Butterfly Blob

Last night the kiddos and I took a walk and I brought the old trusty dusty iPhone w/ me to shoot some more Hipstamatic photos.

Don't know what Hipstamatic is? Check it out here: http://hipstamatic.com/the_app.html It's a cool iPhone (and Android?) camera app that emulates film. While there are limitations (you can only take 9 high resolution images at a time?!) and some of the filters suck (dots in the frame), it's a fun app to play with. I actually downloaded it in the hospital when I was born. Some friends had gotten me a $50 iTunes gift card so I downloaded every film, lens and feature. The debate between Instagram and Hipsamatic is an intense one, and I've only played with Instagram a little bit ... for now I'll stick to Hips.

As far as the kiddies go, Z decided to wake up before 6:30 this morning and wanted to eat. So ... we've been up since 6:30! Let the early mornings begin again! I, however, did not want to wake up and was so stinkin' cute in our bed. She slept til like 8 o'clock! That's why this blog is coming out in the morning, I'm a cup of coffee down (surprisingly not more).

Stacey mentioned how I and I are very similar, and while writing I might get you confused when I'm talking about I. Am I intentionally messing with you? Or is I just so dang beautiful that I want to call her I? ;)

Have a good weekend! Stacey gets off early today so we're super excited!!

-marc

p.s. click here to check out all the photos from last nights walk.

The Launch of Blackwell Photography!

A few days ago, August 23rd, to be exact, Stacey and I launched Blackwell Photography!  We have combined photography forces to create a trinity of photography services, including but not limited to actor's headshots, musician portraits, and wedding celebrations!  We're super excited to be starting out on this very exciting adventure, and encourage you to check out Blackwell Photography's Blog.  It may be just as entertaining as this one.  And you'll probably get more photos of celebrities and less pictures of Zoe.  Until Zoe is a celebrity.  Then I won't know what to do!  :)

We're really, really excited, and even offering a launch special.  Go check it out!  Share with your friends, and support a dying art - photography!  We always appreciate your continued support.

Years pass.  Does it get any easier?  I continued to say no.  But you do stop crying as much.  Today is the 5 year anniversary of my mothers death.  It's really difficult still, and I assume it always will be, but the other women in my life make it easier.  Stacey is the best wife and partner a guy could ever ask for.  She's always understanding when it comes to the mom subject, and now that she is a mom - she gets it from a very different perspective.  Zoe too, middle name and all, reminds me of my mother daily.  I sometimes imagine that my mom used to look like Zoe when she was 11 months old.  My mother would LOVE these ladies in my life, and vise versa.  I think, no ... know, all 3 of us are better people because of Marcia Blackwell.

Zoe's 11 months today too!  It's a crazy week!



Stacey organized a walk this evening for my mother and some friends are on their way over to take a little walk around the neighborhood and grill out.

I feel like I've been posting a lot of stuff in the past 3 days.  Tweets, Facebook posts and links, blogs here  and there.  It's all for a good cause, trust me . . . and I've been holding back!

Alright - love you guys!

Peace,
-marc

Mom Got A New iPhone Camera App

So you get to see the pictures!  ;) 

"Little Cutie"

"Dancin' Queen"

"Mom Let Me Play!"

We went to a BBQ at our friends, and Zoe's friends, house yesterday.  Remember the cute twins of Rudy and Jenny's?  They had the BBQ and mom was camera happy.  Lucky us!  

Life As A Dad In Los Angeles

 

Last night I realized my life as a father here in Los Angeles is probably a little different than most dads.  I'm already different than most dads in the fact that I stay home and work all day with my child, but this little difference makes me feel some-what like a "cool" dad. 

Last night, around 8 o'clock after Stacey, Zoe and I got done eating we began the evening bedtime ritual.  It was a bath night, so we did the whole shabang.  Bath, lotion, playing, reading and then the crib.  It was just another night at the Blackwells, but very special in it's own right.  As I was sitting there with my girls, pleasant music playing, lights dimmed soft, everything was very quiet and calm.  I knew this was about to change.

Once the ladies were almost asleep I packed up my camera gear and headed down to good ole' Hollywood to photograph a band at the infmaous Whiskey A Go Go.  (You know, the place where the Doors were made famous, or whatever?)  Driving down the Sunset Strip, looking for a parking spot that didn't cost $15, and finally getting into the Go Go for free all started the crazy loud part of my evening.

There was a really cool band (Preach Unique & the Cloud 9 Empire) on before the band I came to photograph (Soma).  I snapped a few really cool pics of them, and got to meet and chat w/ the lead signer afterward.  Then Soma was on and they rocked the house.  This band blows my mind every time I see them.  It's not typical music I would enjoy, but live they put on such a killer show that I've started to get into their music.  Head banging, rock jam band is how I would describe them.

