Real or Fake? Picture Perfect Posts

I have always loved taking pictures. When I was a child, I was always flipping through photo albums of birthday parties, vacations, and school pictures. To me, photographs help bring me back to a moment. They're like little time machines.

I remember taking pictures with my little turquoise camera that used those strange looking 110 film cartridges. The old disposable 35mm cameras were also a must have for vacations. It was always so fun to take them to the store to get developed. Of course, they were horrible pictures, but in each one of those fuzzy, foggy, off-centered pictures, there is a snapshot of my life.

In my early 20s, I started making scrapbooks. Well, I like to call them "Fancy Photo Albums" - basically photo albums with pretty paper and stickers, not the elaborate ones I see on Pinterest. I still enjoy putting pictures in albums, but I really don't have time. I'm about 3 years behind.  The other downside is that you don't get to share them with friends and family easily.

Social media has allowed me to create digital photo albums that I can share. I use Facebook to share more personal photos of my family and our adventures. On Instagram, I post more general, small moment pictures. This blog has allowed me to add some journalling, which I was always really bad at, when making actual scrapbooks.  Instagram and "Adventures of a Scatterbrain" are public, so I try to keep the pictures focused more on places and activities, not faces, to keep life a little more private.

I just returned from a short vacation with my son. It wasn't the ideal vacation. It was just the two of us, travelling to Prince Edward Island for an extended weekend trip. Little C was not in the best mood. I think he was going through a bit of a growth spurt, so he was having a bad week. For the most part, he was his usual happy, giggly, huggy self, but some times he was a screechy, tempery, grumpus. I always have a hard time with that, so I'm sure it seemed a lot worse than it was. Of course, when I got back home, I posted 25 or so pictures from the trip on Facebook and a few to Instagram.

I think he found his herd. #BestDayEver #PEIVacation #IslandHillFarm #Goats #ToddlerLife

A video posted by Tiffany S (@tiffs2012) on Jul 31, 2016 at 11:10am PDT

I was looking through the album the next day and realized that no one would know that it wasn't all picture perfect. This got me thinking, My Facebook and Instagram feed is always filled with happy pictures. I only post happy, positive pictures.  Is this an accurate snapshot of my life? Am I being fake?

Sure, you could say that it's fake, but I don't look at it like that. Honestly, unless it led to a good laugh or smile, I don't want to remember it in detail. I wouldn't devote a page in my photo album to it, so why would I post the picture online, where it could potentially life forever? I try to live in the positive and focus on the good.

I think it's easy to become envious of others when you see their perfect pictures posted online. Just remember that we are all creating our own digital footprint, editing and polishing before hitting that share or publish button. Things may not be quite as good as they seem, at least not all the time.

You won't see me posting pictures of tantrums, screaming, tears, or moments of failure. It's not because I don't want people to know that they happen, I just don't want to focus on them. Every parent knows that there are plenty of not-so-picture-perfect times, so why focus on the negative? Call me fake if you want, but I just want to remember the good times.

Something Good Is Happening On Facebook

I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook. I use it a lot, but, from time to time, I think about deleting my account. Facebook is my go-to place to connect with friends and family, and an easy way to make plans for get-togethers. During the winter months of my maternity leave, it was sometimes my only contact with the outside world and a source of (much needed) adult conversation. 

One of the big reasons that I sometimes turn Facebook off is the negativity - definitely not good for a new mum, trying to stay ahead of the baby blues, or anyone else for that matter. Whether it be people starting unnecessary arguments, posting vague status updates that are very "woe is me," or just constantly complaining about anything and everything, I don't think that it does anyone any good. The negative person stays in that mindset and often brings out that side in others. I'm not saying that everything has to be sunshine and rainbows, and I don't think that you should keep things in that are bothering you, but I think some people get into a negative groove and have a hard time getting out of it.  

That brings me to the reason I'm talking about Facebook. There is something good happening on Facebook these days. Usually, I'm not one to follow the silly posting games/trends, like "I'm going to Germany for five months" or "I like it on the couch" or changing profile pictures to giraffes. In fact, I always ignore them. This one is different though.

Gratitude challenges are peppering my newsfeed with positivity. There are several different challenges floating around, but the general idea is that you post a few positive things each day - something good that's happening or something you're grateful for - for 5 or 7 days. Each day, you also nominate another person to do the same. I had been nominated for one of these a few months ago and didn't do it, but after finishing the #blissphotoaday challenge last month, I wanted to continue with the good thinking, so I thought I'd give it a go when I was nominated this time. 

I'm currently on day 5. Some days are easier than others. Today, I could have complained about getting up a many times to get my son settled or the fact that I have a mountain of housework to do, but I didn't. I was able to find the silver lining. Getting up many times in the night also meant that I was able to get my son back to sleep - that's a pretty great feeling. And that piling up housework? That's the result of having a nice chill day with my little family. I'll take any amount of housework to have that.

