
I went to J*’s  Fix conference last week and it was A-MA-ZING!  It covered so many key factors on improving your business, or in my case starting my business :) Our homework assignment was to write out our Goals, Strengths & weaknesses. One day I will have the guts to post them. In my Nitty Gritty category I will start posting my struggles, because the reality is this business isnt all fun & games! There are many behind the scene struggles & stresses that you have to overcome. Here's a cool chart that my friend showed me...

Oh and I met thee Jasmine Star! It was so strange standing in line to take a photo with someone other than Santa (and I barely experienced that for the first time this past xmas, when I took lil Jack). I’ve never been one to chase down a famous person for a autograph or photo. Im way too shy, but best believe I totally brag about it later to my family, and sometimes I wish I had the photo for proof. My friend Katy was teasing me because I had no idea what the heck I was going to say! Wouldn’t that be so cool if she recognized me? When I introduced myself she said Hi Janelle, I know exactly who you are. Let’s do coffee. (Even though I’d rather drink hot cocoa than coffee, but for her I’d make an exception).

Hi Im Janelle Marina, (I’m so not used to including my middle name in my introduction! Kinda weird!) I’m the one who asks you a question at least once a week. Can we be instant friends? 
 
No thats too strange, I dont want to scare her... 

"Hi I’m Janelle & this is my friend Katy." Thats it. She had no clue who the heck I was, and why would she? I’m only 1 out of 50,000 fans!!! I dont like awkward silences so I added "We are your stalkers!" As soon as those words came out I wanted to punch myself in the arm... What an idiot! (I also knew damn well that Katy has no part in the stalking process, I just didn’t want to single myself out & sounds extra creepy!) But thankfully it broke the silence & we all laughed... she said that since we’ve officially met, we are now friends not stalkers.

 I did manage to make her laugh! In the conference she was explaining how she had so much responsibilities on her plate; shooting, editing, album designing, burning cds, & making dinner. She said “I knew that I had to give up some of these responsibilities to be able to still have a life.” Then she paused and I don’t know what came over me but I blurted out, “So you chose to give up making Dinner!” And everyone started laughing! It was kinda cool. The whole room was dark so no one knew who said it. It might not sound funny to you; it’s definitely one of those things that you had to be there to appreciate the funniness.  

I didn’t leave with a new best friend, but I’ll settle for all the good information that she gave us :)

I really don’t know how to begin this post without getting all mushy gushy… 

    When I was 5 years old, my baby brother was in his crib napping and had a seizure. I randomly walked in to check on him and I found him in his crib totally blue. I yelled for my dad to come help! My parents said that if I hadn’t of checked on him, then he wouldnt of made it. I still remember the white stuffed animal dog that I got for being a hero.  

    This was only the beginning of the struggles in his life.

    For those of you that are new to my blog, Michael is my younger bro who was born with Prader Willi Syndrome  & mentally challenged.  Growing up with a brother who has special needs is a whole other ball game. You’re not worried about him getting on the Varsity team or what college he’ll get into. You just hope that they remain healthy and survive the struggles of School & Life. Getting bullied or laughed at by people who just don’t have a clue. What do you tell him when he comes crying to you because he doesn’t understand why people laugh at him. Are mean to him. Call him Retarded. 

    My sophomore year of high school, I joined a program called Best Buddies . They educate the public on the need for social inclusion of those with disabilities. I got assigned a special buddy to chill with and helped him feel comfortable socializing with other students. You would be surprised on what a difference that makes in a persons life.  It was awesome because even some of the “Popular” football players actively participated in the program, which made it “cool” for others to join. Unfortunately my little brother didn’t have this program at his school. He didn’t get the privilege of going to the Best Buddies Prom or other awesome activities that they host. 

    Wouldn’t it be awesome if all schools had this program! Well with our help they can continue to grow...

    Every year they host a Best Buddies Friendship walk  to help raise money to keep the program alive.     

This program is very dear to my heart and I would like to do something special this year to help raise money. I am having a Best Buddies Bundle Sale starting today- April 20th, $100 of proceeds will be donated to the Best Buddies Program.

If you decide not to book a session, but would still like to donate feel free to click here! Every dollar counts! When signing up, Join our team A Little Xtra!  Thanks for reading :)

This past week has been crazy busy. My new sister had her baby shower and I made her cake. It’s been a while since I made a cake and I forgot about how much prep time it takes. I was happy with the end result, and it fit her theme perfectly.

 I was worried that getting my hands on a cake would make me want to go back to my old business, but on the contrary, it actually validated my decision to let it go and focus on photography! I love how photography doesn’t come with a dirty kitchen and sticky hands :)

I’ve been sitting behind a computer for the past few weeks editing the 1,000 photos from Gema & Jr’s wedding.  It’s been a while since I have picked up my camera & I miss it. I have made the business decision to outsource the editing process on the next wedding to a professional editing company. Leave it to the pros so I can have more time do what I love –shoot! I need that extra time! It’s especially been hard juggling time teaching/playing with my booger butt (lil Jack) and the household chores. Gosh how I hate chores! It seems like the second I put toys away, I turn around and they are back out!

Here are a few photos of my favorite model…