After the show we were standing around Sunset Blvd. and I was waiting to get paid when the band realized they had some how lost someone in their transportation and needed a lift.  I offered our SUV and we crammed drums, amps and guitars all around the stroller and car seat.  :)  I drove to one of the band member's home and dropped off the stuff, had a beer, hung out with the guys and headed home.

It was a great evening.  One I really appreciate.  My wife is super cool letting me go out on weeknights, even if I am working.  I hope for many more like these.

Baby! OH NO!

A lot changes when you have a baby.  Good, and ... well, tough.  One of the things my wife and I have noticed is that our phones ring a lot less. 

I suspect that a lot of our friends just don't know how to handle the fact that we have a baby.  It almost scares them, I think.  Like, if they come over or hang out they'll be forced to change a diaper or something.  I know that's not it, but I'm really interested in why this happens. 

We're the first in our slowly shrinking circle of friends to have a babe - and it's been a really hard adjustment on us, so I  can kind of imagine what's it like for my friends.  My assumption is that their assumptions have led them the idea that we can't hang out anymore, for whatever reason.  Maybe they think we're tied down every single second of the day, or that we never want to leave the house for safety reasons, or that having a child prevents us from doing anything but children things. So not true!!

Maybe getting married has something to do with it too, as we are the first in our friend group to tie the knot.  Love scares some people.

I dunno, maybe our "friends" just suck.

Just because someone has a baby does not mean they've lost the ability to have fun.  Or be normal.  Or even go out!  Stacey and I are still Stacey and Marc.  We're still the same fun loving, spontaneous crazy persons we've always been.  We just have a mini-me hangin' out all the time.  And you think, true friends would be really excited to have another mini version of yourself around, right?

A lot of our friends have been great, awesome, and more than we could ever ask for.  The love that they show towards Zoe and us is astounding and beautiful.  It's fun to watch our friends interact with our daughter, and they love watching her grow up!  Some have offered to babysit at the drop of a hat, others will invite us to "family friendly" events, and more than most remind us on a daily basis that they are here for us. 

I guess, like so often in life I'm learning, you weed out certain people at certain times.  And it's sad, because it's ignorance that leads to these specific falling outs.  But it's also a good thing.  Survival of the fittest...friend edition.

I barely get to see my wife these days ... a few hours after work and on the weekends.  I hardly have time for the ones I love.  I'm not going to waste time on those who aren't cool with the FACT that my WIFE and I have a BABY. 

Peace,
-marc

p.s. I know friendship is a two way street.  There is a natural progression to these kind of closures on relationships.  I'm busy - they're busy - we're all busy.  But the true friends have stuck around. 

Missing Blankets, TV Bob, Excersaucers, and more!

So much happens in a day, it's hard to keep up much less post a blog about everything.  I think that's why I'm a photographer.  A photo can say so much more than words ... plus I'm no good at spelling.


Before I tell you what we got yesterday at Wear It Once, Wear It Twice (because I know you all are anxiously waiting to hear what we got ... some of you probably lost sleep over it) we had a funny experience today.  Stacey was getting her nails did and Zoe and I were chillin' outside.  When we went to the car I didn't notice that Zoe Toe's blanket had fallen off her car seat.  Stacey noticed when we got to Trader Joe's a couple blocks away,  so we went back to the nail place and in search.  Now this wasn't just a normal blanket, it's a very special one.  Stacey's dad, Stan The Man, brought it back from Italy when she was Z's age.  So we were determined to find this blanket, and find we did.  Only it was under the tire of a Green Lexus SUV with the license plate "TV BOB".  So for the next 15 minutes I went into every shop on the strip in search of TV Bob.  A little bit later he came out with a pizza and a coke oblivious to the situation.  I kindly told him why I was standing around his sweet ride, he moved his car, and the blanket was retrieved!  Now to the washing mashing it goes...


So what did we get yesterday!?  Well, Zoe got a lot of cute clothes that you will see later in photos, I'm sure.  She's getting bigger, which means she needs bigger clothes.  Crazy, huh?  Daddy got a Baby BJorn to get the sensation of what it feels like to be pregnant. :)  It's cool, and much better than Stacey's purple sling.  Zoe also got an Excersaucer!  For the longest time I thought it was called an Excersiser and Stacey's Texan accent was prohibiting her from saying it correctly.  But nope - it is an excer saucer.  Yesterday was one of the best shopping experience I've ever had.  Again, we highly recommend Wear It Once, Wear It Twice in Burbank.


We hope you enjoy the little video we took of her first time in the Exersaucer!