I'm hoping that after this, I'll remember to look for the positive throughout my day. I know it makes Facebook a much more positive place to visit, and hopefully others will continue to do the same.

Here are a couple of highlights: (As you can see, some are a little more silly than others.)

-Coffee: It's a little magic. When woken up at 5:30, it really helps get the day started when my body is rejecting morning. 

-I'm so thankful that Little C has two pairs of grandparents that love him so much. Grandparents are pretty special people in the lives of little ones, and he's lucky to have such great ones.
 
-Best feeling? In the middle of the night, when I lay back down after helping C. go back to sleep, and he stays sleeping. I go back to sleep feeling like sleep superhero. (At least until the next time he wakes up... but then it happens all over again!)

-Maternity Leave - I feel so fortunate to live in a place that allows me to have maternity leave. Many mothers (or fathers) don't have this option, so I am forever grateful.

-Holidays: Bonus days are the best! Just when you think the weekend is over, there's still a day left!

-I think Dawn Advanced Power dish detergent actually is magic. It will clean anything off your dishes in just a couple minutes of soaking. Seriously magic.


Today, try to think positive and spread a little positivity!

Photography, Cameras, Apps, and Photo Challenges.

Photography is something that I’ve enjoyed for many years, but have never really put my all into it.  I’ve always had a “good” camera and have wanted to take a photography class for a long time, but have never gotten around to it.  I don’t know why... maybe time or not really knowing where to go for it.  Maybe someday. <sigh>  Until then, I will learn little bits at a time.

My current “good camera” is my Nikon 3100. I love it. I feel like anyone could take a nice picture with it – a great camera for beginners or want-to-be-photographers. Best part? I can set it to “Guide,” and it will walk me through different settings, teaching me what to do along the way. It makes experimenting a lot easier, and my experiments are more likely to turn out. I’ve taken some beautiful shots and love the quality of the pictures.  It’s definitely my preferred “picture taking tool.” The only downfall is that it’s bulky. 

I also take a lot of pictures with my iPhone.  Like, A LOT. (It’s almost a joke. It’s getting to the point that my son poses whenever anyone pulls out their cellphone. He’s only 8 months old! I need help. Seriously.) The downside is that the photos aren’t the same quality as my camera, but they are a lot better than camera phones used to be. The benefit is that my phone is usually with me or within an arm’s reach, so it’s handy.  I am able to get unexpected pictures when my camera is still in its case or sitting at home.  I find that I can capture some really great “moments” because it’s always closeby.  If my better camera isn’t already out, it sometimes feels artificial when I run to get it, take it out of its case, and get it ready.  My iPhone may not take the best quality pictures, but sometimes they can capture moments that I wouldn’t be able to capture otherwise. 

There is an added bonus to taking photos on my iPhone – the photo editing apps. They’re fun. I know some people don’t like edited photos, and I can be one of those people sometimes, but I think it’s fun to play with pictures.  Sometimes you can take a picture that looks like garbage and turn it into something neat. My favourite photo editing app right now is Aviary.  It was a bit of a random find, but I really like it. It’s easy to use, and you don’t have to post your pictures online when you’re done, although you can post to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or send it out via email or text, which is a nice feature.

Speaking of which, I’m also a fan of Instagram and have been posting more pictures there, although they are very random.  I like the sharing aspect, and like seeing what other people post. I’ve been amazed with people who have started and managed to follow through with photo a day challenges, like #100DaysOfHappy. Posting a photo every day is certainly a challenge, and I don’t know how people do it for 100 days! That’s a lot of days. I’m also fascinated by what people post. I love seeing what makes them happy or what they’ve deemed important. So, I decided that I’d try a (shorter) photo challenge.  YummyMummyClub.ca hosts a photo a day challenge each month.  This month, it’s the #BlissPhotoADay Challenge. (If you want to know more, check it out here: http://www.yummymummyclub.ca/blogs/melissa-gaston-find-the-light/20140623/blissphotoaday-challenge-july-2014) I’ve decided I’m going to take a shot.  I’m already off to a bad start, because I started a day late, but I’m going to give it a go.  I’ll post the pictures to Instagram and some will probably make their way over to twitter or my personal facebook page. 

Here’s a peek:

Today’s picture had to fall under the theme of shoes. It was easy. I looked down and saw my very-worn, very-comfy Birkenstocks on my feet. I wear these for most of the day. Currently, they help with my plantar fasciitis, but they have been with me for a few years and have seen a lot. There are some teeth marks on the leather and some flaking cork because these were my dog’s shoes of choice to use as a chew toy. I always know that summer is on its way when I can start wearing them, and am sad to see the fall ending when I have to tuck them away in the closet.  They were the only shoes I could wear from the middle of June last year, when I was 5 months pregnant, and the heat started to rise, and they saw me through the final months of my pregnancy and for an entire month after my son was born, when no other shoes would fit.  They really do hold a special place in my heart.   

Follow me on Instagram and make sure I stick to it! http://instagram.com/TIFFS2012