Like I said, a lot happens when you have a 4 month old.  In a couple hours or a couple days your entire perception and life can change.  This whole "E.A.S.Y" process is brilliant.  And we think it's working.  The past two nights Zoe has only woken up twice.  We've been feeding the little monster rice cereal before her bedtime routine, which is bath time, massage and lotion, a book and then the crib!  I'll keep you updated on the progress.

Hope you're having a great Sunday!

Peace,
-marc

The Tough Stuff

My friend Kayla suggested I write about the tough stuff when it comes to parenting.  She said my wife and I made it seem so easy that she wanted something like 5,234,342 kids or something.  Obviously she doesn't have children presently.

So you wanna know what's hard about being a parent?  It's not all smiles, photos, kisses and cute clothes.  There are several issues that could be considered tough in my opinion ... I mean, I was still trying to figure out how to take care of myself - now I have to take care of another human.  But that's another story.  Aside from the dirty diapers, the spit ups and occasional crying the hardest part of being a parent is trying to get your baby to sleep through the night.

Apparently this is a big issue with new parents.  There have been books written about it, philosophies debated and lots of techniques thrown into the mix.  Stacey and I of course thought we knew everything about raising a child before Zoe was born so we skipped the notion that she would wake up every other hour during the night.  Now...4 months in, we haven't gotten a single full nights rest and we're tired.  We just want her to sleep like a normal person so we all can get a full nights rest.

Last night Stacey showed me this blog post from her friend Laura.  It's an entire post dedicated to how she gets her baby girl to sleep.  She even posted it 6 days before Zoe was born.  WHY HAVEN'T I SEEN IT TIL NOW?!?  Well I'm glad I saw it when I did because it's not too late to try something new.  I guess there's a book, but what LaLa wrote is about is a philosophy called "E.A.S.Y".  "Eat, Activity, Sleep, You."  The you stands for sleep!!! :)  So we're tryin' it out.  We've been letting Zoe Toes go to sleep after eating, during eating and just whenever.  Not any more.  We're in the army now and on a schedule.  She'll get to eat every 2 1/2 - 3 hours and then we'll play until she's tired.  Once she's sleeping, it's "You" time and that can mean work, sleep or whatever. 

We may not have the whole parenting thing figured out completely.  We'll probably get it perfect when she moves out of the house.  But until then we're trying our best to make sure that our little baby girl is healthy, well rested and happy.  And that means Daddy and Mommy gotta be healthy, happy and for now, most importantly, well rested.  Here's to the adventure before us!

How do you, or how have you, gotten your baby to sleep through the night?  Tell us your secrets!

We Made It!

We actually made it to the park!  It's been raining for days straight and Zoe and I have been wanting to go for a while ... remember?   So we got all bundled up, got the stroller and made our "loop".  It's a beautiful day.

Not much must be going on if all I have to blog about is going to the park, huh?

Just another Saturday.  A little bit of pleasure mixed with a little bit of work.  Mommy's home and all is well in the Blackwell household!

What would you guys like to see me blog about?  A friend of mine, Miss Kayla, suggested I write about what's TOUGH about being a parent.  I'll probably do that next week.  Really gonna hafta stretch for that one cuz so far it's been a breeze!  (Sarcasm?)  :) 

Have a great weekend!

Much love,
-marc

We Miss Mommy!

The hardest part of Stacey going back to work ... is Stacey going back to work.  We're a team.  When one couldn't handle another dirty diaper, the other would change it.  When the other was just too tired to feed ZB, the other would make the bottle and pop it in our little girl's mouth.  If we wanted a second alone, we could.  But from 7:45 - 5:15 every day it's just me and Zoe.  Not that I'm complaining - having this much alone time with our baby girl is amazing.  But it's tiring!  And we miss our mom. 

Stacey is such a positive light in this world.  She's always questioning everything, trying to figure out the best way to be a better person.  She is an amazing mom who's heart is full of love for Zoe, me and her friends and family.  If you're lucky enough to get to know her, you should hang on for dear life because you're in for an exciting ride.  Having her around got me spoiled, and now that she's not here during the day it's really quiet and boring. 

So Zoe and I will hang out again all day today.  We're anxiously awaiting 4:00 pm, because on Friday's mom get's off work early!  We're still going to have fun though.  Maybe we'll go to the park today, or take a walk.  Our good friend Amy Paffrath will be heading over to work on her website a little bit today and yesterday Drew Seeley and I worked on his website.  I'm still able to get a little work done, but as Mrs. Blackwell reminds me often, my #1 job is Dad. 

Peace,
-marc

Sittin' in Oklahoma with my baby girl...

It was around Christmas time last year that we made Zoe. Now, I'm sitting in my relatives' home in Oklahoma with my very own baby girl next to my side. I'm married and a dad. A lot changes in a year. Stacey just went out with one of her old best girlfriends and Zoe and I? We're just chilling next to each other. What better time to blog? Oh wait ... I think Zoe might need a diaper change.

Actually I wanted to change the design of the blog, then I figured I should post too. Why not, right? It's always around this time of the year when I think "Hmmm...I should blog more."

Hold on ... diaper change time.

OK ... man I thought of a lot to write about in that couple of minutes. Like, how lucky I am to have a loving wife who loves me and our little girl more than the world. I couldn't have asked for a better woman to be in my life for the rest of my life. She's perfect. Well, except for her tardiness, but I can overlook that. :) I see couples having problems and divorce rates going through the rough, an unhappiness running rampage between parents - but not with us. We're a team, and a damn good one at that.

Hold on ... time to feed the baby!

OK ... now my brain is getting too full for this post. I should blog professionally. I did back in college. Back in Oklahoma, only a few blocks from here I got $5.15 for every blog post I wrote. I could be a part of the mom and dad blogging community. Diaper companies and toy makers, feel free to send me samples of ANYTHING and I'll write about it. Send me samples and $$ and I'll write positively about it. :)

Next year will be crazy. After our trip to Oklahoma Stacey goes back to work at Advertise.com. I will be a full-time dad. That is my job. Photography is taking a backseat, as hard as that is to type, it's important for me to focus on the most important thing right now, and that's little Zoe. I never thought I would be part of the statistic of growing stay at home dads, but here I am, and happy to do so. Life will be a trip, like it always has been, but it will be fun. I'll still shoot on the weekends or after 5, and with RLP growing and becoming more successful I'll be able to create websites from home while watching Zoe! But I might stay in my sweats for weeks at a time... ;)

Having a child has been crazy. I know people do it all the time, but I've never done it before. My favorite part? When she smiles at me ... like she is now. It makes all the financial hardship, late nights, and difficult situations worth it. I've lost friends over Zoe, missed out on "opportunities" for work, and haven't gone to see a movie in 13 weeks - but I wouldn't change a single moment.

So here's to 2010. I want to show my baby girl that even though the world is way messed up, life is alright if you surround yourself with people who love you and who you love. Love is all you need!

Much love,
-marc

Zoe is 8 weeks old...What can you do?

It's Saturday night. A year ago on a Saturday night you could find me at a concert, bar, club, friends house, partying and having a crazy good time. Tonight my wife and I are chilling at home, listening to music, having just as good of a time, but with our little 8 week old girl.

Her name's Zoe, I'm sure you know that by now if you're reading my blog, and she's the most amazing thing to happen to me since...oh, I dunno, Stacey? :) They both lighten up my world daily, hourly, even every moment. Stacey's so happy to be a mom, and Zoe is so happy to be alive. She tells me with her smiles, they both do.

I didn't know what it was going to be like to be a dad. I had no clue. I didn't really comprehend that I was GOING to be a dad until the moment she exited Stacey's body and entered the world. Her first cry was my first "oh. uh. i'm - a - dad." And so far it's been a great, exciting, entertaining trip.

We've taken her all over California, although she's never seen the beach...but that will change once it gets a little warmer. Time suddenly goes FASTER. It's harder to get out of the house when we do get out. Not only do I have to get ready, and Stacey, but we have to make sure a baby's ready too. And that means bottles, diapers, burp cloths, blankets, change in outfits (this is hollywood), and much much more. I'm surprised we even eat!

Did I mention that Stacey is an AWESOME mom? She's the best mom I know. Sad to say, but happy to say at the same time.

I wish my mom could've met Zoe. She would love her.

Sometimes we talk about how Zoe is a part of my mom. That my mom probably looked like Zoe when SHE was 8 weeks old. How crazy is that? It's the circle of life I assume, one goes out and another comes in.

Words can't explain, no matter how hard or poetic I get, the feelings of being a dad. When Zoe smiles at me, I feel a joy that is new and exciting. When Stacey (as she always does) does something very motherly, it creates a feeling in my heart that I can't explain really. I'm a family. I have a family. I am in charge of another little human being, who is my daughter, and will ALWAYS be my daughter. That's cool. That's magical. That's the best feeling in the world. My head rests a little higher on my shoulders.

And as messed up as the world is, as sirens blare outside our window right now as I type, I know that Zoe Marcia Blackwell will be fine because she has good parents, a good family, and a good network of friends. She will know love, and peace, and happiness, and she will have everything she needs, always. She will grow up with 2 parents who love her unconditionally and be supported up until our last days.

I ask that YOU create a better world for my daughter as well. Don't do anything that would comprise Zoe. Don't be a jerk in traffic, try to be more environmentally conscience, treat your neighbors better than you have. If everyone does this, maybe ... JUST MAYBE, we can change the world and Zoe won't have to know war, or hate, or discrimination.

That's all.